Authorization - The Prerequisite to Disciplemaking

Lord, we are grateful once again that you have allowed us another opportunity to study the Word of God. We look forward, Lord, to that day in which we will go home to be with you and we will be able to see you for All that you are, and to worship you, to serve you throughout all eternity. Until that time, Lord, we ask that the things we learn, things you show us through your word, would grow us deep in our understanding of you. In Jesus' name we pray. Amen. Turn with me in your Bible, if you would, to Matthew chapter 28.

Matthew chapter 28 tonight will be the text that we will study. I was going back in my notes Sunday morning, I shared with you the fact that on the very first Sunday that our church met in a park, I had preached a sermon that I had written on an airplane on the way back from the East Coast.

Not knowing the impact that that sermon would make in my life and the life of our church, it has become the cornerstone as to the elements that we hold dear as a church here at Christ's community. But that sermon was titled What Every Church Needs. And I always like to go back and read my notes to try to figure out what I. What I believe. Sometimes I don, I forgot what I believe. So I go back and read my notes to figure out what it is I do believe. And what it is I said five years ago, eight years ago, ten years ago, 15 years ago.

And as I was going through my notes, I realized that as we talked about discipleship, every church needing a consistent discipleship, I realized that I said four things that I think are very important. And I'm going to give them to you this evening. They're not in your. Outline because these are just introductory remarks. But we said eight years ago, and it's still true today. That every church needs a consistent discipleship. And that discipleship is marked by four elements. One, that is a discipleship that is purposefully bought.

Purposefully bought. The Bible says in 1 Corinthians chapter 6, verse number 20, that you have been bought with a price.

There, glorify God in your body. You 've been bought with a price. The price, of course, is the precious blood of Jesus Christ our Lord. You've been bought with a price for a purpose. There's a purpose behind the reason God redeemed you. And that is, we are to glorify God in our bodies. We are to put God on display through our lives. The Bible says in John 15, 16 that God chose you in order that you may bear fruit.

God chose you in Him in order that you might reproduce yourself. There's a purpose behind the purchase. God bought you for a particular purpose. So a consistent discipleship is that which has been purposefully bought. Number two, has been properly taught.

Properly taught. We talked about this the last two weeks, 2 Timothy 2:2. Paul tells Timothy: the things that you have heard from me, you are now to entrust to faithful men that they in turn will be able to teach. Others, also you need to make sure that you properly teach people the truth of the Word of God. A consistent discipleship is one that has been purposefully bought, properly taught, and number three.

Personally caught. Personally caught. It says over in Mark chapter 3, verse number 14, a verse that we will examine. In detail in our next time together, when it says, And he, that is Christ, went up to the mountain and summoned those whom He Himself wanted. And they came to him, and he appointed twelve that they might be with him. That they might be with him. You see, discipleship is more caught than it is taught, right? And so there is a personal catching. Christ chose men that would be with him.

And that's why we talked about 1 Thessalonians 2, verse number 8, where Paul said to those in Thessalonic that it was our purpose not only to teach you. But the fact that you have become so dear to us that we would impart to you our lives as well. Not just the gospel, but our lives as well. Every true discipleship is that which has been personally taught. And lastly, a true discipleship is that which is passionately s. Passionately sought Matthew 28, the text we're going to talk about this evening.

That we are to go into all the world and make disciples. There's something I pursue, I seek after. I go after men, I am a fisher of men, and I do it with a passion. Now this becomes so important. I wish that every f in our church was here tonight. I wish that was the case. Because they need to understand that they, as the leaders of their home, are the key element to the direction of their home. And God wants them To teach the children. Back in Deuteronomy chapter six, Moses says this. Now, this is the commandment, verse number one: the statutes and the judgments, which the Lord your God has commanded me to teach you, that you might do them in the land where you are going over to possess it, so that you and your son and your grandson might fear the Lord your God to keep all his statutes.

Statutes and his commandments, which I commanded you all the days of your life, and that your days may be prolonged. O Israel, you should listen and be careful to do it. That it may be well with you, and that you might multiply greatly, just as the Lord the God of your fathers has promised you, in a land flowing with milk and honey. Now, the Israelites were about to embark on that great land that God had promised them. And the Lord God says through Moses, that great leader, listen, you need to listen to what I've told you.

