The Mission of the Local Church: Making Disciples

A Sermon on Acts 14:19-23 by João Domingos

Once again, it’s a joy to be here to share God’s word with you this morning. And as we begin, I would just like to make a statement that as we gather this morning, there are different types of people gathered here. There are those who are unbelievers and unteachable. There are those who are unbelievers and teachable. And there are those who are already believers but are struggling. And there are those who are believers but are walking with the Lord. And as I stand here to preach, it’s with this great responsibility that we want to see what the Word of God has to say this morning.

So let us stand before the Lord in prayer together so that we can ask the Lord to help us this morning. Let’s pray.

Our dear Heavenly Father, I come to you this morning in the precious name of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, who died on the cross for our sins. And Lord, even as we gather this morning, Lord, we pray that you help me to be faithful to the teaching of your Word. And I ask, God, that you break stony and hard grounds, that your word will penetrate deep in our hearts. So I pray, Father, that you’ll speak this morning. Lord, please speak through the preaching of your word. In Christ’s name I pray, amen.

Introduction: The Mission of Kitwe Church

Today’s message, dear church, is going to be a message that will challenge us greatly, and especially for us who are members of Kitwe Church. We are going to talk about the mission of Kitwe Church. And the idea is that every local church exists to make disciples. And therefore, as members of Kitwe Church, we should know that every member is a minister.

And maybe a quiz question for us who are members: What is the mission of Kitwe Church? Well, why do we exist? I hope we all know that, right? We exist to glorify God by making gospel-centered, reproducing disciples of Jesus Christ. That’s why we exist. Because discipleship is the heart of missions.

And our Lord Jesus Christ made that very plainly in Matthew chapter 28, verse 19. He tells his disciples:

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 to the end of the age.

So the mission of our church, the mission of the local church, is disciple-making—followers of Jesus Christ, teaching believers to know and to obey Christ Jesus. So when we’re talking about discipleship, we’re saying we are teaching other Christians for the purpose of their continued obedience to Jesus Christ. Not only that, but also that they will make other disciples.

And what I’m trying to say this morning is this: Discipleship is meant to be done through a local church. And this is going to be the heart of today’s message. Discipleship through the local church. Discipleship is the mission of the local church.

Context: Paul and Barnabas’s Missionary Journey

And so for us to understand this reality, we need to just quickly look at Acts chapter 15 before we go to our main text. We are going to look at the ministry of Paul and Barnabas, their missionary journey.

So what do we see in chapter 13? In chapter 13, we see that they are sent by a church, right? The church sends Barnabas and Paul. To do what? To go and make disciples. Chapter 13, verses 4 to 12, we see that they went to Cyprus, Salamis, and when they arrived there, what did they do? They proclaimed the word of God. But also, they were opposed, and the proconsul came to know the Lord Jesus Christ.

So then from verse 13 to the end of the chapter, they are in Antioch in Pisidia, where Paul preaches this powerful sermon, right? He preaches, pointing them to the law and the prophets, showing them that Jesus Christ is the king that was prophesied, that Jesus Christ came and died, yet he did not see corruption. He rose again, and that forgiveness is found in him alone.

So what was the result? Many Jews believed, but also persecution rose. But then in chapter 14, where we are going to be, they moved to a different place when persecution rose.

The Text: Acts 14:19-23

So let us once again read our passage, Acts chapter 14, verses 19 to 23. So please stand so that we can read once again. And this is what the word of God says:

But Jews came from Antioch and Iconium, and having persuaded the crowds, they stoned Paul and dragged him out of the city, supposing that he was dead. But when the disciples gathered about him, he rose up and entered the city. And on the next day he went on with Barnabas to Derbe.

When they had preached the gospel to that city and had made many disciples, they returned to Lystra and to Iconium and to Antioch, strengthening the souls of the disciples, encouraging them to continue in the faith, and saying that through many tribulations we must enter the kingdom of God.

And when they had appointed elders for them in every church, with prayer and fasting, they committed them to the Lord in whom they had believed.

And that is the mission of the local church: making disciples.

The Big Idea

So from our text we see some key aspects of discipleship. And we are going to observe how Paul and Barnabas did the work of missions.

So here’s the idea, church: The mission of the local church is making disciples through the preaching of God’s word, resulting in healthy churches where believers are taught to be obedient to Jesus Christ and his teaching. That’s the mission of the local church. Making disciples through the preaching of the gospel that results in healthy churches where these believers are taught to be obedient to Christ and his word.

