Articles
The Great Commission
And Jesus came and spoke to them saying, “All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth. Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.” Amen. (Matthew 28:18-20).
The Great Commission in Matthew 28:18-20 provided a model to emulate, whereby we read, teach, baptize, and teach. However, far too often, we fail in an area of our teaching. One area to call out is not only assembling for worship but also the impact of filling your circle with those of precious faith so that you may be mutually encouraged and help sharpen one another so that you see faith in each other and grow in your walk!
Conversely, Jesus spent time with worldly individuals to get them to repent. In contrast, we fail to mention how keeping our old circles as our confidants and closest to you is detrimental to a Christian because the focus is not solely on repentance but instead on social, entertainment, and or other things. When we are buried with Christ in baptism we aren’t supposed to continue that sinful way. We want to continue to walk with Christ faithfully and not falling back into old ways. If the rest of your circle doesn’t love Jesus and follow Him the same way that you do, their advice isn’t going to align with His every time, and that is our goal. We want and need confidants that our just as concerned for our holiness and we are. When we fail to separate ourselves wholly from the world and play both sides of the fence, we wonder why we stumble in our walk.
The Way is not difficult; rather, the obstacles, such as old relationships and lust, play a role against our walk in Christ. The pull of the world can be strong, but there is no hope in it. And it can be difficult to let go of some of those relationships especially you have been through tough times together or even nostalgia can be enough to make you want to linger. We hope that we can be the example and that our lights will shine bright enough to bring the to Christ but it isn't always going to happen. But do not be discouraged, think of all who heard and witnessed Jesus during His time here on earth. So many rejected Him, even to the point of death. But He suffered the same as you and me and He can sympathize, as well as comfort and strengthen us. Jesus died for us, the world will lead us to death if we allow it.
Remember that it is written that the flesh wars against the Spirit, keeping you from what you ought to be doing as a Christian.
