GO: MAKE DISCIPLES

THE PRAYER     

• Find a quiet space.     
• Breathe deeply and recognise God with you in this moment.     
• When you are ready, speak to God about this time together.     
• After you've finished praying, go through the following passage a few times slowly and thoughtfully (preferably out loud)   
• Allow God to meet you in these words.

Sing God a brand-new song! Earth and everyone in it, sing! Sing to God, worship God! Shout the news of his victory from sea to sea, Take the news of his glory to the lost, News of his wonders to one and all! For God is great, and worth a thousand Hallelujahs. His terrible beauty makes the gods look cheap; Pagan gods are mere tatters and rags. Psalm 96: 1-5 (MSG)

THE FIRST READING

Read this passage slowly (preferably out loud) as you allow God to meet you in these words. Pay attention to anything God might be saying as you do.

And Jesus came and said to them, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptising them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age." Matthew 28:18-20 (ESV)

RESPONSE

Take some time to respond (write down, draw, pray, etc.) to God’s prompting in the first reading of the passage. What is he highlighting and saying to you through this?

THE SECOND READING

Read the passage again (slowly and preferably out loud) through the “lens” of what The Spirit highlighted in the first reading. Listen for anything else the Spirit might be saying.

And Jesus came and said to them, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptising them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age." Matthew 28:18-20 (ESV)

THE REFLECTION

It was a sunny day in South Africa. My friend had invited me to join him on his boat where he would introduce me to the crazy sport of waterskiing. Apparently strapping large planks to your feet, taking hold of a handle tied to a boat with more horsepower than a small army, and holding on as it explodes with acceleration in front of you seemed like a good idea to someone. And, much to my surprise, that someone was right. You see, if (granted it's a big if) you manage to hold on for dear life and stay upright on those planks beneath your feet, you quickly find yourself gliding across a floor of liquid glass. The boat effortlessly pulls you forward, and for a moment, you are Peter walking on water.

As fun as skiing is, it reminds me of the difference between conversion and discipleship. God’s invitation to us is infinitely deep and wide with quite literally enough of him to last us a lifetime and then some. We can have as much of Jesus as we want. Unfortunately, so much of our faith has little interest in gaining all of Jesus. We satisfy ourselves with a kind of skiing spirituality that amounts to a little more than a brief dip and a quick drag across the pond. We are entertained by the rush of the wind in our hair never realising that just below our feet is an ocean of depth we could not even imagine.

But, how do we get to the depths?

Unlike skiing, scuba diving takes you deep. Granted, it takes a while to get there. First, you have to get into your gear and check it all for safety. Then, when you are finally in the water and ready to go, your descent needs to be slow because your body needs to acclimatise to the pressure that comes with depth. Scuba diving doesn’t take you anywhere in a hurry. You could dive for an hour and only travel a short distance. It’s a process. A journey. A commitment. And the gift is the discovery of a world beneath the water unknown to the many who rush by above.

When it comes to sharing our faith we must constantly remind ourselves that Jesus has not commanded us to make converts (those skimming the surface of devotion).

Jesus has commanded us to make disciples.

We are to call people beyond the initial thrill of conversion to the deep dive journey of transforming discipleship- those who are baptised in his name, well acquainted with his ways, and equipped to live for his glory. Discipleship is not the same as conversion.

This leads us to ask the following: are we disciples, and are we making disciples in our wake?