This Sunday is Trinity Sunday where the church reflects on the uniquely Christian understanding of God existing as a Trinity. The lectionary reading is the part of Matthew’s gospel commonly known as the Great Commission where Jesus leaves the church a threefold instruction. They are to go and make disciples of all nations, to baptise them in the name of the Trinity and to teach them to obey all that Jesus has commanded them to do. Naturally, the Great Commission features strongly in many evangelical traditions with its imperative to go out into the world to make disciples for Jesus. Quite rightly too, the great commission is not optional!
The problem is that I worry the church is not following the Great Commission as Jesus intended us to. Firstly, the commandment is to make disciples of all nations, not just some. As we have seen while looking at 1 Peter and Luke, God’s grace and Spirit is made available to all people, not just a few. Therefore, the commission must be to go to all people, not just those who look or think like us. Jesus went to some places that traditional Rabbis would have thought unusual; so must His church. If we restrict who we will engage with we are not meeting the terms of the commission. Churches that fail to engage with all people in all sections of society cannot then claim they are living up to this commission.
Similarly, if we see it solely as a challenge to win souls, we could regard baptism as the end goal. Jesus is clear that there is also an obligation to teach those who are baptised. Jesus commanded the disciples to care for the least in society, to feed the poor, clothe the naked, shelter the homeless and tend to the sick. It’s not enough to rack up baptisms like a scorecard and move on to the next person, the church must also take responsibility to model Christ’s commandments to new disciples in all they say and do. The church must nurture and teach disciples on how to follow Jesus more closely. The church must give expression to these teachings in all they do. Just as God exists as a Trinity with each part as important as the others, so are the threefold aspects of the Great Commission. Just as we cannot pick and choose what parts of the Trinity to worship, neither can we pick and choose which parts of the commission to follow. If we fail to adhere to any aspect of it, we fail to adhere to the whole.