Spring City Fellowship
260308Sunday
Sunday March 8, 2026 10:15AM Service

      • Psalm 150:3NIV2011

  • Great Is Our God
  • God You're So Good
  • All Who Are Thirsty
  • The King Is Coming
  • I Surrender All
  • Nothing Else
  • You Are Near
  • Our Theme for 2026 is “Embrace Transformation”.
    Transformation is the inward change that we experience when we become more like Jesus.
    Romans 12:2 ESV
    2 Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect.
    Transformation is a process that is ongoing throughout our lives.
    The last two months I have been reviewing the 4R’s which describe who we are and what we are about.
    Our vision at SCF is to “Encounter God’s Transforming Love.”
    How do we do that? (Four R’s)
    Respond
    Restore
    Release
    Relate
    Then I asked, “What if there was a 5th R? What would that be?”
    It would be revival - that’s what we all hope and pray for!
    But we also said that revival is a sovereign move of God - you can’t just make it happen!
    I also alluded to a strategy that is even better and more important than revival.
    Are you wondering what that could be?
    How about instead of just waiting around for revival to happen - what if we focused on doing the thing that Jesus told his disciples to do before He told them to wait for the Holy Spirit?
    And when revival happens ...if revival happens, its just going to accelerate what we are already doing.
    Do you know what it is yet? - It’s the strategy of making disciples.
    Matthew 28:19–20 ESV
    19 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, 20 teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.”
    The first command in this verse in English would seem to be “go”.
    You may remember that I said that revival needs to have an outward focus in order to be productive.
    If we don’t take what we have received and run with it, God will see to it that the seed of revival is scattered.
    What we do here in church needs to influence our actions and relationships all week long and throughout our lives.
    What God does in us must multiply by what God does through us.
    That is first and foremost what it means to “go and make disciples”
    Making disciples is a long-term strategy.
    Two weeks ago we had our granddaughter with us in the service because her parents were giving birth to their second child, another granddaughter. I love being a grandpa - I love watching their faces as they discover every new thing in life and seeing every awkward new step of growth. What is even more amazing is seeing their parents embrace their new role as caregivers and instructors, while remember the days when it was them discovering the world for the first time and taking their first steps. Life has come full circle - the child is now the parent. And I am now the grandparent - the role I loved and admired so much as a child.
    Discipleship is generational transformation.
    It is the ripple effect of a supernatural encounter with Christ.
    Like we said regarding revival - bearing fruit means that there is a seed which produces more fruit.
    The long tern strategy is that, not only do we become more like Jesus, but other people become more like Jesus through our influence.
    There is a multiplication - an exponential impact of the work that God is doing in and through our lives.
    We get to be part of changing other people’s lives the same way God used other people to work His change in our life.
    In order to understand the importance of what Jesus meant by his command to make disciples, we are going to look more closely at the subordinate clauses - the other parts of his statement which clarify and explain the “make disciples” part.
    Going implies following Christ where He is going.
    Baptism is descriptive of the transformation process.
    And teaching portrays a life of continual learning through practice.

    Become a Christ-follower.

    Grammatically, the focus of Matthew 28:19-20 is “making disciples” - that is what is commanded.
    Going is a necessary precondition to making disciples.
    The way the sentence is structured in the original language, it is not telling you to go, it is assuming that you are already going.
    An alternate translation of the great commission is to say, “As you go, make disciples!”
    The “go” part is not optional - it is assumed.
    You can’t stay were you are - or stay the way that you are - and follow Jesus.
    You have to move - get out of your comfort zone - do something!

    Jesus is going, are you following?

