The Commissions of Christ

When we think of Jesus' commission to His church, we generally think of the Great Commission, especially when we anticipate the devotional talk delivered by a missionary. The Great Commission is considered that because it is the last one Jesus gave before His ascension: 

18 And Jesus came and spoke to them, saying, "All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth. 19 Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20 teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age." Amen.

Matthew 28:18-20, NKJV

Because of its timing, that commission rang out with such reverberating waves that it almost drowned out the previous commissions Jesus lived His life demonstrating. The truth is that the "Great" one is not the only commission. 

"Commission" is defined by the Oxford Dictionary as "an instruction, command, or duty given to a person or group of people." Let us take a look at a few other commissions of Christ. There are too many to list without copying all four Gospels, but a few are these: "follow me," the Sermon on the Mount, the parable of the Good Samaritan, the two by two missionary commission, and the Mandate given on Maundy Thursday.

Follow me

This doesn't sound like a commission, but a selection process. We might have heard it so many times in Bible stories that it became to us just a "once upon a time" preface to the "story" of Jesus. It is Holy Spirit who makes that commission personal. The Bible is clear that all of us who are anointed with the seal of the Holy Spirit were selected to receive the gift of salvation, of witness, and of bearing His fruits, not just the disciples Jesus picked from their fishing nets and tax booths. 

16 You did not choose Me, but I chose you and appointed you that you should go and bear fruit, and that your fruit should remain…

John 15:16, NKJV

The commission of this statement of Jesus is to come after Him, to witness His behavior, hear His Word, and imitate His example. "Follow me" is not an invitation merely to come and see, but to come and do. 

The Sermon on the Mount

Similar to the "Follow me" commission, many of us have heard the Sermon on the Mount so many times we might consider it an oratory for the ages, the greatest speech ever, or the spiritual shot heard 'round the world. The truth is there are several commissions in this one sermon. Let's review Matthew chapters 5 through 7. 

The Beatitudes are a set of indirect commissions. At the opening of His first real address, Jesus chose to entice with reward rather than openly and directly command. In essence, He said that any one of us will be blessed if we are poor in spirit, mournful, meek, hungry and thirsty for righteousness, merciful, pure, peacemaking, or persecuted for any of these. Sure, it was an attention-getting opening to the most profound talk in history, but it was also His first projected commission to all listening through the ages to be those very things. 

The rest of the Sermon on the Mount was full of similar commissions: 

• Be salt and light (Mt 5:13-16). 
• Be genuinely righteous (Mt 5:17-20). 
• Reconcile with one another and live in peace (Mt 5:21-26)
• Perfectly love others no matter what, accepting persecution, being generous and forgiving (Mt 5:38-48). 
• Be discreet, generous, and sincere (Mt 6:1-8, 16-18)
• Always be forgiving (Mt 6:9-15). 
• Be diligent about your Heavenly focus and try to ignore the distractions of earthly concerns (Mt 6:22-34). 
• Be obedient, firmly grounded, and bear behavioral fruit (Mt 7:1-29). 

In parables and by His example Jesus gave illustrations of what living His way would look like. The rest of the Gospels draw a full picture of the glorious example of Christ. This example would be merely entertainment if it had not come with the commissions we are talking about here. They are the forms by which we are to shape our own lives, not just on Sundays but always. 

The Parable of the Good Samaritan

The parable of the Good Samaritan is found in the 10th Chapter of Luke. It is so well known, even among non-believers, that most states in the USA have "Good Samaritan" laws to protect those who try to behave the way the Good Samaritan did in Jesus' parable. For our purposes, we will leave out the social implications of what a Samaritan was to a Jew and the comparison of his behavior to that of the priest or Levite. We will focus on the behavior of the one known only by his nationality. The Samaritan had compassion for the dying crime victim, took him to an inn, treated his wounds, paid for his accommodations, and committed himself to whatever further care was necessary. At the end of this story, Jesus commended His audience for correctly identifying proper behavior and simply said, "Go and do likewise" (Lk 10:37).

