I believe that my role as a Western missionary in a non-Western, creative-access location is NOT to be the evangelist who wins all the people to Christ, or the pastor who counsels and comforts all the believers. My role is not to be the preacher in the church or to be the leader of the Christian community.
I firmly believe that it is my role to train and equip national believers to do those ministries. I can disciple, train and teach leaders, but I must be doing it in a way that is equipping them to go out and do it with more people. I can help mobilize them to do it one way or another that doesn't cause dependency.
But what I've also found is that I have to model what I want them to do. If I don't, I have a hard time training them to do it. I can teach them an evangelistic message to share, but they don't really get trained in evangelism until I take them with me and show them how to do it "live." If they don't see it in action, chances are they won't really put it into practice.
So, I've been setting aside time lately just to go visit non-believers in a way that I would like to see our disciples do so. I have a short gospel message and my own testimony ready to go each time, no matter who I visit. And I also try to take my disciples with me. Not only can they help, but they get to see it modeled. I am finding that this makes all the difference.
Showing posts with label Discipleship. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Discipleship. Show all posts
Saturday, March 17, 2012
Sunday, September 13, 2009
Good Things Take Time To Grow
They say the definition of impatience is standing in front of a microwave oven screaming at it to hurry up!
I live in a semi-tropical country. That means that by all comparisons, things grow fast. In March I planted some trees from tiny little seeds around our parking area at our offices. Now these trees are over 3 meters tall already. Pretty fast, actually.
But these trees are still not big enough to provide shade for my vehicle parked there. When I look at them I think, "Hurry up! Grow taller. Grow bigger. And do it now!" I try to think of what fertilizer I can put on them to make them grow faster. I am being impatient.
The truth is, good things take time to grow. While I may wish for success overnight, I can't expect to plant a seed one day and get a tree the following day. It just takes time. Especially for things that grow.
You see, I could have constructed a shade roof for our parking area. It would have been finished in less than a week and our vehciles would have been basking in shade for the past six months. But that shade roof would never grow. In fact, without a lot of maintenance it would probably be unusable in a couple years, depending on the materials I used.
If I wait one more year my trees will provide better and cooler (as in temperature) shade than any roof I could build. And they will continue to grow providing shade for decades to come.
That which is built can be big fast; that which is grown takes time.
So it is with disciples and church planting. I could build a church. It is growth by addition. But I'd rather plant a seed by making a disciple and watch, over time, a church growth movement multiply far beyond my own influence.
I live in a semi-tropical country. That means that by all comparisons, things grow fast. In March I planted some trees from tiny little seeds around our parking area at our offices. Now these trees are over 3 meters tall already. Pretty fast, actually.
But these trees are still not big enough to provide shade for my vehicle parked there. When I look at them I think, "Hurry up! Grow taller. Grow bigger. And do it now!" I try to think of what fertilizer I can put on them to make them grow faster. I am being impatient.
The truth is, good things take time to grow. While I may wish for success overnight, I can't expect to plant a seed one day and get a tree the following day. It just takes time. Especially for things that grow.
You see, I could have constructed a shade roof for our parking area. It would have been finished in less than a week and our vehciles would have been basking in shade for the past six months. But that shade roof would never grow. In fact, without a lot of maintenance it would probably be unusable in a couple years, depending on the materials I used.
If I wait one more year my trees will provide better and cooler (as in temperature) shade than any roof I could build. And they will continue to grow providing shade for decades to come.
That which is built can be big fast; that which is grown takes time.
So it is with disciples and church planting. I could build a church. It is growth by addition. But I'd rather plant a seed by making a disciple and watch, over time, a church growth movement multiply far beyond my own influence.
Wednesday, July 15, 2009
Situation Critical
I once lived briefly in a military town that had fighter jets flying over all the time. When I first got there I found it rather exciting to see. After a while, it just became an annoying noise.
But I did notice that the jets would often do the same maneuvers over and over. I once asked an ex-military friend of mine what they were doing all the time.
My friend told me that they often play out war-time scenarios. They repeatedly practice what they need to do in real situations so that when the time comes, they'll be ready. The soldiers, airmen and seamen don't just understand the theory of what needs to be done--they train themselves by doing it over and over and over until they get it right--before they ever have to do it for real.
Could you imagine sending soldiers out to defend our country who have never trained, but who have only studied military philosophy in the classroom? Would you be very confident that they could protect us? Would you have much faith in their ability to defeat the enemy?
This is exactly what most of our seminaries and theological training institutions do--we send out Christian ministers to jump into the spiritual battle that is life who have primarily been trained academically. We make the assumption that Christian ministry is a primarily academic endeavor.
Why?
But the military training my friend told me about goes beyond just practicing war games over and over. Instead, they create the most critical situations possible for the young men and women to handle. In fact, they make the scenarios ten times more difficult than they would ever encounter in real warfare. What effect does this have? Well, when the real warfare comes around--it seems almost EASY!
I'm not sure how we would could apply this principle for Christian training and create "scenarios" that are more difficult than what we would face in real life without it being rather hokey. But I like the concept. I like the concept of being trained and prepared by repeated practice rather than simple theoretical instruction.
What do you think? What are some "out of the box" ways we could prepare Christian workers for ministry by applying this type of training technique? What are some ways we can prepare young people for ministry that aren't primarily academic?
But I did notice that the jets would often do the same maneuvers over and over. I once asked an ex-military friend of mine what they were doing all the time.
My friend told me that they often play out war-time scenarios. They repeatedly practice what they need to do in real situations so that when the time comes, they'll be ready. The soldiers, airmen and seamen don't just understand the theory of what needs to be done--they train themselves by doing it over and over and over until they get it right--before they ever have to do it for real.
Could you imagine sending soldiers out to defend our country who have never trained, but who have only studied military philosophy in the classroom? Would you be very confident that they could protect us? Would you have much faith in their ability to defeat the enemy?
This is exactly what most of our seminaries and theological training institutions do--we send out Christian ministers to jump into the spiritual battle that is life who have primarily been trained academically. We make the assumption that Christian ministry is a primarily academic endeavor.
Why?
But the military training my friend told me about goes beyond just practicing war games over and over. Instead, they create the most critical situations possible for the young men and women to handle. In fact, they make the scenarios ten times more difficult than they would ever encounter in real warfare. What effect does this have? Well, when the real warfare comes around--it seems almost EASY!
I'm not sure how we would could apply this principle for Christian training and create "scenarios" that are more difficult than what we would face in real life without it being rather hokey. But I like the concept. I like the concept of being trained and prepared by repeated practice rather than simple theoretical instruction.
What do you think? What are some "out of the box" ways we could prepare Christian workers for ministry by applying this type of training technique? What are some ways we can prepare young people for ministry that aren't primarily academic?
Monday, June 29, 2009
Missionary Material 5
So, say you're that missionary wannabe I described in Missionary Material 3. What do you need to do to become a missionary?
Well, even though you might need to hear it, I'm not going to share the nuts and bolts of what probably needs to happen. (But if you really want to know, leave me a comment and I'll be glad to get into that with you.) I'd rather focus on the preparation of you as a person--developing the "material" that will make you an effective missionary.
Now, if you remember from what I wrote in Missionary Material 2, your walk with Christ and your spiritual character are WAY more important than whatever strategy or approach you use. So, even if you might be excited about what I wrote in Missionary Material 4 regarding business and all that--don't get too excited just yet. You need to be discipled, first.
Have you been discipled? Have you ever hung out with a deeply spiritual and Christlike person whose mind was on how he/she could please Christ and serve him? Have you allowed this person to peer into your life, counsel you and coach you? Have you allowed them to suggest to you how you need to change or where you need to grow? Have you spent time in prayer with them? Have you spent time serving alongside of this person in real-life ministry situations? Have you joined this person when he/she has spent time with those outside the faith?
If you have answered "no" to any of these questions, I think you need to find someone like this, first, and ask them to disciple you. Live with them if you can. But whatever you do, don't get someone who is a good talker (can explain anything about God) but never seems to get around to doing any ministry or spending time with anyone outside of the Christian community. If you allow yourself to be discipled by someone like that then you will probably become like that, too.
Allow yourself discipleship time to change into the kind of person God wants you to be. This is primary before any kind of ministry--cross-cultural or not. Of course, you will always be growing and discipleship is ongoing--it will never end. But that doesn't mean you shouldn't take time to be discipled, first, before jumping into a situation where you will be tried in ways you've never even imagined before. You need time to deal with the issues deep in your heart. You need time to allow others to help you grow strong where you are weak.
Nobody runs a marathon without first having gone through extensive personal training. It doesn't matter how much academic knowledge you have about running. Nor does it matter how much you have spent on your fancy shoes. You better be in shape when the whistle blows.
Well, even though you might need to hear it, I'm not going to share the nuts and bolts of what probably needs to happen. (But if you really want to know, leave me a comment and I'll be glad to get into that with you.) I'd rather focus on the preparation of you as a person--developing the "material" that will make you an effective missionary.
Now, if you remember from what I wrote in Missionary Material 2, your walk with Christ and your spiritual character are WAY more important than whatever strategy or approach you use. So, even if you might be excited about what I wrote in Missionary Material 4 regarding business and all that--don't get too excited just yet. You need to be discipled, first.
