What? Why? and the How? of Discipleship
Richard Greene already answered these questions and I have taken limited liberties with arrangement and minimal additions indicated with a (+).
WHAT IS A DISCIPLE?
A disciple is a Spirit-transformed follower of Jesus Christ.
Making disciples involves: Transformation, Character development, Behavioral change.
Three essential steps every disciple engages. (Mark 8:34):
- Deny yourself. A process of daily discipline.
- Take up your cross. A surrender of your whole life. A willingness to obey all He has commanded.
- Follow Jesus. A lifestyle of obedience. (+) Obedience is demonstrated by walking in His footsteps.
*Jesus commands us to do so.
*Jesus made them +and we must do what He did.
*(+) We are commanded to "be fruitful and multiply".
*(+) Disciple making is God's method of bringing people to Himself and bringing transformation to humankind.
*Making disciples is the only way we can reach our generation for Christ.
HOW DO WE MAKE DISCIPLES?
(+) We make disciples through intentional and incarnational living in the world with all the authority, name, word and presence of Jesus.
(+) The Mandate for making disciples is found in the Great Commission and it is a "Supreme" command and it is consistent with the heart of God throughout scripture to be fruitful and multiply. How are all believers to fulfill the supreme priorities of the Great Commission?
Matthew 28:19-20 "Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and Son and the Holy Spirit. Teach these new disciples to obey all the commands I have given you. And be sure of this: I am with you always, even to the end of the age." (NLT)
"Go" means that we are to do evangelism. To make a disciple of Christ, we must bring that person to Christ to be forgiven and cleansed from his sins.
The word "Baptize" tells us what we are to do after we have brought them to Jesus. Baptism brings them into the Church. Jesus is telling us that it is from the context of their relationship with the Church that new believers can best follow Him as a disciple.
"Teach to Obey" is the third step in making disciples. A disciple is a follower. He is one who has dedicated his life to follow the teachings of his master. Jesus said we are to teach His disciples to "observe" (or obey) everything He has commanded us. The commands of Christ are not just rules to observe; they are a way of life. That is why discipleship begins with obedience. Jesus said in Luke 6:46, "Why do you call Me, 'Lord, Lord,' and do not do what I say?" Obedience is the proof of our love for Christ (John 14:15, 23-24).
(+) I would add, all believers are commanded to make disciples and doing so is easier than you think outside of the American church model for disciple-making.
posted by Bob Carder @ 12:26 PM
16 comments
16 Comments:
Many people want Jesus but without obedience to Him. I see many believers, but few disciples.
ya got that right. Keep plowing and let's not back off the cost of being a true disciple.
I'm finding that people don't really get that excited about disciple-making. Imagine that!
Three essential steps every disciple engages. (Mark 8:34):
Hey Bob,
Ok, if the 3 marks of being a disciple are these:
Deny yourself: A process of daily discipline.
Take up your cross: A surrender of your whole life. A willingness to obey all He has commanded.
Follow Jesus: A lifestyle of obedience. (+) Obedience is demonstrated by walking in His footsteps
Which I agree they are...
Then how does one go about MAKING a person deny himself...take up his Cross...and follow?
One doesn't MAKE a person do those things. They are the fruit, the product of a changed heart. We can no more MAKE people live this way than we can make an orange tree produce walnuts.
The Pharisees were masters at trying to MAKE people obey.
Our job is to create environments in which people experience the reality of God's presence. A changed heart comes about through a real encounter with God...not through a demand for obedience.
I agree with you totally Bill...But look at the language of the post:
Making disciples involves: Transformation, Character development, Behavioral change.
WHY MAKE DISCIPLES?
HOW DO WE MAKE DISCIPLES?
We make disciples through intentional and incarnational living in the world with all the authority, name, word and presence of Jesus.
I could go on and on, and to be honest...even the scripture itself tells us to "Go and make" Disciples.
