Monday Morning Manna: Resurrection and Mission

We’ve just celebrated Resurrection Sunday, so what do we do now? One of the first things Jesus said to His followers after His resurrection was in the form of a command. He told them to go and tell others what had happened and what they had experienced (Matthew 28:10, 19; Mark 16:15; Luke 24:47; John 20:17; Acts 1:8). So now we go and tell, not because of need or desire, but because we were told to do so. When my daughter was a teenager, her room often looked like a straight-line wind had hit it. I could tell her to clean it because in needed cleaning, but that never worked. I could try convincing her to clean her room because I knew she desired to have a clean room. Nothing. But when I said, “Danna Ruth Crawford, clean your room!” The room got cleaned. Same thing with my son. When he was young he begged to mow the yard on the riding mower, but he was to young. A few weeks after he got old enough to mow, he decided he was too old to mow. I could tell him the yard needed mowing, or that he desired to mow and have a nice yard for his dog to live in. Nothing. “James Edwin Crawford, mow the yard!” Worked. Jesus did not say go and tell because the world needed to know, although it did and does, nor did He say to go and tell because we desire to do so. He commanded that resurrection be followed with mission – go and tell. So, who will you tell this week?

Dr. Dan Crawford, Senior Professor at Southwestern Baptist Seminary, is the WestCoast Baptist Association’s Spiritual Life & Leadership Mentor. Follow Dan on Twitter @DrDanRC and Facebook www.facebook.com/dan.crawford.