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The Lord Is Raised And Commissions The ApostlesMatthew 28:1-20Michael HatcherINTRODUCTIONMany consider Acts two as the hub of the Bible. Certainly the law of Christ came into effect at that time. However, without the chapter (and parallel passages) before us there would be no Acts two nor law of Christ. It is by the resurrection that Jesus proved himself to be the Son of God. “And declared to be the Son of God with power, according to the spirit of holiness, by the resurrection from the dead” (Rom. 1:4).Sadly, many today (the Modernists, skeptics, liberals) would like to end the account of Jesus with His death on the cross and burial in Matthew 27. Without the resurrection, His death is meaningless. Only if He lives today, can He be our Savior and Intercessor (Heb. 7:25). Thus, this passage is a vital study for those of us today.28:1-8 THE RESURRECTION OF JESUSVerse 1: The sabbath is past. The phrase “in the end of the sabbath” refers to after the sabbath. The day is now Sunday. Matthew is using the Roman (and our) method of counting days, not the Jewish (which would be Saturday night after sunset). The women leave early, before the break of day. After the sun comes up, they arrive at the tomb (cf. Mark 16:2; Luke 24:1 and John 20:1). Matthew does not mention all the women, only two. He mentions Mary Magdalen and Mary the mother of James and Joses (Mat. 27:56,61). Mark adds Salome (Mark 16:1); Luke adds Joanna and indicates that there were others (Luke 24:10). The reason they are coming is to anoint the body of Jesus (complete the embalming of the body) with ointments and spices (Mark 16:1; Luke 24:1). Evidently they did not know about the sealing of the tomb and the guards. However, we do know from Mark they did not know how they would remove the stone.It is to be noticed that there are great and important variations in the four (or, with St. Paul’s, 1 Cor. xv., the five) accounts of the events of the Resurrection, which have given welcome occasion to the sceptic to cast doubts upon the whole transaction. The divergences in the narratives are plainly to be ascribed to the facts that the writers did not depend upon one another, nor draw their accounts from one source; that each gives only an incomplete history, introducing those details with which he was familiar, or which it suited his plan to recount. On all main points the agreement is perfect, and every difference could be easily reconciled, if we knew the whole of the circumstances and the exact sequence of each word and act during this momentous period. Attempts at harmonizing the various accounts have been made with more or less success by writers from St. Augustine to the present time; but as they vary in many particulars, and have no authoritative basis, dependence cannot be placed upon them.Verse 2: There was an earthquake that occurred at the time the angel descended to roll away the stone from the tomb. When the women arrived the stone had been rolled away (by the earthquake) and now lying flat on the ground with the angel sitting upon it. Biblically the act of sitting is a sign of majesty, here to symbolize Christ’s triumph over the grave. “It must not be supposed that the Resurrection of our Lord took place at this time,...It had taken place before.” The rolling away of the stone was not to let Jesus out (He could have come out of the grave even if the stone had not been rolled back), but to allow others (the witnesses) to see the empty tomb and know Jesus had been raised.Verse 3: The angel’s appearance was one of brightness and sparkling luster. White represents purity, holiness and innocence. Angels often take the form of man, as here. “This angel confounded the wicked and comforted the righteous.” “For what he [God-mh] was actually saying was this: ‘I have accepted my Son’s sacrifice as a complete ransom for the sins of all who take refuge in him.’ See Rom. 4:25.”Verse 4: The guards shook with terror, this is the same root word as “earthquake” in verse two. “For a while they lay there in a condition of utter powerlessness and discomfiture, motionless as if dead.” We see from verse eleven that when they came to they were no longer an organized unit for only some of them came into the city and reported to the chief priest.Verse 5: We learn from parallel accounts that the angel spoke to the women after they went into the sepulcher. Apparently the angel left his seat on the stone and went inside the sepulcher either prior to the arrival of the women or when they arrived. We also find that there were two angels present. There is no contradiction for Matthew does not state there was only one angel. Evidently only one of the angels did the speaking. There is also a difference in whether they are standing or sitting. These passages relate