But if the the steps that each person must choose is to: Deny themselve, take up their cross, and follow...then how do we effect that change?
I mean we can be intentional and incarnational living amongst people as the presence of Jesus...but does it follow that we "make" them disciples?
The problem for me here is one of the translation, and how it has become common place. So much so that we think we can actually "make" people do something.
I could be wrong here, as my knowledge of Greek is limited and growing...but the greek word here that is translate (In Matt 28) is the word: "Matheteuo" and in context it means "to teach, instruct". This meaning is very very far from the word "make". Basically the command is: go and teach and instruct them how to be a disciple, which leaves the bulk of the disipling process up to God/The Holy Spirit, and the other persons response to the teaching and instruction we give them.
The reason why this is a big deal to me is because it seems to me that we are pigeonholing the discipling "process" into a process that:
A: negates the work of the spirit
B: puts to much emphasis on the messenger
C: Lets the messegee off the hook and blames lack of change on "the american Church", or on one's personal lack of being obedient.
Its one thing to say that the American conusmerist Church is broken and needs fixing, or re-envisioning (which it does), but its another thing to say that they carry ALL of the responsibility for true disciples not being made.
Spam - sounds like only three possible blames here. The church or discipler, the professing Christian, or God.
I cannot blame God. I could blame the professing christian if it were not for the enabling consumer offering of the modern church. It is our job to teach, model and empower. God will work with us in the process.
i think the meaning of the word you reference is a little deeper than teach. It is teach to do or follow. it is not simple head knowledge but rather head knowledge in action. Our part is to model the action and this is what i think is really lacking in the modern church. The majority of church attenders never get this type of teaching.
If a person wants Jesus after we have built a relationship with them in our everyday real lives experiences, we lead them to Jesus and show them the cost of discipleship and many will follow.
Spam is right -you cannot make anyone do anything. But when people find Jesus you don't need to coerce them.
Spam it is all about the Holy Spirit leading us to the person who is receptive to God and it is about the Holy Spirit leading that person to Jesus and it is about Jesus leading the process of discipleship.
These points are biblical benchmarks dependant entirely on the leadership of God's Spirit. Man can do nothing without the Holy Spirit regarding eternal significance.
Glad you posted.
Terry, you are on to something, weteach new believers to obey all that God commands and it up to them to do so.
By the way, in the American church this is missing not because we try to force obedience but because they choose not to obey.
Over the years words become loaded with baggage and layers of meaning. The Greek word usually translated 'to make disciples' comes from the Greek noun meaning student or pupil and the verb 'to learn.' The verb is still used in modern Greek to mean 'to learn.' Later in Matthew 28 a different verb 'to teach' is specifically used.
The primariy emphasis on the GC is not on teaching, but on learning. teaching is simply a means to learning. We may teach, but if they're not learning we haven't made a disciple, which is why we need to reevaluate much of what we're doing in church. Quite obviously, people aren't learning.
The goal went beyond cognative knowledge. Rabbis were hoping that their students would adopt their lifestyle and worldview.
The question is: what is our role and what is God's role? According to the Great Commission we must 1) go, 2) baptize into the Trinity (and by implication the Christian community), and 3) teaching them to obey all Christ commanded.
Other scriptures shed more light on this. In Col. 3:12-17 Paul describes the transformation that takes place when the word of God indwells a person. This comes through 1) mutual teaching, 2) singing spiritual songs, and 3) giving thanks to God (eucharisto from which we get Eucharist). The transformation in character is the work of God that happens when these three things are present. It begins with God (we are chosen, holy, and loved - verse 12), but requires our participation (to 'put on,' 'let the peace of God reign,' and 'let the word of God dwell.')
Some have argued that these three elements (teaching, singing, and Eucharist) are the elements of liturgy and support the role of corporate worship in the process of transformational discipleship.
Rick, a person is taught to obey when they do obey. Real learning takes place as people live out what they know or have been taught. Learning is more than head knowlege - it has occured when we have changed minds, hearts and lifestyles.
