The Great Commission Matthew 28:16-20

“And Jesus came up and spoke to them, saying, ‘All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth’” (Matt. 28:18, NASB).

If you Google “The Great Commission” you will discover that the Great Commission is the instruction of the resurrected Jesus Christ to His disciples to spread His teachings to all nations of the world. Some definitions state that the Great Commission is given in all four Gospels, but each Gospel writer uses different words to tell us what Jesus said. In this article I want to look at the words of Matthew. The question for us here is why Matthew uses the words that he uses. In order to answer this question we will answer three significant questions: Who is the writer of the gospel? Who is the writer writing to? What is the purpose of the writer?

Who is the writer of the Gospel of Matthew? The author is Matthew one of the twelve disciples that Jesus calls to follow him and learn His teachings. Now, Jesus had many disciples as can be seen in John 6:60. “Therefore many of His disciples, when they heard this said: “This is a difficult statement; who can listen to it” (NASB)? Further, John writes, “As a result of this many of His disciples withdrew and were not walking with Him anymore” (v. 66, NASB). Matthew is first identified in the Gospel of Matthew: “As Jesus went on from there, he saw a man called Matthew sitting in the tax collector’s booth; and he said to him, ‘Follow Me!’ And he got up and followed Him” (Matt. 9:9, NASB). Matthew is one of the twelve disciples specifically chosen by Jesus to be apostles. Later, Jesus takes notice that there is a lot of work to do, but there are only a few workers (9:37-38). In order to meet the need “Jesus summoned His twelve disciples and gave them authority over unclean spirits, to cast them out, and to heal every kind of disease and every kind of sickness” (Matt. 10:1, NASB). Matthew is one of the twelve listed in verses 2-4. These twelve are designated as apostles in verse two. The word apostle means “sent ones.” The uniqueness of the designation as apostles will be discussed later.

Who is Matthew writing to? Matthew writes to Jews; specifically to Hebrews in Palestine. These are Jews that return from exile after their captivity in Babylon. Cyrus the Persian king overthrows Babylon. He issues a decree that permits the Hebrew people to return to Jerusalem and build a house for God—rebuild the temple (2 Chronicles 36:22-23; Ezra 1:1-4). These Jews are different from the Jews called Hellenists found in Acts 6:1 and 9:29. The Hellenists come from the Diaspora, spread throughout the world. They are less stringent in their interpretation of the Torah. They are influenced by Greek culture, language and religion. Thus they are referred to as “Hellenistic Jews.” The Hellenists are willing to share their knowledge about Jesus with their non Jewish neighbors because discussing one’s religion is common in the Hellenistic world in which people practice polytheism. The Aramaic speaking Jews in Palestine worship one God, and they tend to keep themselves separated from other people. So, what does all of this have to do with the life setting and the words used by Matthew to inform his audience of his purpose in writing the Great Commission?

We arrive at a better understanding if we look at two key words used by Matthew and their meaning to His audience. The first word is “authority.” Jesus says “All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth” (28:18, NASB). The Greek word used here by Matthew is exousia which refers to one’s right to exercise authority. The KJV translates this word to the English word “power.” In Acts 1:8 both the KJV and the NASB translate the Greek word dunamis to the English word “power,” Luke, the writer of Acts and the Gospel of Luke uses the word dunamis referring to strength and ability. As the apostles preach the gospel they are met with opposition. They will suffer hardships from people, and from things such as storms and shipwrecks. Matthew uses the word exousia because there is a question on Jesus’ authority.

Among the Jews in Palestine it is the long held belief that authority reside in the Law of Moses. The religious leaders have the authority to interpret the Law and they have the authority to enforce the Law. However, the teachings of Jesus create problems. One reason is that Jesus interprets the Law differently than the Sadducees, Pharisees, and scribes. In addition Jesus performs miracles that confirm His words. The religious leaders challenge Jesus about His authority. “When He entered the temple, the chief priests and the elders of the people came to Him while He was teaching, and said, ‘By what authority are You doing these things, and who gave You this authority? In this text Jesus refuses to answer their question, but in the Gospel of John Jesus gives an answer to those that question Him. “But He answered them, ‘My Father is working until now, and I Myself am working” (Jn. 5:17, NASB). “Therefore Jesus answered and was saying to them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, the Son can do nothing of Himself, unless it is something He sees the Father doing; for whatever the Father does, these things the Son also does in like manner’” (v. 19, NASB).

When Jesus says that He is given all authority in heaven and on earth He makes the claim that He is the promised Messiah. He saves His people from their sins according to what is written in the Law and the prophets. The religious leaders are not interpreting the Law correctly. Jesus gives the people the true meaning of the Law; what the intent of the Law is. Also, one’s standing with God and their righteousness is no longer judged by one keeping the Law. The Law served its purpose in that it shows us our need for a savior. Jesus dies on the cross and God raises Him from the grave. Now the Father gives Him all authority; above angels in heaven.

The second key word that Jesus uses is “nations.” The Greek word used here is ethnos. It denotes a people. From ethnos we get the English word ethnic. The nations refer to all people groups of the world summed up in the New Testament as Gentiles. Why is this important? The Jews in Palestine believe that God is God of the Jews only. Since this is true in their eyes they believe that salvation is for Jews alone. Jews that do not obey the commands in the Law and all foreigners are excluded from the blessings of God reserved for Jews only. In Galilee where this event of Jesus commissioning His disciples takes place there are pockets of Gentiles. Matthew introduces us to the Syrophoenician woman and her daughter in Matthew 15:21-28. In the conversation between Jesus and the woman Jesus states that the bread that is for the children (Israel) should not be given to foreigners (dogs). However, the woman declares her faith in Jesus: “But she said, Yes Lord; but even the dogs feed off the crumbs which fall from their masters’ table” (v. 27). “Then Jesus said to her, ‘O woman, your faith is great; it shall be done for you as you wish’” (v. 28).

God gives the Son Jesus all authority. He delegates His authority to His apostles. He will give them the strength and ability to do the work that He is calling them to do. They are to make disciples of all people, both Jews and Gentiles. The Law was given to the Hebrew people by Moses. Grace and truth comes to all people through Jesus Christ.

The Great Commission has implications for the church in America today. There remain people that identify themselves as Christians. Unfortunately these people continue to find reasons to exclude people from their churches. They expect people to conform to their traditions and way of life before allowing them in their churches. Matthew wants to inform the church that no ethnic identification and no lifestyle exclude one from coming to faith in Christ. People will not change first because they have not the reason and the ability to change with their own strength. Matthew writes to an audience that believes in God already. They are in need of learning what Jesus expects of them. They must include all people because the blood of Jesus cleanses all of us from all unrighteousness.

Jesus commissions His apostles and sends them into the world to preach the gospel so that people are saved from their sins. Still, they need to learn what the Lord expects of them after they are saved. In the book of Matthew Jesus teaches His disciples everything that they need to teach new converts. The apostles have knowledge and authority that are given to them by Jesus.