Week 4

The Great Commission

The Great Commission is not an optional extra for believers. Many of us live in Christian communities—all our friends are believers and we rarely have significant interaction with others who do not yet know the Lord. We have tried to keep ourselves separate from our neighbors out of concern that we might be “contaminated.” But Jesus was known as a “friend of sinners,” and, as it asks in Romans 10, “How will they hear unless someone tells them” (verse 14)? Admittedly, not all of us are evangelists, but all of us can be witnesses to what Jesus has done in our lives (Acts 1:8). We have the Spirit of Jesus dwelling within us, and if we ask the Lord for opportunity to share His life with others, He will delight to answer that prayer.

Study the great commission from Matthew 28:18-20 by reading the passage and using the scriptures to discuss the following questions:

• What is the relevance of Jesus having “all authority?”
• What is the difference between a disciple and a “convert?” How might this affect how we reach out to those who don’t yet know Jesus?
• What would be the outcome if we obeyed Jesus command to go rather than asking people to come to church? What difference would this make in our own lives, in the lives of our churches or in the lives of those we go to?
• What is a nation?
• How will we know when a nation is discipled?
• What is the significance of baptism? Who does the baptizing?
• What are we to teach?
• Think around the cycle of discipleship—disciples making disciples.

More helpful resources
“Church at Table Number Two” by Bill Hoffman

Reaching the “Nations” Around Us

The Great Commission tells us to make disciples of all nations. The Greek word for nation is “ethne,” from which we get our word “ethnic.” It implies far more than a nationality, however. It could refer to a cultural group such as skateboarders, the elderly, those involved in the bar and club scene, students and so on. Think language and customs. For example, skateboarders have their own clothing style, their own vocabulary, their own stories and ways of relating to each other.

Brainstorm and create a list of the “nations” in your area. Are there obvious ways that different people in your group could reach out to these groups? Spend a few minutes asking the Lord of the harvest if there is a particular people group or area of town he would like you to focus on.

Prayer Walking

Prayer is a vital part of preparing the ground for starting churches. Joshua 1:3 tells us that God will give us the places where our feet tread, and Psalm 2: 8 tells us that He will give us the nations as our inheritance.

If the Lord has shown you a particular group He would like you to concentrate on, then prayer walking may be a great way to get started in praying for them. Go to the neighborhoods where these people live or to where they hang out and begin to pray there.

When we prayer walk, we can expect that the Holy Spirit will reveal to us how to pray, including giving us insight into the demonic powers that control the area.

There are four main ways to pray for an area when you are prayer walking: 1. Bless the city 2. Pray for the welfare of those living there 3. Demolish strongholds 4. Repent for the problems in the area

Make plans to prayer walk during the next week in the place that Jesus indicates to you. 


Helping Someone to Become a Follower of Jesus

Becoming a follower of Jesus is usually a process. Often, during that process, a person will come to a decision point, and it is good to know how to help them commit their life to following Christ. Discuss in your group what you think is the minimum a person needs to know to give their life to Jesus. (Jesus died on the cross to take the punishment for the things we have done wrong. If we turn away from these things and give control of our lives to Him, He will give us a new life and His Holy Spirit will come and live inside us.)

The following are some useful verses (sometimes known as the “Roman Road”) when it comes to helping someone commit their lives to Christ:

• Romans 3:23 (If using the New Living Translation, verses 24-25 are a great addition here)
• Romans 6:23
• Romans 5:8 (In the NLT, the whole paragraph, (verses 6-11) is a great explanation of salvation)
• Romans 10:9-10
• Revelation 3:20

Divide into pairs and role play leading a person to become a disciple of Jesus using these verses. Keep it simple and let everyone take a turn.

Discipleship


Jesus did not command us to plant churches. He told us to make disciples (Matthew 28:19). He said that He would build His church (Matthew 16:18). Our commission from Him as ambassadors for the Kingdom is to make disciples, and Jesus will build His church.

Discuss the following questions: 


• What is the difference between a disciple and a convert?
• How do we ensure a person becomes more like Jesus (rather than like us)?
• If discipleship is a lifestyle of obedience to Jesus rather than a body of knowledge to be learned, what is the best way to impart this?

We highly recommend the Life Transformation Group pattern of discipleship started by Neil Cole. Small same-sex groups of two to four people commit together to read large chunks (about thirty chapters) of Scripture each week and then come together to answer accountability questions and to pray for their friends who do not yet know Jesus. You can find the materials for this at www.cmaresources.org/ltg

More helpful resources:
“Chapter 6 - Disciplemaking is for Everyone” by Roger Thoman



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