You need to obey what I've told you. You need to teach what I've told you to your son and to your grandson. They need to be able to get the commands of God. And he goes on to say that great Shema in verse number 4: Hear, O Israel, the Lord your God is one, and you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your might. And these words which I am commanding you today shall be on your heart, and you shall teach them. Diligently to your sons, and shall talk with them when you sit in the house, and when you walk by the way, and when you lie down, and when you rise up, and you shall bind them as a sign in your hand, and they shall be as frontals on your forehead, and you shall write them.

On the doorposts of your house and on your gates. As Moses instructs the nation of Israel, he tells the fathers, this is your responsibility to teach your sons, to help them understand the importance of the commands of God. And then he says, down in verse number, 24. So the Lord commanded us to observe all these statutes, to fear the Lord our God, for our good always and for our survival as it is today. This is your survival kit. God's word is how you will survive in this new land. If at any time you stop teaching the word of God.

Stop listening to the Word of God. Stop obeying the Word of God. Stop following your God. Guess what? Everything about your life is going to crumble. You're going to fall apart. Because everything about what I want you to do centers around my word. And he instructs the fathers to teach their sons. Throughout the Bible, you read about that. David said to his son Solomon in 1 Kings chapter 2. Verse number one: As David's time to die drew near, he charged Solomon his son, saying, I am going the way of all the earth.

Be strong, therefore, and show yourself a man, and keep the charge of the Lord your God, to walk in his ways, to keep his steps Statutes, his commandments, his ordinances, and his testimonies, according to what is written in the law of Moses, that you may succeed in all that you do and wherever you turn. David tells his son Solomon, listen, you need to succeed. And the only way you're going to succeed as a king is to observe the commands of God, to follow the commands of God. So we realize that God's word, God's commands, are.

Are those things that are the key to our survival and the key to our success? Now, what more in life could you possibly want? Than survival and success. God says, here it is.

This is how it happens. This is what you need to do. It all centers around the Word of God. And David says, you've got to keep these things. You've got to observe them. So you go over to the book of Proverbs. Proverbs chapter 2, Solomon says to his son, My son, if you will receive my sayings and treasure my commandments within you, make your ear attentive to wisdom, incline your heart to understanding. For if you cry for discernment, lift your voice for understanding. If you seeker as silver, And search for her as for hidden treasure.

Then you will discern the fear of the Lord and discover the knowledge of God. Solomon says to his son, You need to follow my commands. You need to follow my instruction. Chapter 4, verse number 1: Hear, O sons, the instruction of a father, and give attention that you may gain understanding. For I give you sound. teaching. Do not abandon my instruction. When I was a son to my father, tender, and the only son in the sight of my mother, then he taught me and said to me, Let your heart hold fast my words, keep my commandments, and live.

Solomon is saying, my dad told me this is what you need to do. I'm telling you, son, this is what you need to do. Keep my commandments and live. They are the key to your success. They are the key to your survival. They are the key to your walk with God. That is so important. So important. And I'm afraid that fathers across our country have missed that. They just neglect the teaching of their children. They neglect the passing on of truth to their children and grandchildren. They leave it for the wife to do, they leave it for the church to do, but they themselves won't do it.

And yet God says. He's giving the man the responsibility to do that. That does not mean as a woman that you can now pass that responsibility off. No. Or as a grandparent. No, we need to do that in our homes. And the reason I say that is because if a church is going to have a consistent discipleship, it begins in the home. It begins with us as parents, with our children, passing on to them the truth of God, passing on to them the commands of God, that they might understand the key to survival in the society, the key to success, true biblical success.

In society, I ask you: Is that what you do? Is that what consumes you as a parent? It should. Because that's what the Bible speaks of. That's what we, as a body of believers, should be doing. All that to say this is that God authorizes you to do that. You have all the authority you need to do what God has asked you to do. He says, as we move on in our study of disciple making, we want to look at that authorization because this is the prerequisite to disciple making.

Who gives you the authority to pass on the gospel? Who gives you the right to do that? God does. In Matthew 28. Verses 16 down through verse number 20, speak to us about that authorization. And I want to talk to you about that this evening. I want to answer three questions. Number one, why disciple?

