Matthew 28:16-20 - The Great Commission
The Grand Finale of Matthew
Well, it is good to be with you here this week. If you have your Bibles, turn to Matthew 28. We are wrapping up the longest series in the history of The Well Community Church—and that is saying something considering we have taught thirty different books of the Bible in entirety over almost twenty years. We find ourselves coming to the final installment in a seventy-six message series. We divided that up and had some breaks here and there, but calendar-wise, it literally falls just a couple weeks short of two years. We’ve been grinding it out.
If you remember, we had ten mini-series throughout the Gospel of Matthew to break it up. We talked about the early life of Jesus about two years ago. We talked about the Sermon on the Mount, the miracles of Jesus, the kingdom program of Jesus, the parables of Jesus, what it meant to be made ready by Jesus, living life in community, being rejected as Jesus was, the return of Jesus, and the last days. Ten mini-series highlighting the overarching theme of Matthew: the King and the establishment of His kingdom. Jesus proclaimed that He was the Jewish Messiah, and therefore the kingdom was present before them in bodily form—the rule and reign of Christ on earth as it is in heaven.
Now we come to the end of the book, verses 16 through 20. We come to what I would suggest is the crescendo, the final verses. I was reading a book a couple weeks ago, and it was pretty good for about three-quarters of the way through, and then it just fell apart at the end. Matthew is not like that. The final verses are the crescendo and the pinnacle of the book in terms of what we do with it now. In verses 16 through 20, we find what is commonly called the Great Commission—and I would suggest maybe one of the most over-quoted, under-lived passages in all sixty-six books of our Bible.
Matthew 28:16-20 (NASB)
But the eleven disciples proceeded to Galilee, to the mountain which Jesus had designated. When they saw Him, they worshiped [Him]; but some were doubtful. And Jesus came up and spoke to them, saying, ’All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth. ‘Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.’
All Authority and the Great Omission
Verse 18 begins with Jesus declaring that all authority has been given to Him in heaven and on earth. Jesus begins with a clear affirmation of the validity of His work. He had died on the cross, was buried, and had resurrected. In doing so, He brings the offer of the kingdom to a culmination. He is the possessor of all authority in heaven and on earth, and His kingdom program is moving forward.
However, it moves forward in a way the disciples didn’t fully understand. You see this in the early pages of Acts. They assumed that since Jesus had risen from the dead, He was going to immediately establish His physical kingdom in Jerusalem. Instead, Jesus essentially tells them, “The authority given to Me, I’m entrusting to you. You are going to be a disciple, and you are going to make a disciple who makes a disciple who makes a disciple.”
Paul echoed this to Timothy when he said that the things heard in the presence of many witnesses should be entrusted to faithful men who will be able to teach others also.
2 Timothy 2:2 (NASB)
The things which you have heard from me in the presence of many witnesses, entrust these to faithful men who will be able to teach others also.
Dallas Willard, an author I’ve been enjoying of late, calls this passage the “Great Omission” for a number of reasons—primarily because we have a widespread misunderstanding of what it actually means to make disciples. The word disciple comes from the Greek word mathetes, which means a pupil, a learner, or a student. Another modern term that captures it well is an “apprentice of Jesus.” That resonates with me. To be a disciple is not simply to memorize what the Rabbi knew; it is to apprentice His entire way of life—how He lived, how He thought, what He valued, and how He loved.
Here is the reality about discipleship: you cannot lead someone where you have never been. That means you cannot make a disciple if you are not one yourself. Therein lies the disconnect. A lot of Christians quote the Great Commission and say, “We should go and make disciples! Somebody out there really should!” But the process of making disciples begins with you, singular. It doesn’t start with somebody else.
Some people treat being a disciple as if it’s an upper-division tier of Christianity—like there are normal Christians, and then there are disciples, the Navy SEALs of the faith. The Bible makes no such distinction. Quite the opposite: every follower of Christ is invited to both be and make disciples.
This is not a shaming message or a drive-by guilt trip. Rather, this is an invitation. Maybe there is something as a professing follower of Jesus that you are missing. Maybe there is a life lived in the fullness of Christ that is deeply worth embracing.
