Matthew 28: 18Then Jesus came to them and said, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. 19Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.”(NIV)
I saw some disturbing statistics this summer that crossed church district and denominational lines. The number of conversions, baptisms, and new church members did not match in any way shape or form. Many churches reported dozens of salvations to go along with less than 10 baptisms and new church members. Luckily, I wasn’t the only person who saw the disparity in these numbers and district and denominational leaders called churches for a renewed commitment on baptisms and making disciples.
I recently read the blog of a controversial pastor who keeps score of the number of people he leads to Christ. This number has grown to over 3000(according to his blog) while the church he pastors has about 60 attenders. I have often wondered what happens to these people after he knocks on their door and leads them to Christ. Still, another pastor(on the complete total opposite end of the spectrum of pastor #1) reports hundreds of salvations in weekly services and their church is known for their large baptisms of hundreds of people at a time and their commitment to evangelism.
I do agree with counting conversions. I’m not one of those “numbers don’t matter” people, but have we turned people into Convert #972 instead of Disciple of Christ John or Jane Doe. Will Jesus look out among us and ask,”Ok, who raised your hand to receive me? Did you repeat what the pastor prayed exactly? Were you brave enough to walk to the front?” Do we have churches full of people who are gung ho to serve yet don’t know how to disciple someone? Being on a parking team or helping take up the offering can be a step towards becoming a disciple of Christ, but it doesn’t mean you are a disciple simply by doing these types of things.
As a pastor, I feel my mission is to make Disciple-Making Disciples. My end goal isn’t to have people plugged into different ministries so that the church has something to “offer.” If we aren’t training our people to share their faith-not just their testimony for the purpose of salvations-but for the reproducing their faith in others then are we really accomplishing the Great Commission?
I am striving now to clearly define what a disciple is for our church. Our hope is that people will be Rooted in The Word, Relationships, and Service. We are asking these 3 questions:
1. Are you growing in knowledge and obedience to God’s Word?
2. Are your relationships honoring God and helping you become more like Him?
3. Are you actively serving the church and community?
Any church or pastor who is actively seeking to reach the lost should be commended, but we’ve got to start converting converts into disciples. What do you think? Am I completely off base here?
