(Abridged from the original article found at Renew.org)
As an avid sports fan, I’m not one to object when pulled into a friendly debate discussing the merits of this or that player of this or that professional sport. While I enjoy this conversation, I often struggle to identify just one athlete in each sport who, by my best estimation, truly holds the distinction of being the greatest of all time. In the sporting world, engaging in this argument is just plain fun.
We human beings tend to enjoy arguments that center on a choice between two competing options. And in many situations, it is an appropriate way to handle things. It’s good to choose right over wrong, what is kind and loving over mean-spiritedness, justice over injustice. But it is helpful to note that a “this over that” approach is not the only way forward. There are times in which we must learn to choose “this and that.”
This is particularly true in the case of the Great Commands (love God and love your neighbor–Matthew 22:36-40) and the Great Commission (go make disciples of all nations–Matthew 28:18-20). To be a disciple of Jesus, is to love Him so deeply, you choose to become like Him. In following Jesus, we discover for ourselves—or better said, God reveals to us—real purpose, meaning, and value in life. If this is true, then to truly love others means that we will share this treasure with them as well. The Great Commands and the Great Commission should be deeply, spiritually, connected to each other.
The truth, however, is that many churches and many followers of Jesus seem to live as though they feel the need to choose one over the other. It is almost as if there exists a belief that these two GOAT’s somehow stand in competition with each other. You can either be a Great Commission Church, or you can be a Greatest Commands Church, but you can’t be both. I don’t buy that, and neither should you. After all, Jesus is the source of both the Greatest Commands and the Great Commission.
This Over That
I want to be careful not to be overly critical, numbers matter. Every number is a person and every person matters to God. At face value, I would go so far as to confidently say that counting numbers can be a good thing. But things tend to go off the rails quickly when numbers become the primary driver behind all we do.
It’s a familiar story. A church begins with a deep passion to reach the community in which they live, work, and play. They reach their neighbors in love. They are propelled forward and inspired to live out the Great Commission because they know and hold to the truth of the Greatest Commands. But something happens as time goes by. A church that once grew explosively, almost multiplicatively, begins to stagnate. The leaders meet and discuss solutions. It is at this point one of two mistakes is often made.
Church “A” decides to push aside that bit in the Great Commission about “teaching them to obey everything I have commanded.” It simply feels too legalistic and maybe even unloving to ask that of the people they come in contact with daily. Church “A”, as a result, chooses the Greatest Commands over the Great Commission. They have their G.O.A.T.
Church “B” decides to radically reembrace the mission of Jesus. They develop systems and maybe even a curriculum to ensure this happens. Christians who reach people with the gospel are celebrated and elevated while those who don’t become the subject of quiet whisperings. Sharing Jesus is just that important. Church “B” is okay with being mean if that’s what it takes. As a result Church “B” chooses the Great Commission over the Greatest Commands. They have their G.O.A.T.
This and That
Here’s the bottom line. The Church needs to radically embrace both the Great Commission and the Greatest commands. We cannot separate true love for God and love for others from the mission Jesus has given us–they only make sense when held together. When Jesus called people to follow Him, He wasn’t asking that they would simply walk with Him from town to town. He was asking them to follow His way and become just like Him (Luke 6:40). We most fully express our love for God by following and becoming like Jesus, which is also how God shows His love for us by drawing out His image in us (Romans 8:29).
As we become more like Jesus, loving others becomes a natural part of who we are. Wanting the best for others, meeting the needs of others, wanting them to experience the life-changing love of God for themselves–this is why we make disciples. It is why we teach others to obey everything Jesus commanded. When we have learned there is nothing better we share Jesus freely. We share what Jesus has shared with us freely. We love like He loved—and not just by meeting physical needs, but always looking for opportunities to meet the one true great need shared by all humanity. And we trust, long for, and celebrate the presence of Jesus among us as we live out His mission. Only the fusion of the Greatest Commands and the Great Commission will allow us to move forward in the great power of God, who is “able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to His power that is at work within us…” (Ephesians 3:20, N.I.V.). We stand in need of that power again. The world needs to see that power at work as well.
So, here’s the challenge: love God and love the people He created, teaching them to obey everything He’s commanded. As you do, God’s power, and God himself, will be with you always! This won’t be easy, but He is with us!
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Paul serves as the Lead Minister for Southside Christian Church in Ft. Pierce, FL. Paul and his wife, Lori, have been married since the Spring of 2001, and have three children: Andrew, Nate, and Hannah. Paul holds bachelor’s degrees in Bible and Psychology and a master’s degree in Professional Counseling. He enjoys spending time with family, reading, writing, and getting outdoors. His passion is to see the Church embrace both the message and the mission of Jesus. Paul is a Renew.org Leader and the author of the book The Way Back: Repentance, the Presence of God, and the Revival the Church So Desperately Needs.
