It’s Time… to Love our Mission
KBC July 16, 06
Scott Stearman
19Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in[a] the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age."
In the movie version of “the Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy” there is an intergalactic machine which has been calculating the meaning of life. When after many adventures the pilgrims arrive at the foot of their hopes, the giant machine has the answer: “It’s 42.” The meaning of life is 42 – that’s the answer, but to understand you have to figure out the question. It’s a goofy movie, but one thing is certainly the case. To get at the meaning of life, you’ve got to ask the right question. For example: “what does God want us to spend our time doing?”
The text I’ve just read has been the Christian answer to that question. It’s been our mission, what we do (or are supposed to do) as Christ’s followers, for 2,000 years. It is what we call the Great Commission. When compiled with the great commandments (Love God with all you are, and love your neighbor as yourself) you have the Christian calling.
Let me talk about this commission by talking about its verbs. In these two verses there is one major operative and active verb, and three subservient participles. I know… yawn, yawn. But before you fall asleep, let me ask you can you pick it out? It is “go?” I’m sure you’ve heard it read: “Go! Unto all the world…
But go is a participle… “as you go.” Or maybe better “going” do this... There is a kind of implicit assumption that you will be going. It may be across the street or across the Atlantic.
The this, that we are to do, is the operative active verb: Make disciples. In fact it’s the verb form of the word: disciple all nations. That is the command, the imperative, the call. A disciple is nothing more than a student – except it’s not just a student in the academic sense, it’s a student in the life commitment sense. Let’s imagine that you know you are going to be marooned on an island, and you have a month to learn how to survive. You’d be a disciple of all kinds of things like fishing, building a fire, etc. It’s not a very elegant illustration, but you get the idea. We’re not talking about the attitude you had towards algebra in High School.
So Jesus is tasking his followers to help people become committed students, followers, learners, life-long learners, of Jesus. This answers part of the meaning-of-life question. It is to love people by sharing with them what we’ve found in the teachings of Jesus. As we do so, we help them become students of Jesus.
But to help make sure we get it, there are two other participles (besides “going”). They are: “baptizing” and “teaching.” These are important ways that we go about making those life-long-committed followers of Christ.
Our history shows that at times we’ve done well at this. In spite of the ugliness of imperialism and power-politics, Christian people have brought the message of God’s love in Christ to a large part of the world. Things like public schools, hospitals for the poor, colleges, even things like social security, freedom of religion, the separation of church and state, the civil right act, the abolition of slavery… these things (and many more) have been done in the name of Christ, by people seeking to apply the call of the great commandments and the great commission. In a world filled with crazed religious nuts who hate and kill in the name of God, don’t forget that much of what is good in life is here because of compassion compelled by Christ.
An example: We are traveling to Serbia in early September. And as we go we will work with a church that fed the fleeing refugees of Kosovo during the nationalistic campaign of Milosevic. When the Serbian Orthodox church was partly supporting the evils of nationalism, the Baptist church was working with all nations, helping to feed those displaced by hatred.
Some Orthodox religious leaders in Serbia support of nationalism today. Some theologians and church leaders actively supported Hitler yesterday. Sometimes Christians have lost the great commission. At times, we have miss-interpreted the Great Commission with disastrous consequences. For that we must repent, and seek to not repeat the mistakes of the past.
And here’s what’s happened: In the effort to make disciples of all nations, we’ve taken the first step too literally and the second too loosely. Baptism has been treated as a magic rite and teaching what Christ taught, as a selective exercise. Christians have been tempted to treat baptism as simply dunking, dipping, or sprinkling AND teaching all that Christ said, as helping people be good church folk. We’ve treated Baptism as a club ritual (if you’re sprinkled your in) and we’ve taught the teachings of Christ selectively – picking those ideas which would help our club – meaning church – and leaving aside those teachings which are so difficult.
I fear that at times we’ve wanted it to be so simple.
But here Jesus uses the “universal adjective” twice: we are to make disciples of ALL nations, and teach people to obey ALL that Christ commanded.
