"Great Commission"

[WAB]

What’s So “GREAT” About The “GREAT COMMISSION”?
​

To begin with, whoever might want to know the answer to this question, must understand:
#1 Who issued the commission in the first place.
Answer: The risen/resurrected Lord, Jesus Christ.

#2 To whom did He issue said commission?
Answer: To fallible, hard-hearted, unbelieving men who were gathered together feeling sorry for themselves, and whom He had to rebuke for their unbelief, even after their having been told of His resurrection/appearance by several eye-witnesses.

#3 What did the “Great Commission” consist of?
Answer: “…He said to them, ‘Go into all the world and preach and publish openly the good news (the Gospel) to every creature [of the whole human race].’” (Amplified Bible) Of course He said that to those who had finally believed after having seen and heard the risen Lord. To verify all of the above, see Mark Chapter 16.

The definition of the word “Gospel” is well known: “the good news”…
A thumb-nail, but absolutely accurate, description of that “good news” is found in 1Corinthians 15:1-4...
“Moreover, brethren, I declare to you the gospel, which I preached to you, which also you received and in which you stand, 2: by which also you are saved, if you hold fast that word which I preached to you--unless you believed in vain (without effect). 3: For I delivered to you first of all that which I also received; that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, 4: and that He was buried, and that He rose again the third day according to the Scriptures…”

Jesus told those who had finally believed, to preach the Gospel to “every creature”. It does not take a genius to come to the conclusion that the Lord was referring to every person in the world. Since He told His disciples/followers to preach the good news to every person on earth, then the Gospel they were to preach must have been, and is now applicable to every person! Jew, Gentile, Black, White, Yellow, ALL on equal footing.

The idea that the Gospel our Lord told His disciples/apostles to preach is different than the Gospel Paul was commissioned to preach, falls apart upon reading what Paul himself wrote to the Corinthian church in the same passage quoted above when Paul says:

“Therefore, whether it was I (Paul) or they (those who had seen the risen Saviour, including Cephas/Peter, vs.5), so we preach and so you believed.” (1Cor.15:11).

Paul very clearly states here in verse 11 that the gospel he preached to the Corinthians mentioned in verse 1 of 1 Cor.15, was/is the same gospel that Peter and the other eye-witnesses (vs.6) preached.

Included among those eye-witnesses, Paul tells us, was James and all the rest of the apostles (verse 7).

“Then last of all He was seen by me also, as by one born out of due time. For I am the least of the apostles….” (vs.8,9a). It is a serious twisting of scripture to suggest (as some do) that Paul was referring here to a different group of apostles than those he mentions in verse 7. That is well-known as taking verses of scripture out of context.

So…. to return to the original question in the caption to this brief study, what is so great about the “Great Commission”?

Of course the fact that the said commission is world-wide and totally inclusive of all people groups (and every individual within each of those groups) is part of that greatness. It is impossible to name any specific group, or any individual, who is excluded as a potential recipient of the truth of the gospel.

But the real “greatness” of the commission is primarily based on the One who issued it.

As Paul puts it in 2 Corinthians 5:19-21.… “…God was in Christ, reconciling the world unto Himself, not imputing their trespasses unto them; and hath committed unto us the word of reconciliation. Now then we are ambassadors for Christ, as though God did beseech you by us, we pray you in Christ’s stead, be reconciled to God. For He hath made Him to be sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in Him.”

JESUS CHRIST is the One who makes the Great Commission GREAT!

Shalom… WAB

 

[eph3Nine]

The great commission given to the disciples WAS great, but its NOT the commission given to we the Body of Christ and it was never carried out...God SET ASIDE their program, WAB.

YOU are touting a commission that is OUT OF COMMISSION! Ignorance is NOT bliss when its deliberate and willful...its simply deceptive and dishonoring to God.

 

[Tychicum]

And he said unto them, Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature. He that believeth and is baptized shall be saved; but he that believeth not shall be damned. And these signs shall follow them that believe; In my name shall they cast out devils; they shall speak with new tongues; They shall take up serpents; and if they drink any deadly thing, it shall not hurt them; they shall lay hands on the sick, and they shall recover.
(Mar 16:15-18 KJV)

WAB have you ever wondered why the whole "Commission" which the Lord gave is NEVER preached?

