06.05.10 - The Heart Of A Disciple-Maker

Preached at the induction of Rev John Coutts to the Wyndham Presbyterian Church.

This is a great privilege. John and I were in the Theological Hall together many years ago and in a small group together, I think. It is great to catch up with John and Maureen again and to be in the same region.

I do have to confess that, as I have prepared for tonight, I have also been thinking of things I might have to do later this year. Consequently, my theme is disciple-making (which might not surprise you.).

In April 1994, Rwanda experienced large scale genocide inflicted by the majority Hutu on the minority Tutsi people. Between half a million and one million people were killed, two million refugees fled the country and one million people were displaced within Rwanda itself. Rwanda was one of the two centres of the 1930’s East African Revival which is apparently still sweeping East Africa. The revival had made Rwanda a predominantly Christianised country, yet Christians were directly implicated in the killings. When the killings started, the people, including the Christians, tended to fall back on their ethnic, not their Christian, culture. One Rwandan bishop remarked, “After a century of evangelisation we have to begin again because the best catechists (lay teachers), those who filled our churches on Sundays, were the first to go out with machetes in their hands.”

I have heard Jim Young recently quoted as saying that Christianity in Malawi is a mile wide and an inch deep. What about New Zealand?

An inch deep is not what Jesus intended. The Great Commission commands us to “Go and make disciples.” Our core business is making disciples. The Great Commission defines that as bringing people to faith in Jesus and then bringing them to maturity in Jesus. Maturity is far deeper than one inch. How are we to do that? I believe we can, and should, learn the principles from Jesus, the model disciple-maker.

More recently, I have been looking at 1 Thessalonians and I am fascinated by it because there we see the heart and the mind of a disciple-maker. Paul had established the church in Thessalonica. There had been fantastic, powerful conversions. Paul had then mentored the new Christians and, in this letter is writing back to them, reflecting on his previous contact with them and giving some more instruction and encouragement. In other words, we have a disciple-maker reflecting on the process. We see the heart of a disciple-maker and we hear something about his methods. How does Paul’s strategy compare with Jesus’?

The first thing I normally say about Jesus’ method was that it was relational, not programmatic. We tend to want to put new Christians through a 6 week course. For Jesus it was about relating. The disciples learnt from being with Him, watching Him, listening to Him, asking questions. It was about His life rubbing off on them. It was a case of iron sharpening iron.

But relationships take time. Relationships aren’t as neat and tidy as programmes. Maybe that is why they are such a good context for learning. We learn how to deal with broken relationship and frustration and we see how someone handles criticism, or heals, or prays.

The second thing that I normally say about Jesus’ method is that He was very intentional. When He called the first disciples, Jesus said, “Come, follow me and I will make you fishers of men.” “Come follow me.” That is the relationship – a mentoring, rabbi-and-disciple relationship. “And I will make you fishers of men.” Jesus knew right from the beginning what His goal was. “I will make you fishers of men.” He was going to train missionaries. Intentional.

Likewise, in Mark 3:14 it says, “He appointed twelve that they might be with Him and that He might send them out to preach and to have authority to drive out demons.” Again, there was the relationship. It was about being with Him. And there was the intentionality: that He might send them out. His intention was to train up missionaries.

One of the puzzles with all of this is that perhaps the two key things for Jesus are largely absent in our churches. We tend to use programmes rather than relationships. And I am not sure that we are very intentional about training missionaries. When people join our churches do we say, “We will make you fishers of men”?

There is much more we could say about Jesus’ method but let’s just focus on that fact that that it was relational and it was intentional. Do we see those things in Paul’s ministry to the Thessalonians?

Paul calls the Thessalonians “brothers” or “brothers and sisters” sixteen times in the letter’s five chapters. There is a huge warmth in Paul’s affirmation of them for the way their faith has grown and their witness is spreading “everywhere”. He says he is constantly giving thanks to God for them.

Listen to the language used in 2:17 – 3:5

“We were orphaned by being separated from you” Paul felt like an orphaned child, alone and lost, when he wasn’t with the Thessalonians. But he had still been thinking about them. He talks about his “intense longing”; about making “every effort” to see them again. “We wanted to come to you, again and again.”

Then see how he talks about them. “What is our hope, our joy or the crown in which we will glory in the presence of our Lord Jesus when He comes? Is it not you? Indeed, you are our hope and glory.”

He talks about being able to stand it no longer. This is very passionate language. Paul says, “I was afraid that you might have fallen away. I just had to know how you were getting on in your faith.”

As it happens, the Thessalonians also have very pleasant memories of him and long to see Paul again.

Did you notice the relational images used in the passage Brian read? Paul hadn’t come as the famous apostle demanding respect and support. He says, “Instead we were like young children amongst you.” He would be their spiritual father but they came like young children.

Then he talks about being a nursing mother, then a father. “Just as a nursing mother cares for her children, we cared for you... We dealt with each of you as a father deals with his own children.” They are very tender, relational images.

He said, “We loved you so much we were delighted to share with you not only the gospel of God but our lives as well.” Paul didn’t just teach or preach. He shared his life. His life was an open book. He allowed them to observe him. He was transparent. They saw how he lived. They saw how he reacted. They saw how he ministered. Much of disciple-making is modelling. Jesus modelled discipleship. So did Paul.

