In evangelical subculture the ubiquity of the Great Commission is matched by the poverty of its interpretation. Matthew 28:18-20 — the command to make disciples of all nations — is frequently summoned to validate countless and sundry discipleship and evangelism programs, ideas and practices, often ignoring the full meaning of the text. It has contributed to the failure of discipleship.
All too often discipleship has been conceived as pietistic (shared spiritual disciplines) or evangelistic (call to soul winning). This approach to discipleship is not only a failure to grasp discipleship but is also incomplete. As a closer reading of the Great Commission texts will show, discipleship is much, much more than pietism and evangelism.
Read the article “Missional Discipleship: Reinterpreting the Great Commissions“