The Great Commission refers to the directions given by Jesus to his disciples shortly before his ascension into heaven. These familiar words are recorded at the end of Matthew’s gospel. The passage contains an extraordinary claim, a command, and a word of encouragement.
16 Then the eleven disciples went to Galilee, to the mountain where Jesus had told them to go. 17 When they saw him, they worshiped him; but some doubted. 18 Then Jesus came to them and said, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. 19 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. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.”
Pocklington, Yorkshire: 15th June 2026
We make a huge mistake if we look at the Great Commission in isolation. God’s purpose had always been that all nations should be drawn to him. God’s promise to Abraham was that his offspring would bring blessing to all nations (Genesis 22:17-18).
The Eleven
The original twelve apostles have been reduced to eleven by the betrayal and later the death of Judas Iscariot. According to Matthew, the eleven had been directed to meet the risen Jesus on the hillside. This is a significant difference. This encounter is unique in that every other reported appearance seems to have taken the witnesses by surprise, whilst this one is by a very specific divine appointment. Why was this one so different? Perhaps because the giving of the Great Commission immediately preceded the extraordinary demonstration of Christ’s lordship, his ascension to heaven. It was critical for the future of the Church that all of the disciples should witness the Ascension, and that they all, as one, received the commission. The fruit of this commission was to be the establishment of the Church.
The Claim
The claim made by the risen Christ is extraordinary. ‘“All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me.” The enormity of this claim is profound. No living person could make it with integrity. It is a statement which takes the universal nature of Messiahship described in the book of Daniel and applies it to the risen Jesus.
13 “In my vision at night I looked, and there before me was one like a son of man,[a] coming with the clouds of heaven. He approached the Ancient of Days and was led into his presence. 14 He was given authority, glory and sovereign power; all nations and peoples of every language worshiped him. His dominion is an everlasting dominion that will not pass away, and his kingdom is one that will never be destroyed.
It is authority which can only be claimed by the Messiah. His power was evident in his ministry, and here, he affirms to the diciples that it coonntiues even after his death. and by him, only in his resurrection. God’s plan for the world is, and always has been, global.
The Command
‘Therefore.’ It is the authority which has been given to Jesus which gives the weight to the command. ‘Therefore go..’ The word ‘go’ is an imperative. There was no choice. It was a direction. Then as now, disciples are not called to stand still. There is work to be done, and the disciples are to go and do it. The task is clear. ‘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.’ Make disciples. Disciples are followers – people who commit to follow. Baptize them. Teach them to obey everything I taught you.
The Encouragement
The Apostles had been living on a rollercoaster. They can have had no idea what lay in front of them. I wonder how many times they later paused and reflected and held on to his words of reassurance. ‘And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.’
End Piece
Jesus had summonsed his remaining Apostles to meet him on the hillside for a reason. This was a critical moment. We so easily pass by verse 17, which tells us that amongst the disciples, even up to this point, some doubted him. It was critical for the establishment and development of the Church that those doubts were dispelled. They were now to be witnesses to the closing chapter of the resurrection period of 40 days – the Ascension of our Lord to heaven. As, in that moment, those last doubts were dispelled, it was essential that the disciples all understood the commission which was to be their responsibility. The commission was to establish the Church, not just in Jerusalem, but throughout the world.
So, the commission was given specifically to the Eleven. What, then, as disciples ourselves, as followers of Jesus two millennia later, has this to do with us?
I started this post by saying that we make a huge mistake if we try to see the Great Commission in isolation. It is a critical theme which permeates Scripture. We make an even greater mistake if, either because of our desire to be ‘progressive’, our preference for social action, or sheer idleness, we act as if the Great Commission does not apply to us.
Ok, we are not all evangelists. We’re not all teachers. We often struggle to share our faith, even with those we know well. Yet if you are a follower of Jesus, the Great Commission in some way applies to you. You can look for opportunities for conversations. You can get alongside our family, our colleagues, our neighbours, our friends, and take every opportunity to tell them about Jesus. We must remind ourselves constantly that we are ambassadors for Jesus in our community and our culture. And that means that the responsibility for continuing the work of the disciples is yours and mine.
The outworking of the Great Commission in your life will look very different from the Apostles. It will look different to how it looks in mine. But if it were not for countless generations of saints who have gone before us, recognising their own responsibility for the Great Commission, we probably wouldn’t even be having this conversation.
Remember who gave this command. Remember that ‘All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to Jesus.’
‘Therefore go…’