Disciples declining.

 

 Living things are structured to multiply. Nothing exists in a vacuum or in isolation. One of the attributes of living creatures is reproduction; it is God’s grand design. In Gen.1:28, God commanded man to multiply, He wasn’t referring to the physical man alone, He was also referring to the spiritual man. He then took a break from the work of creation, ensuring that the world would continue to evolve and its components interact afterwards. Amazing high-rise buildings have since been erected and jets faster than the speed of sound now exist. God also saw these in the six days of creation, put His creative powers in us, and chose to make them through you and me many years later.  Whenever a car company comes up with the concept of a new car, a prototype is first made which is tested, corrected and refined until it attains an ideal state in conformity to established standards and requirements. Feasibility studies will then be carried out to ensure the car is marketable, the roll out begins and several units of that prototype are introduced into the market. It is interesting to note that a lot of money is spent on research and development of the first prototype, but much more than that in several multiples would be realised after mass production. In the same vein, God is a seasoned businessman; He made a huge investment on Jesus by sending Him to die for our sins. Shortly afterwards, God got millions of children to Himself by giving out His only begotten son. Jesus came into the world and chose (made) twelve foundational disciples; He also had many other followers and He urged them all to also make disciples; please read Matt.28:19-20.

To make disciples, we must return to the original prototype which we have in Jesus. We must be replicas of Jesus. When we heed His call to make disciples, the disciples we make must also be like Jesus or else they are not the correct standard. In other words, we must be like Jesus and make other people to be like Him. Little wonder Apostle Paul said in 1^st Cor. 11:1, “Be ye followers of me, even as I also am of Christ.” In nature, every lion must look like the first lion that was created, if today’s lion does not look like the first lion, we must give it another name, maybe it is just a pussy cat. We should avoid the compromise that comes with the passage of time. The first sets of disciples prayed together, lived fervently in holiness, were heaven conscious, shared their possessions with one another, took good care of their leaders; spoke against political and societal injustice while some even gave up their lives for the faith. Does that come close to the type of disciples that we have today?

Fans are different from disciples. Disciples have a higher level of commitment to the Master, they are His dedicated followers, they learn at His feet, and are not mere admirers like the fans. Fans approach the Lord just for what they will get from Him, but disciples know that they will lose a lot (including their freewill) while following yet they do not mind the cost, Matt. 19:26-29. Little wonder Jesus said in Mark 8:34 “And when he had called the people unto him with his disciples also, he said unto them, whosoever will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me”. In this text, it was time for Jesus to separate fans from followers. Also in John 6:65-69, we see that true disciples are those that do not desert the Master when the going gets tough, when the teaching gets hard and the comfort flies out of the window, they are the ones who stay put through thick and thin. Did you notice in the text that Jesus gave the multitude and the twelve disciples the same address? It was the same call for existing and prospective disciples,” you must deny yourself, take up your cross and follow me”. Denial from legitimate pleasures is a hallmark of disciples; while others eat, you may be required to fast. When they attend parties, you are in church! The cross is a symbol of suffering, pick yours up! The text says “take up his cross”. Every disciple has a cross to bear.

“Jesus of Nazareth always comes asking disciples to follow him--not merely "accept him," not merely "believe in him," not merely "worship him," but to follow him: one either follows Christ, or one does not. There is no compartmentalization of the faith, no realm, no sphere, no business, no politic in which the lordship of Christ will be excluded. We either make him Lord of all lords, or we deny him as Lord of any.”
― Lee Camp, Mere Discipleship: Radical Christianity in a Rebellious World

A true disciple loves like Jesus; for God is love. He is as zealous as Jesus who drove traders out of the temple in His zeal. A disciple must be a decent zealot, he/she may be seen by others as a fanatic, an extremist of sorts, he wants to advance the course of his Master by all possible (proper) means. If need be, a disciple will gladly lay down his life for the course he believes in, just like The Early Christian Martyrs did. Islamic extremists; suicide bombers are firm ‘disciples’, but not disciples of Christ. They lay down their lives for another course, different from the one we refer to here.

The reason why you have prestige among people and God has blessed you with wealth and influence is so that you can make disciples and help other people who are making disciples. Making disciples is serious business, it involves time, money, wisdom, great patience and intense prayers, it is like a pregnancy that needs to be formed properly and delivered as a healthy child, Gal. 4:19. Mentorship may include financial care for the protégée. However, it is worth all the effort as it is of immense value to God and His kingdom. Let us examine some of the discipleship techniques that Jesus employed:

·         He was friendly and approachable; some of the disciples started out as friends and acquaintances. John 1:45-50, 4: 7-42, Luke 19:5-10

·         Jesus prayed for His Disciples, Luke 22:31-32, John 17:5-26

·         He taught them plainly and through parables. In Matt.28:19-20, the instruction to teach disciples came up twice

·         With deep wisdom, He answered their questions and settled disputes; Matt. 18:1-3, 20:21-28

·         He took care of their needs; Luke 8:1-2, Judas was his treasurer, John 13:29. He paid Peter’s tax; Matt.17:27,He fed the five thousand,e.t.c.

·         He even went as far as caring for their family members. He healed Peter’s mother-in-law, Luke 4:38-39

·         He rebuked them when they erred, yet He exercised patience with them. Matt. 16: 21-24, John 21:16-18, Luke 24:13-32

·         He gave his life in exchange for theirs. John 18:3-9(Emphasis on verse 8)

We should be ready to employ the forerunning strategies and more in the bid to make disciples. Where it takes patience to make a disciple, becoming a disciple requires humility and faith. You must mentor protégées that will look up to you. In the old times, discipleship was so intense that protégées often lived with their mentors; they knew his attitude, relationship with his family, sleep and eating habits and so on. Jesus lived and moved with His Disciples, same as Elisha and Gehazi, Moses and Joshua, e.t.c. Parents should make disciples of their children as Timothy’s mother and grandmother did; 2^nd Tim. 1:5-6. In fact parenthood is the greatest opportunity for discipleship. Little wonder in Ex.12:24-27, Deut. 6:6-9, God instructed Moses who then instructed the Israelites to teach their children of His ordinances FOREVER. God reposed much confidence in Abraham because He knew Abraham will direct his household in the way of God. Gen.17:9, 18:19.

Refusal to make disciples is capable of making Christianity become extinct. Many believers have lived and died; the Christian faith will continue to exist only when we make disciples. If the Pharisees (bad as they were) made disciples that turned out worse than them, Christ’s Disciples must make disciples that will turn out better than themselves, Matt. 23:15. Jesus said His followers will do greater works and I dare say that their followers who will come after should do even yet greater works. Elisha did greater works than Elijah, the glory of the latter is greater than the former; this is the trend in God’s Kingdom. It is sad to see that pagan religions are gaining much ground in the world today. Other religions have converted the disciples we refused to make. This has reduced the number of potential disciples of Jesus. The biggest Armenian Church in the Middle East is now a mosque following the departure of the congregation! Even the Church of Christ to an extent now lives in compromise of the foundational truths of the faith, gay bishops have been ordained, and homosexuality is becoming pronounced in the Church. This trend has come to life because we have refused to make as many disciples as we should. We must preserve the faith, we must make disciples. I must make disciples as I have been made a disciple.