Making Disciples

Introduction:

This morning I want to talk about the responsibility that each of us towards discipleship.

A disciple is one who is a follower in doctrines and precepts.

One aspect of discipleship is the discipleship course where you learn the fundamental doctrines of the faith. That is critical.

However, another aspect of discipleship is what in the world we refer to as developing talent.

Identification of those who have the skills that are similar to the skills that God gave you and developing them.

Illustration: Surviving Navy Seals Training

And as difficult as most of their training is, nothing can compare to BUDS, which stands for Basic Underwater Demolition Seal Training. If it sounds intense, it’s actually worse. During BUDS, you have to survive “one-hundred-ten hours without sleep.” You have to carry a log over your head for hours. Countless swims, endless runs, jumping out of planes, and then there’s perhaps the hardest part of all, called “pool comp.”

In “pool comp” you are put underwater with all your scuba gear on, the instructor yanks your regulator out of your mouth, he ties your air hose in knots, he mocks you constantly as you struggle for air. What your mind is naturally telling you at this point is simple: You are going to die, but if you want to pass “pool comp,” you have to calmly follow all protocol to pass.

It’s not hard to see why there’s a 94 percent attrition rate. Now the question is, why do some pass, while most fail? This is the exact same question the Navy wanted to find out, because after 9/11 they were in desperate need for more Seals, but didn’t want to water down the quality either by simply changing their standards. So they began studying the data. And the results were quite surprising. The Navy didn’t need more macho guys or strong guys, they often were the first to ring the bell and give up. Nope, but they could use more used Car Salesman.

Why? Because Used Car Salesman have learned how to survive the seemingly never-ending amount of rejection they receive by changing their self-talk. That is, by changing the stories inside their heads.

The truth is, we aren’t like computers, going from place to place with mathematical computations inside our heads to make each decision. No, we are story-tellers. We tell stories because stories are how we make sense of the world around us. Scientists know this, Jesus knows this, and now even the Navy knows just how important stories are for our lives.

2. This morning I want to preach on the making of disciples. Turn to Genesis 1.

Let’s stand for the reading of God’s word.

1. After their kind

1. Our morning reading will be in Genesis 1:20-28 “20 And God said, Let the waters bring forth abundantly the moving creature that hath life, and fowl that may fly above the earth in the open firmament of heaven. 21 And God created great whales, and every living creature that moveth, which the waters brought forth abundantly, after their kind, and every winged fowl after his kind: and God saw that it was good. 22 And God blessed them, saying, Be fruitful, and multiply, and fill the waters in the seas, and let fowl multiply in the earth. 23 And the evening and the morning were the fifth day. 24 And God said, Let the earth bring forth the living creature after his kind, cattle, and creeping thing, and beast of the earth after his kind: and it was so. 25 And God made the beast of the earth after his kind, and cattle after their kind, and every thing that creepeth upon the earth after his kind: and God saw that it was good. ”

2. Let’s pray

3. First, is the imagery of God creating animals after their kind. The idea is pretty simple really, whales create whales, cattle create cattle. In ministry:

Preachers produce preachers. I learned to preach under our pastor Adrian, who has spent a lot of time helping develop me, Jose, James, Craig, Stehan, and Joe, all the men in this church who have the privilege of being leaders.

Musicians produce musicians.

Soul winners produce soul winners.

Youth pastors should be producing youth pastors, and so on.

That’s the principle. Produce after your own kind.

First, you must produce other Christians

This is why the preaching of the Gospel is the most important thing. Paul refers to this as the ministry of reconciliation in 2 Cor 5:18 “18 And all things are of God, who hath reconciled us to himself by Jesus Christ, and hath given to us the ministry of reconciliation;”

The world doesn’t realize, but we know that there are two positions relative to eternity.

You are either lost or your saved. There is no other position.

You are either bound for Heaven or Judged and condemned to Hell.

Realize that according to John 3:18 “18 He that believeth on him is not condemned: but he that believeth not is condemned already, because he hath not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God.”

Just imagine an orchard full of trees. And as you look out and see them, row after row, hundreds of trees. Every once in a while you see a tree that is green and bearing fruit. But the vast majority of trees are black, wrinkled, and dead. Looks like a graveyard of trees. That is the world. That is the world. Full of dead trees.

