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[0:00] Good evening and welcome to Calvary Church Brighton. My name is Mark Rayfield. This is a recording for the 29th of November 2020. Calvary Church is a growing evangelical church preaching, teaching, teaching, and living the good news of Jesus Christ today.

[0:23] We welcome any visitors who are watching tonight from other churches you are most welcome, especially those from Park Hill, New Life Mookscombe, Ebenezer Church, Brighton, of whom we have a particularly close relationship.

[0:42] If you'd like to contact the church, please look on our website for details. We have Zoom meetings on Sundays and Wednesdays. So if you'd like to join, again, please visit our website to contact us.

[1:00] To start, let's read Ephesians 3, 16 to 21, Paul's prayer for the Ephesians. Paul says, Let's meditate on verse 18.

[1:59] Paul prays that this love is so wide that it can save any sinner. So long that his love lasts an eternity.

[2:15] So high that it goes into heaven. We are in the heavenly realms if we are believers. And so deep that he came down to save humanity in human form and die on a barbaric cross for us.

[2:34] Wow. Wow. What four-dimensional love that we have through the love of Christ. So, brothers and sisters, let's sing of that this evening.

[2:49] Praise 803. Such love. Jude and Jude.ยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยยย Such love, pure as the whitest snow.

[3:31] Such love, weeps for the shame I know. Such love, paying the debt I owe.

[3:45] Oh Jesus, such love, such love.

[3:56] Stilling my restlessness, such love. Filling my emptiness, such love.

[4:10] Showing me holiness, oh Jesus. Such love, such love.

[4:26] Springs from eternity, such love. Streaming through history, such love.

[4:42] Fountain of life to me, oh Jesus. Such love. Let's pray.

[5:04] Heavenly Father, we bow before your throne of grace tonight, echoing Paul's prayer, that we might grasp how wide, long, high and deep your love is for us.

[5:17] We will never fully comprehend it. But by your spirit, we can understand this love, which has moved us to adore you more and more. Because of this great love, we can be fellow citizens in your family, a part of your household, being built together to become a dwelling in which God lives by his spirit.

[5:42] We are no longer aliens, strangers, far from you. But because of Christ's mighty love, we are now reconciled with you and have a new identity, security and a new hope.

[5:59] We are alive in Christ and we can draw close to you tonight by the Holy Spirit, no matter where we are and how we are feeling. We praise you, Triune God, Father, Son and Holy Spirit.

[6:18] Please forgive our many failings of thought, act and deed. Cleanse us, we ask. And speak to us through your word this evening as we go into another week.

[6:34] We thank you for the many gifts you have bestowed upon us. We thank you for employment, accommodation, food and drink on our tables, family members, our church family and freedom to practice our faith.

[6:53] We pray for those who do not have such things and we ask you to supply their needs, especially in our church family. We lift up those who are vulnerable to you, the elderly, the sick, single mothers, widows.

[7:13] Please help them. Those that are feeling lonely, the bereft, Lord, help them too, we ask. We pray for our children, that you would turn them to you if you haven't done so already, by the power of your Holy Spirit.

[7:31] We pray for family members who do not acknowledge you as Lord. We lift them up to you now. Please be merciful to them and cause them to cry out to the living God for salvation.

[7:53] We pray for our city of Brighton and Hove, who, for the most part, are spiritually lost. May you have compassion on them like you did the Ninevites and cause them to see their need of you.

[8:08] Send laborers into the harvest field, Lord. Convict people of their sin against the Holy God. And may you truly win them by the power of your spirit, we ask.

[8:22] May we have the joy of seeing spiritually blind people receiving their sight and no longer walking in darkness as they see the beautiful work of our Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ, in whom we pray.

[8:42] Amen. Well, our reading tonight is from Matthew 28. Matthew 28, verse 16 to 22.

[8:55] Matthew 28, verse 16 to 22. So please turn to it now in your Bibles. It's entitled The Great Commission.

[9:10] Last week we heard from Aaron about the make-up cover story to the resurrection. I do recommend that talk if you haven't listened to it.

