Saturday, May 5, 2018

The Great Commission I


The Great Commission I



What, exactly, does the Great Commission demand of us?

The Great Commission simply requires that we preach the Gospel and make disciples as we are about our daily tasks.  These requirements are accomplished through Baptism in the Triune Name and teaching obedience to all the commands of Christ.


“Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost: Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you always, even unto the end of the world.  Amen.”[i]

“And he said unto them, Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature.  He that believeth and is baptized shall be saved; but he that believeth not shall be damned.”[ii]

At the root of our puzzle is a pesky thing called a participle.  A participle is a verbal adjective.  We frequently form one in English just by adding –ing[iii] or –er[iv] or other ending to a verb.[v]  Jesus removes an “unclean spirit” from a Gadarene man who is afterward called “the demon possessing one.”  We make the participle into a noun, and call him “the demoniac.”[vi]  This is eventually changed to “the formerly demon possessing one,” “the former demoniac.”  Today this man is still commonly known as the Gadarene Demoniac, or in Matthew as the Gergesene Demoniacs.[vii]  The participle is too cumbersome in English, so we simply make the participle into a noun, and call him a Demoniac.  Let’s face it, participles just don’t get a fair chance in the English language, and we are certainly not accustomed to using them the way Greeks do.  But, to be fair, English is closer to the Greek custom than many other languages.[viii]

Here’s another example.  “Jesus speaking, said, ‘....’ ”  That’s an ugly expression in English.  Why didn’t Matthew just write, “Jesus said, ‘....’ ”  That would have been so much simpler and better.[ix]  But that Greek participle is loaded, and it indicates the background circumstance for the quotation.  In English, we might say something like this, “While Jesus was delivering the speech known as the Sermon on the Mount, one of the things He said was, ‘....’ ”[x]  The Greek participle tells us that there is a whole background activity going on, a discourse of which the quote is only a small but critical point, well worth singling out for our attention.[xi]  This is technically known as a participle of attendant circumstance, but it is as scarce as hen’s teeth in English.  We might even say that English hates participles of attendant circumstance and doesn’t handle them very well.  But in Greek, we might find several sentences in a row with one of these rascals in every one of them.  Eew!

We need two last examples.  Participles often show: a. instrument or means, and b. mode or manner.  The two ideas are closely related and we’re going to compare them.  “She brought them much gain by soothsaying” expresses instrument or means.  Soothsaying is the means by which the gain is made; it is an instrument that the girl uses, no matter that she doesn’t control it.[xii]  “John the Baptist appeared preaching expresses mode or manner.  Preaching is the manner in which John appeared.[xiii]  But we could argue, since the soothsaying controls the girl, that it’s a mode not a means.[xiv]  Similarly, we could maintain that preaching is the instrument by which John proclaims the Gospel, over which he has complete control: hence, it is a means not a mode.[xv]  We see how closely related these ideas are and that may become important later.

So far, we’ve looked at four examples.  The first example, the Gadarene Demoniac, only shows how participles act as adjectives and even nouns, but our two passages don’t have this use.[xvi]  Our other examples show how participles act as verbs; all are found in our text(s), and are very important to our understanding.[xvii]  These two ideas, adjectives and verbs, are not marked distinctions in any participle, but are shades of coloring or flavor.  Somewhere, every participle has one hand on an adjective concept and the other hand on a verb concept: but one or the other is usually dominant.[xviii]

About the tense of Greek participles.  The tense of Greek verbs is more absolute in nature.  In general, present means going on now in the context of the story, past means past, and future means future.  But the tense of Greek participles is relative to the tense of the main verb.  A present participle could mean going on at the same time as the main verb.  A past participle could mean going on previously.[xix]  Or it could mean going on at the same time, but with a cause and effect, or other dependent relationship.[xx]

