Matthew 28:16-20
The Commissioning of the Disciples
Now the eleven disciples went to Galilee, to the mountain to which Jesus had directed them. When they saw him, they worshipped him; but some doubted. And Jesus came and said to 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, and teaching them to obey everything that I have commanded you. And remember, I am with you always, to the end of the age.’
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It's the great commission. Jesus' sending out of the disciples. The great commission which instructs all of us now as much as it did to the eleven then.
"Go and make disciples."
How amazing and terrifying must that have been for the disciples. I can not know, but I can imagine how they must have felt because when I realise that those are instructions to me as well I feel strong emotions.
What me?
Make disciples?
Choose others?
Lead others?
Teach others?
Surely not.
Have you seen me?
I'm just an ordinary person.
You can't possibly mean me.
Yet I know God does call us, all of us who know Him, to "Go and make disciples".
God knows us, He loves us, He values us and He sends us out. He chooses us exactly because of everything we are, we ARE good enough.
And when fear overwhelms us, all we need do is read the last verse of the commission:
"I am with you always, to the end of the age."
Jesus did not abandon the disciples to go it alone. Not a bit of it. He sent them out WITH him. Jesus would be alongside them in their mission. Supporting then every step of the way.
And He is with US today in our mission. Jesus is there alongside us. In fact he is ahead of us. He has gone ahead and paved the way. Our mission is to show people what they already know in their hearts. We do the footwork for God, He does the ground work.
Today is Fathers Day.
A day when we celebrate the father figures in our lives; those who lead, nurture, support and sustain us.
A day when we thank God for being Our Father.
What does this have to do with the great commission?
"go and make disciples" - what better message could there be for a Father.
Father figures are those who lead and teach us. Those who guide us through our lives. This is what making disciples is about. Fathers make disciples of their children.
In the simplest example our fathers modelled walking and helped us take our first tentative steps.
"I am with you always, to the end of the age" - Our Father is with us.
God is with us always. He is with us in our need to be fathered. And He is with us in the being of a Father. We need not fear, we are not alone, we are supported and guided and loved. Our fathers continue to walk alongside us as long as we need. So does God Our Father.
This fathers day we remember that we are chosen as we are to go out in the world and make disciples. Through our fathering, our mothering, our befriending. And as we do so we thank Our Father that he goes before us in our lives. As our own fathers went before us as we learned to walk.
Amen
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