All of Jesus’ teachings are summed up in two passages of Scripture. We call them the Great Commandment and the Great Commission. They are the “who” and the “what” of the disciple’s life.
The Great Commandment teaches who I am in Christ (Love God & Love Others). The Great Commission teaches what I am supposed to do through Christ (Make disciples).
In both passages of Scripture, Jesus refrained from giving us a long list of tasks. Instead, He gave us guiding principles to live our lives by. When we live according to the principles of the Great Commandment and the Great Commission, we find ourselves obedient to all of scripture and living Christ-like lives.
The Great Commandment and Great Commission contain more than information, or content. They are also embedded with strategy. Both content and strategy are necessary.
Many times we limit discipleship strictly to content. For some reason we tend to think that strategy is too practical and isn’t biblical. But the strategy found in the Great Commission is 100% biblical and comes directly from Christ!
The Content of the Great Commandment and Great Commission are what we need to know and do. The strategy is how Jesus has planned for us to do it.
To teach content without strategy is like persuading someone to visit the Grand Canyon but never giving them a map to get there. Content and strategy go together.
What use is it, after all, if one generation stores up the gospel (content) without every sharing it (strategy)? If they take the gospel to the grave without a spiritual legacy, the vision of World-wide-worship is over. Therefore, the real test of discipleship is not so much whether this generation grows, as it is whether this generation invests in the next generation.
The Great Commandment and Great Commission blend content and strategy together in a powerful vision of God’s global plan. That’s the “who” and the “what” of being a disciple!