I’m not sure about you but somethings about the Church frustrate me. I’m upset to the point of discontentment that I want change. I’m warranted towards change, but a lets look at this and see what we should change. The bible teaches righteous anger. Jesus got angry when the people made the temple a market selling animals for sacrifice. He flipped tables and scattered the money changers. He said they made the temple a house of thieves when it was to be a house of prayer (Mark 11:15-19). I want to see the Church flip tables over the issue of discipleship. Until we are discontent with the way discipleship is counted as converting someone in the Church then nothing will be done.
If you sit back and look at most churches now a days it can be frustrating in some ways to see how most have been shaped. There is a large emphasis on the building. On Sunday mornings and the flow of the service. On small groups, community groups or whatever your church calls them. On those that come Sundays. Now granted I am all for inward care of the Church and have been doing it for about 9 years now, but when that’s the main focal point of the week we’ve lost something. We’ve in a way become selfish with our faith. We’ve forgotten about those that won’t come into a building called “church”. We’ve lost the mandate to go into the world and bless people. To make disciples of the nations.
Jesus says in Matthew 28:19-20; “Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you and behold, I am with you always, even to the end of age.”
If we really sit back and look at why Jesus says to make disciples then we must first place our understanding of modern day evangelism aside. First off the English word ‘evangelize’ comes from the Latin word ‘evangel’ meaning ‘good news”. Where we, in modern America get the word Evangelical meaning ’bringer of good news’. I love the meanings and the depth of these words, but lets place them a side real quick and dust off that joyous word ‘disciple’ mentioned in Matthew 28. The English word ‘disciple’ comes from the Latin word ‘talmadem’ meaning follower and learner (it means the same in Greek and Hebrew). It simply speaks about the one who follows, but also the teacher and leader they are following and learning from.
Francis Chan says in his book Multiply (page 30), “”Somehow we have created a church culture where the paid ministers do the ‘ministry’ and the rest of us show up, put some money in the plate and leave feeling inspired or ‘fed’. We have moved so far away from Jesus’s command that many Christians don’t have the frame of reference for what disciple making looks like.”
In fact all that follow Jesus saying, “Go, therefore and make disciples of all nations” is the very act of following to make disciples. There is no separation in Jesus’ words. Whether its baptizing people to follow Rabbi Jesus or teaching them to obey Rabbi Jesus or trust what Rabbi Jesus is saying. These are all part of the last command we see in the gospels to make disciples. Jesus doesn’t place emphasis on conversation or saying a prayer. We must go into the world and be little Christ’s to people. The cool thing about Rabbi’s and disciples is that the disciples would not only sit at the Rabbi’s feet to learn but they would also imitate their Rabbi. They would take the Rabbi’s yoke (covering and lifestyle) as their own. They trusted the Rabbi’s teaching and lifestyle as there own.
This mentality is to be or mentality. As hard as it might be we need to be disciples of Rabbi Jesus and nothing else. I see two simple things to walk as a disciples of Jesus. Learn from what Jesus taught and follow what Jesus did. Its just that simple. Its simple but hard. Its the gospel of out King Jesus and the Kingdom. Now “Go and make disciples”……
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