Number two, who can disciple? And number three, what is? A disciple. Okay? Number one, why disciple? Two reasons. Number one, it's mandated by Christ.

It's mandated by Christ. Look what it says in verse number 18. We'll start with verse number 16. But the 11 disciples proceeded to Galilee to the mountain which Jesus had designated. And when they saw him, they worship him. But some were doubtful. And Jesus came up and spoke to them, saying, All authority has been given to me in heaven and on earth. Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Teaching them to observe all that I commanded you, and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.

Now, the reason we disciple is because it has been mandated by the Christ. He says, all authority, not just some authority. Not just particular authority, but all authority, both in heaven and on ear, has been given to me. Now we talked about this on Sunday about the exaltation of Christ. The exaltation of Christ was in four stages. It began with his resurrection. Christ is now resurrected in Matthew 28. From his resurrection, it went to the ascension, to his coronation, and then ultimately in terms of his intercession for us.

All those things. en exaltation. And God the Father gave him a name which is above every other name. That the name of Jesus, every knee should bow, every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord to the glory of God the Father. You see, he already has his authority. Now he says, Now all authority has been given to me. It's been given to me because I've done exactly what my father said I should do. In the incarnation, in my humiliation, I obeyed my father. And now I will be exalted. And part of that exaltation is to give me supreme authority.

And I have all the authority I need to tell you to go and make disciples. Remember what he said over in Matthew 11, verse number 27: All things have been handed over to me by the Father. That's what Jesus said: all things. That includes all authority. And so Jesus establishes his absolute authority so his disciples will understand that what he is saying to them, they must do, because there is no higher authority. What higher authority is there than the Lord God Himself? There is nobody higher than that.

He's given him a name which is above every other name. So, therefore, this high name, this exalted name of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, has all the authority. And so now he says, this authority has been given to me. And because it has been given to me, I'm telling you, this is what you now need to do. God gives commands. You know, God doesn't give suggestions. God and say, you, you know, maybe I'll do this. Maybe I'll try this. This is a good idea. Have you thought about this one? You know, God doesn't do that, God just gives commands.

Do this. Go there. Be this. Because the one with all authority knows exactly what it is you need and what you should be doing. So he says, I want you, therefore, bas on the fact that I have all authority, therefore, make disciples. That 's the imperative. Make disciples. It's the main verb. Going, baptizing, and teaching are participles. This is the main verb. This is the command. The command is: make disciples. Disciples. Now, this is very interesting. If I want my children to do something, I tell them what to do.

And I tell them over and over and over and over and over again because I want to make sure they get it. I don't want them to miss it. So, if I think something's important, what do I do? I tell it to them over and over again. I write it on the mirror. I write it on a 3x5 card. I staple into their bedpost. Do this. Be here. Be there. This is what you got to do. Don't want you to miss it. It's a command from Dad. God's giving me the authority. This is what you got to do. And I tell him over and over and over and over and over again.

It's interesting to note that Jesus said this command once, just once. Now you to me it would seem to me like he'd say that a hundred times. You got to do this. You got to make sure this happens. But he says it once. Why? Why? Why, if it's so important and all authority has been given to Jesus, would he only say it one time? And not a hundred times or a thousand times. Think about that. Why? The answer is right in front of you. The answer is so obvious, you won't even believe it when I tell you. It's so clear when Jesus gave the command.

Way, way back in Genesis chapter 1, to Adam and Eve, he said, be fruitful and multiply. Now, let me ask you a question.

How many times did our Lord God have to tell Adam and Eve to be fruitful and multiply? Just once. Just once. He didn't have to keep telling them to be fruitful and multiply. He just told him one time. Why? Because you see, it is of supreme importance to understand that reproduction. In kind is natural to life. That's important. The call to make disciples is stated only once because it is natural for the new created life to reproduce life. This is the natural thing to do. It would beg the issue for Jesus to repeat something so sim as this.

You don't have to tell a married couple, be fruitful and multiply. They understand that. They know that's what they do. That's part of marriage. The believer is told just once, make disciples. You know why? Because it is inherent in the new creature's life to reproduce itself over and over and over again. That's why. Make sense? Sure, it does. That's what we do. You see, the goal is to make disciples, it's not to make converts. That's important. Jesus gave this command. He said, go into all the world, make disciples.

