Discipleship Notes

A series of short discipleship notes for young Christians.

6 – Discipleship involves teaching

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When Jesus called His disciples to go and make more disciples, He gave clear and achievable goals for the mission. However, the task would be difficult, and would meet resistance often.

Text:  Matthew 28:20
Teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you…

Discipleship requires instruction. People do not put obedient faith in Jesus without being taught the gospel. New believers do not grow to maturity without being taught the doctrines and disciplines of Christlike living.

These 11 disciples had learned about sacrifice, about going to other places to obey, and about baptising the new believers from any nation. And now they were to become teachers on Jesus behalf. They would not have thought of themselves as teachers. They had no teacher training, no instruction book, no classrooms, and no students. They were dependent upon the Lord for every resource needed, and Jesus was returning to heaven.

Their students would come from the people they taught the gospel to, and they would teach them everything that Jesus had taught them over the past 3 years.

They were to equally teach Jew and gentile, saved and unsaved, religious, and irreligious people alike. They were to receive and teach everyone, no matter their past, or where they came from.

They were to pass on everything they had received from Jesus, even the things they did not fully understand themselves.

They were to teach from the Old Testament as Jesus did, and explain the parables as Jesus did. There was to be no subject overlooked or shied away from.

They were to be permanent students themselves. Always learning how to teach better on Jesus behalf. Always growing in their understanding of the Scriptures and how to explain God’s Word better so others could obey better.

This would require faith, determination, unity, a willingness to share resources, and a willingness to help each other as they work together for Jesus.

And finally, they were to teach their students to go and sacrificially do the same, making disciples on Jesus behalf.

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5 – Discipleship involves the Trinity

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Following Christ is faith in action, living as a new creation resulting from spiritual rebirth by the Holy Spirit (2Co 5:17; Tit 3:5-6; 1Pe 1:3). Therefore, reproducing Christ in others is Jesus’ authoritative work for every believer as His ambassadors. God making his appeal through us (2Co 5:20), this is NOT optional, we are to “Go”.

Text:     Matthew 28:19b
…baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit…

This is water baptism (Immersion under water), as spiritual baptism is only done by the Holy Spirit at salvation (Rom 6:1-6).

Baptism forms a picture of God the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit’s active involvement in a disciple’s life. A new believer needs to accept and submit to the controlling power of God in this truth.

Baptism is a public testimony of identity with God through faith in Jesus Christ, enabled by the Holy Spirit.

Baptism is a submissive act of obedience following salvation, telling the world of union with Jesus’ death, burial, and resurrection. Baptism tells the world that just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, we too might walk in newness of life (Rom 6:4). Jesus’ resurrected life is to be lived through the believer’s life.

This public testimony of baptism is the testimony of God the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit through both the one being baptised and the Church members doing the baptising.

To refuse baptism is an act of disobedience. So, baptism is a critical part of making obedient disciples who will follow Jesus at any cost. Obedience is one of the primary marks of a true believer (Jn 3:36).

In baptism, the new disciple is acknowledging that baptism is NOT making them a Christian. Whoever believes and is baptised will be saved, but whoever does not believe will be condemned (Mark 16:16). Disbelief, not failure to be baptised, is what makes salvation impossible. Salvation is by faith, confessing the resurrected Lord Jesus (Rom 10:9-10).

In Jesus’ great commission of Matthew 28:19-20, He  commands believers to obediently go in His place, to make new disciples who begin with water baptism by immersion following their salvation.

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4 – Make disciples of all nations

By / Discipleship Notes / 3 minutes of reading
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Jesus’ command carries His heavenly authority, giving His approval, together with His resources, to all discipleship relationships. Christ sends and empowers His disciples to do that which they are not able to do in their own strength – to make followers, disciples of Jesus from among all other people in our lives.

Text:     Matthew 28:19a
Go therefore and make disciples of all nations…

Jesus’ disciples are to MAKE disciples of other people in Jesus’ place. This is not for some Christians, but for all believers.

MAKING disciples begins by taking the message of Jesus Christ to people who do not want to follow Him. This requires hard work, sacrifice, long hours of Bible study in preparation, and prayer. It means persevering, NOT giving up on people quickly, just as Jesus patiently perseveres with us.

MAKING disciples requires going somewhere. We may need to go to the next house, to the next neighbourhood, to the next town, or possibly to another country. But we must be willing to leave our homes and go, leaving comfort and the things we enjoy doing to do the things Jesus enjoys us doing, which is making disciples. Going starts as an attitude, then it leads to behaviour. Going is not always easy, not always comfortable, and not always understood by other people, but we must go.

As we look at all the people in our lives from Jesus’ perspective, there are only 2 groups available for you to make disciples of.

Non-believers. Unsaved sinners who need to hear the gospel and repent of their sin by placing faith in Jesus Christ as their substitute on the Cross of Calvary. You can find these people anywhere, some may even be attending a church already, but do not know Christ. These may be family or work friends.

These are younger in their faith than you are. These people may have genuine faith in Jesus as Lord and Saviour, but they are walking alone in their Christian life even though they may attend Church services. They need us to disciple them so that they grow to become more mature in their faith, in their doctrine, and in their behaviour.

