Mark 16:15-20, The Great Commission of Jesus
Introduction:
Jesus has resurrected from the dead and has appeared to Mary, Peter, the disciples without Thomas, and the disciples with Thomas present up to this point. The angel had instructed Mary at the empty tomb to tell the disciples to go to Galilee and Jesus would be there awaiting them. Once the disciples arrive at Galilee , Jesus is going to give them what is commonly called today the great commission. As we consider the great commission of Jesus we are only going to look at verses 15 and 16 of Mark 16. If you are interested in the other verses, I have a lesson that is online under Bible Study Material in the Answering Difficult Bible Questions section called “Mark 16:9-20: Does it belong in our Bibles? Explain verses 17-18.” I will leave you to look at that material if you are so interested. With that said, let us look at the great commission of Jesus.
The Disciple’s Charge
Go into all the world
Jesus starts by saying “go.” Jesus does not say for us to sit in our homes and preach the gospel. Nor does Jesus say sit on our pews and preach the gospel. We can get into a mentality that the lost need to come to us and we will sit here until they come. We have a sign outside and if they want to know God, then they will open the doors. That mentality, however, is simply not true. People in the world today do not know the difference in what we are trying to do and why we are different from the rest of the religious world. We are to go out there and tell, just as Jesus told us to go.
Jesus also told us to “go into all the world.” This statement has a couple of implications. The obvious implication of this teaching is that we are to make sure that all have heard the good news of Jesus Christ. Whatever we can do to ensure that the people in our sphere of influence have heard the gospel must be done. But there is another implication of this teaching by Jesus. It means that we must be in the world to teach those who are of the world. There is no way to have a “hands off” approach to reaching lost souls. We must get to know people, make contacts, and build relationships so as to teach them the good news of Jesus Christ. We cannot cut ourselves off from the world in an attempt to be spotless and without blemish. We still must live in the world, not being of the world, so that we can teach those who are of the world. It is time for each of us to get up, go into the world, make relationships with people, and teach them about Jesus.
Preach the gospel
What else are we to do while we live in the world but proclaim the gospel? This is the task given to every disciple. If you recall, we began this series of lessons from the book of Mark for this very purpose: that each of us would know the story of Jesus and be able to tell the story to others. Let us also consider that our mission is to preach the gospel. Jesus did not give us the mission of solving world hunger. Nor did Jesus give us the mission of taking care of the poor. Jesus did not command the church to become a social welfare system to those in need. The purpose of every disciple and the purpose of the church is to preach the gospel. While it may bring in the masses, we are not an entertainment facility. Jesus told us that we must preach the gospel. We cannot resort to golf tournaments, softball leagues, and Super Bowl parties to try to bring people to Christ. The tool is the gospel and we want to bring in people by the hearing of the word of God; otherwise, we are not creating disciples of Jesus, but disciples of entertainment.
This is the work and responsibility of every Christian. Every person in this room has been given this commission by God to go into all the world and preach the gospel. All of us must be affecting those within our sphere of influence. We must reach out to those who are near us and give them the opportunity to hear the good news of Jesus. Let us not think that this is only the preacher’s job. Let us not think that this is only the leaders of this congregation’s job. Let us not think that this is only the job for men. This is the role and work of every person here. Let us accept our responsibility.
Becoming A Disciple
Whoever believes…
Jesus describes what constitutes part of our proclamation to the lost world. Jesus declares, “Whoever believes and is baptized will be saved, but whoever does not believe will be condemned.” When Jesus says that these are the things that must be done to be saved, we ought to pay very close attention. All sorts of clamor and debate goes on in the religious world concerning how a person is saved. So let us carefully read exactly what Jesus said to know how we can be saved.
