Understanding and Reclaiming Biblical Discipleship: The Great Commission

It is in the historical context laid out in the last post that Jesus gave his command to make disciples. The Great Commission reads,

All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth. Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age. – Matthew 28:18-20

There is inherent in the making of disciples the “go” that begins verse nineteen. The Greek word here is poreuqέnteς - poreuthentes. It is an attendant circumstance participle, which means that its action is coordinate with that of the main verb, in this case maqeteύsate - matheteusate - , an imperative.[i] Thus, “go and make disciples,” which is to be understood as intentionally making disciples wherever the Christian finds him- or herself.[ii] Hagner makes the point that the “emphasis in the commission thus falls not on the initial proclamation of the gospel but more on the arduous task of nurturing into the experience of discipleship.”[iii]

The process of making disciples according to this passage is to first baptize the new believer and then to teach them how to live out what Christ commanded. Baptism is the first step in obedience that new believers take that identifies them with and places them within the community of disciples.[iv] Only believers are to be baptized and counted in the membership of the church, reinforcing the Baptist distinctive of regenerate church membership.[v] For the believer it is merely the beginning of a life of faith, the beginning of a process of discipleship.[vi] It is also important to note that it is through baptism that the new believer is shown that a changed life is a result of conversion.[vii]

How the new disciples learn to live this changed, new life is through the “teaching them to observe all that I commanded you” (Matt. 28:20). This instruction is intended for purity of life, and nothing that Jesus taught is to be neglected.[viii] This includes both a call to a life lived in pursuit of righteousness and a life that is lived by faith.[ix] Also inherent in this totality of teaching is the things that Jesus taught concerning what it means to be his disciple.

Discipleship requires that the disciple be completely and personally committed to Jesus and his teaching.[x] This commitment places Jesus as the utmost priority in the disciple’s life. This is evidenced by Luke 9:57-62 and 14:26-33, where following Jesus requires the disciple to place all other relationships and obligations behind his or her primary relationship with Jesus.[xi] Included in this cost of discipleship is the idea of suffering for faith in Christ (John 15:18-16:4).  Paul, in 2 Timothy, clarifies that this suffering is to be expected (1:8, 12: 2:9, 12; 3:11-12). This life of faith is demanding and comes at a cost.[xii]

 

Over the next several weeks, we'll look at those passages found in Luke and Acts, where Jesus discussed what it means to follow him. And then we'll turn our attention to an understanding of the process of discipleship.

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[i]Daniel B. Wallace, Greek Grammar Beyond the Basics : An Exegetical Syntax of the New Testament (Grand Rapids, Mich.: Zondervan, 1996), 640. See also Blomberg, Matthew, 431; Blomberg rightly states that a balance must be maintained between the going and the making of disciples; too much either way detracts from the command.

[ii]Craig Blomberg, Jesus and the Gospels : An Introduction and Survey (Nashville, Tenn.: Broadman & Holman, 1997), 415.

[iii]Donald Alfred Hagner, Matthew 14-28, Word Biblical Commentary (Dallas, TX: Word Books, 1995), 887.

[iv]Craig Blomberg, Matthew, The New American Commentary (Nashville, TN: Broadman Press, 1992), 431.

[v]Hammett, 85.

[vi]Leon Morris, The Gospel According to Matthew, ed. D. A. Carson, The Pillar New Testament Commentary (Grand Rapids, MI: W.B. Eerdmans, 1992), 746.

[vii]John Moore and Ken Neff, A New Testament Blueprint for the Church (Chicago: Moody Press, 1985), 59.

[viii]Morris, 749.

[ix]Blomberg, Jesus and the Gospels : An Introduction and Survey, 452.

[x]George Eldon Ladd, A Theology of the New Testament, Rev. ed. (Grand Rapids, Mich.,: Eerdmans, 1993), 105.

[xi]Ibid., 130. Cf. Matt. 10:34-39; 16:24.

[xii]D. A. Carson and Douglas J. Moo, An Introduction to the New Testament, 2nd ed. (Grand Rapids, Mich.: Zondervan, 2005), 581.

Understanding and Reclaiming Biblical Discipleship: The Historical Context

J. M. Pendleton in his Church Manual defined a church as “a congregation of Christ’s baptized disciples, united in the belief of what he has said, and covenanting to do what he has commanded.”[i] The unity and the covenant that he mentions are predicated on the concept of the church being composed not of baptized members, but of baptized disciples. This idea is based on the command to “[g]o therefore and make disciples” given by Jesus in what is called the Great Commission, located in Matthew 28:19.[ii] This begs two questions: what is a disciple and how is a disciple made?