Except of course that stuff about loving our enemies, being poor in spirit, being makers of peace, good Samaritan…
Donald Miller writes about being a part of a group of Christian college kids who wanted to do follow Christ in this great commission bit. He was with a group of Christians at a predominately secular school. At this school (Reed) they had an annual festival in which security keeps the authorities away and the students basically go crazy – drinking, getting high, and usually naked. Miller says that he and his friends were talking about how to witness – or how to at least be a presence during the festivities. Miller, making a joke, said that with all the sinning going on, maybe they should have a confessional booth in the middle of campus. He was laughing, but one of his friends wasn’t. Perfect, he said.
“No wait, I was just kidding.” But Miller’s friend had another idea. We’ll set up a booth and here’s the catch: “We are going to confess to them. We are going to confess that as followers of Jesus we have not been very loving; we have been bitter, and for that we are sorry. We will apologized for the Crusades, we will apologize for televangelists, we will apologize for neglecting the poor and the lonely, we will aks them to forgive us, and we will tell them that in or selfishness, we have misrepresented Jesus on this campus. We will tell people who come into our booth that Jesus loves them.” (Blue Like Jazz – p. 118)
Baptism is more than a ritual, it is the act of saying: my life is identified with Christ, my life is immersed with Christ. Teaching ALL that I have commanded you has to include the stuff that makes all of us uncomfortable. The stuff that’s too big to fit in your soul.
I don’t know how much time you spend worrying about the “meaning of life.” Maybe none at all. There’s a word which is now saying the answer is 42 – meaning that there is no meaningful answer.
I’ve not found that. I’ve found that my life has meaning to the extent I give myself to love, and the implications of love: helping people see the principle of love in Christ. The cross is that picture of love – sacrifice – that when I pick it up, and follow, my life has a mission. What about you?
In just a few moments you are going to hear an extraordinary testimony about finding a way to go about fulfilling the teaching and identifying ministry of making disciples. I hope you’ll listen with obedient ears.
Scott Stearman
19Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in[a] the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age."
In the movie version of “the Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy” there is an intergalactic machine which has been calculating the meaning of life. When after many adventures the pilgrims arrive at the foot of their hopes, the giant machine has the answer: “It’s 42.” The meaning of life is 42 – that’s the answer, but to understand you have to figure out the question. It’s a goofy movie, but one thing is certainly the case. To get at the meaning of life, you’ve got to ask the right question. For example: “what does God want us to spend our time doing?”
The text I’ve just read has been the Christian answer to that question. It’s been our mission, what we do (or are supposed to do) as Christ’s followers, for 2,000 years. It is what we call the Great Commission. When compiled with the great commandments (Love God with all you are, and love your neighbor as yourself) you have the Christian calling.
Let me talk about this commission by talking about its verbs. In these two verses there is one major operative and active verb, and three subservient participles. I know… yawn, yawn. But before you fall asleep, let me ask you can you pick it out? It is “go?” I’m sure you’ve heard it read: “Go! Unto all the world…
But go is a participle… “as you go.” Or maybe better “going” do this... There is a kind of implicit assumption that you will be going. It may be across the street or across the Atlantic.
The this, that we are to do, is the operative active verb: Make disciples. In fact it’s the verb form of the word: disciple all nations. That is the command, the imperative, the call. A disciple is nothing more than a student – except it’s not just a student in the academic sense, it’s a student in the life commitment sense. Let’s imagine that you know you are going to be marooned on an island, and you have a month to learn how to survive. You’d be a disciple of all kinds of things like fishing, building a fire, etc. It’s not a very elegant illustration, but you get the idea. We’re not talking about the attitude you had towards algebra in High School.
So Jesus is tasking his followers to help people become committed students, followers, learners, life-long learners, of Jesus. This answers part of the meaning-of-life question. It is to love people by sharing with them what we’ve found in the teachings of Jesus. As we do so, we help them become students of Jesus.
