Last week, we considered whether or not the Word of God is
enough. Is it really enough to bring us
together? Do we have that desire to know
God more, to see what He reveals to us?
Do we really want to grow in Christ?
Do we desire to come together to do that? Is it really enough?
Today, I want us to think about what are we to do as
Christians? What is it that we are
called to do as His church and as His people?
We look at the Word for answers. Matthew
28:19-20. The first thing that we
read in this scripture is to GO and to MAKE disciples.
Make disciples…that's an interesting thought isn't
it. What does it mean to make
disciples? We might first think it means
to get people to come to church. Surely
if we can get someone to church, we can make a disciple of them, right? Isn't that what you pay the preacher
for? Isn't that what we are doing when
we have church?
That could easily be a general consensus of the church. But, that isn't what it means to make
disciples. As a church, bringing someone
to worship isn't the definition of making disciples. Making disciples isn't something that the
pastor does for the church. Jesus didn't
say, sit in church and wait for others to come.
He also didn't say for us to bring people to church and let's see what
happens.
He told His disciples to go and to make disciples. He is telling you and me as disciples to go
and to make disciples. That is done in
our ordinary everyday lives. We make
disciples through relationships. The
church is not our mode of evangelism…our way of telling people about Jesus…our
communication with the world. The church
is the place where believers come to worship the Almighty God. We come together to know more about Him and
to worship Him. But, we go and make
disciples. The people we see in church
often are people we see on a regular basis in church. We are comfortable. These are our "church peeps".
But, what about the people you see at the grocery
store? What about the people you see at
the bank and at the doctor's office. These are people we see through our jobs and
in our lives. These are people we see
when we are doing what we do on a daily basis…not what we do on Sundays. In making disciples, we may bring them to
church. Worship is obviously really important
in the life of a follower. But, inviting
someone to church isn't the mode of making disciples.
Making disciples is living the life. It is talking with others. It is finding out what is going on with
them. It is being a friend. It is showing love when others don't. It is being there when they are down. And it is showing them God. We show them the love of God in the way we
treat them. We show them love by taking
time out of the hustle and bustle of our lives.
We don't cut people off because they don't talk or act like we do. We show love by being there. We live the example by buying a few extra
groceries in a week for the food pantry or FLOK. We live the example by showing people we are
real, with real problems…but that we serve a real Savior. We show them where our hope comes from.
Life isn't easy for anyone.
It may seem that some have it easier than others. But, no one has it easy. We all struggle. We all have things that bring us down. We all have burdens we are carrying around
that no one may not ever see. But, if we
are continually seeking out people like us…Christians…we miss the opportunity
to make disciples.
Romans 10:11-17…Powerful words! These words remind us that there is a
progression. People call on the Lord
when they believe. People believe when
they hear. People hear when someone
preaches. Someone preaches when they are
called. You may think that doesn't mean
you. You know you aren't called to be a
preacher. That may be true unless you
consider that preaching is really just proclaiming. Can you proclaim that Jesus is Savior? Can you proclaim what He has done for
you? Can you proclaim what God is doing
in your life? If so, you are called to
do what is outlined here.
Also, do you think this is referring to a Sunday morning
service? How about people hear when
someone is willing to live the life and to proclaim the truth. God calls.
He has commanded us to go and make disciples. He has given us the mission to go. He is calling…are you answering?
Make disciples…You and Me…Make disciples. We do that through relationships…we do that
through our everyday lives…we do that through mentoring and loving…we do that
through encouragement. But most importantly,
we do it through the power of the Holy Spirit.
Following the Lord…filled with the Holy Spirit…always with
the Lord…making disciples…
