He said what? (Part 3)

This week we’ve been looking at what Jesus told His disciples right before He ascended to Heaven. It wasn’t just for those standing there that day, it’s for ALL OF US who call Jesus Lord.

“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.”  (Matthew 28:19-20 NIV)

Before He gets to the promise of being with us always, He says there’s one more key aspect of making disciples…TEACHING.

However, when Jesus says this, He doesn’t just say “teach them.” He says, “TEACH THEM TO OBEY EVERYTHING I HAVE COMMANDED YOU.”

It’s not enough to just know what Jesus said, or to even tell others what Jesus said, we must teach people to OBEY HIM!

People are looking, not just for someone who occasionally shows up at church, but for someone who is walking the walk…following obediently in the footsteps of Jesus.

At the end of the Sermon on the Mount, after Jesus has described what it really looks like to follow Him and be His disciples, He says this:

“Therefore everyone who hears these words of mine and puts them into practice is like a wise man who built his house on the rock. The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house; yet it did not fall, because it had its foundation on the rock. But everyone who hears these words of mine and does not put them into practice is like a foolish man who built his house on sand. The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house, and it fell with a great crash.”  (Matthew 7:24-27 NIV)