    John 12:26 ESV
    26 If anyone serves me, he must follow me; and where I am, there will my servant be also. If anyone serves me, the Father will honor him.
    When Jesus called his disciples, His command was “follow me!”
    Which literally meant, drop everything and go with me where I am going.
    Matthew 4:22 NLT
    22 They immediately followed him, leaving the boat and their father behind.
    So Jesus’ command to go in Matthew 28 was not a new thing.
    It was a new cycle of an old thing.
    The students are becoming the teacher.
    The children are becoming the parents.
    Jesus’ followers are becoming disciple-makers.
    Going and making disciples makes perfect sense when you see it as a continuation of what Jesus did.
    Maybe you are sitting there thinking - who me? make disciples?
    Sure. What did you think you signed up for?
    Did you think you were going to be a child forever with someone always taking care of you.
    It has always been the plan that you would grow up and learn to care for others.
    It’s called responsibility - you can handle it - you were made for this!
    This is why it is so important that we learn what it means to follow Jesus - because people are eventually going to be learning from us how to follow Jesus.
    1 Corinthians 11:1 CEV
    1 You must follow my example, as I follow the example of Christ.
    Can you say that?
    Would you dare to tell someone to follow your example?
    If you are a parent, chances are, they are following your example whether you tell them or not.
    For all of us, you never know who is watching you and learning from your life.
    We don’t live our lives in isolation - someone is impacted by your example.

    Discipleship must be demonstrated.

    Mark 3:14 ESV
    14 And he appointed twelve (whom he also named apostles) so that they might be with him and he might send them out to preach
    In the American church, we often think of discipleship as a program.
    You take your discipleship 101 class ...then your 201 class
    If you make it to 301 - then you take your spiritual gift assessment and they find a job for you to do.
    At my precious church assignment, early on I was tasked with developing a discipleship class. I found a book which was really good as explaining Christian doctrine. I broke it down into session. People took the class, but then there was this awkward stage of - “ok, I did everything ...now what do I do?”
    I was wondering why the program was not working - I mean it was making students, but it wasn’t making disciples who make disciples.
    I heard Larry Kreider speaking at an Eagles Wings leadership conference. Larry said that discipleship is primarily relational. The disciples literally spent time with Jesus, followed him everywhere and did what He did. That was the piece that was missing! There was no relational component to the process.
    I wish I could tell you that my realization fixed everything, but it didn’t.
    I couldn’t do - in the context of a program - what I saw Jesus doing.
    I don’t have time for 8-10 people to shadow me for weeks or months.
    I realize now that I did have four little ones shadowing me the whole time.
    The people you disciple are the people you spend most of your time with.
    They are the ones who see what you are really like.
    They see how you handle life’s ups and downs.
    They see how you work through the curveballs that come at you.
    You can give them all the advice in the world - but they are most likely to copy whatever they see you doing - that is discipleship.
    So who are you discipling? Who spends a lot of time with you? Who may be watching you?
    How do you think what they see will help them disciple others?

    Immerse yourself in your new identity.

    We covered the “go and make disciples” - how do we do that?
    The first subordinate clause is “baptizing them.”
    This is probably why we thing that making disciples is not our job.
    Baptizing is something that the church does - so we conclude that making disciples is also for professional clergy.
    Perhaps we should rethink that?
    If going and making disciples is everyone’s job, then maybe baptizing is too?
    What is baptism?
    Well - I know someone who wrote a really good book on that subject!
    If I were to stat down that road - we would be here long past lunch time.
    So let me just give you the conclusion - baptism means a lot of things.
    But the thing that they all have in common is that baptism is a picture of spiritual formation.
    The whole process of Christian growth and becoming like Jesus is symbolized in our baptism.
    So with that in mind, lets ask the question again - what is baptism?
    Is it just dunking people in water?
    Or it is immersing them in their new identity?
    Is it the whole package that is illustrated in baptism?

    Transformation is a total change.

