Church Culture - Discipleship

Jesus came and told his disciples, “I have been given all authority in heaven and on earth.  Therefore, go and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit.  Teach these new disciples to obey all the commands I have given you.   And be sure of this: I am with you always, even to the end of the age.”
Matthew 28:18-20, New Living Translation~

Before Jesus ascended into heaven, He called His church and sent the Holy Spirit to empower us to “make disciples.”  While He was on this Earth, He modeled a strategy to reach all the nations and recorded it in His Word.

The Bible is clear that someone who is Christian is a follower of Jesus, a disciple of Christ (Luke 14:26; John 8:31). One definition of a disciple is: one who is called by Jesus, who has repented and is trusting in Jesus for their salvation, and as such, they are seeking to follow Jesus with their whole life while training others to do the same.

“If anyone comes to Me and does not hate his father and mother, wife and children, brothers and sisters, yes, and his own life also, he cannot be My disciple.” 
Luke 14:26

Then Jesus said to those Jews who believed Him, “If you abide in My word, you are My disciples indeed.”
John 8:31

In John 17, Jesus prays the high priestly prayer, and we see a glimpse into how He viewed His mission from His Father.  He taught His disciples that eternal life comes from knowing His Father, the only true God.  Jesus was given authority by the Father to give eternal life to all those who believe in His name.

In John 17, verse four, Jesus says that He accomplished the work that the Father gave Him to do.  Jesus’ ultimate and primary mission was His work of redemption, His atoning sacrifice for our sins.  This is evidenced by His mission statements in the Bible such as “I came to seek and to save the lost.” (Luke 19:10), and “I came not to be served but to serve and to give my life as a ransom for many” (Mark 10:45)

As mentioned in John 17 above, Jesus’ mission also included the selection and training of men who would carry on His work after He left Earth.  His disciples grew in their maturity as they were with Jesus, and He equipped them as they ministered together.  He was consistently "with" His disciples in a life-on-life way, modeling how to be a follower of God.  He called them to a high commitment with great cost, sending them out to minister and providing them feedback, exposing them to His teaching and miracles, and asking them hard questions that led them to the heart of the matter.

After Jesus' resurrection, they became disciple-makers, He had delegated the ministry to them. It was said of them, “When they saw the boldness of Peter and John, and perceived that they were uneducated, common men, they were astonished.  And they recognized that they had been “with” Jesus” (Acts 4:13).  It was their “relationship with Jesus” that made all the difference (Luke 4:18-19).

This post has material taken from Life-on-Life Missional Disciupleship curriculum written by Perimeter Church in John Creek, GA