The King’s Commission

Pastor Mark Hogan teaches on Matthew 28:16-20, the Great Commission, as the concluding text of Matthew's Gospel. He contrasts this commission with the earlier restriction in Matthew 10, where Jesus sent the disciples only to Israel, and shows that the risen Christ now removes those limits because salvation has been accomplished. Hogan ties the command to "make disciples of all the nations" to the Abrahamic promise of worldwide blessing and to Daniel 7, where the Son of Man is given universal dominion. He emphasizes that the church's missionary activity flows from Christ's all-encompassing authority, and that the scope is as big as the world, fulfilling Isaiah's prophecy of a light to the Gentiles. The central task is not mere decisions but making committed disciples through preaching, baptism in the triune name, and teaching them to observe all that Christ commanded, not just a minimal set of rules. He applies this by urging believers to have a richer view of Christ's exalted power, to pursue comprehensive obedience, and to trust in the promise that Jesus, Emmanuel, is with his people always, even to the end of the age, a promise that fortifies the church through trials until Christ returns.