But to help make sure we get it, there are two other participles (besides “going”). They are: “baptizing” and “teaching.” These are important ways that we go about making those life-long-committed followers of Christ.
Our history shows that at times we’ve done well at this. In spite of the ugliness of imperialism and power-politics, Christian people have brought the message of God’s love in Christ to a large part of the world. Things like public schools, hospitals for the poor, colleges, even things like social security, freedom of religion, the separation of church and state, the civil right act, the abolition of slavery… these things (and many more) have been done in the name of Christ, by people seeking to apply the call of the great commandments and the great commission. In a world filled with crazed religious nuts who hate and kill in the name of God, don’t forget that much of what is good in life is here because of compassion compelled by Christ.
An example: We are traveling to Serbia in early September. And as we go we will work with a church that fed the fleeing refugees of Kosovo during the nationalistic campaign of Milosevic. When the Serbian Orthodox church was partly supporting the evils of nationalism, the Baptist church was working with all nations, helping to feed those displaced by hatred.
Some Orthodox religious leaders in Serbia support of nationalism today. Some theologians and church leaders actively supported Hitler yesterday. Sometimes Christians have lost the great commission. At times, we have miss-interpreted the Great Commission with disastrous consequences. For that we must repent, and seek to not repeat the mistakes of the past.
And here’s what’s happened: In the effort to make disciples of all nations, we’ve taken the first step too literally and the second too loosely. Baptism has been treated as a magic rite and teaching what Christ taught, as a selective exercise. Christians have been tempted to treat baptism as simply dunking, dipping, or sprinkling AND teaching all that Christ said, as helping people be good church folk. We’ve treated Baptism as a club ritual (if you’re sprinkled your in) and we’ve taught the teachings of Christ selectively – picking those ideas which would help our club – meaning church – and leaving aside those teachings which are so difficult.
I fear that at times we’ve wanted it to be so simple.
But here Jesus uses the “universal adjective” twice: we are to make disciples of ALL nations, and teach people to obey ALL that Christ commanded.
Except of course that stuff about loving our enemies, being poor in spirit, being makers of peace, good Samaritan…
Donald Miller writes about being a part of a group of Christian college kids who wanted to do follow Christ in this great commission bit. He was with a group of Christians at a predominately secular school. At this school (Reed) they had an annual festival in which security keeps the authorities away and the students basically go crazy – drinking, getting high, and usually naked. Miller says that he and his friends were talking about how to witness – or how to at least be a presence during the festivities. Miller, making a joke, said that with all the sinning going on, maybe they should have a confessional booth in the middle of campus. He was laughing, but one of his friends wasn’t. Perfect, he said.
“No wait, I was just kidding.” But Miller’s friend had another idea. We’ll set up a booth and here’s the catch: “We are going to confess to them. We are going to confess that as followers of Jesus we have not been very loving; we have been bitter, and for that we are sorry. We will apologized for the Crusades, we will apologize for televangelists, we will apologize for neglecting the poor and the lonely, we will aks them to forgive us, and we will tell them that in or selfishness, we have misrepresented Jesus on this campus. We will tell people who come into our booth that Jesus loves them.” (Blue Like Jazz – p. 118)
Baptism is more than a ritual, it is the act of saying: my life is identified with Christ, my life is immersed with Christ. Teaching ALL that I have commanded you has to include the stuff that makes all of us uncomfortable. The stuff that’s too big to fit in your soul.
I don’t know how much time you spend worrying about the “meaning of life.” Maybe none at all. There’s a word which is now saying the answer is 42 – meaning that there is no meaningful answer.
I’ve not found that. I’ve found that my life has meaning to the extent I give myself to love, and the implications of love: helping people see the principle of love in Christ. The cross is that picture of love – sacrifice – that when I pick it up, and follow, my life has a mission. What about you?
In just a few moments you are going to hear an extraordinary testimony about finding a way to go about fulfilling the teaching and identifying ministry of making disciples. I hope you’ll listen with obedient ears.
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