Matthew 28:16-20 (NRSV)
Read Matthew 28:16-20 on biblegateway.com
Verse 16Now the eleven disciples went to Galilee, to the mountain to which Jesus had directed them. Verse 17When they saw him, they worshiped him; but some doubted. Verse 18And Jesus came and said to them, "All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Verse 19Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, Verse 20and teaching them to obey everything that I have commanded you. And remember, I am with you always, to the end of the age."
Devotion
Last week our confirmation students stood before the congregation. I've been walking with them pretty closely for the last few years ... telling them the stories of the scriptures, helping them make sense of their experiences, modeling to them what this faith stuff is all about. But the time had come to say to them, "Go!" The ministry that Jesus passed on to the disciples at the Great Commission, and passed on to me at my consecration, I passed on to these students as they were confirmed. These young people may stumble. Sometimes they will get it right, and sometimes they won't. Sometimes they will worship, and sometimes they will doubt. Sometimes the commission to go into the world to make disciples might seem like nothing more than a distant memory to them. And yet, through their baptism and because of the Spirit of Pentecost, the Holy Spirit will continue to work in and through them to be faithful to complete the good work started in them (Philippians 1:6). With confirmation students as with me and you, God is at work completing God's good work in us.
Prayer
Help us, Jesus, to stay faithful in the ministry you have given us, and to share that ministry with others. Amen.