Have you been discipled? Have you ever hung out with a deeply spiritual and Christlike person whose mind was on how he/she could please Christ and serve him? Have you allowed this person to peer into your life, counsel you and coach you? Have you allowed them to suggest to you how you need to change or where you need to grow? Have you spent time in prayer with them? Have you spent time serving alongside of this person in real-life ministry situations? Have you joined this person when he/she has spent time with those outside the faith?
If you have answered "no" to any of these questions, I think you need to find someone like this, first, and ask them to disciple you. Live with them if you can. But whatever you do, don't get someone who is a good talker (can explain anything about God) but never seems to get around to doing any ministry or spending time with anyone outside of the Christian community. If you allow yourself to be discipled by someone like that then you will probably become like that, too.
Allow yourself discipleship time to change into the kind of person God wants you to be. This is primary before any kind of ministry--cross-cultural or not. Of course, you will always be growing and discipleship is ongoing--it will never end. But that doesn't mean you shouldn't take time to be discipled, first, before jumping into a situation where you will be tried in ways you've never even imagined before. You need time to deal with the issues deep in your heart. You need time to allow others to help you grow strong where you are weak.
Nobody runs a marathon without first having gone through extensive personal training. It doesn't matter how much academic knowledge you have about running. Nor does it matter how much you have spent on your fancy shoes. You better be in shape when the whistle blows.
Thursday, May 21, 2009
Village Health Care
In many so-called “third world” countries missionaries often get involved in providing health care. And it doesn’t take long after treating so many of the same diseases in many people that they realize “an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure.” Thousands of people die on a daily basis from diseases or conditions that are easily preventable. Bandaging the ailment doesn’t really solve the problem. People need education on how to keep themselves from falling into the problem.
These could be very simple things like: Wash your hands before eating. Boil water before drinking it. Wear shoes if you’re walking where animals defecate. Drink plenty of water. Sleep under a mosquito net. And so many more instructions that will improve the health of a village by the prevention of common problems that everyone face.
And so health workers schedule village-wide meetings to instruct everyone on these issues at one time. This saves the health workers from having to go around door to door and repeating the same things at each place. It prevents people from misunderstanding and claiming they were told differently than others. It also allows everyone to hear answers to questions that concern the people that perhaps the health worker wouldn’t have thought to tell everyone.
But the work of the doctor or health worker is still far from over after these mass health education seminars. Just because everyone faces certain common health threats, each person may still have their own health issues that are different from others. This means the health worker must still go around and give everyone a personal check-up.
I really think that the role of a “pastor” is that of a “spiritual health worker.” And here is my main point:
Preaching sermons to large groups of people is both good and needed. At the same time, so is one-on-one counseling, prayer and accountability with each of his people. The sermons cover things that are common to all people. The one-on-one times cover issues that each specific individual faces. And everyone, everyone, has issues—even if it isn’t a problem or a “sin-issue” it is still an issue of growth and service unto God’s likeness.
So, if you can, please tell me what the difference between pastoral care and discipleship is. In the original language, a “pastor” is a shepherd. A shepherd raises sheep. A shepherd wants his sheep to be all that a sheep can be. So, that includes both the prevention of attacks and proper growth.
While a doctor might be primarily concerned with preventing and curing problems, a good health worker wants to see each person grow strong and be capable of working and serving society. Similarly, a good pastor is not only worried about spiritual problems their people face (whether problems they already have or those they might have if they’re not careful), but he is worried about the spiritual growth and service his people are able to do.
This takes both mass-instruction time, and personal one-on-ones.
These could be very simple things like: Wash your hands before eating. Boil water before drinking it. Wear shoes if you’re walking where animals defecate. Drink plenty of water. Sleep under a mosquito net. And so many more instructions that will improve the health of a village by the prevention of common problems that everyone face.
And so health workers schedule village-wide meetings to instruct everyone on these issues at one time. This saves the health workers from having to go around door to door and repeating the same things at each place. It prevents people from misunderstanding and claiming they were told differently than others. It also allows everyone to hear answers to questions that concern the people that perhaps the health worker wouldn’t have thought to tell everyone.
But the work of the doctor or health worker is still far from over after these mass health education seminars. Just because everyone faces certain common health threats, each person may still have their own health issues that are different from others. This means the health worker must still go around and give everyone a personal check-up.
I really think that the role of a “pastor” is that of a “spiritual health worker.” And here is my main point:
Preaching sermons to large groups of people is both good and needed. At the same time, so is one-on-one counseling, prayer and accountability with each of his people. The sermons cover things that are common to all people. The one-on-one times cover issues that each specific individual faces. And everyone, everyone, has issues—even if it isn’t a problem or a “sin-issue” it is still an issue of growth and service unto God’s likeness.
So, if you can, please tell me what the difference between pastoral care and discipleship is. In the original language, a “pastor” is a shepherd. A shepherd raises sheep. A shepherd wants his sheep to be all that a sheep can be. So, that includes both the prevention of attacks and proper growth.
While a doctor might be primarily concerned with preventing and curing problems, a good health worker wants to see each person grow strong and be capable of working and serving society. Similarly, a good pastor is not only worried about spiritual problems their people face (whether problems they already have or those they might have if they’re not careful), but he is worried about the spiritual growth and service his people are able to do.
This takes both mass-instruction time, and personal one-on-ones.
Sunday, March 22, 2009
Infiltrate or Isolate?
You already know where I stand. One look at the life of Jesus and we clearly see he didn't isolate himself or his disciples from the world or society around them. I think his actions were completely intentional not just for ministry (it is the sick who need a doctor, not the healthy) but for training his disciples for ministry. In fact, I devoted an entire blog post to this aspect of Jesus' training approach in The Crux of Discipleship.
I was serving as a "missionary on campus" one semester when I was in America and I re-took the Perspectives class. (If you have never taken this course I completely recommend it!) We had one guest speaker who is a big-name Seminary professor there. He taught and at the end of the class was asking what is it really going to take for us to win our communities for Christ. People gave a few Sunday-school answers about loving people more and getting out there and sharing our faith with non-Christians. Most of the answers were basically about doing things more and not differently. Then the professor said that his problem is that he spends all of his time around Christians.
That comment hit me like a rock and while I understood his situation and all, I felt that something just isn't right. I'm sure countless Bible college professors, preachers and ministers could say the same thing: They spend all of their time with Christians and people in the church. And without realizing it they are unintentionally discipling all of their Bible college students to graduate and do the same thing.
I was reading a book by a well-known pastor in Dallas and he told a story about a conversation he had with a non-Christian lady on an airplane. I was thinking that it seems like I've heard hundreds of stories by preachers and Christian authors about their conversations with people on airplanes. Then it hit me--when such people fly it is the only time that they have meaningful contact with people who are not Christians or who are not a part of the church community.
And so I'm thinking that all of our "big guns"--preachers and Bible college professors--are found only deep within the Christian community, and they're teaching all of the "little guns" to go out there and evangelize while offering no example and giving the reason/excuse that they don't spend any time around people who are not Christians.
Is Satan laughing, or what?
Jesus didn't spend all of his time around those who didn't need him the most. Maybe it was because his heart was to really help people far away from God. Maybe it was because he wanted his disciples to have experience doing this kind of ministry so it wouldn't be such a foreign concept to them after he sent them out. Maybe it was both.
Salt doesn't have much use if it's in the salt-shaker most of the time.
How can we do things (church, discipleship, Bible training) differently (not just better) so as to infiltrate the world with God's people and not isolate ourselves from the world?
I was serving as a "missionary on campus" one semester when I was in America and I re-took the Perspectives class. (If you have never taken this course I completely recommend it!) We had one guest speaker who is a big-name Seminary professor there. He taught and at the end of the class was asking what is it really going to take for us to win our communities for Christ. People gave a few Sunday-school answers about loving people more and getting out there and sharing our faith with non-Christians. Most of the answers were basically about doing things more and not differently. Then the professor said that his problem is that he spends all of his time around Christians.
That comment hit me like a rock and while I understood his situation and all, I felt that something just isn't right. I'm sure countless Bible college professors, preachers and ministers could say the same thing: They spend all of their time with Christians and people in the church. And without realizing it they are unintentionally discipling all of their Bible college students to graduate and do the same thing.
I was reading a book by a well-known pastor in Dallas and he told a story about a conversation he had with a non-Christian lady on an airplane. I was thinking that it seems like I've heard hundreds of stories by preachers and Christian authors about their conversations with people on airplanes. Then it hit me--when such people fly it is the only time that they have meaningful contact with people who are not Christians or who are not a part of the church community.
And so I'm thinking that all of our "big guns"--preachers and Bible college professors--are found only deep within the Christian community, and they're teaching all of the "little guns" to go out there and evangelize while offering no example and giving the reason/excuse that they don't spend any time around people who are not Christians.
Is Satan laughing, or what?
Jesus didn't spend all of his time around those who didn't need him the most. Maybe it was because his heart was to really help people far away from God. Maybe it was because he wanted his disciples to have experience doing this kind of ministry so it wouldn't be such a foreign concept to them after he sent them out. Maybe it was both.
Salt doesn't have much use if it's in the salt-shaker most of the time.
How can we do things (church, discipleship, Bible training) differently (not just better) so as to infiltrate the world with God's people and not isolate ourselves from the world?
