Some time ago I was with a group of pastors and the question was asked, “What does a mature disciple look like?” In other words, how do we measure and know if we are doing what Jesus told us to do? Each of these pastors had their own slogan as to what their church did, similar to what you find on programs and web sites of many churches. We all sat around and came up with a few things, but at the end of our time we still had not nailed the answer down. The conclusion was that the answer was elusive because you cannot measure people’s hearts.
I’ve discovered that the answer isn’t elusive at all. In fact, it’s right in front of us, staring us in the face. In Matthew 28:18-19 we have what is called the Great Commission. It is the final instructions Jesus gave to His disciples before he left planet earth and returned to the Father.
Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.” Matthew 28:19-20 (ESV)
Let’s break this down so that we can understand what Jesus really is telling us.
1 - Go – don’t sit around and expect people to come to you looking for the truth.
2 - Make disciples – lead them to faith in Jesus as their Savior and Lord.
3 - Baptize them – bring them into the church family so they can grow to maturity.
4 - Teach them all you were taught – teach them to Go, to Make disciples, to Baptize, and to Teach others all things.
It’s simple! If we are teaching people all things, then we will be teaching them these 4 steps. That means they will be teaching another person.
How do you measure if you’re doing what Jesus commanded? Here’s how: How many people have you trained who are teaching others to Go, Make disciples, Baptize, and Teach others?
Isn’t it time we stop measuring church growth by measuring the wrong things, like attendance, giving, number of small groups, number of students who went to camp, missionaries sent out, money given to missions, and all those other things. Jesus gave us clear instructions on what we are to be doing. Are we doing that? What do our numbers show?
One day Pastor Pete is going to stand before the Lord Jesus and Jesus will ask Pastor Pete what he did while here on earth. Pastor Pete is going to begin telling Jesus how many people he baptized, how large the church grew, how many people he went to visit and share the gospel with each week, how many small groups the church had, how much property the church bought, how much money the church gave to missions, how many missionaries were sent out, how many student went to camp, and all sorts of other rather meaningless numbers. When Pastor Pete is finished Jesus will ask him why he didn’t do what his Lord told him to do, to just make disciples. And at that moment Pastor Pete will realize that he wasted his years of ministry by focusing on the wrong things. Many pastors have have focused on all those things that their seminary professor told them were necessary to grow a church, but they had failed to do the one thing Jesus told them to do.
Are you obeying Jesus? Are you teaching other all that Jesus commanded to where they are teaching others? In the most basic format, are you making disciple makers?
That’s really all that matters. That one number shows if you are obeying Jesus or not.
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