1. Welcome to Baptist Board, a friendly forum to discuss the Baptist Faith in a friendly surrounding.

    Your voice is missing! You will need to register to get access to all the features that our community has to offer.

    We hope to see you as a part of our community soon and God Bless!

God wants us to be DISCIPLES - yet we do not act like disciples

Discussion in 'Other Discussions' started by speedyj1992, Dec 18, 2019.

  1. speedyj1992

    speedyj1992 New Member

    Joined:
    Sep 19, 2017
    Messages:
    14
    Likes Received:
    3
    Faith:
    Non Baptist Christian
    At the end of Matthew's gospel, the Great Commission is where Jesus tells the disciples He wants them to go out and make DISCIPLES of all nations - yet we so often just try and get people to believe and move on when they do to the next people. But is that the calling of God? Might we want to look at our lives and make sure that we are constantly learning and growing as the disciples were?



     
    • Like Like x 1
  2. Aaron

    Aaron Member
    Site Supporter

    Joined:
    Sep 4, 2000
    Messages:
    20,253
    Likes Received:
    1,381
    Faith:
    Baptist
    The title betrays his misunderstanding, but he was correct when he said they weren't sent to make believers.

    Jesus makes believers. We make disciples.

    I suspect though, what he thinks is being a disciple is nothing like what Lewis described in Mere Christianity.
     
  3. agedman

    agedman Well-Known Member
    Site Supporter

    Joined:
    Nov 4, 2011
    Messages:
    11,023
    Likes Received:
    1,108
    Faith:
    Baptist
    There has been a large neglect, in my view, concerning the discipline of discipleship.

    Perhaps this is why many believers are so casual in their relationship with God that they have no concept of His demand upon their lives as Lord.

    Perhaps this is why devotion is regarded as getting emotional rather than learning to persevere in the worst and most inconvenient times relying totally upon the providence of God.

    Perhaps this is why so many may think they have a relationship with God, only to find it is based on the next best self-help book and not upon the Scripture precepts.

    Just some random thoughts.

    As a non-baptist Christian, what have you found the most helpful in discipleship?
     
    • Like Like x 1
  4. speedyj1992

    speedyj1992 New Member

    Joined:
    Sep 19, 2017
    Messages:
    14
    Likes Received:
    3
    Faith:
    Non Baptist Christian
    To @Aaron - the guy in the video would be me. You're right Jesus makes believers and we make disciples - in fact, the way you put that is so cool I'm going to use that in the future. I haven't read "Mere Christianity" yet, but its hopefully my next read - that said, can you please use Scripture to tell me my misunderstanding in this topic?

    @agedman LOVE how you put that! I totally agree with you - obviously, we've only gotten at the start of this as a topic. Are you getting discipled?
     
  5. Aaron

    Aaron Member
    Site Supporter

    Joined:
    Sep 4, 2000
    Messages:
    20,253
    Likes Received:
    1,381
    Faith:
    Baptist
    God Wants Disciples, not Believers. That isn't true. It's a false dichotomy, and that isn't to be gleaned from the Great Commission.

    Believers are those that are born of God. and God does want children. The apostle attributes Isaiah 8:18 to Christ in Hebrews 2:13.

    Also, "...yet we so often just try and get people to believe and move on when they do to the next people"??? We do? Who are you talking about? You may be talking about some evangelists fleecing the sheep by selling out arenas, (though I can't name any who can sell out an arena these days) but that is so far from oh so much of the mission work that I see to make me doubt that that's what you see yourself.

    So far from being some soul winning dynamo impacting the community for Christ (and other such tripe) being a disciple is learning to live virtuously, men working to provide, loving their wives, nurturing their children, loving their neighbors, women obeying their husbands, guiding the house, nurturing their children, loving their neighbors...etc.

    It's adding to one's faith virtue, and to virtue knowledge, and to knowledge self control, and to self control patience, and to patience godliness, and to godliness brotherly kindness, and to brotherly kindness genuine love.

    It's not going out making disciples.
     
  6. Reformed

    Reformed Well-Known Member
    Site Supporter

    Joined:
    Dec 27, 2012
    Messages:
    4,960
    Likes Received:
    1,694
    Faith:
    Baptist
    A disciple is a person who follows and emulates the teaching of another. Another way of putting it is that disciples are imitators of the one they are following.

    Ephesians 5:1 Therefore be imitators of God, as beloved children;

    and...

    1 Corinthians 11:1 Be imitators of me, just as I also am of Christ.

    The call to be a disciple is life long. There is no so-called discipleship course that can slap a label on the back of a Christian proclaiming they are a disciple. When it comes down to it, being a disciple is synonymous with being a Christian. A Christian is a disciple and a disciple is a Christian. The two are inseparable.
     
    • Agree Agree x 1
  7. speedyj1992

    speedyj1992 New Member

    Joined:
    Sep 19, 2017
    Messages:
    14
    Likes Received:
    3
    Faith:
    Non Baptist Christian
    @Aaron where do you live? I live in the USA, and while I am sure there are churches in this country that do offer great discipleship, and while I was at one before moving and am at one yet again, my experience personally and from talking with other people from around the country is that this is the EXCEPTION. That you have seen actual discipleship done well is really encouraging, but there are lots of churches that don't do it well, and the people there are the ones I want to target with the video.

    Just something to be aware of, because it is a problem that may be more widespread than you realize and/or less than I think of, but is still a problem. So people not being discipled are my audience with that video, and while I understand wanting to bring clarity and truth here with what you have seen, I do not think the tone that came out in your comment reflects an openness to the experiences of others and a want to further the gospel. Paul clearly discipled others and wants us to be in each other's lives in ways that I think is rare among Christians in this country - maybe you have seen it otherwise, and again, if so, great! That's encouraging, but it doesn't change what's written plainly in the Great Commission. We should be doing all the things you mentioned, but being disciples and discipling others and such isn't something I believe we should ignore.

    Pray on it and read Scripture with an openness of heart and mind if you disagree.
     
Loading...