Ambassadors of His Kingdom (Matthew 28:16-20)

Here’s my sermon from last Sunday, November 16th. It’s our last sermon in our series through Matthew. You can listen to the audio here. You can also check out all the sermons from this series in this blogpost here.

I have a confession to make. Something I’m a bit embarrassed about. It may make you lose some respect for me. Last night, I was leaving what was a fun game. But I was also a bit down and disappointed. The season was not quite what we expected. Our coach is almost certainly going to leave. And I was convicted. I was clearly focusing too much on the wrong things. I was far too emotionally invested in what’s just a game. And I needed to repent.

What is your passion, friend? What are you all about? What keeps you awake at night? What occupies your time? Where does all our money go? What subject gets us really  excited? What do we tend to talk most about? What is it we search for online?    

Here in Karis, we practice what’s called expositional preaching. That’s where we walk through passages of Scripture together. We seek to hear what God says. And then apply those words to our lives. Now the way that usually looks - at least for us - is slowly walking through books of the Bible. And today, we conclude a series through Matthew - that yes, began on November 7th of 2021.

On that first Sunday, as I introduced this gospel book, I laid out a couple of its themes. And they’re where we got the theme for the series - “Our King, His Kingdom.” First, the King is here. Jesus is the promised Messiah, the “anointed One,” the long-awaited King. Foretold in the Old Testament. The One who’d come save us from sin. And who’d make everything right again. Jesus comes on the scene. And He makes it clear. He is that King. But He comes in a way no one expects. Crying in a manger. Marching toward the cross.

Second, His Kingdom has come. In Christ, the rule of God has come to earth. And through it, peace. Matthew calls this the “kingdom of heaven.” Heaven and earth would be one once again. Starting with the coming of Jesus. This King comes in humility - but later will return in glory. This Kingdom comes in part. But will later come in full. And Jesus invites us to join in as citizens. And to make it our passion.

Our Passion - as Disciples

Jesus comes and proclaims this kingdom. And does works that display its power. And He invites us to come and follow Him. To run after His reign and rule. And there, to find everything we’ve ever wanted. That first Sunday, I walked us through Matthew 6:33. Jesus says, “But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you.”

“Seek” it. Run after it. Get it - no matter what it takes. And find it “first.” Not second. Make it your first priority. At the very top of the list. “The kingdom of God.” His rule. His reign. Submit to it. And go spread it. Not your kingdom. Not their kingdom. Only His. Alone. Make this what you’re all about.

“And all these things.” In Matthew 6, that’s food and clothing, for sure. But it includes so much more. All our needs. “Will be added to you.” That command has this promise. No. It’s not saying we’ll be rich. That nothing will go wrong. But it does mean we’ll never be abandoned. We who are in Christ have a bright future ahead. He’ll meet our every need - body and soul - them all. And as Paul says over in Romans chapter 8: “He who did not spare his own Son but gave him up for us all, how will he not also with him graciously give us all things?”

Now if you grabbed my phone, launched the YouTube app, you’d find a number of recommendations there in my stream. Mizzou sports podcasts. Political commentary. Guitar tutorials. Sourdough instructionals. And, yes, you’d find videos on theology and the Bible. But based on that experiment, you could point your finger right at me. And you could ask: “Kevin, what are you really seeking? Is it this Kingdom of Jesus - or actually something else? What’s really your passion, Kev?” What about the rest of us here? Jesus says, “Seek first” His “kingdom… and His righteousness.” What about you? Will we follow this King? Will we seek this Kingdom? Is this our passion?

Christ Assembles His Disciples

Now if that’s true of us, it’ll change everything. We’ll make sharing that passion our mission. But, before we jump too far ahead, let’s get back in chapter 28, and look at our first verse again. Matthew writes, in verse 16, “Now the eleven disciples went to Galilee, to the mountain to which Jesus had directed them.”

Jesus assembles His disciples. Those men - lacking Judas - do what Jesus had asked. They cling to what He’d promised. That He’d come out of that grave. And He’d be waiting for them there in that region called Galilee. Where it all had started for Jesus. And where His ministry to Gentiles first kicked off. They meet Him on a mountain.

Now we’re not sure which one. But big things happen - don’t they? - when they meet Christ up there. It’s where He gives His most famous teaching - back in Matthew chapter 5 - the Sermon on the Mount. In chapter 17 of the book, it’s where Christ is transfigured - there before His friends. They get a glimpse of His glory. His identity becomes more clear. This is a critical moment. These are important words.

