What Does it Mean to “Make Disciples of All Nations”?

What does it mean to make disciples of all nations? That's just one of the questions we'll be answering on today's edition of CORE Christianity. Well, hi, I'm Bill Meyer along with Pastor Adriel Sanchez, and this is the radio program where we answer your questions about the Bible and the Christian life every day. Here's our phone number. It's 833-THE-CORE. That's 1-833-843-2673. If you get a busy signal, you can always leave a voicemail with that number and here's our email address as well. If you'd like to shoot us an email, it's questionsatcorechristianity.com.

First up today, here's a voicemail from one of our listeners named Becky. I have sinned against both heaven and you, so this product of sun, repent it. My question is, if he had not repented, is there a timeline that God would give up on a sinner?

Thank you. Is there a timeline where God gives up on a sinner? Boy, that question is, one, a terrifying one when you think about it, really, because for God to give up on someone who's just absolutely hopeless, then God is our only hope. When it comes to our sins, we can't wash our own sins away.

We need the Lord. I think that there are a lot of believers, and maybe, Becky, this is something you're wrestling with yourself, and there are a lot of genuine Christians who feel like, oh, man, I've sinned in some way. I wonder if God is just going to give up on me. I struggle with the same sin even over and over again.

I hate it. I pray for forgiveness, but I'm almost growing tired of asking for forgiveness for the same thing because I feel like it's just a real struggle that I face. Is God going to give up on me? To you, to that person, I would say, no, there is an ocean of mercy for you, and the Father is always calling us back home, back to repentance.

That's the good news. I think when we come to Jesus, Jesus is in John 6, the one who comes to me, I will in no way cast out. He doesn't turn us away. When we go to him broken and contrite of spirit, saying, Lord, have mercy upon me, even if we're asking for forgiveness for the same thing we've struggled with all week, all month, all year, when we go to him in faith, he does forgive us.

That's a promise that we have in the Word. Now, are there some individuals who the Lord just gives up on? I think of the false teachers in the Gospels, the scribes and the Pharisees. Jesus talked about the blasphemy of the Holy Spirit. Or in Romans, in the early chapters of Romans, where it talks about this hardening that takes place and God giving people up to their own sinful desires. I think that there are examples of that in scripture, but that individual has no interest in God, has no desire to serve Jesus or to know Jesus. In fact, when they hear the voice of the Spirit through scripture, convicting them of sin and calling them home, they shut their ears. They turn and run.

They shake their fist. That person who continues to do that, they harden their hearts against the Lord. I think that there are individuals that, okay, well, the Lord just says, you've made your decision, but we don't know who that is and when that has taken place. I think for our part, we're always praying that individuals would turn to the Lord and experience his grace. Even those individuals that we think, boy, that person is so far gone, they must be so hardened that God has given up on them. Think of Saul in the New Testament, Saul of Tarsus persecuting the church, dragging men, women, and children to prison, persecuting them for their faith in Jesus Christ. You look at that guy there when Stephen was being stoned, martyred in the book of Acts, and he's there helping out with Stephen's execution. That's somebody who, boy, the Lord has probably given up on that guy. That guy's heart is so hard, and yet the Gospel was able to turn his heart of stone into a heart of flesh, and he came to repentance by the grace of the Holy Spirit.

You never know what God is going to do. I would say we don't give up on people. We trust that the Lord is able to bring people to himself and that whenever anyone turns to the Lord, there's hope.

God bless. A follow-up, sometimes it's easy for us as believers to want to give up on someone. They just seem like they're so far from God, they're completely rejecting him, thumbing their nose at him, and we just want to say, off with our head.

We just want to dismiss them. Like you said with Paul, what if those early believers had just thrown him to the wolves? No, God reached out to him in a powerful way, and he came to repentance.

So yes, it's possible for anyone, right? Amen. Yeah, and it's only possible by the grace of God, and so we do. We continue to pray, and we continue to have hope. I think that's the key, and I appreciate that you bring this up, Bill, because I think it's easy for us to look at people, sinners out there who sin in ways differently than we do, and to think, boy, God, just bring your judgment on those people already.

You can't stand what they're doing to society and to the culture and whatnot. Well, that's our mission field, brothers and sisters. Those are the people who God is welcoming in, you know, back home, the prodigals, if you will, through the gospel, and so we're called to have hope, and not just to have hope, but to preach the gospel, to share the love of Christ with the people that oftentimes we look at, and we think, oh, man, hopeless situation. Let's just move on.

