What Jesus says about discipleship

now this time can we turn together to Matthew's gospel and chapter 28 we are thinking about what

Jesus says about discipleship from verse 16 to the end but we'll read the whole chapter

reminding ourselves that these words take place after the cross and after the empty tomb and the

resurrection of Jesus so after the sabbath at dawn on the first day of the week Mary Magdalene and the

other Mary went to look at the tomb there was a violent earthquake for an angel of the Lord came

down from heaven and going to the tomb rolled back the stone and sat on it his appearance was like

lightning and his clothes were white as snow the guards were so afraid of him that they shook and

became like dead men the angel said to the women do not be afraid for I know that you're looking for

Jesus who was crucified he is not here he has risen just as he said come and see the place where he lay

then go quickly and tell his disciples he has risen from the dead and is going ahead of you into Galilee

there you will see him now I have told you so the women hurried away from the tomb afraid yet filled

with joy and ran to tell his disciples suddenly Jesus met them greetings he said they came to him

clasped his feet and worshiped him then Jesus said to them do not be afraid go and tell my brothers to

go to Galilee there they will see me while the women were on their way some of the guards went into the

city and reported to the chief priests everything that had happened when the chief priests had met with

the elders and devised the plan they gave the soldiers a large sum of money telling them you are

to say his disciples came during the night and stole him away while we were asleep if this report gets the

governor we will satisfy him and keep you out of trouble so the soldiers took the money and did as they

were instructed and this story has been widely circulated among the Jews to this very day then the eleven

disciples went to Galilee to the mountain where Jesus had told them to go when they saw him they

worshipped him but some doubted then Jesus came to them and said all authority in heaven and on earth

has been given to me 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 and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you

and surely I am with you always to the very end of the age

I wonder when you hear the word disciple or discipleship what thoughts come to mind

as you're thinking about that let me share just for a moment the most stressful and discouraging job

I ever had without going into the details it was a job where I was given no training

I just told get on with it and do it maybe you've had that experience I knew that I had projects but

I was given no timetable and then all of a sudden I would get a phone call saying I need it by the end

of the day given no tools or support and expected to carry out the work discouraging demotivating stressful

and short-lived many people perhaps view discipleship in that same way or living as a disciple in that

same way we're not sure perhaps what we're speaking of when we speak about the life of a disciple

we're not sure how to go about living for Jesus or for helping others to grow as disciples and we can find

because in churches we talk about it because it's there in the Bible we could become demotivated

perhaps we can feel guilty about it and if we don't get it we find that we are missing

something that Jesus says is crucial to our purpose as his followers

so today I hope that as we spend time in this crucial passage it will bring some clarity to us

so that we have that sense of purpose as a church and as God's people

perhaps when it comes to this text often known as the Great Commission we have another barrier another

hurdle to jump last week we were in Mission Sunday and one of the things that that happens

sometimes is this text can be used for mission purposes and so we can excuse ourselves and think

well we're not the people going to the other side of the world therefore this has nothing to do with me

or we can think this is a truth for some spiritual elite and that's not me therefore I can switch off and

today again our aim is to show that in the wisdom and plan of God being a disciple who makes disciples

it is to be a reality for every single Christian whoever we are however we're gifted

and I want to encourage us as well because as we begin to think about the certain nuts and bolts of

discipleship there's going to be ways I am sure that we are already doing it and perhaps we don't realize

and I hope that as we think practically about thoughts on how to progress that we can be encouraged

rather than demotivated but we do need to see the priority of discipleship Jesus assumes

that from the beginning those who follow him will have that task of helping make other disciples

and helping others to grow as followers of Jesus

this is the call to his church

that whole churches and individual church members would be helping others towards that goal described by Paul in

Colossians 1 of spiritual maturity

being mature in Christ

we also need to before we get into this we need to be aware that as churches we're swimming against the tide of culture

because the message that we hear in in in our culture and we receive it sometimes without even thinking about it is

is to be an individual

and to think about self-fulfillment

to come to any organization to come to any truth and think what's in it for me whereas