Our Mission - as Disciples

Here Christ gives them their mission - that gets passed down to us. And here’s the reality. Our passion always ends up as our mission. And if we’re seeking His Kingdom first, Karis, our lives will be characterized by making disciples. Let’s listen to verses 18-20 again:

Matthew 28:18 And Jesus came and said to them, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me.

Matthew 28:19 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,

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

Now there in the middle are four clear commands. And they’re surrounded - they’re bracketed - by two great promises. Let’s start by looking at those commands we see here. But you might say, “Wait. Four commands? Two, maybe. Or one. Four?” Nice observation. There’s actually only one true imperative in this verse - “make disciples of all nations.” It tells us what we’re to do. But there are three participles — verbs turned into adjectives - those -ing words you see there - that describe that main command. They tell us how we’re to do it. But each of the words still has the force of a command. Like if I said, “Kylen, buy us some dinner, driving carefully to the store, getting everything on the list, not in any way overspending.” Four commands there. Each pretty important. That’s what we see here.

Going

Let’s take the first. Going. For whatever reason, “go” never gets translated that way. But it could just as easily say, in verse 19, “Going, therefore, make disciples of all nations.”

We learned something really important this year. Don’t go messing with the Cracker Barrel logo. Right? There are so many things you can get away with these days. Just not that. That crosses a line. I find it amusing that they were trying to change it so they wouldn’t go out of business and then all these people who clearly weren’t going there were outraged. So they caved. And now the old guy on the rocking chair is back. All is right with the world again. But I digress. Cracker Barrel is actually pretty significant in the history of Karis. That’s because we once had as many as 6 or 8 people working in that place. There are people who are Christians because of that crew. A current elder in Karis once served those pecan pancakes - which are awesome by the way. There are people who’ve heard the gospel in Asia, I’d argue, because of what God did there.

That’s because some disciples of Jesus took seriously this word. And they shared Jesus in their “going.” As we go about our days. As we go about our lives. As we enter our various spheres of influence, we’re to seek to “make disciples.” Talking to our neighbors. Interacting at our jobs. Helping with group projects at school. On the golf course. At the gym. Shopping at the store. Volunteering time in our town.

We’re all going, into our worlds. And we’re surrounded by people. There are opportunities all around. But here’s the question: are we going into those spheres with gospel intentionality?

As we go, do we look, into what Jesus calls the fields? He says they’re ripe, they’re “white for harvest” (John 4:35). As my friend T.M. Moore has put it, we shouldn’t see a “weed field waiting to be burned,” but a “wheat field waiting to be harvested.” And in those fields, we should look to the margins, to the edges where everyone else tends to ignore. That’s where Jesus went. It’s where He looked. Author Chris Watkin reminds us that Christ’s ministry was shaped by a “great reversal,” and He consistently sought out the marginalized in His culture.

• those disadvantaged by family circumstance: widows and orphans

• those disadvantaged by geography: strangers

• those looked down upon because of their occupation or social choices: “sinners,” prostitutes, and tax collectors

• those marginalized because of a physical disability: the blind and the lame

• those marginalized by disease: lepers

• those marginalized because of their age: children

• those marginalized because of their gender: women

• those marginalized because of their religion or ethnicity: the Syrophoenician woman or the Samaritan woman at the well

Karis, are we going, and as we do, are we looking? One mistake we so often make in the church is that we make Christ’s command here for professionals. We’re all missionaries. This is for everyone. This is for every day. In our “going.”

Make Disciples of All Nations

Let’s second take this command to make disciples. Specifically, Jesus says, “make disciples of all nations.” That’s the verse’s theme. That’s our mission together. We’re to go and gather “followers” or “learners” of Jesus. That’s what the term “disciple” means. In those days, apprentices would gather around a teacher, a rabbi. They’d follow after Him. They’d spend time with Him. They’d learn His ways. Jesus says, “Go out and seek out followers, learners of me.”

Now another mistake we so often make is separating evangelism and discipleship. If you’ve grown up in the church, you’ve maybe been taught something like this. You engage in evangelism. You share the good news. You seek out converts. And once you get them to sign on the dotted line, you then engage in discipleship. You try to help them grow up in their faith.

But that distinction really seems to be alien to Scripture. Jesus says to just go make disciples. We’re not just seeking out converts. People just to believe. We’re trying to recruit more apprentices. People to follow Christ with us. Not so much to somehow push them across a line. But to ask them to join us as we walk along a path.   

I love the way Jeff Vanderstelt defines discipleship.

