Discipleship in the Early Church.

Discipleship:

Jesus is the Good Shepherd who knows his sheep and his sheep knows him. Likewise, we are committed to the sheep, ensuring they are fed, cared for, and led to the safe pastures. Our goal is for everyone to be mentoring and being mentored. Passages: John 10:14; Psalm 23:1-3;

Christ himself is the “Good Shepherd” He modeled relational, intentional discipleship. He gave us one of the most quoted scripture in churches today known as the “great commission” which is all about discipleship:

Matthew 28:19–20 (ESV) — 19 Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20 teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.”

1. Love in action over words - They responded to genuine needs quickly and practically instead of wasting time blaming.
   1. Among these are (1) refusing to get involved in the practice of assigning blame where things have gone wrong, preferring rather to expend the energies of God’s people on correcting injustices, prayer, and the proclamation of the Word.
   2. The Need: Widows were always a vulnerable group, and this may be a special reference to the widows of the Diaspora Jews who:
      1. had come to spend their last years in Jerusalem in order that they would be buried there when they died.
         1. Such widows often would have been left with no nearby family members or friends to care for them [Bar, BECNT, EBC, NAC, TNTC].
      2. The Hellenist widows might have been attracted to the Christian community precisely because of its concern for the material need of its members as described in Acts 2:44; 4:32, 34 [NAC].

Bible Verse: Jesus goes and heals people proclaiming the gospel, He was meeting genuine needs not as concerned with assigning blame, more concerned about bringing restoration. “Woman with the issue of blood”

Mark 5:25–34 (ESV) — 25 And there was a woman who had had a discharge of blood for twelve years, 26 and who had suffered much under many physicians, and had spent all that she had, and was no better but rather grew worse. 27 She had heard the reports about Jesus and came up behind him in the crowd and touched his garment. 28 For she said, “If I touch even his garments, I will be made well.” 29 And immediately the flow of blood dried up, and she felt in her body that she was healed of her disease. 30 And Jesus, perceiving in himself that power had gone out from him, immediately turned about in the crowd and said, “Who touched my garments?” 31 And his disciples said to him, “You see the crowd pressing around you, and yet you say, ‘Who touched me?’ ” 32 And he looked around to see who had done it. 33 But the woman, knowing what had happened to her, came in fear and trembling and fell down before him and told him the whole truth. 34 And he said to her, “Daughter, your faith has made you well; go in peace, and be healed of your disease.”

Can you imagine Jesus asking this woman, what are the names of your doctors? I’m going to call them and figure out why they didn’t do anything. Jesus stepped out and healed her and restored her.

Example: My dad will get so mad at me for this, but he challenges me in this area. He responds so quickly to needs. When we were on Vacation my dad went around and fixed our house.

1. Follow Principles over models -The early church seems to have been prepared to adjust its procedures, alter its organizational structure, and develop new posts of responsibility in response to existing needs and for the sake of the ongoing proclamation of the Word of God.
   1. Throughout the years various so-called restorationist movements in the church have attempted to reach back and recapture the explicit forms and practices of the earliest Christians and have tried to reproduce them as far as possible in their pristine forms, believing that in doing so they are more truly biblical than other church groups.
   2. But Luke’s narrative here suggests that to be fully biblical is to be constantly engaged in adapting traditional methods and structures to meet existing situations, both for the sake of the welfare of the whole church and for the outreach of the gospel.

Bible Verse: Luke 13:10–17 (ESV) — 10 Now he was teaching in one of the synagogues on the Sabbath. 11 And behold, there was a woman who had had a disabling spirit for eighteen years. She was bent over and could not fully straighten herself. 12 When Jesus saw her, he called her over and said to her, “Woman, you are freed from your disability.” 13 And he laid his hands on her, and immediately she was made straight, and she glorified God. 14 But the ruler of the synagogue, indignant because Jesus had healed on the Sabbath, said to the people, “There are six days in which work ought to be done. Come on those days and be healed, and not on the Sabbath day.” 15 Then the Lord answered him, “You hypocrites! Does not each of you on the Sabbath untie his ox or his donkey from the manger and lead it away to water it? 16 And ought not this woman, a daughter of Abraham whom Satan bound for eighteen years, be loosed from this bond on the Sabbath day?” 17 As he said these things, all his adversaries were put to shame, and all the people rejoiced at all the glorious things that were done by him.

1. Empower the body over control - It was the community as a whole that selected these seven men and presented them to the apostles for their approval; it was the apostles who installed them in office.
   1. The body knew how to recognize callings and equipped people in them
      1. Acts 6:3 (ESV) — 3 Therefore, brothers, pick out from among you seven men of good repute, full of the Spirit and of wisdom, whom we will appoint to this duty.
      2. Apostles set the parameters. “Full of the Spirit and Wisdom”
      3. Apostles summoned the full number of the disciples and presented the strategy

Bible verse: Mark 6:30–44 (ESV) — 30 The apostles returned to Jesus and told him all that they had done and taught. 31 And he said to them, “Come away by yourselves to a desolate place and rest a while.” For many were coming and going, and they had no leisure even to eat. 32 And they went away in the boat to a desolate place by themselves. 33 Now many saw them going and recognized them, and they ran there on foot from all the towns and got there ahead of them. 34 When he went ashore he saw a great crowd, and he had compassion on them, because they were like sheep without a shepherd. And he began to teach them many things. 35 And when it grew late, his disciples came to him and said, “This is a desolate place, and the hour is now late. 36 Send them away to go into the surrounding countryside and villages and buy themselves something to eat.” 37 But he answered them, “You give them something to eat.” And they said to him, “Shall we go and buy two hundred denarii worth of bread and give it to them to eat?” 38 And he said to them, “How many loaves do you have? Go and see.” And when they had found out, they said, “Five, and two fish.” 39 Then he commanded them all to sit down in groups on the green grass. 40 So they sat down in groups, by hundreds and by fifties. 41 And taking the five loaves and the two fish, he looked up to heaven and said a blessing and broke the loaves and gave them to the disciples to set before the people. And he divided the two fish among them all. 42 And they all ate and were satisfied. 43 And they took up twelve baskets full of broken pieces and of the fish. 44 And those who ate the loaves were five thousand men.

Example: Maybe you think your job is to sit and spectate. Our heart here in Parkland foursquare is that you would mobilized and doing the work of the ministry.

PRAYER:

1. You may be here today and want to be part of a community of believers that care for each other. Well I think it’s clear by Jesus and by the early church that caring for each other is of utmost importance.

While we are not perfect, I hope that we could respond similarly to your needs in our own setting.

2. Or maybe you are here and you feel like you need more purpose or equipping let’s pray for wisdom in this area.