THE CENTRAL COMMISSION

 

In the last verses of Matthew, there we find the passage known as the Great Commission (Matthew 28: 16-20), this portion of the Holy Scriptures contains a new commandment for the Christian Church: Followers of Jesus have a mission, first to articulate throughout the world the good news, second, to make new disciples of Jesus Christ. Expanding and including non-Jewish people, In other words, the good news of Jesus Christ, which from the foundation of the world had been addressed to everyone, is for all the people groups and nations of the world. When one considers “nations,” one may consider countries like China, Cuba, or Indonesia.   However, the words in Greek are “panta ta ethne” which means all the people groups. In the 80s, a strategy to define these words was developed by a large group of mission leaders, which was sponsored by the Lausanne.

First, A People Group is “a significantly large grouping of individuals who perceive themselves to have a common affinity for one another because of their shared language, religion, ethnicity, residence, occupation, class or caste, situation, etc. or combination of these.”  For evangelistic purposes it is “the largest group within which the gospel can spread as a church planting movement without encountering barriers of understanding or acceptance.” Secondly, An Unreached People Group is “a people group within which there is no indigenous community of believing Christians able to evangelize this people group.”[1]

             The opening lines of the “Central Commission,” as we have observed with Dr. Casiño. Narrate the last meeting that took place between Jesus and his disciples on the way to Galilee. The eleven were going together, following the ordinances of Jesus. The original core of the twelve disciples was reduced to eleven do to a faithless treasurer, whom committed suicide, shortly after betraying Jesus. The disciples had been summoned to meet Jesus in a mountain. In Matthew, mountains are usually a place where extraordinary things always occurred. The forces of evil tempted Jesus on a mountain. The Master teaches his new interpretation of the law in the famous Sermon on the Mount. The Transfiguration, which revealed Jesus in glory happened on a mountain. In addition, Jesus suffered the most terrifying death on Mount Calvary. Finally, Jesus commissions his disciples and ascends to heaven from a mountain.

On this occasion the disciples encountered the risen Lord on the mountain and between doubts and uncertainty, they worshiped him. When Jesus realized their doubts and dilemmas He said: “all power is given onto me.” With this statement Jesus dispels their doubts. The authoritative statement paved the way for the pronouncement of the new commandment; the mandate was composed of three main points:

First he said: “Go to all nations…” In itself, this is a traditional and cultural problem. Jews had claimed that the mission was limited to the chosen people. To be included in the covenant with God and enjoy its benefits one needed to convert to Judaism. With these simple words Jesus destroyed the old missionary system.

Then Jesus said: “Go and make disciples.” The central task of Christian mission is very particular. Jesus lays on the shoulders of his disciples the mission of making new disciples. To really grasp this idea one must define the concept of discipleship. “A disciple is someone who learns by imitating the example of his teacher. The disciple goes through a process, learning, saying and doing what his or her teacher does. The disciples of Jesus are called to go through a conversion process that leads them to live in communion with his Master, learning both the words and the practicality of being a true disciple.

Thirdly, Jesus said: “… baptize and teach.” Jesus proposes a method for the training of new disciples. The method follows two basic strategies. First, the new disciples are to be baptized. Being baptized means to be initiated into the community life of the church, after having gone through a process of repentance, confession of sins and conversion. It is also a public statement of faith in Jesus Christ. In addition, the disciples must enter into a teaching process. This process is intended to teach them to learn all the commandments of Jesus. Therefore, the goal of this teaching process is more practical than anything.

[1] This better understanding of “panta ta ethne” is guiding mission strategy all over the world, including here in the United States. http://dbablogs.com/2011/10/11/panta-ta-ethne/#sthash.YK1pCeKm.dpuf