Here stands what may well be the simplest commission ever spoken by Jesus. "Go and do likewise." Go and do what? Find robbery victims in the ditch; serve as ambulance drivers, EMTs, paramedics, and nurses; pay people's hotel bills; anoint people with oil and wine? Certainly, there are those of us called to do some or all of those things, but the context of this commission was in answer to "Who is my neighbor?" prompted by the reaffirmation of the ancient two greatest commands: 

27 "'Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind'[Deut. 6:5]; and, 'Love your neighbor as yourself.'[Lev. 19:18]"

Luke 10:27, NKJV

The Samaritan would be considered "Good" for all of history, not because he knew how to use oil and wine or bandage wounds, but because he was devoted enough to the God of his understanding to show compassion and consideration for a human in need, even one who from an alien culture. He served in love without hesitation, prejudice, or limit. We are commissioned to love that way because Jesus commissioned us to "Go and do likewise."

The two by two missionary commission(s)

The fact that Jesus sent his closest disciples on one or more missionary journeys appears in Matthew 10, Mark 6, Luke 9, and John 17. We beneficiaries of those Gospels are to receive this witness testimony for a purpose. That purpose is an extension of the "Follow me" commission. Jesus chose twelve to be His foremost representatives, He sent 72 others to do the same, and He chose us to be His witnesses in this generation. When we follow Him, we will follow what His first followers were instructed to do. 

25 It is enough for students to be like their teachers, and servants like their masters.

Matthew 10:25, NKJV

18 As You sent Me into the world, I also have sent them into the world.

20 "I do not pray for these alone, but also for those who will believe in Me through their word; 21 that they all may be one, as You, Father, are in Me, and I in You; that they also may be one in Us, that the world may believe that You sent Me.

John 17:18, 20-21, NKJV

So let us look at what Jesus commissioned his disciples, first the Twelve, the seventy-two, then us, to do when He sent us out as sheep among wolves. We note that He made the Kingdom focus the priority over the earthly concerns. The pioneer missionaries were told to go out without extra clothes or food, but to trust God to provide for them the hospitality they would need (Mt 10:9-10, Mk 6:8, Lk 9:3). This demonstrates the total dependence on God we are to mimic. 

These pioneers we first commissioned for spiritual warfare, to take authority over demons, casting them out and healing the afflicted (Mt 10:1, Mk 6:7, Lk 9:1-2). 

7 As you go, proclaim this message: 'The kingdom of heaven has come near.' 8 Heal the sick, raise the dead, cleanse those who have leprosy,[skin disease] drive out demons. Freely you have received; freely give.

Matthew 10:7-8, NKJV

As Heaven's ambassadors to the world, we are called to endure persecution and bear witness by the Holy Spirit to any audience we are given, whether in prison, court or elsewhere. 

17 Be on your guard; you will be handed over to the local councils and be flogged in the synagogues. 18 On my account you will be brought before governors and kings as witnesses to them and to the Gentiles. 19 But when they arrest you, do not worry about what to say or how to say it. At that time you will be given what to say, 20 for it will not be you speaking, but the Spirit of your Father speaking through you.

Matthew 10:17-20, NKJV

We were commissioned for urgent evangelistic, spiritual, and physical ministry just as our predecessors. 

12 So they went out and preached that people should repent. 13 And they cast out many demons, and anointed with oil many who were sick, and healed them.

Mark 6:12-13, NKJV

12 So they went out and preached that people should repent. 13 And they cast out many demons, and anointed with oil many who were sick, and healed them.

Luke 9:12-13, NKJV

The Maundy (Mandate) Thursday commission

Jesus' commission at the Last Supper ties in with every example He demonstrated throughout His ministry. John records this emphatic mandate for every disciple who would respond to Jesus' call to "follow me" including you and me.

34 A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another; as I have loved you, that you also love one another. 35 By this all will know that you are My disciples, if you have love for one another."

John 13:34-35, NKJV

What kind of love did Jesus demonstrate? Paul describes it in detail in 1 Corinthians 13, but by His example in the Gospels, we can describe Jesus' love as:

• Compassionate

He waited days before going to revive Lazarus, though seeing him dead was painful, just to provide the object lesson for his followers. He "had compassion on" those he would heal of afflicting or possessing demons, leprosy, crippling deformations, disorder, and disease. Even in a pressing crowd, He stopped to find out who touched Him in faith and received His power in secret.

• Considerate

He met the Samaritan woman at the well and saw deeply into her life. He met the physical needs of those around him, feeding crowds, calming storms, washing feet, and healing broken souls and bodies. 

• Gentle even in authority

He let the children pile on Him even when the grown-ups thought it was a distraction. He drove out the money changers with a whip, not a club or sword. He mended Malchus' ear even after He told his disciples to pick up their swords. 

• Hospitable

He fed crowds of hungry people. He was not so set in His program that he could not be interrupted for special needs like Jairus or the centurion. 

