Today at Crosswinds International

I Can...I will The Great Commission

Today’s Text

• "You did not choose me, but I chose you

and appointed you to go and bear fruit fruit that will last..." John 15:16.

All ministry is based upon the fact that we have been sent by Jesus

• John 20:21 Then said Jesus to them again,

Peace [be] unto you: as [my] Father hath sent me, even so send I you.

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We have been commissioned by Him to fulfill the purpose of God in our generation. It is this commission that determines the parameters for our ministry.

Matthew 28:18-20

• "Then Jesus came to them and said, 'All

authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them...and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.”

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This is our charter for ministry at Crosswinds. So important is this commission that the timing of the return of the Lord Jesus depends upon its fulfillment.

Matthew 24:14

• "And this gospel of the kingdom will be

preached in the whole world as a testimony to all nations, and then the end will come"

• 2Pe 3:11-12 Seeing then that all these things

shall be dissolved, what manner of persons ought ye to be in all holy conversation and godliness, Looking for and hasting unto the coming of the day of God, wherein the heavens being on fire shall be dissolved, and the elements shall melt with fervent heat?

The Strategy of the Gospel

• The Great Commission is not just about

us doing something for God. It is about joining with God in His purposes on the earth. These purposes are laid out clearly in the Gospel. The focus of the Great Commission is the Gospel.

There is a clear two-part strategy to the Gospel:

A Come Strategy

• "'Come, follow me,' Jesus said, 'and I

will make you fishers of men'" Matthew 4:19.

The first part of the Gospel strategy is to come:

Come near to God

• Jam 4:8 Draw nigh to God, and he will draw

nigh to you. Cleanse [your] hands, [ye] sinners; and purify [your] hearts, [ye] double minded.

• Rev 3:20 Behold, I stand at the door, and

knock: if any man hear my voice, and open the door, I will come in to him, and will sup with him, and he with me.

• Mar 6:31 And he said unto them, Come ye

yourselves apart into a desert place, and rest a while: for there were many coming and going, and they had no leisure so much as to eat.

Come to the spring of living water

• Rev 22:17 And the Spirit and the bride

say, Come. And let him that heareth say, Come. And let him that is athirst come. And whosoever will, let him take the water of life freely.

• Jer 2:13 For my people have committed

two evils; they have forsaken me the fountain of living waters, [and] hewed them out cisterns, broken cisterns, that can hold no water.

Come and follow Jesus

• Jhn 12:26 If any man serve me, let him follow

me; and where I am, there shall also my servant be: if any man serve me, him will my Father honor.

• Mar 1:16 Now as he walked by the sea of

Galilee, he saw Simon and Andrew his brother casting a net into the sea: for they were fishers.

• Mar 1:17 And Jesus said unto them, Come ye

after me, and I will make you to become fishers of men.

• Mar 1:18 And straightway they forsook their

nets, and followed him.

Come and be trained

• Luke 6:40 The disciple is not above his master:

but every one that is perfect shall be as his master.

• Mat 11:28 Come unto me, all ye that labor and

are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.

• Mat 11:29 Take my yoke upon you, and learn

of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls.

• Mat 11:30 For my yoke is easy, and my burden

is light.

Come together in fellowship

• Mat 18:20 For where two or three are

gathered together in my name, there am I in the midst of them.

• 1Cr 14:26 How is it then, brethren?

when ye come together, every one of you hath a psalm, hath a doctrine, hath a tongue, hath a revelation, hath an interpretation. Let all things be done unto edifying.

The purpose of this "come strategy" is to equip the believer for ministry

• Eph 4:12 For the perfecting of the saints, for

the work of the ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ:

• Eph 4:15 But speaking the truth in love, may

grow up into him in all things, which is the head, [even] Christ:

• Eph 4:16 From whom the whole body fitly

joined together and compacted by that which every joint supplieth, according to the effectual working in the measure of every part, maketh increase of the body unto the edifying of itself in love.

• As we come together regularly, the Holy

Spirit works to cause the Gospel to become an integrated part of the believer's life.

A Go Strategy

• Rom.10:13-15 "...'Everyone who calls on the

name of the Lord will be saved.' How, then, can they call on the one they have not believed in? And how can they believe in the one of whom they have not heard? And how can they hear without someone preaching to them? And how can they preach unless they are sent?...“

• John 17:18 As thou hast sent me into the

world, even so have I also sent them into the world.

The second part of the Gospel strategy is to go:

• Go out as workers in the harvest field • Luke 10:1 After these things the Lord

appointed other seventy also, and sent them two and two before his face into every city and place, whither he himself would come.

