We are all aware of the fact that there are sins of commission and sins of omission. That is, there are things that we should not do, but we do them anyway, and there are things that we should do, but do not. We often focus on the sins of commission, perhaps because they “feel” more like sins. When we know something is a wrong or bad thing to do, it is easy to know when a sin has been committed. If we do something that is labeled wrong or sinful, then it seems pretty clear to us that a sin has been committed. We are often neglectful about sins of omission because they do not involve a direct, willful act of disobedience. These sins are sins not because we have done something, but because we have simply neglected to do something. We may feel more immediately guilty if we curse, than we do if we go through the day and never take time to pray, but prayerlessness is certainly a sin for people who are told to “pray without ceasing.”
The Great Commission
Interestingly enough, these two terms are intertwined in the final instructions Jesus gave to His followers. The last verses of the Gospel of Matthew are known as “The Great Commission.” These words are the “marching orders” for the Church:
And Jesus came up and spoke to them, saying, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to Me. 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 follow all that I commanded you; and behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.” - Matthew 28: 18-20
A Greater omission
This is the Great Commission. That is, it is what we are supposed to do. The tragic reality is that the response to the Great Commission has seen far too much omission. Jesus said we are to “Go,” and we seldom do. Not only do we not go to unreached people groups, we don’t often go to other countries. In fact, we don’t go to the needy parts of our own town, or even to share the Gospel with our next-door neighbor who never goes to church. We have omitted “Go.” Go is a word implying intentional action. To be content to meet in our churches with ourselves is almost the opposite of “Go.”
We have omitted the evangelization that results in conversions, leading to baptisms. Most Christians never present the message of the Gospel to another person, with an invitation to repent and turn to Christ. Few Christians ever pray with a person to receive Christ as their Lord and Savior. It is something we have omitted.
We have omitted the teaching of all that Jesus commanded, which is also a part of the Great Commission. If we do evangelize, and someone comes to Christ, we often don’t follow up in the process of discipleship. Making disciples is hard work and time consuming, and we often just don’t bother with it. Churches often only teach believers to follow some of what Jesus commanded, rather than all.
Learn to Obey
Even if we teach what Jesus commanded, we often fail to train believers to OBEY all that Jesus commanded. Many believers have been taught The Great Commission, and know what it is, but fewer have actually been taught to obey it. Sadly, in all of our sins of omission, the great omission is the Great Commission.
As Lent commences on Ash Wednesday, we are entering a time of introspection and prayer leading to Easter. Let us reflect on the significance of death preceding resurrection, urging readers to embrace a daily practice of surrendering self in preparation for our spiritual transformation.