The Power of Discipleship
"You therefore, my son, be strong in the grace that is in Christ Jesus. And what you have heard from me in the presence of many witnesses, commit to faithful men who will be able to teach others also." - 2 Timothy 2:2
Paul sent this in a letter to Timothy who was pastor at the church of Ephesus at the time. Timothy had a living model of what this discipleship looks like in an old man named John. In his younger years, this man walked with Jesus. He identified himself in his writings as "the disciple whom Jesus loved." He was perhaps the closest friend of their Messiah. He was also the man who had written the Revelation of Jesus Christ. Now, in his later years, he was a living legend and the last link to Jesus and he lived and served in this fledgling church in Ephesus. Just imagine the weight of his words and the impact of his actions. One of the things he did in his later years was take to heart the words of his Lord Jesus to "make disciples." A command he had heard many years earlier on that mountain outside Jerusalem as the Lord was whisked away into the clouds. The final words of his Master still ringing in his failing ears. The most famous of John's disciples was a man named Polycarp. Polycarp discipled Iranaeus, who is greatly responsible for correcting false teaching in the early church and the first really to authenticate and see the gospels in their four fold beauty. Here is Polycarp's story, a story well worth the read.
"POLYCARP holds a special place in church history. He was an intermediary between the age of the apostles and the church of the second century, as well as being one of the earliest martyrs about whom we have an eyewitness account. His writings quote from most of the books of the New Testament, confirming their authenticity.
Born around AD 70, Polycarp evidently became a Christian before he was thirty, for he learned the gospel at the feet of the apostle John, who is thought to have survived until the onset of the second century—the last of the original twelve apostles. Polycarp in turn mentored a young man named Irenaeus, who became famous for his writings against heresy. Polycarp’s character reflected John’s. He had the same gentle spirit, yet was inflexible in speaking out against error. Irenaeus later reported that Polycarp would literally run from heretical speech.
When John died, the truths of Christianity lived on with his disciples, of whom Polycarp, by then bishop of Smyrna, became the best-known to posterity, not only because of his frequent appearance in the literature of the early church, but also because of his triumphant death.
In John’s Apocalypse, Christ had warned the church at Smyrna they were about to face persecution and promised a crown of life to those who were faithful unto death. Polycarp undoubtedly encouraged his flock with these words when the Romans hauled several of them off to face death by wild beasts or fire. Polycarp soon had to apply the promise to himself. Not satisfied with the blood of their first victims, the Roman mob called for his death.
Friends persuaded him to hide in a farm-house and later to flee to another. While praying, Polycarp had a vision. He turned and said to those with him, “It must be that I shall be burned alive.” By torturing two slave boys, the authorities learned Polycarp’s whereabouts. They sent men to arrest him. This time Polycarp refused to flee, saying, “the will of God be done.” He ordered food set before the soldiers and asked for an hour to pray. His prayer was so impressive that the soldiers questioned their orders to arrest such a good man. They allowed him two hours with God before leading him back to town.
A magistrate ordered Polycarp to renounce Christ and give obedience to Caesar as Lord. Polycarp answered: “Eighty and six years have I served Christ, nor has He ever done me any harm. How, then, could I blaspheme my King who saved me? You threaten the fire that burns for an hour and then is quenched; but you know not of the fire of the judgment to come, and the fire of eternal punishment. Bring what you will.”
The Trial and Testimony of the Early Church includes an account of Polycarp.
On this day, 23 February 155, Polycarp died at the stake." - Christian History Institute
Here is discipleship in action. Jesus >> John >> Polycarp >> Iraneaus. "You therefore, my son, be strong in the grace that is in Christ Jesus. And what you have heard from me in the presence of many witnesses, commit to faithful men who will be able to teach others also." - 2 Timothy 2:2 This is the mission and ministry of the church. A ministry to make disciples around the world.
I wonder who in your life are you discipling? Have you ever considered Paul's command to Timothy or Jesus command to John as a personal command in your life? We are called to invest our lives in others and walk behind Jesus as our Rabbi such that "the dust of the Rabbi" is on our lives and we should be transferring that dust to others. This is not an optional ministry, this is the THE ministry of the gospel. Have you been doing this? Has it been done for you? If so, great I'd love to hear about your experience. Discipleship is a team sport, a sport worth giving our lives to and a calling worth dying for. Just as Polycarp did on this day in 155 A.D.
