Who, Me? Make Disciples? - How God Has Equipped YouSample

Day 2: A Walk of Faith

When God appeared to Moses through the burning bush, He told him He had seen Israel’s misery and wanted Moses to go back and lead them out of Egypt. Moses’ immediate response was to question God’s judgment in selecting him (Exodus 3:11). Forty years earlier he had attempted to help the Israelites and failed miserably. He had run from Egypt with an Israelite’s question ringing in his mind, “Who made you ruler and judge over us?” (Exodus 2:14 NIV). 

Most of us, like Moses, have attempted to help people along the way and failed. The second person I tried to disciple dropped me a note after several months of meeting regularly: “I want nothing more to do with you or God.” I wanted to do what Moses did—run to the desert and work with sheep. 

Where do we find the courage to get involved in people’s lives after we have failed? Or what about the courage to help that very first person?

The answer lies in God’s response to Moses. He gave the promise, “I will be with you” (Exodus 3:12 NIV).

God did not encourage Moses to rely on his ability and training. He simply assured Moses of His presence. Jesus made the same promise when He commissioned the apostles to go and make disciples. None of these men had a good track record for bravery. Yet each risked his life to disciple people all over the world. Jesus backed up their commission to make disciples with this: “Surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age” (Matthew 28:20 NIV).

If Jesus Christ were here in human form and went with us to help someone, we would go with great confidence that the person would receive what he needed. And that is what He has promised to do. Faith is the ability to believe that what God says is more real than what our eyes see. We can rely on the promise of His presence.

People who trust God make excellent disciplemakers. Knowing that only God can change lives, they become people of prayer. They see God work way beyond their natural abilities. God receives the glory only when our ministries go beyond what we could do on our own.

Believing God also frees us to believe in people. I remember a time when my spiritual growth accelerated. Why? The person helping me believed in God and believed in me. He believed God could do things with my life I had never dreamed possible. I grew in accordance with his faith.

It was only natural that I should then believe God for the people I was discipling. Some years later a man I had discipled said he knew his solid walk with Christ had grown because, “You believed in me.” He boiled down our hundreds of hours together to that one statement.

“The one who calls you is faithful, and he will do it” (1 Thessalonians 5:24). A discipler has faith that God will work through him or her to make disciples. 

What were the most important things that others taught you—or that you wish others had taught you—that helped you grow in your own Christian life?