Discipleship Defined Series

Discipleship Defined

Matthew 28:16-20

Rev. Brian Bill

January 2-3, 2021

Recently Beth and I spent time going through some boxes in our basement. I came across a number of prayer journals I’ve recorded over the years. As I was flipping through one from 2004, I found something I wrote on the inside cover.

Q: To Megan (our youngest, who was 5 years old at the time): “How does it feel to be a new Christian?”

A: After hesitating, Megan replied, “What’s a new Christian supposed to do, daddy?”

Seeing that question again stirred up some thoughts I’ve had as a father and a pastor over the years. What’s a new Christian supposed to do? Are there some things we must do in order to grow? This ties right into our second “G” – Gather, Grow, Give and Go with the gospel.

Last weekend we learned from Philippians 3 that if you want to grow, you must let some things go. We’ll see today that as we grow, we’ll go global with the good news. Our purpose is to define discipleship as Jesus does: A disciple is a believer who lovingly follows Jesus and intentionally helps others follow Him.

The first step is for each of us to lovingly follow Jesus and then to intentionally help others do the same. When Jesus called some fishermen in Matthew 4:19, He also gave them their purpose: “Follow me, and I will make you fishers of men.” We’re to grow and bring others along with us. 2 Timothy 2:2 says: “And what you have heard from me in the presence of many witnesses entrust to faithful men, who will be able to teach others also.” A devoted disciple disciples other disciples who in turn disciple more disciples.

In our new series called, “Discipleship Matters” we’re going to wrestle with the discipleship demands of Jesus from the Gospels. In preparation I read each of the four Gospels and simply put the letter “D” in the margin next to the verses that deal with the call and cost of discipleship. Take a guess how many times in the gospels that Jesus clarified His call for disciples to follow Him fully. Right, 104 times!

Our text today is Matthew 28:18-20 but before we get there, let’s set the context. After Jesus was raised from the dead, He appeared to Mary Magdalene and the other Mary. Later, He showed up to Peter and then to two disciples on the road to Emmaus. That evening he appeared to most of the disciples and finally, to Thomas.

Shortly after this, we read in verses 16-17: “Now the eleven disciples went to Galilee, to the mountain to which Jesus had directed them. And when they saw Him they worshiped Him, but some doubted.”

We learn three key truths from these verses.

1. Obedience is always the expectation. Even though the resurrection happened in Jerusalem, Jesus directed the disciples to meet Him on a mountain in Galilee, a journey of 90 miles. We see this in Matthew 26:32: “But after I am raised up, I will go before you into Galilee.”

This was a challenging and difficult trip, but the disciples didn’t hesitate. In a similar way, we must always strive for immediate obedience, no matter how hard it is.

Don’t miss this. If the disciples wanted to see Jesus again, they had to go to Galilee. Because the disciples obeyed Jesus, they put themselves in position to hear Him make a monumental statement. Listen. We’ll never know the person of Jesus and we won’t know His plans if we’re not obedient. Obedience is the key to fulfilling God’s plans for our lives.

2. The right response is always reverence. When the disciples see Jesus, they hit the dirt in worship. The idea behind this word for worship is they prostrated themselves in praise, much like they did in Matthew 14:33 after watching Jesus walk on the water: “And those in the boat worshiped Him, saying, ‘Truly you are the Son of God.’”

3. Your doubts don’t disqualify you. The word for “doubt” means, “to be divided in half, uncertain, wavering in hesitation.” It was used of a person standing where two ways meet, resulting in indecision. I find it fascinating that Jesus doesn’t rebuke them for their doubts, nor does He reject the worship of those who revered Him. While some found great delight in Him, others doubted Him. Most of them were focused and faithful but some were filled with fear. We’re a lot like that, aren’t we? Sometimes we’re devoted and other times we doubt.

The Great Commission

Before we unpack the passage known as the Great Commission, I want to share the stunning results of a recent Barna study.

• When asked if churchgoers had “heard of the Great Commission,” 51% said they did not recognize this term.