Encounter, Enter, and Worship; Then Go on Your Assignment
David W Palmer
(Matthew 28:16 NKJV) Then the eleven disciples went away into Galilee, to the mountain which Jesus had appointed for them.
When Jesus first appeared to the women, he said to them, “Do not be afraid. Go and tell my brethren to go to Galilee, and there they will see me” (Mat. 28:10 NKJV). This instruction must have been relayed to the eleven remaining disciples, as Matthew records that they obeyed and went.
Obeying and going is crucial. When the women went in obedience to do what the angels told them, they encountered the resurrected Lord Jesus:
(Matthew 28:9 NKJV) And as they went to tell His disciples, behold, Jesus met them, saying, “Rejoice!” So they came and held Him by the feet and worshiped Him.
Two other of Jesus’s disciples were simply “going” to Emmaus; but as they went, they began talking about Jesus and the events surrounding his crucifixion. Suddenly, they too encountered the resurrected Lord Jesus:
(Luke 24:13–15 NLT) That same day two of Jesus’ followers were walking to the village of Emmaus, seven miles from Jerusalem. {14} As they walked along they were talking about everything that had happened. {15} As they talked and discussed these things, Jesus himself suddenly came and began walking with them.
When all the disciples obeyed and went to Galilee—to the exact mountain Jesus had instructed them—they too saw him; they worshipped him. As we are going with the gospel in obedience to the specific instructions God gives us, we too will encounter the resurrected Lord Jesus. Our appropriate response is to worship him:
(Matthew 28:17 NKJV) When they saw Him, they worshiped Him; but some doubted.
“They worshiped him.” This is good and appropriate; but what does it mean when it says, “Some doubted.” Perhaps the Message translation clarifies this for us:
(Matthew 28:16–17 MSG) Meanwhile, the eleven disciples were on their way to Galilee, headed for the mountain Jesus had set for their reunion. The moment they saw him they worshiped him. Some, though, held back, not sure about worship, about risking themselves totally.
The text is not perfectly clear whether the “some” means some of the eleven, or whether it simply means some other observers. But we certainly see that despite a personal encounter with the resurrected Lord Jesus, not all are fully convinced. Even when some see and know that Jesus is alive—and even when they have had direct and personal encounters with him—that doesn’t mean that they will instantly and willingly surrender all to him. Such is the reality of our own free-will and double-mindedness; we can all be caught deciding between humbly and completely surrendering ourselves to Jesus, versus a fear-led, pride-filled holding of ourselves back. Like Lucifer and Adam—both of whom had had unmistakable and full encounters with the living God—some people still refuse to risk “themselves completely,” despite personal and supernatural encounters with the risen Lord.
What about you? Have you completely and fully surrendered yourself as a true worshipper? Remember, at the outset of his ministry, Jesus declared the following truth about worship:
(Matthew 4:10 NKJV) Then Jesus said to him, “Away with you, Satan! For it is written, ‘You shall worship the LORD your God, and Him only you shall serve.’”
The enemy’s strategy in this has been clearly exposed in Scripture. He always tells us that trusting God completely is too risky. His influence cajoles us that it’s much safer to take matters into our own hands than to trust your whole life to God. In effect the Tempter says, “Make your own decisions about your future based on the tree of the knowledge of good and evil; provide for yourself; look after your own health, etc.”
