Why is the Great Commission so Important?

The Great Commission is important because the glory of God is important. The glory of God is paramount. All other things pale in comparison. If this is true then all people need to know so they may worship him alone. Worshiping anything else is taking the glory that should be for him. Jesus tells His disciples,

“All authority on heaven and earth has been given to Me. Because of this, go make disciples of all people. Baptize them in the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit, and teach them all I have commanded you.” – Matthew 28:18-20.

We are given the directive to spread the good news of Jesus Christ to all people.

Why does God Use Us?

Jesus has called us to be his ambassadors. He has chosen us to go to the nations. This seems foolish when I look at his great power and our great folly. He has chosen to work through us rather than independently of us. This is the mystery of God and his plan. 1 Peter 2:9 says,

“But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, God’s special possession, that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light.”

He has pulled us out of the pit of darkness and bathed us in his marvelous light. We then “declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness” to those who are still in darkness. We are the instruments God has chosen to reach lost people.

All for his glory

Everything we do is for his glory. Being brought out of darkness into the light is not the end in itself but a means to an end. The pinnacle of Christianity is not that we are saved from hell, but rather we give God our highest praise. Such an expression happens because we have been saved from sin. Philippians 2:13 says,

“For it is God who works in you, both to will and to work for His good pleasure.”

God is most concerned about his glory. Our only focus is to glorify him. This is not a joyless act of rote worship. To quote John Piper, “We are most satisfied in [God] when He is most glorified in us.” It is our joy to glorify him in all things but also in carrying out the great commission.

He has all authority — we have no excuse

Jesus has called us as his children to go and share with those who are not his children. Who are we to say no? He has done the thing we could never do. Because of that, why should we not go? Jesus has all the authority in heaven and on earth. He has done all the work of salvation. We simply must obey his command to go to the nations. We must obey the Great Commission.