Ox Strong...Being a Disciple and a Discipler

Real Dudes,
Ox Strong’s mission statement is Men Helping Men Grow In Christ. And one of our core values is to be a learning leader. To learn, grow, and invest in others is what we aim for. I feel like the lesson below is a great reminder of what God’s called each of us to do…and is confirmation that Ox Strong’s aim to fulfill God’s design for ministry is headed in the right direction. Thank you to each of you for being a part of this disciple-making-disciple journey. Let me encourage all of us to be a student, invest in a student…all for the enhancement of His Kingdom and Glory!
Practicing His Presence,
Nate

In his devotional book Drawing Near, on the page for May 4th, John MacArthur opens our eyes to the fact that “Every disciple must also be a discipler. Have you ever met someone who constantly absorbs what the church has to offer, yet never seems to plug into a ministry where he can give to others? I’ve met many people like that. Some have attended church for many years, and have even taken evangelism and other special training classes. But they never quite feel qualified to minister to others or even to share their testimony. Eventually that has a crippling effect on their spiritual lives and on the life of the church in general.
When Jesus called the disciples to Himself, He did so in order to train them for ministry. We see this in Matthew 10:1-2. The Greek work translated ‘disciples’ means ‘learners.’ ‘Apostles’ translates a Greek word meaning ‘to dispatch away from’ or ‘to send.’ In classical Greek it refers to a naval expedition dispatched to serve a foreign city or country. Disciples are learners; apostles are emissaries [sent out on a special mission to represent Christ]. Jesus called untrained disciples, but He dispatched trained apostles. That’s the normal training process.
In Matthew 28:19-20 Jesus says, ‘Go…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.’ Paul said to Timothy, ‘The things which you have heard from me in the presence of many witnesses, these entrust to faithful men, who will be able to teach others also’ (2 Tim. 2:2).
As wonderful and important as it is to learn of Christ, you must never be content to be a disciple only. You must also be a discipler!”
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Video: Sharing Jesus with your Friends by Mark Hall from Casting Crowns