The Historical Context of Discipleship

Before examining the relevant passages, it is important to understand the terminology in light of its historical meanings and context. The most important word for the purposes of this paper is the term maqhtής – mathetes - , which is translated as “disciple.” This term can be boiled down to the basic meaning of “apprentice.”[iii] There is much more weight to the term, though, as it implies a binding of oneself to “someone else in order to acquire his practical and theoretical knowledge.”[iv] To be a disciple requires that there be a master/teacher, a didaskoloς - didaskalos.[v] Discipleship, then, is to be understood as an intentional relationship, whereby the disciple gains from the teacher’s knowledge and applies those insights to his own life.[vi]

The teacher would gather around himself a group of disciples. This group of disciples would be committed to the teachings of their master, a commitment which lasted beyond the death of the teacher. This commitment was tied with a responsibility to pass on those teachings.[vii]

Moving from the Greek world to the Jewish world, one finds that the Old Testament does not contain the idea of a learner to a teacher, as in the Greek context, though there is a call for teaching what God had said on to the next generation: “you shall teach [these words] diligently to your sons…” (Deut.6:7).[viii]  It is only in Rabbinic Judaism that the concept of pupil/teacher comes to the fore, probably as a result of contact with Greek philosophy. Here the relationship is of the talmid to a Rabbi, where the talmid places himself under the Rabbi in a servile manner.[ix] The Rabbis, like the Greek teachers of philosophy, would gather around themselves students whose aim was to learn with the purpose of being able to teach others.[x]

Our next post will look at some of the passages relevant to understanding discipleship.

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[i]J. M. Pendleton, Church Manual : Designed for the Use of Baptist Churches (Philadelphia, PA: The Judson Press, 1950), 7.

[ii]All Bible references are from the NASB, unless otherwise noted.

[iii] Karl Heinrich Rengstorf. “maqhtής.” Theological Dictionary of the New Testament. ed. Gerhard Kittel, Geoffrey William Bromiley, and Gerhard Friedrich. Volume 4. (Grand Rapids, MI: Eerdmans, 1967), 416.

[iv]Dietrich Müller. “maqhtής.” New International Dictionary of New Testament Theology.  ed. Colin Brown and David Townsley. Volume 1. (Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan, 1986), 484.

[v]Rengstorf, 416.

[vi]Müller, 484.

[vii]Rengstorf, 423.

[viii]Duane L. Christensen, Deuteronomy 1, 1-21,9, 2nd revised ed., Word Biblical Commentary 6a (Nashville, Tennessee: Thomas Nelson Publishers, 2001), 143.

[ix]Ibid., 485-6.

[x]Ibid., 488.

Understanding and Reclaiming Biblical Discipleship: Introduction

Over the last year, I have come to see the need for a reclaiming of a biblical understanding and practice of discipleship in our churches. We have too many people who treat church as if it is a social club. Too many church members aren’t really saved, or if they are, they are certainly not living like it. Too many churches have serious problems and conflicts. Too many of Christians are ignorant of what the Bible actually says.

My realization of this began last summer when I taught a Sunday School lesson giving an overview of the book of Jude. He writes about contending “earnestly for the faith which was once for all handed down to the saints” (Jude 3). He warns against false teachers. He then goes on to write: “But you, beloved, building yourselves up on your most holy faith, praying in the Holy Spirit, keep yourselves in the love of God, waiting anxiously for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ to eternal life” (Jude 20-21).  This prompted within me questions regarding how to contend for the faith, how to build oneself up, how to keep in the love of God.  And so the process was begun.

The next step occurred when I taught a lesson on the Scriptures, using 2 Timothy 3:16-17 as a base text for exploration. This study made me see the need for us to return to and hold up the Scriptures and the study of them, in response to the biblical illiteracy all too common in our churches today.

But it wasn’t until this past semester that it all came together. Thanks to two classes in particular: one on conflict in the church and the other a disciple-making class, where I’ve been working with a friend, going deeper into God’s Word and developing spiritual disciplines. These made me realize that discipleship is a necessary part of the Christian life, but that it has been neglected for far too long.

Over the next several weeks, we’ll explore together what discipleship is, its historical context, and what the Bible says about it. We’ll offer some conclusions and insights along the way that will hopefully prompt you to see what I see: Discipleship is key. Thank