Text: Matthew 28
April 19, 2026 || Glynwood Baptist Church, Prattville, AL
James Jackson, Pastor
Good morning. Please open your Bibles to Matthew 28.
Over the last couple of weeks, a lot of us went all fanboy over the Artemis II mission around the moon. And I know it wasn’t just me geeking out, because at Bible study this week, I counted not one, but two NASA T Shirts!
Amber… Caleb… let your freak flag fly!
We actually had the launch up on the big screen before Wednesday night Bible study, and Tim and Caleb Wesley and I were just glued to it. It was like watching NASCAR with Tim. “Whoo boy!! There she goes!”
Then, ten days later, we were all back in front of our TV sets as the Orion capsule re-entered the earth’s atmosphere.
I’m not gonna lie— I was nervous! You know the moment I’m talking about—the most tense part of the whole mission.
Re-entry.
Six minutes of radio silence.
You’re wondering: Did the heat shield hold? Will the parachutes deploy? Did the crew survive? Is there gonna be an alien on somebody’s face when they open up the capsule?
And then… that moment of confirmation:
‘Houston, this is Artemis. We read you loud and clear.’
And everything changes.
Now there’s proof of life.
Now there’s confirmation the mission worked.
Now there’s confidence to move forward.
Matthew 28 is a lot like that moment. After the cross, after three days of radio silence from the tomb, God speaks—loud and clear—through the risen Jesus:
the mission was successful.
And when Jesus gives the Great Commission, He confirms something else—
The mission is not over.
He is launching us out on his authority.
And he will stay with us until He brings us home.
Let’s stand to honor the reading of God’s Word:
Matthew 28:17–20 ESV
17 And when they saw him they worshiped him, but some doubted. 18 And Jesus came and said to them, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. 19 Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20 teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.”
This is God’s Word. Thanks be to God. Pray with me.
Matthew tells us something almost surprising: they worshiped Him, but some doubted.
Huh? They worshiped him… but some doubted?
Here they are, standing face to face with a man they that CAME BACK FROM THE DEAD, and some of them are like, “Eh… I’m still kinda fifty-fifty.”
Really? If the resurrection won’t convince you that Jesus is who He says He is, I’m not sure what will.
This is why Matthew doesn’t begin chapter 28 with the Great Commission. He begins with a Great Confirmation.
God’s word confirms the resurrection in five different ways:
1. Resurrection Confirmed
• First, there is the confirmation of nature. In verse 2, Matthew describes an earthquake, and an angel rolling the stone away. Now, this isn’t the first time Matthew describes natural events caused by supernatural means. In the previous chapter, darkness came over the land from noon until 3 in the afternoon when Jesus died. Then, at the point of Jesus death “the earth shook and rocks split.”
Matthew also gives us the detail that the tombs of many saints broke open, and the saints came back to life, and after the resurrection they walked around Jerusalem. Which, I’m just gonna leave that right there. Maybe save it for a Halloween sermon. The point is, this is nature being used to supernaturally confirm that Jesus was dying (the darkness), had died, (the first earthquake), and had risen (the second earthquake.
• Second, there’s the confirmation by an angel. He comes down from heaven and rolls the stone away. These big old scary Roman soldiers guarding the tomb freak out and faint, but the Marys don’t. And the angel says to them in Matthew 28:6
Matthew 28:6 ESV
6 He is not here, for he has risen, as he said. Come, see the place where he lay.
• Third, there’s the confirmation from the women. The angel tells Mary Magdalene and the other Mary to go and tell the disciples that Jesus has risen, and they do.
I want us to stop here so we can just appreciate this moment. The gospels differ on how many women went to the tomb that morning. John mentions 1, Matthew two, Mark three, and Luke at least five. But they all agree that it was women that brought the news to the male disciples. And that matters more than you realize. See, in Jesus’ day, a woman’s testimony wouldn’t hold up in court. So if someone was making this story up, they wouldn’t have made up this detail. So this little nugget of information is doing a lot of work. Mary Magdalene is sometimes called the “Apostle to the Apostles,” because she was the first person in history to have been entrusted with the full message of the gospel. Not just a woman, but a woman from whom Jesus had cast out seven demons, according to [reference?].
Keep that in mind when we get to the Great Commission. Because there are a lot of people that kind of self-select out of sharing the gospel, thinking, why would they listen to me? What if they don’t believe me? Why would God ever use me, considering my past?
• Confirmation by Jesus: Think about this, too: even if the women had felt this way, Jesus Himself appeared to them and said, “Don’t be afraid. Go and tell my brothers to go to Galilee, and I will meet them there.” We get another tool here for our little apologetics Swiss Army knife. There are people who argue that Jesus was simply a great moral teacher who never claimed to be God. But twice in this passage— here in verse 9 and again in verse 18, Jesus accepts their worship. A normal rabbi would never do that.
