And Jesus came and said to them, “All authority in Heaven and on earth has been given to me. Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptising them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age – Matt 28:18-20.

Jesus Christ is coming again. He is coming to harvest His Church home. Sorrow and sighing shall be no more. The dead in Christ shall arise. Sadly, the Church, though very busy with its settled, inherited routine, continues to ‘show it is geared towards managing its reputation.’ Samuel Chadwick rightly said, “the church that is man-managed instead of God-governed is doomed to failure’ and decline.  A church or denomination that is God-governed is obedient to the Great Commission.

The Church, meant to be the House of Prayer, has been transformed into a marketplace, where ministry becomes a performance, the sanctuary becomes a theatre, and the congregation becomes an audience. Hence, the urgency of the Great Commission in modern times is calling the Church back to the mandate of Jesus Christ. A sense of urgency connects the Great Commission and the Second Coming of Christ. Fulfilling the Great Commission is crucial because it allows individuals to be reconciled with God and escape His judgment before Jesus’ return, which is imminent. The anticipation of Christ’s return fuels the urgency, as believers are called to be ready and to share the Gospel with others. 

Andrew Graystone’s book, Bleeding for Jesus, tells the story of the abuse and the Church’s failure to respond. The urgency of the Great Commission, rooted in the authority of Jesus Christ, is the hope of the Church and a call to its leadership and structure to repent and repair the damage it causes. The urgency of the Great Commission reminds us that the renewal, revival, and future of churches which belong to God depends ultimately on the work of the Holy Spirit. The urgency of the Great Commission challenges the maintenance and survival methods that absorb church energies and finance. Daniel Buttery, in his book Bringing Your Church Back to Life: Beyond Survival Mentality, identifies “vision deficiency “as the root cause of what Donald Messer called the Church’s ‘malignancy mentality, a kind of congregational cancer of hopelessness’ which many churches and denominations suffer today. Resultantly, many churches and denominations ‘believe that the best days for their Church were in the past, that no future exists in their neighbourhood of strangers, and that it is only a matter of time before the doors must be closed or the programs severely reduced.’ Research shows that church closures drive away worshippers; adherence to the urgency of the Great Commission not only drives in worshippers but also helps equip the saints for the work of the ministry.

 The urgency of the Great Commission is a renewing mandate to overcome church closures and the stunted faith of survivalist churches, where people have lost their belief in the power of prayer and the mystery of grace —that is, God’s Redemption at Christ’s Expense. The urgency of the Great Commission is about awakening communities of Christians to price and prioritise mission over maintenance and service over security. The urgency of the Great Commission is to renew and revive local congregations and national denominations from a mentality of survival and pleasure to a vision of mission and evangelism. Without the Great Commission being embodied in the priorities of our churches and denominations, the probability of ecumenism for church unity and resolving global crises and divisions is minimised.

Denominational committees, resolutions, and calls for justice and peace pale in significance compared to the urgency of the Great Commission in modern times.  It is through the Great Commission that churches spread the leaven necessary for the rising of the dough and renew the discipleship potential for personal and corporate renewal, as well as the possibilities for justice, peace, and integrity, which members multiply. 

The Great Commission is not a recommendation from a church committee. It is a command from Jesus Christ, our Lord and Saviour. We must go. Unbelief or disobedience ultimately leads to decline and spiritual death. Humanity is at a loss and in need of salvation. The urgency of the Great Commission is driven by the spiritual condition of humanity in such a time as this. Apostle Paul writes, “For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God” (Rom 3:23). The universal nature of sin underscores the necessity and urgency of the Great Commission in modern times.

A recent statistic from a Barna study on Gen Z believers worldwide calls for the urgency of the Great Commission in modern times: ‘61% of Christian Gen Z worldwide believe that Jesus was crucified; 50% believe that he rose again; 45% believe that he will come back; 36% believe that God wants a personal relationship with them; and 32% believe that God is active in the world today.’ The challenge is that “How, then, can they call on the one they have not believed in? And how can they believe in the one of whom they have not heard? And how can they hear without someone preaching to them? And how can anyone preach unless they are sent? As it is written: “How beautiful are the feet of those who bring good news!” (Romans 10:14). Using the words of Ruth Haley Barton, ‘mission cannot be discerned without formation, nor can mission be sustained without an ongoing commitment to transformation in Christ’s presence.’

