Disciple Makers – 2
Col 1:15-20
The Lordship of Jesus Christ
BW 21.6.2015
Last week we began teaching on “Making Disciples” based on the last command of Jesus in
Matthew 28:18-20. We considered two periods in church history which experienced exponential
growth in quality and quantity. One was the early church up to 100 A.D. and the other was the 20 th
century church in China. Evaluating these two periods of church history it is clear that there were
several common principles or characteristics, which were the cause of their massive success. One
obvious issue is the place given to /taken by the Holy Spirit, but the one we are concentrating on is
the Christian practice of “making disciples,” which, according to Jesus, should be the major focus
of every Christian, in every church, in every place, in every age, until Jesus returns. The New
Testament knows no other form of Christianity. Christians are disciples, apprentices, trainees.
They are training in in (Bible) knowledge, character, Christ-likeness, spirituality (that’s intimacy
with God, with God the Father, Jesus the son, and the Holy Spirit) and in spiritual gifting, learning
how to serve Jesus Christ in the church and the world.
Unfortunately, this focus on disciple making has not been very high on the church’s agenda. I
believe that God is calling us to reinstate this key practice into the life of this church, so that our
lives have a marked impact on our world. Think about it. If this church closed down next week
would the local community care or even notice? Why? If we were a discipleship-based church,
becoming more Christ-like and more effective in our service of God and men, then we would be
noticed if we were not here!
True discipleship requires the centrality and supremacy of Jesus Christ in our lives.
Elizabeth and I were converted in 1969/1970. She was first. Unknown to us at the time a great revival was happening
throughout the world during which over 2 million people were converted in America and England alone, in the space of
about two years. It was commonly called the Jesus Movement or Revolution or Generation. Jesus suddenly came
back into vogue. In 1971, as a direct result of this revival, a musical about Jesus called “Godspell” was released in
London. That same year the cover story of Life Magazine was entitled Jesus Christ Superstar, a rock opera
confronting people with the question “Who is Jesus Christ?” The same year, in January, NBC ran a national television
news story on the Jesus Movement, as did CBS in April. Look magazine featured a cover article entitled “The Jesus
Movement.” By May Life Magazine carried a cover story on the movement and by June the Time magazine ran a 12page cover story on the Jesus Revolution. The British press followed to a lesser degree.
Jesus was obviously the centre of the Jesus Movement. Time magazine stated, “Jesus is alive and well and living in
the radiant, spiritual fervour of a growing number of young Americans who have proclaimed an extraordinary religious
revolution in His name. If any single mark clearly identifies them, it is a total belief in the awesome, supernatural Jesus
Christ, not just a marvellous man who lived 2000 years ago, but a living God who is both Saviour and Judge, the Ruler
of their destinies.”
And this emphasis upon Jesus Christ is at the heart of every revival that the world has ever seen.
That has never been a single revival in history that has not recovered a solid, wholehearted
commitment to the person of JC - His Lordship, His love, His life, devotion to Him, obedience to
Him, service to Him, worship of Him etc. Every revival could be called a Jesus Movement. Not only
does every move of the HS exalt Jesus (Jn 16:14) but when the church exalts Jesus, revival is
able to occur. Any attempt at Christian discipleship must have JC at the centre.
Of course there are different aspects that come to mind when we think about Jesus. I’d like to
speak about three essential elements or requirements necessary for Disciples of Christ. They are
1. The Lordship of Christ. 2. The Love of Christ. 3. The Life of Christ.
1st then…. The Lordship of Jesus Christ
True Christian discipleship can only happen when a person understands who it is he’s following.
The proposition is this: the more you understand about who he is and about what he’s like, and
what he does, the greater motivation and success you will have as a disciple.
Many Christians have a theoretical belief in the Lordship of Jesus
They are like the first disciples who saw the works of Jesus and heard the teaching and claims of
the master, but what they learned didn’t go deep enough. A mere notional acceptance never
helped when they were out of their comfort zone. Yes, they loved him. Yes, they expressed their
allegiance to him. Yes, they were even able to be used by him to communicate his grace and
power to others. But when the tide turned, when Jesus was arrested and things became a bit
difficult, to say the least, what happened to their faith then? They all ran away! They abandoned
Jesus in his greatest hour of need. Peter tragically denied Jesus three times. They hid behind
locked doors for fear of the Jews.
But after the resurrection we see a huge difference in those same disciples!
They exchange their fearful faith! They became bold and preached to the same people that had
crucified Jesus a few weeks before. They counted it the privilege to suffer for Jesus Christ. No
cost was too great, no difficulty was too overwhelming and no challenge was insurmountable.