“That is what discipleship is all about. It is the ongoing process of submitting all of life to Jesus, and seeing him saturate your entire life and world with his presence and power. It’s a process of daily growing in your awareness of your need for him in the everyday stuff of life. It is walking with Jesus, being filled with Jesus, and being led by Jesus in every place and in every way…

Jesus didn’t call us to merely make a decision for him. He doesn’t need our vote of approval. He doesn’t want deciders. He wants disciples—people who are devoted to becoming more and more like him in everything, everyday.” (Jeff Vanderstelt)

This is who as Christians we’re meant to be. This is who as Christians we’re meant to seek. Those who want to follow after Jesus. Not those who just want Him as Savior. But those who want to follow Him as Lord. We’re to “make disciples” together.

And they’re meant to come from “all nations.” Now this isn’t talking about the way we think of nation-states today. No, this is talking about ethnic groups. Nations on our maps are filled with people groups. As the Lord puts it, in Revelation 5, chapter 9, Jesus has “ransomed people for God from every tribe and language and people and nation.” The Lord is and will forever be praised by a diversity of peoples. And we’re to go out and share with them the good news of our King.

Now some people have said this just refers to Gentiles. To non-Jews. And that can feed into all the anti-Semitism today. But Jesus is Jewish, along with the disciples we see here. And beside Ukrainians and Syrians and Koreans and Brazilians and Americans - there will be Jewish people there, praising the King.

This also pushes against all the nationalism today. We’re first and foremost citizens of heaven. It’s His kingdom, His glory, that we’re all about - or we should be. When the nations of the world come to us, it’s not a threat or a problem - it’s an opportunity. And the Lord wants more of us to pick up our lives, to lay everything down, and go to these people groups ourselves. To sacrifice everything for those who are unreached. Like our friend Josh Rice, who’ll preach for us next week - who ministers in Japan. To pack up and move to needy and dangerous places. Like our friend Kim Still, who’ll also visit us soon. Who’s down serving in Brazil.

In the new year, we’ll turn and transition into Genesis. And in chapter 12, the Lord gives Abraham this promise.

Genesis 12:1 Now the LORD said to Abram, “Go from your country and your kindred and your father’s house to the land that I will show you.

Genesis 12:2 And I will make of you a great nation, and I will bless you and make your name great, so that you will be a blessing.

Genesis 12:3 I will bless those who bless you, and him who dishonors you I will curse, and in you all the families of the earth shall be blessed.” 

We get to be a part of the fulfillment of that promise. As the nations are blessed as we go and make disciples.

Baptizing

Let’s take this third command, as we’re going, making disciples - it’s “baptizing.” We “go,” we “make disciples.” We baptize. Let’s think about what it is, what it does. We immerse people - that’s what the word means - in water. We baptize “disciples” - people who put their trust in this king, who commit to follow Him in faith. Who repent of their sins. And resolve to live their lives for Him. That’s what baptism is.

The act of dunking in water won’t save in and of itself. But biblically, it’s how we express our commitment, our desire to follow Him. Yes, we’re saved by grace, through faith. But there’s no sinner’s prayer that we find in Scripture. This is our prayer. It’s one we act out. When we’re pushed down into that water. And are raised back once again.

Let’s think about what it means, about what it says. It’s the way we identify with Christ - and also with His people. We mark ourselves off as disciples of Him. United in His death and resurrection. And it’s typically accompanied by membership in a church. Because as Jeremy Treat puts it, “Just as it takes a village to raise a child, it takes a church to make a disciple.”

It’s also the way we express our submission to Jesus. Our desire to follow Him as Lord. We go down in the water, dying to our old way of life. We hop back up all wet, proclaiming our new life in Him. We baptize people into the “name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit” - the triune God. We call people to identity with Him, to submit their lives to Him. That what gets pictured in our baptism.

I think we miss baptism’s significance far too much today. Often we think of it like a marriage certificate - packed away, locked in that safe. Something that happened. But easily forgotten. Others have referred to it as a wedding ring. You wear it every day. You look at it as a reminder. Now that’s better, for sure. But I think it’s more like the wedding ceremony. There before God and witnesses. Identifying publicly with Him. And also with His people. Turning away from the person you used to be. Joining your life with Him - with them. Yeah, you marry the family, too. Jesus left us with two great practices. This opportunity to make our vows - in baptism. And an opportunity - week by week - to renew them - in communion.

As we go making disciples, this is what we call others to. And maybe you’re here and need to hear this call today. Maybe you’ve been just dating Jesus. Flirting with Him and His kingdom a bit. Refusing to commit - to Him or His church. He wants your everything. Give yourself wholly to Him.

Church, this is a call, as we’re going, as we’re discipling - to encourage, to challenge people - give your all to Jesus. Identify with Him and His people. Submit your life to Him.

