Jesus, just before his ascension into heaven, gave marching orders to his followers..."go and make disciples." These simple instructions, to take the gospel to a world in need and, in so doing, bring more and more people into the flock of Christ, establish for us the entire goal of Christian ministry. Everything that exists under the banner of Christianity...every church, every denomination, every ministry organization, everything that claims to be Christian in nature and purpose exists to accomplish that one single task.
When you step back and look at it, the infrastructure that now exists worldwide in order to accomplish this mission of making disciples is hard to even fathom. Believers today are better resourced than ever before to do the work of spreading the Gospel. At the same time, our reliance on the infrastructure we have built has often resulted in complacent and spiritually immature believers who aren't able to actually articulate what they believe and why. In other words, many believers don't take ownership of the Great Commission in their own lives. This was never what Jesus intended for his followers.
The discipleship model that Jesus established was always meant to be reproducible. That is to say, disciples making disciples. We see this modeled by Jesus himself. One of the first things he did during his earthly ministry was build a team of guys around himself that he could train and equip to do the same with others. We see this same thing modeled throughout the book of Acts within the early church. There weren't seminaries to train elders. There weren't parachurch ministries that were out evangelizing the lost. It was believers, raising up leaders from within their own ranks and sending them out to raise up others. It was discipleship 101...disciples of Jesus investing in the lives of others to produce more disciples that could grow to maturity and then go out and make disciples of their own.
This week we were introduced to Timothy, a prominent figure in the early church. He was a young man who grew in the faith under the watchful care of his mother and the church family of which he was a part. By the time we encounter him in Acts chapter 16, he has already earned the respect of his community of faith. They see something special in him, and so does the Apostle Paul. Here's where things get crazy! Paul doesn't tell Timothy to invest a few years and a whole bunch of money to travel to the best seminary to get trained up. He doesn't plug him into one of the many ministry organizations or denominations so that he can work his way up the ranks. Instead, Paul invests personally in Timothy. He spends time with him. He pours into him. Shocking isn't it!?!? Paul disciples Timothy so that he can train Timothy do what he himself does...which just so happens to also be what Jesus did!
We can hear Paul's heart for Timothy in the letters he wrote to encourage him later in their relationship. Listen to the Apostle's passionate encouragement for a young man he has invested so deeply in:
"Command and teach these things. Let no one despise you for your youth, but set the believers an example in speech, in conduct, in love, in faith, in purity. Until I come, devote yourself to the public reading of Scripture, to exhortation, to teaching. Do not neglect the gift you have, which was given you by prophecy when the council of elders laid their hands on you. Practice these things, immerse yourself in them, so that all may see your progress. Keep a close watch on yourself and on the teaching. Persist in this, for by so doing you will save both yourself and your hearers" (1 Timothy 4:11-16).
Those are the words of someone who is invested...someone who really cares. This is what genuine discipleship looks like. The preaching of God's word on Sunday mornings is a gift from God for his people and we should be thankful for it. However, that cannot be the only source of training in our lives. We need to have genuine one-on-one mentoring in the form of personal relationships built with others for the purpose of edification and accountability. There are no if, ands, or buts about it! Without these vitally important people in our lives, we will not...indeed we cannot...grow as disciples of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. That's how he himself designed it to work.
I would encourage you this week to take stock of your life. Who is pouring into your life spiritually? Who is holding you accountable? At the same time, ask yourself, "Who am I pouring into?" Lastly, make an honest assessment of your church. Are you plugged in to a place that is raising up leaders and making genuine disciples who have a robust understanding of the Gospel and can themselves articulate it for the purpose of making more disciples? If so, what part are you playing in that process?
These are difficult questions that we shouldn't take lightly. If we can't answer them honestly and openly, and see the evidence of these vitally important things in our own lives and in the life our community of faith, then we should be very concerned that we are living in disobedience to the Great Commission and to our Lord who gave it to us.
In Grace,
Chris Morris
If you missed this week's sermon (or just want to listen again), follow the link below to listen. Or subscribe to our podcast in iTunes.
Part 36 - Finding Leadership, Strengthening Churches, and Spreading The Gospel
Questions discussed in this sermon:
1. How did Paul identify Timothy as a leader?
2. How did Paul strengthen the churches?
3. How did the Holy Spirit forbid Paul and Silas?
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