Something happened at the Resurrection? Do you remember Thomas’ response when Jesus
appeared to him, “My Lord and my God.” Paul said “Jesus was declared to be the son of God with
power by the resurrection of the dead” (Romans 1:4)
Their belief in the Lordship of Christ was suddenly thrust to the forefront of their thinking. It was no
longer theoretical, a mere paper doctrine, a creed to be recited. It was real! . This proclamation
that Jesus is Lord was at the central core of the early church. In the first Christian sermon ever
preached, Acts chapter 2, verse 36, Peter stands up and says, ‘God has made this Jesus whom
you crucified Lord and Christ,’ and throughout the rest of the New Testament this proclamation is
central. about 750 different times in the New Testament, Jesus is proclaimed as Lord,
Phil 2 .. he humbled himself and became obedient to death — even death on a cross! Therefore God exalted him to
the highest place and gave him the name that is above every name, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow,
in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God
the Father.
Heb 1:1-3 … in these last days he has spoken to us by his Son, whom he appointed heir of all things, and through
whom he made the universe. The Son is the radiance of God's glory and the exact representation of his being,
sustaining all things by his powerful word. After he had provided purification for sins, he sat down at the right hand of
the Majesty in heaven.
1 Cor 3:12-15 If any man builds on this foundation using gold, silver, costly stones, wood, hay or straw, his work will
be shown for what it is, because the Day will bring it to light. It will be revealed with fire, and the fire will test the quality
of each man's work. If what he has built survives, he will receive his reward. If it is burned up, he will suffer loss; he
himself will be saved, but only as one escaping through the flames.
Jesus was God in the flesh. Jesus was the Son of God, the Saviour, the Messiah who had come
to save men from their sins, and who would one day come to judge the living and the dead and
determine the future of every man woman and child were believed. Jesus was now seated at the
right hand of God, governing the affairs of the universe, intimately involved with life’s minutest
circumstance. Jesus was suddenly accessible and available. Present and powerful. a very present
help in time of need. “Jesus is Lord,” became their slogan and message. (Acts 2:36, 10:36, 2
Corinthians 4:5.)
It was knowing the current, active, powerful and tangible activity of King Jesus that made the
difference in their lives. And this embracing of the Lordship of Christ was essential to their
discipleship, and it is similarly essential for us who seek to be disciples of Jesus Christ today.
3 Areas of your life where embracing his Lordship is essential:
1. In your obedience
Do you know that you have been saved so that you might be conformed to the image of his Son!
Rom 8:29. God wants you to be transformed by the renewal of your mind, Rom 12:1-3 to change
the way that you think, to have the mind of Christ 1 Cor 2:16. He calls you to die to yourself, to die
to your sinful tendencies, to resist temptation, to put on the new man, to walk in the Holy Spirit, to
walk as Jesus walked I Jn 2:6, to be self-disciplined and to exercise self-control.
I am not saying that as a Christian, you have to rely upon self-effort to become a better person. No
that’s not it at all! 2 Peter 1:3 His divine power has given us everything we need for life and
godliness through our knowledge of him who called us by his own glory and goodness. We have
all the spiritual dynamics, the necessary equipment to live a wonderful life in Christ. What it
requires from us is a willingness, an agreement, a decision to do it his way! And when we make
that decision to obey, then and only then, the life of the Holy Spirit kicks in and helps us. This is
intentional discipleship! Its obedience to the Scriptures and to the promptings of the Holy Spirit.
And it’s the Lordship of Jesus Christ that helps you to choose and to maintain obedience. Knowing
it’s his will, knowing it will please him, knowing that he will bless obedience, knowing that when
you obedient it will go well with you and maintain unbroken fellowship with your God. It’s knowing
that disobedience hinders his grace. It displeases God. And it can result in discipline for you. In the
Bible, God’s people experience defeat, sickness, failure, poverty, illness and even death, because
they disobey God.
But a healthy view of the Lordship of Christ creates a holy fear in your heart, as Moses says, “the
fear of the God will keep you from sinning” Exodus 20:20.
I learned of one woman whose daughter had worked in a quarry. She was in charge of the work shifts. When she blew
a whistle, the workers would come out of the mines. One day she was working in her office and she heard a voice
calling her by name, telling her that she should blow the whistle to let the workers come out of the mines. There was
still another hour before she was supposed to do this, but she repeatedly heard this voice, telling her to blow the
whistle now. Finally, without checking with other members of the office, because she feared they would stop her, she
blew the whistle. The miners started coming out. No sooner had the last one left the mines than an earthquake caved
in several of the mines. If the workers had still been in the mines, the death toll would have been staggering.
The miners gathered around this girl and asked why she had blown the whistle early. She had to admit that she was a
Christian, she had just obeyed the voice of God. Hundreds accepted the Lord that day. Then, at an official enquiry,
she gave a powerful testimony and many more families accepted Christ as Lord.
Now that sounds a great story. Think about it realistically. That girl could have been seriously
penalised for blowing the whistle. She could have lost the job, been consigned to a mental
institution or sent to prison for re-education with thousands of other Christians like her. But, like the
New Testament Christians, she decided to obey God rather than men, and blew the whistle. God
honoured her stand and her obedience. She was submissive to the Lordship of Jesus Christ.