New Model
Aaron at The Road Less Traveled made a post about Bible colleges and their necessity a few days ago. It has generated a great discussion with many contributors. I think it is a discussion we need to be having. Below are some of my comments I posted there. Please check out the entire discussion...
I think that if at the end of this discussion we only come up with, "We need to reform our Bible colleges and do it better," and "We need to change our churches and do it better," then in the end nothing will change very much. Guys, we aren't the first ones to see weaknesses in both Bible colleges and churches. People have been saying these things for years.
I think what is needed is a new model. Both for Bible college and for church. (Aaron understands new models for church!) I think we should start new churches that have in them a training (discipleship) program. In fact, I think that "program" might just be the way to start a new church. I wrote a lot about Jesus' model for discipleship in my blog, The Koffi House. I won't repeat it here in the comments of Aaron's blog, but you can check it out if you like. I do think that a good discipleship training program should have a major focus on our behavior, understanding and ability and a minor focus on academic knowledge, not the other way around.
Yes, we will always have our Christian liberal arts schools and other colleges that are progressing in that direction. Some may want to study theology and get their PhD's from those institutions. God bless them. We don't have to dismantle those things in order to start a new model. But what we are going for here is something that will...
I think that if at the end of this discussion we only come up with, "We need to reform our Bible colleges and do it better," and "We need to change our churches and do it better," then in the end nothing will change very much. Guys, we aren't the first ones to see weaknesses in both Bible colleges and churches. People have been saying these things for years.
I think what is needed is a new model. Both for Bible college and for church. (Aaron understands new models for church!) I think we should start new churches that have in them a training (discipleship) program. In fact, I think that "program" might just be the way to start a new church. I wrote a lot about Jesus' model for discipleship in my blog, The Koffi House. I won't repeat it here in the comments of Aaron's blog, but you can check it out if you like. I do think that a good discipleship training program should have a major focus on our behavior, understanding and ability and a minor focus on academic knowledge, not the other way around.
Yes, we will always have our Christian liberal arts schools and other colleges that are progressing in that direction. Some may want to study theology and get their PhD's from those institutions. God bless them. We don't have to dismantle those things in order to start a new model. But what we are going for here is something that will...
- Be reproducible (meaning virtually every church could copy it).
- Demolish the clergy/laity distinction that is upheld by our current models of both church and Bible college.
- Be accessible to all kinds of Christians, in any location, who aren't quitting their jobs to go to Bible college.
- Train people to live, love and talk like Jesus, not like the Pharisees.
- Infiltrate non-Christian communities with our disciples (and disciplers) rather than isolate the disciples from the larger non-Christian community, only sending them on “forays” into that world.
Wednesday, March 18, 2009
An Effective Missionary
An article I wrote a few years ago...
I have been in The Location for a number of years now. It doesn't seem that long. At the same time, it is hard to imagine that all of my experiences have been crammed into this short time. Each day I am becoming more and more accustomed to living here and fitting into the society. There are still times, however, when I feel very “foreign” to the culture here.
I now look back on my first few months here in The Location as a “childhood,” of sorts, when everything was brand new to me. As I have grown in my ability to speak the language and to understand how things work here, I have come to see that some of the assumptions and conclusions I made early on regarding The People and their culture were incorrect. Other early ideas weren’t incorrect, but not as significant as I once thought. And, finally, I am learning many things from first-hand experience that help me to better understand this culture rather than holding to many of the false assumptions and ideas within the foreign community about The Location's culture.
Recently I was reflecting about serving here in The Location as a missionary. What would I do differently to prepare myself to work here now that I’ve been here for a few years?
I decided I wanted to be a missionary when I was a sophomore in college. After graduating and working for a while, I decided I wanted to get some specific missionary training so that I would be prepared to serve on a foreign field. I subsequently enrolled in a particular seminary's Master of Art’s program in Missions. I spent two years there and another two years finishing up my thesis. I greatly value my time at seminary and learned an incredible amount of information and ideas that have been very helpful to me as a missionary.
At the same time, I wish I could have done a few things differently. I prepared myself in some areas that have proved to be helpful and others not so helpful. But I also did not really prepare myself in a number of areas that would have made me much more effective in my ministry.
I studied Cultural Anthropology so that I would know how to approach different cultures and different worldviews, how to understand them and how to communicate with them. That was good. But I know I would be a much more effective missionary if I had learned how to control my anger better. I never thought of myself as an “angry” person. It never really came out until I came over here. I am here to try to help this country and there are so many things that are blatantly not “up to standard.” The people here are not really my “peers” and I am already weird and different in their eyes. Consequently, it is easy for me to show my anger and displeasure in front of them. Showing anger and displeasure, while not a good thing, is still pretty normal for us in America. In The Location it makes you lose respect and discredits you in the minds of people. God’s kingdom could be expanded better by me if I learned how to quiet my heart, be content, and not show my frustration.
I studied Greek and Hebrew a year a piece so that I could understand how to best interpret the Bible. I loved those classes and would never think of going back and not taking them! In the future I hope this knowledge will have more practical application in my ministry, but to date it has really had very little use in my witness here. On the other hand, had I learned the discipline of studying my Bible every day, being in God’s Word and having his Word in my heart I know that I would be a much more effective missionary. Knowing about God’s Word and knowing his Word are as different as knowing about God versus knowing God. If I were the kind of person that had his Word on my mind, in my heart and on my lips by disciplining myself to be immersed in the scriptures every day, I would be much more effective in my witness here.
I studied Leadership and dissected the difference in meaning between leaders and managers, between mission statements and vision statements and between contextualization and syncretism. This was good… but it would have been more helpful had I learned the skill of spending time with people, listening to them, talking with them and getting to know them. Being the busy visionary has not helped me be an effective missionary when taking time to get to know people here would.
I studied Missiology and learned about missionary methods, approaches and strategies for evangelism among unreached peoples in ways that God’s kingdom will subsequently expand rapidly without hindrance. Again, this was very helpful and insightful. But I know that I would be a much better missionary if I had learned the practice of prayer and fasting, depending and calling on God to work miracles that I could never do. My first reaction to a kingdom “barrier” is typically a smart and fancy missiological strategy. But I would be a much more effective instrument of God if I would react and persist in prayer for the spiritual difference I am attempting to make.
I studied Church Growth and how pastors should lead their churches past the “200 barrier” or past the “1,000 barrier.” But I would have done better to address personal issues of over-sensitivity, pride and self-pity. I studied Ministry to Muslims, but would have done better to learn how to really stave off sexual temptation. I studied Linguistics, which has been very helpful and profitable. But I should have spent more time learning to have a close walk with Christ and how to be filled with love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. I would be a much more effective missionary if I possessed these fruits of the Spirit in greater quantity.
Our effectiveness as servants of God flows out of our relationship with God. That is because our wisdom, strength and riches, in all its measure, could not possibly begin to accomplish what we are attempting, and what only God can accomplish through us. The battle we are fighting is a spiritual one, not a worldly one. The difference we are trying to make is a spiritual difference.
Jeremiah says (9:23-24), “This is what the LORD says: ‘Let not the wise man boast of his wisdom, or the strong man boast of his strength, or the rich man boast of his riches, but let him who boasts boast about this: that he understands and knows me, that I am the LORD, who exercises kindness, justice and righteousness on earth, for in these I delight,’ declares the LORD.”
Amen. Please don’t take the above as criticism of those who trained me, or who failed to train me. It is not. Rather, it is a criticism of myself and my way of thinking as I was preparing to become a missionary.
When it comes down to it, if I actually live in relationships with people (and not just make teaching appearances), people will be much more affected by my example than they ever will be by my teaching. What they see in my life will be more powerful than what comes out of my mouth. In fact, how I live my life in the quiet, private and trying moments will prove whether or not people should believe what I say. When I understand and know the Lord, and when I also exercise kindness, justice and righteousness in my life, then I will be an effective missionary.
I have been in The Location for a number of years now. It doesn't seem that long. At the same time, it is hard to imagine that all of my experiences have been crammed into this short time. Each day I am becoming more and more accustomed to living here and fitting into the society. There are still times, however, when I feel very “foreign” to the culture here.
I now look back on my first few months here in The Location as a “childhood,” of sorts, when everything was brand new to me. As I have grown in my ability to speak the language and to understand how things work here, I have come to see that some of the assumptions and conclusions I made early on regarding The People and their culture were incorrect. Other early ideas weren’t incorrect, but not as significant as I once thought. And, finally, I am learning many things from first-hand experience that help me to better understand this culture rather than holding to many of the false assumptions and ideas within the foreign community about The Location's culture.
Recently I was reflecting about serving here in The Location as a missionary. What would I do differently to prepare myself to work here now that I’ve been here for a few years?
I decided I wanted to be a missionary when I was a sophomore in college. After graduating and working for a while, I decided I wanted to get some specific missionary training so that I would be prepared to serve on a foreign field. I subsequently enrolled in a particular seminary's Master of Art’s program in Missions. I spent two years there and another two years finishing up my thesis. I greatly value my time at seminary and learned an incredible amount of information and ideas that have been very helpful to me as a missionary.
At the same time, I wish I could have done a few things differently. I prepared myself in some areas that have proved to be helpful and others not so helpful. But I also did not really prepare myself in a number of areas that would have made me much more effective in my ministry.
