I want to start out this post by saying Welcome to the family of God to Angela Gentry, who walked an aisle last Sunday at G3 Fellowship and became a new creature in Christ. You see, Angela, or little Angie as I have known her for years,Heard the Gospel for the first time a few weeks ago, and started on a path that led her to an appointment at the cross with Jesus. Many tears were shed on that path, and many battles were fought to get there, but there was a meeting that was going to take place. I knew that because my wife and I had been praying for her for several weeks and so had our church. And her decision to give her life to Christ is what has had me thinking about this post. 
    Most people who come to Christ, never get any farther. The reason, lack of Discipleship by the Church. Oh we talk to them and we hug on them on that morning, but then as the weeks go by we forget to call them or check on them, and we surely don't teach them.I mean, isn't that what Sunday School and the Pastor are for.The answer to that question in my opinion is two fold. Yes, Sunday School and the Pastor are there for new converts, but they are also there for the spiritually aged. The second part of that answer is NO. That is not what they are for. Let me ask you one question. When you look back at your spiritual birthday and the months that followed, what stands out in your mind? Is it getting up every Sunday morning and sitting in Sunday School.Or how about sitting on a pew every Sunday listening to a Gospel centered message from the Pastor, and then talking to him for a few minutes after service. Might it be attending Wednesday night bible study or Wednesday night service, where everyone rushes in tired from work or a long day with the kids to share their stories of the day, before sinking into a pew or seat to try and retain what is being taught because they are so tired? If you are like me it's probably none of these. For me, it was the phone call I received almost daily for about two weeks from either the Pastor or his wife. it is the visits that the "spiritually mature" made to see me. It's the memory of having questions and not understanding what I would read, but knowing that all I had to do was make a call to one of many members of the church and they would help me to understand and answer those questions. It was the lunches on Saturday at a leader in the church's house where we would sit and talk about everything from the Bible to family. it was the men's group on Sunday night before evening service, where I was made to feel like family. It was the fact that the body of Christ chose to Disciple me so that I knew what I had done was not a fleeting moment, and that I had the tools and the strength to stand against the attacks of the enemy. 
       Some of you reading this are asking , well isn't discipleship the job of the Church leadership, like the Preacher and the Deacons. And again that answer is a yes and no. Yes in that the Pastor/Preacher is the shepherd of the flock, and the deacons are the one tasked with helping to oversee the flock, but No in that we are all commanded by our Lord to make disciples of all people. You see, Jesus , after his Resurrection, Commanded his disciples, his followers (which is the body of Christ today) in Matthew 28:19-20 to " Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age."
      Now, that my brothers and sisters is some strong language. Our Lord is not asking us, or making a request. What he is doing is giving us our marching orders. He is telling us that when we see a newborn Christian, we are not to ignore them. On the contrary, we are to teach them. give them the tools they need. Think of it like this. You go to work today, and your company has hired a new employee. The person they hired has none of the skills they need to do the job they were hired to do. They come from a background that is so far from this job, that all you can ask yourself is how did they get this job. Then to top it all off, the boss looks at them and says well get to it. Within a day or so they are going to get discouraged and quit trying and sooner rather than later, they are going to quit, and never be heard from again. When this happens all anyone can say is, I wonder why they quit, they were so talented and had the intelligence it takes for the job. Well I can tell you why they quit.They quit because A) they had no idea what to do and B) no one showed them what to do and how to do it. 
       That is the Church today for the most part. When we have people come to know Christ, oh we are so excited because the Boss, Jesus, has hired a new worker. And we rush to tell them how proud we are that they decided to join us and if there is anything we can do, just call on them. But what happens is we forget, they lack the skills or knowledge to be able to "do the job". We forget that their background may be one that they have never been in a church before or they never have been taught what being a Christian is all about. What we do is not answer the phone when they call, because we are to wrapped up in ourselves, and our own lives. Then very shortly, we look around and they are not coming to Church like they were, if they are coming at all. And first thing to come out of our mouths is, see I told you they didn't really get saved, or , hmm, I wonder where they are? But we don't wonder enough to check on them.What we have done is allowed the enemy to slip back in and steal the joy that Christ has given, because of our lack of doing what we are commanded.
        Casting Crowns has a song out that says Jesus, friend of Sinners, we have strayed so far away. We cut down people in your name, but the sword was never ours to swing. Jesus, friend of sinners, the truth has become so hard to see. The world is on their way to you, but they're tripping over me. Always looking around never looking up, I'm so double minded.  A plank eyed saint with dirty hands and a heart divided. These words ring true in so many ways, but they don't have to. 
            Church the time has come for us to be the body of Christ we have been called to be. The time for us to reach out to those who are lost and hurting is now more than ever. It is time that we Go out to the "main road" , the world, and we invite as many as we see to the wedding feast, or to come and hear about Jesus. (Matthew 22:9). But once they are there we must not forget them when the "feast"is done. We must remember that someone took the time to disciple us, and it is our job, to make sure they have the same opportunities that we had. We must teach them what it means to be saved (but that's another post), and we must teach them how to pray. We are to be the ones that they can call on DAY OR NIGHT, and they have to know that we will be there for them. For without discipleship, the new convert will fall right back into the lifestyle that they have known for so long. Not because they want to, but because they feel like that life cares when the Christian doesn't. And then they will not be so open to the Gospel the next time someone shares it with them, because they will be able to say, why should I , they didn't care the last, why will this time be any different. 
             Brother and Sister's, I challenge you to call those you know who may be new to the family of God. They may have been saved 6 days or 6 years, but if they have never been discipled, they are still a newborn, and they need the fellowship of the "mature". They need to be taught how to feed on God's word so that they grow strong in the Lord, and are able to withstand the onslaught of the enemy that is coming, or already may be there.
         I will leave you tonight by sharing this with you. A new born Christian of less than one week moved to a new house this week. When they moved into the house they were moving from, they had to pay friends and family in order to get any help. This individual has never had anyone do anything for them without expecting something in return. So imagine their joy and total surprise when on the night they gave their life to the Lord, they were asked, do you need help moving. Imagine even more the look of surprise on their face when the morning of the move, roughly 9 people from the church, which has an average attendance of say 40-50 a Sunday, showed up ready to help them move. And imagine the shock of realizing , they were there because they loved them, and wanted nothing in return. That brothers and Sister's is the Love of God shining in his people. That is following the commandment to Love thy neighbor as you love yourself (Matthew 5:43;19:19;22:39;Mark 12:31; Luke 10:27). 
            I pray that this has inspired you to go out and show the love of Christ to others, and to teach those who are new to Christ what it means to be saved. I pray that tomorrow you will have the opportunity to share the Gospel with someone you come in contact with, and that you find within yourself to love on someone who truly needs it. God bless you for reading this and may the Lord touch you as he has me while writing this post. Good night Brothers and Sisters and I will talk to you soon.


 In Christ's Love,

 

   Bro. Bill Roy