Matt 28:16-20

Making Plans
Big Idea: Jesus is the LORD of Heaven and Earth who commands His Disciples to make more Disciples
Introduction:
This mightn’t come as a surprise to you, but I can assure you it came as a surprise to me, that I have now well and truly passed from the decade of my twenties. I finished university over 10 years ago now, and if I had to summarize that decade, it would be about having to learn to make decisions, and decisions that I felt rather ill-prepared and inadequately equipped to make.

The twenties for a lot of people is when you get your first job, then leave your first job, maybe move out of home, or go overseas, get married, maybe even have kids. In Sydney today starting salaries have never been higher, which is good because the cost of education and the cost of housing have never been higher either.


But if any feeling was with me during that time it was the burden of too much choice, too many options. Sounds strange really, but the ability to just get up one day and move to the other side of the world and not have to consult anybody is not as freeing as it sounds. Too much choice is actually a burden.

The 20’s is a time when you make decisions and you really can make important plans!

But then again, no matter what stage of life we are at, we all make plans don’t we, we all have somewhere we want to be, a direction we are intending to go?

In the end of Matthew’s Gospel Jesus helps us to see the need of a plan, and it isn’t just any plan, he is talking about, its God’s plan he shows us. And Jesus can tell us this because of one important fact
Point 1: Jesus is Lord of Heaven and Earth
The first point we get from the text today is that Jesus is the Lord of Heaven and Earth.
Have a look with me at Verse 18
Matthew 28:18 Then Jesus came to them and said, "All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me.

Jesus tells us in no uncertain terms that he is the ruler of all things; from the angels in heaven above, to the waves on the seas below; the lightning in the sky and the harvest of the crops in the fields.

Jesus is the Lord of the rebellious spirits in the heavens and he is the ruler of the rebellious people on earth.

For his Jewish disciples Jesus is stating clearly that he is equal with their God who created the world and now sustains it through his power. Jesus is saying he is one with their God, in Verse 19 the single name of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit.

Jesus has all authority because Jesus is God.

And when we stop to think about it from the disciples perspective, these Jewish men who are now worshipping this man who is there God, what a stark contrast a couple of days makes! As you remember from a little earlier in the gospel story, there was a picture of Jesus as a powerless man dying a helpless, pitiful, thief’s death upon a cross.

Jesus, if you’re the Son of God: Save yourself
Jesus, if you’re the Son of God: Come down from the cross
Jesus, if you’re the Son of God: Are you going to rebuild the temple from up there?

Well this Jesus chose to die on that cross after which he did rebuild the temple in a more amazing fashion than any of them, including his disciples, could of envisaged, he rebuilt this temple from death to life, from powerless to all authority in heaven and on earth. He was raised from the dead.

This act is what confirms his authority over all heaven and earth including the ability to judge or to forgive.

Jesus is the Lord of Heaven and Earth

As Australians we don’t have a very good regard for authority. And the starkest contrast is shown in the way we treat our leaders. Kath and I had the good fortune to visit Washington DC, and while we were standing on the side walk of Pennsylvania ave we noticed almost eerily there was no one really around (that could have had to do with the fact that the Washington sniper was currently on the rampage, but we didn’t know that at the time) but the streets as well were stopped to traffic, then to our amazement around the corner came the motorcade of the President of the United States, no more than twenty feet away, and George W. Bush waved at us, we almost involuntarily (lemming style) waved back. It was a surreal moment.

How many vehicles do you think was in his motorcade? 17 including an ambulance…He traveled exactly two blocks. About 800m on that journey.

Fast forward two months later and I’m stuck in peak hour traffic on Epping highway and I see a white statesman with 5 people crammed into it, then I realize there are Australian flags flying on the bonnet. A closer inspection revealed the bloke crammed into the center of the back seat was in fact John Howard. Patiently reading sitting in the same traffic I had to negotiate. Motorcade size, same as me – 1!

Most of us probably think, rightly so, he can wait like me Prime Minister or not.

But does that distinctly Australian attitude of authority carry over to how you view Jesus authority?

If you asked Jesus disciples they would have said that Jesus appearing from the dead is miraculous, and for him to state that he is Lord of all is just about unbelievable.

But the question it asks of you here today is “what do you say about it?”

Or has enough time passed since you heard of it that your sense of the significance of this has been dulled?

As Christians we can be dangerously presumptuous with our knowledge of who Jesus is. We are all in danger of being complacent.

How is Jesus Lordship reflected in your life?

How do you plan your life? Our most precious resource these days seems not to be money, like many people think, but to be time, How do plan to use yours to serve Jesus?

Jesus is the Lord of Heaven and Earth

Point 2: Jesus commands His disciples to make more disciples and to teach them

The second point from today’s text is Jesus commands his disciples to make more disciples.
Have a look with me at verses 19 & 20
Matthew 28:19-20 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, 20 and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you.

The heart of Jesus command here is to make disciples, in the same way Jesus has discipled the eleven through teaching the Gospel and the commands of God they are to do likewise. Only there is something new about God’s work through the disciples, you see the eleven were all Jews, a continuation of God’s previous works through Israel. But now a new thing has begun the message of salvation going out to all nations the new era for the Gentiles has arrived. Which is great news for us.

You’ll note that Jesus calls for the disciples to make disciples, not just converts. Jesus is not commanding for lots of people to be converted, get numbers, (dare I say it 10%!), he is commanding them to make disciples, mature Christians who are obedient to Jesus teachings. They are to have a life that is recognizably consistent with the message of the Gospel and the teachings of Jesus they proclaim.

Let me say that again, their life is to reflect the Gospel message, this is Christian maturity.