to different persons and times. One angel appeared at one time, two at another time; the seated or standing positions are also varied and they might have changed positions, from standing to seated.The angel tells the women not to fear as opposed to the guards who were fearful. He tells them not to be like the guards. The “ye” is very emphatic in the original. They were to end their sorrow and rejoice. The angel can say this because he knows the reason they are there.Verse 6: The angel’s message was that Jesus was no longer in the tomb. Jesus had taught that He would be raised from the dead the third day. He taught the apostles that He would be raised.From that time forth began Jesus to shew unto his disciples, how that he must go unto Jerusalem, and suffer many things of the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be killed, and be raised again the third day....And they shall kill him, and the third day he shall be raised again. And they were exceeding sorry....And shall deliver him to the Gentiles to mock, and to scourge, and to crucify him: and the third day he shall rise again....Then saith Jesus unto them, All ye shall be offended because of me this night: for it is written, I will smite the shepherd, and the sheep of the flock shall be scattered abroad. But after I am risen again, I will go before you into Galilee. (Mat. 16:21; 17:23; 20:19; 26:31-32; John 10:17-18).Jesus also taught this to all men.For as Jonas was three days and three nights in the whale’s belly; so shall the Son of man be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth....Jesus answered and said unto them, Destroy this temple, and in three days I will raise it up....Therefore doth my Father love me, because I lay down my life, that I might take it again. No man taketh it from me, but I lay it down of myself. I have power to lay it down, and I have power to take it again. This commandment have I received of my Father. (Mat. 12:40; John 2:19; 10:17-18).Because the chief priest and Pharisees knew this teaching, they went to Pilate asking for a guard (Mat. 27:63-64). Now the angel declares that He is not in the tomb, He is risen as He said. When Jesus teaches something, we are assured that it will come to pass. “Heaven and earth shall pass away, but my words shall not pass away” (Mat. 24:35).The angel invites the women to examine, not the sepulcher, but the particular spot where the body of Jesus was laid. “They must convince themselves that everything is orderly in this tomb. No disciple has been here to remove the body, nor has an enemy pillaged the tomb. In either case, the bandages would no longer have been present.” The napkin which had been about His head was lying in one place while the linen clothes in another gives confirmation that He had been raised. They would not have been left behind if someone was stealing the body.Verse 7: The women are given a two-fold announcement to the disciples. First, Jesus has risen from the dead. This will be the great announcement that must be imparted to the whole world. Second, He would go before them to Galilee and would meet them there. “They would naturally return to Galilee after the Passover week expired, because there were their homes.” “It appears strange that this should be the entire testimony of Matthew...But perhaps it may be in accord with his evident design of giving the general form and summary of each series of events, rather than their characteristic details.”Verse 8: They hurriedly left the tomb, to carry out the two-fold commission given them. It was certainly natural for these women to be fearful or terrified at these events. They had come to the tomb, wondering who would remove the great stone, to anoint the body of Jesus. When they arrived, the stone had been moved and now laying on its side. Possibly the guard was still there in an unconscience state. They enter the tomb where an angel speaks to them. He tells them the One they came to anoint was no longer there. He had arisen. In spite of their fear, it was also natural for them to rejoice. They had received word from the heavenly visitor that their beloved Master had been raised to life, breaking the bonds of death. The joy these women felt was greater than the fear they possessed. “Note also that is the struggle between fear and joy, the latter triumphed, for the adjective ‘great’ modifies only ‘joy,’ not ‘fear.’”These women ran to give the report to the apostles. However, when they told the apostles, they did not believe the women. “And their words seemed to them as idle tales, and they believed them not” (Luke 24:11; see also Mark 16:13; Luke 24:22-25).28:9-10 JESUS APPEARANCE TO THE WOMENVerse 9: Prior to these events, Mary Magdalene had notified Peter and the apostles and returned to the tomb after the other women had left. Jesus appeared