{"id":7862,"date":"2011-12-26T08:00:26","date_gmt":"2011-12-26T13:00:26","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/mintools.com\/blog\/?p=7862"},"modified":"2026-03-11T09:36:30","modified_gmt":"2026-03-11T13:36:30","slug":"great-commission","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/mintools.com\/blog\/great-commission.htm","title":{"rendered":"The Great Commission: Whose Responsibility is It?"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"JesusThen Jesus came to them and said, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me.\u00a0 Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.”
\n(Matt. 28:18-20)<\/span><\/div>\n

Whose Responsibility is it to Fulfill This Great Commission?<\/h2>\n

The original disciples<\/em> to whom Jesus spoke these words certainly were in a unique position to fulfill Jesus’ words as they were used by Him in a special way to begin the Church.<\/p>\n

Missionaries<\/em> who are committed to full-time ministry of spreading the Gospel through many venues in many places undoubtedly are ones who today can continue the advancement of this commission.<\/p>\n

Church leaders <\/em>whose responsibility it is to support and promote God’s mission<\/a> undoubtedly have a strategic part in its fulfillment.<\/p>\n

People with the spiritual gift of evangelism<\/em> who have that special divine empowerment to share the Good News would especially be drawn toward the Great Commission.<\/p>\n

What about all other Christians<\/em>?\u00a0 Is the Great Commission<\/a> everybody’s responsibility?<\/p>\n

Nowhere in the context of these verses do we read that Jesus intended to direct these words only to missionaries, church leaders, or people with the gift of evangelism.<\/p>\n

Verse 16 does let us know that He was speaking to the eleven disciples.\u00a0 However His concluding words in verse 20, “And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age,” suggest this commission was to continue on past the original disciples.<\/p>\n

Are you a disciple of Jesus today?\u00a0 You too have a responsibility to fulfill Jesus’ command to “go and make disciples.”<\/p>\n

PLEASE NOTE: You’ll find this article in the Steering the Church Toward Discipleship Leadership Guide<\/strong><\/a> which helps leaders think through their part in fulfilling the Great Commission.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The original disciples to whom Jesus spoke these words certainly were in a unique position to fulfill Jesus\u2019 words as they were used by Him in a special way to begin the Church. . . . What about . . . Continue reading The Great Commission: Whose Responsibility is It?<\/span>→<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[22],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-7862","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-outreach"],"aioseo_notices":[],"aioseo_head":"\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\n\t\t