SPAM, Making disciples by obeying the mandate or purposes of the Great Commission is easier than people make it.
*Do you know Jesus?
*Are you spending time in relationship with someone who does not know Jesus?
*Do they see Jesus and your love for Jesus and them? Your goal is to reproduce the Christ you know into the lives of others. We know Him to show others the way to Him and all we know about Him.
I mentioned those several things because Jesus mentioned them and our (His)new disciples need to consider the cost of following Jesus.
Bob - you wrote: a person is taught to obey when they do obey. Real learning takes place as people live out what they know or have been taught. Learning is more than head knowlege - it has occured when we have changed minds, hearts and lifestyles.
I couldn't agree more.
Yesterday I taught from Col 3 (see previous note). Paul says to put on mercy, humility, kindness, etc. These are qualities that obviously go much deeper than simply obeying certain rules like don't have pre-marital sex, tithe, etc. They are qualities of a true disciple.
There's lots of talk of transformation, but what is our role in that process? I've got some ideas, but I'm more interested in what you might have to say.
Terry,
You may be right about your definition being "to teach to do or follow", but that would presuppose something that I think is arrogant on our part: Namely that if we teach to do or follow, that it naturally follows that they will do or follow.
My point is that we do not "make" disciples. We may "teach to do or follow" but it does not follow that they will. And I really don't think that all the blame goes into the hands of the "American" Church. It carries a large burden yes, but the Church is still people...and we can lead out in the most proper and Bibical way...we can "teach to do or to follow" and people will still not follow.
I just cringe sometimes when I read this because I wonder what happens to the guy who is living the way of Jesus, the way that you guys here on this blog seem to interpret as the proper way of living (which I agree is the proper way to "be" the Church)...what happens to that guy when he doesn't see anyone come follow Jesus because of his influence? Will we chastize him and say that he is not "really" living the way we are calling him to live, or will we come to the conclusion that we are wrong and start all over again (as we seem to be doing in reaction to the american consumerist church).
I propose a better way...Lets just live and lead out that way Jesus wants us to live...and leave all the conjecture behind. A truly mature person in Christ, hands these things over to God.
Spam – I have heard it said that we teach what we know but reproduce what we are.
We do not need to assess blame for a disciple not following because by definition they are not a disciple unless they do follow. They may be a church attendee or a church member but they are not a disciple of Christ. The question becomes now does the church enable people to believe they are disciples without denying themselves, surrendering their life and living in obedience?
Do you believe the American church is, for the most part, leading in the most proper and Biblical way? Do you see church leadership that promotes unity among Christians regardless of denominational barriers? How about just promoting unity and working together locally within each denomination. Do they actually work together in your community to end hunger, homelessness, and other social ills? Do you see churches promoting service to the church program or service to the widows and orphans? Do you see church leaders asking each member to develop their passions and then use that passion to reach the lost or do you see the leaders stifle those who feel led to reach out in ways that don’t align with the church’s mission or programs?
I believe there are many churches in America that do these things well but there are very many that serve themselves and promote service to the church as a means of serving Christ. The better and truly mature way your reference ignores the leadership structure and responsibility that Christ outlines for us in Scripture. He must have thought we played an important role or He would have told us to focus on ourselves and let Him worry about the rest but instead He said that leaders and teachers must give an account. This indicates we have influence and responsibility that must be taken seriously.
As for the hypothetical guy that may get chastised for his lack of success…. I do believe that Christ guarantees the results. If you see no fruit in your life then it is time for self-examination. If you were one of my disciples I would simply help you assess your spiritual health and look at what you have been doing. Many times we walk in our own strength and find ourselves with very little fruit. This is what I see in the American church. This is what I hope to do here, promote self-examination of what we do as individuals and as a church. I think Scripture is clear that there will be different levels of fruitfulness in the lives of different believers.
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