2. In your servanthood
I am no need to tell anyone here that Jesus Christ is the ultimate servant!
Matt 4:10 Jesus said to him, "Away from me, Satan! For it is written: 'Worship the Lord your God,
and serve him only.' A general principle in Jesus life! Come from Dt 6 Shema.
Mark 10:45 For even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life
as a ransom for many."
Paul describes himself as a servant of the gospel, a servant of Jesus Christ, a servant of God. He
describes one group of Christians like this: 1 Thess 1:9 They tell how you turned to God from idols
to serve the living and true God.
Gal 5:13 serve one another in love, Eph 6:7 Serve wholeheartedly, as if you were serving the
Lord, not men, Rom 7:6 we have been released from the law so that we serve in the new way of
the Spirit
Rev 1:6 He (Jesus) has made us to be a kingdom and priests to serve his God and Father
It is not difficult to conclude that the goal of discipleship is servanthood. Growth in knowledge,
character, skills and spirituality has to result in service. We are saved to serve!
When Liz and I went to Thailand
Someone said , "In the kingdom of God service is not the stepping stone to nobility, it is nobility,
the only kind of nobility that is recognised".
Billy Graham said, “The highest form of worship is the worship of unselfish Christian service.”
In the book 'The Jesus Family in Communist China', there is an account of one particular Community. When the
communists took over, many of them came to see how the Christians lived. The communists boasted of their great
achievements. 'Among us there are no leaders' they said, 'everyone is a comrade'. One day a typical group arrived
and arrogantly shouted for the Pastor. The author of the book, Vaughan Rees, happened to be present. 'I saw him in
the distance' he wrote, 'he was pushing the manure cart and he pushed it right into their midst before someone said
"This is the Pastor". The communists had drawn back from the offensive cart. (Stink!) They wanted to know how he
could keep adequate discipline when he did such a menial job. The Pastor explained that since they were all equal
he, the leader, had the privilege of doing the worst jobs!" Service is nobility in God’s sight!
So where do you serve? Whom do you serve? How do you serve? Paul said we are all members
of the body of Christ. We all have a different function, whether we are an eye, and ear, a hand or
whatever. But some are like tonsils, it makes no difference whether they’re in or out! Or appendix,
you never know they are there until they start grumbling!
So what’s this got to do with the Lordship of Christ? Well lots! Servanthood is a major component
in the heart of God. He loves to serve and he loves to see his children serving. Paul even teaches
that Christians should serve people as if they’re serving Christ.
Col 3:23 Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for men.
Eph 6:7-8 Serve wholeheartedly, as if you were serving the Lord, not men, because you know
that the Lord will reward everyone for whatever good he does, whether he is slave or free.
Rom 14:18 because anyone who serves Christ .. is pleasing to God
2 Chron 16:9 For the eyes of the Lord range throughout the earth to strengthen those whose
hearts are fully committed to him.
3. When times get tough
How many know that not everything in life works out you had hoped. Sometimes hopes are
dashed, plans are thwarted, dreams become nightmares, friends let you down, opportunities are
lost and promises are broken. You know that sounds depressing but is real and true! And there
are 1000 reasons why. There is an active devil who doesn’t want you to receive the blessing of
God. There are occasions when God employs difficult circumstances shape our lives and teach us
lessons. Trials are sent by God to build a character and make us better people.
And to keep you from going down the pan the secret is just to trust in the Lordship of Christ.
You remember the story in Acts 16 when Paul and Silas were imprisoned? They hadn’t done
anything wrong, on the contrary, there were just preaching the gospel and happen to cast out a
demon from a young lady. Those making money out of this all girl launched an all-out attack on
the apostles, who were arrested, stripped naked and flogged, before being thrown into prison. And
not just prison but the deepest part of the prison, with shackles on their feet! How would you have
felt? What would you have said to your accusers? What would you have said to God?
Well, we know the story. At midnight they were praying and singing praises to God! They were
trusting in God’s sovereignty. They knew Jesus was alive and in control of everything. They knew
that he loved them and that even this situation would have a great purpose. As the story unfolds
their reason for praising God was well-founded. An earthquake came, they were set free, the jailer
got saved with his whole family and that night they were all baptised! And in the process
magistrates were humiliated!
When the chips are down, when the going gets tough, good disciples trust in Jesus’ Lordship. He
will never let you down. It will never fail you but he will work every situation for your good because
he loves you. You don’t have to moan and complain. You don’t have to criticise or call other
people. You don’t have to try and blame somebody. And you certainly don’t conclude that God has
let you down. So there it is. Jesus is Lord. Build that into your life?
Once a friend of mine asked Arthur Wallis for a good book to read and AW gave him ‘Sovereignty
of God!’ Why? Because he knew that to be anything in God and to achieve anything for God
requires going on the anvil at times – because God works something in you during these times!