Therefore, go and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit; teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you.” Have you ever heard this famous Biblical passage before? It’s called the Great Commission and is Christ’s final command to us before He returns to Heaven.
Unfortunately, it can be something Christians ignore for several reasons. One of them is that we involve ourselves in all kinds of seemingly good things that keep us all too busy. Jim Collins wrote a widely used book in the business world that opens with this statement, “Good is the enemy of great.” And so many times, we do all kinds of good things, and yet, they are not the great things that we could be doing in seeing men and women come to Jesus. Christ said, “If you love Me, keep My commandments.” And His last command should be every Christian’s first concern. Let’s look at three ways we can all go to the nations: join in prayer, take heart, and rejoice in persecution.
JOIN IN PRAYER
In the book of Ephesians, we read, “And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the Lord’s people.” And we should! Let us not neglect to pray for our brothers and sisters all around the world. Many are fighting for their faith with their lives and livelihoods in jeopardy simply for following Christ. Perhaps you say, “I’d love to, but how?”
Firstly, we should pray for their protection as they worship and share the Gospel in cultures that discriminate against them for their faith. Secondly, we should pray for their provision, as many of our brothers and sisters face poverty, hunger, and disease. Thirdly, we should pray for perseverance—that despite what they face, they continue to grow in their walk with Christ and go out into their nations to share the Gospel with others who need the same hope.
As we pray, let’s pray for the lost in our communities too. Our nation has many who need to hear the Gospel. We do not necessarily have to fly across an ocean to be used by God to tell others about Him. People in our neighborhoods, families, and at work need to hear about Jesus. We can start praying for opportunities and the courage to share with others around us. If we are faithful to ask, the Holy Spirit will answer us and help us as we do!
TAKE HEART
When things get tough in my life, and I need encouragement to fight the good fight, finish the race, and keep the faith (like the Apostle Paul did in 2 Timothy 4:7-8). I remember a specific moment back in 2016. We were in a packed auditorium in Indonesia. As I stopped and looked around, I heard dozens of languages being spoken simultaneously. We all settled into our seats as our time together was called to order. This event was Evangelism Explosion’s third Congress of Nations, with eighty-three different countries represented. During that morning, we sang “How Great is Our God” (a powerful song in and of itself), but this time, the worship leader asked everyone to sing in their own language.
Words cannot describe the beauty—when Arabic was sung alongside Czech and Fijian. And you know, this is what Heaven will be like—because every tribe, tongue, and nation will be there. Hebrews 12 tells us:
“Since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles. And let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us, fixing our eyes on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of faith.”
Hebrews 12:1:1-2 (NIV)
Have you ever wondered what Paul meant by this? What witnesses? In Heaven, we’ll meet brothers and sisters-in-Christ who have run the race before us. They lived boldly for Jesus. They shared their faith. Many died as a result. The writer of Hebrews tells us that this cloud of witnesses in Heaven surrounds us here and now. They are cheering us on by their example. If they did it, we can too! It should fire us up and fuel us to keep going, no matter what. We can take heart—our destination is Heaven!
As the Word of God says, we are sojourners or pilgrims passing through this life. But we have a purpose. When we go to the nations, whether it’s a neighbor across the street or a country far away, we know that Jesus is with us and those before us are cheering us on. We must share the Gospel boldly and be encouraged to continue to our last breath.
REJOICE IN PERSECUTION
I am going to take this a step further. Yes, we need to take heart and persevere when persecuted, but we also need to rejoice. You might think that sounds absolutely crazy, but let me prove it to you! In His famous Sermon on the Mount, Jesus said, “Blessed are those who are persecuted because of righteousness, for theirs is the kingdom of Heaven. Blessed are you when people insult you, persecute you and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of me. Rejoice and be glad, because great is your reward in Heaven.” When I read this, the passage encourages me that I am not in this alone—Jesus has experienced the very same rejection. And secondly, there is no reason to fear sharing my faith because even if it ends in persecution, my Savior says, “Rejoice.”
And Jesus told us more:
“If the world hates you, keep in mind that it hated me first. If you belonged to the world, it would love you as its own. As it is, you do not belong to the world, but I have chosen you out of the world. That is why the world hates you. Remember what I told you: ‘A servant is not greater than his master.’ If they persecuted me, they will persecute you also. If they obeyed my teaching, they will obey yours also. They will treat you this way because of my name, for they do not know the one who sent me.”
John 15:18-25 (NIV)
If we love Jesus and follow Him, it isn’t if persecution will come, but when. And when others persecute us, we are to rejoice, for we are storing up treasures in Heaven. Christ promises that there will be a reward when we share in His sufferings by facing insults and false accusations. And nothing can destroy these rewards! Our Savior Himself is preparing them for us. Nothing we experience will be in vain. It reminds me of what James famously wrote about facing tribulations, “Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance. Let perseverance finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything.”
GO TO THE NATIONS
We all can go to the nations and share the hope of the Gospel with everyone. It is not easy, but Jesus promised to be with us. Our brothers and sisters in Heaven will spur us on. We can rejoice because we are storing up treasure that one day we will enjoy when the fight is fought, and our race is finished. Take courage, dear friend. Let’s go in grace and share the Good News for the glory of our Savior.
For more on how you can share the Gospel through sharing your testimony, read my last blog post: https://evangelismexplosion.org/2024/05/10/the-power-of-your-story/!