No, there is no hope. I mean, we're talking about the power of the Holy Spirit here, and so we have a great reason for confidence and should be encouraged anytime we share the gospel with someone else. Amen. This is Core Christianity with Pastor Adriel Sanchez.

Let's go to Don in Sabatha, Kansas. Don, what's your question for Adriel? Yeah, my question is, regards the soul. In Ephesians you read where the, separate the spirit and the sword, the sharpened two-edged sword.

It talks about there, but it also talks about the rich man who was going to live and be married, and God says, tonight your soul will require you. Is the soul, I understand there's a difference, a little bit difference between soul and spirit, but is the soul kind of a, not a protected entity of God, but you understand what I'm saying? Well, this question sort of gets, it's called the trichotomous view of man, or the dichotomous view of man. In other words, what are the constituent parts of the human person? Are we made up of a body, soul, and spirit? Three parts, the trichotomous view, or body and soul, slash spirit. In other words, soul and spirit being interchangeable, and sometimes in the New Testament you do have all three mentioned.

In 1 Thessalonians 5, verse 23, for example, Paul says, now may the God of peace himself sanctify you completely, and may your whole spirit and soul and body be kept blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. Sometimes the whole person is referred to as just body and soul. You see this in Matthew chapter 10, verse 28, or body and spirit, 1 Corinthians chapter 7, verse 23. Those in the intermediate state, that is those who have died and gone to be in the presence of the Lord, are sometimes called souls, and they're sometimes referred to as spirits.

Hebrews chapter 12, verse 23, Revelation chapter 6, verse 9. I'm of the opinion that soul and spirit can be used interchangeably, and that the whole person is body and soul. Now, one of the issues here, and I think the key thing to recognize is that there's more to us than meets the eye, if you will. We're made in the image of God, the whole person, body and soul, and our bodies, just as much as our souls, are good and are the objects of redemption. This is why we believe in the resurrection of the body, in the new creation. It's not like the body is bad and unspiritual, if you will, and spirit is good, and God in salvation is delivering us from our corrupt bodies. No, in salvation, God is restoring everything, and ultimately, on the last day, going to transform everything, including our bodies.

That's a great hope that we have, and I would see those passages, the ones that I just mentioned, as suggesting that spirit and soul can be used interchangeably in scripture. Thank you for your question, Don. Hey, Don, thanks for calling, and thanks for listening to Core Christianity.

Here's a Facebook question that came in from one of our listeners named Michael. He says, I believe I've become an alcoholic. I struggle every night to refrain from drinking. Paul says drunkards will not inherit the kingdom of God.

What should I do? Let's first take a moment to pray for Michael, who has shared this with us. Dear Heavenly Father, I want to lift Michael up to you right now and ask, Lord, for your grace, your spirit to fill his life. It sounds like he's in the midst of a very serious battle, maybe struggling also with feelings of guilt and shame, going back to this idol, really, Lord, and not having victory. So I pray, Lord Jesus, that you would strengthen him. I pray, Lord Jesus, that you would help him to know your grace, to know the forgiveness of sins, and also, Lord, to know the sweetness of Christian community, fellowship, to get accountability and the help that he needs in this fight, that he wouldn't be alone, but that there would be others, brothers who he could lean on and who could encourage him and walk with him in the midst of this difficulty. And so would you please be with Michael right now, and would you please strengthen him, restore him, and deliver him, Lord, from this addiction, we pray in Jesus' name.

Amen. Yeah, I mean, this is obviously very serious, and you mentioned what the Apostle Paul says, and we know, according to Scripture, that drunkenness is indeed a sin, and engaging in drunkenness and being consumed with drunkenness. I mean, Paul says in Ephesians 5, don't be drunk with wine, but be filled with the Spirit. And it sounds to me like you're at the point right now where you feel like, I'm not being led by the Spirit in my life.

Instead, I'm being controlled by this other substance, by alcohol. And so I thank you for opening up about that, and even confessing it, if you will. The first thing that you need to do is confess it as a sin before the Lord. And if you've done that, right, receive the forgiveness that's for you, even if you're struggling and it's a battle and you feel this temptation, if you go and take this to Jesus and say, God help, forgive me, he does forgive you. But you also need more than just asking for forgiveness.

I would say in a situation like this, you do need help. You need people around you who you can be honest with, who are going to hold you accountable. You know, Jesus said if your right hand causes you to sin, cut it off. If this is something where you just don't have control, self-control, then you need to be wise in not putting yourself in situations where this is going to be a serious temptation.

