PART ONE
Who hasn’t heard this question before?
It’s usually thrown out there in those, “agree to disagree” moments of life where two or more debaters have determined there’s “just no way to know for sure, so let’s determine which side we like best and live with it.”
Clear as mud?
Let me explain what I mean.
I love speaking at churches all over the country. Each church has a unique personality and giftedness to fulfill the great commission. Some churches seem to be more application minded. Others lean heavily on learning. Then there are those that have a passion for evangelism and still others that emphasize discipleship or social justice. The personality of each church usually leans on one or two of these a bit more than the others. I think that’s great—it’s called diversity and it’s what gives each part of the Bride of Christ a unique personality and approach to reaching a lost and hurting world.
But sometimes we lean too much. And when someone leans too heavily to one side we all know what happens—they fall.
I’ve been to several different churches that have emphasized discipleship without evangelism.
And if someone points this out, they are often met with a condescending response about evangelistic churches dumbing down the message and being little more than an ongoing revival or crusade. “Leave that to Billy Graham or Greg Laurie,” they’ll often say. “These guys are gifted with that. The rest of us are commanded to “‘make disciples.’”
True.
We are called to make disciples, but there are two words in this commandment almost always leap-frogged over in our haste to get to the “make disciples” part. Here is the scripture most often cited…
“Jesus came to them and said, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. 19 Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit…” Matthew 28:18-19 (emphasis added)
Did you catch the two key words?
- go
- and
Grant it, they’re pretty small words. Maybe they don’t seem to matter much to some.
But they should. They make all the difference in the world. You see, we aren’t told to “STAY” and make disciples. We aren’t told to just “GO” either. Rather, we are told to “Go” “AND” Make disciples.
What does “GO” refer to?
Evangelism—Telling others about Jesus so that He can save them.
And what do we have when someone receives Christ as Lord and savior?
A convert.
But we most certainly do not have a disciple—not yet anyway.
We have a baby—a brand spankin new, born again, baby Christian.
Question? What can a baby do?
Answer: Not much.
But one thing most babies seem to do with almost gold medal proficiency is—GROW. They grow physical, emotionally, and spiritually. And they either grow more like Jesus or they grow more like the world.
What determines the difference?
Discipleship.
So, instead of arguing about which is more important—or which came first, the chicken or the egg—realize that the great commission is not an “either or” command—It’s a “both and” one.
This is important friends—vitally so! And that’s why I’m going to make this a series and end part one right here. Chew on what I’ve said for a day or two. You’ll need to because what comes next will defiantly be harder to swallow!