Latest / Reformed Thinking / One Commission, Many Texts: The Full Biblical Mandate for Missions

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One Commission, Many Texts: The Full Biblical Mandate for Missions · Reformed Thinking

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  Welcome back to Reformed Thinking.
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  I'm I'm really looking forward to this one because we're
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  opening up a file that I think most of us probably think we
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  already have memorized. Oh, absolutely.
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  It's it's the standard operating procedure for the church, or at
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  least it should be. We are talking about the Great
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  Commission. I mean, in the Christian world,
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  this is, it's such familiar territory.
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  It's the slogan on the coffee mug.
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  Exactly the text on the back of the T-shirt from the youth group
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  trip. The banner hanging in the
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  sanctuary during missions week. We here go and make disciples
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  and we just nod. We think, right?
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  Go somewhere, tell people Jesus loves them, try to get them to
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  sit in a Pew next Sunday. It becomes background noise.
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  We sort of assume we understand the marching orders because
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  we've heard the summary so many times.
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  But the research we're looking at today argues that our
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  familiarity with this topic has actually bred, well, maybe not
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  contempt, but certainly laziness.
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  We're looking at a heavy hitting text called Biblical Missions,
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  Principles, Priorities and Practices by Mark Tatlock and
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  Chris Burnett, and they make a pretty provocative claim right
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  out of the gate. They do.
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  They argue that if you're only reading Matthew 28, which is you
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  know, where everyone goes, you're actually missing a huge
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  chunk of the picture. That is the core premise.
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  They introduced this concept of a composite teaching.
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  A composite teaching. OK, break that down for us.
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  What does that look like practically?
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  Well, think about how we usually do this.
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  We flipped the end of Matthew, right?
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  We read those 3 verses and we close the book.
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  But Tatwok and Burnett argue that to truly grasp the theology
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  of missions, the full weight of what Jesus is asking, you have
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  to synthesize 5 different post resurrection passages. 55 You
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  have Matthew 28 obviously, but you also have to bring in Mark
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  16, Luft 24, John 20, and even Acts 1.
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  So it's kind of like trying to understand a movie by only
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  watching the final scene, whereas this composite view is
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  like watching the director's cut with all the alternate angles
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  included. That is a great way to put it.
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  When you layer these texts over each other, you stop seeing just
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  A to do list for humans. The whole theme shifts.
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  It stops being about our enthusiasm or our marketing
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  strategies or, you know, how charismatic the which.
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  Let's be honest is usually where the modern church focuses.
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  The conversation is almost always how do we make this
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  attractive or how do we update the brand?
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  Precisely. But the composite view reveals
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  that the Great Commission is fundamentally about Christ's
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  absolute authority and the centrality of Scripture.
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  It's about God's sovereignty, not human effort, and that is a
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  distinctly Reformed perspective. If we get the source of the
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  authority wrong, the whole mission goes off the rails.
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  That distinction is just vital. It feels like we often treat
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  missions as a human project that we ask God to bless, right,
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  rather than a divine project that we are invited into.
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  And that is why the authors start where they do.
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  They call it the divine mandate. This anchors everything.
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  If we don't get the authority part right, the rest is just,
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  well, it's just advice. So let's look at the text.
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  Then they zero in on Matthew 28.18.
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  All authority has been given to me in heaven and on earth.
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  That statement is the floor we stand on.
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  It's everything. I want to pause on that word all
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  in the Greek it's pasa. And pasa, it's seems simple
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  enough, right? All means all.
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  But the authors, they do some pretty heavy theological lifting
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  here about the nature of this authority.
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  They really do. They make a crucial distinction.
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  We know that Jesus is God. He's the eternal Son, equal in
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  essence to the Father, right? So he has always had intrinsic
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  authority, but this verse speaks of authority being given to him.
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  Delegator Authority. Yes, but delegated to him as the
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  God Man that the risen Messiah, because he successfully
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  completed the work of redemption.
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  The Father has basically handed him the keys to the car, so to
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  speak. But the car is the entire
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  cosmos. The text uses a term I find
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  incredibly helpful, transdimensional.
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  I highlighted that too. Transdimensional authority.
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  It sounds a little bit like something out of a sci-fi novel,
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  but. Explain what they mean by that.
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  Theologically, it's actually very grounding.
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  It simply means his rule isn't limited to a geographic region
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  like a Prime Minister, or a political era like a president
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  who has a four year term. OK.
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  His authority covers the spiritual realm, which is
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  heaven, and the physical realm, which is earth.