to her near the tomb (see the chart below). While the women ran to bring His disciples word of His resurrection, Jesus appears to them. While “this is not the usual Eastern salutation, ‘Peace be unto you!’” it was a common form of greeting and would have put these women at ease. The word means to rejoice or be glad and makes a contrast between what they would now feel as opposed to what they felt when they first came to the tomb. Upon Jesus’ appearance, the women come and worship Him. The word “worship” is the Greek proskuneo and indicates the giving of homage or to make obeisance toward God. These women considered Jesus, God. Jesus did not rebuke them for this worship, instead He accepted it. “Christ never once rejected worship offered to himself. As God incarnate, he was fully entitled to it; and the worship of his is truly fit and proper at all times, as here and throughout the New Testament.” However, angels rejected this worship (Rev. 19:10; 22:8-9) as did men (Acts 10:25).Verse 10: This appearance was short and Jesus gave the women the same message the angel gave them (vs. 5-7). It is interesting that Jesus refers to His disciples as brethren (cf. Heb. 2:11). Jesus did not hold a grudge against His disciples, even though they had forsaken Him.Our Lord’s AppearancesTimeTo WhomWhereRecordEarly Sunday morningMary MagdaleneNear tomb at JerusalemMark 16:9;John 20:11-18Sunday morningWomen returning from tombNear JerusalemMat. 28:9-10SundaySimon PeterNear JerusalemLuke 24:34Sunday afternoonTwo disciples going to EmmausBetween Jerusalem and EmmausLuke 24:13-31Sunday eveningApostles, minus ThomasJerusalemJohn 20:19-25Sunday evening of next weekApostles, with Thomas presentJerusalemJohn 20:26-29UnknownSeven disciples fishingSea of GalileeJohn 21:1-13UnknownEleven disciples on a mountainGalileeMat. 28:16-20UnknownAbove 500 brethrenGalilee1 Cor. 15:6UnknownJamesJerusalem, probably1 Cor. 15:7UnknownAll the apostles at ascensionMount of Olives near BethanyLuke 24:50-51; Acts 1:6-12After His ascensionSaul (Paul)Near DamascusActs 9:4-6; 1?Cor.?15:828:11-15 SANHEDRIN’S DECEPTIONVerse 11: Only Matthew gives us a record of these events. Since Matthew is writing to the Jews, the possible reason for the inclusion of this event was to account for the rumor among the Jews which he mentions in verse 15 and show its falsity. While the women were going to carry out their commission, some of the guards report to the chief priest. There are two interesting events that take place here. First, is that only some of the guards report, not all. Possibly the others waited to see the outcome or they reported later or possibly they returned to their own quarters. Second, is that they reported to the chief priest, not to Pilate. However, this is natural since Pilate placed the guard under the chief priest. He did this by telling the chief priest, they had a guard and to make the sepulchre as sure as they could (Mat. 27:65). Possibly the guards did not fear making this report, it was death to a Roman soldier to be unfaithful on duty, because of the events that took place. It thus is obvious that the soldiers believed Jesus to have risen from the dead. Apparently, the chief priest and elders also believed Jesus rose from the dead. If someone had stolen the body (as is reported), they would have made a search for the body and denounced the guard to Pilate. They did not do this, proving they knew Jesus rose. This also helps to explain why “a great company of the priests were obedient to the faith” (Acts 6:7) under the preaching of the apostles. However, at this time “was the opportunity for the chief priests to have made good their boast that they would believe Christ if he came down from the cross. It was an even more wonderful thing to come up from the grave, but still they did not believe him.” We are grateful that many did, at least at a later time.Verse 12: The chief priest assembles a meeting with the elders. “This was a meeting of the Sanhedrim, but surely hardly an official and open one; does not the form of the narrative rather imply that it was a secret compact between those (the majority) who were bitterly hostile to Jesus?” They decide to do three things relating to the report of the soldiers, as they did not want the people to believe in the resurrection of Jesus. First, they decide to give the guard a large sum of money. It had to be a large sum because of the admission of sleeping on duty, a dishonorable action and one worthy of death. “They had bought the aid of the traitor Judas; they now buy the silence of these soldiers.” If this report had been true, no money would be required, thus we know the story of the guard is false.Verse 13: The second decision is a story to tell which would explain why the tomb was empty. They were to tell who did what while they were asleep. “The