As I sit
at my desk today and begin to pray about what God might want me to write in
this update, I have a deep sense that God wants me to speak to your heart about
something that is deeply on God’s Heart and that is the subject of what we have
come to call “The Great Commission.”
Some of
you are thinking, Oh I know all about that. I have heard about the great
commission ever since I was a child. Even though you may have heard the words,
“The Great Commission,” hundreds of times already, I want you to listen and let
me explain this “Great Commission” in a way that most of you have never heard
because most of us grew up hearing the “Great Commission” as a slogan, a
mobilization word that had something to do with “missions.”
“The
Great Commission is much more than a slogan or a mobilization word. In fact, I
would say that the Great Commission is the foundational marching orders given
by Jesus Christ to every follower of Jesus Christ, not just a select few, but
Jesus was sharing His vision for every born-again believer and putting
responsibility on each of us. The most detailed description of the Great
Commission is recorded in Matthew 28:16-20.”
Let us
read this passage and then I will briefly try to unpack this passage for you so
that first you understand clearly what our Lord Jesus was saying to His
disciples in that day… and saying to His disciples (you and me and every person
who has ever put their trust and faith in the work of Jesus on the cross)
today.
“16 But
the eleven disciples proceeded to Galilee, to the mountain which Jesus had
designated to them. 17 And when they saw Him, they worshiped Him; but some were
doubtful. 18 And Jesus came up and spoke to them, saying, “All authority in
heaven and on earth has been given to Me. 19 Go, therefore, and make disciples
of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and
the Holy Spirit, 20 teaching them to follow all that I commanded you; and
behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.”” Matthew 28:16-20 (NASB
1995)
This is not a
complicated passage to understand but because it was originally spoken and then
written down in Greek, it is very helpful for us to look at a couple of the
Greek words that when translated into English just do not paint all the details
of the picture. So, please bear with me as I begin to unpack the meaning of
this Great Commission as the hearers of that time would have understood
immediately.
When we
read this passage in English most good translations of the Bible it sounds like
there are several “commands” that are a part of the Great Commission. It sounds
like the word “Go” is a command. It sounds like the word “make disciples” is a
command. It sounds like the word “baptizing” is a command. It also sounds like
“teaching” is also a command. So, at the surface level of an English reading of
the great commission, it sounds like there are 4 commands: 1) to Go, 2) to make
disciples, 3) to baptize the new believers, and 4) to teach them.
Did you
know that there are not 4 commands in the original Greek manuscript but only 1
command and the 3 others words are not commands or imperatives at all, but they
are all participles in the Greek that help explain the meaning of what should
be happening if the main command is taking place. Well, you are probably
wondering by now what is the main command? And that is a great question. The
only Greek imperative in the Great Commission is “to make disciples.” Many of
you thought it was “to go” to the nations no, but even that word “nations”
needs to be unpacked for you as well because of the Greek word, but the main
command of the Great Commission is not “go and plant churches” as much as
people might want to be able to say that, those are not the marching orders of
Jesus.
The
marching orders of Jesus are “to make disciples” but not just anywhere but
Jesus even identified the target we are to engage. Let me translate it into and
expanded English version that better communicates what The Great Commission is
really all about. I would translate as an expanded translation of verse 19 and
20 this way, “As you are going about your life, be intentional about making
sure that you are “making disciples” of mine and make sure that you target and
focus on making disciples out of every “ethnic people group” in the world, not
just the geopolitical nations alone but going deeper into the very ethic groups
that make up every nation. [I’ll unpack this Greek word translated “nation” in
just a moment] The thing that I want you understand is that Jesus identified
where we are to go and make disciples. The Great Commission explains we are to
go to every “ethne” which is ever ethnic/people group in our world, “baptizing
them in the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit,” and “teaching” them to obey
me. [We’ll unpack the object of teaching in just a moment.]
Summarizing
the Great Commission Here are the key points.
1)
There is only one command and that command is “to make disciples of Jesus”
2)
The focus is targeting and engaging every “ethnic/language people group” in the
world not just going to a geo-polical “nation” like “Thailand” that is actually
made up of almost 100 different “ethnic” or “language/people groups.” The church that started in our
home over 25 years ago in Chiangrai, Thailand is today made up of over 23
different “ethnic/language groups” and many of these people were won to Christ
through the ministry of NTIM and many of them became the first person in their
entire family ancestry to become followers of Jesus. These are the “ethne”
people Jesus was talking about in the great commission.
3) Not only
are we to be going specifically to these least reached people groups in our
world, we are to begin discipling them by a) baptizing them and b) teaching
them. At this
point here, we simply want to focus on what is means by baptizing them and then
under the next point, we will point out that discipleship also involves
teaching. When Jesus used the word “baptizing them,” I believe He was
envisioning both the physical act of water baptism as well as the spiritual
idea of incorporating these new followers of Jesus into a local body of
believers we call “the church family.” So, yes the Great Commission involves
church planting per se but the focus in not on church planting but making
disciples from every “ethne” (every ethnic language/people group. I would add
especially to the least reached people groups in our world today many of which
are located in the heart of the 10-40 Window as Thailand is located.
