Most Christians have been taught to place the Great Commission at the centre of Christian mission. And rightly so—Jesus’ words in Matthew 28 carry enormous weight. But Scripture also offers another “commission,” articulated with equal clarity and depth by Paul, which he calls:
“the ministry of reconciliation.”
(2 Cor. 5:18–19)
Far from being optional or secondary, Paul treats reconciliation as the very identity of the people of God—our posture, our presence, our way of being in the world. And this raises a long overdue but gentle question:
How do these two biblical callings—one from Jesus’ mouth and one from Jesus’ Spirit through Paul—relate to one another?
Do they compete?
Do they overlap?
Does one give shape to the other?
This is not a question of doubt or deconstruction.
It is a question of discipleship—an attempt to let the whole Bible speak, and to hear Christ’s heart more clearly.
1. Beginning With What Jesus Actually Did
Before interpreting Jesus’ final instructions, it’s worth remembering Jesus’ public life:
- He spent far more time healing, reconciling, restoring, and lifting shame than He did instructing His disciples on methods of evangelism.
- He embodied reconciliation: moving toward the outcast, crossing hostile boundaries, dignifying the unclean, and revealing the Father as “slow to anger, rich in love.”
- And strikingly, He often sent people back into their community rather than adding them to His travelling group.
“Go home and tell what God has done for you.”
(Mark 5:19)
This is not anti-evangelistic.
It is deeply reconciling: God’s mercy flowing outward through ordinary lives.
Even more surprisingly:
Jesus sometimes tells people to go and learn from religious leaders He knows are hypocrites.
Why?
Not because the leaders were good, but because Jesus trusts the Scriptures those leaders sit under. He trusts that humble seekers, even under imperfect teachers, will find life if their hearts are inclined toward God. This is profoundly reconciling—it acknowledges that God can work in messy, imperfect situations.
2. Paul: The Bridge Between Reconciliation and Commission
Paul’s life is helpful here because he embodies the Great Commission and the Ministry of Reconciliation. But his priority is unmistakable:
He grounds everything in who we are in Christ, not what we accomplish for Him.
This is why Paul can write:
- “Make it your ambition to live quietly…” (1 Thess. 4:11–12)
- “Let your gentleness be evident to all…” (Phil. 4:5)
- “God… has committed to us the ministry of reconciliation…” (2 Cor. 5:18–19)
For Paul, evangelism springs from character.
Commission flows from reconciliation.
Proclamation flows from presence.
We speak because we are becoming Christlike—slow to anger, merciful, patient, peaceable.
This is why he teaches disciples to “imitate me,” not because he is sinless, but because he is continually learning how to let Christ’s character shape his weakness.
We cannot imitate Jesus’ repentance or His sinlessness.
But we can imitate Paul’s humility, dependence, and Christlike posture.
3. Jesus’ Message to the Seven Churches: His Own Evaluation Metrics
If we want to know Christ’s priorities for His people, Revelation 2–3 is a treasure we rarely consult.
Here is Jesus—the risen Lord—evaluating actual churches.
What does He praise?
- perseverance in suffering
- faithfulness under pressure
- love, humility, and repentance
- endurance, purity, and steadfastness
What does He rebuke?
- abandoning first love
- tolerating destructive teaching
- pride
- spiritual complacency
- being alive in reputation but dead in reality
- lukewarmness
- misplaced confidence
Not once does Jesus praise:
- size
- growth
- numbers
- multiplication
- strategic success
- outward impressiveness
Quite the opposite:
He warns that human “success” can be spiritually catastrophic.
“You say, ‘I am rich…’
but you do not realise that you are wretched, pitiful, poor, blind and naked.”
(Rev. 3:17)
In other words, the Great Commission cannot be measured by human metrics.
Without humility, perseverance, holiness, and mercy, it easily becomes distorted.
4. So How Do These Two Callings Fit Together?
Here is a simple, biblically grounded framework:
**The Ministry of Reconciliation is the posture.
The Great Commission is the overflow.**
Reconciliation is who we are becoming in Christ.
The Great Commission is what naturally flows from a life formed by Christ.
When we embody reconciliation:
- people become receptive
- conversations become meaningful
- discipleship becomes relational
- evangelism stops sounding like argument and starts sounding like hope
And when Jesus says,
“Stay in the house that receives you” (Luke 10:7),
He is describing a principle that matches reconciliation perfectly:
Be faithful with the receptive.
Invest in the humble.
Deepen what God is doing.
Don’t chase applause or numbers.
Don’t force doors that are closed.
The Great Commission is not a frantic strategy—it is patient sowing, discerning investment, and trust in God’s timing.
Or in other words:
“Sow seeds always, but invest more deeply in responsible, receptive, humble hearts.”
That is exactly how Jesus discipled, and it is exactly how Paul planted churches.
5. A Final Reflection: Strength in Weakness, Power in Mercy
As one person put it:
“We learn from Paul what it means to boast in weakness so that the power of God may rest on us.”
That is the heart of the interplay.
The Great Commission without reconciliation becomes human effort.
Reconciliation without commission becomes inward and static.
But together—grounded in humility, weakness, gentleness, and mercy—they reveal the very character of Christ.
And when the world sees that character, the Great Commission naturally unfolds.
Paul's Apprentice 