You have spent these last few months telling the children about the life, death, resurrection, and ascension of Jesus Christ, and then about how the gospel of Jesus exploded into the world. Today's passage is a great conclusion for the year.

It's interesting that in all the gospels, part of the message to the disciples is that they go to Galilee where the risen Lord will meet them, but it seems that for the most part they stick around Jerusalem. I wonder whether Galilee represents something like home or going back to regular life. Jesus meets his disciples, and us, in our regular life, at our day job, in family life.

The disciples gather on a mountain in Galilee. Remember that Matthew is the gospel with the "Sermon on the Mount." Was this the same mountain, and would Jesus now complete the message he began there? Matthew is honest enough to report that the disciples "worshiped him; but some doubted." He may be referring to the story of Thomas told in John's gospel, but it's still startling to hear that some doubted. There's no condemnation of these doubting disciples, whoever they were. Disciples don't only believe, they also sometimes doubt.

Perhaps we lose the impact of Jesus' words here because we are so used to them. "All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me." What an amazing statement! This little band of disciples who would soon be scattered and persecuted, but who would also grow, worship the one who has "all authority." We, too, in our sometimes struggling churches, worship the one who has "all authority." He is the risen and soon to be ascended Lord who sits at the right hand of the Father.

"Therefore," because he has universal authority, because he has the key to unlock the kingdom of heaven, "go." The one who has all authority is sending his disciples, and us. We go into the world not as beggars, hopeful that someone might listen. Instead, we go as ambassadors on assignment from the one with all authority. He goes ahead of us, opening people's hearts.

Go and do what? "Make disciples of all nations." Our job is not to make church members (or even Christians) or plant churches (not that these things aren't important). What Jesus is after are disciples, followers who do what he tells them to do. The first thing is to baptize them, which the early church seemed to do almost immediately, and then to teach them "to obey everything I have commanded you." Again the focus is not on what these people believe, but what they do---everything the Lord commands.

Here's a simple game plan for the church: take orders from the one who has all authority, go to all nations (not just the people near and dear), and help people become genuine, obedient followers of Jesus.

Jesus closes his commission on the mount with words of comforting presence. "I am with you always, to the very end of the age." The one with all authority is with us, and will be until this present age passes away and the new age dawns when Jesus Christ will be openly and visibly the Lord of all.