The Term “The Great Commission” Is Not a Biblical Term
The term “The Great Commission” is not a biblical term and is not found anywhere in the Bible. This term was popularized by a missionary named Jason Hudson Taylor, who was a 19th-century British Protestant Christian missionary to China. Today, the term “The Great Commission” is still used today by Christian preachers to promote missionary work throughout the world.
What Many Refer to as “The Great Commission?"
What many today refer to as “The Great Commission” is the command that Jesus Christ gave to his apostles to go into all the world and preach the gospel of the kingdom. The apostles were to preach the gospel of the kingdom in a specific order. The apostles were to preach the gospel of the kingdom first in Jerusalem, then in all Judea, then in Samaria and then throughout all the world.
What Is the Gospel of the Kingdom?
The gospel of the kingdom is the “good news” that God would provide an earthly kingdom for His chosen people, the Jews. This gospel is recorded in Luke 1:30-33.
Luke 1:30-33
30 And the angel said unto her, Fear not, Mary: for thou hast found favour with God.
31 And, behold, thou shalt conceive in thy womb, and bring forth a son, and shalt call his name Jesus.
32 He shall be great, and shall be called the Son of the Highest: and the Lord God shall give unto him the throne of his father David:
33 And he shall reign over the house of Jacob for ever; and of his kingdom there shall be no end.
God the Father Sent Jesus Christ to Preach the Gospel of the Kingdom
God the Father sent Jesus Christ to preach the gospel of the kingdom. In Luke 4:43 and John 20:21 Jesus Christ proclaims that He must preach the gospel of the kingdom and that God the Father sent Him to preach the gospel of the kingdom.
Luke 4:43 And he said unto them, I must preach the kingdom of God to other cities also: for therefore am I sent.
In John 20:21 Jesus Christ said to the apostles “Peace be unto you: as my Father hath sent me, even so send I you.”
The Bible records Jesus Christ preaching the gospel of the kingdom in Matthew 4:17, Matthew 9:35, and Mark 1:14-15.
Matthew 4:17 From that time Jesus began to preach, and to say, Repent: for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.
Matthew 9:35 And Jesus went about all the cities and villages, teaching in their synagogues, and preaching the gospel of the kingdom, and healing every sickness and every disease among the people.
Mark 1:14-15
14 Now after that John was put in prison, Jesus came into Galilee, preaching the gospel of the kingdom of God,
15 And saying, The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand: repent ye, and believe the gospel.
Jesus Christ Commissioned the Apostles to Preach the Gospel of the Kingdom
After His resurrection and before ascending to heaven, Jesus Christ instructed the apostles to preach the gospel of the kingdom.
We see reference to this commission in Matthew 28:18-20, Mark 16:15-16, Luke 24:46-47, John 20:21 and Acts 1:6-8.
Matthew 28:18-20
18 And Jesus came and spake unto them, saying, All power is given unto me in heaven and in earth.
19 Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost:
20 Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you always, even unto the end of the world. Amen.
Mark 16:15-16
15 And he said unto them, Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature.
16 He that believeth and is baptized shall be saved; but he that believeth not shall be damned.
Luke 24:46-47
46 And said unto them, Thus it is written, and thus it behooved Christ to suffer, and to rise from the dead the third day:
47 And that repentance and remission of sins should be preached in his name among all nations, beginning at Jerusalem.
John 20:21 Then said Jesus to them again, Peace be unto you: as my Father hath sent me, even so send I you.
Acts 1:6-8
6 When they therefore were come together, they asked of him, saying, Lord, wilt thou at this time restore again the kingdom to Israel?
7 And he said unto them, It is not for you to know the times or the seasons, which the Father hath put in his own power.
8 But ye shall receive power, after that the Holy Ghost is come upon you: and ye shall be witnesses unto me both in Jerusalem, and in all Judaea, and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth.
Jesus Christ Commissioned Paul to Preach the Gospel of the Grace of God
The gospel of the grace of God revealed a dispensational change which came about after Israel’s national rejection of Jesus Christ as their Messiah. God had now turned His focus to the Gentiles, and the gospel of the grace of God was revealed to Paul as the message for this new dispensation of the grace of God.
In Ephesians 3:1-2 Paul writes of the dispensation of the grace of God that was given through him unto the Gentiles.
Ephesians 3:1-2
1 For this cause I Paul, the prisoner of Jesus Christ for you Gentiles,
2 If ye have heard of the dispensation of the grace of God which is given me to you-ward.
In Acts 20:24 Paul writes of finishing his ministry of testifying of the gospel of the grace of God.