I mean, there are practical steps that you need to take. You know, you confess your sins, you receive the forgiveness of God, but now you are called to follow the Lord. You know, Paul says in Romans 6 through 8, don't present the members of your bodies as instruments for sin to disobey God, but present yourself and the members of your bodies as instruments for righteousness. Brother, your body is a temple of the true and the living God, and with your body you want to glorify the Lord. And so this is an area where you see that you haven't been doing that, and I want you to know that the grace of Christ and the forgiveness of Christ is for you, and you can receive that when you go to Him sincerely.

And please, you know, get the help that you need, whether that's checking into a rehab facility, getting involved in something like Alcoholics Anonymous. Certainly the help of the local church as well I think is key. And if you're not in a church, a Christian community where you're a member, you're there, then you need that. Certainly, a hundred percent, because your brothers and sisters there can also encourage you in this fight.

We're not alone. We're not meant to live the Christian life in isolation, and so that's something that you need as well. And Bill, I know that you've worked with people who struggle with addictions. I don't know what you would add in encouragement to Michael. You know, I think the only other thing I would add is there's a wonderful ministry called Celebrate Recovery, and most major cities have Celebrate Recovery groups which meet at local churches, and Michael can go online to the Celebrate Recovery website and find one of those groups. It's basically like an AA with a Christian emphasis.

So that's the other thing I think that is worth pursuing. So we'll continue to pray for Michael. Thank you for, again, your honesty and for making that confession. This is Core Christianity with Pastor Adriel Sanchez. We want to say thank you to a very special group of people. We call them our Inner Core. Yeah, we are very grateful for your support. The Inner Core is a group that supports us with a monthly donation of $25 or more, people who believe in the work that we're doing. And we want to invite you to partner with us as well. If you're someone who's been listening to the broadcast for a while and you're encouraged by the time that we spend together opening up the scriptures, people calling in with their questions, I do ask that you would prayerfully consider joining the Inner Core, partnering with us, not just with your prayers but with resources that help us to keep doing what we're doing. It is just an immense encouragement for us. And we are, again, so grateful for you. And as a thank you when you sign up for the Inner Core, we'll send you a copy of the book, Core Christianity, which is a wonderful introduction to the core doctrines that you often hear us talking about on this broadcast.

And so thank you again for your support and for partnering with us. You can learn more about joining the Inner Core at our website. Just go to corechristianity.com forward slash inner core. That's corechristianity.com forward slash inner core. All one word to learn more about joining that very special group of people. Well, we do receive emails here at Core Christianity.

Here's our email address. If you have a question for Pastor Adriel, it's questions at corechristianity.com. Terry wrote in and says, I'm wondering what it looks like to carry out the Great Commission and make disciples of all nations. I've heard some friends say that the Great Commission is something that only pastors do and not the average Christian.

What do you think? The average Christian does participate in the work of the Great Commission. This is something that we're all called to, but we have different roles. Now, I'm guessing that the person that you heard who said only pastors participate in the Great Commission, maybe they're thinking, well, Jesus, when he gave the Great Commission, is speaking to the inner core, his disciples there. And so this is just for the pastors, the church planters, the teachers.

It's not for everybody. But the reality is each and every one of us is gifted uniquely to serve the Lord for the good of the body of Christ, for the building up, the edification of the body of Christ. It doesn't get any more clear than the words of the Apostle Paul in 1 Corinthians chapter 12, where he talks about the church through this analogy of the body. And he says, look, some people are hands, some people are feet, eyes, nose, ears. We all play a different part, but every single part of the body is vitally important. If there's no ear, where would the hearing be?

If there's no eye, where would the seeing be? I have a role to play as a minister of the gospel in the local church, but the health of the church is not just on my shoulders. You've got to preach the word of God faithfully. But it's as the body works together with what every joint supplies, Paul says in Ephesians chapter 4, that the body is built up in love.

And so let me just say this. I've already mentioned again, and this is something we like to talk about on the broadcast, is the importance of the local church. If you're saved, if you believe in Jesus Christ, you're united to him by faith. You're not just joined to Jesus, you're also joined to his body. And you have a part to play in that body. You receive the ministry of the word, the encouragement of other Christians with the gifts that they give, but you also contribute your own gifts for the building up of the body in love.