So how should the local church do that? How should we as a local church make disciples? Well, from our verses we can see.

Point One: Preach and Teach the Word of God

The first thing is: Preach and teach the word of God. That’s how disciples are made. Preach and teach the word of God.

Verse 21, the first part says:

When they had preached the gospel to that city and had made many disciples…

Peter leaves Lystra for the city of Derbe. So he was stoned in that city, in Lystra, but then he moved to another city where they find even more evangelistic success.

But we need to understand, we’re talking about being disciples, we’re talking about discipleship, but we need to understand that we can only disciple someone when that person is saved. That’s something we need to understand. We can only make disciples or disciple someone when that person is saved—that person is rescued from the wrath of God through the person and sacrifice of Jesus Christ and now seeks to follow and obey Christ.

So the Apostle Paul preached the gospel. They evangelized, so they brought the good news to these people, and they made disciples.

Preaching Is the Primary Means

So what are we seeing here? What we are seeing from our text, dear church, is that preaching of the word is the primary means God ordained to make disciples of Jesus Christ. And that’s what Paul did in every city he went. He got in that city, he was not preoccupied with those other things. The first thing was he preached the gospel. He preached the Word. Because Paul was sent by the Antioch church to do what? To make disciples.

And so this is what we see from this text: that how we make disciples is through the preaching of God’s Word. Therefore, even our discipleship relationships should be Word-centered. That’s the idea. Our discipleship relationships should be Word-centered.

And I want to hammer this point because we are living in the world of being politically correct, right? We’re living in the world of just being nice. “You cannot just be telling people every time about Jesus, telling them about the gospel. Just live your life. They will see Christ the way you live,” right? The famous phrase, right? “Preach the gospel at all times. Use words if necessary.”

That’s not what Scripture teaches. That’s not what Scripture teaches. And Paul makes it clear, even in his ministry. In Corinthians he says, “We preach Christ and him crucified.” So that’s how disciples are made.

The Gospel Call

And if you are here this morning and you are not a disciple of Jesus Christ, listen to the preaching of God’s word: that you are a sinner and you are an enemy of God and you’re on your way to hell. But God in his grace sent his son, Jesus Christ, to rescue you from your sins and to rescue you so that you can become not an enemy of God, but a friend of God. And thus, you become a disciple.

So dear church, for us who are members of Kitwe Church, your discipleship relationships, examine them. Are they centered on the word? You know the answer to that question. Because it’s through the gospel that we become disciples, right? But it’s also through the same gospel that we are being discipled. So if our discipleship relationship is not centered in the gospel, how are we going to be real disciples of Jesus Christ?

So we see from our text that the Apostle Paul and Barnabas, their mission was clear. We are sent to do what? To make disciples. And how do we do that? We preach the gospel.

Point Two: Strengthen and Encourage the Saints

But not only that. Not only did they preach the gospel, but there’s also an aspect of exhorting the saints, right? And that’s what discipleship is all about. And we see that from verse 21. It says:

When they had preached the gospel to that city and had made many disciples, they returned to Lystra and to Iconium and to Antioch.

As they returned to these cities where the gospel was preached, where Christians were made, where disciples were already gathering, what did they do? And this is another aspect of discipleship. What did they do? The text says:

Strengthening the souls of the disciples, encouraging them to continue in the faith.

So, the first thing we see: they preach the gospel. But now the second thing we’re seeing is they strengthen and encourage.

An Ongoing Process

Paul and Barnabas decided to go back to these towns. But they were not just preoccupied with conversions. No. Like, “Oh, people are saved, then yeah, let them live their life.” No. But they also wanted to make disciples, followers of Jesus Christ. And I think this is where the struggle lies for many of us. You know, we see baptism happening in the context of our church. New believers are coming to faith. We all rejoice. But then, we don’t even take time to disciple. We don’t even take time to walk alongside that person.

But we are seeing that the Apostle Paul and Barnabas, they’re helping us to understand that, yes, conversion is taking place. But then, there’s an aspect of continuing to work with them. And he uses these verbs: strengthen, encourage. It’s in the present active participle, which just means it’s an ongoing process. That’s what it means. You are strengthening and encouraging these disciples. So the idea here, and I think this is important for us to understand, that it’s an ongoing process.

