In my last blog post, I talked about the Lord Jesus bearing fruit in and through our lives. As we “abide” in Him, that is, we are vitally connected to Him, He will bear fruit in us (godly character) and through us. That is, we are disciples who make disciples who make disciples. We primarily talked about God’s work in us last post. Today, let’s see the kind of work that God does through us.
Fishers of Men
I am convinced that the “fruit” God desires to produce through us is disciples who make disciples. That is, seeing people come to faith in Christ, (Evangelism) and then seeing them growing in their faith (Discipleship) so that they can lead others to find faith in Christ, and then disciple them. Some have referred to this process as “multiplying disciples.”
Jesus said in Mark 1:17, “Follow me and I will make you become fishers of men.” Jesus said that as we follow Him, He will work in us to “make you become” so that He can work through us and empower us to be “fishers of men.”
Listen, if you and I are really following Jesus, it will be evidenced by not only growing in godly character but also as we invite people to know and follow Jesus (Evangelism) and then teaching them to obey His commands, (Discipleship).
Before Jesus ascended to the Father, He told His disciples, “Go therefore and make disciples.” That is, invite people to know and follow Jesus through repentance and faith and invest in them so that they can do the same work of inviting and investing.
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The Ministry of Paul
The apostle Paul shares his mission statement in Colossians 1:28, when he says;
28 We proclaim him, warning and teaching everyone with all wisdom, so that we may present everyone mature in Christ. (CSB)
Notice the phrase, “warning everyone” in the text. I believe that He is referring here to evangelism. As he shared the gospel to the Gentiles, he was preaching Christ and Him crucified (1 Corinthians 2:2) and also warning them of the “wrath to come.” (1 Thessalonians 1:10)
Also, notice the phrase, “teaching everyone with all wisdom.” As people come to faith in Jesus, Paul knew that he had a responsibility to help them grow and mature in their newfound faith. Paul did not want to present converts to Christ at the judgment but mature believers. He wanted to hear the Lord Jesus say, “Well Done!”
Born to Reproduce
I told you in my earlier blog how much of an impact the little booklet Born To Reproduce had impacted my life as a new believer. One section of the booklet especially challenged me. Dawson said there were only three reasons why a believer would not reproduce or make disciples.
- Ignorance
- Not abiding in Christ
- Disobedience
As that summer ended, I realized that I had no excuses and promised God that with His strength, I would seek to make disciples who make disciples. My hope and prayer is that you will also see the call to go and make disciples who make disciples and adopt that as a lifestyle.
By Tim LaFleur
https://replicate.org/the-disciples-purpose-bearing-fruit-part-2/