Discipleship gives personal help to these believers, growing a friendship with them, spending time with them, listening and talking with them, sharing the Bible with them, and praying with them.  We do everything to help them grow to become more Christlike.

Jesus tells us to make disciples from all nations. These disciples may not be like us, they may be culturally different to us, even speaking another language. They may be from a different tribe, from a different race, and people with different coloured skin. All types of different people are given to us by Jesus Christ for us to make disciples of. Some don’t know Christ yet, while others are babies in Jesus. But all need us to walk with them and teach them how to mature in Christ. This is the task Jesus calls every one of us to under His authority. Go… make disciples of all nations…

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3 – Discipleship carries Jesus’ authority

By / Discipleship Notes / 3 minutes of reading
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Despite the doubting faith of the disciples who had obediently travelled to Jesus in Galilee, Jesus met with them to give two primary pieces of information.

Text:     Matthew 28:18-19a
Jesus came and said to them, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. 19 Go therefore and make disciples…

The first reassuring truth Jesus gave these doubting disciples was that “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me.” God the Father had given absolute and total sovereign authority to Jesus (Mat 11:27) over all realms. Jesus’ authority is over angels, over mankind, over Satan, and over demons. The day is coming when “at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father” (Php 2:10-11).

The disciple’s faith could be strengthened because they worshiped the resurrected Saviour who is Lord of lords. Jesus’ ruling authority is above challenge and beyond negotiation.

Their faith could mature in submission to the Lordship of Jesus with supreme reassurance. If they were to continue following Jesus, it had to be in humble obedience under Jesus’ holy will and direction. There could be no questioning Jesus’ authority. Jesus’ plans for them were divine and final.

Submission was NOT optional. Jesus’ authority would guard and guide them through life and into eternity.

The second reassurance Jesus gave them was an instruction, the mission they would carry out on Jesus’ behalf. “Go therefore and make disciples…”

This instruction was not only because of Jesus’ heavenly authority but passed on to them that authority through Jesus purpose for their lives.

This was to be their primary function in life under which all other plans, goals, and achievements would come second.

This instruction required action, they had to “go.” This could not be achieved by sitting at home waiting. They could not delegate this responsibility to anyone else until they had first fulfilled it themselves.

It was simple and clear, “make disciples.” Just as Jesus had made disciples of them, so they must also make disciples of others who would follow Jesus as they had.

A “disciple” is one who follows as a student, learning and growing under the authoritative leadership of the teacher.

In John 8:31-32, Jesus explained this to a group of faith professing Jews. “If you abide in my word, you are truly my disciples, 32 and you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.”

Disciples submissively follow Jesus. They abide in Jesus Word, learning from the Bible. Jesus’ truth increasingly defines their character, changing their behaviour, and liberates them from the power of error and sin.

Believer’s in the Lord Jesus rejoice in the security of divine authority impressed upon their lives as they follow Jesus and call others to follow as they do, making disciples.

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2 – Imperfect disciples worship

By / Discipleship Notes / 2 minutes of reading
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Just as Jesus requires obedience of all disciples, so all disciples can only experience the fullness of Jesus’ blessing when walking in obedience to Him. However, even the most genuine disciples stumble in foolishness, they make mistakes, and they sin in their weakness.

Text:     Matthew 18:17
And when they saw him they worshiped him, but some doubted.

Matthew’s observation should instil great humility in all of us, especially those of us who wish to give their lives to Jesus’ calling; “follow me, and I will make you fishers of men” (Matthew 4:19).

These 11 disciples had obediently left their families and travelled a long distance to encounter Jesus. They knew how to give up personal treasures for Jesus, they had proven this over the past 3 years. Now, the lessons of obedience are about to be stretched to cover worship and overcoming doubt.

The disciples had the perfect response upon meeting their risen Lord Jesus, they worshipped. Nothing should come more natural to any disciple of Jesus than to worship Him. If worship is not present, or not desirable, something is terribly wrong and out of character for one who claims to have faith in the Saviour.

However, Matthew records an inner symptom of some of these 11 hearts, some doubted. How could they doubt? With 3 years of living with Jesus and all the powerful evidence, including Jesus’ resurrection, how could any of these men ever doubt Jesus? But they did doubt, even while they worshipped. What a contradiction?

Yet, this is how fleshly human hearts operate sometimes. Even sincere believers sometimes doubt. Jude, Jesus’ half-brother, exhorts us to have mercy on those who doubt (Jude 1:22).

As we grow to become more intentional in discipling others, we are to be compassionate with Jesus’ loving patience as we work with people who struggle with disobedience and doubts. These people may believe, and they may worship the Lord, but they are weak and sometimes question the Lord.

Disobedience and doubts make us aware of our desperate need for Christ to work within us by His Holy Spirit through God’s Word to sanctify us. This begins in us through daily taking in God’s Word to change our thoughts and beliefs.

“Sanctify them in the truth; your word is truth” (John 17:17). “We destroy arguments and every lofty opinion raised against the knowledge of God, and take every thought captive to obey Christ” (2 Corinthians 10:5).

Assignment:
Examine your  heart for doubts and pray over them for strength from the Holy Spirit and God’s Word.

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