In these few verses, Jesus clearly sets forth what He wants His followers to be doing – Make disciples of all nations!
Jesus gives the GC with one word of command and 3 participles that explain how the command is to be carried out.
What is a disciple?
Disciples of Jesus are people who follow Jesus, learning from Him in order to become like Him.
What does this entail? How do we make disciples?
Remember the 3 participles explain what making disciples involves. Going, baptizing, and teaching.
1) Going = engaging the lost with the Gospel of Jesus Christ
2) Baptizing = calling for public faith in Jesus Christ
3) Teaching = making sure the commands of Jesus are known and obeyed.
What are we to be doing? A = Making disciples through the prayerful ministry of the Word!
Two points of Explanation:
1) Every believer is to be a disciple maker.
Let's be a church that calls each other to believe in, trust in, and know in greater ways the Gospel of Jesus Christ.
2) The church equips you to make disciples.
The gathering of the church is not only one of the main environments where disciples are made, but also the training grounds where disciple-makers are made.
Through personal relationship, prayer, teaching, modeling, and practical instruction, we want to see people grow in:
• Conviction – their knowledge of God and understanding of the Bible
• Character – the godly character and life that accords with sound doctrine
• Competency – the ability to prayerfully speak God's word to others in a variety of ways. |