[9:24] Now we come to the finale, the last five verses of Matthew. It would be helpful, encouraging, to get feedback from these talks in Matthew.

[9:37] What has touched you? What has touched you, challenged you? Can you recall something which the Lord has used to help you?

[9:49] Was there a particular message that inspired you? How about after this broadcast at 8pm on Zoom, we have some conversation about this?

[10:02] Flick through Matthew's gospel and tell us something that you have learnt or were struck by. That would be very encouraging for the church. Well, let's read Matthew 28, 16 to 22.

[10:18] Then the eleven disciples went to Galilee, to the mountain where Jesus had told them to go. When they saw him, they worshipped him.

[10:32] But some doubted. Then Jesus came to them and said, All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me.

[10:44] Therefore, go and make disciples of all nations, baptising 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.

[11:00] And surely I am with you always to the very end of the age. May the Lord bless his word to us this evening as we meditate on it.

[11:13] Well, let's sing our second song. As we come to his word, Speak, O Lord. Speak, O Lord, as we come to you, To receive the food of your holy word.

[11:53] Take your truth, plant it deep in us, Shape and fashion us in your likeness, That the light of Christ might be seen today, In our acts of love and our deeds of faith.

[12:18] Speak, O Lord, and fulfill in us all your purposes for your glory.

[12:30] Teach us, Lord, full obedience, Holy reverence, true humility.

[12:50] Test our thoughts and our attitudes In the radiance of your purity, Cause our faith to rise, Cause our eyes to see Your majestic love and authority.

[13:16] Words of power that can never fail, Let their truth prevail over unbelief.

[13:35] Speak, O Lord, and renew our minds, Help us grasp the heights of your plans for us.

[13:48] Truths unchanged from the dawn of time, That will echo down through eternity.

[14:00] And by grace we'll stand on your promises, And by faith we'll walk as you walk with us.

[14:13] Speak, O Lord, till your church is built, And the earth is filled with your glory.

[14:25] What is the church's goal?

[14:41] Many companies, schools, and organisations Have a mission statement. The internet defines such a statement As a concise explanation Of the organisation's reason for existence.

[14:56] It describes the organisation's purpose And its overall intention. The mission statement supports the vision And serves to communicate purpose And direction to employees, Customers, vendors, And other stakeholders.

[15:14] See if you can guess These mission statements From well-known multinational companies. I'll give you a few seconds to think And they should be on the screen.

[15:27] So the first one. To refresh the world. To inspire moments of optimism and happiness. To create value and make a difference.

[15:40] Which company is that? You can talk to your partner At home if you have one. It's Coca-Cola.

[15:56] One point if you got that right. The second one. This is especially for David Rigglesworth. To create a better everyday life For the many people.

[16:08] David you can confer with Wendy. It's IKEA.

[16:22] I hope you got that one right David. The next one. Our mission is to give everyone a voice And show them the world. We believe that everyone deserves To have a voice.

[16:35] And that the world is a better place When we listen, share And build community through our stories. I'll give you a clue.

[16:53] You're watching it tonight. Yes it's YouTube. And the last one. Especially for my father-in-law. Be the world's favourite destination For discovering great value.

[17:15] It's eBay. Well, tonight's text Is like a mission statement For the Church of Jesus Christ. The context of this vision Given by the head of the church Is on a mountain in Galilee.

[17:33] You should see a map Now on the screen. Jesus had already instructed His disciples In Matthew 26, 32 Before his death But after I have risen I will go ahead of you Into Galilee As you can see from the map This was to the north of Jerusalem Jerusalem being in Judea And by no means A short journey To get there Some 78 miles Approximately The distance roughly Between Brighton and Hove And Bournemouth It is said that Galilee Was a region of great Natural fertility Such is the fertility Of the soil And it rejects no plant For the air is so genial That it suits every variety Some of the disciples

