The fact is final and it’s a truth worth telling: somebody must reach the lost.
It was evident when Philip preached in the desert and Paul preached to the Jews in the synagogue and in the market, nothing was able to cease the ministry of discipleship. The church did not weld itself to political views or powers; neither were kings nor were governors able to stop the growth or hinder the influence they made.
Leading the way was a group of men called the disciples. As you study the apostolic church, look at those Jesus commissioned for Kingdom work. It’s in Matthew 10 that we see the commissioning of the twelve apostles:
“And when he had called unto him his twelve disciples, he gave them power against unclean spirits, to cast them out, and to heal all manner of sickness and all manner of disease” (Matthew 10:1, KJV).
As Jesus prepared to send them out, He gave them clear instructions regarding the message and the people for whom the message is for.
Matthew 10:5–6 reminds us:
“These twelve Jesus sent forth, and commanded them, saying, Go not into the way of the Gentiles, and into any city of the Samaritans enter ye not: But go rather to the lost sheep of the house of Israel.”
These were true apostles. They were called out and sent forth with specific orders. Not only did Jesus commission them to deliver this message of hope to the nation of Israel, but He used them to establish the foundation on which Jesus would build His church.
I think it’s remarkable to note that God continues to use men and women today to go forth and declare this message of salvation and hope that was first delivered to us by the apostles.
With the church being established and the Word of God being delivered, the work of the apostles was complete. However, our work has not finished. God had a plan for His church to reach every person with this gospel. Jesus made it clear that He was sending all His disciples with a message. In fact, Jesus said before He ascended in Acts 1:8 (KJV),
“But ye shall receive power, after that the Holy Ghost is come upon you: and ye shall be witnesses unto me both in Jerusalem, and in all Judaea, and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth.”
God does not want, nor does He expect, us to establish His church to show what we have in our power because in our power we couldn’t build the church. Jesus taught His disciples that they could not accomplish His work without His Spirit. He told them to expect power when they received the Holy Ghost and not to attempt to do this work without Him. It is only possible when we are endued with power from on high—by the Holy Ghost.
Like the apostles of old, we too have a mission and a message—it’s called the Great Commission! That mandate is to go, preach, teach, and baptize in Jesus’ name. Matthew 28:19–20 shares this great commissioning,
“Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost: Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you alway, even unto the end of the world. Amen.”
We have our own scheduled accountability. We have been charged with a mission—that is to share the greatest message in the world!
We must conclude that revival and the end-time harvest doesn’t stop with us four and no more!
It goes beyond the four corners of any edifice. It reaches much deeper than a Sunday shout and a midweek whoop and holler. It flows to the core of our foundation, and what we need right now more than ever is for God to shake us and wake us. We need Him to convict our hearts and develop a hunger to reap the ready harvest.
We must reach for the lost at any cost. Someone must have a burden to teach home Bible studies. We should strive to make a difference in our communities. Everyone deserves a chance to be saved and that’s why Jesus came the first time. Everyone has a right to repent of their sins, be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of those sins, and be filled with the gift of the Holy Ghost.
His blood was shed for people who have no hope or feel like they have no future. Lest we not forget what Paul urged, remember I Corinthians 6:11:
“And such were some of you. But you were washed, you were sanctified, you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and by the Spirit of our God.”
Everyone deserves a chance to meet Jesus. We must do our part to connect a dying world with a living Jesus! We must go and make disciples!