Realized, that eventually, the only thing you can do to those trees is burn them down.

Turn to Ezekiel 37:1 “1 The hand of the Lord was upon me, and carried me out in the spirit of the Lord, and set me down in the midst of the valley which was full of bones,”

Can these Bones Live - Preach it.

As I look over this valley of bones, and I say, the wage of sin is death. For all have sinned and fallen short of the Glory of God.

And Christ asks you, can these bones live.

You know.

Prophesy upon these bones!

The Gospel which was preached to the Ethiopian is the same gospel as espoused by Paul in 1 Cor 15:1-7 “1 Moreover, brethren, I declare unto you the gospel which I preached unto you, which also ye have received, and wherein ye stand; 2 By which also ye are saved, if ye keep in memory what I preached unto you, unless ye have believed in vain. 3 For I delivered unto you first of all that which I also received, how that Christ died for our sins according to the scriptures; 4 And that he was buried, and that he rose again the third day according to the scriptures: 5 And that he was seen of Cephas, then of the twelve: 6 After that, he was seen of above five hundred brethren at once; of whom the greater part remain unto this present, but some are fallen asleep. 7 After that, he was seen of James; then of all the apostles.”

Understanding the Authority Structure of God, look in Exodus.

Look at Exodus 31:1-6 “1 And the Lord spake unto Moses, saying, 2 See, I have called by name Bezaleel the son of Uri, the son of Hur, of the tribe of Judah: 3 And I have filled him with the spirit of God, in wisdom, and in understanding, and in knowledge, and in all manner of workmanship, 4 To devise cunning works, to work in gold, and in silver, and in brass, 5 And in cutting of stones, to set them, and in carving of timber, to work in all manner of workmanship. 6 And I, behold, I have given with him Aholiab, the son of Ahisamach, of the tribe of Dan: and in the hearts of all that are wise hearted I have put wisdom, that they may make all that I have commanded thee;”

In this old testament example you see very clearly a pattern:

First, they are called out by name. You will notice that any time in scripture God is doing something with the people, God will call out those who are to be leaders and doing the work.

Notice, Moses was called out by God, then Moses calls out Bezaleel the son Uri, and then also calls out Aholiab, and then finally, all those others who was given wisdom.

This sets the pattern of authority. Pastor as the authority of this church, under Christ Jesus, calls out the leaders whom he believes God has given the church.

Once called out God gives them wisdom, fills them with the Spirit, and enables them to do the work.

Here my now, being called out as a leader entails responsibility. As Pastor often says, the pew will never rise higher than the pulpit. Pastor is our authority and my primary job is to help him in every way I can. I am not the leader of this church, pastor is the leader. My primary job is not to try and make the most of my ministry, but to help Pastor in any way I can, even if that means doing less ministry. Hear that.

First, follow those put in authority over you.

As leaders, and this includes fathers as leaders of their home, single parents as leaders of their children, supervisors as leaders of their work, they are all under the authority of God. You cannot distinguish. Further, they are responsibility for following authority.

As a leader you are responsible for others.

This means that in whatever roll you have been given leadership over, you are responsible for the identification and development of those spiritual gifts. In Matt 28:19-20 “19 Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost: 20 Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you alway, even unto the end of the world. Amen.”

As Paul trained Timothy, and in 1 Cor 4:17 “17 For this cause have I sent unto you Timotheus, who is my beloved son, and faithful in the Lord, who shall bring you into remembrance of my ways which be in Christ, as I teach every where in every church.”

Turn to John 17:11-12 “11 And now I am no more in the world, but these are in the world, and I come to thee. Holy Father, keep through thine own name those whom thou hast given me, that they may be one, as we are. 12 While I was with them in the world, I kept them in thy name: those that thou gavest me I have kept, and none of them is lost, but the son of perdition; that the scripture might be fulfilled.”

Now I understand this is Jesus Christ, but you cannot deny that those who are put under your leadership and care are your responsibility.

Perhaps, more practical, what parent would say that the children you have given me, I have no responsibility for them. When we think of our own children, we are constantly thinking about how to develop them, give them opportunities, and help them in any way we can.

Now be reasonable. I understand that being a parent entails for more. Give some liberty here. I am getting at the point of why it is so critical to help develop others.