You know ... the bit about the snakes and drinking poison. Even the farce which some call "tongues" today is nothing at all like the real deal Jesus foretold?

Jesus never spoke tentatively ... it certainly reads to me like a promise ...

They "shall" ... they "shall" ...

It is my contention that the Lord's statement was prophetic ... to a time which will come when "all Israel shall be saved" ...

For I would not, brethren, that ye should be ignorant of this mystery, lest ye should be wise in your own conceits; that blindness in part is happened to Israel, until the fulness of the Gentiles be come in. And so all Israel shall be saved: as it is written, There shall come out of Sion the Deliverer, and shall turn away ungodliness from Jacob: For this is my covenant unto them, when I shall take away their sins.
(Rom 11:25-27 KJV)

 

[eph3Nine]

amen Tychie....amen.

A future event, when God is again dealing with the NATION, and this time of the Gentiles is finished.

 

[lightninboy]

Matthew 28:19-20

• Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost:
• Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you alway, even unto the end of the world. Amen.

This passage is often called the Great Commission. The Church is commanded to be the one that will go and tell the world of salvation through Jesus Christ.

The local, New Testament church is the only institution established by God to fulfill the great commission and each local church is to be headquarters for world missions.

The Great Commission (Matthew 28:18-20), which is accepted by many churches as their primary mission statement, speaks of teaching two times: “teach all nations” and “Teaching them to observe all things.”

He has commanded the Church to go throughout the world to reach the lost. In Acts, Jesus tells us, “ye shall be witnesses unto me both in Jerusalem, and in all Judea, and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth” (Acts 1:8).

 

[JerryShugart]

Matthew 28:19-20

• Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost:
• Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you alway, even unto the end of the world. Amen.

This passage is often called the Great Commission.

That was the commision or dispensation that was given to Israel.

However,that is not the commission or dispensation that is for today. Paul speaks of a "dispensation" that was given to him:

"If ye have heard of the dispensation of the grace of God which is given me toward you" (Eph. 3: 2).

"Whereof I am made a minister, according to the dispensation of God which is given to me for you, to fulfil the word of God" (Col. 1:25).

"…a dispensation of the gospel is committed unto me" (1 Cor. 9: 17).

The "dispensation" which was committed to Paul is in regard to "God's grace", a "ministry", and a "gospel":

"…the ministry, which I have received of the Lord Jesus, to testify the gospel of the grace of God" (Acts 20: 24).

It was that gospel that was preached in "all the world" (Col.1:5-6),not the "gospel of the kingdom". If the "gospel of the kingdom" was preached to the world in the first century then the "great tribulation" and the return of Christ would have already happened:

"And this gospel of the kingdom shall be preached in all the world for a witness unto all nations; and then shall the end come. When ye therefore shall see the abomination of desolation, spoken of by Daniel the prophet, stand in the holy place...For then shall be great tribulation...then shall all the tribes of the earth mourn, and they shall see the Son of man coming in the clouds of heaven with power and great glory" (Mt.24:14-15,21,30).

Those who say that Christians are to follow the so-called "great commission" cannot even tell the difference between the "gospel of the kingdom" and the "gospel of grace".

In His grace,--Jerry

 

[lightninboy]

Jerry,

There may be some truth in what you said.

The gospel of the kingdom was being preached at least up until Acts 13 or whatever, thus the Great Commission was of the gospel of the kingdom.

On the other hand, the Great Commission was given to the Church, and we are the Church.

It was that gospel that was preached in "all the world" (Col.1:5-6),not the "gospel of the kingdom". If the "gospel of the kingdom" was preached to the world in the first century then the "great tribulation" and the return of Christ would have already happened:

The Gentiles of the whole world were supposed to become proselyte Jews? Would you even want to become a proselyte Jew? Why would the Great Tribulation have happened, though the gospel of the kingdom was preached to the world? Wouldn't it make more sense that the Millennium and good would come instead of the Great Tribulation and bad? Do you think that a first-century Great Tribulation would hold a candle to a twenty-first-century Great Tribulation?

 

[JerryShugart]

Jerry,

There may be some truth in what you said.