I studied Cultural Anthropology so that I would know how to approach different cultures and different worldviews, how to understand them and how to communicate with them. That was good. But I know I would be a much more effective missionary if I had learned how to control my anger better. I never thought of myself as an “angry” person. It never really came out until I came over here. I am here to try to help this country and there are so many things that are blatantly not “up to standard.” The people here are not really my “peers” and I am already weird and different in their eyes. Consequently, it is easy for me to show my anger and displeasure in front of them. Showing anger and displeasure, while not a good thing, is still pretty normal for us in America. In The Location it makes you lose respect and discredits you in the minds of people. God’s kingdom could be expanded better by me if I learned how to quiet my heart, be content, and not show my frustration.
I studied Greek and Hebrew a year a piece so that I could understand how to best interpret the Bible. I loved those classes and would never think of going back and not taking them! In the future I hope this knowledge will have more practical application in my ministry, but to date it has really had very little use in my witness here. On the other hand, had I learned the discipline of studying my Bible every day, being in God’s Word and having his Word in my heart I know that I would be a much more effective missionary. Knowing about God’s Word and knowing his Word are as different as knowing about God versus knowing God. If I were the kind of person that had his Word on my mind, in my heart and on my lips by disciplining myself to be immersed in the scriptures every day, I would be much more effective in my witness here.
I studied Leadership and dissected the difference in meaning between leaders and managers, between mission statements and vision statements and between contextualization and syncretism. This was good… but it would have been more helpful had I learned the skill of spending time with people, listening to them, talking with them and getting to know them. Being the busy visionary has not helped me be an effective missionary when taking time to get to know people here would.
I studied Missiology and learned about missionary methods, approaches and strategies for evangelism among unreached peoples in ways that God’s kingdom will subsequently expand rapidly without hindrance. Again, this was very helpful and insightful. But I know that I would be a much better missionary if I had learned the practice of prayer and fasting, depending and calling on God to work miracles that I could never do. My first reaction to a kingdom “barrier” is typically a smart and fancy missiological strategy. But I would be a much more effective instrument of God if I would react and persist in prayer for the spiritual difference I am attempting to make.
I studied Church Growth and how pastors should lead their churches past the “200 barrier” or past the “1,000 barrier.” But I would have done better to address personal issues of over-sensitivity, pride and self-pity. I studied Ministry to Muslims, but would have done better to learn how to really stave off sexual temptation. I studied Linguistics, which has been very helpful and profitable. But I should have spent more time learning to have a close walk with Christ and how to be filled with love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. I would be a much more effective missionary if I possessed these fruits of the Spirit in greater quantity.
Our effectiveness as servants of God flows out of our relationship with God. That is because our wisdom, strength and riches, in all its measure, could not possibly begin to accomplish what we are attempting, and what only God can accomplish through us. The battle we are fighting is a spiritual one, not a worldly one. The difference we are trying to make is a spiritual difference.
Jeremiah says (9:23-24), “This is what the LORD says: ‘Let not the wise man boast of his wisdom, or the strong man boast of his strength, or the rich man boast of his riches, but let him who boasts boast about this: that he understands and knows me, that I am the LORD, who exercises kindness, justice and righteousness on earth, for in these I delight,’ declares the LORD.”
Amen. Please don’t take the above as criticism of those who trained me, or who failed to train me. It is not. Rather, it is a criticism of myself and my way of thinking as I was preparing to become a missionary.
When it comes down to it, if I actually live in relationships with people (and not just make teaching appearances), people will be much more affected by my example than they ever will be by my teaching. What they see in my life will be more powerful than what comes out of my mouth. In fact, how I live my life in the quiet, private and trying moments will prove whether or not people should believe what I say. When I understand and know the Lord, and when I also exercise kindness, justice and righteousness in my life, then I will be an effective missionary.
Sunday, March 15, 2009
The Blessings of Restricted Access
I have often said that our situation here in The Location (a "closed" country) forces us to do things right. And this is not something I ever thought about before I came here.
Here in The Location...
We are not the ones up in front leading things.
We do not run big ministry programs.
We do not build church buildings.
We do not pay preachers.
We do small discipleship rather than mass evangelism.
We do Business as Missions.
We set up National Tentmakers.
I always thought of working in "closed," "restricted access," or "creative access" countries as simply an obstacle to overcome. I wanted to work in such a place over an "open country" because I knew that many of the most unreached peoples are living in restricted access countries. So, for me, doing other things besides traditional missions was simply an "evil necessity" because of the political situation. That is, we do business or tentmaking or development projects because we have to do it just to get in, but if this country was open, we'd dispose of those other things and just do ministry.
I don't view it this way any longer.
I discovered that the things I felt I was "forced" to do because of restricted access were actually the best things that a place like The Location needs from someone like me--a missionary from the West. And so I also discovered that the other things I might be doing if this were an "open" country are sometimes NOT the best things to be doing. My situation caused me to "think outside the box" when I was mostly used to traditional missionary approaches I had seen in places like Mexico, Haiti and Latin America and heard about from places like India and Thailand.
Some of the things I learned:
Here in The Location...
We are not the ones up in front leading things.
We do not run big ministry programs.
We do not build church buildings.
We do not pay preachers.
We do small discipleship rather than mass evangelism.
We do Business as Missions.
We set up National Tentmakers.
I always thought of working in "closed," "restricted access," or "creative access" countries as simply an obstacle to overcome. I wanted to work in such a place over an "open country" because I knew that many of the most unreached peoples are living in restricted access countries. So, for me, doing other things besides traditional missions was simply an "evil necessity" because of the political situation. That is, we do business or tentmaking or development projects because we have to do it just to get in, but if this country was open, we'd dispose of those other things and just do ministry.
I don't view it this way any longer.
I discovered that the things I felt I was "forced" to do because of restricted access were actually the best things that a place like The Location needs from someone like me--a missionary from the West. And so I also discovered that the other things I might be doing if this were an "open" country are sometimes NOT the best things to be doing. My situation caused me to "think outside the box" when I was mostly used to traditional missionary approaches I had seen in places like Mexico, Haiti and Latin America and heard about from places like India and Thailand.
Some of the things I learned:
- That as a foreigner I should not do things the nationals can do, but try to contribute in ways that are mostly impossible for the nationals to do without outside help.
- That building things like church buildings and Bible colleges tends to institutionalize Christianity as a religion rather than growing God's church as a living community.
- That for the most part we ignore the idea of "The Priesthood of All Believers" in our practices both at home and on "the mission field."
- That sustainability and reproducibility are definite and realizable goals and not just long-term hopes.
- That not only is discipleship a bigger need than evangelism (in our popular understanding of those two things), but that real evangelism is discipleship (in Jesus' understanding).
- That slow, deliberate growth is strong and ultimately more effective.
- That it is right for Christians to be deliberate about being in the world rather than isolating ourselves from the world, even though isolation is our pattern around the world.
So, for me, restricted access has become an opportunity to learn how to do things the right way. Another thing I have found myself saying often is that if The Location were to open up, begin offering missionary visas and inviting Christian workers, I would not change my approach to what we're doing here. It would basically stay the same.
Now I feel that even if God calls me to work in an open country (or in America) I would still do ministry in this fashion. That is a strong emphasis on discipleship and leadership training; indigenous leadership from the earliest stages of church planting; business as ministry that helps those who are poor to be able to feed and support themselves; setting up national tentmakers; and an emphasis on simple organic church communities that are easily reproducible and that live out the Priesthood of All Believers concept.
We should not view "tentmaking" or Business as Missions as a necessary evil for working in "closed" countries. Instead, we should consider how these approaches might work in more open places, too.
Saturday, February 21, 2009
Easy Money
Here at our location we are actively involved in discipleship. It is not the only thing we do. But I believe it is the core of what we are doing to reach this country and the many unreached people groups here. It would be easy to gather a bunch of people willing to go out and preach the gospel to other nationals here. However, if the right people aren't chosen, or if they are not properly discipled and prepared, it could be a disaster.
Corruption is a way of life in our location. Corruption is found, not only in the government and in those who serve as officials, officers and office workers, but in every other arena where money or power is found. In the market, people pay others off to get the corner stall. In private companies accountants and workers find ways to skim off money by lying and cheating. At the gas pump the attendants offer to write receipts for any amount you want so that the person buying fuel can keep the difference. In school, students get passing grades when when they buy "gifts" for their teachers. Many teachers encourage their students to cheat in order to pass. Far too many teachers offer special "tutoring" sessions at other times that students can attend for a small fee--and improve their chances of getting a good grade.
And corruption is found in the church, too. It is rampant. Money that is offered is kept by those in power. Money that is designated for certain people or needs is "taxed" by the pastors. Many pastors raise twice or triple the amount of money they need to build their churches. Those who have a position in the church try to use their faith to impress outsiders who might give them money. Often there is no accounting, no reporting and no transparency when it comes to the financial dealings of the pastor, who controls all the money. For all the things that are not taught about from the Bible, tithing is one that is never forgotten. And every single time an offering is gathered, the song "I Surrender All" is sung. I'm not kidding. If there is a second special offering, then they sing it twice.
It is the goal of many a young Christian here to be "sponsored" by a foreigner. Unlike in the US where many pastors make much less than the people in their congregations, here people can make out quite well on $50 a month, and live a much more comfortable life than they would if they were an upland farmer. So the idea of being "sponsored" to do any kind of ministry is very attractive. So much so, it attracts those who don't really have a heart for ministry but are interested in the good life.