Because you can read this passage and you think the Apostle Paul and Barnabas, they went to this city where the gospel was preached, people became saved and they were just like, “Okay, yeah, pull up your socks and we move to the next one.” No, we need to understand that it’s an ongoing process, meaning they were doing life with these people. They were not just missionaries who came and said, “Okay, good to go,” and moved to another place. No. So the idea here: it was a continuous process. They were strengthening the souls of these disciples.

Strengthening Through the Word

And once again, they were strengthening the souls of these disciples. And get me right here: not with pizza and tea—which those things are good, you know, we should have pizza and tea. But that’s not the point. It’s through the word. Strengthening.

And this does not necessarily mean that they were entertaining sinful life. That’s not what it means. Strengthening and encouraging. No. This also includes reproof and correction. Correcting one another to live as disciples of Jesus Christ, as followers of Jesus Christ. So they’re strengthening, confirming, and not only that, but encouraging, comforting, so that they can continue, or so that they can remain in the faith.

So here’s the thing: discipleship—preaching the word, confirming, and comforting to remain faithful. That’s the point. And the text says, “So that they can continue in the faith.” The idea is for them to persevere as they seek to live for Christ here on earth.

The Cost of Discipleship

And the Apostle Paul continues and says:

Saying that through many tribulations we must enter the kingdom of God.

So remember, they’re strengthening and what? And encouraging. And look at the encouragement: “Through many tribulations we must enter the kingdom of God.” What an encouragement, eh?

And you know what, this is actually important for us to grasp because this is a slap in the face to the health and wealth prosperity gospel, right? That you become a Christian, everything’s going to be well. So if there’s suffering in your life, if things are not going well in your life, oh, you have to be rich. But the Apostle Paul here is telling these disciples who are facing persecution: “Through many tribulations we must enter the kingdom of God.”

So the idea here, even for us who are disciples of Jesus Christ this morning, the Apostle Paul is telling us that there is a price to pay as disciples. There’s a cost of discipleship. And he’s saying that because he himself faced a lot of difficulties, right?

Our text says that, verse 19, what does it say?

But Jews came from Antioch and Iconium, and having persuaded the crowds, they stoned Paul and dragged him out of the city, supposing that he was dead.

So being a disciple of Jesus Christ, there is a guarantee of suffering. And the Apostle Paul is saying, it’s through many tribulations that we must enter the kingdom of God. So suffering is not foreign to disciples of Jesus Christ because Jesus Christ himself suffered to the point of death to rescue you and me.

This is the cost of discipleship, and the Apostle Paul got this from our Lord Jesus Christ. In Luke 14:25-27, he says:

Now great crowds accompanied him, and he turned and said to them, “If anyone comes to me and does not hate his own father and mother and wife and children and brothers and sisters, yes, and even his own life, he cannot be my disciple.”

That’s the cost of discipleship. Are you paying the cost? You will pay the cost. You will suffer. That’s why the Apostle Paul understood that. That’s why not only did he preach, but he strengthened and encouraged the disciples.

Intentional Discipleship

So our discipleship relationships should include this as well. Because there’s no discipleship without the cross. When things are hard, will you abandon Christ Jesus when things are hard? Blame the church of Christ when things are not going your way? Or would you say, “Lord, where will we go? You have the words of eternal life”?

So dear church, we all need one another to walk with Christ faithfully. And we need to be intentional in our discipleship relationships, strengthening and encouraging the saints.

Members of Kitwe Church, identify someone in our family who needs strengthening, who needs encouraging. Or better, we all need it. Being a disciple of Jesus Christ means that you will pay a price. And I know some of us who are gathered here have paid a price. Some of you come from a Jehovah’s Witness background where you have come to know Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior and you have restrictions at home just because you are a follower of Jesus Christ who is your Savior and your God. And we are seeing the saints in Rwanda—churches have been closed down.

And Paul teaches us this morning, dear church family, in our discipleship relationships, we must encourage one another to continue faithfully because it’s through many tribulations that we will enter the kingdom of God.

True Encouragement

So this strengthening and encouraging we are seeing here, it was not made to discourage them, as some may think. When he’s saying that through many tribulations we will enter the kingdom of God, it’s actually an encouragement. Did you pick that from the text? Did you pick that? That is actually an encouragement. Because suffering and persecution is saying, we are almost home. That’s the point.

And this is an encouragement because the Apostle Paul is helping us to view suffering in light of the glories of heaven. That’s the point.

Church, why do you think many disciples in Nigeria have been killed, had their heads chopped off? It’s not because they are stronger, it’s because they have a right view of suffering in light of the glories of heaven. So this is an encouragement because it’s saying, we are almost home.