[18:34] Were fishermen On the lake of Galilee Before they had become disciples And Jesus was born there He was from Nazareth In Galilee He spent a lot of time In this vicinity In his earthly life Performing wonders Including his walking on water Calming the storm And feeding the 5,000 Matthew 4, 23 Says And Jesus went about All Galilee Teaching in their synagogues And preaching The gospel of the kingdom And healing All manner Of sickness And all manner Of disease Among the people Galilee Was a hugely Symbolic place A lot Had happened there And this was where The disciples Would see Jesus Christ Give them This great Commission And most probably 500 more Were there

[19:34] As Paul states In 1 Corinthians 15, 6 He appeared to more Than 500 Of the brothers At the same time Jesus started His kingdom service In Galilee Remember Isaiah's prophecy Land of Zebulun And land of Naphtali The way of the sea Beyond the Jordan Galilee of the Gentiles The people Living in darkness Have seen A great light On those Living In the land Of the shadow Of death A light Has dawned How fitting That now We reach The climax Of Matthew's book That we're in Galilee As Christ Finishes His earthly ministry So my first point Is king Of the cosmos Verse 18 Then Jesus

[20:35] Came to them And said All authority In heaven And on earth Has been Given To me This well-known Commission For the church Is given By Jesus Who has recently Risen from the dead Victoriously Beaten death And now states To his men That all Power Is given To him To act Not just Over the world But in heaven He has Sovereign rule Over The entire Universe In Philippians Chapter 2 Verse 9 Paul writes Therefore God Exalted him To the highest Place And gave him The name That is above All other names That at the name Of Jesus Every knee

[21:35] Should bow In heaven And on earth And under the earth Did you notice The passive tense In verse 18 It was given To him Who has given Christ This power God the father Psalm 2 Verse 6 Exclaims I have installed My king On Zion My holy hill Psalm 110 The lord Says to my lord Sit At my Right hand Until I make Your enemies A footstool For your feet The lord Will extend Your mighty Scepter From Zion We are coming Up to Christmas Where we'll hear The words From Luke He will be Great And he will be Called Son Of the most High

[22:35] The lord God Will give Him The throne Of his Father David And he will Reign over The house Of Jacob Forever His kingdom Will never End Brothers Sisters Friends Jesus Is king Of the cosmos Christ Is the sole Monarch Of whom We must Give our Allegiance To Astrologers From the east Acknowledged That Christ Was king Of the Jews He was Acknowledged King of the Jews On an evil Cross Yes He surely Is the king Of the Jews But now In his glorified State His rule Is far More superlative He is crowned King of the Cosmos Wow Hallelujah And his rule Is everlasting It has no end What a king Knox puts it

[23:37] Like this He was given Heaven And earth To do What he liked With them No other Person Has this Kind Of power We see The world Stage And all Its players All its Rulers However Much Authority Or influence They have All will lose It After a while It's limited Who Can say All Authority In heaven And on earth Has been given To me Do you Acknowledge Christ's Lawship In your life Tonight Is he Your supreme Leader And king Or are there Other lords You worship More than him If you Don't know The lord

[24:37] Jesus Christ As your Saviour Can't you See the Beauty And majesty Of this Monarch He is no Tyrant Not capricious Changeable He Lovingly Stoops Down To this Earth And empties Himself To save You He dies For you On a cross He is the Most attractive King The world Has ever Seen And ever Will see He is King Of the Cosmos My second Point Is the King's Edict Verse 19 And 28 Let's have A read Therefore Go and Make disciples Of all Nations Baptising Them In the Name Of the Father And of

[25:37] The Son And of The Holy Spirit And Teaching Them To obey Everything I have Commanded You Having Received This Kingly Power What Does Christ Choose To do The King Of the Cosmos Then Commands His Followers To go And make Disciples Of all Nations These Eleven Were the Architects Of God's Church That Laid The Foundation Stone Previously In Matthew We read That Christ Sends Them To the Lost Sheep Of Israel Only But here His Edict Is to All the Nations Ethnos Those Beyond the Boundaries Of Israel To other Tribes And tongues This Mandate Is now Enlarged His