    Baptism is symbolic of a total transformation.
    “Baptizing” as part of the great commission is not just administering the symbol but facilitating the entire process.
    Like we teach in Elijah House - bring them to death, so we can bring them to life.
    Galatians 2:20 ESV
    20 I have been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me. And the life I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me.
    How often do we reflect on this? - dying and rising with Christ.
    For Paul, it was a daily occurrence.
    1 Corinthians 15:31 AMP
    31 [I assure you] by the pride which I have in you in [your fellowship and union with] Christ Jesus our Lord, that I die daily [I face death every day and die to self].
    Does this fit with our understanding of discipleship?
    Discipleship isn’t just learning Christian doctrine - but it may include that.
    Discipleship isn’t just going to church or taking a class - but it’s a good start.
    Discipleship is the daily process of dying to self and living for Christ!
    I know some of you are probably thinking, “that’s great, but you get all that out of Christ's command to baptize?”
    Yup! It’s all there in the meaning of your baptism just waiting to be unpacked over a lifetime of following Jesus.
    BTW - that may be my next book - a series of devotionals each looking at some nuance of the meaning of baptism in the scriptures.
    You can spend weeks, even months reflecting on your baptism.
    I think God’s intention is that we spend a lifetime learning, not only to appreciate the meaning of the symbol, but to do what it represents - to be formed in the image of Christ.

    Remember who you represent.

    If baptism is spiritual formation - then what are we being formed into?
    It’s the image of God.
    We were created in His image.
    But sin distorted that image.
    And not in Christ we have model and a means to become who God created us to be.
    1 Peter 2:9 ESV
    9 But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for his own possession, that you may proclaim the excellencies of him who called you out of darkness into his marvelous light.
    We often think of discipleship as a course for new believers or for young people.
    But this is a lifelong process of becoming more like Christ.
    And you do no have to wait until you are done to bring someone else along in that process.
    In order to disciple someone else, you don’t have to be perfect - you just need to be one step ahead of the person you are discipling.
    A few years ago I shared the illustration of the T4T - Training for Training model that is being utilized in China and other parts of the world where the gospel is spreading exponentially. People who come to Christ are taught immediately how to share their faith and to disciple others.
    They nay have only attended a small group for a month when they are encouraged to start their own group with their friends and family that they led to faith in Christ. They can simply teach the same things that they themselves are learning. Including how to share their faith a lead others in a group Bible Study.
    Do you see how the gospel is spready so rapidly in other parts of the world?
    When we take the great commission seriously and make disciple-making the task of every believer - there is exponential growth.
    When personal and spiritual transformation becomes the normal Christian life, believers are unleashed to transform the world.
    If God is limited to what we can do in church on a Sunday morning - we are not going to get the job done very quickly.
    But if each of us is living for Jesus and making disciples wherever we go - now that could really make a difference!
    We already said that discipleship is a demonstration.
    We represent Christ to the world around us.
    Not just some of us, but all of us.
    But what about the “teaching” part, surely we can’t all do that?

    Practice what you preach.

    Matthew 28:20 ESV
    20 teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you.
    The idea of teaching for most of us calls to mind a classroom setting.
    We think of lectures, homework and tests.
    We think of reading and writing.
    Recalling information and demonstrating comprehension.
    That was not the way learning happened in the first century.
    It was more like an apprenticeship.
    You follow someone around all day and learn to do what they do.
    You start with simple, mundane tasks and work your way up to more complex skills and problem solving.
    You do the same things repetitively until they become automatic.
    You demonstrate mastery when you can employ the correct skill as the situation calls for it, almost without thinking.
    In other words, you don’t learn anything overnight.
    You only learn by practice...

    Knowing comes from doing.

