Sermon
#77 Mark Sermons
Title: THE GREAT COMMISSION
Text: Mark 16:15-18
Subject: The Great Commission
Date: Tuesday Evening - March 9, 1999
Tape # V-17a
Readings: Office:
Rex Bartley Auditorium: Larry Criss
Introduction:
As
you know, I will be leaving tomorrow to visit our missionaries, Walter and Cody
Groover and their families, as well as several of the churches and pastors in
Yucatan, Mexico. I wish you could all go with us. I encourage you, if possible,
to do so in the future. It is encouraging to the missionaries, the pastors and
the churches to have others show enough interest in what they are doing to make
such a trip. And, I know of nothing that will give you greater appreciation and
zeal for the work of our missionaries than a visit to the field.
Walter
and Betty have spent their lives in Mexico. They raised their children there.
They have made tremendous sacrifices for the cause of Christ. Several years
ago, Cody quit his job, a very good job, and gave up a lucrative income with
excellent benefits and good retirement. He and Winna sold their home in
Houston, and moved to Mexico with their three small children, to join Walter in
the work of the gospel in Mexico.
In
the more than thirty years since Walter went to Merida, the Lord has raised up
between thirty and forty gospel churches throughout the Yucatan. These are
self-supporting churches, with their own pastors. He and Cody maintain a
regular Preachers’ School in Merida to train these pastors.
Since Cody has returned to
Mexico, he has been making regular trips to Chiapas, where Bro. Milton Howard
labored for twenty-five years, before he accepted the pastorate in Ball, LA. He
is also making regular visits to the Dominican Republic, helping to establish a
work there.
I do not hesitate to ask you
to give, even when it involves sacrificing other things on our part, to assist
in the support of these and other missionary endeavors, both at home and
abroad. Because I ask these things of
you, I think it is altogether proper that you understand clearly the reason for
our various missionary endeavors.
·
Why
are men willing to hazard their lives and the lives of their families to go to
foreign soil, live in a strange land, often in difficult and even hostile
circumstances, to preach the gospel of Christ?
·
Why
do we spend so much money and labor to preach the gospel around the world
(radio, television, books, literature, itinerate preaching, conferences, etc.)?
·
Why
should we make sacrifices for the support of these efforts for the furtherance
of the gospel?
These
questions could be answered in many ways and from many passages of Scripture.
They are all answered with clarity and encouragement in Mark 16:15-18. That
will be our text tonight.
The title of my message is THE GREAT COMMISSION. These are
our Lord’s final words to his church, his final words to you and me, as he was
leaving this world. Here he tells us what our privileges and responsibilities
are as his servants in this world. These are not the privileges and
responsibilities of the apostles alone, or of gospel preachers alone. These are
the privileges and responsibilities of all God’s people, his servants, in this
world.
Mark 16:15-18 "And he said unto them, Go ye into all
the world, and preach the gospel to every creature. (16) He that believeth and is baptized shall be saved; but he that
believeth not shall be damned. (17) And
these signs shall follow them that believe; In my name shall they cast out
devils; they shall speak with new tongues;
(18) They shall take up serpents; and if they drink any deadly thing, it
shall not hurt them; they shall lay hands on the sick, and they shall
recover."
Proposition: It
is the great privilege and responsibility of every child of God to do what he
can for the furtherance of the gospel in his generation, to preach the gospel
(and see to it that the gospel is preached) to all the world in the generation
in which we live for the glory of Christ and the salvation of God’s elect.
Divisions: There
are four things in these verses to which I want to direct our attention in this
message.
1.
The
Great Commission
2.
The
General Call
3.
The
Gospel Confession
4.
The
Gracious Confirmation
I. THE GREAT COMMISSION
Mark 16:15 "And he said unto them, Go ye into all
the world, and preach the gospel to every creature."
It is
utterly impossible for me to state emphatically enough the importance, the
comprehensiveness, and the depth of meaning there is in these words. Our Lord’s
charge to us in this one sentence is generally called the great commission; but
few seem to understand that it really is just that, --THE GREAT COMMISSION.
