A Closer Look at the Great Commission: Acts 1:8

A Closer Look at the Great Commission: Acts 1:8 

We come this week, to the last Great Commission verse. Besides Matthew, this is one of the most used verses about the Great Commission. This verse is also misused as well, so let’s dive in this week and look at Acts 1:8.

1. Ye shall receive power— Christ had promised the Holy Spirit would come to them and empower them after He was gone. This is the power they would have to get the gospel to a lost and dying world. As Christians, once we are saved, we received the Holy Spirit and we are filled with power from the Holy Spirit. With and through Him, we can get the gospel to a lost and dying world as we are commanded to do! Without the Holy Spirit’s leading, guidance and direction, we are unable to take the gospel on our own!
2. Ye shall be witnesses unto me— The disciples had witnessed all that had happened to Christ and were to be a witness to the world of those things. We are also witness of those things. Although not in-person witnesses like the disciples, we are witnesses in two ways. First, we are witnesses of how the gospel and Christ has changed our lives. Second, we are witnesses of the Word of God! We have the first-hand accounts in our hands and can take those and be witnesses to a lost and dying world! We are witnesses of Christ to a lost and dying world! But so often we hold our peace and do not witness nor testify of Christ to those around us. This should not be so! We are to be witnesses!
3. Both in— Many times people think this is a step by step way we are to get the gospel to the world. They think it first starts with your immediate area and expands from there. But Christ said “both in,” meaning this was to be happening all at the same time. So they were to be taking the gospel not to just Jerusalem first and then once it was won then move to the next place. No, they were to start in Jerusalem because that was where they were immediately but immediately they should begin taking the gospel to the other places! It is not a first then next process. It is a doing it all at the same time process. So every Christian and church should be doing their part to reach Jerusalem, Judea, Samaria, and the uttermost! What are you doing to get the gospel to the whole world?
4. Jerusalem— This would be the immediate area they were in. They were in Jerusalem waiting on the Holy Spirit and were tasked with reaching it with the gospel while they were there. As a church or a Christian, what is your Jerusalem? It is your immediate area of impact, whether your community or those you come in contact with. But you should be doing everything you can to get the gospel to your immediate area.
5. Judea— This would be the surrounding area. This would be like other cities, and states, They were to take the gospel to the surrounding areas around Jerusalem. What are you doing as a church or a Christian to get the gospel to your surrounding areas? You can do this by going or by sending? As Churches, we should be trying to plant more churches in our surrounding areas and also around the whole US. There is a need in many cities and areas for churches to be started! As Christians, we should want to see our immediate area, but also our surrounding areas reached with the gospel.
6. Samaria— Many times people equate this to like the US, but honestly in Bible days Samaria was a hated and despised area. These people were not liked by Jews and yet Christ purposefully told them to even go there! They were to take the gospel to the people who would be looked down upon in this time. For us, this is looking to those people who, we as Christians, look down upon and even as Americans or whatever country you are from look down upon. Many times, we see skin color or religions and say, well the gospel is not for them and I am not to be going to them. But that is not true. The gospel is for everyone! No matter religion or skin color! No matter how you feel about them or not! Racism is a big issue all over the world and there are people in your mind right now, you are thinking, I do not want to have take the gospel to them, but we are commanded to go to them!
7. Uttermost— This is the whole world! We are to be taking the gospel to everyone everywhere! But the sad truth is we have failed to do so! There are many neglected fields in the world today where Christians have rarely dared to go! This should not be we should be going every where! But guess what, just because there are a few missionaries in a country does not mean it is reached either! There is such a need for the gospel all around the world and every church and every Christian has a responsibility to get the gospel to the uttermost parts of the earth! What are you doing to get the gospel to the whole world? Will you give your life to go? Many times Christians let giving substitute for going, but we were not commanded to give, we were commanded to go! Let us go get the gospel to the uttermost parts of the world!

The Great Commission is a command we must obey! The past few weeks we have looked closely at each and every verse considering the Great Commission. If you are saved, it should motivate you to go because you are commanded to go! We should be willing to not just take the gospel where we are, but be willing to go to a lost and dying world to get the gospel to those who have never heard! It is a command not a suggestion. Why are you treating it like it is optional? It is not optional; it is mandatory! Let us fulfill the command of Christ and get the gospel to the world in this generation!