That’s enough to give any translator fits.  No wonder our key passages got so tangled up.  Both Matthew and Mark have the same participle of attendant circumstance, and the translator threw up his hands in despair and went with the word, go,[xxi] for both of them.  Going would have been technically better.  But that’s not even perfect, because the word used, doesn’t mean go, explicitly, but is very generic and can mean a wide variety of movement, even an almost random or accidental behavior.[xxii]  It is a participle, and not the main verb.  It is certainly not a command, “Go!”  It quite literally means, “As you are going about the course of life, there are some things I want you to do.”[xxiii]

If we mull this over a little bit, we can figure out what Matthew and Mark are driving at.  Where are the audiences located when they hear these messages?  That’s right, they’re in church on the Lord’s Day listening to a sermon, homily or whatever you want to call it.  They are going to and from church.  According to Acts, the first believers were always in the temple, in common rooms, or in houses together.[xxiv]  And they were always going, to and from church, to and from residence, always about the Lord’s business.

Now that we’ve firmly established that going is a participle and in no way a main verb, we are free to search for the main verbs; and we can establish what those things are, which Christ wants and commands us to do.[xxv]

The main verbs are, make disciples[xxvi] in Matthew, and preach in Mark.[xxvii]  These are the two things we must not neglect to do.

Let’s take Mark first.  Our passage quite literally teaches that we must:

“As you are going about in the whole world, preach the good news (or Gospel) to all creation.”

While you are coming and going to and from church, to and from your houses, announce the Gospel loud and clear to everyone around you.  Think about it, for the people of God are never in clearer obedience to Mark’s command than on Pascha (Easter) morning, when streaming from their churches, they joyously begin to cry out with loud voices, “Christ is risen!  Indeed He has risen!”  The folks in the corner convenience store hear us when we pick up our Sunday paper.  And the following Sundays, it won’t hurt us to blurt out a hearty, “God bless you,” in the same corner convenience store, loud enough for everyone in the store to hear.  The same idea might also apply around the neighborhood and at work.  I’m not suggesting that we become brassy, rude, or showy, but much of the time, it won’t hurt others to overhear our kind and joyful words.  We are witnesses of the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, and its effect and power in our lives, and it just won’t hurt for us to show it once in a while.

Pretty soon, people will start coming to us with their prayer needs, sufferings, and troubles; and now, quietly, secretly we can help them, without embarrassing them.  Eventually, we hope that this will lead to their baptism, which is Mark’s next sentence.

Matthew develops the idea a little further:

“As you are going about, make disciples: baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost; teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you.  And, look, I am with you always, even unto the end of the world.  Amen.”

While you are coming and going, make disciples.  Christianity is about being and making followers of Jesus.  There is no easy believism.  This is not about earning salvation by works.  Salvation cannot be earned by works.  The only work that is acceptable to God is the birth, life, death, and resurrection of Christ, His beloved Son.  This is about the meaning of faith.  If you believe in Jesus, you will follow Him on the hard and narrow way.  You will face suffering and tribulation.  If you’re not following Jesus, you’ve just proved that you don’t really believe in Him.  Jesus leads, we follow.  Learning the disciplines of regular Church attendance, Bible reading and study, prayer, as well as all the other things that Scripture requires of Christians involves a lifetime of growth in Christ.  It’s hard work, but it’s not works salvation.  It is a life of things that God does in, through, and with us.  Discipleship is not optional.

The sentence wraps up the idea of discipleship with two participles of instrument or means: baptism and teaching.[xxviii]  We are to baptize people in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost.  In this baptism we are joined to Christ, and being made truly part of Him, we cannot avoid following Him.  A baptism that doesn’t result in discipleship is like a head that moves without its body.  It is simply impossible.  We baptize in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost because God is One God, and He exists in three persons, a Trinity.

We not only baptize, but we also teach.  The specific thing that we teach is obedience to all of Christ’s commandments.  A great deal of this teaching takes place through our example.  In this, we need not doubt or fear, because Jesus Himself is with us all the way, forever.

