SUNDAY SCHOOL LESSON
I AM WITH YOU ALWAY
MATTHEW 28:16-20
Lesson Prepared by: krisha of Solomon
Wisdom FB page
picture taken from Google
may 20, 2018
Scheduled Teacher: Bro. Moises Ramos
MEMORY VERSE
MATTHEW 28:20
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.
INTRODUCTION:
Let
me ask you some questions: Have you found yourself having difficulty in sharing
the Gospel? Have you lost the compassion for souls? Most of the times Christians
face their days without sharing God’s word; days, weeks and months pass without
doing their mission. This way, we become use to it. These are just some
problems Christians experience in their spiritual lives.
Remember
before Jesus was taken up and he was out of sight, he reminded the disciples to
be witnesses in Jerusalem, Judaea, Samaria and in uttermost part of the earth
(Acts 1:8-9). Jesus knows the persecutions they may face therefore He says in
John 14:18, “I will not leave you comfortless: I will come to you.” Personalize the feeling of the disciples
which they knew that Jesus will leave them (John 14:25) but Jesus said in John
14:26, “But the Comforter, which is the Holy Ghost, whom the Father will send
in my name, he shall teach you all things, and bring all things to your
remembrance, whatsoever I have said unto you. Take note the words: teach you
all things, bring all things to your remembrance. These verses are like saying
this sentence, “When I’m gone I’m still here with you.” Therefore, if you are
sealed by the Holy Spirit of promise there’s nothing to have the feeling you’re
abandoned. Our lesson for today is taken from Matthew 28:20 entitled, “I AM
WITH YOU ALWAY.” Jesus promised his people then and us
today that he would always be with them.
And this morning, I would like to give you three reasons why we need this
promise, why we need to know that Jesus will be always with us:
LESSON OUTLINE:
“When they saw Him, they worshipped
him: but some doubted.”
Some women had gone to the tomb in order to prepare His
body for burial. There hadn’t been time after the crucifixion, and they hoped
to be able to assuage (ease) their grief by fulfilling the funerary rites. When
they arrived at the tomb, they didn’t find His body. Instead, an angel
addressed them, commanding them to take a message to His disciples. They
reported that the angel said, “Do not be afraid, for I know that you seek Jesus
who was crucified. He is not here, for he has risen, as he said. Come, see the
place where he lay. Then go quickly and tell his disciples that he has risen
from the dead, and behold, he is going before you to Galilee; there you will
see him. See, I have told you” [MATTHEW 28:5-7].
The
strange events weren’t finished, however. The women reported that Jesus Himself
met them and spoke to them. Then, He iterated the message that the angel had
delivered to them, He said, “Do not be afraid; go and tell my brothers to go to
Galilee, and there they will see me” [MATTHEW 28:10].
The
guards had been bruiting about the city a wild story that His disciples came
during the night and stole His body away while they slept. Never mind that
guards who fell asleep while on post were guilty of a capital offence. If they
were actually sleeping, they were to be executed; there could be no appeal. It
was apparently worth the risk in their estimate if there was enough money
involved.
There
was nothing for the disciples to lose, so the eleven did as they were
commanded; and they went to Galilee. At the least, it would get them out of the
city where things could explode into a riot at any moment. The disciples
followed the instructions precisely, arriving at the mountain to which He had
previously directed them. There, they saw Jesus. It was actually the Lord who
came to them. When they saw Him, all of them worshipped. However, even as they
worshipped, some doubted. Think of that! Some doubted despite seeing the Risen
Saviour!
In
verse 17 says, “… some doubted;” maybe we say why some disciples doubted. Before
you begin to think ill of the disciples, recall how Thomas had reacted when the
others spoke of seeing the Lord. This is the account as John, Jesus’ cousin,
recorded the incident. “On the evening of that day, the first day of the week,
the doors being locked where the disciples were for fear of the Jews, Jesus
came and stood among them and said to them, ‘Peace be with you.’ When he had
said this, he showed them his hands and his side. Then the disciples were glad
when they saw the Lord. Jesus said to them again, ‘Peace be with you. As the
Father has sent me, even so I am sending you.’ And when he had said this, he
breathed on them and said to them, ‘Receive the Holy Spirit. If you forgive the
sins of any, they are forgiven them; if you withhold forgiveness from any, it
is withheld.’
“Now
Thomas, one of the twelve, called the Twin, was not with them when Jesus came.
So, the other disciples told him, ‘We have seen the Lord.’ But he said to them,
‘Unless I see in his hands the mark of the nails, and place my finger into the
mark of the nails, and place my hand into his side, I will never believe.’
