can turn in your Bibles to Matthew chapter 28. Matthew 28 captures, of course, that famous passage concerning the Great Commission, as it's been called, the command from the mount where the gloriously, victoriously resurrected Christ gives this blessed commission to his disciples and by virtue of the succession of the truth throughout the ages to the church of the Lord Jesus Christ. So we're going to we're going to read all of Matthew 28 and then our focus is going to be verses 16 through 20. Matthew 28, beginning at verse 1, the Word of God.
Now after the Sabbath, as the first day of the week began to dawn, Mary Magdalene and the other Mary came to see the tomb. And behold, there was a great earthquake, for an angel of the Lord descended from heaven and came and rolled back the stone from the door, and sat on it. His countenance was like lightning, and his clothing as white as snow. And the guards shook for fear of him, and became like dead men.
But the angel answered and said to the women, Do not be afraid, for I know that you seek Jesus, who was crucified. He is not here, for he is risen. As he said, come see the place where the Lord lay and go quickly and tell his disciples that he is risen from the dead. And indeed, he is going before you into Galilee.
There you will see him. Behold, I have told you. So they went out quickly from the tomb with fear and great joy and ran to bring his disciples' word. And as they went to tell his disciples, behold, Jesus met them, saying, Rejoice.
So they came and held him by the feet and worshipped him. Then Jesus said to them, Do not be afraid. Go and tell my brethren to go to Galilee, and there they will see me. Now while they were going, behold, some of the guard came into the city and reported to the chief priests all the things that had happened.
When they had assembled with the elders and consulted together, they gave a large sum of money to the soldiers, saying, Tell them his disciples came at night and stole him away while we slept. And if this comes to the governor's ears, we will appease him and make you secure.' So they took the money and did as they were instructed, and this saying is commonly reported among the Jews until this day. Then the eleven disciples went away into Galilee, to the mountain which Jesus had appointed for them. When they saw him, they worshipped, but some doubted.
And Jesus came and spoke to them, saying, All authority has been given to me in heaven and on earth. 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. Amen.
Well, let's call God's blessing upon the preaching of the word. Let's go to him in prayer. God, we thank you for this time now in the preaching of your word. We do pray that you would help us in this act to know your truth or right.
We pray that by the Holy Spirit, we would gain an understanding of these precious things that are contained here in the Gospel of Matthew. We once again thank you for our Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ, for the fullness and the perfection of his salvation, and that by grace, through the gift of faith, we, your saints, can behold the glories of our blessed Christ. And it's in his name that we pray, amen.
Introduction
Well, this is a very significant passage of the New Testament. It captures this wonderful command from the mount that Christ gives to his disciples, all based upon the reality that he has perfectly executed the work for which he was sent to do by his father, and upon the heels of the perfection of his redeeming work, He gives this commission. He receives all authority. He has ascended, or he has not ascended yet, but he will ascend, and he will be coronated, if you will, and given all authority in heaven and on earth.
It is his, essentially, as he declares here, by virtue of the fact that he has been raised from the dead. That vindicated the fact that he did what he was sent to do. that he executed the work of the Messiah, of the mediator, of the surety of the new covenant. And so now, by virtue of that, he is given all authority and he commissions his disciples. Just by way of introduction first, we note here first in verse 6, Christ's victory over death.
As we move towards the passage under consideration, notice first, though, the victory of Christ over death in verse 6. These are precious words, verse 6.
Christ's Victory Over Death
He is not here, for he is risen. What wonderful words those announce, that that announces to the people of Christ. He's not dead in the tomb. There is no victory for death.
There is no victory for the grave. Oh, death, where is your sting? Oh, grave, where is your victory? Christ has risen.
He is victorious over death, over the devil, over sin, its power and its condemning weight. And so we have this blessed reality that Christ is victorious over death. He's not here. He is risen.
And we have the declaration of joy by Christ in verse 9. And as they went to tell his disciples, behold, Jesus met them, saying, Rejoice! So they came and held him by the feet and worshipped him. This rejoice captures this declaration of joy on the part of Christ.
Remember, who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross. Hebrews 12, 2. for the joy that was set before Christ, the victory over death, victory over the devil, victory over sin, its power, its condemnation, its guilt, and for his people. This rejoice captures all of that. I have done the work my father sent me to do.
I have redeemed a multitude that no man can number from every tribe and tongue and people and nation. And I've done that perfectly. rejoice. And we have the deceit and the depravity of the unbelieving Jews who retained this blasphemous lie that the disciples came at night and stole him away while the soldiers slept. They perpetuated that lie.
That's still a lie perpetuated today in many circles that are opposed to the truth of Christ. And so we see this lie perpetuated. But then in verses 16 to 20, we see this glorious appearance by the Lord Jesus Christ to his disciples. And that's what we're going to take up, verses 16 through 20.