Jesus calls us to himself and he connects us to one another

and he says we need commitment to others first

and so in a very real sense this goes against the grain of culture

certainly here in the west

and we need to be aware of that and we'll think about that again

three simple questions to help us in our text

one what is a disciple

two what is discipleship

three what does discipleship look like

the first is very brief

what is

a disciple

a couple of years ago

as elders here we looked at a book called the vine project and there's a helpful

definition of a disciple and it's up there on our screen

a disciple is

a forgiven sinner

who is learning christ or following christ

in repentance

and faith

and when we think about those first disciples

the ones who spent time with jesus

that was the pattern

they were learners

and jesus was their teacher

and this wasn't just a classroom thing

they followed jesus

learning his words

learning his wisdom

learning from his way of life

that was common in jesus day

so it's much more than

than teacher pupil as we have it in our school system now

perhaps we could think

helpfully of a

a mentor

and an apprentice

perhaps

on a building site perhaps

someone with

with skill

and knowledge to impart

helping

someone younger

to know

what are the tools

and how do i use them

in the context of a church

here's the bible

here's how to read it

helpfully

in order to see more of jesus

here's what obedience looks like

in day to day life

the pattern of the first disciples

we read it in the gospels

they heard jesus announce

the kingdom of god is near

repent and believe the good news

and so they understand

that jesus is god's king

they understand

they are called to

to turn from their old way

to turn from sin

to trust in jesus

to believe in him

they also had that individual call

come

follow me

it's a personal call

from the lord jesus

into a new relationship

that's what every

disciple

receives

whether that's first century

or 21st century

and what we see

from the first disciples

that they left

their old way of life

quite literally

some of them

leaving their

fishing boats

in order to follow jesus

three years

with him

watching

learning

asking questions

seeing how he lived

hearing how he taught

watching his powerful works

understanding

this is the christ

the son

of

god

and now they're being taught

you're a disciple

and your purpose

is to make other

disciples

so a disciple is a forgiven sinner

who is learning christ

and repentance and faith

and we want to share that

so that others might become

disciples also

and that takes us

to

where we'll spend

most of our time

what is

discipleship

it's one of those words

perhaps

if you

read christian books

you've read it

perhaps you've

heard it

in sermons

or in talks

so i think about

what that looks like

what that means

and in preparing for this

i came across three

different descriptions

each of which is helpful

i think in different ways

again to go back to that

book the vine project

the image was

of a disciples

helping others

to take steps

closer to jesus

helping others to make steps

closer to jesus

so that could be

us encouraging

someone who's already

a christian

by sharing

what we've been learning

so that someone else

gets to learn that too

so they're taking that

step closer to jesus

growing in love

and knowledge

and faith

it could also be

sharing with someone

who's not yet a christian

and perhaps

we'll be the means

of breaking down

some of those barriers

of resistance

or perhaps

helping someone

to make that giant leap

from the kingdom of darkness

to the kingdom of light

so we're helping others

make a step closer

to jesus

and mark dever

who's a pastor

in washington dc

he talks about

discipleship

in the context

of

eternity

preparing people

for eternity

in the day of judgment

and he speaks

of his

especially his

personal discipleship

where he's

not just when he's preaching

but when he's sharing

with people

he speaks about

leaving time bombs

of grace

because it's god's grace

that grips our hearts

that prioritizes eternity

and so that's

how he thinks

of discipleship

let me think about

how i can share

god's grace

with someone

today

in time

for the sake

of eternity

because that's the

end goal

of discipleship

we want one another

to be ready

to meet jesus

and to hear

well done

good and faithful servant

that's what life

is about

ultimately

and then there's a guy

from the north of england

a guy called

