DISCIPLESHIP 101

Discipleship 101, as Mission

1. THE BIBLICAL TEXT: Matthew 5: 1-20.
2. (Read)-The Key Verses: Matthew 5:17-20.
3. INTRODUCTION-Part 1:

• What is Mission?

1. It is a sending out; or being sent out to perform a special service; in
   example: The sending out of persons by a religious organization (1)-to
   teach, (2)-preach, (3)-convert, and (4)-to help build or rebuild.
2. Mission is part of The Church’s Great Commission.
• SEE: Matthew 28: 16-20.
3. The Great Commission involves:
• Teach (matheteuo= to teach; to make a
  disciple) [v.19].
• Baptizing (baptize= to baptize) [v.19]-
  Identification with Christ is in burial and resurrection (Romans 6:1-6).
• Teaching (didasko=to teach, instruct, to provide
  information in a manner intended to produce understanding) them to observe
  all things whatsoever I have commanded you [v. 20].
4. Mission involves discipleship.

• WHAT IS A DISCIPLE?

1. A student, pupil, or learner.
2. In the Greek world, philosophers, religious leaders, and mystery cults
   attracted disciples. A person became a disciple as he sought out a teacher
   and followed him and his principles.[1]
3. In the New Testament it is used for Jesus’ followers. Often references “the
   Twelve” but also indicates a wider group of followers.^[2]

• What is Discipleship?

1. Discipleship is a strategy to help a person (Christian) become like Jesus:
2. Discipleship involves the disciple’s conversion, learning, and applying
   Biblical truths, and obedience to Christ’s teachings.
3. The spiritual disciplines (Bible study, prayer, fasting, worship, giving,
   etc.) are imbedded in the believer’s life.
4. The spiritual disciplines enable him/her to be a disciple, a replica of
   Christ.
5. Discipleship also involves making disciples who make and teach other people
   how to obey Christ’s teachings and become Christ-like.

• Character of the Disciple:

1. “The primary characteristic of a disciple is change demonstrated by a growth
   in character that requires increasing knowledge, appropriate attitudes,
   right thoughts, improving relationships, and obedient actions. The
   disciple’s responsibility is to become like Christ.”

• PART 2-The Biblical Text: Matthew 5:1-20:
1. These verses (Matthew 5:1-20) are part of Jesus’ Sermon on the Mount
   recorded by Matthew, one of Jesus’ initial 12 disciples.

• About Matthew:
• Matthew was a Jew by descent.
• He was employed by the Roman government as a tax collector before Jesus
  called him to be a disciple (Matthew 9:9-13).
• About Matthew’s Gospel writing:
• The gospel of Matthew has been considered one of the most important books in
  the New Testament.
• Appropriately, the book is located as the first book in the New Testament;
  and as the first of four Gospel writings followed by Mark, Luke, and John’s
  writings.
• Matthew’s gospel writing provides a bridge between the Old and New
  Testaments.
• He referred to the OT 129 times (including
  53 citations from the OT and 76 allusions to it). And specifically, he
  referenced 25 of the 39 OT books.[4]
• Evidently, Matthew was an Old Testament Scholar.
• Primarily, he wrote to a Jewish audience to convince his readers that Jesus
  Christ, the descendent of Abraham and David, was the Messiah, Israel’s long
  awaited and promised king.
• However, considering Israel’s overall rejection of Christ, Matthew’s writing
  extends beyond the Jews (God’s chosen people), and Matthew sets a model for
  Kingdom living for believers in any age.
• He may have written from Antioch of Syria where there was a large Jewish and
  Jewish-Christian population; and in a time before 70 AD which was the year
  the Temple in Jerusalem was destroyed.
• The Major Theme:
• “The kingdom;” “The Kingdom of Heaven in which Jesus is the KING” is
  the major theme throughout Matthew’s Gospel
• He used the term kingdom (basileia-Gk) about
  54X.
• He referred to () the kingdom of heaven 32X.
• and to the kingdom of God 5X.

