Convictions - Jesus has sent us to make disciples

Have you ever had the sort of experience, perhaps in your professional working life, where someone with great authority comes and gives you a job to do.

This sort of thing happens in the Army all the time. The Army is given a job to do by the government of the day. Protect Australia. The Chief of the Army then issues a series of orders which ultimiately flow down through various levels of the chain of command, until they eventually reach the soldier on the ground. His or her job is to follow those orders, get the job done and in doing so contribute to the big goal of protecting Australia.

Well as we saw last week. Jesus is head of the church. And as such, like the head of the Army, he has issued orders. His intention for his church is that it be a disciple making body. And in order for the church to achieve its mission then just as the Army needs each individual soldier, so to the church needs each individual disciple to think about how we can contirbue to the disciple making task.

Our Convictions

Truths that inspire us to follow King Jesus.

Richard Condie:

Convictions… are settled beliefs and principles that we know to be true and that ought to drive our actions. Convictions are corrective. Challenging our wrong behaviour and taking us on the right path. They are inspirational. The truths we know about God and his mission inspire us to turn towards him.

What are our convictions?

1. Jesus Christ is head of the Church

2. And he has sent us to make disciples

3. By word, prayer and service

4. Supported by fruitful godly leaders

5. God being our provider, and us stewards of his gifts.

Why do a series on our convictions?

To help us make wise decisions. We’re heading into our Annual Meeting and so it’s a chance for us to corporately think about what ought to be driving our decision making as a church.

To foster unity. If we align ourselves with these convictions as a whole, we will find greater unity as we get on with being a church for Lindisfarne, making disciples of Jesus.

To create ownership. There’s a chance that at this point in time, our convictions are 5 points on a page that no one remembers. I hope that these are more than just 5 points on page, but actually are an accurate reflection of our deeply held beliefs as a church. I hope you’ll feel a greater sense of belonging when you realise you’re on about the same things we’re on about as a church as we work through them.

Jesus Christ is head of the church. He’s the boss. He’s the king.

Have a listen to last weeks sermon online if you missed it. To go deeper into our first conviction.

But, the bible is clear. Jesus is head of the church.

We serve him. We exisit for him.

And what we see in the gospels is that Jesus’ authority over the church is invoked by Jesus as he sends his disciples on mission. That is the Jesus followers, serve Jesus be proclaiming the good news. In other words, the church exisits to proclaim the good news. Jesus sends his church, you and me, his disciples, Jesus sends us to make disciples.

Let’s take a look:

In the middle of Jesus’ ministry in Matthew’s gospel we read about Jesus doing some practical training for his disciples by sending them out on mission.

Matthew 10:1 NIV

1 Jesus called his twelve disciples to him and gave them authority to drive out impure spirits and to heal every disease and sickness.

Jesus gives them authority. Authority that comes from the Father. And in verses 5 through 42 Jesus teaches his disciples what kind of mission he is sending them on. They will be his representatives in the world as they seek to share the good news. And what’s the key to the disciples mission?

Matthew 10:7 NIV

7 As you go, proclaim this message: ‘The kingdom of heaven has come near.’

Proclamation of the good news.

Jesus invokes his authority to send the disciples out to show and tell the kingdom.

Then after his death and resurection we get to our reading today, and again Jesus uses his authority to send out his disciples:

Matthew 28:18–19 NIV

18 Then 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,

Jesus uses his authority to send the disciples on mission.

Go and make discipels of all nations.

We see a similar message in John’s gospel and in Acts.

As John records Jesus appearance to his disciples after his ressurection, we read:

John 20:21 NIV

21 Again Jesus said, “Peace be with you! As the Father has sent me, I am sending you.”

With the authority I have as the one sent by the Father I send you to the world.

Likewise in Acts, Luke records Jesus’s words to his disciples before his ascension

Acts 1:8 NIV

8 But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.”

You will be empowered by the Holy Spirit to go to the ends of the earth witnessing, sharing the story of what Jesus has done. Making disciples.

It’s clear isn’t it? Jesus calls his church to be disciple making disciples.

I was privelliged to hear Jossy Chacko speak once. He is a man who has started a church planting ministry in the subcontinent and last time I heard his organisation Empart was planting 1 new church every day. Amazing disciple making growth.