This is our commission from our God as long as we live in this world; and it is
great!
A. There is a
great need.
Our
Lord commands us to go into all the world preaching the gospel, because all are
lost without the gospel. In every corner of the earth the sons and daughters of
Adam are the same. –Fallen, --Lost, --Without Christ, --Without God, --Without
Hope, --Utterly Ignorant of God, His Grace, His Son, and HIS Salvation!
Civilized
or uncivilized, in Africa, China, or Great Britain, Mexico, California, or
Kentucky, all who are ignorant of the gospel are in a state of wrath and
condemnation.
B. We have a
great message.
Our
Lord here commands us to preach the gospel. This is the work of God’s church in
this world. We must not neglect charity: feeding, clothing, and educating the
poor. But that is not our commission. Our commission is far more important than
that. Our Lord commands us to preach the gospel. To preach the gospel is to declare…
1.
Ruin
By The Fall – TOTAL DEPRAVITY!
2.
Redemption
By The Blood – ACCOMPLISHED REDEMPTION!
3.
Regeneration
By The Holy Spirit – EFFICACIOUS GRACE!
C. The
preaching of the gospel is God’s ordained means of grace for chosen sinners.
All men and women have a God consciousness.
God’s wisdom and power are revealed to all in the splendor of his creation. His
law is written upon the hearts of all. Yet, Romans chapters one and two plainly
tell us that these things are insufficient for man’s salvation. All men know
something about God by creation. They are responsible to be holy, because God
tells them in their consciences that he demands holiness. Yet, they have no
ability to comply with the demands of their own consciences. The light of
nature and creation can never convert anyone.
God has ordained the
salvation of chosen sinners by the means of gospel preaching. Without the
gospel none can ever be saved. This is not my opinion. This is exactly what the
Scriptures say. The Holy Spirit’s exact words are these: It is the gospel preached
unto us, “By which also ye are saved” (1 Cor. 15:2).
Romans 1:15-17 "So, as much as in me is, I am ready to
preach the gospel to you that are at Rome also. (16) For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ: for it is the
power of God unto salvation to every one that believeth; to the Jew first, and
also to the Greek. (17) For therein
is the righteousness of God revealed from faith to faith: as it is written, The
just shall live by faith."
Romans 10:17 "So then faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God."
1
Corinthians 1:21 "For after that in
the wisdom of God the world by wisdom knew not God, it pleased God by the
foolishness of preaching to save them that believe."
Ephesians 1:13 "In whom ye also trusted, after that ye heard the word of truth, the gospel of your
salvation: in whom also after that ye believed, ye were sealed with that holy
Spirit of promise."
2
Thessalonians 2:13-14 "But we are bound
to give thanks alway to God for you, brethren beloved of the Lord, because God
hath from the beginning chosen you to salvation through sanctification of the
Spirit and belief of the truth: (14) Whereunto
he called you by our gospel, to the obtaining of the glory of our Lord Jesus
Christ."
James 1:18 "Of his own will begat he us with the
word of truth, that we should be a kind of firstfruits of his creatures."
1 Peter 1:23-25 "Being born again, not of corruptible
seed, but of incorruptible, by the word of God, which liveth and abideth for
ever. (24) For all flesh is as grass, and all the glory of man as
the flower of grass. The grass withereth, and the flower thereof falleth away: (25) But the word of the Lord endureth
for ever. And this is the word which by the gospel is preached unto you."
Hear
the Master’s commission. - “Go ye into all the world and preach the
gospel to every creature.” God will save his elect. There is no
question about that. The redeemed of the Lord shall be converted by his grace.
That is a matter of absolute certainty. Every chosen redeemed sinner shall, at
the appointed time of love, be born again by the Holy Spirit’s irresistible
grace and power. The elect of God, purchased by the blood of Jesus Christ,
shall all be granted the gift of life eternal and faith in the Lord Jesus
Christ. But not one shall be saved without the preaching of the gospel.
