Discipling Family, Friends, and the World

The following poem is a powerful poem titled “My Friend” that carries insights and thoughts all Christians are wise to ponder:

My friend, I stand in judgment now

And feel that you are to blame somehow.

On earth I walked with you by day

And never did you point the way.

You knew the Lord in truth and glory

But never did you tell the story.

My knowledge then was very dim,

You could have led me safe to Him.

Though we lived together here on earth,

You never told me of the second birth.

And now I stand this day condemned

Because you failed to mention Him.

You taught me many things, that’s true,

I called you friend and trusted you.

But I learned now that it’s too late,

And you could have kept me from this fate.

We walked by day and talked by night

And yet you showed me not the light.

You let me live and love and die,

You knew I’d never live on high.

Yes, I called you friend in life

And trusted you through joy and strife.

And yet on coming to this dreadful end,

I cannot now call you “my friend.”

–Author unknown

In Matthew chapter 28:18-20, we are given the Great Commission. It says:

And Jesus came up and spoke to them, saying, “All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth. Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.”

The Great Commission, as found in the above scripture in Matthew 28, is a commandment directed at every believer everywhere. Accordingly, each of us has the very important responsibility of helping to share the gospel with a dying world.  And we are each to be vitally involved with the great work of making disciples.

Well, if this is true, why aren’t many more believers passionate and committed to diligently being involved with doing the work of making disciples?

And sadly, sometimes believers, for different reasons, don’t choose to share the gospel with family or friends – those closest to them.  

Why is this true?

These are actually great questions.

The following are important factors every one of us in the church should give very serious consideration to:

1. In every generation, more people die and go to hell than go to heaven. Consider what Christ told us in Matthew. Enter through the narrow gate; for the gate is wide and the way is broad that leads to destruction, and there are many who enter through it. For the gate is narrow and the way is constricted that leads to life, and there are few who find it (Matthew 7:13–14).
2. On average, 250,000 people die every 24 hours all over the world.
3. For many of us, we may be the only contact that some of our family members or friends have with the church.
4. We each have a responsibility to do the work of sharing the gospel and making disciples.  And God holds each of us responsible for helping to carry this important work out in this world.

So, I would like to make a few suggestions to every believer who reads and considers this matter:

1. Start today praying daily that the Lord will use you to help others trust in Him for salvation and use you to help others grow in their faith (i.e., make disciples). Daily, pray the Prayer of Jabez over your ministry of making disciples. Pray also that the Lord will give you wisdom and grace to effectively witness to family and friends.
2. Learn how to effectively share your testimony of how you got saved with others.  Also, learn how to effectively share the gospel with an unsaved individual.
3. Pray and ask the Lord to guide you in doing the following: Locate gospel tracts that you like to use and that you feel are effective. Stock up with many of them and carry them wherever you go in order to give them to others as the Lord leads you.
4. Regularly invite people you know to church.

Many people in the world are waiting for you. Waiting simply for you to obey the Lord and share Jesus with them so that they can be saved. And many are waiting for you to guide and encourage them in their walk with the Lord.

Please, let’s faithfully get to work.