But the eleven disciples proceeded to Galilee, to the mountain which Jesus had designated. When they saw Him, they worshiped Him; but some were doubtful. And Jesus came up and spoke to them, saying, “All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth. “Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.” [Matthew 28:16-20 NASB]
During His ministry on earth, Jesus set aside His authority as God the Son, and accepted limitations. For example, He said, “I was sent only to the lost sheep of the house of Israel.” [Matthew 15:24 NASB]
In His resurrection, He is free from limitations. He tells us, “All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth.” Now He says, "Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations."
The Old Covenant was made between God and the nation of Israel. The New Covenant is made between God and all the nations of the earth. It was His blood that sealed the covenant. It was His resurrection that confirmed it.
It is because of what Jesus did that we who are not Jews have been grafted in to the promises of God. As Paul said,
And He came and preached peace to you who were afar off and to those who were near. For through Him we both have access by one Spirit to the Father. Now, therefore, you are no longer strangers and aliens, but fellow citizens with the saints and members of the household of God, [Ephesians 2:17-19 NKJV]
Jesus affirmed the nature of the triune God, and His own place in the Godhead, when He said that we should be baptized "in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit."
This is important because one of the first things cults will attack is the identity of God. They will deny the trinity.
They may claim that Jesus isn't God the Son, robbing Him of His divinity. If Jesus isn't God, then Christianity is a lie, and our faith is worthless.
They may claim that Jesus is God, but not part of a Trinity. Some say that the Father became the Son, and then became the Holy Spirit. They did not exist all at once. Again, this robs God of His nature. Consider the scene when Jesus was baptized.
When He had been baptized, Jesus came up immediately from the water; and behold, the heavens were opened to Him, and He saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and alighting upon Him. And suddenly a voice came from heaven, saying, “This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased.” [Matthew 3:16-17 NKJV]
The Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit were all individually present.
The problem some people have is that God defies logic. People will logically ask, "How is it possible for there to be only one God, but three persons." They see it as foolishness. Paul said,
But the natural man does not receive the things of the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him; nor can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned. [1 Corinthians 2:14 NKJV]
Without faith, it is impossible to understand. There is one God, God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit, eternally existing in perfect unity. It is not a contradiction. It is His nature.
I give thanks to God that He has chosen to reveal Himself to us, and that He has called us to be His children through adoption. We can do no less than to receive His grace, and offer to Him our praise and worship.
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