Christ as the heavenly King sent His disciples with His authority to disciple all the nations, making them the kingdom people for the establishing of His kingdom, which is the church today on this earth; we are to disciple all the nations, baptizing them into the Triune God and teaching them the divine truth to make them kingdom people. Amen!
This week, the last week in our morning revival on the topic of Living in the Reality of the Kigndom of God, we have been prayerfully considering the matter of Preaching the Gospel of the Kigndom and Discipling the Nations.
First, we want to see what is the gospel of the kingdom and preach this gospel to the whole inhabited earth. As believers in Christ, we follow the Lamb wherever He may go to preach the gospel of the kingdom to the whole inhabited earth.
We do this not just to expand the church or set up more local churches but even more, to propagate the seed of the kingdom, the gene of the kingdom of God. Amen!
The kingdom of God is not only the reign of God but even more, it is Christ Himself as the seed of the kingdom sowing Himself into the soil of our heart to grow in us, develop in us, and mature in us to become a realm in which God can rule and reign.
First, Christ came as the heavenly King of the kingdom of God, and He came as the Sower to sow Himself into the soil of our heart.
He sowed Himself as the seed of the kingdom into the disciples so that He may grow in them and become the kingdom of God, the enlargement of Christ on the earth.
He came as our Physician to heal and recover us, our Shepherd to tenderly care for us in love, and the Lord of the harvest.
We can enjoy and experience this wonderful Christ in our daily life, and as we experience Him, He commissions us to go and preach the gospel of the kingdom!
However, we don’t preach the gospel in ourselves, by ourselves, or for our own work; rather, we learn from Christ to do all things in our spirit, in fellowship with the Lord, and also in fellowship and coordination with the Body.
Whatever Christ did was in fellowship and coordination with the Father, and He did all things by the Spirit for the coming of the kingdom of the Father.
Today we exercise to be one with the Lord and one with the saints to preach the gospel of the kingdom to the whole inhabited earth so that the end would come.
We want to be the overcomers today who preach the gospel victoriously, standing in Christ’s victory, so that Christ in us, we in Christ, propagate the kingdom of God on earth by our speaking, for our speaking is the sowing of the seed of the kingdom into those who hear us!
We’re Sent by Christ to Disciple the Nations by Baptizing them into God for the Kingdom
Matt. 28:18-20 tells us the great commission; here we see that Christ as our glorified and ascended Head has received all authority in heaven and on earth and He sends us, His disciples, to disciple the nations.
We are disciples, we are being discipled by the Lord, and we are discipling the nations.
How do we do it? It is not first by teaching them or convincing them of the truth but by baptizing them into the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. Hallelujah!
Christ as our heavenly King sends us, His disciples, to go with His authority to disciple all the nations, making them the kingdom people for the establishing of the kingdom of God on earth! Amen!
And this kingdom of God today is the church life (Rom. 14:17).
How are we to disciple all the nations? It is by baptizing them into the Triune God.
To disciple the nations is to cause the heathen people to become the kingdom people for God to have a kingdom on the earth, which is the church today.
Praise the Lord, we believers in Christ have been saved by the Lord, and we are now being discipled by Him.
We are saved by the Lord and we’re being discipled by Him so that we may also disciple others, even go and disciple the nations, baptizing them into the Triune God!
After we preach the gospel to the people around us, we baptize the repentant people into the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.
Through baptism, the repentant people are brought out of their old state into a new one, for their old life is terminated and the new life of Christ germinates them so that they may become the kingdom people. Amen!
John the Baptist came before the Lord Jesus, and his baptism was a preliminary baptism, a baptism by water only.
But Christ as the heavenly King came and, after He accomplished His ministry on the earth, passed through death and resurrection, and became the life-giving Spirit.
After His resurrection, Christ came to charge His disciples to baptize the repentant nations into the Triune God! Hallelujah!
Then, fifty days after His resurrection, Christ as the Head of the Body baptized His disciples and the entire church in the Holy Spirit (1 Cor. 12:13).
The Jewish part of the Body of Christ was baptized on the day of Pentecost (Acts 1:5; 2:4) and the Gentile part was baptized in the house of Cornelius (11:15-17).
Based on this, the disciples of Christ baptized the new converts (2:38) not only in water but also in the death of Christ (Rom. 6:3-4), into Christ Himself (Gal. 3:27), into the Triune God (Matt. 28:19), and into the Body of Christ (1 Cor. 12:13). Hallelujah!
The waters of baptism signify being buried with Christ in His death; the water is like a tomb in which the baptized ones and their old history is ended and buried.
When a repentant sinner is baptized, he leaves anything of the old in the water, and he rises up in newness of life to be one with the Lord and walk in newness of life, even to be a new creation in Christ! Amen!
This is what we are commissioned to do today: to disciple the nations by baptizing them into the Triune God, into the death of Christ, into Christ Himself, and into the Body of Christ so that they may be a new creation, even citizens of the kingdom of God!