“Eight days later, his disciples were inside again, and Thomas
was with them. Although the doors were locked, Jesus came and stood among them
and said, ‘Peace be with you.’ Then he said to Thomas, ‘Reach hither thy hand,
and thrust it into my side: and be not faithless, believing.’ Thomas answered
him, ‘My Lord and my God!’ Jesus said to him, ‘because thou hast seen me, thou
hast believed: blessed are they that have not seen and yet have believed’ [JOHN
20:19-29]. https://www.sermoncentral.com/sermons/but-some-doubted-michael-stark-sermon-on-faith-224650?page=2
None of us can live a Christian
life with our own strength because it’s easy for us to have doubts and fears in
fulfilling our mission that’s why if we feel this way, remember God said before
He left on earth, “...and lo, I am with you alway.” The word “lo” is an
interjection which shows great feelings which means “behold.” The word “always”
means “throughout all time. “This give an emphasis that says like this, “Look,
I am with always even unto the end of the world.” No reason to fear and have
doubts.
2. WE NEED THIS PROMISE “I AM WITH YOU ALWAY” BECAUSE GOD HAS
GIVEN US MISSION TO FULFILL (MATTHEW 28:19-20)
“Go
ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father,
and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost.”
A grocery store owner in England decided that he had to ban
customers from coming into his store.
He said that he was forced to take such drastic action because of people’s bad
manners. First, he banned smoking, then crude language,
baby strollers, pets, and finally, customers themselves. Shoppers must now look
through the window, spot the items they want, and then ring a bell to be served through a small hatch in
the door. The owner admitted, “I have lost business, but I cannot say how much.
But I am a man of principles, and I stand by my decision!” (FlagLive [June 4-10, 1998.) That storekeeper had
lost sight of his mission!
While that story is ridiculous, it’s easy as a church to lose
sight of our mission. If they’re not careful, churches begin to accumulate
various programs, many of which were legitimate when they started. But over
time, those running the programs forget
the church’s mission and drift off course. Pretty soon, the church becomes
cluttered with cherished programs that keep everyone busy, but don’t help work
toward to the church’s mission (see Simple Church[Broadman & Holman], by Thom
Rainer and Eric Geiger.) We’re doing many good things, but we’ve forgotten the
main thing. So it’s important to answer
and then keep coming back to the question, “What is the church’s mission,
our mission” It’s already mentioned in verse 28. https://bible.org/seriespage/lesson-3-mission-church-matthew-2819-20-2237-40
We’re thankful because CBT focus on evangelism; our programs’ aim
focus on evangelism but personally most of times we forget our mission.
Weekdays pass without thinking our mission especially in our jobs, right? We
need this promise, “I am with you always because we have a mission to fulfill.”
A reminder that God is always with us every time we open our mouths about the
Gospel.
This mission is for all Christians, no exempted. Remember Jeremiah
was called by God when he was young to be a “prophet to the nations”---but he
was scared to death: Jeremiah 1:6-8
Then said I, “Ah, Lord GOD! Behold, I cannot speak: for I am a
child”
What was God’s response?
“Say not, I am a child: for thou shalt go to all that I
shall send thee, and whatsoever I have commanded thee thou shalt speak. Be not
afraid of their faces, for I am with thee to deliver thee.”
As we share the good news and make followers of Jesus, our
confidence is this: “I am with you always, even until the end of the world.”
3. WE NEED THIS PROMISE “I AM WITH YOU ALWAY” BECAUSE IT WILL
KEEP US GOING WHEN WE FEEL LIKE QUITTING (HAGGAI 2:4).
In the Old Testament, the nation of
Israel refused to be a light to the nations, and God judged them and made them
live 500 miles away in Babylon for 70 years. But when God allowed them to
return to Israel, they came back to a city and temple that was destroyed. They
rebuilt their homes, but not God’s home. And God said to them:
But now the Lord says:
“Yet
now be strong, O Zerubbabel saith the Lord; and be strong, O Joshua, son of
Josedech, the high priest; and be strong, all ye people of the land, saith the
Lord, and WORK: FOR I AM WITH YOU,
saith the Lord of hosts:
In the same way that God wanted his Old
Testament saints to build for him, he wants us, his New Testament saints, to
build for him. Mathew wrote his gospel about 15-30 years or so after Jesus’
death to remind God’s people of the commission Jesus had given a few decades
earlier! Go…make disciples…baptize…teach… WHY? I am with you always,
even until the end of the world.