• Sacrificial

He gave up a profitable apprenticeship as a carpenter to go into full-time ministry. He had nowhere to lay His head, but He shared His providential resources with those who followed Him. He ultimately submitted to the will of the Father and gave His life so that you and I might be released from our bondage to sin and death. 

• Forgiving

He prayed for His persecutors even on the cross. He loved us while we were yet sinners. He forgave the sins of everyone He met, even before He healed them.  

The Great Commission

All the commissions of Christ can rightly be summed up in the Great Commission because of the phrase, "teaching them to do all I have commanded you." From the first, "Follow me," to the last, "Make disciples," Jesus confirms that we are to use the mold He fashioned by His living example to make likenesses of Him with which He will build His Kingdom. To love God and others is a simple summation. Jesus said, over and again that He did not come to change the Word, but to fulfill it. He taught, as the prophets did, to love God with all your resources and love your neighbors as yourself. 

8 He has shown you, O man, what is good;

And what does the Lord require of you

But to do justly,

To love mercy [Or lovingkindness],

And to walk humbly with your God?

Micah 6:8, NKJV

Eeyore should not be our spirit animal

I shared at a men's meeting today that I tend to put God off His seat of authority in my life when it comes to my self-worth. To be fair, the conversation prompt was, in fact, "Do I place my SELF-WORTH in something other than Christ?" Only one man in the room of twenty mentioned prideful arrogance as a struggle, and I truly thought I would be in the majority when I shared my struggle with prideful self-doubt. I hear Lauren Daigle popularly sing "You Say," addressing her need to follow what God says about her rather than the message of Satan her sinful self often repeats. Months ago, our pastor preached a hugely popular sermon using the acronym COGPOW to remind us we are Children Of God, Person(s) Of Worth. We do need to be reminded of that. Don't we? One of the men in the group chided me on what he assessed as my self-flagellating nature. All I could think when being corrected for my observation was, "God save me from the moment I think You are lucky to have me." 

I get that we cannot go around with a gray cloud over our heads, moping in the world like Eeyore, the lovably depressed associate of Winnie the Pooh, but pride has to be kept in check. When I declare, even silently, that I am anything but God's child, heir of Heaven, and a member of a royal priesthood here on Earth, I am unseating God from the throne of my life. It is a sort of idolatry to contradict the one true God, no matter what I put in His place. ...Even if it sounds humble. That is just another form of false pride. 

Do not be afraid to love one another

“Greet each other with a sacred kiss.”

‭‭2 Corinthians‬ ‭13:12‬ ‭NLT‬‬

https://www.bible.com/116/2co.13.12.nlt

“And let us not neglect our meeting together, as some people do, but encourage one another, especially now that the day of his return is drawing near.”

‭‭Hebrews‬ ‭10:25‬ ‭NLT‬‬

https://www.bible.com/116/heb.10.25.nlt

Immunity is built by exposure. God’s way always works best. COVID-19 May be a new cold virus on the planet but it is merely a cold virus. The world has been exposed to it and humans will all have to get used to it, developing what immunity we will. Exposure, and therefore immunity, comes from group unity. 

True, the frail may earn their graduation to glory by meeting this new cold virus, but no more than with the flu, heart disease, cancer, diabetes, or an oncoming car. Christ’s bride needs to set an example of faith over fear, loving one another as we were called to “especially now that the day of his return is drawing near.”

How does verbally thrashing someone for saying “Happy holidays” keep Christ in Christmas?

As a Christ worshiper and ambassador of Heaven, I am grieved to see well-meaning Christians do harm to others, rob themselves of joy, and sully the reputation of the collective body of Christ when they respond with passionate disgust or even anger at the use of holiday greetings other than their favorite. Allow me to admit my hypocrisy. I am recovering from a long history of bigotry toward secularists. As one called to rescue the perishing, I do recognize the urgency for sharing the Gospel of Jesus with a dying world. To my shame and regret I have often attempted the blunt approach with exactly two predictable outcomes: I was left exhausted and embittered, and my prospects were wounded and repelled by my assault. To which would a drowning person more enthusiastically respond – an outreached hand or a sharp and jagged firebrand?

Jesus Christ gently extended himself to outsiders. The only ones with whom he was aggressive were those religious elite who, abusing their authority, made coming to God difficult for the common men and women of that day. Christ gently caressed the untouchable leper. He sat and talked with the shunned Samaritan adulteress. He welcomed the children, fed the hungry, healed the sick, and loved the hopeless. He went out of his way to save and serve, even crossing realms to pluck you and me out of the mire we were in. Shall I say nothing of the Passion of Christ, who accepted abuse and tolerated torture for a world of soiled sinners? Who are we to sling mud now?