The first thing Jesus says is that a person must believe. Jesus places an emphasis on belief. What we believe toward salvation is very important. What are we to believe? John tells us in his first letter: “Who is he who overcomes the world, but he who believes that Jesus is the Son of God?” (1 John 5:5). “Whoever believes that Jesus is the Christ is born of God, and everyone who loves Him who begot also loves him who is begotten of Him” (1 John 5:1). “He who believes in the Son of God has the witness in himself; he who does not believe God has made Him a liar, because he has not believed the testimony that God has given of His Son” (1 John 5:10). This was the thrust of Peter’s sermon to cause belief in Jesus. “Therefore let all Israel be assured of this: God has made this Jesus, whom you crucified, both Lord and Christ” (Acts 2:36).
This was the belief that was necessary for salvation. A person must believe that Jesus is the prophesied One, the Messiah, the Son of God. Our belief is not simply based upon accepting that Jesus lived. Our belief is not just simply believing that Jesus did many wonders, for many people accepted these things while Jesus was alive. A person must believe that Jesus is the Son of God. This is the basis for faith. After reading the whole story of Jesus in the gospel of Mark, our starting point for faith must be the acceptance that Jesus is who He claimed to be. If we do not believe that Jesus is the Son of God, then we will not be saved. This also leads us to another necessary implication. A person must understand that he needs to be saved. This is the very expression that the multitude cries out once Peter completes his sermon. “When the people heard this, they were cut to the heart and said to Peter and the other apostles, ‘Brothers, what shall we do?’” (Acts 2:37). The people understood that they had violated God’s law by crucifying the Son of God and there was something on their part that needed to be done.
Belief alone?
Now, this is where 98% of the religious world stops. Nearly every religious group and denomination teaches that belief is all that is necessary to be saved. Statements are made that you simply need to pray to Jesus and you can be saved. Preachers will tell you to let Jesus come into your heart and you will be saved. Carefully read Jesus’ words in Mark 16:16 and tell me if He says that belief is all that needs to be done. Does Jesus say that once you pray to God you can be saved? Does Jesus teach the disciples to let Him come into their hearts to be saved? Does Jesus tell the disciples to call upon the name of the Lord to be saved? James writes a letter in a strong effort to try to show the world that belief alone or faith alone cannot save a person. James says, “You believe that God is one; you do well. The demons also believe--and they shudder” (James 2:19). James’ point is rather simple. No one believes that demons are saved, yet they believe in God. We see in the scriptures that the demons recognized Jesus and submitted to His power. But that is not what saves a person. James makes the point even clearer, as if this point is not clear enough. “You see then that a man is justified by works and not by faith only” (James 2:24). This is the only place where faith is attached to the word “only” or “alone.” To be justified means to be pronounced innocent. It is a legal term where the judge pounds the gavel and declares the defendant innocent. Very clearly, James says that a person is not saved by faith alone. Belief only will not pronounce us innocent in the courtroom of God.
Satan has authored one of his greatest deceptions. What better way to keep people from God than to make them believe that they are saved as soon as they believe? What a deceptive plan to cause people to remain lost in their sins! Let the religious world teach that salvation is by faith alone.
Consider Peter’s sermon. If belief were enough, why did not Peter tell the multitudes, when they asked, “what shall we do” to believe alone to be saved? May I suggest to you that this was not all that was needed to be saved? This defies the teachings of the religious world, yet James’, Peter’s, and Jesus’ words are very clear. There is more to be done after belief in Jesus as the Son of God.
“…and is baptized will be saved”
Jesus continues, “Whoever believes and is baptized will be saved.” This is a complicated statement to most scholars and commentators. Maybe you can shed a little light on the subject for them. They cannot understand this verse. Maybe you can help them. What two things must be done to be saved? I think Jesus was clear that whoever believes and is baptized will be saved. In the same way we questioned belief, let us also question baptism. What does it mean for someone to be baptized? How is one to be baptized? Let us look to the New Testament for the answers. In Acts 8 we read about Philip and the Ethiopian eunuch. While traveling on the road to Gaza , the eunuch sees a body of water and asks Philip, “See, here is water. What hinders me from being baptized?” This ought to be our first clue that baptism requires much water. Further, in Acts 8:38 both Philip and the eunuch went down into the water. In verse 39, both of them came up out of the water. This suggests that baptism is immersion in water. In fact, when we go to the Greek word for baptism, we find out that the word means “to immerse, to submerge.” Therefore, Jesus literally said, “Whoever believes and is immersed will be saved.”
