How is committing oneself to God described within the Gospel of Matthew, and how is this related to becoming a disciple of Jesus? Moreover, how may reading or hearing the Gospel function to evoke such a response? To answer these questions, this study draws upon a variety of approaches in linguistics and literary studies in a new way. The resulting 'pragmatic-critical' method characterises the communicative equilibrium between the author and the subset of readers who process the text compliantly. Readers become compliant through being persuaded in various ways of the nearness of the kingdom of the heavens, a nearness brought about by the coming of Jesus to bring forgiveness and salvation to the people of God. As they empathise with Jesus' disciples throughout the narrative, compliant readers are humbled to be served by the Servant and have their sins forgiven. At the end of the Gospel, they are incorporated into his Servant program, commissioned to serve and teach in the same pattern, participating in the task of bringing salvation to the nations.