1 Thess 1:5,6 ...You know how we lived among you for your sake. You became imitators of us and of the Lord...

A large part of their training came though seeing how Paul lived and therefore being able to imitate it. Paul had no qualms about saying they should imitate Him. That is what mentoring is about. They would learn things from observing that they could never learn in a classroom. Disciple-making is relational.

Seeing him toiling night and day to support himself (2:9) would have had a much greater impact on them than a lesson about giving up your rights so as not to impose on others. Paul did it. They saw it. They learnt from it. They became imitators of him.

1 Thess 2:10 You are witnesses, and so is God, of how holy, righteous and blameless we were among you who believed. For you know that we dealt with each of you as a father deals with his children, encouraging, comforting and urging you to live lives worthy of God, who calls you into His Kingdom and glory.

They have seen his holiness, righteousness and blamelessness. He has shared his life with them. But they have also seen the father-like way he dealt with them. Do you think they learnt anything from Paul’s example? Do you think they might have also imitated that tender, caring style when they mentored the next generation of Christians?

Jesus and Paul both modelled a very relational style of disciple-making. Are we caring for younger Christians like nursing mothers or like fathers? Are we sharing our lives with them? Are we transparent; letting people see how we live so that they learn what Christlikeness is like?

I mentioned my interest in disciple-making to Ken Rout, a missionary friend. His immediate, gentle response was, “The problem in New Zealand is that we are too selfish. Too selfish to give the time. Too selfish to invest in young Christians.” Paul said, “We were delighted to share with you not only the gospel of God but our lives as well.” Are we delighted to share both the gospel and our lives?

When Paul said that he had dealt with them like a father deals with his own children, notice what he says that means: encouraging, comforting and urging them to live lives worthy of God. There is huge tenderness there. It is not overbearing or demanding. It is encouraging and comforting. But there is also huge intentionality. He has a clear goal, so Paul encourages, comforts and urges them to live lives worthy of God. He knows what he is after. Paul doesn’t just congratulate them on being Christians and leave them to it. He intentionally builds into their lives that they might live lives worthy of God.

He wants them to be sanctified - to be able to stand before Jesus holy and blameless. Sanctification is the work of the Holy Spirit by which Christians grow towards Christlikeness – towards maturity.
1 Thess 3:13 May [God] strengthen your hearts so that you will be blameless and holy in the presence of our God and Father when our Lord Jesus comes with all his holy ones.

1 Thess 4:3 It is God’s will that you should be sanctified.

1 Thess 5:23-24 23 May God himself, the God of peace, sanctify you through and through. May your whole spirit, soul and body be kept blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. 24 The one who calls you is faithful and he will do it.

If you want further evidence of Paul’s focus on bringing people to maturity, look at...
Col 1:28-29 28 We proclaim him, admonishing and teaching everyone with all wisdom, so that we may present everyone fully mature in Christ. 29 To this end I strenuously contend with all the energy Christ so powerfully works in me.

Paul also refers back to the instruction he had given them while with them and, therefore, we see something of his curriculum. It appears to have been pretty comprehensive.

1 Thess 3:3-4 You know quite well that we are destined for [trials]. In fact, when we were with you, we kept telling you that we would be persecuted.

1 Thess 4:1-2 1Finally, brothers, we instructed you how to live in order to please God, as in fact you are living. Now we ask you and urge you in the Lord Jesus to do this more and more. 2For you know what instructions we gave you by the authority of the Lord Jesus.

They had had instruction on the Second Coming
1 Thess 5:2 ...you know very well that the day of the Lord will come like a thief in the night

When we do courses with new Christians do we cover the certainty of persecution, how to live in order to please God, and the Second Coming? What do you think might have been included in the topic of living to please God? Maybe living by faith, ministering, relationships, giving – a whole list of things. They hadn’t only had the instruction. They had been trained to actually do it. Paul says, “We instructed you how to live in order to please God, as in fact you are living.” They hadn’t just filled their notebooks. They had changed their lives. The Great Commission says, “teaching them to obey all I have commanded you.”

They might have received comprehensive training but Paul continues to add to that training. There is more teaching in this letter – filling in some gaps, clarifying, reinforcing. Paul is very focused on “supplying what is lacking in their faith” (3:10).

Even though they have grown amazingly and their witness is spreading everywhere, Paul still urges them on to greater heights. This is the disciple-maker at work, constantly wanting greater maturity. They were already living in order to please God but Paul asks and urges them in the Lord Jesus to do this more and more (1 Thess 4:1-2).

Their love was legendary but Paul urges them to do so more and more (4:9-10)

He also urges them to mentor others. These Christians might not have been very old but already they were discipling the next generation of Christians. Just as Paul had been a model to them that they had imitated, they were a model to all of the believers in Macedonian and Achaia (1:7-10). The disciples had become disciple-makers.

1 Thess 5:11 Therefore encourage one another and build each other up, just as, in fact, you are doing.

John, I don’t know how this sits with you. Wyndham, I don’t know how it sits with you. Can I simply lay this before you for your consideration? I want to suggest to you that your core business is making disciples. And I want to suggest that God’s way, as modelled by both Jesus and Paul, is first of all relational and secondly intentional. If this means anything to you at all, my encouragement is: be very intentional about making disciples and do that via relationships.