Please don’t misunderstand. It’s not about the labels. I know that. Jesus was given all kinds of labels by man, most of them inaccurate and some downright lies. I know that we are saved by grace alone! Nothing we do in our works makes us any more a child of God than we were the moment we received God’s regenerative work in our lives. I know we can do nothing to add to what God has already done, but I also know that we are commanded by Jesus to “Go and make disciples” (Matthew 28:19).
Jesus could have used any term to describe the individuals He was talking about here. He could have said, “Go and make born-again people” or “Go and make saints.” But that wouldn’t be correct or even possible because we aren’t the ones who do that work; only the triune God can do that. He could have said, “Go and make Christians.” Jesus certainly didn’t have to wait for people in Antioch to give his followers that label. He could have said, “Go and make brothers and sisters” or “Go and make children.” These are all perfectly good New Testament, God-breathed labels used to describe people who have a personal relationship with Jesus Christ.
But Jesus didn’t use any of these terms in his last command before ascending to his Father. He said, “Go and make disciples…teaching them to do all I have commanded you.” That is the distinction. That is the difference. We can be saved, we can be born-again, we can be a saint, we can be a sister, we can be a child of God, but that doesn’t mean we are behaving like a disciple. Disciples do all Jesus has commanded and then teach others to do the same.
Disciples not only believe in Jesus, they follow Jesus. Disciples not only claim the name of Christ, they place themselves under Christ’s authority and tutelage. Disciples not only have eternal life, they live out Jesus’ eternal values. Disciples are not merely children of God; they are obedient children even unto death. Disciples not only live among the family of God, they minister and serve within that family. Disciples are known to be students of the Master Teacher. Not all born-again believers are known in this way.
I am convinced these are important distinctions. Consider the seven churches in Revelation. I believe Christ’s commendations and condemnations were initiated from one question: “How are you doing as my disciples?” He didn’t say “How are you doing as saved individuals?” The salvation of the true believers within the churches was not in question. What was in question was their obedience or lack of obedience to Matthew 28:19-20. And being a lukewarm generic Christian (the seventh church) was the worst possible answer to Jesus’ examination of those churches.
I am just beginning to grasp the gravity of being a disciple of Jesus though I’ve been his child for almost five decades. Maybe it’s the realization I probably only have three decades left, if God wills, to do more than simply be saved. And what if I only have three years left or three days or three hours? Will I have to face Jesus with a generic life to show him? Or will I have a life of true discipleship?
One Another Living 