lewis allen

he speaks about

discipleship

as being an

invitation

into the joy

of jesus

and i love that

because that involves

us coming to

experience joy

as we worship

as we spend time

in god's word

and prayer

and then we're inviting

others to that same joy

and again that could be

a christian

could be a non-christian

what's in common

with all those

those different

descriptions

is that jesus

is the center

a disciple

of jesus

is then looking

out to other

people

to think

how can i

point them

to jesus

too

that they can

have

what i have

that's the pattern

for churches

churches built

on jesus

we should be

looking outwards

to serve others

to point them

in

to jesus

as hope

and life

and salvation

it's a pattern

for every christian

as well

now how do we see

some of this

in matthew

28

i want us to think

first of all

about

the idea

of authority

that being a disciple

and discipleship

is about submitting

to jesus

as lord

so if you have

your bibles

you can see this

first of all

in verse 16

where we discover

the eleven disciples

went to galilee

to the mountain

where jesus

had told them

to go

so we've just

heard about chief

priests

who are busy

spinning a lie

that jesus

didn't really rise

that his body

was stolen

but the disciples

are not going

to play that game

they are going

to be obedient

to jesus

so they go

to the mountain

further

thinking about

the authority

of jesus

verse 17

when they saw

him

they worshipped

him

jesus

is not

just

a guru

or a great

teacher

he is their

lord

and their

god

a disciple

is one

who acknowledges

jesus

is my lord

and my god

and then

listen to

jesus

words

verse 18

jesus came

to them

and said

all authority

in heaven

and on earth

has been

given

to me

all authority

in the universe

given by the father

to the son

and the disciples

recognize the authority

of this crucified

and risen lord

who has now been

called

king of kings

and lord of lords

he is god's chosen king

he is the one who reveals

god's glory

remember

these disciples

have witnessed

some remarkable things

they have witnessed

their lord

and their savior

go to the cross

for them

they have seen

the darkness

fall

they have seen

jesus go under

the thunder

storm of the

father's righteous

anger against sin

not for jesus sin

but for your sin

and mine

they have seen

jesus willingly

give his life

as a sacrifice

as a substitute

and now they have seen

jesus rise in power

and victory

now they understand

jesus is

god's universal

king

declared

by god

as such

through the resurrection

and so

disciples

know

that jesus

is lord

and we call others

to that same

recognition

connected to that

verse 19

therefore

go and make

disciples

of all

nations

see jesus is

universal lord

therefore the church

has a universal

mission

to announce

to the world

jesus is lord

and that he

is savior

last week we were

thinking about that

reality in

columbia

and india

and vietnam

and thailand

and

galiseos

and

edinburgh

whatever the church

is

whatever christians

are

we both

believe

and we

teach

jesus is

lord

and as such

he is the only

way to god

perhaps

this is a time

to pause

and to ask

our response

for those of us

who are christians

are we

are we living

and praying

that others

might submit

to jesus as lord

if you're not a christian

here today

ask god

to reveal to you

the reality

of who jesus is

explore the evidence

that you might

see jesus

as lord

moving from

the idea of

authority

to the idea

of command

which is where

jesus goes

in verse

19

this command

that we have

there

reminds us

that disciples

help others

to learn

christ

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

and teaching

them to obey

everything i have

commanded you

here is the

marching orders

of god's

church

this is our

reason for

existing

that we

would make

disciples

that we

would invite

and call

people into

this new

relationship

with jesus

where he

is teacher

and lord

and master

and king

that lives

are lived

to give

glory to

him rather

than seek

glory

ourselves

and to

the church

jesus has

given

two crucial

things as

we seek

to make

disciples

one

is the

sign of

baptism

a gift

to the

church

again

if you

were here

last week

one of the

videos we

watched

was from

a pastor

in india

matthew

last week

they were

baptizing new

believers in

the lord jesus

and he spoke

about them

doing that

to show that

they now had

a new walk

