Into the World // Mark 16:15
Today’s verse gives us the Gospel of Mark’s condensed version of Jesus’ Great Commission (see Matthew 28:18-20). Jesus instructed His disciples to share the Good News of salvation through the forgiveness of sins to the entire world, not just those who lived in their culture and community. I was thinking about this the other day, particularly because of how the Bible uses the idea of, “the world.” On one hand, it refers to the creation we see all around us. On the other, though, we see references to the world in a negative light as it depicts the dominion of the devil (see 1 John 5:19). This idea of the world being under the devil’s control might give you cause to shrink back and sequester yourself. Please, fight that temptation! Jesus came to show God’s love and to rescue us from the clutches of evil. Consider what we know as the Gospel in a nutshell, “For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him. Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe stands condemned already because they have not believed in the name of God’s one and only Son” (John 3:16-18, NIV). Jesus commissions you and me to join Him in His rescue mission for the world. He said as recorded in Matthew 5:14 and 16, “You are the light of the world….let your light shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven” (NIV). I thank God He didn’t give up on me and this world in which we live. So, let’s strike out on this Monday to go shine some Jesus light in this lost and lonely world. In so doing, we can help illuminate the yuck that is easy to see and point people to Jesus as the hope we all need!