The Theology of Mountains
The first thing that we see here is the significance of the location. Now, this might not first capture our attention, the significance of the location in verse 16. Then the eleven disciples went away into Galilee to the mountain which Jesus had appointed for them. It's not just an interesting geological reflection on the part of Matthew, that they went to a mountain.
It's just sort of a fact that he threw in there. I think resting behind this is the Bible's whole testimony to the theology of mountains, and how they all connect, and how they all find their end point, their terminus, in the glorious Christ who was sent to save his people. Sin, if we think about this, and we'll see a passage in a moment, sin began on a mountain, the mountain garden of Eden, and it was paid for on a mountain, Golgotha, or Calvary's Mount. Sin was brought into the world and the curse of it was brought into the world on a mountain tree, at a mountain tree, the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, the payment of sin and the answer of the curse.
The bearing of the curse takes place on a mountain tree. the tree of life, which is Christ and his blessed sacrifice. So we see here this appointment by Christ to go to this mountain. He says that in verse 10, do not be afraid, go and tell my brethren to go to Galilee and there they will see me. This was an appointed event for the disciples to go to this mountain in Galilee.
It was by the appointment of Christ according to his instruction and of course by his eternal predestinating will that this would take place in time and in history on a mountain in Galilee. And we should note here that, just bear with the language because I'll explain it, that we have the weight here of the eschatological commencement of the New Covenant, the beginning of the New Covenant. It was announced in the Old Covenant that there would be a new covenant made that would be radically unlike the old covenant. It was physical, it was temporary, it was typical.
There would be a new covenant that would come that would be spiritual, it would be everlasting, and it would be anti-typical, the fulfillment of all of those things that pointed to Christ. And we see its commencement here on the mountain. The first thing I want us to see in redemptive history and its movement with mountains through to this culmination is in Eden in chapter 2 of Genesis. You can turn there with me or you can listen as I read the passage.
But notice what we have in Genesis chapter 2 regarding Mount Eden. It's not just happy accidents that we have mountains all throughout the Holy Scriptures, that God's redemptive history begins with a mountain and ends with a mountain. And I'll eventually get to Genesis chapter 2. Hands are shaking for some reason.
Mount Eden and the Dominion Mandate
So in Genesis chapter 2, we have sort of an expansion upon the creation account. We don't have two creation accounts. We have an expansion upon it and some elaborative information provided in Genesis 2. And notice in Genesis 2 at verse 8.
The Lord God planted a garden eastward in Eden, and there he put the man whom he had formed. And out of the ground the Lord God made every tree grow that is pleasant to the sight and good for food. The tree of life was also in the midst of the garden, and the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. Now notice verse 10, now a river went out of Eden to water the garden, and from there it parted and became four riverheads.
The name of the first is Pishon. It is the one which skirts the whole land of Havilah, where there is gold, and the gold of that land is good. Bedillium and the onyx stone are there. The name of the second river is Gihon, et cetera.
The language continues with the naming of these rivers, but the point is that the Garden of Eden is on a mountain. I'm no genius, but I do know that rivers don't run uphill. The source of these rivers are on Mount Eden, and they run down the mount, the garden mount, where the tree of life is and where the tree of the knowledge of good and evil is. What does this mean?
There is a dominion mandate. given to Adam on Mount Eden that Adam fails to execute, Christ takes dominion. Remember, all authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. He declares this from a mountain. His the restoration of access to the divine presence is reflected in Matthew 28.
Man lost the reality of the divine presence on a mountain. The reality of a divine presence restored is brought to bear from a mountain, Mount Calvary, and the victory is declared. on a mountain in Galilee. Remember that we have Mount Ararat in Genesis chapter 8. If you're still in Genesis, you can turn to Genesis chapter 8.
Another mountain that is very significant. Genesis 8 and verse 4, then the ark rested in the seventh month, the 17th day of the month, on the mountains of Ararat. What does this mean? Well, first off, with regards to Mount Eden and the original creation, Mount Calvary inaugurates the new creation.
Here, there's something of a new creation after the flood. On Mount Ararat, there's a dominion mandate reiterated, and there's a beginning of a new creation. When you read this account, there's the beginning of a new creation. What does this point forward to?
It's a typical narrative true account of the post-flood reality in this new creation that points to the reality that Christ, who is the Ark, will bring in a new creation with his saving work. We have Mount Caramel, the vindication of the true God with that contestation, Elijah versus the prophets of Baal, that occurs on Mount Caramel. Mount Sinai, how significant is that? A significant theophany, the burning bush, occurs on Mount Sinai with lightnings, with thunderings, and with much fire.