So how do we avoid this? One way is that we have our young disciples do an internship. They live together up in the mountains, outside of town, and in addition to studying the Bible, they work. It is not very attractive because they don't make a lot of money (they make enough and more than they did before, but not anything to go ga-ga over) and they aren't studying English. Living in the country they don't have the opportunity to go to "fun" things in town like bars, dance clubs and festival events. Now, we do take them out on picnics, hikes and enjoyable things like that. But for those who are looking to just have fun and consume the foreigners money--well, they opt out. We have had more than one person decide to quit after joining us for a week. And that is okay. Our discipleship program is not for everyone. But we have designed it to help us weed out those who are not sincere and who are more interested in advancing themselves than they are in serving God and ministering to others.
Another way we avoid corruption is by giving our disciples good examples. They have all seen bad examples of Christians leaders. We want to show them there are those who are sincere and honest in their service to God. So, we have one such person who lives with our interns and disciples them on a daily basis. If they were to become like this man we will not be disappointed. We also bring in other national Christians to teach them for short-term series. We want them to see those national Christians who serve God in honest and effective ways and who aren't motivated or sustained by foreigners. We want to get past the idea (in national Christians' minds) that they can only do anything a foreigner sponsors them to do, and past the idea (in national non-Christians' minds) that Christianity is a foreign religion. Good national examples gives them the opportunity to see the light.
Another thing we do is we set high goals and standards for them. We have them read the entire Bible (most national Christians and even pastors have not ever done that). We have them memorize songs and scripture. We have them teach and share. We have them visit people in the village three times a week. We have them talk to the "big people" (village headmen and leaders), which is an intimidating thing for them to do, by inviting the village leaders to a dinner we host. We have them learn ways to do agriculture (raise fish, frogs, rabbits, plant fruit trees, soybeans, etc.) so that they will know how to feed themselves and their families without depending on anyone. In fact, that is one of our high standards for all of them--they must learn how to live AND serve God by working and making enough money to support themselves.
By the end of the internship everyone knows they haven't signed up for "easy money" from foreigners when they join with us. But they will have an example of how to live, work, eat and do ministry in a village by having done these very things with us.
So what do we do with them when we are finished? Stay tuned for my next post about that!
Corruption is a way of life in our location. Corruption is found, not only in the government and in those who serve as officials, officers and office workers, but in every other arena where money or power is found. In the market, people pay others off to get the corner stall. In private companies accountants and workers find ways to skim off money by lying and cheating. At the gas pump the attendants offer to write receipts for any amount you want so that the person buying fuel can keep the difference. In school, students get passing grades when when they buy "gifts" for their teachers. Many teachers encourage their students to cheat in order to pass. Far too many teachers offer special "tutoring" sessions at other times that students can attend for a small fee--and improve their chances of getting a good grade.
And corruption is found in the church, too. It is rampant. Money that is offered is kept by those in power. Money that is designated for certain people or needs is "taxed" by the pastors. Many pastors raise twice or triple the amount of money they need to build their churches. Those who have a position in the church try to use their faith to impress outsiders who might give them money. Often there is no accounting, no reporting and no transparency when it comes to the financial dealings of the pastor, who controls all the money. For all the things that are not taught about from the Bible, tithing is one that is never forgotten. And every single time an offering is gathered, the song "I Surrender All" is sung. I'm not kidding. If there is a second special offering, then they sing it twice.
It is the goal of many a young Christian here to be "sponsored" by a foreigner. Unlike in the US where many pastors make much less than the people in their congregations, here people can make out quite well on $50 a month, and live a much more comfortable life than they would if they were an upland farmer. So the idea of being "sponsored" to do any kind of ministry is very attractive. So much so, it attracts those who don't really have a heart for ministry but are interested in the good life.
So how do we avoid this? One way is that we have our young disciples do an internship. They live together up in the mountains, outside of town, and in addition to studying the Bible, they work. It is not very attractive because they don't make a lot of money (they make enough and more than they did before, but not anything to go ga-ga over) and they aren't studying English. Living in the country they don't have the opportunity to go to "fun" things in town like bars, dance clubs and festival events. Now, we do take them out on picnics, hikes and enjoyable things like that. But for those who are looking to just have fun and consume the foreigners money--well, they opt out. We have had more than one person decide to quit after joining us for a week. And that is okay. Our discipleship program is not for everyone. But we have designed it to help us weed out those who are not sincere and who are more interested in advancing themselves than they are in serving God and ministering to others.
Another way we avoid corruption is by giving our disciples good examples. They have all seen bad examples of Christians leaders. We want to show them there are those who are sincere and honest in their service to God. So, we have one such person who lives with our interns and disciples them on a daily basis. If they were to become like this man we will not be disappointed. We also bring in other national Christians to teach them for short-term series. We want them to see those national Christians who serve God in honest and effective ways and who aren't motivated or sustained by foreigners. We want to get past the idea (in national Christians' minds) that they can only do anything a foreigner sponsors them to do, and past the idea (in national non-Christians' minds) that Christianity is a foreign religion. Good national examples gives them the opportunity to see the light.
Another thing we do is we set high goals and standards for them. We have them read the entire Bible (most national Christians and even pastors have not ever done that). We have them memorize songs and scripture. We have them teach and share. We have them visit people in the village three times a week. We have them talk to the "big people" (village headmen and leaders), which is an intimidating thing for them to do, by inviting the village leaders to a dinner we host. We have them learn ways to do agriculture (raise fish, frogs, rabbits, plant fruit trees, soybeans, etc.) so that they will know how to feed themselves and their families without depending on anyone. In fact, that is one of our high standards for all of them--they must learn how to live AND serve God by working and making enough money to support themselves.
By the end of the internship everyone knows they haven't signed up for "easy money" from foreigners when they join with us. But they will have an example of how to live, work, eat and do ministry in a village by having done these very things with us.
So what do we do with them when we are finished? Stay tuned for my next post about that!
Thursday, February 19, 2009
Jesus' Discipleship #8: Commission
Over the next few days I will share with you some of my thoughts regarding how we prepare young people to serve God. I believe that the most effective leaders are not the ones who are taught, but the ones who are discipled. Jesus knew what he was doing when he took twelve disciples to follow and serve with him for three years rather than opening a school offering classes on theology.
If you have been following this series on Jesus’ Discipleship then you know that the last stage of Jesus’ approach for preparing the twelve disciples is that he sends them out permanently. You may be familiar with the words of Jesus in Matthew 28:18-20:
Then Jesus came to them and said, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. 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 told his disciples to go make disciples. How do you think they would do that? Probably not a lot unlike the way Jesus made them disciples. A part of making disciples was to baptize them into Christ and teach them to obey Christ.
The book of Acts chronicles much of the early witness and ministry of these twelve men. And though they are not without problems (confusion about God’s mission, confusion about Jewish-Gentile relationships and issues, controversy about distribution of goods, persecution, etc.), they have certainly become emboldened in their faith. They have grown up. They have become men of God. Those who were once disciples have now become apostles.
What is an apostle? The word apostle originated from the Greek word apostolos. This word means “one sent.” It is the noun form of the verb “to send.” It is basically the same as the word “missionary,” which is derived from the Latin word “to send,” missio. Jesus said to them, “As the Father has sent me, I am sending you.” (John 20:21) Jesus sent them with a mission when he told them to “go and make disciples of all nations….”
However, it would be remiss not to mention some of the significant events that happened in the lives of the disciples between the time when they were sent out on their short-term mission and the time they’re sent out permanently. These very events both tested them and further prepared them. Although, I don’t think we can repeat many of these for our own discipleship programs.
Messianic Storm. There was an incredible amount of hope surrounding Jesus during the later stages of his ministry on earth. The masses finally had an amazing sort of guy who was a good candidate to fulfill their prophetic hopes of a Messiah to come and save/lead them. Some believed. Some doubted. Many hoped. There was a storm of political and spiritual opinions blowing around Jesus and his disciples as they entered Jerusalem. The disciples were not immune to this storm and they knew they were near the center of all the talk in the city. They could feel that big things were about to happen, but they did not know what. They still didn’t understand what the promised Messiah would be. In fact, they still tended to think like the majority of people in Israel that he would be a political figure. They had no idea he had to die.
Final Meal. This wasn’t just any meal. It was full of anticipation. Jesus said his appointed time was near. (Matthew 26:18) As they were eating Jesus takes off his clothes and goes around washing everyone’s feet. He predicts his betrayal. He instructs them to eat the bread and drink the wine, symbols of his body and blood. Then he teaches them saying that their grief would turn to joy. The disciples didn’t understand.
Prayer. We see in John 17 that Jesus prayed for his disciples. He prayed earnestly. He committed all of his disciples to the Father. He prayed they would be one.
Betrayal. One of their own betrayed Jesus and had him arrested. This was a part of the Messianic storm—some believed Jesus to be a false messiah and wanted him dead. Perhaps Judas thought he could speed things along by forcing Jesus hand. We don’t know. But his betrayal played a part in the incredible events to follow. Jesus knew the betrayal was going to happen and told his disciples as much. But they all affirmed their allegiance and swore they would never fall away. But Jesus knew they didn’t even know what they were talking about. They would be tested.
