GO: ALL AUTHORITY

THE PRAYER      

• Find a quiet space.      


• Breathe deeply and recognise God with you in this moment.      


• When you are ready, speak to God about this time together.      


• After you've finished praying, go through the following passage a few times slowly and thoughtfully (preferably out loud).     


• Allow God to meet you in these words.

Sing God a brand-new song! Earth and everyone in it, sing! Sing to God, worship God! Psalm 96: 1-2 (MSG)

THE FIRST READING

Read this passage slowly (preferably out loud) as you allow God to meet you in these words. Pay attention to anything God might be saying as you do.

And Jesus came and said to them, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptising them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age." Matthew 28:18-20 (ESV)

RESPONSE

Take some time to respond (write down, draw, pray, etc.) to God’s prompting in the first reading of the passage. What is he highlighting and saying to you through this?

THE SECOND READING

Read the passage again (slowly and preferably out loud) through the “lens” of what The Spirit highlighted in the first reading. Listen for anything else the Spirit might be saying.

And Jesus came and said to them, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptising them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age." Matthew 28:18-20 (ESV)

THE REFLECTION

I wonder what you think about when you think about Jesus.

Do you see the serene, brown-haired, blue-eyed poster boy that we’ve been trained to recognise as the son of God? Or is it an antique, well-crafted crucifix that fills your mind? The kind that hangs between stained glass windows in a candlelit chapel.

Whatever our image of Jesus is, here’s what I can guarantee: all our images fall short. How can I be so sure? Simply because of what the Bible tells us about him. According to scripture, Jesus is not the product of our own religious preference, nor is he easily compartmentalised into church on a Sunday and saying grace at mealtimes.

No. The Jesus we find in scripture was here before the beginning. The word of God who spoke everything into existence, and without whom nothing was made that has been made. He is before all things and in him, all things hold together. He is the one in whom all the fullness of God was pleased to dwell. The one who was obedient to death, even death on a cross; who has now been exalted to the highest place and given the name above every name. Before him, everything in heaven and on earth and under the earth will bow and confess that he is Lord.

Jesus. The Jesus. He is far beyond any thought we could ever have of him.

This is what he’s trying to help his disciples understand before he gives them the mission that will consume the rest of their lives. He is trying to assure them that he’s not writing cheques he can’t cash. He’s not calling them to a work he can’t accomplish. He is Jesus. And all, not some, but all authority in heaven and earth has been given to him.

Like a child who is willing to jump when they know their father will catch them, this declaration was meant to breathe audacity and courage into those who otherwise would have been completely out of their depth. And apparently, it worked. These disciples went on to lead a movement that turned the world upside down.

So what about you?

What does the kind of Christianity you live tell you about the kind of Christ you believe in? Are you ready to jump like that faith-filled child who knows their dad will catch them? Do you really believe that all authority -authority over those things that cause you anxiety, pain, and fear- has been given to Jesus? Does that belief propel you into God’s mission in the earth?

If not, perhaps it’s time to rightsize your Jesus.