falsehood was its own refutation. Certainly no man can be trusted when relating what took place while he was ‘asleep’!”Verse 14: The third decision related to the protection of the guards. They gave them assurance of freedom from punishment. Since this story could mean death for the guards (sleeping while on duty), the chief priest and elders must give them protection. They could promise protection because they realized “Pilate had but little interest in the matter and sought only to pacify the Jews.” They realized that Pilate could be swayed by the Jews because he allowed them to put Jesus to death when he found no fault in Him. Possibly they knew that Pilate could be bribed. “Such persuasion usually took the form of bribery, Roman officials being notoriously venal (comp. Acts xxiv. 26); but perhaps the rulers intended to make him believe that the story was not true, but merely a ruse to keep the populace quiet.” Last of all, both the soldiers and/or the chief priest and elders could renounce the lie. The soldiers must have believed the chief priest and elders, because they told the tale.Verse 15: From the point of view of the soldiers this would certainly seem the best action to take. They were promised safety from any harm. Additionally, they received a large sum of money. This is the story that was told among the Jews up to the day that Matthew penned his biography. “Even today, late in the twentieth century, this false rumor is still being spread.”Jesus has been raised: The empty tomb shouts the Lord’s resurrection. What became of the Lord’s body? If we examine the evidence honestly, the only reasonable answer is, He was raised from the dead by the power of God. There have been various ways to deal with the empty tomb.The first is to argue the body was stolen. This is divided into two parts. Some say that the body was stolen by His friends (the apostles). This was the lie conceived by the Sanhedrin. However, this would have been an impossibility. They would not have been able to get past the guards. Roman guards did not sleep while on duty. Even if the guards had been asleep, the disciples would not have been able to move the great stone and then move the body without waking up the guards who were stationed at the tomb to prevent such happening. Then at Jerusalem there were Jews from all over the world (estimated at 400,000) who were interested in the tomb and Jesus’ claim to be raised from the dead. A group of men going to the tomb would have attracted the attention of others. Additionally, if the disciples could have stolen the body, they would not have. They were defeated men and ready to quit when Jesus was put to death. They were no longer a group. They had scattered at His arrest and crucifixion. Then, if they had stolen the body, they would not have risked everything (life, family, friends, money, etc.) for what they knew was a lie. Correspondingly, there is no way to account for the change in their lives other than the resurrection.Others speculate that the body was stolen by His enemies (either the Jews or the Romans). We ask what advantage would be gained by either in stealing the body. They both wanted to keep the body in the tomb. The Jews had claimed that Jesus was a blasphemer who claimed to be the Son of God but was not. They worried about His claim that He would be raised. Thus, they went to the Romans and requested a guard be placed at the tomb so His friends could not steal the body. Thus, there is no reason for them to steal the body, and they would not have Pilate place guards at the tomb if they planned to steal the body. The Romans had no interest in the resurrection and would have wanted the body to remain in the grave as much as the Jews. Then, at the request of the Jews they did place the guards at the tomb. The incontrovertible evidence that they did not steal the body comes at Pentecost. Peter declared God hath raised Him from the dead and we are witnesses of this fact. If the enemies had stolen the body, they would then have produced the body. This one act alone would have stopped New Testament Christianity in its tracks, which is what they did try to do but could not.Another argument that some make is called the swoon theory. This says that Jesus did not die on the cross, He only passed out. This theory is not given serious consideration as one of the possibilities to explain the empty tomb. The Roman soldiers were experts in putting someone to death on the cross. They would have known if He had only fainted or was dead. Additionally, Pilate was surprised by such an early death (Mark 15:42-45), thus inquires of the centurion to make sure of the death. The centurion had to make extra-sure of the death of Jesus. If Jesus had not died on the cross, He surely would have died for the physical abuse His body had taken: beatings, scourging, carrying the cross, crucifixion, spear in His side, days without food and water. When the soldier pierced His side, blood and water came forth indicating a ruptured heart and certain death. Finally, when His body was prepared for burial, they tightly bound the body from the foot to the head, then saturated it with sweet smelling salts and spices to make it like a concrete encasement. It would have been impossible for Him to escape. When Peter and John arrived at the tomb, they found the wrappings exactly as it was around the body but without the body (John 20:3-9). Last, if they were trying to perpetrate a fraud upon the people, they, as historians, would not have written in such detail.The only reasonable solution to the empty tomb is the bodily resurrection of Jesus from the dead by the power of God.The empty grave is the one incontestible proof which has confounded every futile effort to cast doubt on the resurrection, and is an impregnable rock of truth upon which every attack of skepticism has invariably been shattered. What became of the body of Christ if he did not indeed rise from the dead? Let any candid mind examine the question honestly, and it will be seen that there is no satisfactory alternative.The trouble with the so-called solutions of the problem of the empty tomb is that not one of them is reasonable even on the surface....On the other hand, the faith of the Christian, “He lives, he lives, and because he lives I too shall live,” is reasonable, true, and satisfying. Not only that, but as already indicated, “He is still the same wonderful Savior, filled with holiness, kindness, and forgiving love for all those who, by sovereign grace, take refuge in him.28:16-20 THE COMMISSIONVerse 16: Since Jesus was to meet the disciples in Galilee, they leave Jerusalem for Galilee. Jesus had designated the place of the meeting prior to its taking place. “We may safely infer that the time had also been named, for otherwise the disciples would not have known when to assemble at the appointed place.” Many believe this meeting, since it is the only one we know about that was scheduled, is the time when “he was seen of above five hundred brethren at once” (1 Cor. 15:6). “This is a mere conjecture, probable, but not certain.”Verse 17: Now the disciples, like the women before them, worship Jesus. Again this is the Greek word proskuneo (see verse 9). Jesus again accepted this worship because He is God. Some present doubted. They did not doubt whether or not they should worship Jesus, but they doubted as to whether the person was Jesus (they questioned His identity). Jesus first appeared at a distance as is seen from verse eighteen, “Jesus came.” The use of the aorist tense of doubted indicates that they did not continue to doubt. It was but momentary. When they recognized that it was Jesus, they likewise worshipped Him. “It is a strong witness to the candor and accuracy of Matthew’s account that the doubters should have been mentioned at that particular confrontation with Jesus. Only one passionately concerned with giving all the facts would have done so.”Verse 18: Jesus now asserts that He has all authority (power). He states that that authority is extended over both heaven and earth. The word “authority” comes from the Greek word exousia and refers to the power of him whose will and commands must be submitted to by others and obeyed. The reason Jesus can claim this right is because He was faithful as the Son of God. The resurrection proved this. “And declared to be the Son of God with power, according to the spirit of holiness, by the resurrection from the dead” (Rom. 1:4). Without His voluntarily humbling Himself (Phi. 2:6-11), submitting Himself to the will of the Father (John 4:34; 6:38; Mat. 26:39), living a sinless life (2 Cor. 5:21; Heb. 4:15; 1 Pet. 2:22-23), the Father would not have given Him that authority.His claim is that of all authority. He does not possess only partial authority nor does He share that authority with anyone. However, we realize that Jesus can delegate authority to others. He has delegated authority to several. In the realm of the civil, He delegated authority to the government (Rom. 13:1-2,4,6). He delegated authority to His apostles (Mat. 19:28; 2 Cor. 10:8) in teaching and preaching God’s Word. He also has delegated authority to the elders to make decisions in expedient matters within the local congregation (Acts 20:28; Heb. 13:7,17; 1 Pet. 5:1-4).As the one with all authority on earth as well as in heaven, He is head of the church. “Christ is head of the church upon earth as well as in heaven. There is no true head on earth, else the church is a two-headed monster.” Thus, those individuals on earth who might claim to be head of the church stand in opposition to the headship of Christ. Those groups