The Marching Orders of the King
Introduction: The Un-Conclusion
The final words of any book are weighty. They are meant to summarize, to conclude, to tie everything up. But the Gospel of Matthew does not end with a conclusion. It ends with a commencement. It does not end with the disciples retiring to a quiet life of reflection. It ends with them being given their global marching orders. This is not an epilogue; it is a prologue to the history of the world.
We live in an age that is deeply confused about authority, mission, and identity. Our culture is adrift because it has rejected the only anchor that can possibly hold. It wants to write its own story, define its own reality, and issue its own commands. But here, on a mountain in Galilee, the resurrected Christ gives the final word on all such pretensions. He does not offer a set of helpful suggestions for personal spiritual growth. He does not provide a therapeutic program for self-improvement. He issues a royal decree. He hands down a commission that is at once a declaration of war and a promise of absolute victory.
Many Christians today treat this passage, the Great Commission, as though it were the Great Suggestion. It is something to be tacked on to the end of a service, a fine sentiment for missionaries far away, but not the central, driving, all-consuming mandate for every Christian, every family, and every church. We have domesticated it, sentimentalized it, and in so doing, we have neutered it. We have forgotten that this commission is rooted in a claim of absolute, universal authority. It is a command that flows directly from the throne of the cosmos. And because we have forgotten the authority, we have lost our nerve for the mission.
What we have before us is the charter of the Christian church. It is the reason we are here. It is the definition of our task until the Lord returns. To misunderstand these verses is to misunderstand everything. To obey them is to find our place in the grand, unfolding purpose of God to fill the earth with the knowledge of His glory as the waters cover the sea.
The Text
But the eleven disciples proceeded to Galilee, to the mountain which Jesus had designated. And when they saw Him, they worshiped Him; but some doubted. And Jesus came up and spoke to them, saying, “All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth. Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, teaching them to keep all that I commanded you; and behold, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.”
(Matthew 28:16-20 LSB)
Worship and Wavering on the Mountain (v. 16-17)
We begin with the setting and the response of the disciples.
"But the eleven disciples proceeded to Galilee, to the mountain which Jesus had designated. And when they saw Him, they worshiped Him; but some doubted." (Matthew 28:16-17)
First, notice the obedience. Jesus had told them to go to Galilee, and they went. This is not a trivial point. The mission begins with simple obedience to a direct command. They went to the specific mountain Jesus appointed. Our grand, global mission does not begin with our own clever strategies; it begins with going where the King tells us to go. The entire Christian life is a matter of geography and obedience. Be where God wants you, when He wants you there.
When they see the resurrected Christ, their immediate, instinctive response is worship. This is the only sane response to the presence of the risen Lord. He is not merely a teacher who survived an execution; He is the Son of God, the conqueror of death, the King of all creation. Worship is the reflex of a heart that has seen reality. All true theology, all right living, begins here, on its face before the King. If your theology does not lead you to worship, you have a bad theology.
But Matthew, with unflinching honesty, includes a crucial detail: "but some doubted." The Greek word here is not about a settled, intellectual denial. It means to hesitate, to waver. These are not faithless rebels; these are men whose minds are staggering under the sheer weight of the glory. They are seeing the impossible. Their master, whom they saw brutalized and crucified, is standing before them, alive. Their worship is mixed with a kind of holy vertigo. Can this really be true? It is too good to be true, and yet, there He is.
This is a great comfort to us. The foundation of the church was laid with men who were not spiritual giants in that moment, but were honest doubters. Their faith was not yet rock-solid. And how does Jesus respond to their wavering? He does not rebuke them. He does not offer them a gentle, therapeutic session. He comes near and gives them the most staggering, authority-laden command in the history of the world. He answers their doubt not with coddling, but with a commission. He gives them a task so immense that it will require them to trust Him completely. This is how God grows our faith, not by removing all our questions, but by giving us a job that is too big for us, a job that throws us entirely upon His power.
The Foundation of the Mission: Absolute Authority (v. 18)
Jesus grounds the entire commission in a single, monumental declaration.
"And Jesus came up and spoke to them, saying, 'All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth.'" (Matthew 28:18 LSB)
Everything that follows hangs on this verse. This is the predicate of the imperative. The word for authority is exousia. It means all right, all jurisdiction, all power to command. And the scope is total: in heaven and on earth. There is not one square inch in the entire cosmos over which Christ does not say, "Mine." This is not a future hope; it is a present reality. At His resurrection and ascension, Jesus was installed as the cosmic King. He approached the Ancient of Days and was given dominion, glory, and a kingdom (Dan. 7:13-14). God the Father has put all things under His feet (Eph. 1:22).
