The Essentials of Discipleship:
"Make Disciples" [Part 1 of 12]

Last summer I sent a letter to all of the officers of the church as
well as to some of the associates involved in the Prayer Breakfast movement, and I asked the question, "What do you think are the essential qualities of a true disciple of Jesus Christ—qualities or disciplines to which you, yourself, are committed?" I received twenty-eight wonderful letters, and there’s a sense in which the messages for the next twelve weeks will be coming out of those letters.

Plus, in these upcoming services, I’m going to expect to dialogue
with members of the congregation. I won’t call on anybody in particular, but I’m going to ask you to respond to what I said that morning. Hopefully, some will disagree—which I think will make it interesting. I know that it will be difficult for anyone to just stand up and disagree with the pastor, but you know, that could be the healthiest thing in the world for a preacher. You're kind of protected in the pulpit, and you begin to think that if you say something, then it’s true just because you’ve said it. Nobody ever disagrees with you. Well, that’s not exactly true (laughter)—but the point I’m making is that we want to have a kind of dialogue.

Each Sunday I’m going to ask a man and a woman and a youth to respond, and they’ll do it at the microphone, and I may respond to them.

Another point I want to make is that what we’re going to be doing in these next sermons impinges on every member of the congregation. As pastors, we have discussed this, and feel that since the Lord has been blessing this congregation, He now wants it to open up to the world in a way it never has before. In order to do this, we believe it involves a kind of education process. And because it is the responsibility of every member of the congregation, rather than conduct a separate school sometime during the week, we believe that the only time to do it is Sunday morning.

Now the passage of Scripture for our consideration this morning is so very familiar that I realize it is impossible for me to say anything new about it. I risk redundancy, but I don’t apologize, because this is introductory to the whole idea of discipleship. It sets the scene, as it were, establishing the fundamentals.

Fundamentals are important. The greatest professional and college football coaches are those who run their players through the fundamentals, even though those players—especially when they’re pros—do them almost by second nature. But they keep working on fundamentals.

Unfortunately, in Christian circles the word "fundamental" has had some bad connotations. Let’s not sabotage the word—it’s a good word. It’s essential to life, and we need again and again to be brought back to fundamentals. We need to be "fundamentalistic" in the best sense of that word. This passage in Matthew 28 is fundamental to understanding ourselves as a church—as a body of Christ—as a fellowship of believers. It is fundamental to understanding our role in history. It is fundamental to understanding mission.

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 lo, I am with you always, to the close of the age (Matthew 28:19, 20).

Here we have in the first word, "Go," the principle of dispersion— the Diaspora. This word "go" in the original language is not an imperative—it is not a mandate. It is a participle in form. Jesus Christ is not commanding "Go," but He’s saying, in effect, "As you go…." Or "Going…." Or "Wherever you go…." Or, by implication, "Wherever you are…."

This is the Divine strategy in history. In the sixth century before Christ, the Southern Kingdom, Judah—which had lasted just about 200 years longer than the Northern Kingdom—was conquered, taken captive and exiled. From that time—nearly 600 years before Christ—until a little over 25 years ago, the Old Testament people of God—Israel—the Jews—were dispersed throughout the world. But I remind you that it was this very dispersion of Israel through difficult circumstances that prepared the world for the coming of Jesus Christ Who was to be born in Bethlehem.

When we read at Christmastime, "The wise men came from a great distance…"—where did they get this information? They got it from dispersed Jews. Wherever the Jew went, he went with his belief in one God—his monotheism. He went with his book—the Old Testament. He went with the high moral and ethical standards that were unique in the Roman world—and had been in the Greek and in the Persian and in the Syrian empires before that. The Jews in their dispersion were like a "benevolent infection," preserving the world like salt. They also went with their beliefs in a coming King—in a coming Messiah—in a coming Anointed One.

This is our Lord’s strategy. What I’m saying is that the authentic, maximum impact of the Church of Jesus Christ—whether the Old Testament church, Israel, or the New Testament church since Pentecost—is not a corporate or an institutional impact. That is minimal. The authentic and greatest impact of the Church of Jesus Christ is the aggregate of individual believers as they are dispersed, infiltrating all of the social order like a benevolent infection.

People don't think this way about the church. They typically think of the influence of the church in terms of the institution, the organization, or the corporate form. We constantly hear the criticism, "The church isn’t doing anything in the world!" Well, what are you doing all week between Sundays? You’re not doing nothing—you’re doing something. And your brothers and sisters in Christ all over the world—between Sundays, when they’re not visible in corporate form—are doing something. And believe me, they’re doing a lot of things to meet the tragedy and need and ills of the world.

That’s what Jesus is saying here. "As you go…." Just think of the exciting prospects right here in this congregation as this service ends and you disperse back to your homes and to your neighborhoods…. And as the children and young people go to school tomorrow morning—all of those schools and campuses. We’ve got college young people on over a hundred campuses in the United States. And as all of you go to your offices and to your jobs—just think of the influence of this one church when she’s invisible and in dispersion.

The mandate comes in the next word. "As you go, teach…." It’s an interesting word. It means literally "to disciple," "to instruct," "to enroll as a scholar." In the intransitive form, it comes out, "to become a pupil." So you can really translate it this way—"As you go, make learners everywhere."

