Matthew 28:18-20 (NIV) “ALL AUTHORITY in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Therefore go 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 I have COMMANDED you.” (Emphasis added.)

The final principle from God’s preservation of Scripture is the prime directive found in Matthew 28:18-20 (above), otherwise known as the Great Commission.

Before leaving the planet, Jesus gave His followers an assignment to work on while He was away. He commissioned us to go into all the world and acknowledge that only He has “authority” as we train “disciples” in the principles that He “commanded.” Without Providential protection of that resource, all three of those assignments would be impossible.

  1. “all authority” – Today we have Catholic Popes who claim to speak in God’s place (ex cathedra). We have Calvinists who exploit their supposed “election” and slant the message in order to validate Calvin. We have Muslims who dismiss the biblical record in favor of the words of Muhammad. And the list goes on. Without the heavenly assurance that “ALL authority” remains in the hands of Jesus, there is no basis for personal Bible study.
  • “make disciples” – The only way to safeguard this process is for the Lord to remain the standard. The moment we begin to distrust the Providential protection of Scripture, we begin to make disciples of ourselves.

But how do we know for sure what is of the Lord and what is not? See the third part of this commission.

  • “commanded” – Without God preserving these commands, the attempt to pass them on is futile. As in the second point (“make disciples”), the Lord’s commands will quickly become man’s commands unless there is some kind of Divine record to hold man accountable.

Conclusion

The prime directive of Matthew 28:18-20 demands that the message of Scripture is providentially preserved, otherwise fulfillment of “The Great Commission” is impossible. In order to be sure of God’s message, always let the Bible interpret the Bible.

Questions for Lesson 7