that claim to have an earthly headquarters also stand in opposition to Christ’s headship.The fact that Jesus has all authority indicates that He is now reigning as king, destroying the doctrine of premillennialism. He ascended into heaven to sit on the throne of God ruling as king (Dan. 7:13-14; Acts 2:30-36). The throne of God, throne of David and throne of Solomon are all the same throne. He is thus, King of kings and Lord of lords (1 Tim. 6:15; Rev. 17:14; 19:16). He will not relinquish that authority until He returns the second time and deliver the kingdom to the Father (1 Cor. 15:24-28). “The assertion that all authority in heaven and on earth was given to him was a proper prelude to the command which follows, for the possession of such authority was requisite to the effective issuing of such a command.”Verse 19: Christ gives the apostles the great commission to go. They were not to sit back and wait for others to come. It was their responsibility to go. They could go and be aggressive because they had Christ’s all authority behind them.The apostles were to go teach all nations. Notice this is a universal command. That is why this is called the great commission in contrast to the limited commission of Matthew ten which was limited to only the Jews. The gospel of Christ is for all individuals and nations (Americans, Russian, Africans, Indians, Chinese, etc.) The word “teach” (KJV) is an unfortunate rendering. It is from the Greek mathetes and is correctly translated “make disciples” (ASV, NKJV). It is in the imperative mood which is a command or order. Brethren, this is as much of a command as is baptism. If those who refuse to be baptized will not be saved (and they will not), then what makes us think that we will be saved if we refuse to obey this command to go make disciples of all nations? It was the apostles and our obligation to try to make disciples, Christians, or to convert all men of all nations by preaching the gospel to them.A disciple is a learner. This stresses the importance of teaching. “No man can come to me, except the Father which hath sent me draw him: and I will raise him up at the last day. It is written in the prophets, And they shall be all taught of God. Every man therefore that hath heard, and hath learned of the Father, cometh unto me” (John 6:44-45). The only way man comes to have faith is by hearing the Word of God (Rom. 10:17). Only by coming to faith can one please God (Heb. 11:6). Thus, the emphasis is on the mind of man. The mind then controls the emotions. True obedience and love for God begins with the mind but also involves the emotions, will and conscience. However, mere knowledge does not make one a disciple. Discipleship also implies following. The truth learned must be properly applied or practiced. Only then is one a disciple of Christ.The main verb is to “make disciples.” Christ uses two modal participles to show how they were to make disciples, baptizing them and teaching them. “The concepts of ‘baptizing’ and ‘teaching’ are simply two activities, in co-ordination with each other, but both subordinate to ‘make disciples.’ In other words, by means of being baptized and being taught a person becomes a disciple, with the understanding, of course, that this individual is ready for baptism and is willing to appropriate the teaching.”Baptism is thus seen to be a part of the salvation process. One cannot be made a disciple, a Christian, without being baptized. In the parallel passage in Mark 16:15-16, we see that baptism is necessary to be saved (from past sins). In Acts 2:38 it is required to have remission of sins, and in Acts 22:16 for the washing away of sins. The denominational teaching that salvation comes prior to baptism simply cannot be upheld by the Bible.Baptism is not for infants. The act of baptism is for those individuals who are brought to faith, which requires an ability to reason properly concerning the facts presented, accept the teaching which is given. This omits infant baptism as does the requirement to repent of sins. Babies do not have sins of which to repent. Thus, babies are not the proper subjects of baptism.Baptism is to immerse, to completely submerse or to dip. That is the basic meaning of the Greek word baptizo. Elsewhere in Scripture it is spoken of as a burial (Rom. 6:4; Col. 2:12). This immersion must be in the element of water (Acts 8:38-39; Acts 10:47-48; John 3:5). This baptism is one that is humanly administered. Thus, the baptism under consideration is not Holy Spirit baptism which was administered by Christ (see John 14-16; Acts 2:1-4). It is the one baptism (Eph. 4:5) of Acts 2:38-41; 8:38-39; 16:30-34; et al. This baptism must be done in or into the name of the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit. The phrase “into the name of” is in the singular, not