“Happy holidays!” does not exclude Christmas. Considering how one might come to a decision to utter those words rather than the seasonal ear candy of our own palette, we would recognize that those in the retail industry are, by necessity, trained to broaden their appeal to be welcoming and inclusive of all their patrons. Standing in the shoes of a retailer, we might see every N^th patron awkwardly squirm at our preferred greeting until one bold enough finally explained how excluded it made them feel. None of us who have the Spirit of Christ want to purposefully wound another, and most of us who have associates of other faiths truly do want them to enjoy the holiday of their preference. If someone entered our store wearing a sweater adorned with a menorah and stars, we would likely employ our deductive skills or divine discernment to wish that visitor a “Happy Chanukah!” feeling triumphant for having avoided an awkward conflict. Why then do we stammer and stomp when the more generalized blessing is given to us as though it was a dagger to our egos? Why do we cringe when someone outside the retail industry seeks to avoid those same conflicts?

Jesus taught that we should pray in his Name boldly with reverence before God, but was discreet about promoting it himself. Under the blanket of American religious freedom, there is no reason to be timid about Christ, and I do not mean to excuse the religious coward. John’s epistles, however, make it clear that the first identifying characteristic of a Christian is love, not the type on their greeting card, the decal on their bumper, or the print on their T-shirt. Love. How are we dying to self and living to Christ if we bristle when others choose a phrase not our own? What does it say about our discipleship to do unto others as we would have them do unto us when we turn the pruning hooks and plow shares entrusted to us into spears and swords to pierce the ones Christ died to save?

This year, when your ear is pricked by the alien ring of “Happy holidays,” remember that among peace, joy, and love, the greatest is love. Ask yourself which response would bring the most glory to God in the highest, and on Earth peace, goodwill toward men. Recall the prayer of our brother, Francis of Assisi:

“O, Divine Master, grant that I may not so much seek to be consoled as to console; to be understood as to understand; to be loved as to love; For it is in giving that we receive; it is in pardoning that we are pardoned; it is in dying that we are born again to eternal life.”

Consider responding warmly when the chill of this Winter is pierced by an off-pitch greeting, a misfired blessing, or an imperfect gesture. The greatest gift of Christmas is a perfect Savior for those of us who don’t deserve Him.

No one is a hero who tries to beat God to their appointment with death.

It is hard not to be critical when I hear Big Media and even some of my friends applauding the so-called “bravery” of a girl who committed suicide because she was diagnosed with a terminal disease. Newsflash, folks: we are all going to die eventually! We were each born with a terminal condition called “Humanity.” Some people might develop symptoms that indicate to medical professionals approximately how many months remain but the truth is none of us knows if today is our graduation day. No one is a hero who tries to beat God to their appointment with death. There is a choice concerning death, but it is not in the terms of departure. The choice is in the post-mortem destination.

Two concerns emerge here. First is the horrific idea of “freedom of choice” being applied to mortality. No one has the right to choose death; not their neighbor’s, not their spouse’s, not their own, not their unborn child’s. Murder is wrong every day, always. The second is that if we permit people to self-terminate because of a medical condition, what is to stop us tomorrow from permitting the termination of life for less permanent diagnoses? Or non-medical ones? What next? Organized suicide parties like Carousel in Logan’s Run? This cultural generation that has made Walking Dead the number one show on-air is being programmed to believe that it is okay to kill anything that deviates from a pattern that benefits them.

I have been strongly affected by the suicides and suicide attempts of others. Any notion that suicide affects only the one whose life is terminated is ludicrous. Though the main loss is the surrender of the practitioner’s spiritual outcome, every life is connected to other lives, and every broken connection represents a loss. It is the eternal, irrevocable equivalent of taking your ball and going home just because you don’t like the projected outcome of the game. Anyone who would kill themselves just to keep from dying another way has at least one more day’s worth of growing up to do.

‪#‎suicideprevention‬ ‪#‎chooselife‬

Esther's example of self-denial

Esther, an Old Testament typical representation of the bride of Christ -- the Church, took into the bridal chamber only that which was recommended by the counselor. Sister, brother, are you carrying baggage into the bridal chamber, or are you going equipped only with that which would appeal to the Groom? Self denial means putting away everything that we might want in preference for the King's will. The Holy Spirit is faithful to advise us and help us prepare to please our Bridegroom if we will ask and submit.

