| Sermon Summary by PKD Lee |
The great commission in Matthew 28 consists of four commands – Go, Make disciples, Baptise and Teach.
Going essentially means moving out of your comfort zone and going to people who have not heard the gospel. This could involve crossing geographical boundaries or cultural boundaries. In this process we should not forget our neighbours, who also require the gospel. The gospel or good news is of the kingdom of God’s availability to us.
The aspect of the kingdom of God is often forgotten and the good news reduced to the atonement of Jesus. The good news is both the availability of the kingdom of God and the atonement which enables us to enter the kingdom of God. When the kingdom of God is not emphasized, people begin thinking that one would enter that, after physical death when we go to heaven.
But the good news is that we begin experiencing the kingdom of God NOW, when we put our faith and trust in the atonement of Jesus. To be able to witness effectively, we need to know the Bible extremely well, as we are not called to just evangelize but to make disciples. So, apart from sharing about the good news of the kingdom of God and the atonement that enables to enter the kingdom, we need to teach them the Christian life, the Christian worldview, a Christian perspective of life and so on.
But more than sharing in words, we need to reveal Jesus by our life. We need to have the testimony of one who lives by the Bible. That means we do not just speak of the love of God but manifest the love of God to them in our life. Having taught them the good news and its implications we need to lead people to baptism, which is the surrender of one’s life to God. They need to turn away from the world and live for Jesus and His kingdom. We then need to train them in ministry and the skills needed for sharing the faith effectively.
Reflect on:
Have we gone beyond the basics to become an individual who can teach others about our faith? Have you turned away from the world and begun to live for Jesus and His kingdom? Have you entered the kingdom of God?