The gospel of the kingdom was being preached at least up until Acts 13 or whatever, thus the Great Commission was of the gospel of the kingdom.

On the other hand, the Great Commission was given to the Church, and we are the Church.

lightenboy,

Let say that you are correct that the "great commission" was given to the Church, and that commission was to preach the "gospel of the kingdom".

That does not rule out the idea that another commision was given to the Church at a later time. Acts 2 dispensationalists admit that another body of the people of the Lord (the nation of Israel) came into existence under one dispensation (Promise) and then later they were given another dispensation (Law).

So even if you are right that the Church was first given the "great commission" that does not rule out the idea that later it was given another commission. And we can see clearly that Paul was given a commission to preach the "gospel of grace" at a later time. And we are to be followers of him and preach the same gospel.

We can clearly see that we are not to teach the same thing that the Jerusalem church taught on the day of Pentecost:

"Repent ye therefore, and be converted, that your sins may be blotted out, that the times of refreshing shall come from the presence of the Lord. And he shall send Jesus Christ, which before was preached unto you" (Acts 3:19-20).

I think that you will agree that this is not a teaching for the Church today. We are not to tell the nation of Israel,or anyone for that matter, that if they will repent then the Father will send back Jsus Christ.

So what was taught then is not the same thing which we are to teach today,is it?

In His grace,--Jerry

 

[Dispy]

Matthew 28:19-20

• Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost:
• Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you alway, even unto the end of the world. Amen.

This passage is often called the Great Commission. The Church is commanded to be the one that will go and tell the world of salvation through Jesus Christ.

The local, New Testament church is the only institution established by God to fulfill the great commission and each local church is to be headquarters for world missions.

The Great Commission (Matthew 28:18-20), which is accepted by many churches as their primary mission statement, speaks of teaching two times: “teach all nations” and “Teaching them to observe all things.”

He has commanded the Church to go throughout the world to reach the lost. In Acts, Jesus tells us, “ye shall be witnesses unto me both in Jerusalem, and in all Judea, and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth” (Acts 1:8).

It would be impossible for me, or others, to carry out the so called "great commission" as originally stated in the Gospels. If one could, there would no longer be a need for hospitals (Mark 16:17-18).

Members have a much "greater commission" to follow, and it is containd in Paul Epistles as per Ephesians 3:9 and 2 Corinthians 5:18-20.

 

[lightninboy]

Did Israel fulfill the Great Commission?

Jerry, I asked you some questions on Dispy's Which Gospel: Kingdom or Grace? thread.

 

[lightninboy]

Simon Peter has just professed that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God. Jesus responded by saying, “Upon this rock I will build my church. . . .” The Lord announced plans to build His Church. This Church will be composed of those, who, like Simon Peter, professed Jesus as the Christ, the Son of God. While the Church is composed of those who have gotten saved, It was built upon none other than Christ Himself.
While this Church is made up of Believers everywhere, It exists as numerous visible local churches. Throughout the New Testament, there are instructions on how these local churches are to be built and to operate. Since you have professed Jesus Christ to be your Savior, you will richly gain by joining a local church. You became a member of His Church at salvation, but you become a member of a local church by membership.

Acts 1:8 To those assembled for Pentecost, Luke wrote, "But you shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be witnesses to Me in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth."
Acts 2:47 Peter preaches the truth, and God adds to the Church daily.
Acts 6:7 As the Word goes forth, more disciples are added to the Church.
Acts 6:8-9 Stephen, as we understand, a deacon, was powerfully preaching God's message.
Acts 8:4 As a result of Saul's persecution on the Church, we read, "Therefore those who were scattered went everywhere preaching the word."
Acts 8:5, 12 Philip, another deacon, preaches the gospel of the kingdom.
Acts 9:17, 25, 30 Paul is converted and the Church members are involved as Paul escapes death.
Acts 12:5-14 The church members provide support for the apostle Peter during his imprisonment.
Acts 14:20, 22, 28 Members rescued Paul and supported him in his work.
Acts 16:5, 14-15 Along with preaching came the strengthening of the church.
Acts 18:24-25 Apollos zealously begins spreading the Word.
Acts 20:28 Paul is concerned that the Church be fed and strengthened as God's flock.