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  It crosses that dimensional barrier.
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  So when a missionary walks into a new country or shoot, even
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  when you walk across the street to talk to your neighbor, you're
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  not stepping out of Jesus jurisdiction.
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  Never. And that changes the whole
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  posture of the missionary. How so?
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  Because usually I think we feel like we're intruding.
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  Well, think about it. If you view evangelism as
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  selling a new religion, you're essentially asking the listener
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  for a favor. Hey would you mind considering
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  this option? Right.
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  You're a salesperson. You're a.
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  Salesperson knocking on a door hoping they don't slam it in
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  your face. But if you understand this
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  transdimensional authority, you realize you're an ambassador.
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  You're declaring the decrees of the king who already owns the
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  territory. That is a massive shift.
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  You're not asking for permission, you're announcing a
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  reality. You are proclaiming terms of
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  surrender to the rightful King, and because of the resurrection,
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  because Jesus has entered into an eternally glorified life,
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  this commanding role never, ever ends.
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  He is the King. His word is binding on every
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  soul, everywhere, for all time. That gives a lot of backbone to
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  the mission, but it also sounds, I mean, a little daunting
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  walking up to strangers and effectively telling them they're
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  living in occupied territory. That requires some serious
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  confidence. It does, which is why the second
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  part of this mandate is so critical, the promise of His
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  presence. Matthew 28.20 I am with you
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  always. You know, I think a lot of
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  people read that verse as a sort of spiritual comfort blanket,
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  like, oh, Jesus is with me so I won't feel lonely when I'm
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  traveling. It is comforting, sure, but the
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  source material suggests it is much more robust than just, you
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  know, emotional support. It's validation.
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  Validation, yeah. Christ is asserting that the
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  work of preaching and discipling is legitimate.
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  When you are teaching the Scripture, you are doing work
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  that is fully approved and backed by the King.
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  He is saying I am standing right there with you in this work.
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  So it's like having the CEO in the room when you're making the
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  presentation. Correct, and look at the
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  specific phrasing to the end of the age.
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  This refers to the sustaining work of the Holy Spirit.
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  So the ability to do this, to actually make disciples, it's
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  not resting on us. No, and this is so vital for
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  anyone feeling burnt out by ministry fads.
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  The authors make this point. The strategies of the apostles
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  never go obsolete. We're not because the one
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  authorizing them is immutable. He doesn't change.
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  We do not need to reinvent the wheel every 10 years because we
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  think the old preach and teach model is broken.
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  The model works because Christ promised His presence to that
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  specific model. That's actually incredibly
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  freeing. It means the strategy isn't
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  about my cleverness. I not even a little bit.
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  It's about his enablement. If we stick to his script, we
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  have his backing. If we go off script, well, we're
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  on our own. Well, let's talk about that
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  script, the message itself. This is where the composite view
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  really, really hits hard. If you just stick to a modern,
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  sort of watered down version of evangelism, you hear a lot about
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  God having a wonderful plan for your life.
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  It's very positive, very affirming.
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  Jesus wants to be your best friend.
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  Right. But when you pull in Mark 16 and
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  John 20, these other parts of the composite teaching, the
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  picture gets stark. It gets binary.
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  That's the word this source uses.
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  There are only two outcomes. We're talking about wrath and
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  reward. We are, and this is It's
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  uncomfortable for the modern year, but look at Mark 16.16.
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  Jesus says he who has believed and has been baptized shall be
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  saved, but he who has disbelieved shall be condemned.
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  Condemned. That's a heavy word.
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  We do not hear that in many sermons these days.
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  It's the reality of the situation.
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  And then you look at John 20.23, which is even more intense.
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  It says if you forgive the sins of any, their sins have been
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  forgiven them. If you retain the sins of any,
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  they have been retained. OK.
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  I have to pause there. Retaining sins?
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  That sounds complicated. I mean, we're Protestants.
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  We don't believe a priest or a missionary has the ability to
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  just arbitrarily decide who gets into heaven.
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  Correct. The authors are very clear on
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  this. It's not that the missionary
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  decides the eternal fate of a soul based on some whim.
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  OK, but the missionary is sent to deal with the problem of sin.
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  That is the job description. So how does retaining sins work
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  in practice? It's about the authority of the
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  message. We are proclaiming the terms of
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  surrender. If someone repents and believes
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  the gospel, we have the authority based on Scripture to
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  look them in the eye and say your sins are forgiven.
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  We are just declaring what God has already done.
