Those thus discipled, as it were, are baptized in the name of the Father, the Son and the holy spirit.

But even that is not the end of the matter. The teaching work continues on after that. Jesus mentioned the need of teaching persons to observe all of the things that he had commanded. One does not learn everything in one day, one week or one year. While it is true that many Christian witnesses of Jehovah have read the Bible, maybe accomplishing that in a few months’ time, still they do not know everything that is in it. The Bible must be studied, not only individually, but in company with other Christian witnesses in order to appreciate fully the teaching that Jesus set forth, as well as what the holy spirit directed his disciples to put down in writing for our admonition and learning.

A disciple is a disciple. So when Jesus said: “Go therefore and make disciples . . . baptizing them,” he meant that we should teach persons to observe all of the things that have been commanded. This takes time and effort. Jehovah’s witnesses are delighted that they have this privilege to carry on the discipling work in these “last days.” The Lord Jesus is still interested in the work that his people are doing, because he said: “Look! I am with you all the days until the conclusion of the system of things.”​—Matt. 28:20.