As we go to preach the gospel of the kingdom to the whole inhabited earth, we exercise to put the repentant sinners into the Triune God so that, on the negative side, their old life may be terminated, and on the positive side, they may be germinated with the eternal life of the Triune God for the Body of Christ! Hallelujah!
The baptism ordained by the Lord in Matt. 28:19 baptizes people out of their life into the Body life for the kingdom of the heavens.
May we be one with the Lord to disciple the nations, baptizing them into God so they can become part of the kingdom of God!
Thank You, Lord, for charging us to go with Your authority to disciple all the nations, making them the kingdom people for the establishing of the kingdom of God! Amen, Lord, we love You, we stand one with You, and we go with Your authority! We exercise our spirit to be in You and to speak You forth to others so that we may sow the seed of the kingdom into them! Amen, Lord, we want to disciple the nations by baptizing them into the death of Christ, into Christ Himself, into the Triune God, and into the Body of Christ! May we take the repentant sinners and put them into the Triune God so that their old history may be ended and they would rise up in newness of life to be a new creation in resurrection! Amen, Lord, have a way to increase Your kingdom through our preaching of the gospel and baptizing people into the Triune God for the kingdom of God! Praise the Lord, the Lord charged us to baptize people out of their life into the Body life for the kingdom of the heavens!
Disciple the Nations by Teaching them the Divine Truths and Helping them to Live a God-man Life
Preaching the gospel of the kingdom is the first step, and then baptism into the Triune God is the second step.
After this, after baptizing the newly saved believers into the Triune God and helping them to enjoy the reality of their baptism, we need to continue to disciple them by teaching them the divine truths (Matt. 28:20).
To disciple the nations is to teach them the divine truths in the divine and mystical realm so that they may learn Christ as the reality is in Jesus (Matt. 28:20; Eph. 4:20-21). Amen!
We are not here merely to preach the gospel and then baptize people; we are not here merely to help people get regenerated and that’s it, but we want them to be discipled by the Lord.
We are here to shepherd them, perfect them, and help them to grow into the kingdom of God. Amen!
First, we are being discipled from being a natural man to being a God-man, living the divine life by denying our natural life according to the model of Christ as the first God-man (Matt. 11:28-30).
We come to Him with all our toils and problems, our labour and our struggles, and we learn from Him, for He is meek and lowly in heart.
Then, we disciple the nations by teaching them the divine truths and by helping them to live a God-man life.
We disciple others to do the same things we have learned, that is, to come to the Lord personally, bring all our problems to Him, receive His rich supply, and learn from Him.
As we help others to be discipled, we also are being discipled by the Lord day by day in many aspects to live the divine life by denying our natural life.
We need to live such a life according to the model of Christ as the first God-man.
As we look to Him and observe His pattern, we realize that the Lord Jesus never spoke His words but the words that the Father gave Him to speak (John 14:24).
Furthermore, He didn’t do anything out of Himself (5:19, 30) but did everything out of and by the sending Father.
He took the Father as the source, for the Father was the sender, and He was the sent One. He lived because of the Father (6:57).
Today we are learning Christ as the reality is in Jesus, and we are discipling the nations by teaching them the divine truths and by helping them to live a God-man life.
All the divine and mystical teachings of Christ are not only His unveiling and enlightening but also His nourishing to us for our growth and maturity in His divine life so that the eternal economy of God may be consummated through us (Eph. 4:15-16).
We are teaching the divine truths so that others may be discipled by the Lord and be kingdom people, and so that the kingdom of God may be among us today.
May we live in such a way today, a life of preaching the gospel of the kingdom, baptizing the new ones into the Triune God, and discipling them by teaching them the divine truths and by helping them live a God-man life.
May we be daily discipled by the Lord as we come to Him in His word to live the life of a God-man, not living by our natural life but by the divine life.
As we get into the truth in the New Testament and as we open to the Lord in our reading of the ministry that opens up the word of God, we are being discipled by the Lord, we are equipped with the truth, and we can also teach others the truth.
We teach others the truth to disciple them simply by sharing with them our enjoyment and experience of Christ so that we may bring them to experience this wonderful One who lives in them.
We pray for the new ones, the young ones, and the new believers, for we want the Lord to shine on them and unveil them, and we seek to nourish them for their growth and maturity in His divine life.
Amen, may the Lord recover this among us and may this be our reality today in the church life!
Lord Jesus, disciple us today from being a natural man to being a God-man. We open to You, Lord, and we come to You in Your word to learn from You to live the divine life by denying our natural life. Amen, Lord, we want to follow Your pattern as the first God-man and let You live in us. We want to be one with You to teach the truth to others so that they may be discipled to live the life of a God-man! Amen, Lord, may we live a God-man life today and may we help others also live this life! Disciple us, Lord, in many aspects of our daily living so that we may live the divine life by denying our natural life. Disciple others through us as we speak the truth of God’s economy and seek to help them to live the life of a God-man! Amen, Lord, may You unveil and enlighten the new ones as we teach them the truth so that You may nourish them for their growth and maturity in Your divine life! May Your eternal economy be consummated through us as we are preaching the gospel of the kingdom, baptizing the repentant sinners into the Triune God, and teaching them the truth to make them kingdom people!
