Reflections with Andy - Matthew 28: 16-20 – The Great Commission

In this Thursday reflection on Matthew 28:16–20, the Great Commission is unpacked through one central question: what does it actually mean to make disciples? Drawing on Matthew’s deeply Jewish framing — including the parallel between the disciples going to “the mountain Jesus directed them to” and the Old Testament pattern of God calling his people to mountains he would show them — the reflection highlights that even face-to-face with the risen Jesus, some still doubted, reminding us that faith is always a challenge. The heart of the message is the distinction between making fans of Jesus and making disciples — people who don’t just know who Jesus is, but who build their entire lives around his teachings, for whom the Beatitudes, enemy-love, forgiveness, and peacemaking are non-negotiable. Before the church can make disciples, each of us must ask whether we are one ourselves. And we pursue this mission not in our own strength, but anchored in Jesus’s closing promise: I am with you always, to the end of the age.

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Good morning! It’s great to be with you on this Thursday — whether you’re just getting your week started or already seeing the end of it, I’m glad you’re here. Today we’re continuing our post-resurrection reflections from Matthew’s Gospel. Yesterday we read the first half of Matthew 28; today we’re finishing it with one of the most well-known passages in all of Scripture — the Great Commission. But even in a familiar passage, there’s a lot worth slowing down for. Let’s read Matthew 28:16–20:

“Now the eleven disciples went to Galilee, to the mountain to which Jesus had directed them. When they saw him, they worshipped him, but some doubted. And Jesus came and said to them, ‘All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. 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, and teaching them to obey everything that I have commanded you. And remember, I am with you always, to the end of the age.’”

A few things worth noticing here.

First, the eleven. Judas hadn’t been replaced yet, so it’s just the eleven. And since Matthew is the most Jewish of all the Gospels — Matthew being a Jewish tax collector, with the Old Testament and the old covenant carrying enormous weight throughout — that detail about the mountain to which Jesus directed them is worth pausing on. Think about it: Abraham was called to the land God would show him. Isaac was to be sacrificed on a mountain God would show. And now the disciples are going to the mountain that Jesus directed them to. All throughout Matthew’s Gospel you see these parallels — Israel called out of Egypt, Jesus called out of Egypt; Israel wandering in the desert, Jesus tested in the desert. In the same way, these disciples follow to the mountain I will show you. Matthew is constantly presenting Jesus as the fulfillment and retelling of the Hebrew narrative.

Second, verse 17: they worshipped him, but some doubted. We read the Gospels with the full knowledge of what happened — resurrection, ascension, Pentecost, the whole story. But these disciples were living it in real time. They were still wrapping their minds around what it meant that Jesus had been raised from the dead. And even here, face to face with the risen Jesus, some doubted. Which tells us something important: faith is a challenge sometimes. Lord, I believe — help my unbelief. They worshipped and doubted in the same moment. That’s a very human thing, and it’s worth sitting with.

And then Jesus speaks: “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Go therefore and make disciples.”

That word — disciples — is the key word. Jesus doesn’t ask us to make fans. He doesn’t ask us to make supporters, or even worshippers. He commands us to make disciples. And there’s a real difference.

A disciple builds their life around the teachings of the master. A disciple patterns their life around the life of the master. A disciple seeks to walk in the steps of the master. So if we’re going to follow in the steps of Jesus, we have to study his life. If we’re going to follow his teachings, we have to actually know his teachings. And here’s the thing — the Beatitudes are not optional for disciples. Loving your enemies is not optional. Turning the other cheek is not optional. Forgiving is not optional. These are the teachings of Jesus that we must build our lives around.

I think one of the places the church gets into trouble is spending more time making fans of Jesus — people who know who Jesus is, who admire him from a distance — and not enough time making actual followers. People who lay down their lives for the sake of Jesus. Because the way we change the world is through making disciples.

But before we can make disciples, we have to ask ourselves: am I a disciple? You can’t make something you’re not. So the first question is whether we are building our own lives around the teachings of Jesus. Is he truly our Master and our Lord? Because if he is, then we take the teachings we’ve been given, build our lives around them, and then teach others to do the same.

And we do this because we believe, as Peter said when everyone else was walking away, “Where else would we go? You have the words of life.” There’s nowhere else to find life itself. And when we build our lives around Jesus, we find that life — and then we want to pass it on.

Making disciples, baptizing them in the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, teaching them to obey everything Jesus commanded. And then that great word of encouragement at the end: “I am with you always, to the end of the age.”Always. He will never leave nor forsake us. Even the Psalmist knew it — “If I make my bed in Sheol, still there you are.”We have a mission in front of us, but we have hope in that mission, because he is always with us.

So today the question is simple: are we disciples? Are we building our lives around the teachings of Jesus Christ? And if we are — are we making other disciples? That’s the mission of the United Methodist Church: to make disciples of Jesus Christ for the transformation of the world. Not fans. Not acquaintances. Disciples.

Thanks for being with me today. Tomorrow we’ll wrap up the week with one final post-resurrection encounter. Have a great day!