4) A
Fourth aspect of the Great Commission that we want to point out involves
teaching obedience.
But notice the object of the teaching. In other words, the goal is not to teach
doctrine or subjects per se even though we do need some of that, but according
to Jesus the object of our teaching is to learn to obey Jesus. Or we could say
it this way, the Great Commission is about reaching some of the least reached
people in some of the least reaching ethnic and unreached people groups and we
are to be teaching these people obedience. Here is where I want God to open
your eyes and see the world through the lens of what we call “pioneer
missionaries” who have followed God’s call to go to the ends of the earth to
reach some of these deeply unreached people groups that still have very little
access to the Gospel and in these place like where I live, we are on the front
lines of setting up platforms that give us legitimate access to the people like
Grace Language School and we are about putting together discipleship materials
that don’t just teach the subjects in the Bible but actually teach obedience
through teaching the habits that need to be put in place that lead a person
down the path of becoming an obedient follower of Jesus Christ. Which means we
teach them how to have discipline to have a daily devotional time with our
heavenly Father. We teach them how to “rejoice always, pray without ceasing,
and in everything give thanks.” We teach them the importance of memorizing key
verses from the Bible that will help them to begin transforming their thoughts
and putting God’s thoughts in their place.
As I began
writing this newsletter yesterday on Friday afternoon on June 19, I began
thinking about the small discipleship group that I just met with Friday
morning. This group is made of me and two Chinese Professors from one of the
largest and most prestigious universities in Thailand. I can’t give any more
details without jeopardizing their safely because they are ethnic Chinese but
we have met together now for 9 weeks. I am taking them though the same type of
discipleship program that I went through over 40 years ago that was written by
the Navigator’s and written to be used to teach obedience type discipleship.
The Course is called Navigator’s 2:7. Here is a link to a short clip explaining
the value of this Nav 2:7 course. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Nt2UheYv02o
Please
pray for God’s work here in Thailand because God has given special favor to us
and we have seen hundreds of young Thai people come to know Jesus as their
personal Savior and from dozens of different unreached people groups who are
some of the least reached people groups in our world today. The starting point
for most of these has been teaching English through “Grace Language School.”
Last
year, God began to put it on my heart to incorporate this awesome Navigator’s
2:7 course and take the lead to insure that these 3 books that teach the habits
that lead to obedience to be translated into Central Thai so that we can play a
part in seeing Thai Christians all over Thailand become discipled in a way
where they walk with Jesus everyday and exude a fragrant aroma of Christ
through all of their relationships so that God might be pleased to draw more
Thai people into the family of God. We have been working with our Baptist
printing agency in Thailand and have completed book 1 and it is now hot off the
press. We are about halfway through translating book 2 and then we will
complete the process of book 3 after that.
Would
you pray and consider making a donation to NTIM to help us provide the
resources needed to put this awesome curriculum into the Central Thai language
so that God’s church in Thailand will begin walking a little more closely with
our Lord Jesus, living out the Great Commission in the heart of lostness and in
a country where only 1 person out of 100 people know Jesus as their personal
Savior. This is what the Great Commission is all about.
Many
people ask us, how can we help? There are 3 ways you can help.
The
first way you can help Advance The Great Commission is to PRAY.
James 5:16 says this, “The
effective prayer of a righteous person accomplishes much.” Pray for Northern Thailand Impact Ministry (NTIM) Foundation
that is our USA 501c sending and supporting arm of all that we do in
Thailand. There are 8 different things that we do at NTIM and we need your
prayers because the work of the Great Commission is not a battle against flesh
and blood as we are reminded in Ephesians 6:12. (www.gontim.org)
The
second way you can help Advance The Great Commission is to GIVE.
Giving directly to missions like
NTIM, supports the urgent and important Great Commission and the spreading of
the gospel through making disciples of some of the least reached people in our
world today.
Let me
challenge you to consider making it a habit to give as a regular monthly
supporter to Michael & Hope Johnson through NTIM. If you want to give to Michael
& Hope or any of our 5 Thai Staff living in Chiangrai, which is where we
live, you can click the “general” donation button on our website. Thank you for
giving through NTIM at www.gontim.org or sending checks to NTIM’s
address in Birmingham which is recorded for you at the end of this update. God
is doing some amazing things but our ministry platform and missionaries have
regular monthly expenses that your donations will help them stay on the field
and complete the work of the Great Commission and to help them be the salt and
light for Jesus in a very dark world.