 

[Dispy]

Simon Peter has just professed that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God. Jesus responded by saying, “Upon this rock I will build my church. . . .” The Lord announced plans to build His Church. This Church will be composed of those, who, like Simon Peter, professed Jesus as the Christ, the Son of God. While the Church is composed of those who have gotten saved, It was built upon none other than Christ Himself.
While this Church is made up of Believers everywhere, It exists as numerous visible local churches. Throughout the New Testament, there are instructions on how these local churches are to be built and to operate. Since you have professed Jesus Christ to be your Savior, you will richly gain by joining a local church. You became a member of His Church at salvation, but you become a member of a local church by membership.

Acts 1:8 To those assembled for Pentecost, Luke wrote, "But you shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be witnesses to Me in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth."
Acts 2:47 Peter preaches the truth, and God adds to the Church daily.
Acts 6:7 As the Word goes forth, more disciples are added to the Church.
Acts 6:8-9 Stephen, as we understand, a deacon, was powerfully preaching God's message.
Acts 8:4 As a result of Saul's persecution on the Church, we read, "Therefore those who were scattered went everywhere preaching the word."
Acts 8:5, 12 Philip, another deacon, preaches the gospel of the kingdom.
Acts 9:17, 25, 30 Paul is converted and the Church members are involved as Paul escapes death.
Acts 12:5-14 The church members provide support for the apostle Peter during his imprisonment.
Acts 14:20, 22, 28 Members rescued Paul and supported him in his work.
Acts 16:5, 14-15 Along with preaching came the strengthening of the church.
Acts 18:24-25 Apollos zealously begins spreading the Word.
Acts 20:28 Paul is concerned that the Church be fed and strengthened as God's flock.

Taken from my post #24 on the WHICH GOSPEL? KINGDO OR GRACE? thread, to which you never responded

WHAT THE COMMISSION DOES NOT SAY

A consideration of what the commission to the eleven does not say is, perhaps, a greater eye-opener than a consideration of what it does say.

Unless the author's experience in this matter is entirely unique, it may greatly surprise many of our readers to note that the so-called "great commission":

Does not even contain the word "grace," or refer to "the gospel of the grace of God."

Does not mention "the preaching of the cross."

Does not mention salvation through the blood of Christ, much less by faith in His shed blood.

Does not mention Christ's death as the payment for sin, or His all-sufficient work of redemption as the basis for salvation.

Does not offer salvation as the gift of God, apart from works.

Does not offer salvation apart from the law of Moses.

Does not mention salvation by faith alone, apart from the law or works.

Does not associate Christ's death and resurrection with our justification.

Does not state that there is "no difference" between Jew and Gentile; in fact, it does the opposite by giving Israel priority.

Does not contain one word about the Body of Christ, or about our divine baptism into Christ and His Body.

Does not contain one word about a heavenly position and prospect, or "all spiritual blessings in the heavenlies in Christ."

Under the so-called "great commission," then, we would not be preaching any of the above. And when we realize that all this is the very theme of Paul's God-given message, and ours, does it not become irresistibly evident that there has been a change in dispensation, a change in program, since our Lord commissioned the eleven?

If the so-called "great commission" is for our obedience and we tell a sinner that he may be saved by grace through faith, apart from works or the law, because Christ died for his sins, are we not working outside, even contrary to our commission?

It is not until we come to Paul that we learn about "the preaching of the cross" as good news (I Cor. 1:18), "the gospel of the grace of God" (Acts 20:24), justification through Christ's finished work, apart from the law and apart from works (Acts 13:38,39; Rom. 3:21; Rom. 4:5; Eph. 2:8,9; Tit. 3:5; etc.), "the mystery" of the "one body" with its "one baptism," and its heavenly position, blessings and prospect (I Cor. 12:13; Eph. 1:3; 2:4-7,16; 3:1-6; 4:4, 5; Col. 3:1-3; etc.).

Yet today pastors and Bible teachers, living more than 1900 years after the commission given to the eleven, and the subsequent raising up of Paul, claim to be working under the so-called "great commission"! Is it any wonder that an ever-deepening confusion has gripped the Church?

I rest my case.

