“ Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.” Matthew 28:19
One part of the commission that Christ left to the church was the making of disciples. A disciple is one who is intentionally following after a master in order to know more about him. In the context of the Great Commission, a disciple is pursuing after Christ in order to be more like Him. However, before a person can pursue Christ, he/she must first know Him. So, for someone to know Christ, someone must first share Christ. Sharing Christ is the responsibility of every believer. Jesus said, “go therefore”, literally “as you are going”, make disciples. Our sharing of Jesus with others is to be a lifestyle rather than an activity. But why? Why should we share our faith with others? Why should we take time to tell others about the message of hope through Jesus? Why should we take time to verbalize the heart-change we experienced? Let me suggest a few.
1. Jesus left every believer the command to do so. There is something special about the last words of a person. Jesus told His disciples in Acts 1:8, “ But you shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be witnesses to Me in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.”
2. Because lostness is real. Paul wrote in Romans 3:23, “for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.”
3. The chosen method of God for the lost to hear the gospel is for the believer to tell them. I don’t know why God left this tremendous task to us, but He did. I am certain God could have come up with at least five other options. Perhaps it has something to do with the fact that God, through Jesus Christ, redeemed us. Only the redeemed can testify of redemption.
4. Someone once cared enough for us to share Christ with us. They have the right to expect that we will do what they once did for us.