As I
mentioned earlier, we are in the process of coordinating the translation of
these Navigator’s 2:7 discipleship books being translated from English into
Central Thai and believe God wants us to completely fund this strategic and
critical project and we would ask for you to consider giving to NTIM to assist
in this important project. We estimate that with “licensing fees, graphic fees,
printing fees, etc” that the final cost of this project will be somewhere
between $5,000 to $10,000 dollars but will be one of the greatest investments
we can make in helping Thai people be grounded and prepared to not only to walk
with God daily, but in helping them be well equipped to share their faith with
their family, their friends, and the people they rub shoulders with every
single day. This Nav 2:7 curriculum is the best. If you would like to give
toward this project, you can send a check to NTIM or donate online but make
sure you check the designation for “General” so that your donation goes into
the funds that are designated to go to the team in Chiang Rai where I
personally manage these resources.
The
third way you can help Advance the Great Commission is to GO. Go on a short-term
mission trip or Go for 1 to 5 years or go for an undesignated time frame like
us.
Going on
a mission trip expands Christ's kingdom, fosters personal spiritual growth, and
allows you to serve others by meeting tangible needs, and gives you an
opportunity to support the work and strategy of the local missionary or
missionaries. Don’t go with your own agenda but instead understand what the
missionary or missionaries are trying to do and them help them do it together. These
trips help you encounter God’s heart for the nations, break out of your comfort
zones, and gain a more global perspective while supporting long-term missionaries
and ministries who have been there long before you got there and will be there
long after you return home. But by going, it will enlarge your heart and allow
God help you understand better that getting the gospel into places where
millions have still never heart about Jesus. It will also allow you to build
some connections with both the missionaries and the local people who live
there.
NTIM has
been blessed tremendously over the years by volunteer mission teams who have
come out and helped us reach out to the Thai people we love so dearly. We have
one very special partner in the great state of Mississippi that has come out 18
times on mission trips, sometimes she brings her own family, sometimes she
brings a team, but she always brings the love of Jesus in her heart for the
Thai people. Everyone on my team knows this woman personally and loves her
deeply. As a matter of fact, she has a weekly video chat/Bible study with one
of my Thai Staff – yes, using English to speak truth into this Thai partner of
ours. Volunteers and volunteer teams that come and work with NTIM are
automatically able to serve as they have been wired because we use “teaching
English” as a strategic way to begin the process that leads to many taking
their first step in opening their heart which has this empty hole in it that
can only be filled with a relationship with Jesus Christ. Coming on that
“mission trip” makes your life available to be used in a very special way to
“touch” a heart and help that heart take one more step closer to becoming the
first person in their entire family to become a follower of our Lord Jesus
Christ. If you or your church are interested in really learning how to “join
God” in what He is already doing in some of the least reached people groups in
our world today, then write me personally today at pray4ntim@gmail.com and begin that process of the 3rd
way you can help us “reach the nations” or as Jesus put it reach the “Panta Ta
Ethne” living in and around Northern Thailand and that way is by GOING.
If you
love Jesus and are walking with Jesus, and want to explore the possibility of
helping get your church to come and join us on an adventure of your life on
mission to Northern Thailand, don’t hesitate to write me at my email address. I
am waiting to hear from you at pray4ntim@gmail.com
These
are the three ways you can help us at NTIM make a strategic impact of expanding
the kingdom of God in and around Norther Thailand. #1 - The first way you
can help is to PRAY. #2 - The second way you can help is to GIVE. And the third way you can help is to GO
As I
shared in my last newsletter update, it gives me great joy when I see a Thai
person open up their mind and give their heart to Jesus. God has given me a
special opportunity to have seen hundreds of Thai people give their hearts to
Jesus and many of them become the first person in their entire family to be a
follower of Christ. Our church here that started in our home 25 years ago is
filled with genuine 1st generation followers of Jesus Christ like we
see in the Early Church recorded for us in the book of Acts. Think about this.
Thailand is the most thoroughly Buddhist country in the world today with around
100 different unreached people/language groups and 99 out of every 100 people
are lost without a personal relationship with our great Savior Jesus and you
can join God today in helping us take the gospel to all of these “Panta Ta
Ethne” that live in the heart of the work of NTIM.
May God
bless you. At the bottom of this newsletter is a prayer guide of what we at
NTIM do and how you can better pray for us as we live out the Great Commission
of our Lord Jesus and call on people like you to partner with us for the
sake of the Gospel.
May God
bless each of you for your prayers and for your gifts given in
the name of our great Savior Jesus Christ and for going to Thailand on a
mission trip with NTIM.
Until
all the people living in and around Northern Thailand have a chance to become
followers of the One True God and His Son, Jesus Christ.
Michael
for the team…
“Look among
the nations! Observe! Be astonished! Wonder! Because I am doing something in
your days— You would not believe if you were told.” Habakkuk 1:5
-----------------------------------------------------------
Financial
support can be given through NTIM....
Northern
Thailand Impact Ministry (NTIM), P.O. Box 26115, Birmingham, AL 35260 USA Main
Website: www.gontim.org
NTIM is
a non-profit 501(c)(3) charitable organization based in the USA. We are
committed to connecting people in need with people who care and are focused in
the heart of Southeast Asia where poverty is high, education is low, needs are
great, unreached people groups (UPGs) are all around us, and the love and
message of Jesus is needed to transform lives.