References and Hymns on this Topic
- Inspiration for this article/sharing comes from the Word of God, the enjoyment in the ministry, a sharing by brother Minoru Chen in the message for this week, and portions from, Collected Works of Witness Lee, 1994-1997, vol. 5, “The Vital Groups,” chs. 2, 4, and 6, as quoted in the Holy Word for Morning Revival on, Living in the Reality of the Kingdom of God (2024 October ITERO), week 8, Preaching the Gospel of the Kingdom and Discipling the Nations.
- Similar articles on this topic:
– The House of God, His People, Enlarges to New Jerusalem, via, New Jerusalem blog.
– Baptized into Christ, putting on Christ, and all one in Christ, a portion from, Life-Study of Galatians, Chapter 21.
– God’s Economy, Different Teachings, and the Central Line of the Bible, via, Shepherding Words.
– We must go to disciple all the nations, a portion from, Lesson Book, Level 5: The Church—The Vision and Building Up of the Church, Chapter 23, by Witness Lee.
– God’s Faithfulness and Our Perseverance in Prayer, via, Living to Him.
– Message 1: The Entire Speaking of God in the New Testament, via, LSM youtube channel.
– What Is the Church according to the Bible? More via, Bibles for America blog.
– Matthew 28:19, via, Living In and With the Divine Trinity, Chapter 5, by Witness Lee.
– Luke (Program #64) – The Man-Savior’s Ascension (1 & 2), via, Bible study radio.
– Baptized into the name of the Father, the Son, and the Spirit, a portion from, The Basic Revelation in the Holy Scriptures, Chapter 4, by Witness Lee.
– 7 Ways to Gain Christ as Your Enjoyment Every Day, via, Holding to Truth in Love. - Hymns on this topic:
– In death’s waters I am buried, / For with Christ my Savior, I have died; / Now the world cannot pursue me, / For its power here is nullified. / I with Christ have risen too, / Out of death with Him I walk and live; / Now the Spirit life supplies / And His strength exhaustless unto me doth give. (Hymns #936)
– Lord, we wait on Thee, and with surety / Claim we now from Thee fire divine. / For Thy gospel’s sake, may we fire partake, / That the People’s heart Thou may refine. / Fire! fire! give us tongues of fire! / To proclaim Thy message from on high! / Fire! fire! give us tongues of fire! / Boldly, as Thy Body, now we cry! (Hymns #273 stanza 3)
– What shall we do? / We should go and tell the world of this. / What shall we do? / We should go and tell the world of this. / Disciple all— / This is our call. / Let us go and spread the news abroad to every land. (Hymns #1293 stanza 5)
Collected Works of Witness Lee, 1994-1997, vol. 5, “The Vital Groups,” pp. 88-89, 108-109
Dear brother, we are sent by the heavenly King as His disciples with His authority to disciple all the nations, making them the kingdom people for the establishing of His kingdom, which is the church today on this earth. Amen!
First, we preach the gospel of the kingdom, then we baptize them into the Triune God, and then we teach the divine truths so that they may be discipled to be God-men living by the divine life.
Amen Lord! Constitute us with the truth of the kingdom gospel! Disciple us so that we may be able to preach the gospel of the kingdom wherever You send us!
To follow the Lamb to be sent by the Lord is not only to save unbelievers but to baptise them – terminating their old, natural life, to germinate them with the new life of Christ – to be Kingdom people for the establishment of the Kingdom on earth today which is the church. Amen!
Lord, fully recover the preaching of the gospel of the Kingdom, the baptising and the discipling of the nations through the teaching of God’s economy, the divine truths, to gain more disciples for the building up of the church as Your Kingdom today!
Amen. When we get baptised it terminates our old man and germinates us with new life, the eternal life of Christ.
We should preach the gospel, but we need to also baptise them into the triune God.
This is not a matter of being above others, but a matter of denying our natural life and doing everything out of the Father.
Amen, what a miracle that heathens could become co-kings in His kingdom. Now we need to practice and learn how to live in this kingdom so that the kingdom will become our reward. Amen
Today, we are reminded that we are sent not only to bring people to salvation but also to disciple the nations, a matter of the kingdom.
To baptise people is to terminate their old self and germinate them with new life and into the Body-life.
We ourselves are daily being discipled from being a natural man to being a God-man; to live the divine life by denying our natural life.
We should teach the divine truths everywhere.
Listen to the audio version of this article via,
Spotify:
https://open.spotify.com/episode/4UpuuMGMd8xO9GJUoxNBps?si=5909bb57c5b54a3d
Youtube:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oQqWf67CRaI
Rumble:
https://rumble.com/v6o4b8l-disciple-the-nations-by-baptizing-them-and-teaching-them.html