• Introduction to the Sermon on the Mount:
1. Step 1)- God sent Jesus; not only to die and make restitution for our sins;
   but also, to establish The Kingdom of Heaven in the earth.
   SEE: Luke 2:1-14.
2. Step 2)- Thirty years later, John the Baptist and his ministry paved the way
   for Jesus.
   [Shortly after that, John was imprisoned by Herod Antipas, a son of Herod The
   Great.  Herod Antipas imprisoned John because the Baptist spoke out and against
   Herod’s immorality and wrong-doing in marrying Philip’s (Antipas’ half-brother)
   wife (Matthew 14:1-14, Luke 3:16-20)].
3. Step 3)- SEE: Matthew 4:12(b)- 17.
4. Step 4)- Jesus enrolled his first missionaries- SEE:
   Matthew 4:18-22.
5. NOTE: NET STUDY NOTE-RE: Matthew 4:19-20- 
6. The kind of fishing that Peter and Andrew and James and John performed was
   not line fishing. Rather, it involved a circular net that had heavy weights
   around the outside. The fishing occupation involved much strain, long hours,
   and sometimes little results.  Jesus may have alluded to the fact that
   “catching men” would be a different kind of enterprise.  Fish would be
   caught, killed, cooked, and eaten; but people would be caught to save and
   remove them from eternal destruction.[6]
7. Matthew 4:20.
8. Note: Matthew 4:21-22; {Ephesians 4:1-16}.

• Matthew 4:23-25.
• According to the Gospel writings, Jesus ministered publicly for 3 and ½
  years.
• Our focus is on a point in time in the 1^st year (circa 30 AD) of
  Jesus’ public ministry, one of his finest hours in the Ministry:

1. THE SERMON ON THE MOUNT:

• Throughout church history there have been different explanations as to why
  Jesus gave The Sermon on the Mount:
• Augustine of Hippo (an early Church father) thought of the Sermon on the
  Mount as “A Perfect Code of Morals.”
• August Tholuck (a German Protestant Theologian, born in the late 18^th
  century) said that the sermon is the Magna Carta of heaven.
• NOTE: The Magna Carta, established in 1215 in Runnymede, England, is one of
  the most important documents in history.  The Magna Carta set the rule that
  everyone is subject to the law, even the king.
• The Magna Carta guarantees the rights of individuals, justice, and the right
  to a fair trial. The Magna Carta influenced the US Constitution and the
  American Bill of Rights.
• The Sermon on the Mount is the fullest statement of the nature and
  obligations of citizenship in God’s kingdom… The sermon deals with the
  motives and affections of the inner man (the heart).
• The message compares the Mosaic law and exposes the lukewarmness of the
  Pharisee’s religiosity in Jesus’ day.
• Mark Bailey, past President of Dallas Theological Seminary says that in sum,
  Jesus taught the Sermon on the Mount to clarify and explain the true nature
  of God’s righteousness in relation to the Mosaic law.

1. THE SERMON ON THE MOUNT-con’td:

• The sermon begins with the Beatitudes.
• The Beatitudes are statements and declarations that
  pronounce a blessing upon persons who are characterized by who/what they are
  (e.g., the poor) or what they do (e.g., the peacemakers).
• The blessing of The Beatitude assures vindication and reward to the
  recipients that comes with being a Kingdom citizen. Psalm 138:8.
• The Beatitudes give tremendous encouragement in all times of difficulty.
• The 9 Beatitudes ( a part of Jesus’ Sermon on the Mount) are sometimes
  referred to as part of Christ’s inaugural speech in which he ushers and
  institutes the Kingdom of Heaven in the earth.
• The Beatitudes is disciple training- Matthew 5:1-12.

1. THE EXEGESIS:

• Verse 1(a)-And seeing-eidon (to perceive by sight, to take special
  notice of something; to attend to) the multitudes…
• Verse 1(b)-he went up into a mountain-Probably a high hill located on the NW
  Shore of the Sea of Galilee. The location may have served as a natural
  amphitheater (a theater in the round) where people gather on each side.
• Verse 2- and he opened his mouth and taught them (didasko= to
  teach, instruct; provide information.
  Now, Jesus was ready to cite and explain the specifics of the Kingdom and
  its governing legislation.

• Verse 3 (a)- Blessed-fortunate, well-off; the poor in spirit (a person of few resources, culturally considered oppressed and
  miserable)– SEE: Psalm 113; Is. 57:15, James 2:1-9.
• Verse 4– Psalm 30:5, John 14:12-18.
• Verse 5– Blessed are the (meek) gentle. Note:
  Rome was the dominant world and political power during Jesus’ earthly
  ministry. And Humility was not a virtue in Roman society, NOTE:
  Psalm 37:22-34. Ephesians 4:1-6.
• Verse 6- 55:1-13.
• Verse 7- Psalm 86.
• Verse 8- 1 John 3:1-10.
• Verse 9-
• Verses 10-12– 1 Peter 4:
• Verse 13- Salt of the earth…
• NOTE:  In the biblical world, salt was associated with life due to its uses as a
  preservative, a purifying agent, a seasoning, and or a fertilizer.
  
