Four Reasons the Great Commission Will Never be Fulfilled

Christians are a meeting and talking people. We meet in church buildings, chapels, public halls and classrooms. We meet in those rooms to talk or to listen to someone talk. We make sure someone is talking most of the time. Someone talks to us in assembly twice on Sunday and once on Wednesday. That’s 156 times a year not counting gospel meetings, workshops and seminars. Mostly, we talk to ourselves.

Somehow we must jump from talking to doing from gabbing to going. We must kick ourselves out of the chat rooms and step boldly into the world as the Great Commission demands. We have to get out because few of Christ’s commands are accomplished in some room.

Okay, let’s consider, one more time, the Great Commission:

Mark 16:15, 16 And He said to them, “Go into all the world and preach the gospel to all creation. He who has believed and has been baptized shall be saved; but he who has disbelieved shall be condemned.”

Matthew 28:19, 20 “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 observe all that I commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.”

Now let me give you four reasons why the Great Commission will never be fulfilled

1. Jesus, in both passages said, “Go.” But with few exceptions, Christians are not going. Sending a couple of missionaries somewhere is not really going. We’re not even going to our own neighborhoods! In direct disobedience, those who could GO…STAY. Christian parents even discourage their children from becoming missionaries. If we keep not going, we will keep not fulfilling our commission.
2. Jesus said “Go into all the world…” More churches and potential missionaries are choosing mission points by how near, how cheap, how receptive, how easy they are. Jesus said “…all the world.” If we keep choosing to go only to convenient places we will never preach the gospel to people in places that are not near, cheap, receptive or easy. The Great Commission will not be fulfilled.
3. Jesus said, “…preach the gospel…make disciples…” He did not say to hand out Bibles and tracts, start secular schools and hospitals, establish Christian colleges, build buildings, hold worship services and invite people to Sunday school and church. He said go…PREACH…everything else is a distraction. If we keep getting distracted, the Great Commission will never be fulfilled.
   Also notice that Jesus did not tell us to assault other religions, become brotherhood watchdogs or write articles attacking perceived false teachers. Are these things bad? You bet! As long as we do OTHER things than preach the gospel; we will do other things than fulfill our commission.
4. Jesus said “make disciples.” He DID NOT say, “Fill meeting rooms with pew-sitters.” As long as we are satisfied with getting people into a room and going through some rituals, we will be satisfied with less than Jesus commanded. As long as we see assembly as the main place where our work is done, we will never preach the gospel to every human being; much less make disciples of them. The Great Commission will never be fulfilled.

Won’t it be great if I am wrong? I WANT to be wrong! And, I WILL be wrong if we simply do what Jesus said.