The Great Commission simply requires that we preach the Gospel and make disciples as we are about our daily tasks.  These requirements are accomplished through Baptism in the Triune Name and teaching obedience to all the commands of Christ.


[i] Matthew 28:19-20 King James Version

[ii] Mark 16:15-16 King James Version

[iii] In English a verbal noun ending in –ing is a gerund; while a verbal adjective ending in –ing is a gerundive.  The gerundial suffix is –ing in the English language.  These definitions and distinctions do not hold for every language and are not useful to us here.  We will classify all Greek infinitives as verbal nouns, and all Greek participles as verbal adjectives, without further grammatical technical distinction, following the practice of Dana and Mantey, A Manual Grammar of the Greek New Testament (MacMillan, Toronto, 1927 [1957]) p. 220ff.  Hereafter simply Dana and Mantey.  Our focus is on making the function and use of the words easy, fun, and memorable for people who may not be grammar experts.

[iv] Following the article (and sometimes without it), when a noun is not present, a participle may take on nominal force: the one who is doing becomes the doer, which is really a noun, not an adjective.

[v] The present participle: –ing, past participle: –en, –ed, or irregular, please consult a standard grammar for additional information (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Participle).

[vi] Mark 5:1-19: the present participles, δαιμονιζόμενον (accusative) and δαιμονιζομένῳ (dative), are found in verses 15 and 16, but not in 18, which has the simple past participle, δαιμονισθεὶς (nominative).  Luke 8:26-39 only uses the past tense expression in verse 36.  See also Matthew 4:24; 8:16, 28 (the demon possessing two), 33 (ones); 9:32; 12:22; Mark 1:32; and John 10:21 (where the negated term relates to Jesus).

[vii] These parallel incidents in Matthew, Mark, and Luke are not necessarily the same.  The obvious differences in Matthew may indicate a separate occasion.  Jesus healed many demoniacs, on several widely different occasions.  He also duplicated miracles as in the separate feedings of four and five thousand.  He may have cast demons into swine at two separate times.

[viii] Dana and Mantey, p. 220, quoting Robertson, A Short Grammar..., p193.  I think that this is mostly teachers stroking students to ward off discouragement.  Greek grammar is a hard subject, and participles are a confusing topic, which is why we are trying so hard to joke around with it and make it easy and fun.

[ix] Many authorities view this as pleonastic, the use of redundant, superfluous, unnecessary words; or the repetition of the same sense in different words (http://www.thefreedictionary .com/pleonastic).  But we think that this overlooks a greater possibility; namely, that Jesus may be engaged in an extended discourse.  This may not always be the case, but it is certainly a possibility to consider.  The economy and efficiency of the Greek language in compressing this into a single word escapes us in English.

[x] Matthew 5:2 does not actually have this construction, but it might have.  Instead, it uses a participle to show mode, this is not especially germane to our present point, but it will become important in the next paragraph.

[xi] Luke 5:4 is impossible to construe in any other way than attendant circumstance.  After Jesus finishes His discourse, he speaks to Peter aside.  Other examples are far less obvious, especially after the translator has tried his best to make smooth, sensible English out of them: we may not even realize that we are dealing with a participle at all.

[xii] Dana and Mantey, p. 228, using Acts 16:16 as an example of instrumentality.

[xiii] Dana and Mantey, p. 228, using Matthew 3:1 as an example of modality.

[xiv] She’s in the mode of demonic possession and has little control of her actions.  Soothsaying is not like a hammer or other tool in her hand, over which she has control.

[xv] But the sentence does not say this; it would need to be altered to say that John proclaimed by preaching.  It is the main verb “appeared” that makes a participle of means impossible.  Moreover, we must understand that prophetic utterance is the gift of the Holy Spirit; so, no matter how much control John may have over his vocal chords, he is still an instrument in the hands of God, he does not proclaim a merely human message, it is sacramental.