Without
question, our God could have saved his elect without us. He could send angels,
or frogs, or rocks to preach to them, or he could regenerate them without the
use of means altogether; but he has ordained the salvation of chosen sinners
through the use and instrumentality of other chosen sinners! What a privilege
he has bestowed upon us!
I’ve
often thought, “I would love to have Dick Clark and Ed McMaan’s job. I don’t
have any money of my own; but I would sure like to be the man who carried a ten
million dollar check to someone’s house! Wouldn’t you? That would be a great
job to have. But you and I have one that is indescribably better. We are the people commissioned of God to
carry his salvation to perishing sinners!
Ephesians 3:8-11 "Unto me, who am less than the least of
all saints, is this grace given, that I should preach among the Gentiles the
unsearchable riches of Christ; (9) And
to make all men see what is the fellowship of the mystery, which
from the beginning of the world hath been hid in God, who created all things by
Jesus Christ: (10) To the intent that
now unto the principalities and powers in heavenly places might be known by the church the manifold wisdom of God, (11) According to the eternal purpose
which he purposed in Christ Jesus our Lord."
·
Let
the redeemed of the Lord, sinners saved by God’s free grace in Christ, tell
sinners everywhere about the Redeemer and about God’s free grace to sinners in
him.
·
Let
us give ourselves relentlessly to this glorious work of preaching the gospel.
·
Let
us all do whatever we can to fulfil our commission in this age, for the glory
of Christ.
II. THE GENERAL CALL
Mark 16:16 "He that believeth and is baptized
shall be saved; but he that believeth not shall be damned."
The
effectual, irresistible call of the Spirit always produces faith in Christ. No
man can do that. It is the work of God alone. Yet, the effectual call and
irresistible grace of God the Holy Spirit comes to elect, redeemed sinners
through the general call that is issued to all men in the preaching of the
gospel. This general call is neither more nor less than the preaching of the
gospel to all men.
·
We
preach the gospel to all people indiscriminately because we do not know who
God’s elect are.
·
We
preach the gospel to all people indiscriminately because our Lord commands us
to do so. Note: Our responsibility is determined by the Word of
God, not the decree of God.
·
We
preach the gospel to all people indiscriminately, as we have already seen,
because this is the means by which God saves his elect.
In
this general call we must incessantly make two things crystal clear.
A. GOD’S
PROMISE OF GRACE, SALVATION, AND ETERNAL LIFE TO ALL WHO TRUST THE LORD JESUS
CHRIST –“He that believeth and is baptized shall be saved.”
1.
The
only way any sinner can ever be saved is by believing on the Lord Jesus Christ.
2.
Every
sinner in the world who believes on the Son of God is saved.
·
It
is our faith in Christ that makes our calling and election sure.
Hebrews 11:1-6
"Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of
things not seen. (2) For by it the
elders obtained a good report. (3) Through
faith we understand that the worlds were framed by the word of God, so that
things which are seen were not made of things which do appear. (4) By faith Abel offered unto God a
more excellent sacrifice than Cain, by which he obtained witness that he was
righteous, God testifying of his gifts: and by it he being dead yet speaketh. (5) By faith Enoch was translated that
he should not see death; and was not found, because God had translated him: for
before his translation he had this testimony, that he pleased God. (6) But without faith it is impossible to please him: for he that cometh to God must
believe that he is, and that he is a
rewarder of them that diligently seek him."
·
Faith
in Christ is the one thing needful! --“He
that believeth not shall be damned!”
This
is the matter of great concern. –Do we have this gift of faith in Christ?
Multiplied thousands are washed in the waters of baptism, who are not washed in
the blood of Christ! Multiplied thousands attend church every Sunday, who have
never yet worshipped the Lord Jesus Christ! Multiplied thousands eat at the
Lord’s Table, who have never yet tasted the grace of God in Christ. It is not
even doctrinal orthodoxy that unites our souls with the Son of God, but faith
in him.