    John 8:31–32 ESV
    31 So Jesus said to the Jews who had believed him, “If you abide in my word, you are truly my disciples, 32 and you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.”
    What if learning had more to do with abiding?
    You all know that I have an education. I don’t always use them, but I have a few degrees behind my name. Some people place a lot of emphasis on education and degrees. I don’t.
    Do you know what those degrees mean? It just means that I can prove that I did the work. Someone without a degree may actually be smarter than me. They may know more, have worked harder and have become more proficient in their field of study than I ever will. But they don’t have the degree as evidence.
    I have learned that there are limits to education. Having a degree doesn’t make you an expert. It means that you have attained a measurable level of knowledge. You have started down the path of learning. Hopefully, it becomes a life-long pursuit.
    When I was working on my doctorate. the advice I got from others who had completed their doctorate was, “don’t try to learn everything about your subject.” Keep your focus narrow so you you can finish your thesis. You can explore the subject more after your are recognized as a scholar.
    The truth is you can never know all there is to know.
    The more you learn, the more you realize how much you don’t know.
    The best thing you can learn from an education is how to love learning.
    Develop good study habits.
    Develop critical thinking skills.
    Cultivate a natural curiosity.
    What if we did that with God?
    Would that be a good model for discipleship?
    We would learn to love God’s Word - not just read it like it’s an assignment, but really dive in to find out what it all means.
    We would begin to converse with the Holy Spirit like a teacher - not just trying to look smart and get a good grade, but really probing to explore the mysteries of life and how to navigate our own assignments.
    We would treat our assignments, not as chores but as quests - opportunities for discovery and exploration.
    There is so much about this life, God and the universe that is waiting to unfold before our eyes and our understanding.
    Ephesians 1:17 NLT
    17 asking God, the glorious Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, to give you spiritual wisdom and insight so that you might grow in your knowledge of God.
    That is and education that only comes through abiding in Him.
    Spending time in His presence.
    Listening to His voice.
    Practice being obedient to what you hear.
    That’s real discipleship!

    Turn your life into a legacy.

    What is the goal of teaching?
    It’s not just to be a smarter person.
    It is to add to the cumulative wealth of knowledge and understanding.
    2 Timothy 2:2 ESV
    2 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.
    The goal of education is to contribute to the never ending task of learning.
    When we go to school the first thing we learn is about the contributions of people who made discoveries that changed the way we live.
    When you go to college you learn how to process complex problems so that you can navigate the world of information.
    If you go on to a Master’s level, you learn how to juxtapose the various voices that are leading the conversation on your chosen area of study.
    If you decide to pursue a doctorate, you will need to select a particular problem or question and advance the body of available information and understanding on that topic.
    In other words, you are creating a new path for others to follow and eventually surpass you.
    That’s thinking generationally - it’s leaving a legacy.
    What if we thought about discipleship as a legacy?
    What if learning to follow Jesus is not just so that I can make it through life and go to heaven?
    What if learning to follow Jesus is also learning to follow Jesu better so that I can contribute to the plan and purpose of God revealed in my generation.
    Psalm 145:4 ESV
    4 One generation shall commend your works to another, and shall declare your mighty acts.
    What if God is not just making us each more like Him, but building upon the knowledge and experience of each generation
    so that with each passing generation, we all become more and more like Him?
    What if going and making disciples started with the original disciples but takes on new meaning and increases in its scope with each passing generation of the church age?
    That would mean that what Christ calls us to is really a vast and almost timeless continuation of the work that He began and will complete upon His return.
    When we embrace disciple-making as a strategy for transformation, it is not just our personal transformation or that of others, but an epic transformation of time and history.
    It’s bigger than any single revival - it’s the restoration of creation.
    And it happens slow and steady - consistently - as each of us does our part.

    Questions for reflection:

    Who are you discipling? Who spends a lot of time with you? Who may be watching you? How do you think what they see will help them disciple others?
    What do you immerse yourself in? Is your baptism lived out in your everyday life? How does the way you live demonstrate your own personal transformation?
    What does your life teach the next generation? If they could learn one lesson from your story, what would it be? How is that lesson regularly and clearly communicated?

      • Romans 12:2NIV2011

      • Matthew 28:19–20NIV2011

      • John 12:26NIV2011

      • Matthew 4:22NIV2011

      • 1 Corinthians 11:1NIV2011

      • Mark 3:14NIV2011

      • Galatians 2:20NIV2011

      • 1 Corinthians 15:31NIV2011

      • 1 Peter 2:9NIV2011

      • Matthew 28:20NIV2011

      • John 8:31–32NIV2011

      • Ephesians 1:17NIV2011

      • 2 Timothy 2:2NIV2011

      • Psalm 145:4NIV2011

  • Made For More
Spring City Fellowship
office@springcityfellowship.com
(610) 948-5250
https://springcityfellowship.com
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