Go and make disciples of all nations.
Jesus' final words to his followers — what we call the Great Commission.
The episode in a glance.
- 01The verb is 'make disciples,' not 'make converts.'
- 02'All nations' was scandalously broad in Jesus' time.
- 03Baptizing and teaching are how disciples are made.
- 04'I am with you always' is the engine of the whole thing.
Read along.
At the end of Matthew, the risen Jesus stands on a mountain with his disciples and gives them their marching orders: 'Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.'
The main verb is 'make disciples,' not 'make converts.' A convert says yes. A disciple follows. Jesus is asking for the second one.
'All nations' was scandalously broad. To his Jewish audience, the gospel going beyond Israel to every people group on earth was a revolution. The doors flew open that day.
Baptizing and teaching are how disciples are made. One marks the start; the other carries on for life. There's no shortcut around either.
And then the engine: 'I am with you always.' This isn't a project the church takes on alone. Jesus stays with us in it. The same authority that sent us is the presence that carries us.