Considering the ‘Math’ of Christianity

Have you ever gone into a grocery store and looked at two different size packages or containers for a product you wanted to buy? Which is cheaper? The answer is simple: Do the math. If 32 ounces of something costs $5.49, but 64 ounces of the same thing costs $8.99, a simple calculation will tell you the larger one costs less per ounce.

 

When making a major purchase, such as buying a new house, new car or even a new TV, “do the math” can be sound advice. What impact will that have on the budget? Can we afford it? There are few things worse than monthly outgo exceeding monthly income. Been there and done that!

 

Interestingly enough, there were times when Jesus Christ asked His disciples to do the math, although not in so many words. We have instances recorded in the gospels when He confounded them by doing what seemed mathematically impossible, except for the fact that “with God all things are possible” (Matthew 19:26). 

 

Mark 6:30-44 recounts a time when more than 5,000 men, women and children gathered to hear Jesus speak. When the disciples pointed out it was getting late in the day and the people were getting hungry, Jesus responded, “You give them something to eat.” To which they responded, “That would take eight months of a man’s wages!” 

 

Rather than telling the disciples to send His eager listeners away to fend for themselves, Jesus asked how much food was on hand. The disciples looked around and found five loaves of bread and two fish, hardly enough to cater a suitable meal for a small group, let alone the assembled throng. But for Jesus that was sufficient. He blessed the food, looking up to heaven and offering thanks for it, then instructed the disciples to start distributing it.

 

Miraculously, everyone had more than enough to eat – with 12 basketsful of broken pieces of bread and fish left over.

 

Another time, recorded in Mark 8:1-10, Jesus did the same with another large crowd that exceeded 4,000. This time He had seven loaves of bread and a few small fish to work with. He again gave thanks before the food was passed through the gathering of men, women and children. Afterward the disciples collected seven basketfuls of broken pieces. When the disciples tried to ‘do the math,’ the task seemed insurmountable. But when God does His multiplication, the impossible becomes possible.

 

In both accounts, the Lord demonstrated His preferred arithmetic operation is multiplication. This idea is consistent throughout both the Old and New Testaments. In the Bible’s opening chapter, after God created Adam and Eve as the first humans, His first command to them was, “Be fruitful and multiply, and fill the earth and subdue it…” (Genesis 1:28).

 

We could cite other examples in the Scriptures of how the Lord multiplied things in a material sense, but most important is that God doesn’t limit His ‘mathematical’ strategies to things like food and wine and oil. His primary focus is to multiply the number of those who become His devoted followers.

 

Within the context of the Creation account, before the command to “be fruitful and multiply” we read, “So God created man in His own image, in the image of God He created him; male and female He created them” (Genesis 1:27). He wanted them to reproduce both physically and spiritually, making more people who would become His image-bearers.

 

Ultimately, what this looks like in Christianity is disciple-making. In His Great Commission, given just before ascending to heaven, Jesus instructed His disciples, “Therefore go and make disciples of all nations…teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you…” (Matthew 28:19-20). This directive was intentional. Mere converts – what the Bible calls “newborn babes” in Christ – aren’t mature enough to reproduce. That’s the responsibility of true disciples – followers, learners and mentors who will become spiritual reproducers.

 

Too often the modern Church focuses on converts, getting folks to pray a salvation prayer or walk an aisle. However, when people begin to grow in their relationship with Christ there’s a ripple effect, an exponential impact that multiplies from one person to another, from one generation to the next.

 

This is why the apostle Paul, writing to his protégé Timothy, admonished him, “And the things you have heard me say in the presence of many witnesses entrust to reliable men who will also be qualified to teach others” (2 Timothy 2:2). In that single verse we see four generations of believers – Paul, Timothy, reliable (or faithful) people, and others.

 

Years ago, a friend showed me an Old Testament parallel to this imagery. Speaking to the Israelites, His chosen people, God declared, “Since you are precious and honored in My sight, and because I love you, I will give men in exchange for you, and people in exchange for your life” (Isaiah 43:4).

 

This promise continues to hold true today. I’ve known many people who have taken it to heart, investing countless hours and pouring their lives into younger believers, helping them to understand and apply the foundational truths of the Scriptures so they can grow in their faith and reciprocate with others the Lord brings into their lives.

 

God can multiply our material resources whenever necessary, fulfilling the assurance of Philippians 4:19, "And my God will supply all your needs according to His riches in Christ Jesus.” Of far greater importance, He desires to do spiritual multiplication, multiplying those who follow Him and will faithfully serve and represent Him to a broken world desperately needing to hear the life-changing Good News of Christ.