Acts 20:24 But none of these things move me, neither count I my life dear unto myself, so that I might finish my course with joy, and the ministry, which I have received of the Lord Jesus, to testify the gospel of the grace of God.
The Two Gospels Had Two Different Messages
The gospel of the kingdom was preached by Jesus, John the Baptist, and Peter and the Eleven to the Jews. This gospel focused on repentance, faith in Jesus as their Messiah, and God’s earthly kingdom. Observance of Mosaic Law, water baptism, and physical circumcision were necessary, highlighting Jesus as the coming King of Israel who would complete the covenant promises to the nation of Israel made under the prophetic program.
The gospel of the grace of God was revealed to our Apostle Paul by Jesus Christ. This gospel was preached mainly to the Gentiles, and it focused on salvation through faith in Christ’s completed work—His death, burial, and resurrection—without relying on adherence to the Law of Moses. It made clear that salvation comes solely by grace and faith rather than by following the Mosaic Law or Jewish rituals. Paul emphasized that this message was not a part of the prophetic program, but rather a hidden mystery since creation and was given exclusively to him through divine revelation.
The Jerusalem Council Meeting Settles the Issue of Two Gospels
Paul tells the Galatians that they are free in Christ under the gospel of grace of God and are not subject to the Law of Moses. However, certain Jews were encouraging the Galatians to submit to the Law and circumcision. This was a perversion of the gospel of the grace of God, which Paul would not allow as recorded in Galatians 2:4-5.
Galatians 2:4-5
4 And that because of false brethren unawares brought in, who came in privily to spy out our liberty which we have in Christ Jesus, that they might bring us into bondage:
5 To whom we gave place by subjection, no, not for an hour; that the truth of the gospel might continue with you.
Paul, Barnabas, and Titus traveled to Jerusalem to meet Peter, James, and John and the elders of the Jerusalem church to resolve the conflict that had arose concerning these two separate and distinct gospels. In Jerusalem, Paul shared the gospel entrusted to him by Jesus Christ. In Galatians 1:11-12 Paul writes that the gospel of the grace of God that he preached is not after man, he did not receive it from man, but he received the gospel that he preached by the revelation of Jesus Christ.
Galatians 1:11-12
11 But I certify you, brethren, that the gospel which was preached of me is not after man.
12 For I neither received it of man, neither was I taught it, but by the revelation of Jesus Christ.
During this meeting, Peter, James, and John understood the grace that God had given to Paul, and they decided that the apostles would share the gospel of the kingdom with the Jews, while Paul would share the gospel of the grace of God to the Gentiles.
Galatians 2:7-9
7 But contrariwise, when they saw that the gospel of the uncircumcision was committed unto me, as the gospel of the circumcision was unto Peter;
8 (For he that wrought effectually in Peter to the apostleship of the circumcision, the same was mighty in me toward the Gentiles:)
9 And when James, Cephas, and John, who seemed to be pillars, perceived the grace that was given unto me, they gave to me and Barnabas the right hands of fellowship; that we should go unto the heathen, and they unto the circumcision.
Peter and the Eleven never completely fulfilled “The Great Commission.” When the Jews rejected the gift of the Holy Spirit, Jesus Christ then commissioned Paul to preach the gospel of the grace of God. All the apostles, Paul included, believed in Christ’s imminent return according to prophesy.
However, God paused prophesy and we can clearly see that God has given unto the world the dispensation of the grace of God, and its gospel, which is the gospel of the grace of God. Paul’s epistles of Romans through Philemon tells us of salvation by faith alone, Spiritual baptism into the “body of Christ,” the rapture of the “body of Christ” and the mysteries (new revelations) given to Paul.
Peter and the Eleven preached the gospel of the kingdom until death. The general epistles of James through Revelation are written for the Jews and their gospel of the kingdom, with the book of Revelation speaking of The Great Tribulation, the return of Jesus Christ and the establishment of His eternal earthly kingdom.
Currently, there is ONLY one gospel whereby we are saved, and that is the gospel of the grace of God, which is recorded in I Corinthians 15:1-4.
The gospel of the kingdom will once again be preached during the coming Great Tribulation, thus fulfilling the promise that Christ made in Matthew 24:14 where He said, “And this gospel of the kingdom shall be preached in all the world for a witness unto all nations; and then shall the end come.”