He didn't say, ev. He said make disciples. That's important. Why? Because there is a certain seminary in our country, a prominent seminary in our country, that teaches that making disciples is a another step after Conversion. You give your life to Christ, you get saved, and then somewhere down the road, you decide to become a disciple of Jesus, a follower of Jesus. But that's not what the Bible teaches. That's not at all what the Bible teaches. And this is important, especially when you come to what we're going to talk about this Sunday morning.

But you need to understand that Jesus' call to discipleship is a call to follow him. It's not a call to a deeper life. It's not a call to a deeper commitment. Let me ask you a question.

When you go into all the world and make disciples, you're supposed to baptize disciples, right? Are we supposed to wait when someone gives their life to Christ and not baptize them until they become a disciple? That's not what the Bible teaches, is it? The Bible teaches that when someone comes to Christ, what are they supposed to do? They're supposed to get baptized. But if discipleship is something you do later down the road, then they come to Christ and then we've got to wait for them to become a disciple and then we can baptize them.

That's totally contrary to what the Bible says. And then, how about this? Do we only teach disciples? We don't teach new believers? So, somebody gives their life to Christ, but we don't teach them. We only go into the world and make disciples, and we teach disciples to observe all that we've commanded? Or do we teach every believer to observe all that we've commanded or all that God's commanded? You see, it's important to note that the word believer and the word disciple is a synonym throughout the book of Acts.

In fact, it wasn't until Acts:, verse number 26, that the disciples were first. Called Christians in Antioch. What were the disciples called? Disciples. They were disciples of the Lord. And the Lord added many disciples to the church. And many disciples were being added to the church, you see. Disciples is what we are to be making. Discipleship is ev. Discipleship is the mandate that God has called us to do. He says, Go into all the world, having gone as you go. We'll talk about this in a second.

The assumption is you're going to go. The assumption is, this is what you're going to do. Here's Christ in His resurrected body, in His glorified body. He's got his disciples around him, and I do believe he has the other 500 with them. As Paul would say over in 1 Corinthians 15 about how Christ appeared to 500, I think this is the time he appeared to them because they were the ones who were doubtful. It says in verse number 16, but the 11 proceeded to Galilee to the mountain which Jesus had designated, and when they saw him, they worshipped him.

That's the 11. But some were doubtful. Who were the ones who were doubtful? That was the other 500, because he hadn appeared to them yet. He had already appeared to the 11 at this time. This is another appearance to them. This is probably the 500 that Christ appeared to and would convince them of his resurrection, and they too now would believe in the resurrection of Jesus Christ our Lord. The important thing to note is that Christ says, listen, don't wait for the world to come to you.

You go to the world. Don't wait. You go. You go to them. As you go, as you're going, make disciples. Now, why doesn't that happen? Why is it we don't do that? Turn back with me, if you would, to 2 Timothy chapter 4. Excuse me, 2 Timothy chapter 2. And I'll explain this to you. This also is very simple to understand. God makes a command, yet we don't do it. God tells us what to do, and we just don't do it. As you go, as you go through life, as you do what it is you do, as you go to the world, make disciples.

Reproduce yourself. We talked about it last two weeks, 2 Timothy 2, verse number 2. Paul says, Listen, you've got a great responsibility. And the way you're going to fulfill that responsibility is to be strong in the grace that is in Christ Jesus. And the result of that is that faithful men will teach other people, God will be glorified, people will be saved, belie will grow in their walk with the Lord. Great thing. And then look at what Paul says in verse number 3.

Suffer hardship with me as a good soldier of Christ Jesus. No soldier, in active service, ent himself in the affairs of everyday life so that he may please the one who enlisted him as a soldier. Paul says, Timothy, listen, I want you to suffer with me for the sake of the gospel because you're a soldier here in this battle. He says, as a soldier, you're on duty, you're in active service. And no soldier in active service. Entangles himself in the affairs of every life. Now think about that for a moment.