Teaching

Here’s the fourth command. We teach - there in verse 20. As we go and “make disciples of all nations,” we’re “teaching them to observe all that [Jesus has] commanded.” Of course, here we’re talking about all the teachings that we’ve seen in Matthew - especially at the pinnacle, the Sermon on the Mount. But we believe Jesus also authored all of our Bibles. So we go out, trying to help people learn of His ways. This is also what the Lord commands us to do.

But that may strike you as really difficult. As a way to offend. As far too “cringe.” But it really doesn’t have to be. That’s because we’re all teaching - and being taught - all the time. That’s a way we get so easily confused. We’re all being discipled and making disciples ourselves. We’re all learning and following. We’re being shaped and formed. By the media we consume. The company we keep. We may not realize it. It may be by accident. But we’re becoming disciples of someone or something.

And we all end up making our passion our mission. What am I doing as I talk about Mizzou football with a friend? Or when I share a great recipe? Or talk about a musician I like? Sharing what I love. Trying to shape those around me. I’m trying - even if I deny it - to make disciples, of sorts. We’re teaching those around us all the time!

Sure, there’s teaching like what I’m doing here. More formal instruction in the life of the church. And sure, we can invite people to come sit in on this. We may be surprised when they accept our invitation. But I think we make this more complicated than it really has to be. We build relationships. We open up our hearts. We talk about who Jesus is. And what He’s doing in our lives. Remember, though. I think this helps. We’re not making disciples of us - but of Him.

We’re just living life, trying to connect our dots with Christ’s story. We’re struggling to live in light of His Kingdom that’s come. We’re talking about it with others. And we’re inviting others in. That’s not all that teaching involves and includes. But it makes it accessible - and possible - to most of us here. As Trevin Wax has put it, “Success is not filling an auditorium to hear a preacher, but filling the world with ordinary preachers who speak the gospel.”

Earlier I quoted from Jeff Vanderstelt. And we’ve been impacted here by his teaching on MCs. He says that discipleship, this kind of teaching, really happens in three ways.

Life-On-Life - where we get close enough to really know each other and apply the gospel to one another

Life-In-Community - where a diversity of people and their gifts help us each grow and mature in Christ

Life-On-Mission - where we go and make disciples together and help each other lean on His power

We go. As we go, we make disciples. We seek to baptize. And then to teach. And we’re to share “all” Jesus has commanded. Isn’t that what it says? And that means there’s nothing that’s optional, that’s ignorable, for any of us here.

Let’s jump back to Genesis for just a quick minute. There’s what’s been called the cultural mandate in chapter 1, verse 28. The Lord says, “Be fruitful and multiply and fill the earth and subdue it, and have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the heavens and over every living thing that moves on the earth.” That command gets transformed, gets transposed, in this command of Jesus we here. It doesn’t mean we shouldn’t have children. It just means we now have this even greater privilege - for those married and single - to bear spiritual kids. To see this multiplication of disciples.

Supposedly having a baby is hard. Definitely, being a parent is hard. You could argue, though, making disciples is harder. So hard, it’s easy to give up. Or not even try.   

His Promises For Our Mission

That’s why Jesus gives us these promises. There are two that bracket that command, to go and make disciples. The first is His power. There in verse 18, Jesus says, “All authority in heaven and earth has been given to me.” Jesus has always been God. He’s always ruled as Lord. But here, by virtue of His resurrection, the Father has now given Him all authority over “heaven and earth.” He is sovereign. He reigns over all He’s made. And He sends us out in that authority and power.

It’s one thing to go out with a message as a citizen. But if you’re carrying a message that comes straight from the King, that’s something altogether different. We go with power. Christ’s authority is a massive theme - here in this book. He sends us in that - with that.

The second is His presence. Jesus says, in verse 20, “I am with you always, to the end of the age.” As we go and make disciples - as we baptize and we teach - He says He’ll be with us. And that’s a promise we need. Because in a fallen world, just living is hard. But it even gets harder living as a disciple of Jesus. And trying to go make disciples of Jesus - that’s where it really gets hard.

Now the presence of God is a big theme in this book. Back in the beginning, think of the promise made to Joseph. What would they call this son? Yes, Jesus. Because He’d save us from our sins. But also Immanuel, “which means God with us” (Matthew 1:23). That’s who Jesus is. It’s even what He’s called.

But also, back when we talked church discipline. Christ promises His presence in one of the hardest things we could ever do. Jesus says, “For where two or three are gathered in my name, there am I among them” (Matthew 18:20). And here the Lord promises His presence again. Before He ascends up into heaven. As He gives us this mission.