This statement is the central polemical claim of the Christian faith. It is a direct challenge to every other claimant to authority. It confronts Caesar in his palace, the professor in his lecture hall, the artist in his studio, and the pagan in his temple. All their authority is derived, delegated, and temporary. Christ's authority is ultimate, inherent, and eternal. We do not go out into the world to try to win a little territory for Jesus. We go out to announce to a rebellious world that their rightful King has taken the throne. We are not diplomats negotiating a truce; we are heralds proclaiming the terms of surrender.
This is why our mission is not a fool's errand. We are not fighting for a victory; we are fighting from a victory. The decisive battle has already been won. The D-Day of history was the resurrection. The rest of history is the mopping-up operation. Our confidence is not in our eloquence, our resources, or our strategies. Our confidence is in the exousia of the King.
The Task of the Mission: Make Disciples (v. 19-20a)
Because of His authority, Jesus issues the central command, with three participles explaining how it is to be done.
"Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, teaching them to keep all that I commanded you..." (Matthew 28:19-20a LSB)
The central verb is "make disciples." The "go" is assumed in the task. We are a sent people. But what does it mean to "make disciples of all the nations"? The Greek is panta ta ethne. This does not just mean "make disciples of individuals out of every nation." It means that, but it means more. It means we are to disciple the nations as nations, the people groups as corporate entities. The gospel is to so thoroughly permeate a culture that it begins to transform the very fabric of that society, its laws, its art, its families, its government. The ambition of the Great Commission is nothing less than the Christianization of the nations. It is a call for a global Christendom.
How is this done? First, by "baptizing them." Baptism is the initiatory rite, the enlistment ceremony into the army of the King. Notice it is done in the "name", singular, of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. This is a profound Trinitarian declaration. We are enrolled into the family of the Triune God. Baptism is an objective, covenantal act. It places the name of God on a person, marking them as belonging to the visible covenant community. It is the sign and seal of God's promises to them.
Second, this discipling is done by "teaching them to keep all that I commanded you." This is not just about information transfer. It is about teaching for the sake of obedience. And the curriculum is comprehensive: "all that I commanded." This includes the Sermon on the Mount, the parables, the ethical demands, and yes, this very commission. The Great Commission is self-replicating. We are to teach new disciples to obey the command to go and make more disciples. This is a generational, world-encompassing project. It is the application of the Word of God to every area of life, public and private.
The Promise of the Mission: Perpetual Presence (v. 20b)
Finally, Jesus concludes not with a final command, but with a final comfort. A promise.
"...and behold, I am with you always, even to the end of the age." (Matthew 28:20b LSB)
This is the fuel for the whole enterprise. The task is impossible. Discipling the nations? Teaching them to obey everything? We could not even begin in our own strength. But we are not in our own strength. The King who has all authority is the King who promises His personal, powerful presence.
This is not a sentimental "I'm with you in spirit." This is the promise of the active, ruling, sovereign presence of the King with His ambassadors. He is with us by His Spirit, He is with us by His Word, and He is with us as we gather for worship. He is with us when we are bold, and He is with us when we are wavering. He is with us in the victories, and He is with us in the setbacks, which are simply victories in disguise.
And the duration of this promise is absolute: "always, even to the end of the age." He will not leave us. He will not forsake us. His presence guarantees the success of the mission. The outcome is not in doubt. The knowledge of the Lord will cover the earth. The nations will be discipled. The kingdoms of this world will become the kingdoms of our Lord and of His Christ. This is not a question of "if," but only of "when." And His perpetual presence with us is the down payment, the guarantee, that it will be so.
Conclusion: Therefore, Go
So what does this mean for us, here and now? It means that our lives have a purpose that is grander than our personal peace and affluence. We have been drafted into a cosmic campaign. We have been given our marching orders by the King of the universe.
The authority of Christ means we need not be intimidated by the bluster of a dying, secular order. Their thrones are tottering. Their philosophies are bankrupt. Their rebellion is futile. Christ has all authority, which means they have none that He has not permitted them for a time.
The command to disciple the nations means our work is not just about individual conversions, as essential as that is. It is about building a new civilization on the ruins of the old. It starts in our homes, with raising our children in the nurture and admonition of the Lord. It extends to our vocations, where we are to work with excellence and integrity for the glory of God. It moves out into our communities, as we seek to apply the Lordship of Christ to every public affair. We are to be salt and light, and that means we are to have a savory, illuminating effect on the whole culture.
And the promise of His presence means we can go with joy and confidence. We are not alone. The King is with us. Therefore, we can be bold. Therefore, we can be patient. Therefore, we can work, and build, and sing, and fight, knowing that our labor in the Lord is not in vain. He has given the order. He has supplied the power. The victory is assured. Therefore, go.