In the Great Commission, Jesus gave very specific and special instructions to the remaining disciples. Matthew 28:10-20 is the Great Commission and states, “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.” Ever since Jesus instructed the disciples, men have been asking if these instructions were meant just for the disciples or for everyone. Many a debate has occurred on this topic. I believe that if a “Man” follows all the instructions found in the Bible, practices all that is required to be a “Biblical Man”, and has faith and truly believes what he has learned, this person would have a responsibility and want to share with other men so they too could become a “Man”. Being content, being happy, and finding yourself in grace is contagious and has to be shared. Some folks feel that they do not know what to do, do not have the knowledge or are not worthy of being a part of the Great Commission. These folks need to remember Paul. Paul started out as Saul and was as guilty of sin as anyone living today. Paul was known for his vicious prosecution of those that believed in Jesus which included beatings and murder. Three years after the resurrection and the disciples being sent out into the world, Jesus visited Saul on the road to Damascus where Jesus challenged him and struck him blind. Later a believer in Jesus named Ananias received a vision telling him to visit Saul and tell him that he had a new assignment, a new name and that he had been called by God and was to be given special responsibility. Paul became an Apostle and one of the main characters and writers in the Bible. Paul confirms the need for all men to follow and take part in the Great Commission in 2 Corinthians 5:18-20. This passage reads as follows, “ All this is from God, who through Christ reconciled us to himself and gave us the ministry of reconciliation; that is, in Christ God was reconciling[a] the world to himself, not counting their trespasses against them, and entrusting to us the message of reconciliation. Therefore, we are ambassadors for Christ, God making his appeal through us. We implore you on behalf of Christ, be reconciled to God.” Paul’s writing, being inspired by God, tells everyone that we are ambassadors for Christ. The word ambassador is usually defined as being a person being sent somewhere to represent a specific entity and to promote a specific activity or message. Granted Christianity has become the largest religion in the world with 2.04 billion followers, but there are many times that number that still needs the opportunity to become Christians. As Christians and trying to be “Biblical Men” it is our responsibility to be an ambassador just like Paul. Paul is an example given to us by God that shows anything is possible. If a scallywag and lowlife like Saul can become Paul and become the “Man” that he became, then I believe Jesus is providing us with this example and challenging us to also follow Paul’s example and become an apostle sharing the Word. Every effort great and small will advance the teaching found in the Bible.
Recently a “Man” that I know was struggling and concerned over his attempt to get a friend of his to attend church. He sincerely wants to help spread the word and help people find a sound church family and he asks my help. He stated that every time he spoke to this person, he got the same response that described how they were not being ‘fed” by the message. This person had attended every church in the area and still was not satisfied. This person was able to find fault with every church and pastor. We discussed this person and tried to come up with a solution to their problem. We finally agreed that maybe this person was not ready to make a commitment to a new church family and that he should keep talking with them and hopefully his good example would persuade them to make a decision. We also agreed that as long as this person was church shopping, they were being fed whether they realized it or not. These conclusions did not satisfy my friend and he still wanted help. How do you evangelize? Very few people truly know the Bible, and even fewer can use scripture in everyday conversations. So, what tools and wisdom can an unschooled person use to help someone become a Christian. Do you have to attend seminary and become a minister to participate in the Great Commission? I truly believe that everyone with various amounts of skills and knowledge can be successful and take part in spreading God’s word. We cannot know what little effort, what particular word, or what action great or small may be the catalysis that changes someone’s heart. Making the effort and being sincere and asking God’s help will carry us past the things we do not know. God knows what is in our heart and he knows what we are trying to accomplish and we need to remember that he is there to help. Paul found himself in the same situation sometimes not knowing where the words he spoke came from. In Galatians 1:11-12 Paul tells us, “I want you to know, brothers and sisters, that the gospel I preached is not of human origin. I did not receive it from any man, nor was I taught it; rather, I received it by revelation from Jesus Christ.” Jesus will take up our slack and feed us the words and knowledge just like he did for Paul when it is necessary. Many times, when I was teaching the guys from the halfway houses, I would find myself in heated and difficult discussions that were way over my head. Just about the time I was about to give up and admit that I was talking when I should be listening something would come out my mouth that addressed the issue and solved my problem. No one in the room was any more surprised than me. Sometimes I had to resist the idea that I am sometimes brilliant because I knew as soon as I spoke it was divine intervention that gave me this knowledge. God truly does help the feeble when in need. One of the assignments that we gave each other was to look for blessings and God’s intervention each week between classes and report the observation in the next class. These men had never thought about looking for blessings and were not sure what God’s intervention would look like. After a very few weeks, the reported blessing and interventions became more numerous. They enjoyed and had a new sense of pride sharing their experiences with each other. This showed me that anyone and everyone can evangelize in their own ways. These men fresh out of prison especially enjoyed Paul’s story. We will continue in the next installment.