Developing others

So we have talked about the lines of authority, and the responsibility that comes with being given authority. Let’s discuss the actual training, the imparting of spiritual gifts.

Look at Romans 1:11-13 “11 For I long to see you, that I may impart unto you some spiritual gift, to the end you may be established; 12 That is, that I may be comforted together with you by the mutual faith both of you and me. 13 Now I would not have you ignorant, brethren, that oftentimes I purposed to come unto you, (but was let hitherto,) that I might have some fruit among you also, even as among other Gentiles.”

So we have spiritual gifts, that produce fruit. I am certainly not referring to sign gifts, like tongues and healing. I am referring to spiritual gifts

Lets look at some of these spiritual gifts:

Rom 12:6-8 “6 Having then gifts differing according to the grace that is given to us, whether prophecy, let us prophesy according to the proportion of faith; 7 Or ministry, let us wait on our ministering: or he that teacheth, on teaching; 8 Or he that exhorteth, on exhortation: he that giveth, let him do it with simplicity; he that ruleth, with diligence; he that sheweth mercy, with cheerfulness.”

There is a wide variety of gifts, to prophecy, which today you can think of as preaching and witnessing. Various ministries and groups. Teaching, exhortation (encouraging the brethren), giving, ruling and to do so with diligence.

Let’s look at this key word. We are commanded to do so with diligence. What does that mean?

The first mention of this word is in Proverbs 4:23 “23 Keep thy heart with all diligence; For out of it are the issues of life.”

The official definition is steady application in business of any kind; constant effort to accomplish what is undertaken, exertion of body or mind without unnecessary delay.

In Deut 6:4-7 “4 Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God is one Lord: 5 And thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thine heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy might. 6 And these words, which I command thee this day, shall be in thine heart: 7 And thou shalt teach them diligently unto thy children, and shalt talk of them when thou sittest in thine house, and when thou walkest by the way, and when thou liest down, and when thou risest up.”

In other words we should seek to do this with passion.

Apprenticeship - The arrangement in which some learns an art, trade or job under another.

In the Bible we see a model of apprenticeship rather than one of collegiate training. Bible school is important, but the place were the real training and learning is under apprenticeship.

If I could say it this way, it is the process of learning by doing. On the job training.

The first scripture I want to look at, may seem odd in that there is an argument, but there is an important principle I want you to see.

Look at Acts 15:38-39 “38 But Paul thought not good to take him with them, who departed from them from Pamphylia, and went not with them to the work. 39 And the contention was so sharp between them, that they departed asunder one from the other: and so Barnabas took Mark, and sailed unto Cyprus;”

In fairness, Paul had good reason to not want to take Mark because he abandoned them. That could have been very dangerous. So Paul had good reason.

However, I agree with Barnabas, if at all possible, let us try and restore Mark to the ministry.

Mark later become critical to Paul’s ministry and was restore, but it took men willing to take Mark under their wing and develop them

This is the same Mark who wrote the gospel of Mark.

The principal is this: even though someone may be a person you don’t like, rubs you the wrong way, it does not excuse you from your responsibility as a brother in Christ to help them in their walk in any way you can.

Responsibility to help Christians see their way more clearly.

The world today is full of denominations that are not properly training their people in sound doctrine, rightly dividing the word of God.

This means that people are going to come into this church not having all the right doctrine and we need to be patient with them, showing them with love the right way.

Turn to Acts 18:24-28 “24 And a certain Jew named Apollos, born at Alexandria, an eloquent man, and mighty in the scriptures, came to Ephesus. 25 This man was instructed in the way of the Lord; and being fervent in the spirit, he spake and taught diligently the things of the Lord, knowing only the baptism of John. 26 And he began to speak boldly in the synagogue: whom when Aquila and Priscilla had heard, they took him unto them, and expounded unto him the way of God more perfectly. 27 And when he was disposed to pass into Achaia, the brethren wrote, exhorting the disciples to receive him: who, when he was come, helped them much which had believed through grace: 28 For he mightily convinced the Jews, and that publickly, shewing by the scriptures that Jesus was Christ.”

Do you see a recurring them. John Mark, Apollos, both at times in their ministry needed help. They needed someone willing to take them under their wing and help them out.

Practical take application.

Every child of God has been given spiritual gifts. It is critical that you find what your gift is and develop it.