This, I was sitting in my office today and I was thinking about this: how we entangle ourselves in the affairs of life. The affairs of life are the practical things in life. They become our preoccupation. They become that which is more important to us. Paul says, Timothy, as a good soldier of Christ, don't get so wrapped up in the everyday things of life that you forget about your mission in life. To please your commanding officer. To do what he's asked you to do, Timothy. The context is of supreme importance.

You see, the reason we don't teach faithful men that they in turn may be able to teach others also is because we are consumed with the everyday activities of life. Whatever those duties may be, whatever deadlines we have to meet, whatever dinners we need to fix. Whatever dates we need to meet, whatever degrees we need to achieve, whatever decorations we need to hang, whatever doctors we need to visit, whatever dogs we need to feed. Whatever decisions we need to make, we have become derelict in our duties because those things have preoccupied our attention.

They're more important. Now, let me meddle for a moment. I don't really like to meddle because that's just not the way I am, but tonight I'll do it. Ask yourself the question: why isn't the auditorium full of people? Why? Is it not because people get involved in the everyday activities of life and they become preeminent? They become more important? Sure it is. Why else wouldn't people come to learn to do the one thing God left them here on earth to do? God didn't leave you here to worship him. Did you know that?

He didn't. He didn't leave you here to have fellowship. He didn't even leave you here to be trained. He left you here to make disciples. That's it. That's it. And so, if God says there's one thing you need to do, and this is what it is, and you have the opportunity to learn about what that one thing is and how to do it.

And you decide not to learn, not to grow in that understanding, so you might be better equipped to do that. What is it you can conclude? There's something else more important to you than that, right? Absolutely. What else is it to conclude? People say, well, you know, there are a lot of things to do. Listen, an hour and 15 minutes a week. Most people go to the gym an hour and 15 minutes a day. Or watch TV at least an hour and 15 minutes a day. Or do some hobby an hour and 15 minutes a day. The church says an hour and 50 minutes a week.

That's it. To teach you, to grow you, to help you understand something. That is so important. But could it not be the truth that people say, well, there's something else more important to do? There's something else more important. There's another place I need to be. So you say, well, I guess that the thing that God's asked you to do is just not that important to you. See, I thought about recording this tape and then putting it in the bulletin on Sunday morning for everybody to have. So they might listen to it and ask themselves the questions: what were you doing on Wednesday night?

In fact, that would be a good question for you to ask people. What were you doing on Wednesday night? What of the affairs of life were you entangled in that became so important to you that the one thing God asked you to do all of a sudden is no longer important to you. Something else is. You see, that is so crucial to get. Because you see, if God says, There's one thing I want you to do, just one.

I want to know how to do it. Don't you? I want to get it. I want to understand it. And then I want to do it. And God says, It's one thing.

I left you here for one reason. Only one. Not two, not three. Not for. See, worship and fellowship and teaching, those things prepare you to make disciples. Okay? But God did not leave you here to worship because, you see, there's only one thing you can do here that you can't do there. And that's made disciples. You're not going be making disciples in heaven. You're going to be fellowshipping. You're going to be worship. You 're not going be taught. You 're going know everything, right? You 'll see him, for you'll be like him for you, see him as he is.

It's going to be great. So there's only one thing you need to do. Just one. Just one thing. That's it. You know, we think God asked us, oh, God, your commands are so burdensome. There's so much you want me to do. God says, no, just one thing.

Just one. Just one? Yeah, just one. That's it. And it's mandated by Christ. Mandated. Number two, it's the mission of the church.

It is the mission of the church. That's our mission. I told you before, our mission is not for you to come together so we can worship and be trained. We do those things in order that we might fulfill our mission that God has commanded us to do. See? To equip us to do that thing. It's interesting to note that each of the Gospels as well as the book of Acts record what is commonly called the Great Commission, each of them with a different emphasis. But it's interesting to note the mood of the disciples when the commission is given.

Remember John 20, 21? When the disciples were locked away in the room for fear, it was a week later, it's a week after the resurrection, and they're locked in the upper room, you know, and Christ just, you know, walks to the door. Peace be unto you. You know, as the Father has sent me, so send I you. These guys were scared, spitless. They didn't know what was going to happen next. They didn know they were going to die. They didn't know what was going to happen. And God says, You go.