 

[lightninboy]

The Great Commission is one of the most significant passages in the Holy Bible. First, it's the last recorded personal instruction given by Jesus to His disciples. Second, it's a special calling from Jesus Christ to all His followers to take specific action while on this earth.

The Great Commission is the end of a Gospel and the beginning of faith in action for all Christians. This command from Jesus is significant because it's a personal instruction for Christians to have a profound faith in Jesus Christ as indicated in verse 18. "All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth." This is an incredibly powerful statement which demands faith in Jesus Christ, validating His power in the lives of Christians and their commitment to Him. This verse acts as a clear claim to Christ's omnipotence, and therefore His deity. If Christians do not believe this statement, complete faith does not exist. Jesus is very clear about His authority in the world -- it is complete and total from the beginning of time itself (John 1:1-3).

In verse 19, Jesus gives His believers specific directions to follow after they have affirmed their faith. "Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit." Jesus calls all His followers to act and share the Good News of salvation throughout the world. People hear this calling and travel each year on missionary trips throughout the earth, spreading the word of Jesus Christ. Many Christians have made incredible sacrifices, traveling to remote regions of the world beyond the civilized cities into jungles and deserts. Mission fields can also be very close to home. It could be a neighbor who has not heard the Good News, or a poverty stricken area just down the road where people can't afford Bibles. In the 21st century, the Internet has become a mission field where people can reach out and share Christ's love. The places and people who need to hear the Gospel are everywhere!

Another important aspect of verse 19 is that Christ is specifically teaching the doctrine of the Trinity to His followers. The three Persons of the Godhead are each equally and fully God and here presented in the logical order of Father, Son and Holy Spirit - yet only One God from the beginning (see Romans 1:20).

Finally, in verse 20, Jesus provides specific direction with affirmation to His followers, "teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age." Christians are instructed to teach others about Jesus Christ and the entirety of His truth. We can't profess Christ as Savior and Lord, while rejecting certain of His teachings. As we teach Christ's truths, verse 20 declares that we can be confident, in faith, that Jesus Christ will support us. This fact has proven trustworthy throughout the centuries as millions of believers have heard, accepted and shared the Good News of Jesus Christ. Yes, Christ has ascended back to heaven, but He is present by the power of the Holy Spirit in every believer!

 

[lightninboy]

The good news is that Jesus Christ indeed came to the earth. God himself came into this universe and into this earth where he lived a life that was sinless, where eventually he was crucified on the cross in Palestine; where he was buried and laid in the grave three days. Yet on that resurrection day he came out from the grave alive and made himself known to others about him - to his disciples and to five hundred others. This is the good news that we have to share. This is what the Great Commission is all about: that we are to go in the footsteps of the early disciples and share Christ.

Matthew, Mark, Luke and John all record this mandate by Christ, the Great Commission. Matthew records it this way: "Go therefore and make disciples of all nations" (28:19 RSV). Mark puts it this way: "Go into all the world and preach the good news to all creation" (16:15). Luke quotes Jesus as saying, "Repentance and forgiveness of sins should be preached in his name to all nations" (24:47 RSV). And then in John we have these words of Jesus: "peace be with you! As the Father has sent me, I am sending you" (20:21). From these passages we hear these words: go, proclaim. And we learn that we are the sent ones.

There are at least 3 billion people out of the world population of 4.6 billion who are without Christ Jesus - people who have not had the opportunity yet to say yes or no to the Lord Jesus Christ. Each of us I trust has had the opportunity to say "Yes, I want you Lord Jesus to come into my heart, to change me and to forgive my sins;" Or to say, "No, I don't want you" and to close the way out. But there are 3 billion people who have not had that opportunity, and that's one of the reasons we're here: to talk about how we can reach those people.

Listen to the eternal results of taking the Great Commission to the world: "After this I looked and there before me was a great multitude that no one could count, from every nation, tribe, people and language, standing before the throne and in front of the Lamb" (Rev 7:9). John saw the results of people obediently carrying out the Great Commission. He saw people from every tribe, every language and every nation surrounding the throne of God, worshiping him and crying out "salvation is great from him who has saved us."
Listen to the eternal results of taking the Great Commission to the world: "After this I looked and there before me was a great multitude that no one could count, from every nation, tribe, people and language, standing before the throne and in front of the Lamb" (Rev 7:9). John saw the results of people obediently carrying out the Great Commission. He saw people from every tribe, every language and every nation surrounding the throne of God, worshiping him and crying out "salvation is great from him who has saved us."

