Mat 28:20 Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you alway, [even] unto the end of the world. Amen.
Alternative: Explain to them how to take care of everything as far as I have commanded you, and see I am with you every day until the end of the age. Amen.

These are the last words of Christ. My sense is that Christ was entrusting his teaching not only to the Apostles, but to everyone who followed him. As God entrusted the world to mankind, Christ specifically entrusts his teaching to us.

Earlier today, I was thinking about the cycle of life that Christ talks about so frequently, both directly and in symbols, with the temporary realm consisting of the physical, mental, and emotional. It occurred to me that life follows a pattern: when we are born, we have few physical and mental capacities, so we rely our our emotional relationship with our parents. We grow into adulthood, developing our physical and mental powers and extending our relationships to friends and the building of our own family. However, if we live long enough, life reduces our physical and mental powers until we are, at last, relying solely on our relationships.

While all earthly emotional relationships are temporary (Christ specifically says that even marriage is just a part of this life), our emotional relationships are closer in nature to our spiritual nature than our physical or mental powers. Christ is the word, appealing to our mental powers. The Father is the physical creator. However the Holy Spirit is the master of the emotional relationships.

In his last words, Christ makes the point that he is with us, but he is not with us physically. His word or rather echoes of it remain in the Gospels, but what really remains of both the Father and the Son is the relationship, the spirit.


"Teaching" is from didaskô (didasko), which means "to teach," "to instruct," "to indicate," "to explain," and "to give sign of."

"Observe" is from têreô (tereo), which means "to watch over," "to guard," "to take care of," "to give heed to," "to keep," and "to observe."

"Whatsoever" is from hosos (hosos), which means "as many," "as much as," "as great as," "as far as," and "only so far as."

"Commanded" is from entellô (entello), which means "to enjoin," and "to command."

"Lo" is from idou (idou), which means "to behold," "to see," and "to perceive." It is a form of the verb eido.

"Am" is from eimi (eimi), which means "to exist," "to be' (as the opposite of "become"), "to be the fact," "to be possible," "to consist of," and a number of special uses.

"End" is from sunteleia (sunteleia), which means "completion" or "consumation."

"The world" is from aion (aion), which means "life," "lifetime," "age," or "generation."