Arrest, Trial, Crucifixion. Jesus was then arrested, tried and condemned to die by crucifixion—the most grueling form of capital punishment. His death proved to all the naysayers (so they thought) that Jesus was in fact NOT the messiah. (He was dead—how could he possibly redeem Israel now?) And his death crushed all the hopes of those who had believed—even the disciples. We can see this clearly in Luke 24:13-24 as two disciples talked with the risen Jesus not knowing it was him. “The chief priests and our rulers handed him over to be sentenced to death, and they crucified him; but we had hoped that he was the one who was going to redeem Israel.” They didn’t want to give up their faith, but their lack of understanding left them with no choice.
Resurrection. Seeing Jesus risen from the dead had a profound impact on the disciples. Well of course it did! How could it not have had an impact? Slowly, the disciples began to believe again, although their paradigms were not just being shifted—they were being torn out of place and moved to another hemisphere. Some still doubted and wondered why Jesus would be going up into heaven and not “redeeming Israel” as they still expected him to. But they would soon come to complete understanding that Jesus died to redeem people from sin and Satan’s kingdom.
Holy Spirit. Jesus gave them the Holy Spirit. We see in Acts 2 that they Holy Spirit caused the disciples to start speaking in all of the regional languages of the day. So they immediately started praising God in those languages and telling the native listeners (who were in town for the Pentecost festival) about Jesus. The mission was underway.
Though we can’t stage all of these events for each group of people we disciple, we can certainly help them understand what Jesus’ first disciples experienced. The same Jesus who died and rose again is still alive for us now. The same Holy Spirit who enabled and led the first disciples can enable and lead us now. The transformation those disciples experienced can be experienced by all of those who put their trust in Jesus and follow him as Lord in our days. The transformation is necessary. It motivates us to the point where we have to share the good news.
And so they were sent out. They were tried, tested, reaffirmed, ridiculed and persecuted. But they led thousands of people from many ethnicities to find forgiveness in Christ and reconciliation with God. The world would never be the same because of them. They were never the same because of Jesus. Many of them, if not all, were eventually put to death for their witness about Christ. And Jesus sent them ahead knowing this would be the case.
Like Jesus, we can pray for those we send out. Jesus prayed in John 17:11, “I will remain in the world no longer, but they are still in the world, and I am coming to you. Holy Father, protect them by the power of your name—the name you gave me—so that they may be one as we are one.” Even though they were martyred God protected them from Satan’s influence. They never gave up their faith again and they accomplished the mission of making disciples that Jesus had given them. May we pray that those we disciple will do the same.
Eight post summary:
1. Jesus’ life was already an ongoing example of effective ministry, of which he later included them, before he called them and before he sent them out to do ministry on their own.
2. After spending time in prayer Jesus chose specific people to be his disciples, to live with him and follow him for about three years. He chose a limited number of people and poured himself into them rather than trying to get as many as he could.
3. Jesus didn’t simply make scheduled teaching appearances with his disciples but invited them to live with him 24/7. They did not only hear what he was about, they saw it every day.
4. Jesus spent time teaching his disciples important concepts and truths so they would have understanding. He taught them in ways that were not available for those in the general public who followed him.
5. Jesus responded to events, circumstances, questions and persecution in society and used these as a context to teach and train his disciples.
6. Jesus trained his disciples and gave them special abilities to minister to the felt needs of the people. In helping people with their physical problems they would have an audience for their spiritual message.
7. Jesus sent his disciples out to do ministry (preach and heal) on a temporary basis so they would have experience for when they would do so permanently. When they returned the disciples reported what they had done and Jesus debriefed them, teaching things they would not have learned except for their trial experience. Jesus didn’t send them cross-culturally but to those of the same culture so they could have an immediate impact.
8. Jesus sent out his disciples (now apostles) permanently after the series of incredible events that form the core of the gospel message that we have forgiveness of sins because of Jesus’ death and eternal life because of his resurrection. Jesus prayed earnestly for his disciples, enabled them by the Holy Spirit, and commissioned them to make disciples of all nations.
If you have been following this series on Jesus’ Discipleship then you know that the last stage of Jesus’ approach for preparing the twelve disciples is that he sends them out permanently. You may be familiar with the words of Jesus in Matthew 28:18-20:
Then Jesus came to them and said, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. 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 told his disciples to go make disciples. How do you think they would do that? Probably not a lot unlike the way Jesus made them disciples. A part of making disciples was to baptize them into Christ and teach them to obey Christ.
The book of Acts chronicles much of the early witness and ministry of these twelve men. And though they are not without problems (confusion about God’s mission, confusion about Jewish-Gentile relationships and issues, controversy about distribution of goods, persecution, etc.), they have certainly become emboldened in their faith. They have grown up. They have become men of God. Those who were once disciples have now become apostles.
What is an apostle? The word apostle originated from the Greek word apostolos. This word means “one sent.” It is the noun form of the verb “to send.” It is basically the same as the word “missionary,” which is derived from the Latin word “to send,” missio. Jesus said to them, “As the Father has sent me, I am sending you.” (John 20:21) Jesus sent them with a mission when he told them to “go and make disciples of all nations….”
However, it would be remiss not to mention some of the significant events that happened in the lives of the disciples between the time when they were sent out on their short-term mission and the time they’re sent out permanently. These very events both tested them and further prepared them. Although, I don’t think we can repeat many of these for our own discipleship programs.
Messianic Storm. There was an incredible amount of hope surrounding Jesus during the later stages of his ministry on earth. The masses finally had an amazing sort of guy who was a good candidate to fulfill their prophetic hopes of a Messiah to come and save/lead them. Some believed. Some doubted. Many hoped. There was a storm of political and spiritual opinions blowing around Jesus and his disciples as they entered Jerusalem. The disciples were not immune to this storm and they knew they were near the center of all the talk in the city. They could feel that big things were about to happen, but they did not know what. They still didn’t understand what the promised Messiah would be. In fact, they still tended to think like the majority of people in Israel that he would be a political figure. They had no idea he had to die.
Final Meal. This wasn’t just any meal. It was full of anticipation. Jesus said his appointed time was near. (Matthew 26:18) As they were eating Jesus takes off his clothes and goes around washing everyone’s feet. He predicts his betrayal. He instructs them to eat the bread and drink the wine, symbols of his body and blood. Then he teaches them saying that their grief would turn to joy. The disciples didn’t understand.
Prayer. We see in John 17 that Jesus prayed for his disciples. He prayed earnestly. He committed all of his disciples to the Father. He prayed they would be one.
Betrayal. One of their own betrayed Jesus and had him arrested. This was a part of the Messianic storm—some believed Jesus to be a false messiah and wanted him dead. Perhaps Judas thought he could speed things along by forcing Jesus hand. We don’t know. But his betrayal played a part in the incredible events to follow. Jesus knew the betrayal was going to happen and told his disciples as much. But they all affirmed their allegiance and swore they would never fall away. But Jesus knew they didn’t even know what they were talking about. They would be tested.
Arrest, Trial, Crucifixion. Jesus was then arrested, tried and condemned to die by crucifixion—the most grueling form of capital punishment. His death proved to all the naysayers (so they thought) that Jesus was in fact NOT the messiah. (He was dead—how could he possibly redeem Israel now?) And his death crushed all the hopes of those who had believed—even the disciples. We can see this clearly in Luke 24:13-24 as two disciples talked with the risen Jesus not knowing it was him. “The chief priests and our rulers handed him over to be sentenced to death, and they crucified him; but we had hoped that he was the one who was going to redeem Israel.” They didn’t want to give up their faith, but their lack of understanding left them with no choice.
Resurrection. Seeing Jesus risen from the dead had a profound impact on the disciples. Well of course it did! How could it not have had an impact? Slowly, the disciples began to believe again, although their paradigms were not just being shifted—they were being torn out of place and moved to another hemisphere. Some still doubted and wondered why Jesus would be going up into heaven and not “redeeming Israel” as they still expected him to. But they would soon come to complete understanding that Jesus died to redeem people from sin and Satan’s kingdom.
Holy Spirit. Jesus gave them the Holy Spirit. We see in Acts 2 that they Holy Spirit caused the disciples to start speaking in all of the regional languages of the day. So they immediately started praising God in those languages and telling the native listeners (who were in town for the Pentecost festival) about Jesus. The mission was underway.
Though we can’t stage all of these events for each group of people we disciple, we can certainly help them understand what Jesus’ first disciples experienced. The same Jesus who died and rose again is still alive for us now. The same Holy Spirit who enabled and led the first disciples can enable and lead us now. The transformation those disciples experienced can be experienced by all of those who put their trust in Jesus and follow him as Lord in our days. The transformation is necessary. It motivates us to the point where we have to share the good news.
And so they were sent out. They were tried, tested, reaffirmed, ridiculed and persecuted. But they led thousands of people from many ethnicities to find forgiveness in Christ and reconciliation with God. The world would never be the same because of them. They were never the same because of Jesus. Many of them, if not all, were eventually put to death for their witness about Christ. And Jesus sent them ahead knowing this would be the case.
Like Jesus, we can pray for those we send out. Jesus prayed in John 17:11, “I will remain in the world no longer, but they are still in the world, and I am coming to you. Holy Father, protect them by the power of your name—the name you gave me—so that they may be one as we are one.” Even though they were martyred God protected them from Satan’s influence. They never gave up their faith again and they accomplished the mission of making disciples that Jesus had given them. May we pray that those we disciple will do the same.
