Entry 13: The Great Commission - 11/2/22

   A commandment that God has given us in the book of Matthew is one that has been overlooked and often ignored. The commandment is found in Matthew 28:18-20 and states... Then Jesus came to them and said, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.” God calls each and every one of us to go, and bring the Good News to every nation, but it is only Good News if it gets there in time. There are thousands of people dying every day not knowing the love of Jesus and the gift of everlasting life in heaven because no one told them. Sadly these people are condemned to Hell. (yah, this entry is getting raw and real) "But don't good people go to heaven?" Sadly no, good people do not go to heaven. Forgiven people go to heaven, and the way one can learn forgiveness is through the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ. We must Go and share the Good News. We must share the Grace that only God gives.

   The major thing that sets "God (Jesus Christ)" apart from all other gods and religions besides being the only real one is that he is a forgiving God who displays Grace. We do not need to do works or good deeds to be justified. God was the first display of what we call today a missionary when he came in flesh under the name of Jesus Christ. Jesus then made the ultimate sacrifice when he in the absence of wrong got crucified on a hill and by people that he created. While being beaten and experiencing all the pain of flesh, he chose me and you. He had all authority and power to rise up an army of angels or save himself at any moment in time, but instead he had to die as a sacrifice. The perfect lamb with no blemishes died to justify the sins and iniquities of you and I. God is omnipresent meaning he is present throughout all of time and at all times. This means that when he "in the form of Jesus" was getting nails driven into his hands with the weight of every sin upon him thought of you. He thought of all the times you made a mistake or rejected him and instead of being angered he gave his life so that your transgressions, through repentance, could be forgiven and you could be perfect in the eyes of God.

   In Knowledge of what is stated above I have no option or desire to pursue anything else in this world other than the hearts and souls of those who have not been set free or received the treasure of Jesus Christ. Through the obedience of Jesus's commandment in Matthew that says GO, I must GO. The devils greatest victory is in a passive christian. One who stays in the comfortability of their home, basking in mediocracy and passivity. We have a gift, and that gift is the Holy Spirit that reside in us. It is written that wherever we go so will Jesus and the Holy Spirit. If we truly believe this why is it that we coward away from newness and discomfort? Why do we fear the danger that may come from a third world country or persecution in closed countries? 

   There is a time in the old testament when the King of Israel, David, through Christ was called to battle. Instead of going and leading his men, David stayed back and relished in the blessings God provided for him earlier in his life. It was during this time that David saw Bathsheba bathing on a rooftop and was tempted. He then committed adultery with Bathsheba and later placed her husband on the frontlines of battle to be killed. It was more dangerous for David to stay back in the "safety" of his palace than to go and take part in the war that God called him to attend. This is the same for us. It is less dangerous to go into the battle that God has called us to rather than disobeying and staying back. By not going we are not only disobeying but we are quite literally rebelling against God. The devil has numbed us and made us think we are not living in passivity and that we are doing all we can in our hometown. Maybe many of you are doing great things and if so that is great. To the others, how many more bible studies with the same men or women do you need? Why keep "strengthening" your clique of friends when there are people that have never heard the Good News. How many more non retaining sermons will we listen to before we realize God is seeking deeper and deeper intimacy with us and that we are called for greater things? Maybe many of the problems that we deal with in our entitled lives would be removed with gratitude when we witness the unfortunate lives so many others are living.

   I do not want to write this as a form of condemnation but instead to light a fire in your soul. I pray that in this writing I possibly offended some. If you feel offended reading this then the paragraph above probably applies to you and I pray your mind be opened to the possibility of doing something bigger in your life and stepping into the fullness of what God has in store for you. I could have just sugar coated it, but those who are dying without the knowledge of a creator are not being coated with sugar, instead they are being coated with a jacket of eternal flame, with gnashing of teeth and excruciating pain. This Entry is not only supposed to motivate whoever reads this but also to hold myself accountable to the desires placed in my heart by God of reaching the unreached. It is to remind myself that my time is limited and that even before I go to another country in December I should share the treasure that is Jesus and salvation with everyone I know. When I return from outreach in five months I pray I do not return to the passivity I once lived in. Culture can so easily suck us in and through negative repetition and weak spiritual discipline we can so easily conform to the ways of this world. Before I received the burning desire to make a difference in this world and take part in the great commission I lived in passivity. I lived in quiet desperation for something more but did not know what it was. I felt my life could be used for so much more, but I also felt as if I had no purpose. I sought intimacy and the feeling of being whole, but the earthy counterfeits always left me wanting more. When I allowed God to be the Lord of my whole life and not just the Lord in some areas, I received meaning and purpose in my life. For if God is not Lord of all then he is Lord of none.