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  OK, I follow. That, but the flip side is also
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  true. If they reject the king, if they
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  refuse the gospel, then we have the duty to tell them your sins
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  remain on you. We declare that they are still
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  under judgement. That is a far cry from God,
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  loves you and has a wonderful plan for your life.
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  It's the difference between a therapist and a judge.
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  Reformed theology reminds us that you cannot preach the good
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  news unless you've established the bad news.
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  We're dealing with condemnation. If sin is not confessed, it
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  leads to final judgement. The missionaries role is to make
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  that crystal clear. But OK, here's the pushback I
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  can already hear from listeners. I mean, how does anyone actually
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  accept that people hate being told they're wrong, let alone
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  condemned? If I go to my neighbor and I say
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  hey, just so you know your sins are retained on you and you're
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  under wrath, well they're not going to invite me to the next
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  BBQ. Yeah, probably not.
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  And look, if it were up to your persuasive skills or mine, no
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  one would ever be saved. The natural man absolutely hates
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  this message. So how does it work then?
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  That is where the Holy Spirit comes back in.
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  The text points us to 1st Thessalonians 1.5 and 2.13.
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  Paul says the gospel didn't come in Word only, but in authority
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  and in the Holy Spirit and with full assurance.
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  So it's not just an intellectual debate.
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  It can't be. The source material emphasizes
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  that conversion is regeneration. It's being born again.
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  It's not just intellectual agreement.
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  It is the Spirit making the hearer perceive the truth.
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  The missionary proclaims the external word, but the Spirit
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  grants the internal assurance. Which goes right back to that
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  idea of relief. I don't have to argue you into
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  the Kingdom. I just have to be faithful to
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  the message. You are spot on.
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  You deliver the mail, you don't write the letter.
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  So we have the authority, which is Christ's rule, and we have
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  the message, which is wrath and reward.
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  Now we need to talk about the how to what are we actually
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  supposed to do? Right, the mechanics.
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  And OK, this next part, this was a total aha moment for me when I
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  was reading the material. The authors do this deep dive
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  into the grammar of Matthew 28.19.
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  It's a. Classic case of why getting the
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  grammar right really matters. Yeah, because we usually see go
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  make disciples baptize and teach as what like 4 separate bullet
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  points on it to? Do that checklist right, Do
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  this, then do that. But that's not what the Greek is
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  saying at all. Not at all.
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  In the Greek, there's only one main verb, just one imperative
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  command. And it's not go, which is what
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  everyone one thinks it is. Correct.
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  It is make disciples Massachusetts.
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  That's the main thing. That's the bull's eye.
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  The other words going, baptizing, teaching their
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  participles. For those of us who haven't been
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  in an English class or a Greek class in 20 years, remind us
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  what a participle does. A participle just modifies the
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  verb. It explains the how.
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  So the command is make disciples.
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  How do you do that? By going, by baptizing, By
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  teaching. OK, let's break these
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  participles down because the source material has some
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  specific insights on each one. Let's start with the first one
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  going. The word is porthentis.
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  Now, while it is a participle in context, it definitely carries
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  the weight of a command. You can't make disciples if you
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  stay put, but the destination is what really matters here.
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  All Nations. Pontita, Ethne.
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  And we're not talking about like, political lines on a map
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  here, are we? We're not talking about the
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  United Nations member list. No, not at all.
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  Ethnos refers to ethnic groups, families, people united by
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  heritage and culture. The source notes that this
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  implies a foreign element. Foreign.
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  Yes. To reach an ethnos usually
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  implies the missionary is entering A context that is
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  foreign to them. Now this is crucial.
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  The text says this applies even if you just go next door.
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  Explain that how can going next door be foreign?
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  Well, if your neighbor is from a different background or
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  different ethnos, a different worldview, you are crossing a
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  cultural barrier to bring the gospel.
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  You're engaging in that foreign task.
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  It destroys the idea that missions is only for people who
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  buy plane tickets. I like that distinction.
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  It makes it accessible but keeps that cross cultural intent.
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  But here's something the authors stress that I think goes against
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  the grain of some modern missiology.
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  They say the focus is on the individual, Yes.
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  This is a vital correction. We hear a lot today about
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  redeeming culture or saving societal structures.
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  You know, we need to Christianize the arts or we need
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  to redo the political system. Right, transform the city.
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  But the Great Commission targets individuals within the
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  population. Because structures don't repent.
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  Precisely. A City Council cannot repent.
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  A corporation cannot be born again.