[26:38] Church Is Universal In scope The Covenant Of Peculiarity He Made With the Jews Is now Cancelled Annulled Salvation Is offered To Jew And Gentile People From other Nations No one Is excluded As I alluded To in my Prayer At the Beginning The Ephesians Were no Longer Exiles Foreigners But Fellow Citizens With the Jews And Members Of God's Household Firstly The Eleven Were to Make Disciples This word Disciple Means Helping Someone To Progressively Learn The Word Of God To Become Matured A Growing Disciple Literally A Learner A True Christ Follower Tasker States A Disciple Is Not One Who Has Already Learned But

[27:39] One Who Is Always Learning The School Days Of A Christian Are Never Over Brothers And Sisters Secondly The King's Edict Commands The Nascent Church To Baptize Believers In The Name Of The Triune God Father Son And Holy Spirit A New Sign To The World That One Is A Follower Of Jesus This Is Not An Optional In The Christian Faith But One That Should Be Publicly Done When Someone Becomes A Believer Not Being Ashamed Of One's Declaration That Now I Follow Jesus Christ It Is Not Essential To Salvation But It Is An Ordnance Which We Can Clearly See Jesus Giving And He Directs His People To Do Which

[28:40] Outwardly Says I Renounce Living For The Ways Of The World And For The Flesh And I Now Give Myself To God I Swear Allegiance To Him He Is My Savior Do You Remember Annika's Baptism Here It Was Right Here As I Speak What A Lovely Encouraging Time It Was To See Her Make That Confession Of Faith It Was An Opportunity To Invite Friends Family To Witness The Strong Work Of God In Annika's Life May We See More Times Like This Here At Calvary Church Lastly The King's Edict Is To Teach His Disciples The Commands Of God Did You See That In Verse 20 Verse 8 And Teaching Them To Obey Everything I Have Commanded You Jerome

[29:43] Commented On That This Sorry Last Week The Word For Teach Here Is Didasco Which Nearly Always Means To Refer To Teaching The Scriptures The Written Word Of God The Key Role Of Teaching Scripture Is Shown By Its Great Frequency In The New Testament This Was The Duty Of The Apostles And Now The Church The Ministers Of The Church To Teach These Commands Of Christ To Expound Them To Press Upon His Disciples The Necessity Of Obedience To Christ And As We Saw On Wednesday This Is What The Early Church Did So As We Come To The End Of Matthew Can You See The Baton Being Passed On Like A Relay Race

[30:44] First God The Father Sends His Son Into The World To Preach Good News To The Poor To Proclaim Freedom For The Prisoners Recovery A Sight For The Blind To Release The Oppressed And Proclaim The Year Of The Lord's Favor Then The Baton Is Passed To His Apostles To Enact This Great Commission Which We've Been Thinking About Tonight And So This Baton Has Been Handed Down To Subsequent Generations Through The Centuries Now We Have It And We Pass It On To The Next Generation Like Elijah To Elisha This Happened In The Old Covenant Brothers And Sisters As You Might Recall The Israelites Were Told To Teach Their Children And Their Children's Children The Truth Of God And His Promises So That They Would Obey The Lord So We Must

[31:44] Do The Same So Some So Some Questions! Do You Want To Keep Christ All To Yourself Or Do You Want To Share Him With Others!

[31:56] The Lost Do Do we Share To Do we Do we Do we this worldwide focused vision to reach the nations?

[32:17] Are we teaching scripture faithfully to the commands of Christ? And if you are a believer of the Lord Jesus Christ, you say he's my savior and you haven't been baptized, do you see the importance of a public declaration of your faith?

[32:38] I hope you do. Well, my last point is the king's comfort. Verse 20b.

[32:53] He says, Imagine you were there, one of the eleven disciples that day on the mountain in Galilee.

[33:15] How would you be feeling? Having been given this momentous directive to proclaim Christ to all nations. Wouldn't you have felt small, weak, perhaps insignificant?

[33:31] Who am I to do this work? Eleven people. It reminds me of those great leaders in the past who have felt the weight of responsibility.

[33:43] Moses, as he was told to lead the Israelites out of Egypt, comes to mind. Joshua, carrying on that mantle from Moses, leading his people into the promised land.

