Fully Devoted: The ConclusionSample

Disciple-Making Disciples

Before ascending into heaven, Jesus commissioned His disciples to carry on the work that He started: making disciples of all nations.

Then Jesus came to them and said, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.” Matthew 28:18-20 NIV

This same commission has been given to us. Becoming a fully devoted follower of Christ means becoming a disciple-making disciple.

We’ve been called by Jesus to study His way of life and make it our way of life. We’re to learn from Him how to live and love so that the core of who we are is defined by our all-encompassing love for God and our radical commitment to serve others.

This journey will bring us close to Jesus, transform us to be like Jesus, and move us to actually do the things that Jesus did.

And what did Jesus do more than anything else in His ministry? He made disciples. For the three years of His ministry, He poured His life into His followers so that, after He left, they could pick up His mantle and carry on His mission.

Everything Jesus said and did was intended to help His disciples (then and now) to understand some key things:

• What God is really like.
• Our new identity because of His grace.
• What life in the family of God is supposed to look like.
• How we can use our gifts for the good of others.

After His death, burial, and resurrection, Jesus laid out the Great Commission: Go and make disciples of all nations. Baptize them in the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Teach them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age (Matthew 28:18-20).

This is what we have been chosen for: to carry on the mission of Jesus, advance the gospel, and invite others into the Kingdom. This is what it means to be a disciple of Jesus.

That brings us to this question: How do we go about actually making disciples? Thankfully, Jesus answers this question for us: We baptize them and we teach them to obey everything He has commanded us.

Matthew’s Gospel ends with an invitation to return to the beginning. If we want to teach others to obey everything Jesus has commanded, then we actually have to know those things ourselves! How do we learn those things? We go back to the beginning. We read the stories of Jesus’ life, ministry, death, and resurrection. We study His words. We observe His example. And we make every effort, in partnership with His Spirit, to become more like Him.

So, as we draw near to the end of this Fully Devoted study, know that your journey is not over. In fact, for many of us, the journey is really just beginning. Because just as Jesus commissioned and sent out His original disciples, He is commissioning and sending us out as well.

As we become fully devoted followers of Christ, we become disciple-making disciples who love God with every part of who we are and love others the same way that Jesus has loved us. We bring others into the family of God, introducing them to Jesus and then building them up to understand who they are as His followers and experience the freedom He offers. We train them to love God with every part of who they are and love others the same way He loves them. And then they get sent out to repeat the process with others.

You’ve been called by the God of heaven and earth to play a part in His redemptive plan to rescue people from sin and restore Creation. You’ve been called to become a disciple-making disciple—a fully devoted follower of Christ.

Then Jesus said to his disciples, “Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me.” Matthew 16:24 NIV

Journaling Questions

• What verse or verses stand out to you the most in today’s reading? Write them in your journal.
• We have a part to play in God’s redemptive plans. In your own words, share about what your part looks like.
• How are you going to continue the journey of becoming a fully devoted follower of Christ? Who are you going to bring with you? Write a name and next step in your journal.

Memory Verse

“A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another.” John 13:34-35 NIV