From a very early age, we teach kids about the story of Jesus calming the storm found in Matthew 8:23-27. While the story shows us a picture of Jesus displaying His power and divinity, the story also shows the disciples displaying their fear and humanness. In a moment of fear and terror over the rising waters, the disciples lost their faith in the One they had seen perform miracles repeatedly. One of the most important lessons for the disciples at this moment, was to stay committed to following Jesus, even in the midst of fear.
This is still true for all disciples today. Matthew 28:19 says, “Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit.” However, the command is more substantial than just evangelism and baptism. Christians are called to be committed disciples who make other committed disciples. Being a committed disciple involves genuinely spending time in the word of God, praying, fellowshipping with other believers, and serving. That is why our church has the pathway of worship (in the big room), connect (being a part of a connect group), serve (volunteering with a ministry), and share (being on a mission to reach the lost). By following this pathway, one becomes attuned to the call that Christ has put on the life of every Christian.
If you have children or grandchildren, the call to be disciple-makers is pivotal. The church ministries don’t exist to be the primary Bible teachers of children, but they exist to partner alongside families in their quest to raise committed disciples. Read Deuteronomy 6 to see the importance that God placed on being His committed followers. In verse 7, God shares that parents should impress His commandments on their children. It doesn’t say the church should impress them, or even YouTube should impress them, but rather the parents. Parents are the primary disciple-makers of their children.
You might have read that last paragraph and thought, “I don’t have children,” or maybe, “My children are gone.” This command is still applicable to you as well. Perhaps you don’t have children, but you probably have nieces or nephews. How can you partner with their parents to raise committed disciples? One thing that I love about the Bible is that there isn’t a “retirement age,” so if your children are grown, you can still influence and encourage them to raise their children in the path of God. Perhaps your children aren’t taking their roles as primary disciple-makers seriously. Maybe you could step in and disciple your grandkids. How can you prevent the circle of Christ’s followers from being unbroken in your family?
This week, you are encouraged to pray for and consider serving with our education ministries in our church. As you go through this week, ask God to show you how to show Christ to our church's nations.