Part 1 - "Going then, disciple..."

"Going then, disciple..."

An exposition of Matt. 28:19-20 for small groups.

Half of all American churches have less than 75 people who attend, and 90% have 350 or less.

What does that have to do with discipleship? There's a good chance that you've heard the expression, "It's easier to hide in a larger church", and the accompanying issue is that larger churches have to work very hard to accomplish the discipling that happens organically in smaller groups. The result is that as a church gets bigger, it has to work harder to get smaller.

Why is smaller important?

Matt. 28:16-20 helps us with that. If we look at the chapters leading up to chapter 28 we find that; in chapter 20 Jesus calls the twelve aside to remind them once again that is about to die, but a few verses later we are told that a "great crowd" followed him, even the two blind men after their sight is restored at the end of the chapter.

From chapter 21 to 25 there is little doubt that Jesus Christ was spending large amounts of time in front of the large groups of people teaching, rather than the time He had given to His smaller group of disciples, as the debate over who He was continued.

Then, in chapter 26, a very interesting thing occurs as Jesus begins to spend more time with the group referred to as "His disciples" again - giving them much more specific information about His soon coming death. But we must be careful, because that group was probably not the twelve apostles only.

In verse 14 we are told that "Judas, one of the twelve..." sold the secret meeting place of Jesus to the chief priests. In the remainder of the chapter the word "disciples" is separated from "the twelve" that He is reclining at the table with.

A study of the various sized groups Jesus spent His time with is a fascinating one, but we want to focus precisely on the group that He is working with when He gives the Great Commission. He has gone back and forth between the time He spent with the crowds, with the large groups, the time He spends with the smaller group of "disciples", and the time He spends with the twelve men we know as the apostles.

In chapter 28 we are told that the "eleven disciples" go to meet Jesus on the mountain. During this time these eleven men are given what we very appropriately refer to as the "Great Commission". These are His closest friends, His confidantes, His inner circle. It is not the only group He works with, it is just the one that He expects to take over a high level of leadership in the soon coming Church.

As we pursue the concepts of the "Great Commission" and the way we relate it to the early believers, the Church triumphant as a whole, and to one's own church in particular, we would do well to keep those various sized groups in mind. So, with His closest friends and followers waiting anxiously to hear what comes next; following His amazing resurrection from the dead, He speaks those mesmerizing, unique, and sometimes problematic, words..."Go, therefore, and make disciples..."

If we are committed to fulfilling His desire in this area, we would do well to understand what He was asking His followers, His disciples, His apostles to do. We must be able to apply that understanding to the way in which it impacts the local church today and into the future.

"Go, therefore..." is much more adequately understood, "As you are on life's journey..." or "As you are going..."

Imagine trying to teach a young child to bake a cake. There are a couple of ways we could do it. We could lay out the instructions and tell them, "You need to follow the directions, and when you're done I'll come back and check your work." Probably anyone that is a parent would say that this method is a recipe for disaster.

A better way to begin the process of learning to bake a finished, appetizing cake. We add unknown information to things they already know, to guide the process rather than expect them to pick up everything at once. Incorporating new activities into things that are already known and used makes it easier to accomplish the new activity.

I think sometimes the struggle we have with the whole issue of reaching out to those unbelievers around us is the fact that we believe it is something we do as a ministry or exercise. Something we separate from our daily, usual activities. We say, "Today I'm going to share the Gospel with someone", or "Let's make it our mission as a church to reach out to those around us this week."

While there is nothing wrong with those types of emphasis, with that mindset, and there is a place for those types of exercises; they must be placed within the very specific category of ministries and programs of the church. For the follower of Jesus Christ, sharing the Gospel isn't a choice we get to make, it's not something that we choose to do or not do. It is much more a part of who we are. "As you are going about your life, make disciples..." As you are involved in the life, job, and career God has given you (whether that's a mechanic, a teacher, a farmer, or a full-time vocational minister)", as you are involved in the life God has given you, make disciples."

I love the idea that someone once shared with me of being an "ordained" worker. Someone who is intentional about using where God has put them. An ordained plumber or laborer is just as important to the Great Commission - and maybe more so - than an ordained minister.

"As you are involved in the life God has given you...make disciples."

Here's were our second problem arises, because we think that we are called to MAKE followers of Jesus Christ. Our translation of the single word used here into two words causes us to believe that we are to do the job of turning people into followers of Jesus Christ. But the word "make" is not a part of the construction of the sentence. The word "matheteuo" is the verb form of the noun for "learner, pupil, or disciple", and can also be translated as "train in discipleship".

We are called to teach or train those we come into contact with as we are going about the journey of our lives. We are NOT called to "make" followers of Jesus Christ, we cannot make a follower. We struggle when we move our abilities and interject them into the Work that only God can do.

Let's try our example of teaching a young child how to do something new. This time let's imagine that a father is trying to teach a twelve year old how to shoot a three point shot. If your child is like many that age, the whole concept for them is, get as much "oomph" into either the right or left arm as possible and throw the ball at the rim. The second arm does little more than steady the ball.

I think most of us would say, "Let's start out a little closer to the basket where we can actually control the ball, and then move further away as we develop strength, rhythm, and control."

That's the idea here as well. We are to begin an ongoing process of helping an unbeliever become a devoted follower of Jesus Christ. It's not a quick activity, and it's certainly not simply sharing the Gospel and then leaving them alone.