In Stay Free #14 we looked at the importance of Christian obedience regarding The Great Commission. The Great Commission came from Jesus himself when he said:
"Therefore, go and make disciples of all the nations, baptising them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit. Teach these new disciples to obey all the commands I have given you. And be sure of this: I am with you always, even to the end of the age." (Matthew 28:19-20)
Now as Hudson Taylor once rightly said, 'The Great Commission is not an option to be considered; it is a command to be obeyed.' Every single Christian is under personal orders from Jesus Christ himself to spread the gospel in some way. We must take it seriously. Indeed, there are really only three ways we can respond to Jesus' command here: We can go, we can support and send others who are going, or we can simply disobey.
Go
'Going' doesn't necessarily mean dropping everything and heading to deepest, darkest Africa. It could mean that. But 'going' simply means making a sustained, committed effort to reach unbelievers for God's kingdom. Unbelievers are all around us. And there are limitless ways they can be reached. We can get involved with outreach events at church. Talk to unbelieving friends and family about Jesus. Leave tracts with restaurant tips. Host an open discussion. Do a neighbourhood cleanup. Use your talents in some way. Make art. Make YouTube videos. I love creative solutions and it doesn't really matter how we do it. The only thing that matters is that we do something. So Question #1 for us all today is, "How will I reach people for Jesus in 2017?" Do something.
Send
If, for whatever reason, you aren't able to 'go' personally, or even if you are, you can still be part of the team effort by supporting those who are devoting their lives to the Great Commission. This means praying for and giving physical help to churches, ministries and missionaries. It also means giving financial support to their efforts. So Question #2 for us all today is, "Which evangelism ministries will I support in 2017?" (Quick plug: You can support this one from just $2 a month by clicking here! 123 new Christians as of yesterday and counting...) But whichever ministry you support, support something.
Disobey
If we don't go or send, then remaining option is simply to disobey Jesus' command, and make no effort to reach the world at all. But then, as Jesus himself said, "Why do you keep calling me 'Lord, Lord!' when you don't do what I say?" (Luke 6:46) In other words, if we have no desire to see others saved, it's most likely we're not saved ourselves.