Irreducible Minimum
The one command we can sift out from the 59 or so words in The Great Commission consists of just two words: “Make Disciples.” It seems simple, doesn’t it? But like much of Jesus’ teaching, simplicity, on the surface, belies the rather complex understanding required to carry it out successfully. So, in this case, one might rightly ask Jesus, “What do You mean by the word disciple?” and “How would you define make?”
When it comes to definitions, simple and memorable are better. But unfortunately, little kids are notorious for asking questions about things for which a simple answer won’t do. So a good parent or teacher learns to give answers that may not fully explain everything but offer enough information to satisfy the little one’s curiosity.
However, subsequent questions will no doubt arise. Like when a young daughter asks her father, “Daddy, can I touch the end of the rainbow?” Dad must find an answer between “No” and a full explanation of the spectrum of light, light refraction, and the prism effect of suspended water droplets on the rays coming from the sun. The answer should not be overly simple, but not too complex.
Many say that a disciple is just a follower of Jesus. Simple enough. But followers can stop following. It happened to Jesus during His earthly ministry. So a true disciple must have a more significant commitment than those who followed and gave up so quickly. Thus, the definition must expand beyond followers of Jesus.
Could deeply committed be added to the word follower to create an accurate description? Yes, but although it helps define a true disciple, now we have the problem of figuring out what deeply committed means!
Beyond the two words, make disciples, which comprise the command within the Great Commission, Jesus helped define a committed follower for us. The present participles—baptizing and teaching—that accompany the command give us a glimpse of Jesus’ expectations of a true disciple.
Jesus said that part of making disciples is “baptizing them in the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit” (Matt. 28:19). But the idea of baptism has been abused, misused, deemphasized, overemphasized, and misinterpreted for the past 2,000 years. As a result, many followers of Jesus treat it as an unnecessary “work” to be ignored since “works do not save us.” But for several reasons, Jesus put baptism front and center in the minimum of what He required in disciple-making.
One reason was His desire that we identify with Him in His death, burial, and resurrection. Disciples identify with Christ through water baptism. According to Francis Chan in his book Multiply:
Just as Jesus was buried in the earth and then raised to new life, the new Christian is “buried” under the water in baptism and brought up again as a symbol of the new life he or she has received (p. 272).
If we seek to be followers of Jesus and disciple-makers, we underestimate the significance of baptism at our peril.
The other irreducible minimum quality of a disciple maker is “teaching them to [obey] all that I have commanded you” (Matt. 28:19). This includes anything from a formal Bible study class to exemplifying obedience to those who are watching. Could people observing you be taught obedience to Jesus by your example? No, seriously, could they?
Jesus demonstrated the importance of those two fundamental elements of His Great Commission. As He initiated His earthly ministry, He was baptized and began making disciples. Then He went on to do His irreplaceable maximum for us. The least—quite literally—we can do, is the irreducible minimum of His command—be baptized and make disciples—for Him!
“And Jesus said to them, “‘Follow Me, and I will make you become fishers of men.’” —Mark 1:17