“Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.” Matthew 28:19-20.
I will start by asking a simple question. Why are we here? I am not referring to all mankind, but to Christians. Think about this. We have accepted the salvation God provided us through the death, burial and resurrection of His Son Jesus Christ. And because of this decision we have a glorious eternal future with God. We will have no wants, and life will be absolutely perfect. There will be no sin, sorrow, suffering or shame. In this world, we experience the four S’s I stated here. We have all seen the markings of sin all over this world. Greed, selfishness and hatred abound. People lose friends and family members on a daily basis, bringing sorrow to countless numbers left here to mourn. There is no way to count the number of people suffering from disease, constant pain, and hatred from others who stand against what we believe. Christians throughout centuries have experienced the four S’s on a continuous basis. If the Christian life is about the individual, then why have we not been taken away immediately to our new eternal home. Basically because it is not only about us.
The focus verse for this post is known as the “Great Commission.” According to the Oxford Dictionary, a commission is “An instruction, command or role given to a person or group.” Jesus gave this command to the Apostles just before ascending to Heaven to take His seat at the right hand of the Father. And this commission was then given to the Christians during the Apostolic period, and ultimately to us modern day Christians. The command given to us is to go into all the world, making disciples from all nations. Now, this does not mean we individually are called to go throughout the world. As the Church, we are to go and make disciples of all nations. I currently live in Acworth, GA. I may be called to go to other places, but I am definitely called to reach those in Acworth and the surrounding areas. If we live in Puyallup, WA where I grew up, again, we may be called to other nations, but we are definitely called to Puyallup and the surrounding areas.
Our purpose here is not necessarily to be successful in business or enjoy all of life’s pleasures. It is not about focusing on ourself but others. It is about sharing the gospel of Christ to a world that does not know or understand the grace God has given us. There are many who are lost and do not know or understand what Christ has done for us. Our purpose is to introduce them to the Savior and show them what His grace is. There are many who are abused and/or persecuted. Our purpose it to help them out of this and show them the love of God. There are countless who do not have the basic necessities of life, food, clothing and shelter. Our purpose is to show God’s love by providing these necessities for them while sharing God’s love with them. There are too many who are lonely and without the company of anyone who cares about them. Our purpose is to love them and show them they are not alone. Again, individually we cannot do all this. However, the Church has the means to accomplish this. And as members of the Church, it is incumbent on us to do our part.
Now I am not saying we cannot do other things we enjoy. However, our focus as Christians should be the Great Commission, and as Christians we should enjoy doing that. Whatever we do, people should see the light of Christ shining from us. Think about this. I enjoy going to a coffee shop where I can sit back and do some reading or spend time with others. We can enjoy ourselves while living the Christian life in a public setting. Being a light in the world can make a difference in the lives of someone who sees us or may come and talk with us. St. Francis of Assisi said the following,
“Preach the Gospel at all times and when necessary use words.”
When an opportunity arises to speak to others of the gospel, do so with boldness, but do not push it upon them. Let your light so shine that the world sees Christ in you. Pray for opportunities to share Christ with them, then be open to hearing from God regarding what to do. Let everything you do allow for opportunities to help those in need, whether of salvation, food, clothing, shelter, etc.
We are always to grow in the faith, understanding more of who God is, and what this Christian life is all about. However, we should not do this simply for our own benefit, but also for the benefit of others. Learning without sharing is useless learning. I love to read and learn new thoughts or ideas. However, I used to do it simply to gain knowledge or show others how much I knew. Useless knowledge. Now, I learn to teach people various truths. I want others to learn and grow in the knowledge of Christ and Christianity. We can do practically everything for our own benefit, but we must strive to make others our focus. It is important we fulfill our purpose here as God has called us, to make disciples of all nations and love God and our fellow man. We exhibit our love for God by doing what He has said, and we show our love to our fellow man by sharing the truth of the gospel and meeting their needs as we can. It is not to focus on ourselves, but to focus on others and how we can help them attain salvation and a life where their needs are met. And by doing these things, we will find ourselves more fulfilled and more joyful than we ever felt possible. This happens because we put others above ourselves, and that is a good life.
Be First to Comment