1 John 5:10-13 "He that believeth on the Son of God
hath the witness in himself: he that believeth not God hath made him a liar; because
he believeth not the record that God gave of his Son. (11) And this is the record, that God hath given to us eternal
life, and this life is in his Son. (12) He
that hath the Son hath life; and he
that hath not the Son of God hath not life.
(13) These things have I written unto you that believe on the name of the
Son of God; that ye may know that ye have eternal life, and that ye may believe
on the name of the Son of God."
The
gospel gives the promise of grace, salvation, and eternal life to all who
believe on the Son of God. But, in preaching the gospel, we must also
faithfully set before eternity bound sinners…
B. THE WARNING
OF CERTAIN AND ETERNAL WRATH FOR ALL WHO BELIEVE NOT THE GOSPEL. –“But he that believeth not
shall be damned.”
How
fearful the thought! How awful the words! Yet, they are true and faithful and
must be proclaimed by those who would be true and faithful to the souls of men.
God must and will punish sin. He will send you to hell forever, if you refuse
to be saved by the merits of his dear Son.
Deuteronomy 32:29 "O that men were wise, that they understood this, that they would consider their latter
end!"
J.C.
Ryle wrote, “He that died upon the cross has given us plain warning
that there is a hell, and that all unbelievers shall be damned. Let us take
heed that his warning is not given to us in vain!”
III. THE GOSPEL CONFESSION
Look
at verse sixteen again, and learn that baptism, the believer’s confession of
the gospel, the believer’s confession of faith in Christ, is not an insignificant
matter, but rather a matter of tremendous importance.
Mark 16:16 "He that believeth and is baptized
shall be saved; but he that believeth not shall be damned."
Let
me be crystal clear. Baptism does not
save anyone. Baptism does not wash away sin. Baptism does not convey
grace. Baptism does not regenerate. Baptism does not contribute anything to the
saving of our souls.
However, believer’s baptism and faith in Christ are
intimately connected. True, saving faith in Christ and obedience to Christ go hand in hand.
Where there is no obedience to Christ, there is no faith in Christ. “Faith
without works is dead!”
There
are several things which need to be understood about this blessed ordinance of
the gospel.
A. Baptism
follows faith in Christ; it cannot precede faith.
Without
faith in Christ, baptism is nothing but an empty, meaningless religious ritual.
It serves no purpose, except to make the unbelieving ritualist twofold more the
child of hell than he was before.
Note: Infant baptism not only does not help children, it positively hurts
them. It gives them hope without faith, as they grow up believing they are
Christians rather than being faithfully taught that they must be born again.
B. Believer’s
baptism is an act of obedience to Christ our Lord. –Thus it is the answer of a
good conscience toward God.
C. Baptism is
the means by which believers first confess their faith in Christ publicly.
1.
It
is a picture of the gospel - Christ’s death, burial, and resurrection, and our
death, burial, and resurrection with him representatively.
2.
It
is a public identification with Christ, his gospel, and his people.
3.
It
is a line of separation from the world and its religion.
4.
It
is a pledge of commitment to Christ.
5.
It
is a confession of our hope of resurrection with Christ at the last day.
IV. THE GRACIOUS CONFIRMATION
Look at the great, gracious, encouraging
promises given in verses 17 and 18. Our Lord Jesus knew what great obstacles we
would have to overcome, what tremendous difficulties we would have to endure,
what battles we would have to fight, and how easily we would be inclined to
give up the effort. Therefore, he cheers and encourages us with the promise of
divine, supernatural, omnipotent power to attend our labors, power that would
be unceasingly confirmed to us.
Mark 16:17-18 "And these signs shall follow them that
believe; In my name shall they cast out devils; they shall speak with new
tongues; (18) They shall take up
serpents; and if they drink any deadly thing, it shall not hurt them; they
shall lay hands on the sick, and they shall recover."
A. It must be stated
emphatically, in this day of charismatic chaos and confusion, that THE AGE OF SIGNS, AND TONGUES, AND
MIRACLES ENDED WITH THE APOSTOLIC AGE AND THE COMPLETION OF THE SCRIPTURES.
