I want to share with you the following the great commission – devotions that I presented to Lincolnway Christian Church the first Sunday in August of 2009. I will enclose a podcast when available.
Living Life In Tents
Camping With Immanuel
Matthew 28:16-20
Then the eleven disciples went to Galilee, to the mountain where Jesus had told them to go. When they saw him, they worshiped him; but some doubted. Then Jesus came to them and said, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.”
Introduction
Let’s first set the record straight about camping. I would be the kind of person that you might call ‘indoorsy’. I prefer air conditioning over sweating all day around mosquitoes. I prefer a hot shower over….nothing. I prefer a nice comfortable bed over waking up in a sleeping bag covered in ants. I like the indoors.
I know some of you say that camping is a tradition in your family and I admit it was a tradition in my family as well until they invented the house. I confess my parents never took me camping for one simple reason: they loved me.
Let me share with you my definition of a Happy Camper – me leaving Camp, that’s a happy camper!
Let me share with you this definition of Camping I did come across:
Definition of Camping
Camping: An extended form of hiking in which people carry double the amount of gear they need for half the distance planned to go in twice the time it should take.
We are all guilty of that to some extent when we go camping. We take too much and for the most part we whether out loud or inwardly we complain more than we actually spend time trying to enjoy it.
The truth is that sounds a lot like attitudes of so many of us way too often when talking about our Christian lives.
Listen to these words of Jesus from John 17
I am coming to you now, but I say these things while I am still in the world, so that they may have the full measure of my joy within them. I have given them your word and the world has hated them, for they are not of the world any more than I am of the world. My prayer is not that you take them out of the world but that you protect them from the evil one. They are not of the world, even as I am not of it. Sanctify them by the truth; your word is truth. As you sent me into the world, I have sent them into the world. For them I sanctify myself, that they too may be truly sanctified. “My prayer is not for them alone. I pray also for those who will believe in me through their message, that all of them may be one, Father, just as you are in me and I am in you. May they also be in us so that the world may believe that you have sent me.
Jesus says this in the next chapter of John 18
My kingdom is not of this world.
Believers in Jesus Christ, we are not of this world. We do not belong here, our citizenship is no there, our desires are not of this world, our hopes do not lie this world, our plans have nothing to do with this world…but for the time being…we find ourselves here.
One poet says it like this, “We now no longer camp as for a night, but have settled down on earth and forgotten heaven.”
So we have found ourselves living life in tents. We are camping and we have a mission. This morning I want to focus on what that mission is, it is commonly known as The Great Commission. I’m going to break down the great commission into three parts as we closely examine our ‘to do’ list as we find ourselves here camping and longing for home.
Living Life In Tents Requires We Must Have a Firm Hold On The Following:
I. A Saving Faith in Jesus Christ.
Then the eleven disciples went to Galilee, to the mountain where Jesus had told them to go. When they saw him, they worshiped him; but some doubted. Then Jesus came to them and said, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me.
Do you know who Jesus Christ is? That clip shares so many truths in such a short amount of time. Do you know Him? We first must hold firmly to the saving faith found only in Jesus Christ. Notice the text. The Great Commission happens back in Galilee. Not in Jerusalem. Jesus gives the eleven this marching order back on their own turf. Where they grew up, where they have family and friends, where they are known as fisherman.
Notice the text, Jesus has already taught his disciples from this mountain on six other occasions. When Jesus was preaching to the masses he often used a lake. When he preached to his disciples and told them the truths of God he preached a lot on a mountain. This meeting is pre-arranged. Jesus had told them to meet him there. The eleven are there. The text says that some worshiped but some doubted.
It is most likely that not just the eleven are here. Probably the group of seventy including family as well. The inner eleven have already seen the risen Jesus at least three times. In 1 Corinthians 15:6, Paul mentioned how Jesus appeared to more than 500 at one time, most scholars believe this is that meeting. This was a prearranged meeting they all had to travel to get to. Either way, this is an important meeting.
Some doubted because this was their first time seeing Jesus. But here’s the point, some worshiped and some doubted. The truth is some have a hard time believing at first even though Jesus provides plenty of evidence for a sure faith in the resurrection. Let’s make one thing clear, the word doubt does not mean they refuse to believe but that they are hesitant, not resistant. But all of the people here on this popular teaching place in Galilee, whether they worshiped or were struggling – the command was the same!