Eight post summary:
1. Jesus’ life was already an ongoing example of effective ministry, of which he later included them, before he called them and before he sent them out to do ministry on their own.
2. After spending time in prayer Jesus chose specific people to be his disciples, to live with him and follow him for about three years. He chose a limited number of people and poured himself into them rather than trying to get as many as he could.
3. Jesus didn’t simply make scheduled teaching appearances with his disciples but invited them to live with him 24/7. They did not only hear what he was about, they saw it every day.
4. Jesus spent time teaching his disciples important concepts and truths so they would have understanding. He taught them in ways that were not available for those in the general public who followed him.
5. Jesus responded to events, circumstances, questions and persecution in society and used these as a context to teach and train his disciples.
6. Jesus trained his disciples and gave them special abilities to minister to the felt needs of the people. In helping people with their physical problems they would have an audience for their spiritual message.
7. Jesus sent his disciples out to do ministry (preach and heal) on a temporary basis so they would have experience for when they would do so permanently. When they returned the disciples reported what they had done and Jesus debriefed them, teaching things they would not have learned except for their trial experience. Jesus didn’t send them cross-culturally but to those of the same culture so they could have an immediate impact.
8. Jesus sent out his disciples (now apostles) permanently after the series of incredible events that form the core of the gospel message that we have forgiveness of sins because of Jesus’ death and eternal life because of his resurrection. Jesus prayed earnestly for his disciples, enabled them by the Holy Spirit, and commissioned them to make disciples of all nations.
Tuesday, February 17, 2009
Jesus' Discipleship #7: Send and Debrief
Over the next few days I will share with you some of my thoughts regarding how we prepare young people to serve God. I believe that the most effective leaders are not the ones who are taught, but the ones who are discipled. Jesus knew what he was doing when he took twelve disciples to follow and serve with him for three years rather than opening a school offering classes on theology.
Jesus’ ultimate purpose in taking disciples and training them was to one day send them out to teach and do ministry on their own in a similar fashion to how they were doing it with Jesus. But Jesus didn’t just dump them on the world. Before he sent them out permanently, he sent them out temporarily.
Before sending them out, Jesus instructed them on what to do (preach the kingdom of God and heal the sick) and when they returned they reported to Jesus all they had done. (Luke 9:1-10) Jesus took them away to a quiet place to get some rest (Mark 6:31) and presumably “debrief” them on all they did and encountered. When Jesus sent out 72 disciples in a similar fashion in Luke 10, it is clear that Jesus was careful to correct some potentially dangerous thinking when he debriefed them. They excitedly reported to Jesus that even demons submitted to them in his name. But Jesus warned them to be excited about their salvation, not about their presumed spiritual power.
By sending the disciples out for a “short-term mission” they not only gained valuable experience for when the time came to do it on their own, but Jesus was also able to teach them in ways that would be impossible if they hadn’t had those experiences. By debriefing them, Jesus helped prepare them even more.
Another interesting point is that Jesus didn’t send them cross-cultural for this experience. Certainly, that time would come and we see it when we read the book of Acts. However, in Matthew 10:5-6 he says, “Do not go among the Gentiles or enter any town of the Samaritans. Go rather to the lost sheep of Israel.” It would be a mistake to say that it was because Jesus was teaching them to look down upon outsiders that he didn’t send his disciples to them. No, at the end of the same book (Matthew 28) we see Jesus sending them to “all nations.” My thought is that Jesus knew they would only be going for a short time so he sent them to people with whom he knew they could make an immediate impact. Sending them to other ethnicities would have required more time for them to learn the languages and cultures. That would come later (Acts 2 when they were given the ability to speak these other languages), but for now, they would serve with people in their same culture. By doing this they were still prepared to do so cross-culturally in the future.
Note: It would be incorrect to call what the disciples did on their short-term trip an “internship.” That is because an internship is usually done under the tutelage of someone more experienced. It would be more appropriate to call the three-year time they spent with Jesus their “internship” and their short-term mission a “trial ministry.” If we prepared our young brothers and sisters in the US for ministry in the same way, they would do a three-year internship under the tutelage of an effective minister/ministry while being taught through that experience, and then they would be sent out to do ministry in a separate, unsupervised location, for a short period of time as a trial ministry, before being sent out to do permanent ministry.
Seven post summary:
1. Jesus’ life was already an ongoing example of effective ministry, of which he later included them, before he called them and before he sent them out to do ministry on their own.
2. After spending time in prayer Jesus chose specific people to be his disciples, to live with him and follow him for about three years. He chose a limited number of people and poured himself into them rather than trying to get as many as he could.
3. Jesus didn’t simply make scheduled teaching appearances with his disciples but invited them to live with him 24/7. They did not only hear what he was about, they saw it every day.
4. Jesus spent time teaching his disciples important concepts and truths so they would have understanding. He taught them in ways that were not available for those in the general public who followed him.
5. Jesus responded to events, circumstances, questions and persecution in society and used these as a context to teach and train his disciples.
6. Jesus trained his disciples and gave them special abilities to minister to the felt needs of the people. In helping people with their physical problems they would have an audience for their spiritual message.
7. Jesus sent his disciples out to do ministry (preach and heal) on a temporary basis so they would have experience for when they would do so permanently. When they returned the disciples reported what they had done and Jesus debriefed them, teaching things they would not have learned except for their trial experience. Jesus didn’t send them cross-culturally but to those of the same culture so they could have an immediate impact.
Jesus’ ultimate purpose in taking disciples and training them was to one day send them out to teach and do ministry on their own in a similar fashion to how they were doing it with Jesus. But Jesus didn’t just dump them on the world. Before he sent them out permanently, he sent them out temporarily.
Before sending them out, Jesus instructed them on what to do (preach the kingdom of God and heal the sick) and when they returned they reported to Jesus all they had done. (Luke 9:1-10) Jesus took them away to a quiet place to get some rest (Mark 6:31) and presumably “debrief” them on all they did and encountered. When Jesus sent out 72 disciples in a similar fashion in Luke 10, it is clear that Jesus was careful to correct some potentially dangerous thinking when he debriefed them. They excitedly reported to Jesus that even demons submitted to them in his name. But Jesus warned them to be excited about their salvation, not about their presumed spiritual power.
By sending the disciples out for a “short-term mission” they not only gained valuable experience for when the time came to do it on their own, but Jesus was also able to teach them in ways that would be impossible if they hadn’t had those experiences. By debriefing them, Jesus helped prepare them even more.
Another interesting point is that Jesus didn’t send them cross-cultural for this experience. Certainly, that time would come and we see it when we read the book of Acts. However, in Matthew 10:5-6 he says, “Do not go among the Gentiles or enter any town of the Samaritans. Go rather to the lost sheep of Israel.” It would be a mistake to say that it was because Jesus was teaching them to look down upon outsiders that he didn’t send his disciples to them. No, at the end of the same book (Matthew 28) we see Jesus sending them to “all nations.” My thought is that Jesus knew they would only be going for a short time so he sent them to people with whom he knew they could make an immediate impact. Sending them to other ethnicities would have required more time for them to learn the languages and cultures. That would come later (Acts 2 when they were given the ability to speak these other languages), but for now, they would serve with people in their same culture. By doing this they were still prepared to do so cross-culturally in the future.
Note: It would be incorrect to call what the disciples did on their short-term trip an “internship.” That is because an internship is usually done under the tutelage of someone more experienced. It would be more appropriate to call the three-year time they spent with Jesus their “internship” and their short-term mission a “trial ministry.” If we prepared our young brothers and sisters in the US for ministry in the same way, they would do a three-year internship under the tutelage of an effective minister/ministry while being taught through that experience, and then they would be sent out to do ministry in a separate, unsupervised location, for a short period of time as a trial ministry, before being sent out to do permanent ministry.
Seven post summary:
1. Jesus’ life was already an ongoing example of effective ministry, of which he later included them, before he called them and before he sent them out to do ministry on their own.
2. After spending time in prayer Jesus chose specific people to be his disciples, to live with him and follow him for about three years. He chose a limited number of people and poured himself into them rather than trying to get as many as he could.
3. Jesus didn’t simply make scheduled teaching appearances with his disciples but invited them to live with him 24/7. They did not only hear what he was about, they saw it every day.
4. Jesus spent time teaching his disciples important concepts and truths so they would have understanding. He taught them in ways that were not available for those in the general public who followed him.
5. Jesus responded to events, circumstances, questions and persecution in society and used these as a context to teach and train his disciples.
6. Jesus trained his disciples and gave them special abilities to minister to the felt needs of the people. In helping people with their physical problems they would have an audience for their spiritual message.
7. Jesus sent his disciples out to do ministry (preach and heal) on a temporary basis so they would have experience for when they would do so permanently. When they returned the disciples reported what they had done and Jesus debriefed them, teaching things they would not have learned except for their trial experience. Jesus didn’t send them cross-culturally but to those of the same culture so they could have an immediate impact.
Monday, February 16, 2009
Jesus' Discipleship #6: Impart Abilities
Over the next few days I will share with you some of my thoughts regarding how we prepare young people to serve God. I believe that the most effective leaders are not the ones who are taught, but the ones who are discipled. Jesus knew what he was doing when he took twelve disciples to follow and serve with him for three years rather than opening a school offering classes on theology.
