The Rest Of The Story!

Therefore go and make disciples of all nations baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age. Matthew 28:18-20 from The Message

Paul Harvey is famous for his features entitled, “The Rest of the Story.” The premise here is that there are stories which are compelling, interesting, and fascinating, but they reach a point where it seems that the story is complete. Paul Harvey’s idea was that there is more, and what is more, what is to come could be even more compelling than the story which preceded it!

The Christian’s reaction to Easter and the resurrection can be like one of those Paul Harvey features. The words, “It is finished”, don’t need to apply to the Christian and the work that is now before us. We have agonized over the events that led up to the cross, felt the passion of Good Friday, sung “Hallelujahs” on Easter morning, but now, we have before us the rest of the story.

After the resurrection, Christ was seen by Peter and then by the Twelve. He was also seen by more than 500 followers at one time, and finally by James and later by all the apostles. The Bible says, “He was raised from the dead on the third day, just as the Scriptures said.” In order to prove this true, Jesus finished the story by appearing to those who recorded seeing him.

Over two thousand years ago, Christ shared the power of The Great Commission with his disciples and gave them their orders. It is a mandate for all Christ’s followers, then and now. The great commission as recorded in Matthew 28 gives us three things to remember as we strive to continue the rest of the story. Briefly it states, that God has all authority, He is the God of all nations, and He is always present.

Jesus sent the disciples out with a new power after the resurrection. They reached more people in their revitalized ministry and established God’s church in various places. The fact is that the world needs to hear, see, and feel God’s love, and we, as Christians, have been given power to spread that love. The church is not a building, but rather people with a new power and purpose for Christ.

After the resurrection, the disciples also had a new perspective. They began to live authentic lives with complete transparency while taking the message of Jesus to the people. It’s our job to continue the mission and tell the rest of the story. The disciples turned the world upside down, and we can, too.

Jesus taught the disciples to demonstrate and exhibit Christ like qualities through their changed lives. They were commissioned to present Christ and His love in action. Christ’s words, “Go therefore,” apply to all of us as we go to work to spread the love in our community, our homes, and our world.

Josh McDowell tells the story of a corporate headhunter who liked to get potential executives relaxed, then look then squarely in the eye and ask about their purpose in life. Most were shocked and fell apart under the question. One day after talking for a while to a man named Bob, the headhunter leaned over, looked into his eyes and said, “And, what’s your purpose in life?” Without blinking, Bob replied, “To go to heaven and take as many people with me as I can.”

Today, someone’s eternal destiny may rest on our willingness to share God’s love with them. That’s our God given assignment, and in order to complete the rest of the story, we have to be willing to do it. How the rest of the story goes is up to us!

The hymn Tell Me The Stories of Jesus was written by William Henry Parker in 1885. His Sunday School class requested Parker to “tell them another story of Jesus”, and from that request came the six verse hymn. The first verse below speaks to how people long to hear the stories.

Tell me the stories of Jesus I love to hear; Things I would ask Him to tell me if He were here. Scenes by the wayside, tales of the sea; Stories of Jesus, tell them to me.