plural showing the oneness and unity of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit. Thus, we have three who are the one God, the doctrine of the Trinity. The fact that the definite article (the) precedes each (Father, Son, Holy Spirit) show that three distinct persons, not just three qualities of One, are being considered. Not three Gods, but one God with three divine Persons. Thus, we must be baptized by the combined authority of God.The phrase “into the name” carries more meaning than simply “by His authority.” “The one who is baptized becomes the possession of and comes under the protection of the one whose name he bears; he is under the control of the effective power of the name and the One who bears the name, i.e., he is dedicated to them.” We would again stress that one is not the possession of God (a Christian) until he submits to baptism for the remission of sins. It is only at the point of baptism that one comes into covenant relationship with God. Prior to ones baptism instead of being under God’s protection, “the face of the Lord is against them that do evil” (1 Pet. 3:12). Being baptized into the name of God, also means that he will begin walking in newness of life (Rom. 6:4), under His control, dedicated to Him (Rom. 12:1-2; Gal. 2:20). This is freely submitting to the will of the Father within his life.Verse 20: The word “teaching” is properly rendered here, being from the Greek didasko instead of mathetes as in verse 19. In order to make one a disciple there must be teaching. To be a disciple, a Christian, one must learn certain things. He must learn that he has sinned (Rom. 3:23) and is thus separated from God, lost (Isa. 59:1-2). He must learn about God and His love for us (John 3:16-17; Tit. 2:11-14). He must learn of God’s plan of redemption; his need to believe, repent, confess Jesus as the Son of God, and his need to be baptized for the remission of his sins. He must learn of all of God’s law for man, all the duties of the Christian life. This is seen in the observing of all things that Jesus had commanded. This teaching, while taking place prior to baptism also follows baptism. It is an ongoing process.Some have tried to teach that this great commission applied only to the apostles, no one else. Jesus did originally give this commission to the apostles. However, as we consider the commission, since Jesus instructed the apostles to teach the disciples all things He had instructed them. Since He had just instructed them to go into all the world making disciples, they must teach the disciples (Christians) that same instruction. Thus, all Christians are under this great commission. We observe the first century church taking this obligation seriously. “Therefore they that were scattered abroad went every where preaching the word” (Acts 8:4). Brethren, we also need to begin taking this commission seriously.Last, we have the wonderful promise of Christ to be with them. The “I” is emphatic, “as if to say, ‘No one less than I myself am with you.’” Christ was promising to be with the apostles in a providential way, to watch over them, protect them, care for them and help them. Jesus was sending His apostles out to establish His kingdom. They would need the encouragement and His providence watching over them as they carried out His great mission. Paul certainly realized the preciousness of this promise. “At my first answer no man stood with me, but all men forsook me: I pray God that it may not be laid to their charge. Notwithstanding the Lord stood with me, and strengthened me; that by me the preaching might be fully known, and that all the Gentiles might hear: and I was delivered out of the mouth of the lion” (2 Tim. 4:16-17). “The promise was made primarily to the eleven, but inasmuch as they were not to live till the end of the world, it properly extends to the entire Church of which they were the recognized representative.” Thus, other passages apply this promise to all Christians (Rom. 8:28; Heb. 13:5-6; 1 Pet. 3:12).Christ implies that this will be the last dispensation of time. This age will end the world. Peter taught that the world will be destroyed by fire (2 Pet. 3). We are not to look for another age as premillennialism teaches.CONCLUSIONIf Matthew had ended his record with the last chapter (27) we would have been most miserable. However, because God saw fit to give us the record of the resurrection, we can shout that Jesus ever lives (Heb. 7:25). We thus know, that because He lives, we will be raised and live eternally also. It is our obligation to individually prepare for that eternity awaiting. We also have the responsibility to teach others the doctrine of Christ so they might prepare themselves and escape the punishment of eternal damnation. ................
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