And I think the hymn by Matt Papa just demonstrates this clearly. It says:

This journey is ours together.
We are almost home.
And to the great forever,
we are almost home.
What song and you will sing
around that happy throne?
Come, faint of heart,
we are almost home.

This life is just a vapor,
we are almost home.
The sun is setting yonder,
we are almost home.
Take courage, for this darkness
shall break to dawn.
Oh, lift your eyes.
We are almost home.

Almost home.
We are almost home.
So press on towards that blessed shore.
Oh, praise the Lord.
We are almost home.

Biblical Commands to Encourage

When last did you strengthen and encourage a suffering saint to persevere amidst the struggle and to be more like Christ? Because that is the essence of discipleship. And the word of God, dear church, calls us for that.

1 Thessalonians 5:11 says:

Therefore encourage one another and build one another up, just as you are doing.

1 Thessalonians 4:18 says:

Therefore encourage one another with these words.

And the Apostle Paul is saying that, referring to the hope of Christ’s return.

In the well-known passage, Hebrews 10:24-25:

And let us consider how to stir up one another to love and good works, not neglecting to meet together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another, and all the more as you see the Day drawing near.

So this aspect of strengthening one another, of encouraging one another, is primarily done by passing on the truth, both in words and even in practice. And the Apostle Paul understood this well. Remember his relationship with Timothy and Titus, right?

2 Timothy chapter 2, verses 1 and 2 says:

You then, my child, be strengthened by the grace that is in Christ Jesus, and what you have heard from me in the presence of many witnesses entrust to faithful men, who will be able to teach others also.

Are you seeing the relationship here?

But also Titus. Paul tells Titus this. Titus chapter 2, beginning from verse 1, he says:

But as for you, teach what accords with sound doctrine. Older men are to be sober-minded, dignified, self-controlled, sound in faith, in love, and in steadfastness. Older women likewise are to be reverent in behavior, not slanderers or slaves to much wine. They are to teach what is good, and so train the young women to love their husbands and children, to be self-controlled, pure, working at home, kind, and submissive to their own husbands.

That is discipleship.

Personal Application

All the men here at Kitwe Church, who are you discipling? Is there a young man here that you are pouring your life into? Is there anyone that you are discipling here?

And all the women, are you talking to the younger ones, intentionally living with them, like life-on-life discipleship with the younger ones? Older women doesn’t necessarily mean in terms of age, okay? Spiritual maturity.

But who are you discipling? Is there a young lady that you’re saying, “We are rubbing shoulders together”? Do you have someone like that? You’re like, “I’m going to disciple, I’m going to be radical with this young lady. If it’s one, two, or three, I’m going to be radical and intentional, pouring my life into them. It’s not just Sunday coffee and tea and then we go, but your life, teaching younger women.”

Women’s Bible study, you are with her. There’s a women’s conference, you are with her. Do you have that? And I know some do. But if you don’t, this is what discipleship should look like in the context of a local church. Each one of us—older men, younger men, older women, and younger women—doing life together.

Who are you discipling? Who are you helping to live out the Christian life? Who are you intentionally working alongside? Are you doing that? Are you working alongside a brother or a sister as they run their Christian race?

So discipleship, the mission of the local church: preach the gospel, strengthen and encourage the saints.

Point Three: Leaders Are Made

But also from our text we see the blessing when all this is happening. What we see is leaders are made.

Verse 23 says:

And when they had appointed elders for them in every church, with prayer and fasting, they committed them to the Lord in whom they had believed.

They appointed elders in every church. So here’s the thing again: Paul, in their mission of making disciples, they were not just worried about conversions and discipling, but also raising up leaders.

It says, “When they had appointed”—that’s what the text says. Just look at the Bible. It says, “When they had appointed.” And I want us to park a bit here. Because when the text is saying that they had appointed, they’re not saying that Barnabas and Paul went to these churches and said, “Anyway, okay, elders, okay.” No, that’s not the idea. It’s congregationally choosing by voting. So they chose these leaders.

And the question is: Where did these leaders come from? From the local church, right? Because there’s discipleship relationships happening and those leaders are identified.

A Culture of Discipleship

The church that is filled with a biblical culture of discipleship won’t have difficulties in bringing up leaders and appointing them. That’s the point. And I will say the same in terms of having people to serve. When we have a biblical culture of discipleship, it’s not going to be difficult to have people serving in various ministries. Because in the local church, we are not looking for volunteers. That’s not the point. In the local church, we are looking for disciples who want to sacrificially, gladly serve their Redeemer who saved them through the local church. That’s it.