Brothers and sisters in Christ, the Great Commission has never been rescinded. Christ's mandate to us, our marching orders to carry the gospel into our communities, into our states, into our provinces, into other nations, has never been countercommanded. It is our privilege and our responsibility as believers in Christ to follow our Lord's orders.

 

[lightninboy]

To them He gave marching orders. Orders that they would not fully understand until Acts 10. Orders that they would not carry out until the hand of persecution sent them everywhere preaching the Gospel. Orders that have come down even to us today. Orders that call upon us as upon those first disciples. But how are we doing, how have we done, how will we do? The work has not been completed in these 2000 years, but why. Let us look at the great commission in light of today's world and today's needs.

1. The Requirement
   1. To go
      1. Preach
      2. Disciple - make
      3. Baptize
      4. Keep on going
      5. As you are going
2. The Responsibility
   1. In Jesus' day the civilized world of 250,000,000 was reached in that first generation.
   2. But Christianity become more interested in:
      1. Cathedrals than in converts
      2. Disputes than disciples
      3. In armies that alms
      4. In persecution than peace
      5. Idols than the incarnate Christ
      6. Position than prayer
      7. Political power than purity
      8. Position than prayer
   3. And after the first 700 years of Christianity, I think that God raised up the Islam people with their hatred to idols to afflict the so called Christian west for her devotion to the idols of the saints.
   4. 6,000,000 Moslems in America, more than the Episcopal Church and the Presbyterian Church
   5. Ten times more people today have never heard the gospel than were alive in Jesus' day.
   6. Today has God raised up Osoma Ben Laudin to afflict America for her waywardness.
   7. When Jerry Fawell suggested that he was denounced by the media.
   8. Billy Graham's daughter being interviewed on the Early Show and Jane Clayson asked her "how could God let something like this happen?" and Anne Graham gave an extremely profound and insightful response. She said, "I believe that God is deeply saddened by this, just as we are, but for years we've been telling God to get out of our schools, to get out of our government and to get out of our lives, and being the gentleman that he is, I believe that he has calmly backed out. How can we expect God to give us his blessing and his protection if we demand he leave us alone?
   9. But that beleaguered group of believers of that first century went.
3. The Response
   1. The amphitheater of the first century with their gladiators and Christian offered to the lions fell into disuse.
   2. The immorality of the Roman society was recognized for the degeneracy that it was.
   3. In those first three centuries the power of the cross accomplished what the legions of Parthians could not.
   4. Without the aid of printing press, autos or air planes, radio or television, computers, e-mail or even snail mail those first disciples turned the world upside down.
   5. They ruined the worship of the pagan idols with the immorality of their sensuous temples.
   6. It was not Christianity that led to the fall of the empire but the degeneration of Christianity into an empty, spiritless, powerless formalism.
   7. Christianity finally fell into the same excesses that led to the fall of Jerusalem and Samaria.
   8. The problem has never been with the power of the gospel but in weakness of the saints to proclaim it and live in obedience to the call of it.
4. The Results
   1. We have our great denominations of Christianity.
   2. We have a thousand smaller sects who have chosen to fight each other more than the real enemy Satan and his world.
   3. We who have the means to carry out this commission are quite satisfied with our own security.
   4. We have forgotten the condemnation that was placed on Israel and Judah of the poor and the oppressed.
      1. We do not care where it was made and at who's expense if Walmart sells it cheep.
      2. Three-fourths of the world does not even have safe drinking water, but we just go on.
      3. We hear about the persecution of believers all over the world and we just go on.
5. The Reprimand
   1. I do not think that the "Behold I Come quickly" was written for the Moslems but for the Christian.
   2. It was to believers that John wrote And now, little children, abide in Him, that when He appears, we may have confidence and not be ashamed before Him at His coming. I Jn 2:28 (NKJ)
   3. Jesus was a carpenter but He told a lot of farming stories.
      1. In those stories the goal was always a harvest to be gathered into the barns of heaven and the chaff to be burnt with unquenchable fire.
      2. We are the laborers.
      3. We are the servants.