And that's a declaration of the covenant identity of Israel in the Old Covenant. Their God is the God of the mount, the God of Mount Sinai, the God who is the creator and upholder of all things. And I want you on this point to turn to Hebrews for a moment. It's interesting, your mind may be saying, that we're pausing upon just these narrative words of this gathering at the Great Commission on a mountain.
You know, hopefully you're not saying big deal. And as we move through this, we see the significant connection and the glorious theology of mountains that culminate in the blessed redemptive work wrought by Jesus Christ.
Sinai and Zion: Two Covenant Mountains
Notice in Hebrews chapter 12, there's this language of two mountains. this language of two mountains. In the old covenant, they had their covenant identity by virtue of the pronouncements made from the thundering mountain, Mount Sinai, the law given by Moses. Notice in Hebrews 12, and we'll begin reading at verse 20. For they could not endure what was commanded.
Well, actually verse 18. I said that like I sounded defeated. I'm not defeated. That was me indicting myself for not including 18 and 19.
Okay. Verse 18, for you have not come to the mountain that may be touched and that burned with fire and to blackness and darkness and tempest. and the sound of a trumpet and the voice of words, so that those who heard it begged that the word should not be spoken to them anymore, for they could not endure what was commanded. And if so much as a beast touches the mountain, it shall be stoned or shot with an arrow. And so terrifying was the sight that Moses said, I am exceedingly afraid and trembling, but So a distinction now between Mount Sinai, which was important for covenant identity, but the startling and radical difference between the old covenant mountain and the new covenant mountain, verse 22, but you have come to Mount Zion. and to the City of the Living God, the heavenly Jerusalem, to an innumerable company of angels, to the General Assembly and Church of the Firstborn, who are registered in heaven, to God the Judge of all, to the spirits of just men made perfect, to Jesus the Mediator of the New Covenant, and to the blood of sprinkling that speaks better things than that of Abel.
You see this distinction, the importance of mountains, the reality that Mount Sinai, the old covenant, was not the covenant, nor was it the covenant of grace. It was a covenant that served particular ends to declare the holiness of God. the distinction of his people from whom the Messiah would come, but it only served the end that the new covenant would be ratified in the blood of Jesus Christ that speaks better things than that of Abel. And we are not to approach with that Sinaitic fear, but with the blessed, joyful reverence of the Mount Zion fear. where we approach, by virtue of the blood of sprinkling, the reality that Jesus Christ has perfected salvation upon a mountain. We could also note here Mount Nebo, which is in the Pisgah mountain range, where the beholding of the promised land by Moses took place.
And it pointed forward to that greater than Moses, whose promised land is the whole earth. So that Mount Nebo declaration where God has Moses look out upon the land of promise and see that which is physical and typical, which points to that which is spiritual and extensive, he says, look upon this and you see the promised land. Christ stands on a mountain with his disciples in Matthew 28, having all authority in heaven and on earth, and he sends them to go forth into the land. into the promised land, beyond the region that Moses looked upon to proclaim the riches and the excellencies of gospel truth. We have the Mount of Olives.
We're almost done with mountains, by the way. Hopefully it's not tiring for you. Hopefully you see the significance and the genius of God's inspiration of the Holy Scriptures and how these mountains tie together and how the wisdom of God from Genesis all the way through to Revelation has this theme that exalts the redemption wrought by Christ and the amazing grace of God. The Mount of Olives is David's high place.
It's the splitting of the mount that we read of in prophetic literature. In fact, you can turn to one of them, Zechariah 14.
The Mount of Olives and the Messiah
Notice in Zechariah 14, this language of mountains and the Messiah who will split the mountains, the Mount of Olives. In Zechariah 14, notice at verse 4, 3, we'll go to, then the Lord will go forth and fight against those nations as he fights in the day of battle. And in that day, his feet will stand on the Mount of Olives, which faces Jerusalem on the east. And the Mount of Olives shall be split in two from east to west, making a very large valley.
Half of the mountain shall move toward the north, and half of it to the south. So there's something very significant about the coming of the Messiah, his first coming in his incarnation to execute the perfection of redemption, to be resurrected, to be exalted, to be given all authority in heaven and on earth. And something will happen with the splitting of mountains. This would occur at least, we might say, typically or with regards to a smaller reality.
This actually did happen in AD 70 when the Roman armies carved a valley that split the Mount of Olives so that the Roman armies, according to the foreordained majesty of God, would come and visit the covenant curses upon apostate Jerusalem. The mountains are split, a valley is wrought between them, and God visits divine justice for those who betrayed the Messiah, who cast their own countrymen, who is very God and very man, to that Roman gibbet of execution. So all of this to say, mountains are big. Not just geographically, not just geologically, but richly theologically and with the narrative of redemptive history.