The truth of who Jesus Christ is does not shift or change for new believers or seasoned followers of Jesus Christ. The truth of Jesus Christ is eternal and the same for all generations.
Jesus reminds these eternal campers of the eternal truth of who He is – All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me.
Jesus is God incarnate and rules as God in heaven and on earth. Jesus spent a lot of his ministry talking about His authority and now because of the resurrection it is clear.
Because of Jesus’ authority we must hold firmly to the saving faith that is found in Jesus Christ as we find ourselves camping, living life in tents for the time being as followers of Jesus Christ.
But as followers of Jesus Christ we move forward to not just holding onto the saving faith found in Christ alone but because of His authority we must also have while living in tents…
II. An Obedient Faith in Jesus Christ
Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit
Based on the authority of Christ we are to make disciples of all nations. The main verb here is “make disciples.” The three participles sum up what that looks like, go, baptize and teach. First we are commanded to ‘go’. Jesus is commanding a global missionary endeavor.
Quickly, I believe it is important not to create a dichotomy between elevating foreign missions above evangelism here at home. Both are commanded by Jesus and both are necessary to the task that Jesus is giving.
Let’s clear up a few things about this text:
First this text is to a group of people not one person. In our church culture we are so quick to apply all ‘texts’ personally. This is a group command. While we will be held accountable for the role we play this is a group effort not an individual effort.
Just like if your boss told your department something important that needed to get done or he pulls you aside and tells the news only to you. You would for sure apply that differently.
This is a group effort. It must be applied as a church family.
Something else about the Great Commission: This is not a partnership. So often I hear the task of evangelism and discipleship explained that we are partnering with Jesus. I hate to break the news to you but there is no partnership. It is all obedience and all accomplished by Jesus Christ. The bible teaches that we do partner with one another for various reasons but our relationship to Jesus Christ when it comes to The Great Commission is all about obedience. It is about surrender, dying to ourselves, absolute trust, complete repentance, and a firm faith that God will do all that He has promised.
As we hold onto the saving faith that is only in Jesus Christ, as we mature and God produces in us an obedient faith we also must hold firmly while we live in tents to a teachable faith in Jesus Christ.
III. A Teachable Faith In Jesus Christ
and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you.
Just as in the early church there was nobody who unbaptized you also did not find anyone who was untaught. We must continually be placing ourselves in places to learn and grow in our faith.
This is a lifelong process. There is so much false truth and unbliblical lies out in the world and in so many churches. So many believers have such an attitude not to learn. They say just give me Jesus and they never realize that the ‘Jesus’ they have been given could perhaps be a false Jesus.
Church Leaders must preach the whole counsel of God. In order for a church to grow spiritually there must constantly be opportunities to delve into the deeper waters of theology and more difficult passages of Scripture.
Christian Education is the primary task of the church. It takes the forms of preaching, teaching, bible studies, camps, conventions, but Christian education is the purpose of the church. That’s what the word discipleship means…teaching. A large part of our obedience to Christ includes preaching sound doctrine and keeping the wolves away from the flock.
Jesus did not commission us to invite people to church to learn about Him. We are to take the message to the world. When believers do gather, part is for worship but also for edification through education.
Having said that Christian education must NOT be only academic. Although it includes that it is not all that. I use to hear preachers say that we already know far more about the bible than we put into practice. I do not believe that to be true anymore.
I agree that knowledge alone will not make us more like Jesus and that what we learn must focus on implementing the knowledge to our daily lives but that does not take away I must know God’s Word. I must read it, study it, memorize it, and live it.
That leads me to an exciting promise that Jesus gives us as all of us work together to disciple the nations about Jesus Christ and here at home.
Conclusion:
Living Life in Tents Comes With A Promise
The Promise That God Is With Us!
That’s the full promise – Camping With Immanuel – God With Us
Matthew 1:23
The virgin will be with child and will give birth to a son, and they will call him Immanuel”—which means, “God with us.”
God with us, it is the very first promise in the Gospel of Matthew and it is the very last promise in his gospel. We have the promise as we learn from here today that through the Holy Spirit God is with us and someday, someday soon this camping trip will be all over, and I for one will be on that day truly One Happy Camper because I will see Jesus face-to-face.
And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.
Last 5 posts by Wade Lowrey
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- Contending With An Almighty God - May 13th, 2010
