The Christian and Commitment

The Christian and Commitment God has called the church to make disciples. In Acts, the common term for Christian is disciple. To live as a Christian is to be a disciple of Jesus Christ our Lord. But what does this mean? Matthew 28:19-20 records Jesus giving what we call the Great Commission. 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. There is only one Greek imperative or command in this sentence, "make disciples." Every Christian is to be a disciple of Jesus. But what is a disciple? In Jesus's day, both Jewish and Greek teachers had disciples. A disciple is a student. For the Christian, Jesus is the Teacher, and we are to learn from Him. But a disciple is more than a student. A student can learn facts without applying them to life or even caring about them. A disciple is committed to the teacher and to following His teaching. In the Great Commission, Jesus emphasizes this commitment in two ways. First, a disciple of Christ expresses this commitment through baptism which is a public acknowledgement of the authority of the Triune God over one's life. Baptism declares a personal commitment to Jesus publicly. This act confirms that commitment in one's heart. Baptism is a crucial step in spiritual growth. Secondly, a disciple of Christ must commit to obey all that Jesus has commanded us. Jesus says to make disciples by teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. To obey everything requires unconditional surrender of one's will. You cannot be a Christian while choosing not to be a disciple of Christ. In Luke 14, Jesus challenged the large crowds that traveled with Him. Preachers can be tempted to shape their message to please the crowd in order to keep them with them. Instead, Jesus began by demanding first place in their lives. He then required dying to self and to one's own ambitions. Jesus challenged would-be followers to count the cost of following Him. Jesus wants people to recognize what He expects of us and to decide if we are willing. Jesus requires discipleship, and that requires that He be Lord. What do we mean when we say, "Jesus is Lord"? Lord means that Jesus is my Master, that I am His servant, and that I serve and obey Him. Lord means that Jesus is my Owner, that I am His possession, and that I am subject to His will. The scope of His Lordship includes everything. There is no sacred versus secular divide in life. All belongs to Jesus. According to Romans 14, He is Lord of both my eating habits and of my worship habits. Earthly and spiritual matters are treated alike as under His authority. He is Lord of both my living and my dying. He is Lord of ALL! As Creator and Sovereign Ruler of the universe, He is Lord of all. Yet He came to purchase His creatures at Calvary, earning the Lordship that was already rightfully His. As risen Savior, He will claim His rights when He judges each of us. Let us choose to bow before Him and willingly submit to His rule. Luke 17:7-10 gives an illustration of His Lordship. Suppose one of you had a servant plowing or looking after the sheep. Would he say to the servant when he comes in from the field, 'Come along now and sit down to eat'? Would he not rather say, 'Prepare my supper, get yourself ready and wait on me while I eat and drink; after that you may eat and drink'? Would he thank the servant because he did what he was told to do? So you also, when you have done everything you were told to do, should say, 'We are unworthy servants; we have only done our duty.' The story is of how a modestly wealthy man would treat his only servant. The servant would spend a long day working the farm. The master would then expect him to fix dinner and serve the master before feeding himself. The master would not be expected to thank the servant for doing his duty. Jesus applies this to us as His servants under His Lordship. We are to do everything He tells us to do. We are to serve Jesus both in the world and at home. We are not to expect praise for daily faithfulness. We are to see ourselves as unworthy servants who have only done our duty to our Creator and Savior. Now other Scriptures do speak of rewards and promise a light burden. Yet we owe Jesus our service, ability, energy, time, and worship. We cannot even begin to repay Jesus for what He has done for us. But we can humbly obey Him. This obedience is to go full circle in discipleship. Remember His command is to make disciples. When we came to faith in Jesus, we became His disciples. We were then baptized and taught to obey all He has commanded as others worked to make disciples of us. One of his commands which we are now to obey is this Great Commission. As we go in life, we are now to make more disciples. Our making disciples will include baptizing them as a public testimony and commitment and will include teaching them to obey Jesus as Lord. As the disciples we make go on and make more disciples, the circle is completed again and again. By this process, the church has grown for 2000 years. This evangelism is essential to continue the Christian lifestyle. We have not done all we are called to do as disciples of Jesus until we have completed the circle by making disciples who will make more disciples. The Christian lifestyle is a life of making disciples. A disciple of Jesus seeks to make more disciples for Him. Are you a disciple of Jesus, committed to following Him and to doing all He commands? Is Jesus your Lord? Do you serve Him in every detail of life? Are you completing the circle by discipling others who in turn will disciple still others? Jesus is Lord! He calls each of us to live as His disciples.