In the last mountain, we could say, Mount Zion, where the temple mount was, where the temple was, in that central place of Judaic worship, the place of the divine majesty and reign, which is symbolic of the gathering of all nations to the truth of God. And it's very interesting language that we have. If you turn with me to Isaiah 2, and we'll get to Christ's words here momentarily, but I think this is rich for us to observe.
Isaiah's Mountain Reversal
Notice in Isaiah chapter 2, with regards, again, this language of mountains, but something of a reversal we're going to see here in Isaiah chapter two and beginning at verse two. Now it shall come to pass in the latter days that the mountain of the Lord's house shall be established on the top of the mountains and shall be exalted above the hills and all nations shall flow to it. Many people shall come and say, come and let us go up to the mountain of the Lord, to the house of the God of Jacob. He will teach us his ways and we shall walk in his paths.
This is interesting. At least I hope it is for you. Remember that the Mount Mount Eden, the rivers go out from the mountain and they flow down. And it is upon that mountain with the flowing down rivers that the curse is brought into, is brought to humanity by the fall of the first man, Adam.
Well, what Isaiah is saying is that by virtue of the flowing of the rivers of blood from out of the Messiah, many nations will reverse the trajectory of these rivers that flow from that cursed mountain. They will come up to the mountain of the Lord by virtue of the work of the Lord who comes to his house to bring redemption. It's a glorious theme. And so Christ standing upon the mountain, as we find our way back to Matthew 28, Christ standing upon a mountain and calling his disciples to their stand with him, it's no small thing.
This culmination, this radical influx of the commencement of the new covenant and the visitation of divine justice and the outflowing of divine redemption all comes to a head upon this mountain where the Great Commission is given.
The Disciples' Worship and Doubt
So now moving to the response of the disciples to the glory of the resurrected Christ, we see two things here. Notice in Matthew 28 and at verse 17. Matthew 28, verse 17, when they saw him, they worshiped him, but some doubted. It's interesting language because it's quite a contrast.
We see worship on the one hand, and we see a worship hindered perhaps, but hindered by this doubt. And it doesn't capture all of the language of Luke 24, It doesn't have to, it's capturing particular things. But remember what happened in Luke 24 when the resurrected Christ appears to his disciples? We noted that this morning in our discussion about the real manhood, the real humanity of Jesus Christ.
He appears to them post-resurrection and they think him to be a phantom, a specter, a ghost. And so he says, well, after they could hear him speaking, he goes to further evidence. He says, look at me and see. Look at the wounds upon my wrists.
Look at the wound in my side, the wounds in my feet. It is I. I stand before you. But they still doubt.
It does say, though, for joy they doubted. You know how when you're really happy, you're really joyful about something. And you're like, yes, this can't be true. This is too good to be true.
And you have this measure of doubt. You're joyful. You still have this doubt. That's what's going on.
And they still don't believe him when he shows them the wounds upon his body. And so he says, come, touch me, handle me, and see that it is I. And that really still doesn't sell it for everyone. And then finally he eats broiled fish and honeycomb before them.
And that fourfold evidential declaration or demonstration helped them to get past the finish line in a sense. They worshipped him, but some doubted. For joy, they are doubting. It's not this damning unbelief.
It's probably this overwhelming joy where they would say in the modern vernacular, it's too good to be true. But they do engage in this divine adoration. They worshipped him. And this is significant for the reality of who Christ is.
Remember that we, the scripture reading this morning, we said that the most important question ever asked is Christ asking his disciples, who do you say that I am? Christ is worshipped here. Only God is worshipped and is to be worshipped, and they worship Him. And Christ, unlike angels who do reject worship, Christ doesn't reject it, but knowing, of course, who He is, very God, and yes, very man, but very God, He receives their worship, that divine adoration.
There's a wonderful passage in the book of Romans that connects this glory to and this worship to Christ and his resurrection. In Romans chapter 1, you don't have to turn there, I'll read it for you. In Romans chapter 1, we see this language. And this is just in the introduction to the book.
And this touches upon the question, who do you say that I am? Notice Romans 1, Paul, a bondservant of Jesus Christ, called to be an apostle, separated to the gospel of God, which he promised before through his prophets in the holy scriptures, concerning his son, Jesus Christ, our Lord, who was born at the seed of David according to the flesh and declared to be the son of God with power according to the spirit of holiness by the resurrection from the dead. And so this, the resurrection Paul is saying, is a declaration largely of the glory of the Son of God, who he is as the one who is very and eternal God of one substance with the Father, the one who made the world in all things that consist in him. They worshiped him.