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  Luke 24.47 speaks of repentance for the forgiveness of sins.
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  That's a personal, individual transaction.
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  You can't baptize a government. You reach the nation by reaching
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  the individuals within that nation.
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  Which leads us right to the second participle, baptizing.
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  The source is pretty specific here.
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  They argue for full immersion. They base that on the context of
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  the Jordan River and early church practice, but the
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  mechanics are really secondary to the significance.
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  It's the initiatory step of discipleship.
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  Now to be clear for our listeners, we are not saying
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  baptism saves you. No, absolutely not.
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  We're Protestants. We believe salvation is by grace
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  through faith alone. Baptism is not for salvation.
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  It is the public testimony of salvation, but the.
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  Formula. For it matters too, in the name
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  of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit.
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  It's a singular name for the three persons, which is just a
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  beautiful highlight of the Trinity.
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  But think about what that means for a new believer, maybe coming
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  from a Pagan background or a strictly secular 1.
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  To be baptized in this name signifies ownership.
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  Ownership. You are declaring I now believe
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  belong to the Triune God. You are under His authority now.
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  It's a transfer of allegiance. You're saying I used to belong
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  to the world or to my ancestors or just to myself.
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  Now I belong to Him. It's like putting on the
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  uniform. You're on the team now.
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  Right. And once you're on the team, you
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  have to learn the playbook, and that is the third participle
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  teaching. Teaching them to observe all
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  that I commanded you. All there's that big word again.
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  It is. The source material points out
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  that this includes the Old Testament foundations and
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  everything Jesus taught in the Gospels.
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  It's not just Jesus loves you. It includes the resurrection,
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  the judgment, the Kingdom, the necessity of conversion.
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  And there's a cycle here, isn't there?
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  This idea of reproducibility, yes.
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  We are teaching disciples to obey.
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  Why? So they can become teachers who
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  teach others to obey. If the teaching just stops with
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  the convert, the Great Commission breaks down.
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  It's designed to be a self replicating cycle of
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  instruction. It's not just about making
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  converts. No, it's about students who
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  become teachers. That is the Great Commission.
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  It is authorized by Christ, which is that transdimensional
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  authority we talked about. It deals with a serious business
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  of sin and judgement, which is wrath and reward, and it's
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  accomplished by going, baptizing and teaching the full counsel of
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  God. It's a word centered mission,
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  but, and here's where we have to get a little uncomfortable.
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  Again, the source material includes this section by Josue
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  Pineda Dale called Less than Great Commissions.
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  This is a necessary critique, it really.
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  Is the premise is that when we subtract from Christ's
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  instructions, or when we add our own better ideas to them, we
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  don't improve the Commission, we break it.
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  We create a less than great version and Dale focuses
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  specifically on the context of Latin America to give us some
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  case studies. And while these examples are
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  from Latin America, I want the listener to know that these
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  trends are global. You'll see these in the US, in
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  Europe, in Africa. They are everywhere.
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  OK, let's look at the first one. Case study one Kingdom
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  expansion. The source mentions a figure
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  named Guillermo Maldonado. What is the specific error here
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  that's being pointed out? This is the view that focuses
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  heavily on supernatural signs, miracles, healings.
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  You know, gold dust appearing in the air is the primary tool for
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  expanding the Kingdom. The argument is that people need
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  to see a miracle to believe. I have heard this.
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  The argument usually goes something like how can you win
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  the world with just a book? You need miracles.
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  You need to show them God is real.
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  It sounds appealing. I mean, we all want to see God
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  move, but the problem, as the source points out, is that it
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  presupposes the believer can wield the Spirit's ability at
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  will. It relies on what's called the
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  Third Way theology that demands visible signs rather than
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  resting on the sufficiency of Scripture.
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  So it shifts the confidence from the message to the miracle.
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  Yes, and the critique here is that it leads believers to try
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  to assume the role of the Holy Spirit.
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  If I think I have to perform a sign to get you saved, I've
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  forgotten that it is the Spirit who regenerates through the
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  Word. It creates a dependency on the
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  spectacular. If you don't see a miracle this
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  Sunday, is God still there? It turns the church into a
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  circus. If the show isn't good enough,
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  the audience leaves. And it distracts from the true
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  strength, which is the Gospel itself.
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  Romans 1.16. The strength is in the message
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  of the cross, not in the spectacle on the stage.
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  OK, let's move to case study two spiritual warfare liberation.
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  This one features names like Carlos Anaconda and Cash Luna.