Reference, Esther 2:15,17 NIV:
[15] When the turn came for Esther (the young woman Mordecai had adopted, the daughter of his uncle Abihail) to go to the king, she asked for nothing other than what Hegai, the king’s eunuch who was in charge of the harem, suggested. And Esther won the favor of everyone who saw her.
[17] Now the king was attracted to Esther more than to any of the other women, and she won his favor and approval more than any of the other virgins. So he set a royal crown on her head and made her queen instead of Vashti.

Other references:
John 14:16, 26 (Holy Spirit's advocacy)
Revelation 19:7 (the Bride's readiness)
Matthew 16:24, Mark 8:34, Luke 9:23 (self-denial commanded)
Romans 12:1 (worship through self sacrifice)

Why does it hurt so much?

Have you experienced the loss of a loved one? Wept in the agony of a life taken away? Agonized over the chasm between Heaven and Earth through which we may not reach except through prayer to God who oversees it? Perhaps you’ve even blamed God for keeping careful watch over the one you so regret losing to the separation of death. The Giver of Life is not the one who steals, kills and destroys (John 10:10), but our Maker has appointed the way of things, and for each of us to die at some point (Hebrews 9:27). If we are careful to learn the lesson of our pain, we find that it is separation that hurts us. Even in the case of those we mourn whose hope of Heaven is assured, we wince and wail at the thought that our prized one is there and not here. Our certainty of their happiness in Heaven only partly assuages the grief that results from our selfish nature. We want them to be where we can see, touch, and hear them. Pain is not without purpose; it serves to direct our attention to some real need. So to what is the pain of our bereavement directing our awareness? The Father has long been bereaved of union with His created children, and the agony of this estrangement would be an alien emotion to mortal man were it not for the occasional parting of our fellows or family members. Every instance of mortality serves as a reminder that we are not where we belong, and that our home is in the presence of the Father.

“The wages of sin is death” (Romans 6:23). Sin is separation, a falling away from God. The contract of Eden was that when Man ate of the forbidden fruit they would surely die (Genesis 3:3). Man rebelled against the one law of Eden’s covenant and was removed from God’s presence, a separation our selfish nature tends to make us forget. The consequence of sin is death – the inescapable result of choosing separation from God was we got our wish. Now, physically separated from God, our souls’ reunion with Him comes at the cost of separation with mortal (literally “death-sentenced”) men. So we who are left behind endure a deep longing for nearness to the one we have lost – to remind us of the deep longing the One who has lost us has had from the beginning. 

Thankfully, God has not left us to suffer without cause or without benefit. As we come to recognize the great empty chasm between us and God, we find ourselves drawn to the remedy for it. The awareness of our predicament comes by the Spirit of the One who bridged the gap by His own sacrifice. The common thread between Eden’s Covenant, the Mosaic Covenant (the Law and the Ten Commandments), and the New Covenant (the Gospel of Jesus Christ) is that sin requires a death (Hebrews 9:22). It is by no accident or miscalculation that we all feel unworthy to come to God; none of us is. But the unattainable price of our sin-bounty was paid by the death, burial and resurrection of Jesus Christ, God Himself in human form (Romans 3:25). 

The lie Eve and Adam bought was that this life is all there is – that “you shall not surely die” (Genesis 3:4) was their reality. We, as their descendants, risk believing that same lie when we live as though this temporary separation is all there is. When we fail to recognize that Earth is a nursery, training academy, and proving ground for what we will become, and embrace it as though our existence will not go on beyond this world, we stand in pre-sentenced judgment and are granted our wish – eternal destruction. But if the pain of our separation serves its purpose, and makes us long for home enough to lean into it even now; if we more than just believe in Christ but believe on Him enough to live out that faith (John 3:18), we have the assurance that we are among His beloved children (Ephesians 5:1), and He will never really leave us or forsake us (Hebrews 13:5).

Our tie to the eternal realm from Earth is prayer (Psalm 102:17, Revelation 8:4). God’s people communicate with Him, and He with them, through prayer. It is as simple as talking to a friend. Won’t you reach across the great divide with the one tool we have to do so, and end the separation that so grieves the heart of God, our loving Father? When you do, you may find that you become the answer to the question, “Why does it hurt so much?”

See also: The Death of a Friend: Permission to Weep