and a new

way of life

that's a really

helpful way for

us to think

about what

baptism

represents

for the

church

baptism

for a

disciple

is a

sign of

entrance

into the

kingdom

it's a

way of

saying

I want

to publicly

identify

to show

my loyalty

to jesus

as lord

and king

it is

also

a sign

of

repentance

of

leaving

an old

way of

life

behind

of

turning

away

from

sin

to

follow

god

through

faith

in jesus

so

baptism

is that

very rich

sign

and symbol

but then

we're also

told

that

disciples

teach

others

to obey

everything

I have

commanded

you

so in

making

disciples

we are

speaking

god's

word

into

the

lives

of

others

so

we speak

the

good news

of the

gospel

gospel

to

one

another

and

to

our

world

that

the

god

who

made

us

in

love

and

grace

sent

his

son

to

live

a

perfect

life

of

obedience

for

us

in

our

place

because

we

cannot

and

we

have

not

and

that

same

lord

jesus

then

died

for

us

paying

the

price

and

penalty

for

our

sin

and

then

he

rose

for

us

and

he

is

glorified

for

us

he

reigns

as

king

to

take

his

people

to

be

with

him

forever

jesus

has

come

to

save

us

to

adopt

us

if

we

would

have

faith

in

him

and

so

the

church

brings

that

good

news

along

with

that

call

from

jesus

to

repent

and

to

believe

and

so

as

we

teach

we

must

teach

the

gospel

we

must

teach

the

good

news

but

we

also

in

our

text

here

we

teach

everything

that

jesus

has

commanded

that's

really

interesting

isn't

it

that

jesus

focused

on

his

commands

we

saw

this

three

weeks

ago

now

back

in

matthew

Matthew 5:17

chapter

5

verse

17

the

sermon

on

mount

jesus

said

i

didn't

come

to

abolish

the

law

and

the

prophets

i

came

to

fulfill

so

jesus

can

point

to

obeying

his

commands

because

he's

come

to

fulfill

the

old

testament

and

when we

think

about

the

commands

of

jesus

it's

so

helpful

for us

to

think

of

those

two

great

love

commands

love

the

lord

your

god

with

all

your

heart

soul

mind

and

strength

to

love

your

neighbor

as

yourself

especially

in

matthew's

gospel

there's

lots

of

teaching

about

practical

holiness

what

does

it

look

like

day

by

day

to

live

for

jesus

but

think

about

those

two

headings

love

for

god

love

for

neighbor

teaching

not

just

as

information

transfer

we're

teaching

to

help

people

to

obey

so

as

disciples

we're

not

just

here's

some

information

we're

also

wanting

to

to

model

what

following

jesus

looks

like

we

want

to

be

training

people

to

understand

here's

what

faith

looks

like

in

a

family

or

in

a

workplace

or

on

social

media

whatever

it

might

be

something

we do

in

families

with

our

children

we

don't

just

pass

on

instruction

we

look

to

model

and

to

train

and

correct

and

instruct

and

so

we

should

do

in

the

church

as

well

and

then

having

given

them

this

command

jesus

also

wonderfully

reminds

his

disciples

of

his

presence

last

words

in

this

gospel

from

jesus

and

surely

i am

with

you

always

to

the

very

end

of

the

age

there

was

a

great

promise

before

jesus

was

born

matthew

chapter

one

verse

23

jesus

would

be

emmanuel

god

who

is

with

us

jesus

just

about

to

leave

and

return

to

heaven

says

i

am

god

with

you

always

comforting

presence

of

jesus

remember

he's

told

them

following

him

is

hard

it's

cross

carrying

but

we

don't

do

it

alone

jesus

is

with

us

by

his

spirit

as

we

continue

his

mission

and

so

we're

reminded

that

part

of

being

a

disciple

who

makes

disciples

is

to

prayerfully

depend

on

the

lord

jesus

now

what

i want

us

to do

for

the

rest

of

our

time

is

to

think

about

what

does

discipleship

look

like

by way

of

summarizing

where

we've

been

so

far

disciples

see

and

acknowledge

the

lordship

of

jesus

and

we

live

and

serve

with

loyalty

to

jesus

and

we

live

enjoying

fellowship

with

jesus

and

we

invite

and

encourage

others

towards

those

same

realities

but

now

we

need

to

think

about

what

happens

when

the

rubber

hits

the

road

how

do

we

do

this

you

know

both

inside

these

four

walls

and

outside

and

perhaps

as we

sort of

reflect

a little

further

maybe

to

answer

some

of

those

questions

and

fears

uncertainty

that we

sometimes

have

perhaps

we

