A Challenge to Disciple

A Challenge to Disciple

 Matthew 28:19-20 Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost: 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.

Right along with being challenged to be a witness is this next challenge. A challenge to be a disciple maker. You see, sharing the gospel is great, but unless the people who come to Christ are discipled they will never grow as Christians. Few people are willing to spend the time it takes to disciple someone, but the challenge is set before you to be a disciple maker. As Christ is giving us the Great Commission He made sure to give us the details on how to do it. It is about teaching them the gospel and teaching them to follow after God. Let’s look this week at how you can accept the challenge to be a disciple maker

1. Discipling starts before salvation— Christ tells us in verse 19 to teach all nations. He is telling us to teach them the gospel. Many people think that discipleship starts as soon as some one gets saved, but in reality it can start whenever, but sharing the gospel should be the start of disciple making! You should spend time with people sharing with them the gospel, explaining the punishment for sin, and how Christ died for them. This could take one lesson or several meetings, but do not give up! I would not recommend going past salvation and deeper into discipleship with someone who is not a Christian. Keep meeting with them and keep sharing the gospel with them until God works in their hearts and lives and they are saved.
2. Discipling continues after salvation— Once someone accepts Christ as their Savior now it is time to get into the verse 20 of Matthew 28 territory. “Teaching them to observe all things.” This is teaching them how to have a walk with God, how to be a faithful Christian and how they should live as a Christian. I would recommend finding a discipleship material to go through with someone to help you outline all the topics that should be covered. Remember they are babes in Christ, they will mess up and make mistakes along the way, but show them love and teach them what God has to say and how the Bible shows them how to live. As you go through discipleship with them you should begin to see them grow and see them take steps of faith!
3. Discipling continues on to others— As you disciple people the end goal should be to get them to not only be faithfully serving Christians, but also to see them discipling others. If we want to see the world reached with the gospel, we must train people to reach people! The people you are discipling should at some point begin to look for other people for them to disciple and go through the same material you took them through. This will free you up to disciple others as well and continue the process!

We have been commanded and challenged by our Lord and Savior to disciple people. The question is will you accept the challenge and begin to look for people to disciple in your church? Look for someone in your community who is not saved, or maybe they are new to your church or have recently accepted Christ. The challenge has been set, now it is up to you to follow the command and see people discipled!