How does John 16:15 connect with the Great Commission in Matthew 28:18-20? The shared authority behind both passages • John 16:15—“Everything that belongs to the Father is Mine. That is why I said that the Spirit will receive from Me what is Mine and will declare it to you.” • Matthew 28:18—“All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to Me.” • The same claim: all the Father’s possessions—His authority, truth, and power—are entrusted to the Son. In John, Jesus tells the Eleven this before the cross; in Matthew He repeats it after the resurrection. The continuity is unmistakable. The Spirit bridges revelation and mission • In John 16:15 Jesus promises that the Spirit “will declare it to you.” • In Matthew 28:19–20 Jesus commands, “Go therefore and make disciples … teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you.” • What the Spirit later declares (Acts 2; 1 Corinthians 2:10) becomes the content the disciples teach. Revelation (John) fuels proclamation (Matthew). Possession → Transmission → Commission 1. Possession: The Father’s riches belong to the Son (John 16:15). 2. Transmission: The Spirit takes what is Christ’s and discloses it to the apostles (John 16:15; John 14:26). 3. Commission: The apostles pass those same riches to the nations through disciple-making, baptism, and instruction (Matthew 28:19-20). Unified Trinitarian teamwork • Father—source of authority (John 3:35). • Son—embodiment of that authority (Matthew 28:18). • Spirit—communicator of that authority (John 16:15; Acts 1:8). • Church—instrument of that authority, sent to “the end of the earth” (Acts 1:8). Practical take-aways • Confidence: We go with the identical authority Jesus affirmed in both texts. • Clarity: The message we proclaim is precisely what the Spirit preserved in Scripture. • Continuity: Our disciple-making today extends the same chain—Father to Son to Spirit to apostles to us. Summary in one line John 16:15 reveals the internal transfer of all divine authority to the Son and through the Spirit to the apostles; Matthew 28:18-20 turns that transferred authority outward, sending those apostles—and every believer after them—into the world on Christ’s mission. |
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