Potomac Heights Baptist Church exists for the glory of God and to make Christ known by making disciples who make disciples to the ends of the earth. Jesus said, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age” (Matt 28:18b–20).

A disciple is a forgiven sinner who is becoming more like Christ as he learns Christ.

Disciple-making is a prayerful work of the Holy Spirit and the Word of God which is accomplished as God’s people work through a life-on-life process whereby we serve one another by helping each other progress toward Christlikeness—moving from spiritual darkness through spiritual infancy and toward spiritual maturity—to reproduce our lives (Rom 8:29; 2 Cor 3:18; 2 Tim 2:2). Disciple-making is a lifelong process that is marked by progress, not perfection. It is not a program, a class, a production line, or a Bible study.

There are many reasons why we should be about disciple-making. First, a Christ-centered reason, we make disciples because our Lord told us to do so (Matt 28:18–20). Second, a God-centered reason, we make disciples because this bring glory to God (Rev 7:13–17). And third, a human-centered reason, we make disciples because this is God’s means of rescuing those who are perishing (Titus 2:11–14; Col 1:13–20).

The making of disciples is ultimately God’s work, but it is accomplished as his disciples, who are prayerfully dependent on the Holy Spirit, persevere in proclaiming his Word into people’s hearts. As such, God’s people must be thoroughly saturated in prayer and with God’s Word. This disciple-making endeavor should happen wherever and whenever Christians are present (e.g., in the home, in the church, in the workplace, in our communities, in our state, in our nation, and any place in the world). Wherever Christians find themselves, they should be making disciples.

All Christian disciples should be disciple-makers. We should all play our role in helping one another learn Christ and grow toward Christlikeness. This should happen on multiple levels. It should happen as we engage non-believers with gospel truths. It should happen as we proclaim the gospel and urge non-believers to trust in Christ (i.e., evangelism). It should happen as we help new believers become established in their faith. And it should happen as we equip believers to better equip others (i.e., training trainers).