The King Came After You

“Teaching them to observe everything I have commanded you. And remember, I am with you always, to the end of the age.” - Matthew 28:20 CSB

The mission of making disciples can feel heavy when we start in the wrong place.
And if we are honest, we often do. We hear Jesus say, “Make disciples,” and immediately our minds run to all the ways we fall short.

• I am not bold enough.
• I am not trained enough.
• I am not consistent enough.
• I am not spiritually impressive enough.
• I still struggle.
• I still get distracted.
• I still need help.

And all of that may be true. But the gospel does not begin with how strong you are. The gospel begins with how gracious Christ is.

That matters deeply because disciple-making is not something we do to earn the love of God. It is something we do because we have already been loved by God in Christ.

If we get that wrong, mission becomes performance. We start thinking, “If I do more, God will be more pleased with me. If I speak up more, God will love me more. If I disciple someone well, then I can finally feel like a serious Christian.”

That will crush you. Because there will always be someone you could have prayed for more. Someone you could have spoken to more clearly. Someone you could have encouraged sooner. A conversation you replay in your head. A moment you missed. A person you avoided.

If disciple-making becomes the way you prove yourself to God, you will either become proud when you think you are doing well or despairing when you know you are not.
But that is not the gospel.

The sermon says it plainly: “The Jesus who came after us now sends us after others.”  That is the order. He came after us first. Before you ever pursued anyone, Christ pursued you. Before you ever prayed for someone else, Christ interceded for you. Before you ever opened your mouth to point someone toward grace, grace came looking for you.

That is the heart of the gospel.

Jesus is not the King who stood far away waiting for sinners to climb their way up to Him. He came down. He entered our world. He took on flesh. He walked among the broken, the proud, the religious, the ashamed, the confused, the rebellious, and the weary.
He came to seek and save the lost. That means He came for people like us.

• People who wanted His gifts without His authority.
• People who wanted His help without His holiness.
• People who wanted mercy while still clinging to self-rule.
• People who resisted the King and still needed rescue from that resistance.

Let’s be honest. The deepest problem in us is not that we lack mission strategy. It is not that we need better methods. It is not that we are missing the perfect discipleship plan.
The deepest problem is that our hearts resist the authority of Christ.

• We want Jesus as comforter.
• We hesitate when He stands before us as King.
• We want forgiveness.
• We struggle with surrender.
• We want grace.
• We resist obedience.

That is self-rule. That is sin. And that is why we need more than motivation. We need mercy.
And mercy is exactly what Christ gives.

At the cross, the One with all authority laid down His life for people who rejected His authority. The King died for traitors. The Shepherd died for wandering sheep. The faithful Son died for self-ruled sinners.

• He bore our sin.
• He took our judgment.
• He died in our place.
• He rose from the grave.

And now the risen Jesus stands with all authority in heaven and on earth. So when He sends us, He is not sending forgiven people to go prove they were worth saving. He is sending rescued people to announce the grace that rescued them. That changes the tone of mission.

• We do not disciple people from superiority. We disciple people as people who have been shown mercy.
• We do not speak as those who have never wandered. We speak as sheep who were found.
• We do not call people to repentance because we are better than them. We call people to repentance because Christ is better than anything that is destroying them.

That matters. Because people can feel when we are trying to win. They can feel when we are trying to look right, sound smart, or prove a point. But they can also feel when we are speaking as someone who has been humbled by grace.

Disciple-making is not, “Come look at how impressive I am.” It is, “Come with me to the One who had mercy on me.”

That is gospel-shaped mission.

You are not the Savior. You are a witness. You are not the hero. Christ is. You are not calling people to build their life around you. You are pointing them to the crucified and risen King.
So today, let the gospel free you from two lies. The first lie is pride: “They need Jesus, but I am fine.”

No. You need Him too. Every day. Every hour. Every moment. You never outgrow grace.
The second lie is shame: “I am too weak to be used.”

No. Weakness does not disqualify you from pointing people to Jesus. In many ways, weakness keeps you honest. It reminds you that the power is not in you. The authority belongs to Christ. The presence belongs to Christ. The saving power belongs to Christ.

So take the step. Not because you are impressive. Not because you have earned your place. Not because you have mastered the Christian life. Take the step because Jesus came after you. And now He sends you to point someone else toward life in Him.

Reflection Question
How does remembering that Jesus pursued you first change the way you think about helping someone else follow Him?

We make disciples from mercy, not superiority.

Prayer
Jesus, thank You for coming after me when I was not looking for You. Thank You for dying for my sin, rising as King, and bringing me into Your grace. Free me from pride. Free me from shame. Help me point others to You as someone who still needs Your mercy every day. Amen.