I have been reading the bracing declaration of our Risen Lord. "Then Jesus came to them and said, 'All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me'”. We live in a world that worships money and power. The disciples, however, were propelled by the Holy Spirit to move out and go into the world. Those who went south would soon encounter the mighty pyramids of ancient Egypt. They would see the Sphinx rising from the hot sands. In Alexandria they would encounter the greatest library of the ancient world. Those who went north would come to Antioch, another seat of learning. Eventually a man named Paul would arrive in Athens, the cultural seat of the ancient world. There, in the land of Socrates and Aristotle, surrounded by altars, marble statuary, and underneath the shadow of the mighty Acropolis, he would proclaim the Good News of Jesus and call men to repentance. Eventually the early Christians would come to Rome, with its magnificent Colosseum and the vast, staggering grandeur of the Roman Empire. Who would dare to preach Christ there? In time some would take the gospel east to India and on to China, lands filled with teeming masses of people who were living unaware that Jesus had come to the earth.
In our minds, we might wonder how the Christian message could have survived? It survived all the assaults against it because all power in heaven and on earth has been given to Jesus Christ. When the disciples entered Alexandria, they need have no fear because there was no power in Alexandria greater than the power of Jesus Christ. They could appreciate the glories of Athens but they need not be intimidated because there was no glory in Athens greater than the glory of Jesus Christ. In Rome, the seat of imperial power could not compare to the power resident in the One who sits at the right hand of the Father Almighty.
We have nothing to fear because the power of Jesus far surpasses the power of the rulers of this world. We have nothing to fear as we go into the world because the power of Jesus far surpasses the power and authority of the rulers of this world.
Think about the rich and powerful people of this world - who are they compared to the Lord Jesus Christ? They are nothing at all!
Jesus gave a great mandate, called the Great Commission:
“Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you”. We go in the name of the name that is above all names, who has power and authority in Heaven and on earth.
In Christ,
Brown
https://youtu.be/Y8R9ZPT2T-I
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