Joey Shaw, Minister of International Mission at The Austin Stone Community Church, recently published an article at The Network for Strategic Missions. He seeks to correct the following five common myths about the Great Commission:
1. The Myth of Accidental Discipleship
The myth here is that merely “doing life” with others is an straight path to making disciples. Like all pervasive myths, this contains a nugget of truth, but it is incomplete: living your life with others is a part of making disciples, but without intentional proclamation and demonstration of the Gospel, just doing life with others will not lead alone to making and multiplying disciples.
2. The Myth that “Crossing Cultures is a Step Beyond The General Mandate of the The Great Commission”
The model of Jesus mandates crossing cultures. Jesus left his home (with the Father), his culture, his language, his people (the trinity) to come to our home (earth), to our people, to speak our language, to grow up in a Jewish culture, and so on. Jesus was a cross-cultural missionary and he commands us to follow in his steps, cross any boundary, live incarnationally and make disciples.
3. The Myth that Jesus Wants Converts
The most interesting thing about the Great Commission is that it does not command us to make converts of Christianity. Instead, we are to make disciples of Jesus. The difference between convert making and disciple making is crucial. Converts change religions. Disciples change masters. Converts follow a system. Disciples follow a Person. Converts build Christendom. Disciples build the Kingdom of God. Converts embrace rituals. Disciples embrace a way of life. Converts love the command to “baptize them” in the Great Commission, but that is all. Disciples baptize others but only in context of “teaching them to observe all that I commanded you”. Converts love conversion. Disciples love transformation.
4. They Myth that says: “When I’m ready and able, I’ll start making disciples.”
Have you ever thought of someone who is making and multiplying disciples as a super Christian? Have you ever said or prayed something like this, “We just ask you God to send out to the nations the best among us, yes, Lord, send out our marines!” If so, then you have fallen to believe the myth that making and multiplying disciples is for “elite Christians”.
5. The Myth that Making Disciples is Great Advice
Cultural Christianity loves this myth. Cultural Christians love to sing the praise of disciple makers while themselves simultaneously avoiding, through the most crafty cop-outs, actually engaging in obedience to the Great Commission. In other words, when it comes down to it, many view the Great Commission as merely great advice.
Take some time to read the whole article with your team (including the comments where Joey discusses crossing the cultural barriers–excellent.)
Ask you team: Is our movement really “making disciples”? Again as we’ve argued over and over, there is no movement without “transforming discipleship” and “multiplying leadership.”
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