Thus it is written that the Christ should suffer and on the third day rise from the dead, and that repentance for the forgiveness of sins should be proclaimed in his name to all nations beginning from Jerusalem. You are witnesses of these things. And behold, I am sending the promise of my Father upon you, but stay in the city until you are clothed with power from on high.
– Luke 24:46–49
Oh, I love this section at the end of the Gospel of Luke that summarizes the gospel and the Great Commission, all together.
Luke 24:46–49 Summarizes the Gospel and the Mission
The gospel, it is written that the Christ should suffer, die for sins, and on the third day rise from the dead. And that repentance for the forgiveness of sins should be proclaimed in His name to all the nations. Don’t miss it. The gospel message at the core is a global message.
It is for all the nations. Jesus came to die not just for one type of person or for one group of people. He came to die for all people in all nations. And at the core of the gospel is a message. The repentance and forgiveness of sins is available in the name of Jesus for all nations, which is why Jesus then says, you are witnesses of these things and I’m going to send my Holy Spirit, supernatural power, to live in you, to make this news known among all the nations.
This is what it means to believe the gospel and to be a follower of Jesus. It means to know that Jesus has suffered and risen from the dead for your sins. It means to repent and receive his forgiveness, and it means to proclaim this good news in his name to all the nations. The Great Commission flows directly from the gospel, which means if you have the gospel, then you have the Great Commission.
Luke 24:46–49 Summarizes our Lives’ Greatest Calling
Making disciples of the nations is not just for a few Christians or super Christians. This is for everyday, ordinary Christians, followers of Jesus, every follower of Jesus. You are a disciple-maker among the nations. So live accordingly today. This is who you are. You’ve been clothed with supernatural power. The Holy Spirit of God lives in you so that you might be a disciple maker for the nations wherever you live, making disciples of people around you, being intentional to make disciples, not just of people who look like you, but among the nations that are around you, and praying and giving and going as God leads to other nations, to all the nations, until the gospel spreads to all of them.
God to help us to connect the gospel with the Great Commission and every single one of our lives. God help every single one of us to see ourselves in Christ with the gospel as disciple-makers among the nations. Transform the way we view our lives as students, moms, dads, engineers, teachers, doctors and nurses.
And it could just go on and on. As retirees. God help us all to see our lives ourselves today as disciple-makers among the nations. Help us to be faithful with the power of your Holy Spirit in us to proclaim repentance for the forgiveness of sins in Jesus’ name. Help us to proclaim that he has suffered and risen from the dead so that we can be forgiven of our sins. God, we pray, help us to boldly proclaim that right around us today.
Praying for the Kharga People
We pray you’d help us proclaim that as your church to the ends of the earth, to the Kharga people. God, please cause this people group of Bedouins and the deserts outside of Alexandria, Egypt. Lord please cause the gospel to go to the Kharga people. Help us live and be families and part of churches that spread the gospel to all nations, including the Kharga. God, may it be so according to your word in Luke 24:46–49, according to your power in us. In Jesus’ name, Amen.
David Platt serves as a Lead Pastor for McLean Bible Church. He is also the Founder of Radical, an organization that makes Jesus known among the nations.
David received his B.A. from the University of Georgia and M.Div., Th.M., and Ph.D. from New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary. Some of his published works include Radical, Radical Together, Follow Me, Counter Culture, Something Needs to Change, Don’t Hold Back, and How to Read the Bible.
He lives in the Washington, D.C. metro area with his wife and children.
