 When Jesus returned to heaven, He left us with a task. Make disciples. “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). This command is for every believer, not just for pastors and missionaries. We are ALL sent to make disciples. This involves two parts. First, we must be a disciple, personally following God in holy obedience and faith. In order to teach others “to observe all that I have commanded”, we must model obedience. Second, we must make disciple makers, teaching others to follow God and also equipping them to make more disciples. Every disciple should be a disciple maker. Here is our central focus: Be a disciple that makes disciple makers. Day in and day out, no matter what, this must be our focus. Even if all our other plans fall apart, we must be a disciple that makes disciple makers. If this is our focus, how can we do it better? Here are a few thoughts and tips to help us engage in this all-important task. CONNECTING WITH THE LOST To have the opportunity to share our hope in the gospel, we need to be intentionally building relationships with unbelievers. We need to reach people where they are. The vast majority of people in post-Christian Europe (and, similarly, more and more in the US) are not going to come to church to hear the gospel. We need to go to them. In addition to looking for opportunities to share Christ in your everyday interactions with people, we need to find ways to intentionally stay connected to the lost. For many Christians, their circle of unsaved friends is very small. As we grow closer to Christ, it is true that we will have less in common with unbelievers and won’t be able to participate in some conversations or activities. However, if our Lord was able to be “a friend of tax collectors and sinners” (Luke 7:34), then so can we. |
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