Monday, November 28, 2005
Making Disciples
So everywhere we go, we tell everyone about Christ. We warn them and teach them with all the wisdom God has given us, for we want to present them to God, perfect in their relationship to Christ.
—Colossians 1:28
What does it mean to make disciples? Matthew 28:20 defines it for us. Simply put, it means to teach others to observe what Jesus has said. To disciple people is to live out our faith in this world, to share it with others, to teach it by word, and to model it by example. The concept of going into all the world and making disciples is to share our faith, to seek to lead people to Christ, and then to the best of our ability, help them become spiritually mature.
Somewhere along the way, we have separated evangelism from discipleship. But no such distinction is given in Scripture. They are part of each other. The idea is not just to share the gospel, lead someone in a decision for Christ, and then say, “God bless you. See you later.” We wouldn’t do that any more than a doctor delivering a baby would give the newborn a package of diapers, set him out on the sidewalk, and then say, “OK, son. It has been good to be with you for this brief time. All the best to you.” A baby needs to be nurtured, loved, and cared for. And so does a new believer.
To make disciples is to help new believers grow spiritually and become dedicated, committed, faithful, mature disciples of Jesus, and in turn, repeat the process with someone else. To make disciples is to reproduce yourself. It is to bring others to Christ, help them get on their feet spiritually, and then do that again and again.
Copyright © 2004 by Harvest Ministries. All rights reserved.
Scripture taken from the New King James Version. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved. Bible text from the New King James Version is not to be reproduced in copies or otherwise by any means except as permitted in writing by Thomas Nelson, Inc., Attn: Bible Rights and Permissions, P.O. Box 141000, Nashville, TN 37214-1000.