Discipleship: God's Plan for Reaching the Worldنموونە

Disciples Are Cultivated in Community

When Jesus started his discipleship movement, he invited individuals to follow him, but have you noticed he never called individuals to follow him in isolation?

Take a moment to consider Mark 1:16-20. Jesus did not invite Simon to follow him by himself. Instead, Jesus called Simon and Andrew to follow him together, and then James and John joined them moments later.

The moment an individual accepted the call to become a disciple, they began walking side by side with other disciples. From its inception, discipleship was a journey taken in community. Jesus later defined this discipleship community as his’ church.’

We find the first use of the term church in Matthew 16:18, where Jesus declares, ‘I will build my church, and all the powers of hell will not conquer it.’

The Greek word used here is ἐκκλησία (ekklesia). It describes a group of people called to gather for a purpose. As individuals (like Simon and Andrew) accepted Jesus’ call to follow him, they gathered together to become his disciples and, thus, formed what Jesus describes in this passage as his church.

Notice Jesus does not define the church as we often do in the 21st century. He does not describe the church as a building, an organization, a service we attended, or a group of people who gather on a Sunday but are disconnected from each other’s lives. Instead, Jesus describes the church as the ekklesia, the ‘called out ones’ who gather in his name.

We cannot dissociate discipleship and the church community from one another because discipleship and the church are intrinsically connected. You cannot have one without the other.

Jesus did not live alone. He did not walk alone. He did not even do ministry alone. Yes, he spent moments in silence and solitude, but he lived most of his ministry out in community while inviting others to do the same.

Just as Simon couldn’t claim he was a disciple apart from Andrew, so we cannot claim to be a disciple apart from the church. To dedicate ourselves to the way of Jesus is to dedicate ourselves to the church community.

In 1 Corinthians 12, Paul goes to great lengths to describe how each believer is a part of the body of Christ and how every single believer has a role to play in the church community. When we are not actively engaged in the community which Christ has knitted us into, we shortchange ourselves and the community from the mutual blessing we were designed to provide each other.

Application

In Acts 2:42, the disciples devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching, and they devoted themselves to fellowship.

Have you devoted yourself to fellowship? What next step do you feel the Holy Spirit is challenging you to take in engaging in the community God has designed for you?