• Many of the symbols attached to salt reflect its practical uses. For
  example, because salt can delay the rotting or decaying process when
  applied to meat, salt was a symbol of preservation or
  incorruptibility.
• Salt could literally make the difference between life and death in a time
  when fresh food was unavailable.
• Similarly, Christ’s Kingdom servants prevent and/or confront corruption
  and decay in the earth. Jesus’ servants are “preservers” of the truth! The
  world needs the influence of Christ’s church.
• Verse 14- Light of the world
• Verses 15-16.
• Verses 17-18.
• Verse 19-
• Verse 20-

1. In Summary:

• In the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus gave his Mission Statement (his
  aim and Kingdom objective).
• Jesus said:
  “Think not that I am come to destroy the law or the prophets, I am not
  come to destroy but to fulfill…”(Matthew 5:17-19).
• Then, following His Mission Statement, Jesus stated the
  thesis (the main idea, point, the argument) of
  the Sermon on the Mount.
• He said,
  “For I say unto you, That, except your righteousness shall exceed the
  righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees, you shall in no case enter
  into the kingdom of heaven” (Matthew 5:20).
• Overall, the religious leaders (The scribes and Pharisees) were hypocritical
  in Jesus’ day.
• They added their interpretations to Moses’ laws.
• The Jews “practiced” religion and praying; but they were not sincere. Their
  hearts were far from God!
• True Kingdom worship and living is not external. It is more than an outward
  show or a ritualistic practice.
• It is heart worship and heart giving!!

In Conclusion:

• The first twelve disciples/missionaries were instructed to teach others to
  obey everything Christ had commanded them (Matt 28:20).
• Discipleship has an objective (something aimed for, a goal). That is a
  common core of teachings and practice that were faithfully transmitted as
  part of Christian tradition.
• In turn, we are obligated to observe, teach, and call people to take heed to
  those teachings of Jesus. [7]
• Disciple-making and mission involves the teacher/missionary instructing the
  disciples to obey and conform to what is taught.
• “Are Christians and disciples the same…A disciple is a learner, a student
  of someone. The term implies action and obedience.
• The term Christian however tends to refer to a status or position…A
  Christian is expected to be something; a disciple is expected to do
  something.”[8]
• A person will not be a true follower of Christ without genuine obedience.
• “True obedience results from genuine repentance.
• Thus, Repentance is an essential virtue of discipleship. (Matthew 3:1-2, Matthew 4:17)
  
• A disciple of Jesus Christ will repent of the heart’s actions and its
  inclination to be controlled by the world.
• The heart will change as the disciple’s sins are confessed, forgiveness is
  received, and the convert’s focus and direction are towards God, godliness,
  and Christlikeness.[9]
• As missionaries, we are faithful to do these things.
• Our reward is great in heaven.

One day we will hear the Lord say, “Well done thou good and faithful servant.  You have been faithful over a few
things.  I will make you ruler over many things.  You enter into the joy of
the LORD,” Matthew 25:23.

[1] Nässelqvist, D. (2016).
Disciple. In J. D. Barry, D. Bomar, D. R. Brown, R. Klippenstein, D. Mangum, C.
Sinclair Wolcott, … W. Widder (Eds.), The Lexham Bible Dictionary.
Bellingham, WA: Lexham Press.

^[2] Nässelqvist, D. (2016).
Disciple. In J. D. Barry, D. Bomar, D. R. Brown, R. Klippenstein, D. Mangum, C.
Sinclair Wolcott, … W. Widder (Eds.), The Lexham Bible Dictionary.
Bellingham, WA: Lexham Press.

[3] David Watson and Paul Watson,
Contagious Disciple-Making (Nashville: Thomas Nelson, 2014), 49.

[4] Kenneth G. Hanna,
From Glory to Glory, 8-13.

[5] NIV Zondervan Study Bible, pp. 1922-23.

[6] The Net Bible, ref: John 4:18, p. 1813

[7] Linda L. Belleville, “Imitate Me, Just
as I Imitate Christ: Discipleship in the Corinthian Correspondence,” in 
Patterns of Discipleship in the New Testament, ed. Richard N.
Longenecker (Grand Rapids: Wm. E. Eerdmans, 1996), 140.

[8] Bill Hull, Conversion and Discipleship
(Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 2016), 43.

[9] Dallas Willard,
Renovation of The Heart, (Colorado Springs: NavPress, 2002), 31.