[33:56] Joshua, the boy king, who had to lead a nation, was only eight years old. There are many more. However, here, as we leave the gospel of Matthew, we have a huge encouragement, brothers and sisters.

[34:15] Which would have meant so much to the disciples. And it still does for us today. Great comfort from the king is given to the apostles as they embark on this world evangelism project.

[34:35] Verse 20. Surely is one of the great promises of God's word. I am with you always. Not some of the time.

[34:46] Not just now or then. But always. Remember the Christmas story? She will give birth to a son.

[34:57] And they will call him Emmanuel. Which means God with us. Ryle writes.

[35:12] He is with us daily to pardon and forgive. With us daily to sanctify, make us holy. And strengthen. With us daily to defend and keep.

[35:26] With us daily to lead and to guide. With us in sorrow and with us in joy. With us in sickness. And with us in health.

[35:38] With us in life. And with us in death. With us in time. And with us in eternity. How long will he be with them?

[35:55] And by extension us. As his disciples. Well it says in verse 20. Till the consummation. The completion. The end of the world.

[36:07] When a new age will begin. What comfort. What comfort. He assures to his people. Although.

[36:19] He is about. To leave this world. He is still going to be with those 11 men. The Holy Spirit will come.

[36:30] And be that great comforter. For his disciples. Now he is with us. He is with you.

[36:41] At home. Looking after. Your children. With you. If you are struggling. To find a job. With you. As you make your commute. To work.

[36:52] From work. With you. If you are a minister. Of a church. With you. If you are struggling. At work. With you. If you make.

[37:04] Big decisions. With us. As we look. For labourers. In the harvest field. The king's comfort.

[37:15] Is such. A great reassurance. As we leave. The gospel. Of Matthew. Surely. I am always. With you.

[37:28] Let's pray. Heavenly Father. Heavenly Father. We thank you. For what we've learnt.

[37:38] This evening. From your scriptures. We praise you. Triune God. That. You have. Not left us. Without hope. That the Lord.

[37:49] Jesus Christ. Is now. King. Of the cosmos. And he reigns. Supreme. We thank you. That he has given. His Holy Spirit.

[38:00] As comforter. Father. We thank you. For the great commission. And we pray. That we would put it into practice. As individuals.

[38:11] And. People. To make disciples. Of all nations. Baptising them. In the name. Of the Father. Son. And Holy Spirit. And teaching them.

[38:22] Your truths. And Lord. We thank you. For that comfort. That you are with us. Tonight. And for always. Till the end of time.

[38:36] In Jesus name. Amen. Well let's sing. Our last song. From the sun's rising. And to the sun's setting.

[39:04] Jesus our Lord. Shall be great in the earth. And all earth's kingdom. Shall be his dominion.

[39:14] All of creation. Shall sing. Of his word. Let every heart.

[39:27] Every voice. Every tongue. Join with spirit. Written. All of his people. Rejoice. Let all his people. Let all his people.

[39:38] We will circle the world. With a song. Of his praise. Oh let all his people. Rejoice.

[39:50] And let all the earth. Rejoice. To every tongue.

[40:05] Drive. Drive. And nation. He sends us. To make disciples. To teach. And baptize. For all authority.

[40:16] To ring this given. Now as his witnesses. We. Shall arise. Let every heart.

[40:31] Every voice. Every tongue. Join with spirit. And breath. A place. One in his love.

[40:41] We will circle the world. With a song. Of his praise. Oh let all his people.

[40:52] Rejoice. And let all the earth. Hear his voice. Come let us join.

[41:10] With a church. From all nations. Cross every border. Flow wide. Every door. Workers with him.

[41:20] As he gathers his harvest. Till earth's far corners. Our Savior. Our God. Let every heart.

[41:35] Every voice. Every tongue. Join with spirit. And let all his people. Rejoice. And let all his people. Rejoice.

[41:45] And let all the earth. We will circle the world. With a song. Of his praise. Let all his people.

[42:00] And let all the earth. He will rejoice. Let all his people. Rejoice. And let all the earth.

[42:11] Let all his people. To be continued...