Embracing the Gospel Over Time
What does it mean to embrace the gospel and become a disciple? It begins with the gospel of our salvation—recognizing a holy God who created this world by His power and shaped us in His image. Yet, as image-bearers, we rebelled. Each of us, like sheep, has gone astray and turned to our own way, but the Lord caused the iniquity of us all to fall upon Christ. Part of becoming a disciple is embracing that point-in-time work Jesus accomplished on the cross: trusting Him, believing Him, and placing our faith in Him.
Isaiah 53:6 (NASB)
All of us like sheep have gone astray, Each of us has turned to his own way; But the LORD has caused the iniquity of us all To fall on Him.
Becoming a disciple is also about embracing the gospel over time. It is recognizing that God is still at work in us; we haven’t arrived yet. The Christian faith is rarely like a light switch where you flip it and instantly never struggle with sin again. Often, it’s more like a dimmer switch. We are gradually being conformed into the image of Christ, and that process can be messy. That ongoing transformation is the heart of discipleship.
An invitation to be a disciple is an invitation into authentic, abundant life lived in relationship with Christ. It is not merely downloading information, completing a curriculum, and passing a written test. It is walking in step with Jesus.
Galatians 5:16 (NASB)
But I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not carry out the desire of the flesh.
Until we take on what Jesus calls the “easy yoke,” we will be hard-pressed to be disciples and make disciples. Jesus said, “Come to me, all who are weary and heavy-laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.”
Matthew 11:28-30 (NASB)
’Come to Me, all who are weary and heavy-laden, and I will give you rest. ’Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and YOU WILL FIND REST FOR YOUR SOULS. ‘For My yoke is easy and My burden is light.’
Jesus came so that we might have life and have it to the full.
John 10:10 (NASB)
’The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I came that they may have life, and have [it] abundantly.
Until we lose ourselves in our pursuit of Jesus and find Christ, we cannot truly disciple anyone. If your faith is still about managing and controlling your own life, discipleship stalls. It is only when we recognize that we have been crucified with Christ—that it is no longer we who live, but Christ who lives in us—that we truly flourish.
Galatians 2:20 (NASB)
’I have been crucified with Christ; and it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the [life] which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself up for me.
Paul said that whatever things were gain to him, he counted as loss for the sake of Christ. Compared to the surpassing greatness of knowing Jesus, everything else is rubbish.
Philippians 3:7-8 (NASB)
But whatever things were gain to me, those things I have counted as loss for the sake of Christ. More than that, I count all things to be loss in view of the surpassing value of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and count them but rubbish so that I may gain Christ,
As the missionary Jim Elliot famously said, “He is no fool who gives what he cannot keep to gain that which he cannot lose.”
If we are going to turn the Great Omission back into the Great Commission, the first step is looking in the mirror and asking honestly: Am I a disciple? Have I reoriented my life to passionately pursue intimacy with Jesus Christ? Do I allow God’s Word to affirm what is like Christ in me and expose what is not? Have I organized my calendar and priorities so that I can invite others to follow Him with me?
Paul said, “Be imitators of me, just as I also am of Christ.”
1 Corinthians 11:1 (NASB)
Be imitators of me, just as I also am of Christ.
Discipleship is when you set your sights so firmly on Jesus that when others are around you, they catch it. They see your love, your hope, and your peace when the world around you is in chaos. John Wesley once said, “I set myself on fire and people come and watch me burn.” When your life is ablaze with passion for God, people notice the incarnate love of Christ in you.
The Command: Make Disciples
When you examine the original Greek text of Matthew 28, the grammar is very revealing. In Greek, verbs have tense, voice, and mood. The mood indicates tone—whether a statement, question, or imperative command. An imperative command is not a suggestion, an elective, or a fielder’s choice. In modern terms, an imperative is like texting in all caps with a fire emoji and the slam effect. It conveys absolute seriousness.
Most people assume the primary command in the Great Commission is the word “go.” It isn’t. The singular imperative command of this entire passage is make disciples.
Discipleship is often misunderstood because people attempt to mechanize it. When I was a kid—back when frozen burritos in our brand-new microwave were the pinnacle of cuisine—robotics was just starting to emerge. I got a little toy dump truck for Christmas that had a keypad on top. You could program it: forward two feet, turn right 45 degrees, forward three feet, reverse four feet. You’d hit “GO” and watch it carry out your instructions. If you miscalculated by an inch, it ran into the wall and failed.
