Genuinely loving AND making disciples

 

Jesus Saves

Salvation is a sovereign work of God alone through Jesus (John 2:2.) There is nothing that we can do of ourselves to bring someone to Christ. Jesus, is the way, the truth and the life. (John 14:6) This enables us to concentrate on being the salt and light that we are, ensuring that Christ is visible in our thoughts, words and deeds.

Make disciples

The mission from Christ is clear:  Go into all the world and make disciples (Matthew 28:19) and for many a year this has formed within us a strategy of seeing every person, every encounter as a God opportunity to win someone for Himself.  Being aware of this great commission while undertaking our daily activities is foundationally helpful, so we remain focussed on living a worshipful life and looking for opportunities, not letting them pass by.  But we must be clear that making disciples isn’t the same as converting people to Christ. Making disciples is journeying together towards Christ, it’s living life in the scrutiny of others, mutually following Christ and leading others to do the same. Maturing in Christ then encouraging others to mature. 

Love one another

The hallmark of being a follower of Jesus is that we love one another (John 13:35). It is in how we love, submit, serve, carry burdens, stand with, do good, support, care for, and encourage each other that it becomes easy to see that we are governed not by the desire to reach others for Christ, but by our desire to be Christ-like.  If our motivations for interactions with people are because we genuinely love them, that relationship will endure long after their decision to come to Christ for themselves.  Wouldn’t it be devastating to us if, once we came to Christ, he abandoned us to go find someone else to be friends with? So our motivation cannot be simply to reach people for Christ without wanting to be an eternally loving family.

• It is possible for a while for me to fake love.  I can act loving, draw from experiences where I've been loved or felt loved and act that way towards others, but in the end my well of love will run dry, it will become a thankless task that will make my heart sad.  
• It’s possible to assume that it is Christ’s love that will enable me to love people, and that in someway my own emotions and feelings won’t come into play because I'm about the Lord’s work, but love cannot be inferred from another. it will be my arms, my ears, my actions that will express love to another. It will be from my heart that the measure of love will be communicated.   
• It’s possible to assume that I can determine when I'm leading others and maturing in faith and when I'm taking a day off, but whether I'm consciously engaging with others or being observed from afar, I'm still leading, Christ is still within me and I'm still a son of God.  If we could step out of his gaze, or the salvation won for us, I would be very worried indeed. If we are to diminish in stature for Christ to increase in us, should it not be that we are always ‘on duty’? Always worshipping, always caring, always loving?

If then I choose to be outside of my ivory tower or homestead castle, and live on the front line, everything I do, every day, matters.   Perhaps it is difficult to genuinely love others and make disciples if I'm not mindful of living a worshipful life 24/7. It can’t be something I pick and choose to do.  It is tiring and endless.  Jesus would retire regularly to pray and recharge with his father.  This is somewhat different to the ‘I need a holiday’ mentality i can sometimes take to get away from my responsibilities and ‘switch off’ and please myself.

Almighty God, my heavenly Father, I have sinned against you, through my own fault, in thought, word and deed, by what I have done, and by what I have left undone. For the sake of your Son, the Lord Jesus Christ, forgive all my offenses, and grant that I may serve you in newness of life, to the glory of your name, Amen.

(The Book of Common Prayer)