 

[coons786c]

How can you ever say whats so great about the great commision. Jesus died and suffered for your sins. He was in agony and pain for your sins. There is only one message to be preached. Repentance and remission of sins should be preached in his name (Jesus) beginning at Jerusalem. Whats the message. Repent and be baptised in Jesus Name and recieve the Gift of the Holy Ghost.

 

[Apollos1]

General response…

I wasted my time reading the post (#12) above entiltled - “What the Commission does not Say”.
It is pointless. It has no substance. It offers nothing but an opportunity for someone to bloviate.

Allow me to show you what I mean by presenting the same type of pointless discourse with a favorite scripture misused on the dispensationalist side.

1 Corinthians 15:1-4 is a big favorite used by the dispy crowd. To many of them it is the “counter scripture” to the Great Commission as found in Matthew 28:19 – they do so hate to be left out of in the cold. This is their “Holy Grill” so to speak!

Unless my experience be found unique, just what does 1 Corinthians 15:1-4 NOT say?
(From the post given above I find…

-Does not even contain the word "grace," or refer to "the gospel of the grace of God."
-Does not mention the word "cross."
-Does not mention salvation through the blood of Christ, much less by faith in His shed blood.
-Does not mention Christ's death as all-sufficient work of redemption as the basis for salvation.
-Does not offer salvation as the gift of God.
-Does not mention salvation apart from the law of Moses.
-Does not mention salvation by faith.
-Does not associate Christ's death and resurrection with our justification.
-Does not state that there is "no difference" between Jew and Gentile.
-Does not contain one word about the Body of Christ/the church of God.
-Does not mention one word about "all spiritual blessings are found in Christ."

So what ? There are non-points in this context.

There is much other dribble contained in that post that I disagree with, but I see no need to address each individual point when the thrust of the post is effectively benign.)

My examples above show only how banal such thinking is!

It is inappropriate to take ONE scripture and then whine about what it does not say.
ONE scripture can not say it all. God did not give us just ONE scripture to cover the topic of salvation.
Yet the dispys in jealous desperation of what it repreents attack “the Great Commission” (Matthew 28:19) as if it were a personal attack upon them.

It must be the effectual nature and truth contained within “the Great Commission” that dispys find so offensive and distasteful.

“The Great Commission” does say…

Matthew 28:18 -And Jesus came to them and spake unto them, saying,
All authority hath been given unto me in heaven and on earth.
19Go ye therefore, and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them into the name of the Father and
of the Son and of the Holy Spirit:
20 teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I commanded you: and lo, I am with you always, even unto the end of the world.
Is there a problem here??? I don’t think so!

Dispys parse this ONE verse more than any other book, chapter, or verse in my opinion.
Why is that???

When you rest your case, rest it upon the authority of the Lord Jesus Christ!

 

[JerryShugart]

“The Great Commission” does say…

Matthew 28:18 -And Jesus came to them and spake unto them, saying,
All authority hath been given unto me in heaven and on earth.
19Go ye therefore, and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them into the name of the Father and
of the Son and of the Holy Spirit:
20 teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I commanded you: and lo, I am with you always, even unto the end of the world.
Is there a problem here??? I don’t think so!

Perhaps you can answer the problem that I have with this. One of the things which the Lord Jesus commanded His disciples was the following:

"Then spake Jesus to the multitude, and to his disciples,

Saying The scribes and the Pharisees sit in Moses' seat: All therefore whatsoever they bid you observe, that observe and do; but do not ye after their works: for they say, and do not" (Mt.23:1-3).

Are we supposed to go out and tell the Jewish believers that they should continue to keep the law? After all, we can see that the Jewish believers did in fact continue to keep the law more than twenty years after the Cross (Acts 21).

When you rest your case, rest it upon the authority of the Lord Jesus Christ!

There are those who think that when one follows the teaching of Paul that this does not "rest on the authority of the Lord Jesus Christ".

However, Paul says that his teaching came from the Lord Jesus. But that it not enough for those who want to place Christians under the dictates of another dispensation.

Let us take a look at another part of the so-called "great commission":

"Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature" (Mk.16:15).

