Matthew 28:16-20
In Matthew 28 we find a set of verses that are often repeated in the church. It is called the Great Commission. Where Jesus tells his followers to go and tell. We interpret this as our call to action, our command from Christ to go out into all the world and while this is true could there be more in these verses that we often overlook?
When we read these verses we are, of course, to follow the commands of Christ to go and tell, baptizing in the name of the Father, Son and Spirit but I wonder, Is Jesus trying to tell us more in this set of verses, are we overlooking an important aspect of our Christian walk that He is trying to convey?
Jesus says in verse 18 that all authority has been given unto Him. He is the author of knowledge, and all truth resides in Him whether on Earth or in Heaven. Throughout all of our lives we have had times when we needed the truth to be revealed in our lives. When we were children, we would ask questions to our parents as to why things are the way they are but somewhere along the road of growing up have you noticed that we begin to ask fewer and fewer questions? The questions of life haven’t diminished, in fact, they have only increased the older we get.
After reading these verses, recently I was struck by the idea of mentorship. Why did Jesus feel the need to tell us that He was the authority? Could it not just have been for credibility but also to illustrate what He had done for His disciples? For three years the disciples followed Jesus around, learning and growing. There is another name for this and it’s called mentorship. Look at verse 20,
teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.” (ESV)
What is the purpose of going to a mentor? Is it not to learn? We go to a mentor because they have more experience in matters. They have been where we are going and can help us to avoid the pitfalls that they often made. To be taught of what we do not know. I don’t think that Jesus is telling us to just teach a concept or truth about Him and move on. I think that it is more. Could He be saying that we need to be mentoring just as He mentored the disciples?
As you go into the weekend, ask yourself: Who is my mentor? Who am I mentoring? We need people in our lives that we can go to with difficulties and questions not just about life but most importantly about God and His truth and when we receive that truth it is our responsibility to do as Jesus commands, to teach others. To be a mentor to someone else.
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