Go

So once the disciples arrive at “the mountain” in the Galilee, we are told the following:

Now the eleven disciples went to Galilee, to the mountain to which Jesus had directed them. And when they saw him they worshiped him, but some doubted.

I love that we are told some of the disciples doubted. Before one of the greatest and final commands Jesus gives in his early ministry, we are told there are still those who doubt. And Jesus commissions them anyway. He does not separate the sheep from the goats for the great commission. He does not put the doubters in one pile and the believers in another.

Apparently doubt is acceptable for commissioned disciple-makers of Jesus.

That’s good news, because I have some great moments of wrestling, don’t you? It’s okay to admit it. Nobody is listening (although you may look quite odd to your coworker if you are talking to your computer).

Jesus tells them:

“All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.”

Now, let’s unpack this piece by piece. In fact, let’s do it backwards.

Teach them. Jesus wants his followers to be teachers. One of our jobs is to open our eyes and assist others in opening their eyes to the truth and reality of God’s story all around them. We aren’t to bring them to some holy place where they can see God — no, we are to help them see God everywhere. We are to teach them about God as seen in the person of Jesus Christ. We are to pass on his teachings. As we’ve discussed before, I’m not sure how we will fulfill this command if we do not know his teachings…

Baptize them. If you remember, the act of baptism is an act of repentance. We are inviting people to “return home.” We are inviting them to come back to where God originally created them to be. We are bringing people “good news” about a far better Kingdom than the ones they are accustomed to. We are marking entrance into this Kingdom with a washing — a cleansing. It’s a putting on of a new self and a washing away of the old. This new reality is throwing the lights on for people everywhere, setting them free.

Make disciples. This is the portion that gets me in the most trouble. I say this because I do not believe the great commission is inviting us to make converts. I do not believe Jesus is inviting us here to call people into deeper spiritual formation or mentorship. I do not believe the great commission (specifically) is a call to spiritual growth or maturity. I believe that, like the rest of the Bible, I need to hear this command through the ears of context. The call to make disciples is a call to rabbinical, “Come, follow me” discipleship. It is a call to find people who are willing and able to spend their whole selves becoming like their rabbi. We talked earlier in this series about the process of discipleship, about how a disciple wanted to “know what the rabbi knows, in order to do what the rabbi does, in order to be just like the rabbi in his walk with God.” This is what the call of discipleship is. I would expound on this, but I’m not sure where I would stop. This is one of my greatest passions. I’m not sure why so few are making disciples the way Jesus made disciples; that seems like a recipe of foolishness to me. The call of discipleship is not for everyone, but it should be for someone. This is the reason I got into campus ministry; somebody needs to be finding ways to look at a student and say, “Come, follow me.”

And the best part of this whole thing is that Jesus doesn’t do the normal “rabbi thing.” Typically, rabbis would pass on their authority to at least one or some of their disciples so the story might continue. But we’re listening to a resurrected Jesus talk here. He’s very much alive — and he keeps all the authority for himself.

We are to go and make disciples. We are to make disciples the way Jesus made disciples. We are commissioned in the living authority of Jesus. And when the going gets tough and the mistakes happen and the fear is overwhelming…

…lo, he is with us always. Forever. To the very end of the age.