• Luke 10:2 Therefore said he unto them, The

harvest truly [is] great, but the laborers [are] few: pray ye therefore the Lord of the harvest, that he would send forth laborers into his harvest.

• Luke 10:3 Go your ways: behold, I send you

forth as lambs among wolves.

Go into the highways and byways

• Luke 14:21 So that servant came, and showed

his lord these things. Then the master of the house being angry said to his servant, Go out quickly into the streets and lanes of the city, and bring in hither the poor, and the maimed, and the halt, and the blind.

• Luke 14:22 And the servant said, Lord, it is

done as thou hast commanded, and yet there is room.

• Luke 14:23 And the lord said unto the servant,

Go out into the highways and hedges, and compel [them] to come in, that my house may be filled.

Go into all the world

• Mar 16:15 And he said unto them, Go ye into

all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature.

• Act 1:8 But ye shall receive power, after that

the Holy Ghost is come upon you: and ye shall be witnesses unto me both in Jerusalem, and in all Judaea, and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth.

• Rom 15:20 Yea, so have I strived to preach

the gospel, not where Christ was named, lest I should build upon another man's foundation:

• The "go strategy" involves the taking of

the Gospel out to where the people are not waiting for them to come to you.

It is important for us to see these two parts of the Gospel strategy clearly. If we do not, we might get the come-go strategy reversed.

The Cart before the Horse

• We end up having a come strategy for

evangelism ("Come to church and be saved!") and a go strategy for training ("Go to that place to be trained!").

• The Biblical pattern is to have a come

strategy for training and fellowship and a go strategy for evangelism.

• "Now to him who is able to establish you

by my gospel...so that all nations might believe and obey him" Romans 16:25-26

One part of the strategy will not work without the other:

• In coming, God establishes us in His

Gospel.

• In going, we take that Gospel out to

other lives.

• Under Authority

"...All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Therefore go..." Matthew 28:18-19.

• The Great Commission is backed by the full authority

of God's Throne. But to be effective in that commission, we need to come under the authority of God. This means obedience - going, coming and doing as we are commanded.

• "For I myself am a man under authority, with soldiers

under me. I tell this one, 'Go,' and he goes; and that one, 'Come,' and he comes. I say to my servant, 'Do this,' and he does it" Matthew 8:9.

• We need to be coming to Him, going where He sends

us, and doing the things He commands - not just for big decisions, but on an every day basis.

The Message of the Gospel

• "...Jesus went into Galilee, proclaiming

the good news of God. 'The time has come,' he said. 'The kingdom of God is near. Repent and believe the good news!'" Mark 1:14-15

• Mat 4:17 From that time Jesus began to

preach, and to say, Repent: for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.

The Gospel is described in many ways throughout the Bible -

• The Gospel of grace • Act 20:24 But none of these things move

me, neither count I my life dear unto myself, so that I might finish my course with joy, and the ministry, which I have received of the Lord Jesus, to testify the gospel of the grace of God.

The Gospel of salvation

• Eph 4:13 Till we all come in the unity of

the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God, unto a perfect man, unto the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ:

The Gospel of peace

• Eph 6:15 And your feet shod with the

preparation of the gospel of peace;

The Gospel of the glory of Christ

• 2Cr 4:4 In whom the god of this world hath •

blinded the minds of them which believe not, lest the light of the glorious gospel of Christ, who is the image of God, should shine unto them.

• And finally the Gospel of the Kingdom.

The word "gospel" means "good news." The good news of God's Kingdom is based upon three solid facts: Satan has been defeated (Matt.12:24-29; Col.2:15).

• God's judgment has been satisfied on the

Cross (Eph.1:7).

• A new life - now and in eternity - has been

opened up in Christ (2 Corinthians 5:17; 1 Peter 1:18-19; 2:25).

• "...I am sending you to them to open their

eyes and turn them from darkness to light, and from the power of Satan to God, so that they may receive forgiveness of sins and a place among those who are sanctified by faith in me" Acts 26:17-18 (see also Colossians 1:13).

Separated for the Gospel

• Paul summed up his whole ministry as being

"set apart for the gospel of God" (Rom.1:1).

• To be "set apart" means to be "dedicated for

special use" (Acts 13:2). As we respond to the Great Commission, our lives are set apart for the purposes of God.

• "However, I consider my life worth nothing to

me, if only I may finish the race and complete the task the Lord Jesus has given me - the task of testifying to the gospel of God's grace" Acts 20:24.

Conclusion

• We were created for this purpose and

one question remains in the lips of our Creator:

• Isa 6:8 Also I heard the voice of the

Lord, saying, Whom shall I send, and who will go for us? Then said I, Here [am] I; send me.

• I tell you Church I can…and I will!