He posed this question. How come when someone becomes a Christian, God doesn’t just beam them striaght up to heaven StarTrek, beam me up Scotty style?

His answer, based on the final words of Jesus that we’ve just looked at. We are left on this earth for one reason… Because for whatever reason Jesus’ plan for the world is that you and me would tell the story of Jesus and be discipels who make disciples.

Jesus Christ is head of the church and he has sent us to make disciples.

What is a disciple?

Paul gives us a nice definition in our first reading from Romans 10.

Romans 10:9 NIV

9 If you declare with your mouth, “Jesus is Lord,” and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.

A disciple is someone who follows Jesus. Who is willing to publicly profess faith in the lordship of Christ.

But not only that. Anyone can say Jesus is Lord. But to be a disciple it needs to change your heart.

A sincere and heartfelt belief that Jesus died for our sins and rose again is required.

Head and heart transformed.

And who can be a disciple?

Well, Paul continues in v 13

Romans 10:13 NIV

13 for, “Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.”

It doesn’t matter who you are, what you’ve done, how you’ve succeed at life or failed. Whether you’re religious or not. Anyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.

The good news is that God’s offer of salvation is available to anyone as free gift.

So what should those of us who’ve reiceved the gift do? Paul continues to reinforce the point that we’ve already seen Jesus make.

Romans 10:14–15 NIV

14 How, then, can they call on the one they have not believed in? And how can they believe in the one of whom they have not heard? And how can they hear without someone preaching to them? 15 And how can anyone preach unless they are sent? As it is written: “How beautiful are the feet of those who bring good news!”

We need to make sure people hear about Jesus. And to do that we need to tell people the good news.

Jesus has sent us to make disciples by telling people the good news you and I know. The good news that has so transformed our lives.

Are you convincied? That this is the reason you exist. That this is why you are still on earth? That you have been sent by Jesus to be a disciple maker! And that this is a beautiful thing indeed for we possess such good news which brings life.

Our convictions change us

If we’re convinced that Jesus Christ is head of the church and he has sent us to make disciples then this ought to impact how we live.

We heard last week some of the ways Jesus being head of the church ought to change the way we think of the church. What does the fact that Jesus wants us to be disciples who make disciples mean for us today?

There are people in your life who you can disciple...

Maybe it’s your neighbour who you are sharing your faith with

Maybe it’s a work colleauge

Maybe it’s a person you’re in a bible study with

Maybe it’s the person sitting next to you in church today, or who you’ll share a cuppa with after the service

Whoever it may be, I truly believe all of us are called to disciple others.

How?

Praying for them to grow in their faith

Praying for opportunities to share your faith with them (especially if the person isn’t yet a believer).

Reading the bible together and talking about what it teaches you about God.

Teaching them how to serve in church so they can use their gifts.

Ask God who he migh be calling you to help grow in their faith. If you think you know who God might be calling you to disciple, but don’t know what to do, make a time to have a coffee with me and let me help you figure out how you can help.

There are people in your life who can disciple you...

The person you look up to. Admire. Think they have amazing faith. That you wish you could be like. That inspire you with their godliness. Ask them to help you.

It’s not going to be me for everyone. Hopefully my sermons help. But actually we’re going to need the priesthood of all believers if we all want to grow as disciples. If I look at Jesus, his disciples making model was to invest heavily in 12 disciples, who invested in others, who invested in others and so on and so on. If we’re going to be a disciple making church, we need to be a church of disciple makers, not a church of consumers of my priestly powers.

We need to be strategic as a church family how we organise what we do so that it enables disciple making...

That’s what our pathways strategy is all about.

Potential Contact

In Touch

Belonging

Embracing the Gospel

Following Jesus

Serving in Ministry

Leading Ministry.

Taking someone from knowing nothing about Jesus to being a fully commited disciple.

Get one of our vision documents from 2017 that outlines how Pathways works and what we’ve been trying to do over the last 3 years.

If we’re going to do that (be strategic), we need each one of us to contribute. We all have a role to play in this pathways process. Serving in church on rosters, helping out with Playgroup or one of our other ministries, joining a bible study, these are all ways you can help serve our church and help make disciples.

We’ve seen today that Jesus wants us to be disciples who make disciples.

Who can you disciple? Who can disciple you? How can you serve as we seek to be a strategic disciple making church?