From a ragtag group of followers after His resurrection, the Lord has multiplied believers all around the world, millions upon millions. All because of obedience to His command to “go and make disciples.” You can do the math. 

Is the Great Commission Out of Commission?

Statistics are funny things. Sports fans get excited when a batter has a .333 hitting average, since that means he gets a hit one-third of the time. Meanwhile, they ignore that he makes an out two-thirds of the time. The meteorologist can tell us there’s a 40% chance of rain, but doesn’t point out there’s a 60% chance that it won’t. Statistics can say whatever we want them to say.

 

Some statistics, however, speak more loudly than others. Recently the Barna Group, a research organization that specializes in societal and cultural trends affecting the Church, found that 51% of U.S. churchgoers surveyed are unfamiliar with the term, “the Great Commission.” Some of the respondents might have thought it referred to a huge bonus after closing a big sale or a major business deal. Sorry, wrong answer!

 

This particular finding seems especially striking – and unsettling – because the Great Commission was the last thing Jesus Christ said to His followers prior to His ascension to heaven:

“Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching to obey everything that I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age” (Matthew 28:19-20).

 

Barna’s survey might conclude that 49% of American church attendees do have some familiarity with the Great Commission. However, since it consisted of Jesus’ final words on earth – the “marching orders” He gave before ascending to the Father – that also means far too many who profess to know Him have no clue about what Jesus expects us to do, the “mission” He wants us to pursue with Him and for Him. 

 This also suggests a larger portion of folks connected to the Church aren’t asking an important question: What does it mean to “make disciples”? Or even, “What does it mean to BE a disciple?” 

 

The term disciple can mean many things depending on the context in which it’s used, but the New Testament use of the word disciple means to be a follower, a learner, an imitator, and ultimately, a reproducer, developing others who will become followers of Christ, too. In essence, this is how God intends for His Church – the body of Christ – to grow in both depth and breadth.

 

Disciplemaking is an important theme that runs throughout the Scriptures. In fact, whenever I’ve had the opportunity to teach on the topic, I’ve observed that the idea of “making disciples” isn’t mentioned in the Bible until…the first chapter of Genesis.

 

We see it in Genesis 1:26-28, “Then God said, ‘Let us make man in our image, in our likeness….’ So God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him, male and female he created them. God blessed them and said to them, ‘Be fruitful and increase [multiply] in number, fill the earth and subdue it….’”

 

Considered within the overall scope of Scripture, this clearly means more than a directive to populate the earth numerically. God created humankind “in His image,” and then commanded that men and women “be fruitful and multiply,” thus creating many more in His image. And this involves more than attending church, praying over the food before we eat and following a few rituals.

 

For many years I’ve been involved in discipling other men. Some term it “spiritual mentoring.” The goal is to help them to grow and mature in their faith, and prepare them to come alongside others in the same way, starting with but not limited to their own families. We see this described beautifully in 2 Timothy 2:2, “And the things you [Timothy] have heard from me [Paul] in the presence of many witnesses, entrust to faithful men who will be able to teach others also.” In this single verse we see four generations of believers: Paul, Timothy, faithful men, and others.

 

We read a lot these days about how many churches have succumbed to the influence of the surrounding culture, as well as the decline in influence of the Church – and Christianity – on the culture. I strongly suspect one major reason for this is because we’ve forgotten the Great Commission. We might be trying to “save souls,” or spending time talking  and thinking about “the sweet by and by,” but the vast majority of folks who claim to be Christians aren’t making disciples. Despite the fact that Jesus thought this was so important, it became it His last command before ascending to heaven.

 

The way spiritual multiplication works can be summed up by one Old Testament verse,“one shall become a thousand” (Isaiah 60:22). While addressed specifically to the people of Israel, it also relates to each of us who has been called to become a member of the eternal family of God. As we pass along our faith to someone else and invest in them, then we each in turn do the same with others, over time one can become 1,000 or more.

 

We live in a time when we fret over how we can positively influence the course of our nation, when much of society seems spiraling out of control. We tend to look in many directions for bringing about necessary changes, but perhaps the best course of action would be to simply revisit Jesus’ Great Commission, to become true disciples ourselves and then to engage in making disciples of all nations.

 

As the apostle Paul wrote to believers in Philippi, “Whatever you have learned or received or heard from me, or seen in me – put into practice. And the God of peace will be with you” (Philippians 4:9).