Uncommen: Calledنموونە

Leaving A Message

Matthew 28:18-20 ~ 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, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age."

In keeping with our phone analogy, we see Jesus leaving a voicemail for everyone, including us. Our focus verse is 18-20, but if we back up two verses, we see who Jesus is speaking.

"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."

When Jesus spoke to his disciples, He saw that some doubted Him. These men saw Jesus perform miracles, raise the dead, and even overcome death himself. Some doubted.

To be sure that God was really asking him to do something, we saw him ask for a sign. Here we have many disciples who had many signs and still doubted. As you can see, this isn't a head condition but a heart condition. When we are called and don't respond, it's not about confirming what God is saying, but we may want Him to say something else.

The rich young ruler was all about following Jesus until Jesus told him he should get rid of all he had and follow Him. So he went away, sad, the Bible says.

I'm so thankful that the great commission is in the Word of God, as we think of this as a suggestion.

The dictionary defines "commissioned" as the following.

• The act of committing or entrusting a person, group, etc., with supervisory power or authority.
• An authoritative order, charge, or direction.
• Authority is granted for a particular action or function.

I don't see the words suggestion, encouraged, or optional in the text. I understand God sometimes calls us to big things, and we may not want to move on it out of fear. Have a conversation with God to understand as much as possible. The reason may simply be because of God.

Questions:

Are you waiting for God to confirm something?

Or is God waiting for you to move?

Do you approach the Great Commission as an order or a suggestion?

Challenge:

I challenge us all to be open to listening to God's direction in our life and be willing to pursue it.