This shows us that the form of baptism is important. A person cannot be sprinkled and believe that they have been baptized as Jesus said. A person cannot have water poured on top of him and believe that he has been baptized as Jesus said. As we noted in the Burial of Jesus lesson, we are uniting ourselves with the death and resurrection of Jesus when we are buried in water and then raised up out of the water. No other form is baptism and no other form matches what Jesus commanded or what the early Christians practiced.
Since belief and baptism are tied together, we can also understand that the proper belief when one is baptized is also important. This point is exemplified in Acts 19 where we read about people who had been immersed in water, but not with the proper faith. This shows us that baptism alone does not save just as belief alone does not save. Jesus does not say, “whoever is baptized will be saved.” Jesus told us that belief and baptism are necessary for salvation. What we believe when we are baptized is important.
Baptism is for the forgiveness of sins, according to Acts 2:38. Baptism is the point at which our sins are cut off from our bodies and we are created to be new creatures in Christ (Colossians 2:11 -14; Romans 6:1-10). If we did not believe this when we were baptized, then we did not have the proper belief. We cannot believe that baptism is for the purpose of being added to a local church. We cannot believe that baptism is not necessary. We cannot believe that baptism is not for the forgiveness of sins. If we believed that, we may have been baptized, but we did not believe properly what was happening to us. According to the example of Acts 19, rebaptism is necessary for those who did not believe that baptism was the point at which sins were washed away. Therefore, baptism is necessary for salvation. Baptism is not optional. Jesus did not say that baptism is a good idea. Many of the denominations will tell you that baptism is simply a good idea. Did Jesus make a command or a suggestion in Mark 16:16? When it comes to salvation, these things are not suggestions. If we want to be saved from our sins, then belief and baptism must be completed on our parts if we want to receive God’s gift of grace.
“Whoever does not believe will be condemned” Jesus was not finished with the message. Jesus wants to warn us about what will happen to those who do not believe and are not baptized. Jesus said, “whoever does not believe will be condemned.” For some reason, this language has led those who do not believe baptism is necessary to say that since Jesus does not say that whoever does not believe and is not baptized will be condemned, so baptism is not necessary. But this argument simply does not make sense. If a person does not believe that Jesus is the Son of God, is he going to be baptized? Of course not. It would be like saying it this way: he who goes to the store and buys milk will be saved. He who does not go to the store will be condemned. Can you buy milk without going to the store? No. Does this mean you do not have to buy milk? Of course not. One must go to the store and buy milk. In the same way, Jesus is not making baptism optional. Jesus is clearly showing that a person will not obey God by being baptized if he or she does not believe. If a person does not believe and is not baptized, Jesus describes their condition. Jesus says such a person is condemned. The Greek word for “condemned” here literally means “judged worthy of punishment.” That hopefully brings to our hearts what Jesus is saying.
When we do not take these steps, on the day of judgment we will be found worthy of punishment. Here is what Paul says about God: “He will punish those who do not know God and do not obey the gospel of our Lord Jesus. They will be punished with everlasting destruction and shut out from the presence of the Lord and from the majesty of his power on the day he comes to be glorified in his holy people and to be marveled at among all those who have believed” (2 Thessalonians 1:8-10). Those who do not obey will be punished with everlasting destruction. If this is not severe enough, those who disobey or do not know God will also be shut out from God’s presence and majesty. If we think things in this world are tough because of all the evil that is in it, imagine a place where the glory and presence of God does not exist. This is the concept of hell. This is eternal torment and everlasting destruction that our souls will endure in the final day if we will not submit to the Lord.
Friends, I believe what Jesus taught was clear and easy to follow. We can be saved from our sins and be glorified with the Lord if we will believe that Jesus is the Son of God and be baptized for the forgiveness of our sins. God has not asked much of us at all in light of what we are receiving from Him. Won’t you obey the Lord and be baptized today before it is too late?