[xvi] Some grammars call this adjectival use the Substantive Use, meaning noun like.

[xvii] This is frequently termed the adverbial use, meaning verb like, but the structure is anything but adverbial.

[xviii] I’m not absolutely sure about this, but I’d be hard pressed to find an exception.  If you know of one, I’d like to hear about it.

[xix] The formerly demon possessing one, for example.

[xx] Dana and Mantey, p. 229-230, this is way too difficult to discuss further.

[xxi] In modern American jargon we might say, “Go fish.”  Here, “fish” is the clearly intended imperative verb in the children’s card game of the same name.  The word “go” is nearly redundant and certainly not the focus of our attention; its whole force lies in “go away,” and we don’t care where in particular.  In the game, it simply means that the fished-for card is not there, and must be somewhere else.

[xxii] In both Matthew 28:19 and Mark 16:15 πορευθέντες is the simple past participle of πορεύομαι, which means “to go ... from one place to another ... travel ... or proceed in any way or course of life....” (The Analytical Greek Lexicon (Zondervan, Grand Rapids, 1973) for a more detailed explanation, consult any standard Greek lexicon.  Go is most certainly not a mandate for forming expansive missionary teams or organizing extensive evangelism campaigns.  In the New Testament only a handful of people are called to go in this sense.  The vast majority of Christians are called to a supportive role.  What God wants them to do is go next-door.  Many wonderful young folks have wasted years of their lives trying to obey a command that does not exist.  Go home, to your own father and mother, to your own people, and live your life in Christ among them, and you will be in better obedience to this commission.  The Gadarene Demoniac (Mark 5:1-19), the Woman at the Well (John 4:1-42), and Dorcas or Tabitha (Acts 9:36-42) are all excellent examples of normative life in Christ, and demonstrations of how souls are won.

[xxiii] Having gone expresses the idea, but puts too much emphasis on tense.  The context makes it clear that this is something yet to take place.

[xxiv] The disciples are found together (Acts 2:44), in the Temple, and house-to-house (2:46).  They are at the Beautiful Gate (3:1, 12), in jail (4:3), before Temple counsel (4:7), their own company (4:23).  They at Solomon’s Porch (5:12), in jail again (5:18), in the Temple again (5:21), before counsel again (5:27), in the Temple and every house (5:42).  Stephen is before counsel (6:8).  The disciples are scattered throughout Judaea and Samaria because of persecution (8:1).  Philip is in Samaria (8:5).  Peter and John are in Samaria (8:14-15), Philip is in Gaza (8:26), then at Azotus and Caesarea (8:40).  Saul is at Damascus (9:2).  Only a few of these involve journeys.  Saul is not even a Christian yet.  The others did not go anyplace special, they just went about their daily business, and carried out the Great Commission as they went.  Only a few are doing extraordinary works of evangelism.

[xxv] Any person that proclaims the word “go” as a Biblical imperative is either ignorant of the facts, or is deliberately and sinfully twisting the Scripture.  This is shameful.  In either case the people of God end up being mislead, and in the dark about what Christ expects them to do.  It is this corrupt practice we are trying to end.

[xxvi] In Matthew 28:19 μαθητεύσατε is the second person plural, simple past, imperative active of μαθητεύω which means to learn by practice, experience, or habit; hence, in this context to make disciples.  This is the ordinary Greek word for student.

[xxvii] In Mark 16:15 κηρύξατε is is the second person plural, simple past, imperative active of κηρύσσω which means to herald or proclaim; to announce openly and publically; which, considering the general public hubbub and noise, necessarily means speaking in a clear, loud, strong voice.

[xxviii] God, especially the Holy Spirit uses us as instruments in His hands, He employs the means of baptizing and teaching.  Because we are instruments in His hands, and can do nothing without His powerful help and authority, I believe that we are more in the teaching and baptizing mode or manner.  In any case, this is miraculous, we are not the ones that make baptism and teaching effectual, but we certainly do participate.

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