These
things were literally fulfilled in the book of Acts, in the apostolic age, the
formation years of the church. But no one has these apostolic gifts today. They
were gifts by which the apostles were confirmed as God’s messengers, as his
inspired spokesmen as the penmen of Holy Scripture.
Hebrews 1:1-2 "God, who at sundry times and in divers
manners spake in time past unto the fathers by the prophets, (2) Hath in these last days spoken unto
us by his Son, whom he hath appointed
heir of all things, by whom also he made the worlds."
Hebrews 2:3-4 "How shall we escape, if we neglect so
great salvation; which at the first began to be spoken by the Lord, and was
confirmed unto us by them that heard him;
(4) God also bearing them witness,
both with signs and wonders, and with divers miracles, and gifts of the Holy
Ghost, according to his own will?"
Having the complete Word of
God, God no longer speaks by dreams, and visions, and signs, and wonders. There is no need for me to speak in
tongues or perform a miracle to convince anyone that my message is of God. All
you need do is compare what I say with God’s Word. Since that which is
perfect has come (The Book Of God!), then that which was in part has been put
away. If miracles were every day
events, if they were common things, they would not be miracles!
However, just because the
age of physical miracles has past, that does not mean that this text has
nothing for us. In fact, its spiritual implications are even more delightful
and blessed that the physical miracles performed in apostolic times.
B. Our Lord
here promises us that, as we go into all the world preaching the gospel, his
presence and power will be with us incessantly, and manifestly confirmed to us.
It is
a great pity that our faith is so weak that we need for our God to confirm his
Word to us; but it is a great mercy that our God condescends to our weakness.
His eye is always upon us. His arm is always stretched out for us. His power is
manifestly confirmed to us.
Isaiah 59:19 "So shall they fear the name of the
LORD from the west, and his glory from the rising of the sun. When the enemy
shall come in like a flood, the Spirit of the LORD shall lift up a standard
against him."
Just
look around you, and behold this house of miracles, divine miracles, by which
our God confirms the saving power of his grace revealed in the gospel we
preach.
1.
Here
is a people out of whom the Lord has cast seven devils, by the power of his
grace.
2.
Here
is a people who speak with new tongues. Mouths once filled with cursing and
bitterness are now filled with mercy and grace!
3.
Here
is a people who are forced every day to take up the serpents of this world and
drink the deadly concoctions of the wicked, who are unhurt by the serpents’
bites and the poisons of the ungodly!
4.
Here
is a people who were sick with the deadly palsy of sin, who have been restored
to health by the grace of God.
5.
Here
is a people who, like Lazarus, have been raised from the dead.
6.
Here
is a people who are literally going through the world today, preaching the
gospel, and thereby laying hands upon multitudes of sin-sick, impotent folk,
dead in trespasses and sins, who are recovered by the grace of God!
I ask
you, my bothers and sisters in Christ, do you need any greater confirmation of
God’s power upon us to do the work he has sent us to do? In these 19 years we
have labored together, we have never yet…
·
Knocked
at a door he did not open!
·
Come
to a raging sea he did not divide before us!
·
Met
an enemy he did not slay!
·
Had
a need he did not supply!
As
our God has been faithful to us, let us be faithful to our God. Let us take to
heart this commission. Let us each take it as the word of God to us personally.
Let us take this as the great commission given by the Son of God to Grace
Baptist Church of Danville, Kentucky, as though it were given to us
exclusively!
Mark 16:15-18 "And he said unto them, Go ye into all
the world, and preach the gospel to every creature. (16) He that believeth and is baptized shall be saved; but he that
believeth not shall be damned. (17) And
these signs shall follow them that believe; In my name shall they cast out
devils; they shall speak with new tongues;
(18) They shall take up serpents; and if they drink any deadly thing, it
shall not hurt them; they shall lay hands on the sick, and they shall recover."
AMEN.