• There’s one more confirmation of the resurrection. Let’s call it the confirmation of the Cover-Up. Read Matthew 28:11-15 with me:
Matthew 28:11–15 ESV
11 While they were going, behold, some of the guard went into the city and told the chief priests all that had taken place. 12 And when they had assembled with the elders and taken counsel, they gave a sufficient sum of money to the soldiers 13 and said, “Tell people, ‘His disciples came by night and stole him away while we were asleep.’ 14 And if this comes to the governor’s ears, we will satisfy him and keep you out of trouble.” 15 So they took the money and did as they were directed. And this story has been spread among the Jews to this day.
There are a lot of reasons this doesn’t pass the smell test. For one thing, imagine someone on Law and Order testifying about something that happened while they were asleep. That idea wouldn’t even make it out of the writer’s room.
For another thing, there were harsh penalties in the Roman army for a soldier to fall asleep on guard duty, up to and including death. So it would have had to be A LOT of money for these soldiers to risk court martial to go along with the cover up. It’s just another tool we can use to argue for the truth of the resurrection. It was confirmed by the natural, the supernatural, by Jesus Himself, by His followers, and even, indirectly, by the very enemies who tried to cover it up.
This is not a fragile story held together by wishful thinking.
The resurrection confirmed in five different ways here, and that’s just in fifteen verses from one chapter of one book of the Bible. But there are 66 books. 1,189 chapters. Over 31,000 verses. Together, they offer proof beyond a reasonable doubt that God can be trusted. He loves you. He wants a relationship with you, and he sent his son, who really lived, who really died, and who really rose from the dead.
Jesus really is our savior. But not only that, He is our Lord. Let’s look next at how he confirms his authority.
2. Authority Confirmed
Jesus doesn’t just claim authority—He proves it. Let’s start with his declared authority. In verse 18, Jesus came to the disciples and said, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me.” That pretty much covers all the bases, doesn’t it? There’s not a big enough loophole someone can wriggle through to justify that Jesus doesn’t really have authority over this area or that area.
In the late 1800’s there was a Dutch astronomer/theologian named Abraham Kuyper who said, “There is not a square inch in the whole domain of our human existence over which Christ, who is Sovereign over all, does not cry: ‘Mine!’” Jesus has declared all authority in heaven and on earth.
This is the context for everything Jesus commands.
• All authority has been given to me in heaven and on earth. Therefore go
• All authority has been given to me in heaven and on earth. Therefore love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you.
• All authority has been given to me in heaven and on earth. Therefore love the Lord your God and serve Him only.
• All authority has been given to me in heaven and on earth. Therefore learn what I have to say to you in my Word. Study it. Memorize it. Apply it.
Again, all this goes out the window if Jesus was not resurrected from the dead. Paul wrote in 1 Corinthians that if there was no resurrection, our preaching is useless. Your faith is useless. You are still in your sins. And any attempt on our part to live according to Jesus’ commands would be a waste of time, like rearranging the deck chairs on the Titanic. But Jesus’ authority is confirmed because His resurrection is confirmed.
But here is what I want you to see. Jesus declared His authority, but His disciples demonstrated it.
Look back at everything that happens in this chapter before the Great Commission:
Verse 7: Through an angel, Jesus tells the women to tell the disciples that Jesus has been raised from the dead.
Verse 8: What do they do?
Verse 10: Through the women, Jesus tells the disciples to go to Galilee, and there they will see Him.
Verse 16: What do they do? They go to Galilee, and they see him.
They didn’t argue. They didn’t negotiate. They didn’t say, ‘Well, I’ll pray about it.’
He said, ‘Go’—and they went. And then, Jesus confirms that they were right to obey. “All authority… has been given to me.’”
Here’s where this stops being about them… and starts being about us.
A true disciple doesn’t just acknowledge Jesus’ authority—
a true disciple does what He says.
When He says forgive—and you’d rather not…
When He says go—and you’d rather stay…
When He says give—and you’d rather keep…
When He says repent—and you’d rather justify…
That’s where His authority either shows up in your life… or it doesn’t.
Paul said there are two things necessary for salvation. In Romans 10:9-10 he wrote that
Romans 10:9–10 ESV
9 if you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.
Confessing with your mouth isn’t just saying words. It is adjusting your life under His lordship. It isn’t just saying He is the Lord, it is acting like He is your Lord. Confessing Jesus as Lord cannot be separated from submitting to His Lordship.
Now, I was to bring us to the one verse from Matthew 28 we are probably most familiar with, the Great Commission. Jesus’ resurrection has been confirmed. His authority has been confirmed. And now, the mission is confirmed.
3. Mission Confirmed
The disciples go to Galilee to meet Jesus, just as He had directed them. And verse 17 says, “They worshiped Him, but some doubted.”
We’ve already talked about the absurdity of the fact that after all of this, there’s still some guys going, “Yeah… but I’ve still got questions.”
I kinda love this. Because if you are still on the fence about whether or not you can believe in Jesus, this is showing you something incredibly important:
It is okay to come to Jesus with your doubts, but it is not okay to stay away from Jesus because of your doubts.
There may be some sincere, legitimate questions that have been holding you back: Was the Universe created in six literal; 24 hour periods? What about flooding the entire world? Or all the violence in Joshua? Walking on Water?
They are good questions. But are they good enough to keep you from worshiping Jesus as the risen Lord?
