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01 Acts 10 01-08 THE LORD REACHES CORNELIUS 20 Acts 10 07-08 Disciple making
📖 Acts 10:01-08
20 – Thu11Jul2024 – *Disciple making* - _Acts 10:01-08_ – THE LORD REACHES CORNELIUS – _Genesis 01:26-28_
_Acts 10:7-8 And when the angel who spoke to him had departed, Cornelius called two of his household servants and a devout soldier from among those who waited on him continually. (8) *So when he had explained all these things to them, he sent them to Joppa.*_
Cornelius got his people together, whom he was sending to Joppa, and explained to them the entire background to bring Peter from Joppa to Caesarea.
We have said that this task of getting Peter to come from Joppa to Caesarea, to the home of Cornelius had to be done wisely and urgently. Peter, a Jew, would hesitate to come to the home of a Gentile and that too, immediately. Therefore, the emissaries whom Cornelius was sending on this assignment had to grasp the gravity of the matter.
There is a precious lesson here.
*Cornelius had built intelligent and trustworthy staff around him.* When the time came for him to get important work done, he had reliable people on hand. Building responsible people is a long process. Have we taken time and effort to build dependable people around us?
Jesus invested in people and he raised disciples.
The farewell or Olivet discourse of Jesus from _John 13-17_ is an epic study by itself in discipleship. In the Gospel of Matthew, there is another set of discourses that were intended to build the disciples.
The Sermon on the Mount _(5:1-7:28)_
The Missionary Discourse _(10:1-42)_
The Parable Discourse _(13:1-53)_
The Community Discourse _(17:22-18:35)_
The Apocalyptic Discourse _(24:1-25:46)_
The Olivet Discourse is also found in _Mark 13_, and _Luke 21_.
Besides all of these specific discourses, Jesus was always giving practical teaching and training to His disciples as they travelled and ministered together. There was always an application lesson that the Lord was providing for His disciples.
Each of us is expected to be engaged in disciple-making, starting from our homes. _Deuteronomy 6:6-9 "And these words which I command you today shall be in your heart. (7) *You shall teach them diligently to your children, and shall talk of them when you sit in your house, when you walk by the way, when you lie down, and when you rise up.* (8) You shall bind them as a sign on your hand, and they shall be as frontlets between your eyes. (9) You shall write them on the doorposts of your house and on your gates._
Discipling people is a 24x7 exercise. We are always communicating. We cannot, not communicate. There is a message going out of us all the time. What is the message that originates from us? Are we consciously building the lives of people around us or are we hindering the growth of people?
The Great Commission for the church is not just bringing people to accept Jesus as their personal Lord and Saviour, *but to make disciples of Christ*.
_Matthew 28:18-20 And Jesus came and spoke to them, saying, "All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth. (19) *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, (20) 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." Amen._
This task of making disciples connects with the Creation or Cultural Mandate given in _Genesis_. _Genesis 1:28 Then God blessed them, and *God said to them*, "Be fruitful and multiply; fill the earth and subdue it; have dominion over the fish of the sea, over the birds of the air, and over every living thing that moves on the earth."_
God created Man in Their image and gave them to have dominion over all His creation. This was man’s identity, security, authority and responsibility. Giving man and woman this awesome status, the Lord God commissioned us with the Creation Mandate.
To *be fruitful* is to be a blessing to others in the world. The tree does not consume its own fruit but bears fruit for the good of others. We are here on earth to bless others with the fullness of life in Christ.
To *multiply* is disciple-making or raising more fruit bearers.
To *fill the earth* is to occupy every frontier. There is nothing secular. All spheres and domains are sacred. Therefore, we enter every workplace to work, as unto God, and not for material success.
In these realms that we occupy, there will be sets of people, who are to come to faith in Jesus.
To *subdue it* is to conquer that workplace. We are not to be pedestrian in our performance in our workplaces, but ought to excel for God’s glory. We are to conquer and have to be ‘subject matter specialists’ in our fields.
Finally, we must *have dominion*. Having dominion is to bring the kingdom rule of God here on earth. This is by dispossessing the enemy, who is currently ruling, and in his place, bringing the rule of God.
*We are to fulfil the Creation Mandate and as we do so, we will also be simultaneously fulfilling the Great Commission.*
Cornelius was raising people. He did not use people for his need but he built a legacy.
Will we learn from Cornelius and be propelled to live out the Creation Mandate? This is why Jesus came. In Him, we are a new creation. _II Corinthians 5:17 Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new._
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