He is God. And likewise, we are to worship him. were to follow these disciples' example to worship the Son of God who came into this world, sinners to save. We come here not to check a box. We come here, yes, out of tradition, but not rote and vain and empty tradition, out of a blessed tradition ordained by God unto the purpose that we would rejoice in Him and with the disciples worship the one who came down from heaven, sinners to save. they engage in this divine adoration.
And there's a moment of joyful uncertainty, but some doubt it. As Jim has noticed before, as Pastor Butler has noticed before, this but some doubted is one of those precious little bits of evidences that testify to the divine inspiration of the Holy Scriptures. Because who trying to force a religion upon the masses would say that some of the the most important founders of the Christian religion, if we can say, doubted. It's one of those nuggets of evidences of the divine inspiration of the Holy Scriptures and the authority of God in them.
The Dominion of the Mediatorial King
We see thirdly here the dominion now of the mediatorial king. The dominion of the mediatorial king. And the first thing that we see here is we want to know what this doesn't mean. This statement, all authority has been given to me in heaven and on earth.
Before we do that, let's just acknowledge something as Christians who love our Christ. This is only within a couple handfuls of days after the crucifixion of Jesus Christ. You know, some of them fled. Most of them fled.
John was at the cross. There would have been some disciples here if it's not only the 11, but it could be the 70 or the 500. But whatever is going on, they would have seen or they would have heard of the bloody crucifixion that the Son of God incarnated endured. the lashings, the beatings, the spittings, the bruisings, the nailings, and the sufferings of the cross. And not only that, but even more than that, the bearing of the wrath of God in that travail of soul, the pouring out of the cup of divine justice, the pouring out of the cup of the wrath of God, for the elect upon the Son of God.
And now, after having beforehand been a suffering Messiah who died upon the cross in a gory massacre, we now have this glorified one standing before them. All authority has been given to me in heaven and on earth. What a glorious, glorious picture of our Savior here. Yes, to us upon the cross with the crown of thorns, He is glorious and He is our King, but with a scepter of righteousness, having risen from the dead with majestic victory and having been given all authority in heaven and on earth.
What a glorious contrast and what a blessed picture of the reign and the victory of the Lord Jesus Christ.
What the Authority Claim Does Not Mean
So what this doesn't mean, though, this doesn't mean all authority has been given to me in heaven and on earth. It does not mean that he has a divine glory restored to him. Some teach, sadly, even within our own circles, some measure of a doctrine of Christ where in the incarnation he sets aside glory and measures and marks of divinity in order to engage in his messianic work. And we noted this morning in our study in the doctrine of Christ that because Christ is very God of very God, light from light, true God from true God, he can't change.
Divinity can't, for a time, set aside divinity. The God would stop being divine. And so this all authority has been given to me in heaven and on earth doesn't apply to his eternal divinity by which, of course, he has all authority in heaven and on earth. This applies to his mediatorial reality that he assumed he took upon himself man's nature to exercise perfection of redemption in overturning the curse that was wrought on that first mountain and on a mountain having victory over sin, death, and the devil, inaugurating the new covenant, and by virtue of the perfection of his work, he's given by the Father.
In essence, as a reward for that perfection, all authority in heaven and on earth. Our minds should draw ourselves to certain passages in the Holy Scriptures when we read that, and we're gonna go to one now. In Isaiah 9, if you'll go there with me, Isaiah chapter 9, there is more than this one, certainly, but notice how Isaiah's prophecy perfectly captures in glorious language what Christ is announcing here. In Isaiah 9, beginning at verse six.
For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given, and the government will be upon his shoulder. And his name will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. Of the increase of his government and peace, there will be no end. Upon the throne of David and over his kingdom, to order it and establish it with judgment and justice from this time forward, even forever, the zeal of the Lord of hosts will perform this.
That is announced by Christ in a shorter announcement, all authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. And notice this connection to from that time forward and forever, lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age. And so we have in the Old Testament, the prophetic announcement that to the one born, to the one given to the nation and to the nations, who would give himself upon Calvary's cross, having perfected the law of God and bearing its curse, he would rise again, he would ascend, and he would bring many sons and daughters to glory by virtue of that perfect work. I struggle sometimes to mount the proper adjectives upon adjectives and adverbs upon adverbs.
The glory of Christ is beyond words. We've noted before that for the preacher, preaching God, preaching Christ, is at the same time the most blessed thing, but also the hardest thing in the world to do. How do you capture the glory of one who is very and eternal God, of one substance with him who begat him. How do you capture one living and true God who eternally exists as Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, of one substance, power in eternity, having the whole divine essence and the essence undivided?