We often treat discipleship like that toy dump truck. We think if we can just find the perfect curriculum, the exact program, or the right formula, we’ll produce disciples. But life is messy, and trying harder through sheer human willpower always fails. If telling someone with a hidden struggle to “just stop it” actually worked, we would all be saints by now.
True discipleship is not a programmable system. It is walking intimately with Jesus and inviting others into that journey with you. That is why our Regeneration ministry is so powerful. People often ask what the secret curriculum of ReGen is. The secret isn’t the binder; the power is that participants are led to spend time with Jesus every single day. As they read God’s Word, the Spirit exposes sin and suffering. Instead of running in shame, they bring their brokenness to Jesus and experience grace, love, and transformation. The leaders are simply walking out their own recovery and saying, “Here is how I confess, repent, pray, and worship. Come walk with me.”
Discipleship is the ongoing process of being conformed to the image of Christ for the sake of others.
Going, Baptizing, and Teaching
While “make disciples” is the central imperative verb, there are three supporting participles that carry imperative-like force: going, baptizing, and teaching.
First: Going. Verse 19 literally reads, “As you are going, make disciples of all nations.” It assumes you are already moving. As you go to work, as you teach your students, as you trim trees for the city, as you live in your neighborhood—make disciples.
Notice Jesus specifies all nations—the Greek word ethnos, from which we get ethnicities. Discipleship crosses cultural and ethnic boundaries. In Revelation 5, John sees the culmination of history where people from every tribe, tongue, people, and nation worship the Lamb.
Revelation 5:9 (NASB)
And they sang a new song, saying, ’Worthy are You to take the book and to break its seals; for You were slain, and purchased for God with Your blood [men] from every tribe and tongue and people and nation.
Fresno is a wonderfully diverse city. The nations are right here in our neighborhoods. We are called to invest in the proclamation of the gospel across the street and around the world.
Second: Baptizing. We are commanded to baptize in the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Baptism means immersion and identification. It is a public declaration that you belong to Jesus—buried with Him in death, raised to walk in newness of life. It is also an identification with the local body of Christ.
1 Corinthians 12:13 (NASB)
For by one Spirit we were all baptized into one body, whether Jews or Greeks, whether slaves or free, and we were all made to drink of one Spirit.
If you are a follower of Jesus and have never been baptized, Scripture treats this not as an optional suggestion, but as an immediate step of obedience.
Third: Teaching. Verse 20 instructs us to teach disciples to observe everything Christ commanded. That includes the Old Testament, which points directly to Jesus.
John 5:39 (NASB)
’You search the Scriptures because you think that in them you have eternal life; it is these that testify about Me;
It includes the Gospels, which reveal the incarnate Christ, and the Epistles, which unpack life in His Spirit. We teach the whole counsel of God because all of Scripture reveals Jesus, the One we are apprenticing.
The Unfailing Promise
As we make disciples, as we go, as we baptize, and as we teach, Jesus concludes the entire Gospel of Matthew with an extraordinary promise: “And lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.”
You are not left to gut this out in your own strength. Jesus does not hand us a mission and abandon us to execute it alone. He says, “I am with you. My Spirit is in you.”
Paul described this labor in Colossians, writing that we proclaim Christ, admonishing and teaching everyone with all wisdom, striving according to His power that works powerfully within us.
Colossians 1:28-29 (NASB)
We proclaim Him, admonishing every man and teaching every man with all wisdom, so that we may present every man complete in Christ. For this purpose also I labor, striving according to His power, which mightily works within me.
The kingdom of heaven is here, offered to us now through faith in Christ. As we wait for the day He returns to bring all things under His lordship, let us be faithful apprentices who make apprentices. Set your gaze on Jesus, let your life catch fire with His love, and invite others to walk alongside you. He is with us, every step of the way, even to the end of the age.
Let’s pray.
Father in heaven, what a glorious invitation You have given us to both be and make disciples. As we go, baptize, and teach, would You ignite our hearts with a holy passion for Jesus? Help us walk intimately with You so that we reflect the abundant life You have provided. Make our faith contagious in our neighborhoods and across our city. May we rest in Your promise that You are with us always. In Jesus’ name, Amen.