As the Father has sent me, I'm sending you. Wow. Unbelievable. That's what God wants us to do. And that whole Acts 1:8 is so important because it says. That the Holy Spirit's going to come upon you. And when the Holy Spirit comes upon you, you're going to receive power. And they say, You will be my witnesses. Listen, witnessing is not something you do. Witnessing is something you are. How profound can that be? We think we go out and witness. We pray for an opportunity to have a chance to witness.

And the Lord says, No, you are my witnesses. You see, witnessing is a state of being, it's not what you do. You see, that's who we are. You are my martyr race. You are my martyrs. You are my witnesses. This is who you are. Why? Because the Spirit of God has come upon you. That's why. Holy cow, man, that's unbelievable. The Spirit of God comes upon us, and now what are we? We are a new people. We are witnesses of Christ. We are testimonies to the living God, to the power of God, to the resurrection of God.

And God says, This is what I want you to do. Because it's based on who you are. That's why He says, You are salt, you are light. So make sure you shake your salt and shine your light. You are those things. You don't become salt. You don't become light. This is who you are. You will be my witnesses. And you know what? They had no sophisticated organizational plans. They had no training classes on evangelism. Can you believe that? They had no elect on how to share your faith. They got together. They were committed to the apostles' teaching, to the fellowship, to the breaking of bread, and prayer.

How simple can it be? That's all they did. They got together, man. They listened to the apostles' teaching. They fellowship together. They broke bread together. They prayed together. And then they went out and they would shine their light all over Jerusalem, ultimately through Judea, ultimately through Samaria. Ultimately, to the remotest parts of the world, because that's who they were. That's who they were. In Acts 17, 6 says, they turned the world up down. Let me ask you a question.

Whose world are you turning upside down? That's what they did. They turned the world upside down. All these people, these fishermen, these nond disciples, 500 of them, we don't even know their names. The church began with 120 people in the upper room. A bunch of no-names, a bunch of no-bodies. And God used them to turn the world upside down. That's how God wants to use us. But if we keep looking at making disciples as something we do, And that's something we are, then we have a hard time. If we keep entangling ourselves in the affairs of this world, so much so that we seek to please someone else other than our God.

Then we're not going to do what God has asked us to do, or what God has told us to do. It's the mission. Of the church. Christ prayed in John:, As thou didst send me into the world, I also have sent them into the world. Why disciple? It's mandated by the Christ. It's the mission of the church. Number two, who can disciple?

Let's first of all look at the people, then the process, then the promise. First of all, the people. Matthew 28, verse number 17 tells us: when the 12 saw him, they worshipped him. They worshipped him. They fell down before him and worshipped him. Those who doubted, I believe, were those in 1 Corinthians 15:6 of the 500 nond disciples that we know that he appeared to. And I believe that they would in turn then worship the Son of God as well when they realized that he was the resurrected Christ. But the point being is that those people who can disciple are those who are true worship of Christ.

Right? And isn't the Bible say that God seeks true worship? Sure, it does. Paul would give his definition of a Christian in Philippians chapter 3, verse number 3, when it says, We are the marked ones. We are the circumcision. We are the ones who worship God in spirit and have no confidence in the flesh. That's who we are. Who are the marked ones? Who are the called-out ones? There's the ones who worship God. Who are the people that can make disciples? It's those people who worship God, who are committed Christians, who have been justified by Christ.

Through faith in him and those who have been authorized by Christ. Those who worship him will work for him. Those who adore him will acclaim him because that's what they're committed to do. In my notes, I have a postage stamp. We use them every day. They go up in price quite regularly. And our mail gets slower as they do. I haven't figured that one out yet. You think that the more expensive the stamps are, the quicker the mail would be. But that's not the way it is. But anyway, I have a postage stamp.

And for the most part, if we just had one stamp laying around, it wouldn't mean much to us. In fact, for the most part, we could care less about a postage stamp. But you know what? These are very, very useful. And they provide a classic illustration for us to understand something. The use of a postage stamp consists, listen, consist in its ability To stick to one thing until it gets there. Is that true? They are extremely useful for one reason. They stick to one thing until they get to where they need to be.