And so that's so important. And that's what discipleship looks like. Discipleship happens when together, as the body of Christ, we're using the gifts that God has given to us to grow in the grace and the knowledge of Jesus Christ and following Jesus and everything that he's commanded. When Jesus gave the great commission, he says, go in all the world and make disciples of all nations, baptizing, preaching, teaching to observe everything that I have commanded you. And so you might not be a teacher in the church, a pastor, but that doesn't mean that you don't have a very important role to play. Some time ago, I was talking to a friend, this is years ago now, and he was saying, at that time in the church that I was a part of, we sort of had this discipleship plan of, you know, you're being discipled by someone who's spiritually mature, at least more mature than you are, spiritually speaking, and you're discipling someone else, you know, a little lower on the totem pole. It's sort of interesting how, I don't know how we thought this up, but everybody is being discipled and discipling someone else. And discipleship in that context looked like, you know, you grab a coffee at Starbucks and you're going through a book of the Bible, you're studying some Christian material. And this friend said, I just, I have such a hard time with this because I'm not really good at teaching. Sitting down with somebody else and trying to lead them through a curriculum, that kind of a thing, that's just not my gift.

And I knew this guy and he was right. That was not his gift. His gift was the gift of carne asada. That was his gift.

Like he could barbecue like no one else. And he and his wife were so hospitable and they would open up their home and it would be full of neighbors and people from the church. And there were a lot of discipleship moments there at his house. He wasn't the one teaching. He was just opening up his home, but he was using his gift for the good of the church, for the advancement of the gospel, for the work of the great commission even. And it wasn't that he had to teach and preach. No, he was using his gift of hospitality and each and every one of us are gifted in different ways. And God calls us to use those gifts for the good of the body. And as we do together as a church, the gospel continues to advance and the mission of the church that Jesus gave to her is accomplished. I would love to go over to his house and get discipled.

Could you kind of range that? Man, I was so sanctified in those days, Bill, and also a little bit heavier. So it was that, I mean, it's just so wonderful to see the gifts within the body of Christ being used. I love that. And so, yeah, amen.

My mouth is watering thinking of that carne asada right now. This is Core Christianity with Pastor Adriel Sanchez. By the way, you can leave us a voicemail 24 hours a day on this number, 833-THE-CORE.

You can call over the weekend as well, 833-843-2673, and leave your question for us. We try to review our voicemails once each day. Here's a voicemail from one of our listeners named Christy. I have two sons and six grandchildren. My one grandson has now decided to be a granddaughter.

He or she, she is now 21. I have had no one preach or advise us on what to do about transitioning their sex. I've been born again.

My children attended church with me in their youth. I just don't know what to think. There's nowhere that addresses this.

Please help. Well, Christy, I'm so sorry to hear about this situation. I mean, there is a strong delusion that is out there in society today, in media, in culture. There's so much confusion about gender, about sexuality, about the core of our identity as people. Today, people are rooting their identity in their sexuality, not in the fact that we're men and women made in the image of God.

The issue is we've gone so far astray, I think from what God says about us as persons and what he calls us to, and we've imbibed over the last several hundred years these new ideologies that have basically paved the way for this belief that, yeah, you have all the biology of a man or a woman, but if you just feel differently in your mind, well, then you can just change your gender. It's just as simple as that. At the end of the day, that's just false.

That's just not true. They're probably not just pertaining to the sin issues, but deeper, I think, psychological issues. I think, Bill, you could probably speak to that. At the same time, I think there really are sicknesses, mental illnesses, gender dysphoria, those kinds of things that we have to recognize and deal with. Now, I think that that's rarer than what we see today. I think today is just the influence of media and social media, and sometimes it's people crying out for help, sometimes it's people crying out for attention, and so we need to exercise wisdom. We need to cling to the teaching of the Bible, not just obviously the truth of the Gospel, the forgiveness of sins, but even these other things related to the human person, the doctrine of man, of humanity. So, Bill, I just want to give you a moment also to chime in, because I know that this is something that you're passionate about, too.

I think you really nailed it. In the past, certainly, we have had incidents of gender identity disorder, gender dysphoria. We still have that, and it used to be considered a rare mental disorder, and now you have a society, a culture that in many ways is celebrating, especially young people's confusion about gender, so much so that we have people, you know, opting for sex change.

So it's a real troubling issue. Yeah, and so, sister, I would just say, holding fast to the truth, praying for your family members, and having conversations about finding their identity and worth in Jesus and in what He's done. God bless you. God bless you.