Ralational Discipleship/DNA of Discipleship

Ralational Discipleship/DNA of Discipleship

How did Jesus make disciples?

1 John 1:1-2
That which was from the beginning, which we have heard, which we have seen with our eyes, which we have looked at and our hands have touched—this we proclaim concerning the Word of life. The life appeared; we have seen it and testify to it, and we proclaim to you the eternal life, which was with the Father and has appeared to us.

 

How did Jesus make disciples? You can spend a lifetime on this question. Let’s observe what is recorded in the Scriptures. Jesus spent time with his disciples. They ate, talked, walked and shared life together for 3 years. Jesus asked them questions, gave them impossible tasks, deliberately broke traditions and challenged their thinking. He angered religious leaders and welcomed outcasts.  He healed on the Sabbath and asked them to feed 5000 people. He had them watch miracles at weddings and on death beds. Sometimes He let them fail and he would help them learn. Sometimes He let them succeed but told them not put confidence in their successes. He demonstrated that he had absolute authority over the weather and demons and life itself. It was not about ‘God theory’. It was a constant interaction with God, scary, unsettling and life transforming.

 

Option or normal lifestyle?

 

 

Matthew 28:19-20

Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.

 

Jesus said, “Go and make disciples”.  Not as an optional suggestion but as the main way that his kingdom would grow and bless the world. It wasn’t an advanced option for the truly committed but the normal pattern for normal people to grow.
Being Jesus’ disciple involves knowing something, being something and doing something.  We follow his example and learn his methods.  It is personal but it is not individualistic. It is not a course but a lifestyle. It is not just information but it is applied in experience.
In the simplest form, disciples are learners who journey together to follow a teacher in a relational process, then repeat the same pattern with others.   Jesus is both the teacher and subject matter. We learn from Him and about Him. God uses the Scriptures, other people and life’s circumstances to help us learn to change and become more like Him. It is knowing, being and doing with Jesus as our teacher.

 

The “be with” strategy

 

 

 

Mark 3:14
He appointed twelve that they might be with him and that he might send them out to preach
Acts 4:13
When they saw the courage of Peter and John and realized that they were unschooled, ordinary men, they were astonished and they took note that these men had been with Jesus.

 

Discipleship in the Gospels was a relational process where Jesus chose 12 to be ‘with him’. After he left the earth, even those who opposed Christ recognized the disciples as having been with Jesus .They sounded like him, they taught like him and they worked like him. They learned to do what he did. The ‘Being with’ strategy meant guiding and accompanying others in real life.
Do you know another Jesus’ follower with whom you can read the Bible and discuss what you are learning? Something special happens when 2 or 3 people gather in Jesus’ name. Invite a friend to join you and meet for a coffee to share ideas and questions about what you are discovering.  Discuss verses you have highlighted or comments you have written. Discipleship learning could start in a 15 minute coffee break.  God is an amazing connector of people. Ask for his help to connect with someone to join together in this learning journey.

 

Like learning to ride a bike

 

1 John 3:18

Dear children, let us not love with words or speech but with actions and in truth.

 

Discipleship is like learning to ride a bike. You need to know how the breaks, pedals and handlebars work. You need to be in balance and you need to do the pedaling and steering. But how did you actually learn to ride a bike? Often someone runs alongside and holds the bike, coaches what to do next and then gradually lets go.  Sometimes we put on training wheels as a temporary help to keep our balance. The bike does not work quite as well but it gives a feeling of the experience until we are confident enough to take the extra wheels off. These 40 days are like spiritual training wheels or having someone run alongside you. These exercises will help but they are just training wheels. As you gain confidence you will discover your best patterns to more freely learn from God. And like bike riding, you will feel the wind on your face, explore creation and discover a deeper walk with the Lord.

Like newborn babes

1 Peter 2:2,3

Like newborn babies, crave pure spiritual milk, so that by it you may grow up in your salvation, now that you have tasted that the Lord is good.

People need food to grow. A baby needs pure milk. 1Peter 2:2 says “like new born babes, long for the pure milk of the word that you may grow thereby”. Interacting with the Scriptures provides spiritual milk which helps us grow.
Milk that comes from a nursing mother is pure milk. It is clean and not diluted with anything.  It is easy to digest. It has the mother’s antibodies that help fight infection. It is not made with dirty water.
How does this relate to discipleship? We need to read the simpler parts of the Scriptures first, like the Gospels that talk about Jesus. A new born eats many times a day in small amounts that are easier to digest. These will be milk for you to help you grow, especially if you can reflect on these verses and respond in some way. It may take some time but you will see a difference.

Get off the bottle!

 

1 Corinthians 3:2

I gave you milk, not solid food, for you were not yet ready for it. Indeed, you are still not ready.

 

If bottle feeding went on permanently throughout a person’s life, it would be very odd. Imagine a group of 60 year olds drinking milk from baby bottles? Normally babies, around 6 months of age, learn to eat solid foods little by little. They start with soft stuff.  It is messy. They squish it with their fingers and rub it on their hair. Food gets all over the place. But they eventually learn to feed themselves.
We need to do the same in discipleship. You may start with the short verses, which is all you need. Later you will want to read the whole chapter where it is from or to understand what that book of the Bible says. At some point you will want to read through the whole Bible. This is a natural part of the growing process.  You can select the passage reference and access the whole chapter to read the verse in context. Try it when you want feel a need for more and experiment with what works the best.

 

Apostolic Mission

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Luke 10:2

He told them, “The harvest is plentiful, but the workers are few. Ask the Lord of the harvest, therefore, to send out workers into his harvest field.

 

In our Spiritual D.N.A:  the D stands for Divine truth and we engage with the Scriptures. The N stands for nurturing relationships and we ask each other questions.
The A stands for Apostolic Mission. The Apostles were ones sent by God. We join in God’s mission by praying for laborers for the harvest. In Luke 10:2 Jesus said, ”The harvest is plentiful but the workers are few. Ask the Lord of the harvest to send out workers into his harvest.”  It is a strange command but Jesus said we should pray this way.
A tool to remember to pray is to set you cell phone alarm to 2 minutes after 10 am or pm where 10:02 reminds us of the Luke 10:2 passage and the need to pray. Do not under-estimate this simple prayer as God will begin to do show you amazing things you can do as you pray for more laborers.