They aren’t. And they don’t have to. Flip the verse: “Some doubted… but they worshiped Him.”
Embracing the mission Jesus has given us as Christians has a way of resolving any lingering doubts. So let’s look at how Jesus confirms our mission.
The verse we know as the Great Commission goes like this:
Matthew 28:19–20 ESV
19 Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20 teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you.
There’s a scope, a task, and a method to the Great Commission.
First, the scope: all nations.
All means all. Not just local. Not just regional. Not just for people who look like you, think like you, dress like you, vote like you, live on the same side of the tracks as you, speak the same language as you.
This is a global mission. Every tribe, every tongue, every nation.
Nobody is outside the reach of the gospel—and nobody is outside the responsibility to share it.
Second, the task: make disciples.
Jesus didn’t say, “Go and make converts.” or “Go and make church members.” He said, Go and make disciples. There’s only one verb in the Great Commission, and it isn’t “Go.” In the Greek, it’s a participle. A better translation would be “as you go…” or “In the going…”
Baptizing isn’t the verb. Teaching isn’t the verb. No, the verb is make disciples. That’s the task. And it doesn’t say Go and make converts, or go and make church members. This isn’t about getting someone to pray a prayer or raise a hand or sign a card.
The task is make disciples: People who follow Jesus, imitate Jesus, become like Jesus, and help others do the same.
How do we do that?
Third, the method: go, baptize, teach.
Go—As you are going, tell people about Jesus. Going to Honduras, yes, but also going to work. Going to Wal-Mart. Going to walk the dog. Yes, we are to “declare His glory among the nations,” but we are also to declare his glory in the frozen foods section. At the ball field. During band practice.
Baptize—When a follower of Jesus is baptized, they are publicly identifying with Jesus. And they are also uniting themselves with a local community of faith. In our church, baptism by immersion is a requirement for membership. Baptism is a two way commitment. It’s a new follower of Jesus identifying with him, but its also the church committing to help him or her grow in the faith, enjoy fellowship with other believers, and be accountable to living a life that pleases God.
Teach—We do that by teaching them to observe everything He has commanded. That’s more than just being able to quote Bible verses. It’s more than just gathering to talk about the Bible. It’s teaching to observe and obey. Not just understanding God’s Word, but applying God’s Word. Because information without application leads to stagnation.
And don’t miss this—
this mission is not given to pastors only.
It’s not given to missionaries only.
It’s given to every follower of Jesus.
We have been given a mission with a clear scope— all nations, a clear task— make disciples, and a clear method— go, baptize, teach.
If all this scares you, I get it. It’s overwhelming. It feels like its way above your pay grade. And it’s crazy to realize that for 2000 years, this has been God’s Plan A for saving the world, and there is no plan b. If you are a follower of Jesus, Jesus’ last words must become your first priority.
And I know what some of you are thinking—
‘Why would God use me?’
‘What if I don’t know enough?’
‘What if I mess it up?’
Go back to what we just saw.
Who were the first people He used?
Women whose testimony wouldn’t hold up in court.
Disciples who were still doubting.
People with messy pasts and imperfect faith.
And Jesus says to them— make disciples.
And if you are still feeling inadequate to the task (and who isn’t?) than let me leave you with one more confirmation from Matthew 28.
The resurrection is confirmed.
Jesus’ authority is confirmed.
Our mission is confirmed.
And finally, in the last words of Matthew 28,
4. Our Security Confirmed
“Jesus ends the Great Commission with a promise:
‘And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.’
Don’t rush past that. That’s not a throwaway line.
That’s the foundation everything else stands on.
But Jesus doesn’t just give a mission—He gives His presence. ‘I am with you.’
At the beginning of Matthew’s gospel (1:22), Matthew quotes Isaiah. He says, “they shall call his name Immanuel, which means God with us.” So in the last verse, the promise made is the promise fulfilled.
I will be with you.
Not, ‘Be careful out there,’ or, ‘Good luck.’
‘I am with you.’
When you go to Honduras—I am with you.
When you go to work tomorrow—I am with you.
When you’re trying to have that awkward gospel conversation and you don’t know what to say—He’s with you.
Think back to how we started this sermon. Think about the crew of the Artemis II. For every single second of their mission, there was always somebody— multiple somebodies— at mission control. Any time, day or night, if someone on the crew said, “Houston, this is Artemis,” the response was immediate: “Go ahead, Artemis.”
Even during those six minutes of silence when they re-entered the atmosphere, Mission Control was not empty. In fact, every workstation was occupied. Every scientist and engineer was laser focused on those astronauts.
The success of the mission was not based on the skill of the astronauts, but on the presence of the ground crew.
They had traveled further from home than any human beings had ever gone, but they were never alone.
And He says, ‘I am with you always.’
Not just on Sundays.
Not just on mission trips.
Not just when you feel close to Him.
Always. ‘to the end of the age.’
“But remember—this promise is not spoken into the air.
It’s spoken to disciples.
So the question is not, ‘Is Jesus with me no matter what?’
The question is, ‘Am I with Him?’
Have I trusted Him as Savior?
Have I submitted to Him as Lord?”
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