still

feel

unsure

of

how

to

do

it

where

to

begin

perhaps

maybe

we

think

well

I

have

nothing

to

offer

in

this

I'm

just

a

regular

person

so

what

we

have

to

finish

is

five

ideas

all

beginning

with

the

same

letter

S

hopefully

it

can

stick

in

our

head

to

help

us

realize

that

if

we're

a

follower

of

Jesus

we

are

a

disciple

and

we're

called

to

make

and

to

grow

other

disciples

that's

our

responsibility

as a

church

collectively

it's

your

responsibility

and mine

as an

individual

Christian

that's

going to

look

very

different

for

us

all

because

we

all

have

different

personalities

different

opportunities

different

responsibilities

but

they're

priority

and

reality

for

all

of

us

who

are

trusting

Jesus

first S

discipleship

looks like

speaking

God's

truth

if we

are to

be a

disciple

who is

making

other

disciples

a disciple

who is

encouraging

others

to move

closer

to

Jesus

we need

to be

speaking

God's

truth

Jesus

said

teaching

them

to

obey

speak

God's

truth

that's

why

in

our

church

we

seek

always

and

pray

that

we

would

always

be

rooted

in

and

centered

on

God's

word

of

truth

anything

else

just

will

not

serve

us

well

that

as a

church

we

want

to be

proclaiming

the

good

news

of

Jesus

because

that's

what

the

church

has

done

ever

since

you

read

the

book

of

Acts

Jesus

returns

to

heaven

sends

the

spirit

and

they're

telling

here

is

Jesus

fulfillment

of

the

old

testament

crucified

died

buried

risen

repent

and

believe

we

center

our

lives

on

the

Bible

because

that's

where

we

are

instructed

how

do

we

live

godly

lives

how

do

we

live

by

faith

until

the

return

of

Jesus

that's

that's

the

goal

every

day

how

do

we

do

it

we

find

it

in

God's

word

so

as we

speak

God's

truth

thinking

as a

church

this

now

that we

have

these

formal

teaching

opportunities

so

Sunday

morning

Sunday

evening

chance

to

worship

together

come

under

God's

word

together

meet

in the

presence

of

God

together

junior

church

same

thing

our

discipleship

group

that meet

all

during

the

week

for

different

ages

stages

and

different

communities

all

of

that

is

deliberately

word

based

Bible

based

must

always

be

so

but

so far

that's

just

thinking

about

people

like

me

who

stand

up

here

and

talk

to

large

crowds

but

we

need

to

speak

God's

truth

in

everyday

life

together

as

well

so

let's

think

about

what

that

can

look

like

and

again

to

encourage

us

that

probably

we're

doing

discipleship

without

necessarily

thinking

about

it

when we

chat

after

the

surveys

will we

talk

about

what

we've

been

thinking

about

will we

talk

about

what

we've

been

reading

about

this

week

sometimes

we find

it really

awkward

to talk

about

faith

naturally

but I

think

it's

really

helpful

for us

to get

there

because

then

when we've

got

people

who aren't

Christians

who may

be

interested

what

difference

does it

make

they can

hear it

and they

can see

it

when we

read the

Bible

and pray

as a

family

we're

doing

discipleship

if you're

part of

a Christian

book group

if you

find yourself

texting

a Bible

verse

talking about

what it

meant to

you and

wanting to

share it

with someone

else

if you're

out on a

walk with

someone

and you

begin

sharing

about

the big

questions

of God

and faith

if you

take the

time to

write a

card

to someone

where it

contains

Bible

truth

in all

of those

ways

you're

speaking

God's

truth

and you're

serving

as a

disciple

and doing

the work

of

discipleship

and just

imagine

for a

difference

for a

moment

just what

a

difference

it

would

make

if

in our

families

and our

friendships

and our

Sundays

they were

full of

saturated

with

the

word

of

God

if we

read

and discussed

and studied

and prayed

and memorised

what a

difference

it would

make to

our

life

together

so

discipleship

looks like

speaking

God's

truth

as

we

seek

to

live

as

disciples

making

disciples

we need

the

spirit

of

God

so

the

spirit

is

our

second

S

because

that's

who

we

depend

on

must

depend

on

in

discipleship

thinking

about

God's

salvation

the

father

is the

one

who

sent

the

son

in

love

to

the

world

the

son

is

the

one

who

came

and

accomplished

the

work

of

redemption

in

his

death