What makes the Christian useful is when they stick to the one thing they need to do until they get to where they need to be. That's glory. That's what makes us useful. That's what makes us significant. That's what makes us understand our identity in Jesus Christ our Lord. That's what helps us to understand our authority to proclaim the gospel. That's what helps us understand our identity with Jesus Christ him. To do the one thing He's asked us to do until we get to the place we ultimately need to be and that's home in glory.

And we've been authorized by Christ to do that. Number two, the process. Christ says, make disciples.

That's the command. And then he says, there's to be a going, a baptizing, and a teaching. The participles that explain to us the process. Of what it means to the disciple. He says, having gone Literally, having gone, make disciples. You see, Christ assumes they're going to go. I mean, what else would you assume? Here is the living resurrected God of the universe in all of his glory. Talking to his men, talking to his disciples, and the only conclusion, the only natural conclusion is that they can't wait to tell somebody else that they've seen the resurrected Christ, that he.

Is alive, he does rule, he does reign, and he is living in me. Right, that's what I would assume. That's what I would think. So Christ says, as you go, I know you're going to go.

What else are you going do? You're going to keep quiet about it? Not going to tell anybody? You're going to let them all think that I'm still in the grave or somebody took my body and I was stolen? What are you going to tell them? Of course, you're going to tell them. That's what Christians do. They can't help but not tell somebody else, right? We don't want to keep it quiet. We want people to know, to see, to hear, to understand. Having gone, the assumption is That we will go. The miracle is he chose you to go.

That's the miracle, right? That's the amazing thing. I would have never chosen you. Please don't think that negatively. But I would have never chosen you. I would have never chosen me. I would have chosen somebody else. But God knows best. He knows what's right. He chose you. He chose me. Having gone, make disciples. Baptizing them. In the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Confront them with the gospel. Baptism involves a crisis. Confront them with the gospel. Bring them to a point of commitment.

You see, baptism is where the individual identifies himself with Christ by being baptized. That's important. There is an identification that goes on here, and these people understood that. That when they were baptized, they were identifying themselves with the resurrected Christ. That involved for them a great crisis. Now, that baptism didn't save them. On my finger, I have a wedding ring. Tonight is the night of illustrations and symbols. I have on my finger a wedding ring. You, if you're married, you have one as well.

This wedding ring doesn't marry me, but this wedding ring identifies me to one individual. Does it not? Sure, it does. It tells everybody else that I am committed to one other person. It doesn't save me, but it identifies me. I could take my ring off at any time, and I'm still married. I'm still married. Because my ring doesn't. Marry me. It also reminds everybody, as well as myself, that I am not available for anybody else. I'm not an option for anybody else. Because it identifies me to one individual.

My baptism identifies me to one individual. To Jesus Christ, my Lord. And lets everybody know that my baptism is that Which helps other people understand that I am not available to do anything else with anyone else other than what God Himself has told me to do because I am committed to Him. Involves a crisis. Go into all the world, make disciples, baptizing them, as well as teaching them. That also is a process. Teaching them to observe all that I've command you. All, not just some, but all. And then comes the promise.

What's he say? He says, And lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age. Two things, his presence and his permanence. I'm with you. People tell me all the time, you know, I just don experience the presence of God in my life. Well, you know what? To experience the presence of God in your life, you've got to do what God says.

If you're going, baptizing, and teaching, the promise is associated with that. If you're making disciples, Jesus says, I'm with you.

You will experience, you will feel, if you're into feelings, the presence of God, unlike at any other time in your life, because you're doing what God said. And whenever you do what God says, guess what?

The presence of God becomes absolutely paramount in your thinking experientially. It comes to fruition in your life, and you begin to sense, you begin to see the presence of God active in your life. L, I'm with you always. Perm, even to the end of the age. Forever, I'm going to be with you. Number three, what is a disciple?

Three things. What is a disciple? Number one, he's a learner. Number two, he's a follower. Number three, He's a reproducer.

Number one, a disciple is a learner. That's what the word mathe tase means. It means learner, someone who learns. Listen, if you stop learning, You stop living. Simple as that. Everybody here needs to be learning. I learn every day. I learn something new every single day. I don't get up here and say, well, I said that last week, I'll say it again this week, or I knew that. No, no, no. I learn something every week, every day, God teaches me. And a disciple is a learner, someone who is growing day by day in their understanding of Jesus Christ our Lord.

