Preaching the
Gospel and Making Disciples
Near the beginning
of the Olivet Prophecy, yahushua foretells that the good news of the coming
Kingdom of yahweh will be preached to the entire world:
And this gospel
of the kingdom will be preached in all as a witness to all the nations, and
then the end will come. ( Matthew 24:14 )
This verse is not
a commission to anyone in particular neither to the first-century apostles,
nor anyone else. Yahushua simply makes a statement of fact, prophesying
that the entire world will hear the gospel preached as a witness and then
yahweh will act to bring about the end of this present age of man.
Precisely how He will accomplish this He does not specify.
However, yahushua
does give His disciples a commission and through them, His church:
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. (Matthew 28:19-20 ; )
(Matthew 24:14 and Matthew 28:19-20
are not synonymous. In the latter verses, though preaching as a witness is
included within the scope of the commission, it actually places more
emphasis on the entire process of conversion, feeding, growing,
and overcoming than merely witnessing, as in Matthew 24:14.
The term
"make disciples in Matthew 28:19 holds the key to this
understanding. "Teach,"as it is rendered in the King James
Version, is not a wrong translation, as long as we understand that it
implies a process. Not all of the teaching required to make a disciple can
occur just in making a witness to him. There are major differences between
the witnessing and making disciples. At best, preaching the gospel to the
world begins the process of making disciples. Disciples are created through
steady spiritual feeding and a believing response in those who hear, which
includes overcoming their sins.
A second factor
appears in verse 20: "Observe all things that I have commanded you.
" Observing "all things" cannot be done merely through
making a witness. Observing all things is a lifelong project requiring the
structure and nurture of a church. This is why the church of yahweh exists (see
Ephesians 4:11-16).
In verses 19-20,
though witnessing is included, yahushua is primarily emphasizing the
feeding of the flock (John 21:15-17), for it is the called, the
elect—yah's children of who are His greatest concern. These special
called-out ones are being prepared to inherit the Kingdom of yahweh. It
takes a great deal of feeding and experience with yahweh for yahushua to be
formed in us (Romans 8:29; II Corinthians 3:18).
The gospel
message, then, is more than just an announcement, or a basic truth to be
impressed upon unbelievers. It is just as applicable to t he converted
church member—almost certainly more so. In Paul's letter to the Romans, he
commends the congregation at Rome because their faith is spoken of
throughout the whole world" (Romans 1:8). The congregation was already
established and apparently thriving. Yet Paul says, "So, as much as is
in me, I am ready to preach the gospel to you who are in Rome also" (Romans
1:15).
Why did Paul want
to preach to them for them to be converted? No, but to continue the process
of conversion. How did he plan to do this? He was going to preach the
gospel to them! He desired to preach it to people who were already
converted in fact, to those who were already so well-established in the
faith that others had already heard of their remarkable devotion to yahweh.
Yet, even though they had already exhibited outstanding Christian faith, he
nonetheless wanted to preach the gospel to them. This shows that it is the
responsibility of the ministry apostles, evangelists, pastors, and elders to
preach the gospel of the Kingdom of Yahweh continually to the church.
The apostle Paul
is referring to "feeding the flock" and preaching "the whole
counsel of Yah" (Acts 20:27) in minute detail. The gospel the
Word of yahweh, when we understand it in its broadest sense includes the
entirety of the Bible. Yah's focus is on preparing His children to share a
relationship with Him for all eternity. He requires that everyone who
enters His Kingdom to be in His image (Genesis 1:26) and to live
exactly as He does. To achieve this goal, He requires his ministers to
expand infinitely on the bare basics that bring a person to conversion.
yahweh wants each of His children to see the application of His way in
every possible situation in life.
Yah's message is
called "the gospel of the Kingdom of yahweh" because that is the
goal that He wants us always to focus on. He wants it to come immediately
to mind that we are headed toward His Kingdom. We not only have to know
that it is coming, but also what we must do to prepare ourselves for it.
yahweh calls it by what it ends with, what it will produce the aim, the
result.
However, it also
includes all the preparatory material that we need to get there, as well as
any other information that may be helpful or provide background to those
instructions. "The gospel of the Kingdom of yahweh" is a huge
umbrella, under which stands a massive amount of teaching. Each piece of
knowledge contained in the gospel ultimately feeds into this central truth:
that humanity can have salvation by being born into Yah's Family of His
Kingdom—through the resurrection from the dead.
The gospel
message includes topics like the nature of yahweh, the fruit of the spirit,
the Beatitudes, law and grace, loyalty and devotion to yahweh, and other
foundational topics. It contains the promises made to Abraham, the history
of Israel, and the prophecies. It includes the creation and yah's
sovereignty, providence, and intervention in its affairs. The gospel
includes everything that is necessary to call, teach, correct, and motivate
an individual so that he can be saved and inherit the Kingdom. The true
gospel is the complete revelation of yahweh to man. It includes everything
contained in the Bible.
This is the good news!
Shalom
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