Make Disciples in the Way Jesus Said
Anchor command. Make disciples who obey
Jesus’ commands. Matt. 28:18-20.
Anchor story. Jesus’ gives his final Great
Commission before ascending to glory. Matt. 28:16-20.
Anchor verse. “If you love me, you will
keep my commandments.” John 14:15
Learning goal. Memorize Jesus’ Great
Commission by heart.
Growth goal. Obey Christ’s general
commands out of love.
Skill goal. Make disciples who obey
Christ’s general commands above all else.
Outcome goal. All who learner instructs
are being and making disciples that obey all of Jesus commands in love.
Basic Study
Our Father in heaven, help me and
those whom I lead to obey our beloved Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ, and to
make disciples who love Him and obey His commands above and before all
man-made rules.
Learn from
the story of Jesus giving his Great Commission. Matt. 28:16-20
·
What
did Jesus’ disciples do when they first saw him on the mountain? Verses
16-17
·
With
how much authority did Jesus give this final command? 18
·
What
two things must Jesus’ followers do to make disciples of Christ? 19-20
Memorize Jesus’
Great Commission:
“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.” Matt. 28:18-20
·
With
what authority does Christ command his followers to make obedient disciples?
·
What
is the main emphasis of Christ’s Great Commission, to learn or to obey?
·
Whom
are Christians to make obedient disciples of Jesus?
·
For
how long will Jesus accompany his followers as they make disciples?
Memorize Jesus Great Commission (above).
Memorize also Jesus’ seven general
commands that sum up all that he commanded.
1. Repent, believe, and receive
the Holy Spirit.
(Mark 1:15; John 3:16; John 20:22)
2. Be baptized.
(Acts 2:38; Matthew 28:18-20)
3. Love.
(Love God, neighbours,
believers, the needy and enemies (forgive them),
Matt. 22:36-40; John 13:34-35, Luke 10:25-37; Matt. 5:43-48.)
4. Break bread.
(Lord’s Table, Matthew 26:26-28; John 4: 24)
5. Pray.
(Pray using Jesus’ name,
privately and as family devotions, heal in Jesus’ name, and do spiritual
warfare, John 16:24.)
6. Give
(of our treasure, time and
talents, Luke 6:38; Matt. 6:1-4)
7. Make disciples.
(Witness for Christ,
shepherd his flock, apply the Word, train leaders, and send missionaries.)
Plan with co-workers the upcoming
worship.
·
Explain
the importance of Jesus’ final, general instructions, or Great Commission.
·
Help
the believers to memorize the seven basic commands of Jesus (above).
·
Explain
that these commands are the foundation for all our teaching and ministry.
·
Ask
the children to dramatize the parable of the wise man who built his house on
the rock Jesus, Matthew 7:.24-27.
·
Ask
for reports from workers who have recently taught believers to obey Jesus’
commands.
·
Form groups of two or three to pray, confirm the plans and
encourage one another.
·
To
introduce the Lord’s Supper, you might read Acts
2:46.
Explain that it is a basic command of Christ. The first believers obeyed
Jesus as they broke bread in their homes.
Advanced Study
1.
Discover how Peter and the other
apostles made new believers into bold disciples.
Read this review of the birth of the first Christian church:
Jews
from all over the Roman Empire heard Peter tell about Christ in Jerusalem on
the day of Pentecost. Many as were hostile, but Peter told them: “Men of
Israel… Jesus of Nazareth was a man accredited by God to you by miracles… and
you, with the help of wicked men, put him to death by nailing him to the
cross… But God raised him from the dead… God has made this Jesus, whom you
crucified, both Lord and Christ” Acts 2:22-36.
3,000 Jews
repented that day, were baptized and were added to the first Christian
church, Acts
2:38–41.
Amazingly, before Acts chapter 2 ends, those thousands of new believers
began obeying all of Jesus’ commands! How did that happen so quickly?
Let us explore what Peter and his
companions did to make obedient disciples, so that we can do the same...
Seven weeks before Pentecost, Jesus had
risen from the dead, appeared many times to His Apostles for forty days, and
gave to them His final instructions. Ten days before Pentecost, Jesus’
Apostles saw him ascend into the sky.
Jesus commanded many things. We can
group all his commands under the seven general commands that the first
3,000 new believers began obeying at once, in Acts chapter 2. The only
command not mentioned by name in Acts 2 is love, which they showed by their
fellowship and sharing.
Like Peter, good disciple-makers
teach obedience to all Jesus commands. Complete obedience makes a flock
strong, like an unbroken chain.
2.
Tic any of the seven general commands
of Christ that your flock needs to obey better:
[ ] Repent, believe and receive
the Holy Spirit
[ ] Be baptized
[ ] Celebrate the Lord’s Supper
[ ] Love, which includes
serving the needy and forgiving
[ ] Pray, which includes
healing and spiritual warfare
[ ] Give
[
] Make disciples, which includes evangelizing, shepherding and
starting new churches.
3. Additional learning exercises:
·
Find
in Acts 1:14 what Jesus’ followers were
doing when God began His powerful work on the day of Pentecost.
·
Find
in Acts 2:1-24 what the Holy Spirit enabled
the apostles to do, that convinced the Jews who heard Peter’s speech.
4. Plan with Co-workers Things to Do During the Week
·
Ask
a creative person to write a song about Jesus’ basic commands, to help folks
remember them.
·
Visit
and instruct any believers who are not yet obeying all of Jesus’ basic
commands.
·
Explain
to them that these commands are the foundation for all ministries.
·
Explain
that even though men can praise God with their lips night and day, if they do
not obey Jesus’ commands in love, then God does not accept their praise, Matthew 14:1-8.
5.
Those who teach children should read
study #47 for children.
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