“Jesus came and told his disciples, ‘I have been given all authority in heaven and on earth. Therefore, go and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit.’” Matthew 28:18-19 NLT
Do you own a ‘red-letter edition’ of the Bible? I have had several over the years. The red letters, of course, are the words spoken by Jesus. It is an excellent edition especially for a new Christian and those seeking to know more about the sayings of Christ, for Jesus’ words are easy to find. A bit of caution though to be aware of when reading a red-letter edition. There is a tendency to put more emphasis on Jesus’ words as being more important than the rest of Scripture. They are not. All Scripture is God’s Holy Word and equally important. What Jesus had to say is very important and should be lived out by every Christian. There is no greater example of living a godly lifestyle than the Lord Jesus. We should heed the words He spoke, all His words, and live accordingly.
Throughout the four gospels Jesus tells us in His teaching why He came to earth. He came to redeem us and restore our broken relationship with God the Father due to our sin. Jesus proved He was God the Son by the miracles He perform, and His love and compassion He had for all. He lived a perfect sinless life and was the only one worthy to offer Himself as a sacrifice for our sins. Jesus taught His followers, including us, how we should live and care for others. Christians today are to be the hands and feet of Jesus in all He taught us by His words, His example, and His parting words which are His instructions for us to follow while He is away.
Sadly, I’m afraid there are many Christians and churches who are weighing the importance of Jesus’ words against the rest of Scripture even within the red letters themselves. For example, Jesus taught us how to treat others, how to care for poor and the sick, how to look out for widows and orphans, and visit those in prison, along with loving the Lord our God with all our heart and loving our neighbor as ourselves. Jesus taught us many other things in Scripture, but those mentioned above seem to have priority over everything else Jesus said including, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one can come to the Father except through me.” (Jn.14:6 nblt) and His final instructions, His parting words as he ascended to heaven.
All of Jesus’ words have equal importance and it is not up to us to pick and choose, especially when we ignore the gospel message of salvation. Jesus told us to, ‘go and make disciples of all the nations.’ We are to preach the good news of saving grace and explain why Jesus came. He came to provide our greatest need, forgiveness of our sins and to save us from eternal separation from the Father.
And yes, taking care of social needs in Jesus’ name is also the work of Christians and the church. We should be quick to do this work and never neglect it. It only stands to reason if Jesus instructed us to care for the temporal needs of people on earth, He cares just as much for the more pressing need of saving their eternal souls. That is why Jesus gave us those parting words. Let’s do both!
Word for the Soul 