So, dear church members, if you have to be pushed to serve, if you have to be pushed to serve, check your heart. Have you understood the salvation that the Lord Jesus Christ brought? If you do, your heart should spring with joy to serve him through the church.

So leaders are made. There’s a healthy culture of discipleship happening in these churches in different cities where Apostle Paul and Barnabas went. And we should praise God even as a church that we can witness this happening at Kitwe Church, isn’t it? Right now we are in the process of choosing elders and deacons, right? Where are they coming from? We didn’t hire a recruiting agency for pastors and deacons, but they are coming from amongst us. This is a result of discipleship relationships happening. And church, this is a blessing that we as a church can actually live out this principle that the Scripture is teaching. And we should be really, really grateful.

The Manual Is Matthew 28

So, as we conclude, I just want to make a note here. It’s important for us to understand that the manual of making disciples is not up for discussion. It’s not up for discussion. And Paul and Barnabas, they did not come with a clever way to do something that is trending. No. They were simply faithful to the teaching of our Lord Jesus Christ in Matthew 28.

So here’s the thing: just look at our passage and let us see some similarity with Matthew 28. Because you might think that they found a different manual to do discipleship. No. Look at this.

Matthew 28 says, “Make disciples of all nations,” right? That’s the command. And what did Paul and Barnabas do? “When they had preached the gospel to that city and had made many disciples.”

Matthew 28 says, “Baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.” What did Barnabas and Paul do? They appointed leaders, meaning that these leaders carry out the ordinances.

And Matthew 28 says, “Teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you.” What did they do? Strengthening the souls of the disciples, encouraging them to continue in the faith, saying that through many tribulations we must enter the kingdom of God.

And “Behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.”

Four Implications

Some implications to just what we’ve been talking about, and then we’ll close.

Dear church, the first implication is this: Every program should be guided—or every program that we have at Kitwe Church—should take us toward the goal of making disciples. We don’t just come up with things because it’s cool. No. The implications of these teachings is that every program that we have at Kitwe Church, the goal is what? Making disciples.

And also, the second implication is that our discipleship relationships should be intentional. Intentional. What I mean is you have to say this: “I’m going to get this brother, this sister, I’m going to work with them.” I think some of you got the discipleship commitment card. Some of you got it. If you can, in those commitment cards, just write the names of the people that you are thinking of discipling intentionally. Just write them down and maybe just put it on your fridge, in your room, and be praying about that. Just be intentional. Say, “I’m going to take this sister, I’m going to take this brother and I’m going to work alongside them.” Please do that.

And also, the third implication would be: We will joyfully participate in the disciple-making work through planting of healthy churches in Africa and beyond. If we are saying that our mission, discipleship, is the mission of the local church, we will joyfully participate in the Great Commission.

Fourth and last: We will be faithful to the programs that foster discipleship at Kitwe Church. We will be faithful to Wednesday Bible studies. We’ll be faithful because that’s where we have been strengthened, we have been encouraged, we have been reproved. And also other programs—we’ll be faithful.

Conclusion

Dear church, I hope as we have looked through God’s word this morning, our hearts are stirred to make disciples through the local church. Because God has placed you here at Kitwe Church to be about the work of making disciples. Remember what we said from the beginning: that’s why we exist—to glorify God by making gospel-centered, reproducing disciples of Jesus Christ.

May God help us to be intentional in making disciples through the preaching and teaching of the Word, and intentionally strengthening and encouraging one another as we run the race here on earth. Amen.

Closing Prayer

Let’s pray. As you bow your head, just take a moment to reflect on what we have been challenged with from God’s word this morning, and perhaps even a time of confession in terms of just what you have been busy about—it has not been disciple-making. And just pray also that the Lord will help you to be intentional, identifying people within the body of Christ here at Kitwe Church to disciple intentionally. Let’s take a few seconds to reflect on that.

Our gracious God and Father, we thank you for your word. We thank you that you, in your love, you have seen it fit to make rebels your disciples. So I pray, Lord, even as we reflect on this truth, Lord, help us, help us, God, to be faithful in the task of making disciples through Kitwe Church, that our discipleship relationships will be intentional, that we’ll help one another to live lives that are pleasing to you. In Christ’s name I pray, amen.