A disciple has the characteristic of teachability. They're teachable. They want to grow. They want to learn. Paul would say in Philippians, verse number 9: The things that you have learned from me, received from me, heard in me, seen in me, practice. And then he says, And the peace of God will be with you. Think about that. And the God of peace will be with you. If you, if you Learn, if you receive, if you hear and you see, and you begin to practice those things, if you begin to obey the things that you have learned, guess what?

The God of peace will be with you. Again, what you have is the presence of God associated with. With obedience to God. When people say, I don't sense the presence of God, I don feel the presence, I don know where He is, it's simply because they're not obeying the Word of God. That's it. It's not some big, spooky, mystical kind of thing. That's just a simple bottom line. God says, if you, Paul says, if you learn these things, if you have seen these things in me, you've heard these things, if you practice these things, if you do them, The God of peace, He's going to be with you.

He's going to be with you. That's why the local church Is des to enlighten you and not entertain you. Because you need to learn. You can 't learn through entertainment. You might feel good. But you don't learn. You learn through enlightenment. As the Word of God is opened and the Word of God is taught, you learn. And we are to be learners, characterized by teachability. Not only is the disciple a learner, he's a follower. Christ said in Luke chapter 6, verse number 40: When a disciple is fully trained, he'll be just like his teacher, just like his teacher.

A disciple is a follower, somebody who follows someone else. He imitates the life and teaching of another one. That's why Paul would say, Follow me as I follow Christ. The reason he is a follower is because the greatest lessons in life are more caught than taught. And so he follows. That's why our discipleship ministry must begin in the home, right? Our children are learning. Our children are following. They are disciples of us. They are learners of us, right? And so in the home, it becomes paramount.

That we live the Christ-like life. Paul would tell Timothy to make sure that he acted in accordance with what he said by being an example to the believers there in Ephesus. About how he lived his life and how he spoke, and his purity, his faith, his love. Because people catch those things, they catch them. Disciple is a learner. Disciple is a follower. That's why Christ said, follow me. And I will make you fishes of men. Follow me. That's what a disciple is. And lastly, a disciple is a reproducer.

A reproducer. Someone who, in turn, will reproduce his life or the Christ-like life in someone else. So you had the same model we talked about last week. It's that biblical instruction, a learner, coupled with personal affection, a follower, that culminates in spiritual maturation, which is a reproducer. People who are growing spiritually are reproducing themselves over and over and over again. You can judge the depth of your maturity by how many disciples you are making. Right? You'll reproduce yourself over and over again.

Let me define for you disciple-making by a man, Alan Haddad, who wrote a book entitled Successful Discipleship.

He says this. Discipling others is the process by which a Christian with a life worth sharing commits himself for an extended period of time to a few individuals. Who have been one to Christ for the purpose of aiding and guiding their growth and maturity and equipping them to reproduce themselves in a third gener.

That is disciple-making. That's what God has called us to do. That's what we need to be engaged in. That should be the passion of the church. Should be the passion of your parenting. It should be the passion of your life. Remember, Jesus said. There's one thing I want you to do. This is it. This is it. Just one thing. Will you do that one thing? Are you doing that one thing? I trust that you are. For the weeks that we have remaining, we're going to teach you what that means. You have the authority, God said so.

All authority has been given unto me, both in heaven and in earth. Now, you go. You make disciples. You baptize them. You teach them. And guess what? I'll be with you every step of the way. That. That is living. Let's pray. Father, we thank for the word of God, the truth of God. We thank you, Lord, for the people of God. We realize, Lord, that in your word, you have clearly spelled out to us our responsibility. And our prayer tonight is that we would rise to the occasion by the grace of God within us.

Say, yes, Lord, I want to invest my life into the life of somebody else. I want to share Jesus Christ with an unbelieving world. I want to watch people grow in their walk with God. And I want to be a part of that. Because, Lord, that's why you left me here. After you saved me. That's why you didn't take me home to glory because I am a representative of the kingdom of God. And thus, I am to proclaim the excellencies of that kingdom to all I come in contact with. In Jesus' name, amen.