I think in the ministry and life in general, it is too easy to get distracted or sidetracked from what is the most important thing in our lives and from what truly is the purpose of our lives. Even those who are “successful” in life and ministry often feel like something is missing and they ask “has it all been worth it?”. We all want to do something that makes a difference or counts for something in this life, but what could that be? A while back I was asked the question “Who will even remember us when we have been dead fifty years?”. I really had to think about that a while and came to the realization that while some people become famous for one thing or another, that will probably not be me. While the question, “Who will even remember us and what lasting impact can we make in this world for God and good?” is not a bad question I think the focus is off. Maybe fifty or a hundred years from now no one will even know who I was, even among my family, but I believe that I can have an impact that will last even beyond a hundred years, whether my name is known or not. This is what we see in what is called the “Great Commission” or “Christ last Command” to His church and people. This is the homework that He left us, the task or responsibility to take the gospel to the world. The only way that we can have a lasting impact on this world is when we make disciples. I have learned, during my short time in the ministry, that there are many things that can occupy our time, but only one thing is worth the majority of our time and effort.. making disciples. At the end of our ministries it won’t be that important how big our church is, because most large churches disappear after the main pastor is gone. The only way our ministry will last is if we have successfully trained men that can continue on after we are gone. Even those who are not in the “ministry” can have a lasting impact by leaving a legacy of faithful men that are doing the same. So, if this is the key, and the main task that we should be focused on, that leads me to my question, who is your disciple? Who is the person that you are investing your time and life in, helping them become what God wants, so they can carry on that legacy? If, at the end of your life you have trained a group of faithful men, even one, then even though no one might remember your name, your influence will last for years to come. Here are a few things that might help you find your disciple:
I. Pray for the right person
The first thing that we should do is start with prayer. Pray that the Lord would give you someone that you can disciple and invest your life in. Even Jesus prayed all night before choosing His disciples. In Matthew chapter nine Jesus said “The harvest truly is plenteous, but the laborers are few”. So what was our responsibility seeing this? Pray for laborers. We must realize that this is a spiritual work and that God is the only one that can do that work in a persons heart and life. I can remember our first years on the mission field praying, even begging God to give us disciples. I would work with one, then another, yet it seemed that no one stuck. It was about that time that one of the men, that had been helping with the music and many of the responsibilities in the church came to me and said that he wanted to prepare for the ministry, even if he had to go somewhere else to do it. This is when we officially began our Bible College to train men for the ministry. From that time I have never stopped praying that the Lord would give us disciples to train. Even in the most difficult situations and places, if the Lord will at least give you one person that you can disciple, you can begin your work.
II. Be the Right Person
The next thing, and maybe the most overlooked, is that we must be the right person, to find and be able to train the right person. It has to start with us because we will only produce what we are. The process that we are talking about is spiritual reproduction, reproducing ourselves as Christians. So this begs the question, “If you are going to reproduce yourself as a Christian, what type of Christian are you going to reproduce”? Will they be a lukewarm, weak, easily discouraged Christian; or an on fire, dedicated, passionate Christian ready to face anything? We might have to start by asking the question, “What is a good Christian”? I have been surprised by what some people call a “good Christian”. I have heard people say, “He is such a wonderful Christian” only to find out later that their lives don’t seem to line up with that declaration. Now I am not trying to judge people because I know we are all on different levels of our spiritual growth and I know that we are not, nor ever will be perfect, but we must have in mind what we want to shoot for, and that is Christ. Our goal, for ourselves, and our disciple must be that we reflect Christ and His word through our lives. Does our lives in private and public line up with what the word of God says? Are we faithful to Him, and live in such a way that most everyone around us can say, without asking that we are a Christian? So if you are looking to make disciples, start by working on your own spiritual life.
III. Look for the Right Person (faithful, teachable)
The next thing that we have to do is know what type of person that we are looking for. When I first started, it might have taken me longer to find a disciple because I wasn’t sure who that was or how to find him. I would just start discipling anyone that would meet with me or give me the time of day so to speak. While that is not wrong, and it may be where we start, we can save a lot of time if we focus the majority of our effort with the right people. So what are we to look for in a disciple? Paul told Timothy in 2 Tim 2:2 that he was supposed to pass on what he had learned to “faithful me who are able” Here we can see two things that are vital when we look for a disciple. They must be faithful and growing in faithfulness and also able to teach others and be teachable. So as you look for that one person, look for those who begin to show faithfulness as you encourage them in their Bible reading, church attendance and living for the Lord. When see that faithfulness, you know that they are a candidate for being a disciple. Then you look at their ability which I relate to their teachability. If someone is willing and teachable you can prepare them to do almost anything. I once heard it said that teachability is being willing to relearn something you think you already know. If they show these two traits then you know it is worth spending time with them.
IV. Encourage them to reach the right person. (The goal is reproduction)
Your ultimate goal is to help them become a mature Christian living out the word of God in their everyday lives and bringing honor and glory to the Lord. As they begin to grow and mature one of the things that can help them more than anything else, is to encourage them to also find a disciple. This is how we can begin to reach out and impact our community, country and world with the gospel. In 2 Timothy 2:2 we can see four generations of disciples and how this process works. Paul, Timothy, faithful men, and then others. Paul taught Timothy and then told him to pass that on to faith men that could teach others and of course it would not stop there but the chain will continue as more and more people are discipled. You might start with just one person but if you teach them to reach someone else and they teach that person to reach someone else and you all continue the process it will grow exponentially reaching more and more people all the time. So, back to the original question. Who is your disciple? If you don’t have one, today is the day.
What are some of the challenges that you face when trying to find a disciple and disciple others?