Discipleship is a popular buzzword in Christian circles—and that’s a good thing. We need to recognize that the Christian journey is more than just a prayer. It’s a lifestyle that helps us become more like Jesus.
And since Jesus is the Master Discipler in human history, we need to think about the question, How did Jesus make disciples? After all, if we’re not doing it His way, we’re probably doing it the wrong way.
Start with Relationships
As we consider what Jesus did to make disciples, we need to understand that He began by building relationships. The Gospels tell us that He chose twelve men to be His closest followers. These were the guys He would pour into for three years. He would mentor them as disciples, and they would get the responsibility of spreading His message around the world after He left.
Today, relationship is still a vital part of how Jesus makes disciples. For starters, no one can become a disciple of Jesus without a personal relationship with Him. We have to acknowledge our sinfulness and accept His sacrifice on the cross as the payment for that sin. Embracing His offer of salvation by grace (Ephesians 2:8-9) is the first step in becoming His disciple.
But we also are called to grow in our relationship with Him. Through prayer and Bible study, we learn more about Him and more about what He expects for us as disciples. Our fellowship with other believers brings encouragement and accountability to our walk with Him. All of that is necessary to understanding what Jesus did to make disciples and following the path that He’s laid before us.
How did Jesus make disciples?
The best way to answer the question, How did Jesus make disciples? is to examine His work in the Gospels. By focusing on what Jesus did with His own initial band of followers, we can learn how to become better disciples ourselves and challenge others in their discipleship quest.
While theologians and church practitioners may debate the specifics of all Jesus did, I believe He used at least four primary methods to nurture His disciples and to prepare them for the challenge of spreading His Word around the earth.
Instruction
Jesus was a teacher. In fact, He was the greatest teacher who has ever lived. As a result, instruction was a huge part of what He did to make disciples. Throughout the Gospels, we see Jesus pulling His disciples aside to teach them about things like His identity and purpose (Mark 8:27-38), how to pray (Matthew 6:5-14; Luke 11:1-4), His return (Matthew 24–25), and obstacles they would face (John 16:32-33). They got the chance to talk to Him directly and even ask Him questions—and He did the same to them.
Today, we gain His instruction through His Word and through our fellowship with others. As guys, we can connect with other guys, and we can sit under the teaching of reliable leaders in our local church. All of that follows the pattern of how Jesus made disciples.
Observation
Along with instruction, Jesus’s disciples spent three years seeing what He did and hearing what He said. They got a daily firsthand lesson in how He dealt with other people and how He loved those the rest of the world considered unlovable. Jesus made disciples by living out a personal and visible relationship with God each day.
As believers, we don’t get the benefit of seeing and hearing Jesus in person like His original disciples did. However, we can observe what He did through the pages of Scripture. We can learn a lot by seeing how Jesus responded to the needs around Him and how He moved to meet those needs. And we can live out our faith in an observable way that point others toward Him.
Correction
As humans, we often miss the mark of Jesus’s plan for making disciples. Thankfully, He has never let misunderstandings or misinterpretations go unchallenged. During His time on earth, He made sure His disciples had a clear picture of what He was about and what He had called them to accomplish. More than once, He challenged their lack of faith (Matthew 8:23-27; 16:8-12; 17:19-20) or inability to grasp His teachings (Mark 8:14-21; Luke 24:25-27).
Now, two thousand years later, we’re still likely to misunderstand what Jesus taught or filter it through our own preferences and agendas. And He still uses His Word and the wisdom of reliable mentors to straighten what we’ve bent.
Application
It’s one thing to hear about following Jesus. It’s another thing to actually get your hands dirty serving Jesus. As we seek how to answer, How did Jesus make disciples?, we need to recognize the opportunities He gave them to apply His teaching in real life. He challenged them to take His power and His message into practical ministry settings (Mark 6:7-13,30-31; Luke 9:1-6,10). Then, they came back to report what they experienced. These hands-on opportunities prepared them for the task of sharing the gospel after He returned to heaven.
Today, Jesus still calls His disciples to put their faith into action. In fact, the Bible says that faith without works is lifeless and useless. It’s basically on par with the “faith” of demons (James 2:14-19). We have to pursue ways to apply our faith practically. Otherwise, we can’t really call ourselves Jesus’s disciples in any meaningful sense.
Start of Something Big
The question How did Jesus make disciples? inevitably leads to another question: So what? We might wonder what difference it makes to learn about how Jesus made disciples and to follow His plan.
The truth is, discipleship isn’t a goal to be reached. It’s a process. It’s the journey, not the destination. It’s an ongoing walk of faith that has the power to make us more like Jesus one day at a time.
Jesus demonstrated this principle of discipleship when He gave His disciples the Great Commission (Matthew 28:18-20). Instead of being a “graduation day” for His disciples, He sent them out to make a difference in the world. He challenged them to take all they had learned—through instruction, observation, correction, and application—to every nook and cranny of the known world for His glory.
The commission has not changed. Jesus is still making disciples who are called to share Him with people who need Him. It’s what being a believer is all about.