The urgency of the Great Commission in modern times is about the Christian ministry as a missional part of our identity, family, and home. It is not impossible to lose touch with the urgency of the Great Commission in our pursuit of convenience, pleasure, and rigours of church maintenance without equipping the saints to reach the lost. The urgency of the Great Commission calls us to stop living as if only a particular kind of Christian becomes a missionary. As followers of Jesus Christ, we are all called. The modern world is in dire need of missions, with billions of unreached souls worldwide who have never heard the name of Jesus. There is an urgent need and the most pressing issue on the planet to bring the Gospel to them.

In our modern, ironic atmosphere, marked by a sense of pride, privilege, hypocrisy, and self-centeredness, we become distracted by ideological debates rather than the paramount, missional issue and urgency of the Great Commission. In these modern times, when faith is being replaced with comfort, many have lost touch with God’s laws and desires, becoming fixated on temporary earthly glory and pleasure in life. We would rather conform to modern culture and chorus when we should be conformed and converted to Jesus Christ.

Jesus’ post-resurrection appearances and parting words to his disciples are very prophetic and powerful. Jesus’ parting words to His disciples before He ascended into Heaven, which resonate with us today, are known as the Great Commission and call all followers of Jesus to spread the Gospel message throughout the world. We are all missionaries in this world before we are anything else. We are charged with the divine, urgent responsibility to bring the light of Jesus Christ across the world as our parish until all have heard Jesus’ name.

The Great Commission resonates with a summons issued by God in the Old Testament, which dates to the call of Abraham (Genesis 12:1–3). The Great Commission, backed by the authority in the name of Jesus, shapes the mission of the true global Church and the mission of each follower of Jesus Christ. The Great Commission, beyond a political statement, is about the supremacy and universal Lordship of Jesus Christ. Indeed, Christ alone is the hope of the world in these modern times and the future.

Today’s context for the Great Commission not only inspires awe and urgency ‘in light of the perils and possibilities of a nuclear, global, and ecological age’ but also the missional and sustaining power of the biblical text. Beyond the modern world’s characterisation ‘by progressive ideals, by emphases on scientific knowledge, and by lifestyles far advanced from antiquity,’ the Great Commission, as mandated by Jesus Christ, tells the story of God’s loving and redeeming initiative for all creation, from Genesis to Revelation.

The modern battle to preserve civilisation and recognise its religious source that began on September 11, 2001, reminds us of the modern and postmodern craziness yet to be overcome. In Nigeria, Boko Haram’s war on followers of Jesus Christ, which started in 2009, continues in full force in kidnapping and killing of Christians and burning of churches. Regardless of the persecutions and attacks, the Great Commission in modern times remains a significant and urgent task in Nigeria and other parts of the world, and it requires a renewed heart to fulfil it.

The imminent return of Jesus Christ heightens the urgency of the Great Commission. The Great Commission, as the central tenet of Christianity, has been the driving force behind Christian mission, renewal, discipleship, revival, and evangelism for centuries. In the Great Commission, Jesus commands us to Preach the Gospel to all nations and people, Work miracles in Jesus’ name to testify to the Gospel, Baptise new believers, and Disciple those who receive Christ. The Great Commission to every Christian believer living today remains the same as it has always been. The objective of the Great Commission, to introduce and nurture people in the way of Jesus, remains unchanged despite the languages of our modern audience and the influence of technology. Every Christian is called to be a missionary everywhere we go – in our towns, schools, and jobs. In fulfilling the Great Commission as a means to an end, we thirst to see nations transformed, making space for Heaven to invade earth by praying with urgency and going wherever Jesus sends us as we prepare for His Second Coming.

In an increasingly interconnected modern world, the Great Commission presents extraordinary opportunities and a renewed sense of urgency for effective global outreach, leading to a brighter future for the Church. The Great Commission, to “Go and make disciples of all nations”, remains relevant in modern times and ever, bearing in mind evolving methods to meet the rapid pace of modern communication and travel. The urgency of the Great Commission in modern times demands proclaiming the Gospel by asking people who have little or no access to the Gospel to turn from their sins so that Jesus can find them faithful when He returns.  Arise, and let us Go, rescuing the perishing and caring for the dying.