Day 8 -  The Great Commission

Welcome to the last day. Yesterday your family learned about 2 promises Jesus made to his disciples before returning to heaven. On our final day today we will learn about Jesus’ promise of sending the Holy Spirit, who helps us in fulfilling the Great Commission. Lastly we will learn about what the Bible says about the unique opportunity singleness provides a Christian in bringing glory to God. Very exciting! :)

The Promised Holy Spirit

Before ascending to Heaven, Jesus promised his disciples that he would send the Holy Spirit to live inside of them, and to help them in many ways. The Bible describes God as consisting of 3 distinct persons, the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. All 3 existed before creation, all 3 were present at key moments of Jesus life, and all 3 will coexist for eternity. Don't feel bad if you find it difficult to understand or explain God as 3 persons and one nature. Christians have grappled with explaining the Trinity for millennia. At the very least we can teach our children that the Father, Son and Holy Spirit love each other and are connected to each other, and together they are God, and so to communicate with one is to communicate with them all.

The Great Commission

Is it not a wonderful thing to be born again and to know we are connected to Jesus forever? Don't you want to share what God has given you with others so that they too might be born again? Before Jesus returned to his father he told his followers to go into the entire world and share the Gospel with all people. This task is called “The Great Commission”. It takes love, courage and power to accomplish the Great Commission, and the Holy Spirit provides all these for us. Use the “heart sticky notes” to plan together how you can serve your neighbours with the goal of sharing the gospel with them, and enjoy the blessings that come from stepping out in faith together.

Christ's Return

Part of sharing the Gospel involves telling people that Jesus will return soon. The Bible describes the return of Jesus as an incredible event to witness. Trumpets will sound, the clouds will part, and Jesus will come riding out of the sky on a white horse. All Christians, dead and alive, will rise to meet Him in the air, and we will be instantly changed into glorified beings. This will be a very exciting day for all us who know and treasure Jesus as their saviour, but it will be a terrifying day for all those who don't, as Jesus is also returning, in all his glory, to set things right, and that means finally judging and destroying all evil. When we share the gospel it’s important that we warn people not to delay in receiving Jesus as their Lord and Savior. Though it’s been over 2000 years since Jesus promised he would return, the Bible says that the reason he is delaying so long is because he is patiently waiting for as many people as possible to become born again, but he will not delay forever, and we need to be ready for him to return at any time.

The Gift of Singleness

We’ve learned a lot about the beauty of God’s design for marriage and sexuality in this devotional, and the last topic to discuss as it relates to the gospel is singleness. As you know, many people in the world believe that the ultimate reason for sex and marriage is for our happiness and pleasure, and that the number one priority in life should be to pursue a sexual relationship. No doubt your children will encounter this ideology at some point. So what does the Bible say about the value of singleness?

The Apostle Paul, who wrote Ephesians 5 about the profound mystery of marriage also wrote in 1 Corinthians 7 that he wished that everyone would be single like he was, because a single person isn't distracted with the duties of marriage and family but rather can use all their time and energy to fulfill the Great Commission. Because Paul knew that marriage was only a temporary earthly picture and that he already possessed the closest of all relationships, a relationship with Jesus, he chose to devote his earthly life to making as many disciples as possible, rather than on being married. Paul says, however, that if a person has a very strong sexual desire, they should seek marriage as the proper outlet. 

So holding the Bible’s teaching about marriage in balance, when our children inquire about whether they should consider marriage, I believe the Bible’s greatest encouragement to them would be to devote their life to the Great Commission first, and then pursue marriage second, if they feel led by God to do so. If they do choose to marry, I would suggest they prayerfully seek a spouse that wants to share in fulfilling the Great Commission and bringing glory to God as a family.

God bless you and your family as you learn more about him on this final day.