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  Now, spiritual warfare is real. The Bible talks about demons.
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  So what's the issue here? The issue is focus and
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  definition. This view sees the Great
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  Commission primarily as a military conquest against
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  demons. The source describes meetings
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  where the evidence of success is people physically vomiting out.
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  That won't. Be graphic it is.
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  And look, we do not deny the reality of the demonic, but the
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  critique here is about what we are being saved from.
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  This approach elevates the focus on demons above the focus on
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  sin. Right, The problem isn't just
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  that I have a demon bothering me, The problem is that I'm dead
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  in my trespasses and sins. Precisely.
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  The Biblical Commission is about freedom from the bondage of sin,
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  not just an exorcism. Show If you cast out a demon but
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  don't deal with the heart's rebellion against God, you
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  haven't fulfilled the Great Commission.
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  You've just cleaned the house for the demon to come back even
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  stronger. It externalizes the problem.
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  It becomes The devil made me do it right?
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  But the gospel says no, I did it and I need forgiveness.
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  The emphasis must remain on repentance from sin.
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  Case study three and this one. This one might step on some toes
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  in the modern church because it sounds so charitable.
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  Social and political liberation. The source mentions Gustavo
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  Gutierrez and Jesus Adrian Romero.
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  This is often called liberation theology or the social gospel,
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  and it equates salvation with social transformation, poverty
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  relief, and political justice. And again, helping the poor is
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  good. We're not saying don't feed
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  people. Christians have built more
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  hospitals and orphanages than anyone else in history of.
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  Course, Christians must be charitable.
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  It's a fruit of the Spirit. But the error is confusing the
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  fruit of the gospel with the root of the gospel.
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  The critique in the source is that this pushes the pendulum
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  away from the spiritual need. It assumes the primary problem
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  is a lack of resources or political oppression.
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  Instead of spiritual death. Right.
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  A gospel that is only for the marginalized ignores the
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  universal need for atonement. Think about it.
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  The rich man is just as dead in his sin as the poor man.
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  If we only focus on social justice, we might make the world
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  a slightly more comfortable place to go to hell from.
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  Wow, that is a sobering way to put.
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  It it's a tragedy, we have to be clear.
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  The Reformed analysis here is that all people, rich or poor,
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  are dead in sin. The solution is the death and
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  resurrection of Christ proclaimed for the forgiveness
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  of sins. Any Commission that swaps that
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  out for political activism is, by definition, less than great.
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  So when we look at these three deviations, the Kingdom
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  expansion which relies on miracles, the spiritual warfare
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  which focuses on demons, and the social liberation which looks to
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  politics, what is the common thread?
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  What ties them together? The expert summary is this.
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  All three shift the focus away from the Word of God.
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  OK, they shifted toward human experience, toward mystical
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  signs, or towards societal change.
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  They move the center of gravity from what Christ has done to
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  what we can do or feel. It's anthropocentric rather than
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  Christocentric. It becomes about us.
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  Correct. And that brings us full circle
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  right back to the beginning. The true Great Commission is
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  about Christ's authority, not ours.
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  It's authorized by His divinity, it's accomplished through His
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  Word, and it's focused on making disciples, teaching and
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  baptizing, not just getting converts or fixing society.
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  And that's why the composite view is so important.
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  When you see the whole picture, you realize you can't edit the
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  mission. You can't filter it through your
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  cultural preferences. You have to take it as the king
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  delivered it. You know, this conversation
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  really challenges the way we view success in the church.
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  We want big numbers, we want flashy miracles, or we want to
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  be applauded by the culture for our social work.
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  We want to be liked. But the Commission is actually
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  much simpler and much harder. It's harder because it requires
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  fidelity. It requires trusting that if we
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  simply speak the truth of Scripture, the Spirit will do
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  the work. It takes the control out of our
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  hands. Which is exactly where it needs
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  to be. Oh man.
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  Before we wrap up, I want to leave you with a final thought
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  to chew on. We talked about Christ's
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  promise. I am with you always.
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  That was the validation, the guarantee.
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  So if Christ promised His presence specifically to sustain
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  the preaching of His commands, do we implicitly deny His
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  presence when we feel the need to add entertainment, social
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  programs, or manufactured miracles to get the job done?
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  Do we act like He isn't enough? That really is the question of
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  the hour, isn't it? If we have a king, do we really
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  need the circus? Something to think about.
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  Thanks for joining us on this deep dive into the Great
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  Commission. This has been reformed thinking.
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  We'll see you next time.