Now what does he mean about being baptized? Well baptism in Matthew’s Gospel seems to be based around what John the Baptist did, and he baptized people as an outward sign of a repentant heart toward God, a recognition of a persons need to be forgiven. Baptism really would become an outward sign to others of someone being a Disciple of Jesus. Being a Disciple of Jesus is the priority of the command.

Jesus commands his disciples to make more disciples.


People of my age group have a tendency to think we are entirely the masters of our own destiny, no doubt a function of the choice available to us, and we’ll choose who has an influence on our lives, we’re pretty special – y’know - no matter how many fish in the sea it would feel so empty without me. And left to my own devices I’m no different.

We’re not as independent as we’d like to think. The company we keep and the things we occupy our minds with influence us.
I realize that a large number of you here today are parents, which is a great blessing, and I’m sure many of you have had that terrifying experience that happens to all parents at some stage…. I’m talking about that fateful moment when in a moment of anxiety and desperation, even exasperation, you have said something you wish you hadn’t and you realize that you are, despite your best attempts to resist it, in fact, turning into your own parents.

Y’know the type of thing I’m talking about, it’s the “because I’m your father” defense.

Whether it’s a conscious decision or not, the company we keep influences us. We relate to people and they influence us and we change as a result.

Jesus command to make disciples requires us to be Godly influences through teaching what Jesus taught and being obedient to it. We are to encourage each other to faith in Christ and obedience to his teachings.

A mark of Christianity is to be in intentional relationships with two types of people, those who are discipling us and those who we are discipling. Or do you think being a Christian is an individual pursuit?

Hebrews 10:25 Let us not give up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but let us encourage one another-- and all the more as you see the Day approaching.

Now, If discipleship is about teaching other people Jesus teachings, how well do you know what Jesus taught? Do you read your Bible. If we took a straw poll on, ‘is the Bible the word of God?’, I’m guessing we would get a 100% strike rate. And yet if a asked who has read all of the Bible, would the rate be the same? What about the new testament, would that be 100%? What about if I asked who has read an entire gospel from start to finish? It’ll take you less than 3 hours to do (about the same amount of time as watching Lord of the Rings), I bet you we wouldn’t have 100%. Is Jesus our Lord or not? Work hard at being his disciples, and teaching others to do likewise because he is returning to weigh up his servants work.

Jesus commands his disciples to make more disciples.

Point 3: Jesus told them he will be with them to the end of the age

The third point from today’s text is that Jesus has promised to be with us until the end of the age.

Have Look with me at verse 20
Matthew 28:20 And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age."

Jesus is encouraging his disciples that he will be in their work, or more correctly the disciples will carry on his work, they will not be alone and we know that Jesus continues to be with his disciples through the presence of his Spirit.

But the statement of the ends of the age is a double-edged sword really, it encourages Jesus disciples that he will see them through to the end, that they need not fear that end. But it reminds them that the Lord of Heaven and earth is going to return, it brings a sense of urgency about the disciples work to make disciples because the time will come when he will judge all.

Those who do not have their faith in the Lord Jesus are in immanent danger of judgment and condemnation and you have responsibility to share the message of the Gospel that is the power of God for the salvation of those who believe.

If you feel like the Christian life can be difficult at times, let me assure you that your not alone in this. Telling people about Jesus and working hard to convince them of their need to put their faith and trust in him can be hard work and more than a little daunting. It is important to remember that we are taking part in Jesus work, the Lord of Heaven and earth has promised to be with us.

And God is always faithful to his promises.

On my first beach mission at Toowoon Bay on the central coast, I was quite frankly terrified. And the part that scared me most was visitation, were you go in pairs and visit the same 25 or so campsites every day at the same time for a week. My visitation partner was the single most quiet person in the team, so it was a steep learning curve. One particular tent site was three English geezers on a back packer holiday and each of the first 5 days they were either too hung over or already drinking again to really be able to talk to. The tent was sought of covered with beer bottles and we’d just be polite and give them one of the program outlines each day.

Then one day they were sitting at their tent sober and talkative, obviously the beer money had run out and they were a little bored. We talked for a little while about their travels etc. and the conversation had kind of run it’s course so we turned to head to the next site and one of them said, “I read your handout, you guys don’t believe that Bible stuff do you?” 45mins later we’d been able to present the gospel of the Lord Jesus to them and explain the need to put your faith in him.

Being Christian can be daunting, but we should remember that we don’t make disciples in the sense that it is all our work, we simply continue to proclaim the gospel message and explain what Jesus taught. The Spirit of God will convict people of the Gospel messages truth and enables them to come to a saving knowledge of the truth about Jesus.

When you think about your plans, do you expect the end of the age come into your calculations?

Do you trust in God’s providence now through your plain and simple explanation of the Gospel to call people to himself?

Do you pray to the Lord that the people you know might be saved?

Conclusion:
Well we’re at the end, and the passage is stating for us that Jesus is the Lord of Heaven and earth and he is commanding us to go and make disciples.

What are your plans for your life? Do you think God has a plan for you?
We often think about God’s plans in a very narrow framework don’t we, who will I marry, what job will I get, where will I live?
Where will the kids go to school, who will they marry?

Jesus is in control of all things and he knows what you need.
Will you trust him to provide?

God has a plan to redeem people to himself and he is asking, well actually he is telling you to make it your plan too?

How will you plan this week, this year, the next ten years, to use your time and resources to make disciples for Christ?
Prayer:
Lord,
We thank you for your word and your spirit that convicts us within, of its truth and our need to change. Please help us to change.
Matthew 9:37 - 10:1 Then he said to his disciples, "The harvest is plentiful but the workers are few. 38 Ask the Lord of the harvest, therefore, to send out workers into his harvest field."
Romans 10:13-15 Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved."
AMEN