Devotional Messages

DEVOTIONAL MESSAGE

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 worshiped 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.” (NRSV)

These verses that end the gospel of Matthew represent a major shift in the way religion functioned in the world.  Prior to this, religion was mostly a tribal affair: we had our gods and our practices for worshiping them, and those other people had their gods and their practices.  The distinctions that separated religions were mostly determined by ethnicity, language, and geography.  But here, the writer of Matthew has Jesus implying that the religion that followed his commandments could apply to any culture, any people, anywhere in the world.

It is highly likely that this seemingly new idea did not burst forth, fully formed, from the mouth of Jesus as he was greeting the disciples immediately post-resurrection, but rather was the summation of the writer of Matthew, after the various arguments we see portrayed in the Book of Acts, about whether and how to incorporate Gentiles into the Body of Christ.  But in the broad span of history, it was still a remarkably quick shift in perspective.

Unfortunately, in the centuries since, the church’s primary application of this new approach has emphasized certain words from this passage – such as, authority, obey, and commanded – resulting in just another imperialist religion that forced conversions and attempted to assimilate “them” into “us.”  Rather than actually living out the new way that Christ offered, the church embraced imperial power and took advantage of the way cultural barriers to membership had been removed, to abuse that power far and wide.

But even as we repent of this misapplication of Jesus’ global invitation, we can tease out of this new approach some good news.  Just as we can find delight in the incredible diversity of nativity scenes created around the world, we can give thanks for all the many ways we see people following Jesus around the world.  Just as we are called to protect those exploited by imperial power, we can insist that welcoming everyone is central to the gospel message.  We can find unity in the Triune God, without having to enforce uniformity of practice or belief.  We can join together to live out the gospel’s imperative for peace and justice, without having to insist that others obey us, rather than Jesus.  This is truly the path to New Life in Christ!