How do you capture the Son of God, the second person in the Holy Trinity, being very and eternal God, taking to himself man's nature? With all of our properties, body and soul, with all of our common infirmities, our hunger, our thirst, our weakness, our sorrow, taking all of that upon himself yet without sin and bearing a cross and perfecting redemption. How do you adequately speak of that? Words fail us, but yet God has given us some words to capture in a moment and to capture in sound words as much as possible measures of the glory of this great Christ.
It's beyond a proper grasp, what glory we have. So it does not mean that a divine glory was restored to him, but it does mean that as mediator, according to his human nature, he has received his kingly inheritance. He's received his kingly inheritance by virtue of his saving work. All authority has been given to me in heaven and on earth.
And we should note this with the vain promises, compare this with the vain promises of the devil in that desert temptation. In fact, let's just go there for a moment. Let's go back to, back to the, in the gospel of Matthew. Matthew chapter four.
I think when we get there, we'll check if the pastor knows his Bible. Three and then four. Three is the baptism and then four. So in Matthew chapter four, notice in these temptations of the devil, they're progressive and they kind of build one on top of the other.
And remember that for all the 40 days Jesus had been tempted by the devil, But he comes in this last moment, and we have this note of this threefold temptation. And notice, and interestingly, on an exceedingly high mountain, verse 8 of Matthew 4.
The Desert Temptation Contrasted
Again, the devil took him up on an exceedingly high mountain. Mountain theology. Some have commented on this and said, oh, maybe this is Mount Nebo in the Pisgah Range, where God brought Moses and said to look out and see the nations. And in fact, Abraham was also given such a mountain proclamation, where he went up and God said, look and see your inheritance.
Your progeny will be like the sand the seashore so back to verse 8 again The devil took him up on an exceedingly high mountain and showed him all the kingdoms of the world and their glory The the devil is trying to tempt Christ As if the devil can give him these things that the devil is trying to tempt Christ and in essence He's trying to stop whatever Christ is doing in his redemptive mission. We don't know how much the devil knows. We don't know the content, the propositions of the devil's mind. but he's smarter than all of us and he probably has these inklings that the son of god took to himself the nature of fallen humanity so that he might redeem fallen humanity and so he's trying to trip up the son of god but notice what he says after promising uh after promising all of these kingdoms and all of that he says If you fall down and worship me, and then Jesus says to him, away with you, Satan, for it is written you shall worship the Lord your God and him only you shall serve. Interesting language when we get to Matthew 28, where upon a mountain, Christ is declaring that He has all authority over the kingdoms of the earth, not because the devil gave it to Him, but because He has perfected the work for which He was sent, redeeming a multitude of sinners and vindicating the perfections of God.
And He sees the reality come true. You shall worship the Lord only. Him only you shall serve. Verse 17, when they saw Him, they worshiped Him. but some doubted.
So it does mean again that Christ was given this kingdom, he has this kingdom by virtue of the perfection of his work, and the devil plays no role because Christ had victory over him both in that desert battle. Some of the commentators call it a single combat battle in the wilderness, and they compare it to David and Goliath. If you read some of the commentaries on Matthew 4, very interesting. It's like David and Goliath in the wilderness, in the Valley of Elah, With this temptation of Christ in the wilderness, you have the greater than David against a greater than Goliath also coming with single combat.
Just like David was left without armor because he could not wear Saul's armor, Christ goes alone into the wilderness Without armor, if you will, some of the commentators say, as well without armor, just like David, and the lion of the tribe of Judah has victory over the lion from the pit. And now, having victory over the devil at the cross of Calvary, where the Genesis 3 promise comes true, that the hero, born of woman, will crush the serpent with his heel, he announces, authority has been given to me in heaven. and on earth.
The Rule of the King in the Church
And lastly, closing with this, we have the rule of the king. The rule of the king by, for, and in the midst of the church. This is verses 19 and 20. The rule of the king by, for, and in the midst of this church.
We have this wonderful conjunctive adverb A little language lesson. I didn't know that either beforehand. But a conjunctive adverb in therefore. So there's this language of, there's this premise being given by Christ, a statement being given.
All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. All authority has been given to me in heaven and on earth. Then there's this conjunctive adverb, a logical connection that there's a clause to follow, that logically flows from the previous clause. In other words, by virtue of the fact that, by virtue of the fact I have been given all authority in heaven and on earth because of my saving work, Now go, make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.
So the first thing that we see here, we see the apostolic commission to proclaim the gospel. Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations. Remember that mountain announcement from Isaiah chapter two. Christ on the mountain, I'll stop saying mountain in about seven and a half minutes, but Christ on a mountain, announces that he is the one who is the Lord of Mount Zion. who inaugurates a better covenant than that which was on Mount Sinai, who now is fulfilling the prophecy that was given about a mountain to which all nations should flow.
