Mark 1:16
And as He walked by the Sea of Galilee, He saw Simon and Andrew his brother casting a net into the sea; for they were fishermen. Then Jesus said to them, “Follow Me, and I will make you become fishers of men.” They immediately left their nets and followed Him. When He had gone a little farther from there, He saw James the son of Zebedee, and John his brother, who also were in the boat mending their nets. 20 And immediately He called them, and they left their father Zebedee in the boat with the hired servants, and went after Him.
As Jesus came out of the wilderness, he started his public ministry by preaching the kingdom of God, and looking for kingdom men, men whom he could pour his life into. Jesus wanted “multiplicationable men” who would be willing to live the Gospel of the kingdom of God and give it away to others who would do the same with others.
It was not uncommon in these ancient times for men to follow a teacher or rabbi. Each of the leaders on the Sanhedrin, the governing Jewish body in Jerusalem, probably had other disciples that followed each of them. John the Baptist had disciples that followed him. Jesus is now recruiting disciples. Not uncommon at the time.
But the uniqueness of Jesus’ mission and Jesus’ style of discipleship was that his focus would not be just on teaching but doing. In the last words of Christ recorded in Matthew’s Gospel, Jesus gives us insight into his method,
“All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth. 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, teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.”[1]
Jesus makes an astounding statement about discipleship that I have never seen before. Jesus announces his method for discipling men by saying, “All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth.” That is the most powerful statement in, what is classically called, “The Great Commission.”
Jesus is saying that he wants his men to disciple others with his power and authority, and his power and authority is, “in heaven and on earth!” That means that the work of developing disciples involves power that brings the 4th dimension (heaven) into the 3rd dimension (earth) and transforms lives.
This is “show and tell.” Remember show and tell in elementary school? Well, Jesus made it up first. He’s going to show them the kingdom and then tell them about it. This is 4th dimension discipleship. Jesus is going to show the disciples how to do the kingdom, then he’s going to tell them what he’s done.
As we move through the Gospel of Mark, we will observe exactly what Jesus means by becoming fishers of men. In his first road trip with his four fisherman friends, Jesus will show them how to teach with kingdom authority and then, how to cast out a demon—from a church member (1:21-27). This creates all kinds of questions. Church people have demons? Can you imagine the campfire conversation with Jesus that night. I can imagine the first question, “Hey Jesus, if church members can have demons, can elders?”
Jesus is building kingdom disciples through 4th dimension, life on life, power encounter discipleship. This is how it’s done even today. God has given us a vision at The Road to “build wholehearted disciples” who can minister with 4th dimension power. If you are hungry to be discipled, join us on this adventurous journey. But be warned, this is a road less traveled, and it’s not for the faint of spirit or those who love the status quo.
On the Road,
Steve
If you long to be discipled and become a discipler, join The Road on our 40-night journey of prayer and the study of Mark. We are meeting at Chapel Hills Church, 2020 Parliament Drive, 6:30 pm Monday-Tuesday, and Friday-Saturday, until May 17th.
[1] The New King James Version. 1982 (Mt 28:18–20). Nashville: Thomas Nelson.
