Encouraging, Empowering & Equipping Ordinary Christians To Live Powerful Missional Lives!
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Watch this video and receive empowerment from God’s Word to go live a life that reflects the glory of Christ back into the lives of those still trapped in darkness.
Take a quick moment and watch to see if your identity in Christ has been stolen by Satan or not!
Disciples are made, not just born again! Now that’s an interesting statement and one that really needs to be looked at closely. At one angle the statement seems completely contrary to what we know about having a relationship with Jesus Christ. After all, didn’t Jesus say, “… you must be born again …”? Of course He did! And what Jesus says is absolute truth! So, then the statement “Disciples Are Made - Not Just Born Again” is false! Or is it?
Didn’t Jesus also say in Matthew 28:18-20 as part of the Great Commission to, “… Go and make disciples …”? Notice the emphasis I am placing on the word, “MAKE”. Again, of course He did! And also, once again, what Jesus says is absolutely truth!
How then do we look at the original statement, “Disciples Are Made - Not Just Born Again”? Simply by just saying that it is true and must be accepted!
The real question then deals with how to understand and harmonize both parts of the statement so that it can guide us into complete obedience to Christ and His mission.
First, let’s take a closer look at what Jesus says about being born again. The statement is found in Jesus’ discussion with Nicodemus in the Gospel of John 3:1-21. Nicodemus came to Jesus at night to talk with Jesus and get more information from Jesus about the things of God. Nicodemus starts off his discourse with a statement he believed to be true about Jesus. He says,
“Rabbi, we know that you are a teacher who has come from God, for no one could perform these signs you do unless God was with him.” (v.2)
Jesus then jumps right in there with this teaching about the need to be born again and how that experience is the entrance into being part of the kingdom of God. The born again experience is the essential step that every person must take if they are going to enter into the Kingdom of God. Without taking that step one cannot enter.
After some questioning and answering back and forth by Jesus and Nicodemus, Jesus finally explains that the way one experiences this born again experience is through believing in Him, the Son of God. This is the place where we read one of the most memorized scriptures in the Bible,
“For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever, believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.” John 3:16
But in Matthew 28:18-20 Jesus wasn’t talking about the born again experience! He wasn’t talking about the initial step that brings them into the Kingdom of God. No. Jesus was giving His final words of instructions before He leaves this world and goes back to Heaven to wait for the time of His return. Jesus is talking about the final product that is to be produced in those who come to faith in Him.
Jesus was teaching Nicodemus how to get started but Jesus was instructing His apostles about what the final outcome would be for those who come and receive that born again experience. The verses in John 3 talk about the beginnings the verses in Matthew 28 talk about the goal.
The born again experience is the first step in the disciple making process but it is also not the final step. The goal of Jesus is to make him more and more disciples - not just more and more people being born again. While it is very true one cannot become a disciple of Jesus unless they are born again, it is also true that one cannot be a fully devoted follower of Christ by just being born again.
If we are striving to be fully devoted followers of Christ are going to be obedient we must share the Gospel of Jesus Christ to the lost so they can hear and believe in Jesus and thereby receive that born again experience. But we must also recognize that that there is still much more to do if we are going to be obedient to Christ command and commission in Matthew 28. We must baptize them in the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit and we must teach them to obey all that Christ has commanded.
While doing a study of the Gospel of what Jesus actually did to ignite a powerful disciple making movement I found this very important Bible verse.
"Jesus went throughout Galilee, teaching in their synagogues, preaching the good news of the kingdom, and healing every disease and sickness among the people. News about him spread all over Syria, and people brought to him all who were ill with various diseases, those suffering severe pain, the demon possessed, those having seizures, and the paralyzed and he healed them. Large crowds from Galilee, the Decapolis, Jerusalem, Judea and the region across the Jordan followed him." Matthew 4:23-25
Watch this video to learn more about the 3 things Jesus did to ignite a disciple making movement and how to apply them for today.
I am so glad to hear of your interest in The Basic Gospel Sharing Training that The Ordinary Christian has put together. This is a FREE training that you can get to help you become more competent and confident in sharing Christ with others.
Pastor Billy and His Family!
This Saturday, June 3rd I will be in Glens Ferry, Idaho at First Baptist Church with Pastor Billy to lead his congregation in the Gospel Conversation Training. It is his desire to see his church raised up, trained up and unleashed to go share the Gospel to every person in their ministry field until there's no place left to share.
We believe that ordinary christians are God primary choice for doing His extraordinary work. Throughout scripture we see God choosing to use everyday people to join Him on His mission of raising up, training up and unleashing them to become rapidly reproducing disciple makers. The Ordinary Christians intends to join God in that pursuit.
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