Are we supposed to preach the same gospel which was preached by the Twelve Apostles?On the day of Pentecost Peter used the facts of the death and the resurrection of the Lord Jesus in order to prove that He is their promised Messiah (Acts 2: 23-35). And then he summed up his argument by saying:

"Therefore let all the house of Israel know assuredly, that God hath made the same Jesus, whom ye have crucified, both Lord and Christ" (Acts 2: 36).

Later, after hearing the gospel the Ethiopian treasurer asked to be baptized with water: "And Philip said, If thou believeth with all thine heart, thou mayest. And he answered and said, I believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God" (Acts 8: 37).

At that time believers were being "born again" when they believed that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God:

"Whosoever believeth that Jesus is the Christ is born of God: and every one that loveth him that begat loveth him also that is begotten of him….For whatsoever is born of God overcometh the world: and this is the victory that overcometh the world, even our faith. Who is he that overcometh the world, but he that believeth that Jesus is the Son of God? " (1 Jn. 5: 1-5).

Those who "believed on His Name" were "born of God":

"But as many as received Him, to them gave he power to become the children of God, even to them that believe on His name: Who were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God" (Jn. 1: 12-13).

That was the "gospel" that was preached under the so-called "great commission". However, that is not the same gospel whereby sinners are saved today, as witnessed by the words of Paul:

"I declare unto you the gospel which I preached unto you, which also ye have received, and wherein ye stand; By which also ye are saved...For I delivered unto you first of all that which I also received, how that Christ died for our sins according to the scriptures; And that he was buried, and that he rose again the third day according to the scriptures" (1Cor.15:3-4).

Some people cannot see that a different gospel is being preached now than when the so-called "great commission" was being carried out. Apollos, you cannot see a difference because you think that the "good news" that Jesus is the Christ is the same "good news" that Christ died for our sins.

If you want to carry out a commission that is not in effect today, the so-called "great commission", then you should preach the "gospel" that is under that commission.

In His grace,--Jerry

 

[WAB]

It has been some time since my last visit, and I must admit that this entry is because on a brief scan a couple of days ago I saw that my article on The Great Commission was up.

Since that article seems (in my own opinion) to contradict the hyper-dispensationalist position fairly well, will not post anything of my own composition, but will recommend that whoever is honest enough to consider an alternative put forth by one of the most world-famous preachers/teachers/authors in history; (and a great soul-winner).

Am referring to H. A. Ironside, and his seven chapter book titled "Wrongly Dividing the Word of Truth" is available at... http://www.brethrenonline.org/books/ultrad.htm

Obviously, this 33 page book is a re-do by the folks making it available, and not the original. And.... there are some typos and mis-spelling. But it is a very well thought out and presented study. I printed it right off the site.

Hope some of you will access it...

Shalom.... WAB

 

[JerryShugart]

Since that article seems (in my own opinion) to contradict the hyper-dispensationalist position fairly well, will not post anything of my own composition, but will recommend that whoever is honest enough to consider an alternative put forth by one of the most world-famous preachers/teachers/authors in history; (and a great soul-winner).

Am referring to H. A. Ironside, and his seven chapter book titled "Wrongly Dividing the Word of Truth" is available at... http://www.brethrenonline.org/books/ultrad.htm

Ironside's argument is against Acts 28 dispensationalism.

Too bad he did not study Paul words in regard to the present dispensation of grace or else he would have realized that the present dispensation did not begin until Paul was given the "dispensation of grace" to preach the "gospel of grace.The following demonstrates that the "dispensation of grace" is in regard to preaching the "gospel of grace":

"If ye have heard of the dispensation of the grace of God which is given me toward you" (Eph. 3: 2).

"Whereof I am made a minister, according to the dispensation of God which is given to me for you, to fulfil the word of God" (Col. 1:25).

"…a dispensation of the gospel is committed unto me" (1 Cor. 9: 17).

The "dispensation" which was committed to Paul is in regard to "God's grace", a "ministry", and a "gospel":

"…the ministry, which I have received of the Lord Jesus, to testify the gospel of the grace of God" (Acts 20: 24).

No one before Paul preached the "gospel of grace" and therefore it is impossible that the "dispensation of grace" began before Paul was converted.

In His grace,--Jerry