And he says, go therefore and make disciples of all those nations, so that like rivers of water, they would flow to the new creation, the mount of the new creation, even Calvary, even Zion, the spiritual fulfillment of it. What a blessed thing that we have here. And so this captures the church's mission throughout the ages to proclaim the riches and the excellencies of Christ. That's what Christ is saying, go and preach me.
Go and make disciples of all the nations. What are they proclaiming? They're proclaiming the amazing and victorious grace of God, who through the perfection of His only begotten Son, who assumed man's nature, has perfected salvation. He's been obedient to the law of God in the place of all who believe in His name. perfecting the law, perfecting an obedience, a righteousness that avails with God.
He's died upon Calvary's cross, Mount Calvary, on a tree to reverse the cross, the curse of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil that was taken from on Mount Eden. He has perfected salvation through the shedding of his blood, through rivers of blood flowing from his five wounds. And now, because of the perfection of that work, having risen, And soon to ascend, he sends his disciples to the nations to preach that, to preach a glorious Savior who came into this world, sinners to save. Do you know that you, sitting here today, first, as believers sitting here today, you are the blessed yet undeserved recipients of the announcement of Christ in Matthew 28, verse 19.
You have received the disciple-making proclamation of the Church of the Living Christ. Throughout the ages, Christ was building, has built his church, and you are members of that spiritual building. You're in the kingdom of God. All authority, the kingdom of God has been given to Christ and he has brought you in by the proclamation of the word.
You, by virtue of amazing grace, ascend the mount of spiritual Zion to the one who on a mount saved you from your sins. If you're here this morning and you're outside of Christ, you need to feel the weight of all authority has been given to me in heaven and on earth. The unbelieving mind might have a measure of patience for an infant, a babe wrapped in swaddling cloths lying in a manger. Christ meek and mild as a baby in a manger.
According to his humanity, he didn't have the power to do much then, but according to his eternal divinity, even as an infant, a babe wrapped in swaddling cloths, he fills the heavens and the earth, even as he had from the beginning. The point is, is that with the unbelieving mind, perhaps an ineffectual human Jesus, the man Jesus, as an infant, or as a young person, or as appearing weak upon a cross, Calvary's Mount, perhaps he doesn't seem all that dangerous. But know for a certainty that he has risen from the dead, that he has ascended to the right hand of the majesty on high. And if you're a believer, you're blessedly in this kingdom.
But if you're outside of Christ, you're on the side of the world, you're on the side of the devil, and you're on the side of the lusts of your own flesh, excluded from the kingdom. justly resting under the justice and the divine wrath of a holy God who is right to judge those who oppose him and who oppose his gospel. But Christ says, come to the mount. Christ says, come to me, all who are weary and heavy laden, and I will give you rest. You are stuck in the mire of sin and depravity and wickedness.
There is a Savior who saves you, who has all authority, who has perfected salvation, and who says, come, come to me and I will give you everlasting life and the blessings of the eternal kingdom of God.
Baptism and the Trinitarian Name
We see as well here the apostolic commission to baptize those who profess faith in Christ. It's a simple reality that the Bible positively proclaims credo or believer baptism. Notice the language here. Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations.
It's conspicuous and it's obvious the proclamation of the gospel. Many multitudes from the nations believe. And then after that, baptize them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. Notice Christ is Trinitarian.
He's the second of the blessed triune God. As mediator, having assumed our humanity, he speaks to these people, and he says that baptism comes in the singular name of three persons, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. An explicit declaration of the triune reality of our everlasting God. One God who eternally exists as Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, of one substance, power, and eternity, each having the whole divine essence, yet the essence undivided.
Our God is Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. So the apostolic commission to proclaim the gospel, on the heels upon the proclamation of gospel, many will believe in the name of Christ, they are to be baptized, and then notice the apostolic commission to continually instruct believers in the knowledge of Christ, teaching them to observe, verse 20, all things that I have commanded you, and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age. the continual instruction of believers in the knowledge of Christ. This is one reason why we come to church. We come to church according to the command of God to observe the Sabbath and to keep it holy.
We come to worship the one God in three persons, blessed Trinity, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. And we are to put on the mind as believers that I'm coming to church not for a weariness, but for joy to learn more of my God and to learn more of his Christ, our Christ. And so Jesus is gloriously here setting up the pattern for church and the reality of church, the reality of his Matthew 16 promise that I will build my church and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it because all authority has been given to him and he ascended by the power of his spirit, equips and empowers the church to proclaim the gospel. That's the book of Acts.
The Book of Acts has been commonly called the Acts of the Disciples. Some have rightly called it the Acts of the Ascended Christ, because he goes to the right hand of the Father and he sends his disciples, empowering them with the promised spirit to proclaim his riches, to proclaim his excellencies. and to bring a multitude of the sons and daughters of men to salvation through him. And lastly, we see the abiding presence of the exalted Christ in the midst of his church. What a wonderful final statement before the amen that we have here.
And lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age. What a wonderful thing that we have an ascended Christ on the side of the church, yes, empowering them by the Spirit, but as believers, this promise as well obtains for us, that we have the Son of God incarnated, ascended and victorious, who stands at the right hand of the Father, looking down and judging his enemies and protecting and defending his church.
Confession Reading: Christ's Threefold Office
Let's look at a cold, old, dry document. Now, there's rich doctrine in this, in our confession of faith, and in chapter eight, it captures this well. What sort of confidence can we have when we read a passage like this and we see our Christ so gloriously set forth? Speaking of the offices of Christ, as mediator, Christ is prophet, priest, and king.
Separate offices in the Old Testament, taken up by multiple individual persons over a number of generations, all pointing forward to the one glorious divine person who would assume our humanity, who would take up all offices and do so perfectly. Notice what it means for believers. This number and order of offices is necessary, for in respect of our ignorance, we stand in need of his prophetical office. And in respect of our alienation from God and imperfection of the best of our services, we need his priestly office to reconcile us and present us acceptable unto God.
And in respect of our averseness, an utter inability to return to God, and for our rescue and security from our spiritual adversaries, we need his kingly office to convince, subdue, draw, uphold, deliver, and preserve us unto his heavenly kingdom. That's what This means, lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age. What a Christ that we have. I think very often, perhaps Monday through Saturday, we don't often, by pattern and by natural rhythm, engage in reflections upon the glory of this Christ and realize that when affliction comes, and when trial comes, and when travail comes upon body and soul, We're not in it alone.
We're not trying to rest upon the fallibility of men. We have one who said 2,000 years ago, lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age. We have his prophetical office. I mixed up my words there.
That cadence shouldn't be used. He has his prophetical office so that he might make us know him in our natural ignorance. We ought to avail of his prophetical office Monday to Saturday as well. Sunday is peculiar and special as the Lord's Day appointed Sabbath.
But what a thing it is to learn of this Christ and to gain an advancement from our present ignorance to a precious growing knowledge. of the Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ. We have his priestly office when we fall into sin. He's with us always, even to the end of the age. When we sin, we're not to continue in it.
We're not to grieve for months over it. We're to realize immediately that we have a Savior for sin. We don't need months of reflection upon misery before we can be restored to access to God. We fly immediately to that advocate at the right hand of the majesty on high who perfected priesthood that he might bring many sons to glory by virtue of the shedding of his blood.
And we have his kingly office. When we look upon a world bound by sin and depravity and wickedness, We can know that there is a king in high heaven that will do one of two things. He will judge those reprobate opposers who mock him. who spit upon his truth and who oppose the glory of his person and work. But as that self-same king, he will draw unbelievers to himself by his power and by his spirit.
What hope we have in that God and in that Christ for our friends, for our family, who oppose Christ, who do not believe, and who stand in their ignorance and stand in their sin in opposition to God. Christ overcomes them by the glory of his kingship, drawing them and giving them his spirit to see his riches, to see his excellencies and brethren. One of the strong confidences that we have in this lower world is this one to whom all authority has been given. We can look upon a mad world.
We can look upon the madness of the political landscape and the sanctioning of injustices and the rejection of proper justices. But we can know this for a truth that the nations of this world have been given to our God and to our Christ. They are his. He holds the hearts of kings in his hands.
He directs them where they will go. And it is all for the purpose that he would bring his church to everlasting glory, that we would ascend like rivers the mountain of the Lord to come to Him, to worship Him, and that these rivers would flow upwards, defying gravity, from every tribe, from every tongue, from every people, and from every nation. Praise God that we Gentiles have been brought to a knowledge of Christ, and for those outside of Christ today, know that this same authoritative Christ, this same ruling Christ, bids you to come and to know the blessing of salvation in Him, believe on Him. and you will be saved. Let's pray.
Closing Prayer
God, we thank you for your truth. We rejoice in your goodness to us. We thank you for your word. We rejoice in our Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ.
We thank you that through the perfection of his work, through his life of obedience, his suffering upon Calvary's cross, that we have, and by virtue of his resurrection, that we have everlasting life, that you have caused us by your grace and for your glory to believe on so precious a Savior, We pray for the advancement of your church throughout the world by the work of missionaries, by the work of your church at large, by the proclamation of the gospel in faithful churches, we pray that your word would advance, that multitudes of sinners would come to a knowledge of this precious savior, and that a thousand tongues, Lord God, would sing the victories of such a glorious Christ. And it's in his name that we pray, amen.