“REPENT” FOR YOU HAVE AN APPOINTMENT WITH THE LORD!

Matthew 28:19-20 AMP says, Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations [help the people to learn of Me, believe in Me, and obey My words], baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. Teaching them to observe everything that I have commanded you; and lo, I am with you always [staying with you perpetually—regardless of circumstance, and on every occasion], even to the end of the age.” The surpassing magnificence of this grand conclusion to Matthew's gospel is unrivaled by anything even from the sacred pages of inspiration. This Great Commission, as the saints of all ages have consented to call it, constitutes the marching orders of his church for a day and to all eternity. It is a whole galaxy studded with many of the biggest stars in the firmament of Christian doctrine, and its central thrust is clear: Christ commissions his church to make disciples of all nations. It may be doubted if many passages of similar length are more freighted with divine truth than these words of the Commission. They are exactly what one should have expected, only far more, from the lips of a supernatural, divine Savior, on the point of departure to the eternal world of the spirit and uttering one last comprehensive command to his disciples and for all generations to come. All authority in heaven teaches the divinity of Christ. If a mere man spoke these words, they are nonsense; and therefore, in this statement, Christ lays claim to status as a member of the Godhead. Ten times in the Greek New Testament, Christ is actually called God. This says nothing of the countless passages in which he claimed divine attributes, as when he said, "Before Abraham was, I am!" Christ is God come in the flesh. That is the central meaning and message of Christianity. Of all nations. Here is the church's worldwide missionary program. Here is the worldwide brotherhood of all nations and races in Christ. God made of "one" all the families of the earth in accordance with (Acts 17:26 NKJV), and it reads as follows: “And He has made from one blood every nation of men to dwell on all the face of the earth and has determined their pre-appointed times and the boundaries of their dwellings.” And that universal kinship and brotherhood appear in the Great Commission. No limitation or abridgment is allowed. All nations. not merely all "the English-speaking nations" or "all the white nations," but all the nations! The main point is universal scope. Baptizing them. If nothing else appeared in the entire Holy Bible, apart from the ordinance of baptism, Christ's mention of it in this circumstance would have been more than sufficient to bind it upon all people for all time to come. That Jesus Christ, the Head of our holy faith, in this grand finale of his earthly teaching, should be charged with introducing secondary, subordinate, non-essential, and unnecessary commands is a reflection on his divinity. Added to that is the sacred triple name of 'Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit' in which baptism was commanded to be administered. Where else in all Scriptures is there another commandment that enjoys the distinction conferred by those solemn words? The commandment of baptism, subjoined by the sacred name of Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, is, in this Great Commission, elevated to a priority that men have been very reluctant to grant. Yet its inclusion dispels any notion that it is optional or permissive. It is commanded, not for one or for a few, but for all, 'every creature'.