That’s the strategy, you see. You don’t try to get them in a classroom—in a church building—or in the sanctuary. That's the way church thinks. We have advertisements, we have buses, and we do everything we can to try to get the world to come to church—when all the time the Lord Jesus is sending the church out into the world where the work of the church is really being done all week. After they’ve seen what you’re doing out there in dispersion during the week, they'll be drawn into a community of believers of one kind or another.

The work of the church isn’t being done while we’re here. While we’re here, we’re being equipped to do the work of the church, which lies out there in the world and is to be done between Sundays. We don’t do the "work of the church" on Sunday morning. That’s "church work"—in order that the work of the church may be done. "Make disciples." "Make learners."

There ought to be something about you—a quality of life as a follower of Christ—your desire that those around you know what you have experienced in Christ—that they know of your joy—of His healing power—that they pick up from just being around you. You'll be communicating this verbally occasionally, but most of the time nonverbally. And then, as those people out there in the world are infected by the "benevolent infection" of your faith, they will find their way into a community of believers somewhere. That’s the pattern of the Great Commission.

So here at Fourth Presbyterian Church, we don’t make any effort at all to get the world to come to church on Sunday morning. We don’t think that way or plan that way—as though you’ve achieved some tremendous goal when you get a lot of people inside a peculiar building called a "church." Jesus is saying, "Wherever you go—or as you go—or wherever you are, make disciples. Make learners." That’s the mandate. That's the imperative.

Then Jesus adds, "baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit…." That word "baptizing" is also in the participle form.

You make learners of them—then they’re baptized—then they’re taught. What are they taught?—"to do whatsoever Christ commanded." They’re taught to obey Jesus Christ.

I want to refer you to the second chapter of Acts. Peter is in the midst of his sermon. The Spirit of God has brought great conviction on the devout Jews that are gathered, and according to the Scripture, "they were cut to the heart." They said to Peter and to the rest of the apostles, "Brethren, what shall we do?" Now, notice Peter’s statement. I’m sure that he’s thinking about Matthew 28:18, 19, and 20.

Repent and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins; and you shall receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. For the promise is to you and to your children and to all that are afar off, every one whom the Lord our God calls to Him (Acts 2:38, 39).

The record tells us that that day 3,000 Jews were baptized. Three thousand repented, received forgiveness of sin, and were given the gift of the Holy Spirit. They didn’t have to wait for it. You don’t have to wait for the Holy Spirit anymore—He came at Pentecost. He’s here. And wherever He finds faith, He enters. And then Peter adds in the 39th verse, "This promise is for you, and it’s for your children, and it’s for everybody God calls." This idea that you’ve got to go through some kind of a waiting period—a preparatory period—to receive the Holy Spirit in some new way—you can’t find that in the Bible.

The reason I make a point of that is, when he says "As you go, make learners," I'm sure many of you think to yourself, "How in the world can I do that? I’m not a teacher. I haven’t had any training as a teacher." The answer is that the Master Teacher is going to do it through you.

Look at the incredible assurance given in verses 18 and 20. Verse 18—"All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to Me." How much authority has been given to Jesus Christ? All authority. Where? In heaven and on earth.

Now notice it isn’t given to us—it's given to Him.

How is that relevant for us? Look at verse 20. "Lo, I am with you always, even to the ends of the earth." That can also be translated, "… to the close of the age." He's saying, "I’m with you wherever you go—to end of time."

Do you ever go anywhere that Jesus Christ is not with you? Do you? Can you be any place where He is not with you? Can you be in any situation where He is not with you? No, you can’t, unless He’s deceiving us with these words. You’re never alone, and whatever your circumstances, you’re not in them alone. With you is the One who has all authority in heaven and on earth. You can’t lose! You can’t help but be a winner, because you have the Great Winner of history with you! As a matter of fact, the substance of Pentecost was that He is in you in the person of His Holy Spirit, and the Holy Spirit will do in and through you the very things He did in and through Jesus Christ. That’s the promise in the last discourse. "If you believe in me, the works I do, you shall do also."

Now do you get the picture? When Jesus Christ was on the earth in His own incarnation, He could only be at one place at one time. Because He was in a body of flesh, He was limited precisely as we are limited. When He was in Nazareth, He couldn’t be at Capernaum or Jerusalem. When He was on the Sea of Galilee, He couldn’t be any other place. He could only be at one place at one time. But now, in any given moment—because of Pentecost— because of this Divine strategy of dispersion—where is Jesus Christ? Where is He right now? Well, He’s with us, here at Fourth Presbyterian Church. And He's with River Road Presbyterian Church, just down the road a little ways. And he's with St. Andrews Methodist down there a little ways. Concord Church, a little farther—He’s with them. The Catholic Church down here—He’s with them. Bethesda Presbyterian Church and Baptist churches together over there—He’s with them. Bradley Hills Presbyterian Church over there—He’s with them. National Presbyterian Church down here—He’s with them. St. Dunstan’s Episcopal and Lutheran Church at the entrance of Sumner—He’s there with them. Farther down, Briggs Baptist and Westmoreland Congregational—He’s with them. And as all of these congregations and thousands and thousands of other congregations throughout the world are dismissed from their Sunday services and dispersed to their homes and schools and offices and jobs—Wow! What possibilities!

Just think of the potential impact of one congregation this week. Just think what could happen as we go in obedience to His word—to His mandate to "make learners" in the power of Jesus Christ, Himself. Think of His promise—and then think of the possibilities.

Let us pray.

Thank you, Father, for this wonderful truth, in Jesus’ name. Amen.

© 2000 Richard C. Halverson

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