Here in Karis, we like to repeat three truths. They are dear to us here. God is good, God is in control, and God is with us. It’s hard not to read Matthew and see the goodness of Jesus. But here in this passage, we see those other promises right here.

As we go and make disciples - as we take this commission from Him - we can trust. He’s in control. He is in charge. And not us. The pressure’s off. And He is with us along the way. We’re never alone. He’s right by our side. He’s living inside us, in fact. And what comfort that brings!

So here’s the mission the Lord gives here to us. To make disciples for Him. But what kind of disciples are we making? And will we embrace this command, and do what He asks?

Will We Go?

Now these verses have been called the Great Commission. It’s this mission we’ve been given. That we partner in together. But it’ll only come to fruition if it’s wedded with something else great that we’ve also seen in Matthew. It’s called the Great Commandment - in Matthew 22. Listen to it again:

Matthew 22:37 And he said to him, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.

Matthew 22:38 This is the great and first commandment.

Matthew 22:39 And a second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself.

Matthew 22:40 On these two commandments depend all the Law and the Prophets.”

Here is the motivation we need. We’ll only go make disciples out of a love for our Lord. We’ll only make that sacrifice out of a desire for His fame. And we’ll only have impact, if our neighbors feel that love. They’ll never want to follow Jesus and learn along with us, if they think we hate them. This Great Commandment - and the second, with it, they give us what we need for the Great Commission.

Many scholars have pointed out the significance of the word “all” in this text.

“ALL authority in heaven and on earth” has been given to Him - verse 18.

Verse 19 - We’re to go make disciples of “ALL” the people groups on earth.

We’re to teach those we encounter “ALL” that He’s commanded - verse 20.

And also, there in that same verse, Jesus says, hidden here in the English - He is with us, truly “ALL” of the days. ALL. ALL. ALL. ALL.

Karis, Jesus is all. And we must make Him our all. And out of love for God and neighbor, we want others to see Him as their all. Is He our passion? Is His Kingdom our mission? But, Karis, Jesus knows us. We struggle to give Him all that. That’s why He gave us His everything - His life on the cross. And He’ll often kindly pluck that idol out of our clutching, unyielding fingers.

Christ Addresses His Doubters

But you might say, “Kevin, I’m just not quite there.” You may have noticed something we skipped from this story - verse 17. Let’s listen to it again. Jesus addresses His doubters. They assemble around Jesus on that mountain, and it reads, “And when they saw him they worshiped him, but some doubted.”

Now some of them respond as they should - with worship. And we underestimate majorly just how hard that would have been. Raised as monotheists. Bowing before a man. But they certainly knew He was much more than that. The risen King. God in the flesh.

But it also says there that some of them “doubted.” And it sure seems Matthew’s talking about those same “eleven disciples.” Maybe you’re here, and you think you believe. You see something different about Jesus. A big part of you wants to bow.

But you’re filled with fear and hesitation. Maybe you think, “If I could just see him. Maybe reach out and touch Him. Just hear the sound of His voice. I just want to be sure.” That’s these disciples. They’d spent the better part of three years with Him. They’re standing with Him resurrected right there. If you wait until all your hesitation goes away, you’ll never come at all. And you’ll miss out. How about we all just be honest? And we bring our doubts. We all have them. And we bow down together, before the Lord of glory?    

Our Passion, Our Mission

As we wrap up, let’s get back to my original question. What are you all about? What is it that’s your passion? What would you say is your mission? What would those around you say? What’s most important to you?

Is it our King? His kingdom? Making disciples for Him? Or something else? Another ruler? Another nation? Our true passion always becomes our mission.

If we’re going, as we’ve seen, it’s because He’s graciously gone after us. If we’re baptizing, as He says here, it’s because He’s kindly immersed our lives in His. If we’re teaching, it’s because His Spirit has patiently instructed our hearts. The love of our King. The work of His Kingdom. It compels us. It propels us.

You see, we’re not just citizens - in this kingdom. We’re ambassadors of it. That’s what 2 Corinthians 5:20 tells us. “Ambassadors for Christ.” What do ambassadors do? They represent their country. They work out of embassies. Outposts of that nation there. In a fallen world. We represent Him and what He’ll do. We praise our King’s glory. We tell of the greatness of our land.

The King is here! His kingdom is coming! Come follow Him with us. Identity yourself with His kingdom. Learn of His ways along with us.

We live as a counter-culture. A city within our city. Pointing to a different way of life. ’Til that day when heaven comes to earth. Ambassadors of His kingdom. Living out the Great Commission. Fueled by that Great Commandment. Let’s make His kingdom our passion. And spreading it our mission. Let’s commit to disciple-making, family. Let’s pray.