The tall African man stood up in front of the class and asked the room full of mid-western Bible college students, “When you come to my country with your Bible degree—what do you have to offer the people here? Will our government let you in? Will a company hire you to fill a position? Will you know how to install water systems? Will you know how to grow crops to feed the hungry or vaccinate their livestock? Will you know how to train the people in health education? Will you be able to teach them about business? Will you be able to process and market their products to international companies?”
The point was well-taken. Many times we are prepared only for spiritual needs and strategies for planting churches. We have learned the Bible well, but we have nothing to offer people in the areas they are most concerned about. True, people’s greatest need is to be forgiven and reconciled to God—but addressing felt needs is often the best way that we show love and compassion and open the door to spiritual transformation. Jesus did this very thing. He healed the sick. He fed the hungry. And he also preached repentance to those same people.
Jesus also equipped his disciples to meet the felt needs of people. Jesus trained his disciples and gave them special abilities to use among the people. In Matthew 10 Jesus sends out his twelve disciples on a short-term mission and instructs them to preach the message of God’s kingdom, and to “heal the sick, raise the dead, cleanse those who have leprosy, [and] drive out demons.” (Matthew 10:8)
But before he sent them out, Matthew 10:1 says that Jesus, “gave them authority to drive out evil spirits and to heal every disease and sickness.” Before he sent them out, he prepared them to deal with the real issues people were facing. In helping people with their physical problems they would have an audience for their spiritual message.
An important part of our discipleship program here at our location is training our young interns in agriculture. Because a large percentage of the population of this country works in agriculture, this is a very important subject. In particular, we teach our interns to be able to do certain things that most nationals don’t already know how to do, such as raise tilapia or frogs, make organic fertilizer, grow soybeans, cultivate and plant fruit trees. Even if our interns do not continue on to work with us, they have valuable skills to use and introduce to their own villages. These will help them not only to feed their own families, but to help others to feed their families, too. It will also give them an opportunity to build relationships with people and share the message of Christ.
Six post summary:
1. Jesus’ life was already an ongoing example of effective ministry, of which he later included them, before he called them and before he sent them out to do ministry on their own.
2. After spending time in prayer Jesus chose specific people to be his disciples, to live with him and follow him for about three years. He chose a limited number of people and poured himself into them rather than trying to get as many as he could.
3. Jesus didn’t simply make scheduled teaching appearances with his disciples but invited them to live with him 24/7. They did not only hear what he was about, they saw it every day.
4. Jesus spent time teaching his disciples important concepts and truths so they would have understanding. He taught them in ways that were not available for those in the general public who followed him.
5. Jesus responded to events, circumstances, questions and persecution in society and used these as a context to teach and train his disciples.
6. Jesus trained his disciples and gave them special abilities to minister to the felt needs of the people. In helping people with their physical problems they would have an audience for their spiritual message.
The tall African man stood up in front of the class and asked the room full of mid-western Bible college students, “When you come to my country with your Bible degree—what do you have to offer the people here? Will our government let you in? Will a company hire you to fill a position? Will you know how to install water systems? Will you know how to grow crops to feed the hungry or vaccinate their livestock? Will you know how to train the people in health education? Will you be able to teach them about business? Will you be able to process and market their products to international companies?”
The point was well-taken. Many times we are prepared only for spiritual needs and strategies for planting churches. We have learned the Bible well, but we have nothing to offer people in the areas they are most concerned about. True, people’s greatest need is to be forgiven and reconciled to God—but addressing felt needs is often the best way that we show love and compassion and open the door to spiritual transformation. Jesus did this very thing. He healed the sick. He fed the hungry. And he also preached repentance to those same people.
Jesus also equipped his disciples to meet the felt needs of people. Jesus trained his disciples and gave them special abilities to use among the people. In Matthew 10 Jesus sends out his twelve disciples on a short-term mission and instructs them to preach the message of God’s kingdom, and to “heal the sick, raise the dead, cleanse those who have leprosy, [and] drive out demons.” (Matthew 10:8)
But before he sent them out, Matthew 10:1 says that Jesus, “gave them authority to drive out evil spirits and to heal every disease and sickness.” Before he sent them out, he prepared them to deal with the real issues people were facing. In helping people with their physical problems they would have an audience for their spiritual message.
An important part of our discipleship program here at our location is training our young interns in agriculture. Because a large percentage of the population of this country works in agriculture, this is a very important subject. In particular, we teach our interns to be able to do certain things that most nationals don’t already know how to do, such as raise tilapia or frogs, make organic fertilizer, grow soybeans, cultivate and plant fruit trees. Even if our interns do not continue on to work with us, they have valuable skills to use and introduce to their own villages. These will help them not only to feed their own families, but to help others to feed their families, too. It will also give them an opportunity to build relationships with people and share the message of Christ.
Six post summary:
1. Jesus’ life was already an ongoing example of effective ministry, of which he later included them, before he called them and before he sent them out to do ministry on their own.
2. After spending time in prayer Jesus chose specific people to be his disciples, to live with him and follow him for about three years. He chose a limited number of people and poured himself into them rather than trying to get as many as he could.
3. Jesus didn’t simply make scheduled teaching appearances with his disciples but invited them to live with him 24/7. They did not only hear what he was about, they saw it every day.
4. Jesus spent time teaching his disciples important concepts and truths so they would have understanding. He taught them in ways that were not available for those in the general public who followed him.
5. Jesus responded to events, circumstances, questions and persecution in society and used these as a context to teach and train his disciples.
6. Jesus trained his disciples and gave them special abilities to minister to the felt needs of the people. In helping people with their physical problems they would have an audience for their spiritual message.
Sunday, February 15, 2009
Jesus' Discipleship #5: Crux of Discipleship
Over the next few days I will share with you some of my thoughts regarding how we prepare young people to serve God. I believe that the most effective leaders are not the ones who are taught, but the ones who are discipled. Jesus knew what he was doing when he took twelve disciples to follow and serve with him for three years rather than opening a school offering classes on theology.
Perhaps the crux of discipleship that Jesus employed with his 12 disciples was responding to events, circumstances, questions and persecution.
In living life together you face everything together. When things happened to Jesus, the disciples were right there with him. When things happened to the disciples, Jesus was right there with them. How Jesus would respond to such events became some of the most crucial and memorable teaching moments of his time with the twelve disciples. In fact, in reading the Gospels, the bulk of the narrative about Jesus and his disciples is in describing how Jesus responded to events and questions that arose in the course of their lives together. These instances became the most critical lessons the disciples learned. And one could argue that these lessons were learned much better than any other thing they were taught.
When the people brought children to Jesus and the disciples balked, Jesus taught them about their importance to God. (Matthew 19:13-15)
When Jesus saw the widow offer her two pennies to the temple treasury, he pointed it out and taught his disciples about giving their all. (Luke 21:1-4)
When Jesus observed the condition of self-righteousness in the religious leaders, he told a parable to his disciples about a tax-collector begging for mercy and humbling himself before God. (Luke 18:9-14)
When a rich young man approached Jesus and asked him how to be saved, Jesus taught about sacrifice. (Matthew 19:16-30)
When Jesus saw a crowd of hungry people he responded by miraculously feeding them. (John 6:1-13)
When the Pharisees opposed Jesus and complained about his disciples “unlawfully” eating the heads of grain on the Sabbath, Jesus taught from the Old Testament about the meaning of the Sabbath. (Mark 2:23-27)
When friends of a paralyzed man lowered him through a roof in front of Jesus, Jesus forgave his sins and healed him. (Mark 2:1-12)
So many more examples could be raised. And one thing is true--had the disciples not been living together with Jesus 24/7, most of these opportunities would have been lost. But this demonstrates the power of the witness of a godly person who puts himself in contact with society and responds in godly ways to events, circumstances, needs, questions and persecutions.
We would do well to simply follow Jesus’ example and do away with religious “programs” all together. Instead of planning an event and inviting people to it, Jesus went out among the general population and did effective ministry by responding to events that arose in everyday life. And then he used those situations and responses to teach and train his disciples. After seeing how Jesus performed among society, the disciples would have a good basis for doing likewise on their own.
One of the most exciting parts of our discipleship training here in our location is that several times a week our interns visit people in the adjoining village. They go out with no agenda other than to spend time with the people, get to know them and to be sensitive to ways in which they can serve those they meet. In the course of doing this they have helped people prepare their crops for the market, repaired their houses and participated in many conversations about God and the Bible. Responding to real events and real people becomes one of the most effective forms of ministry we can do.
Five post summary:
1. Jesus’ life was already an ongoing example of effective ministry, of which he later included them, before he called them and before he sent them out to do ministry on their own.
2. After spending time in prayer Jesus chose specific people to be his disciples, to live with him and follow him for about three years. He chose a limited number of people and poured himself into them rather than trying to get as many as he could.
3. Jesus didn’t simply make scheduled teaching appearances with his disciples but invited them to live with him 24/7. They did not only hear what he was about, they saw it every day.
4. Jesus spent time teaching his disciples important concepts and truths so they would have understanding. He taught them in ways that were not available for those in the general public who followed him.
5. Jesus responded to events, circumstances, questions and persecution in society and used these as a context to teach and train his disciples.
Perhaps the crux of discipleship that Jesus employed with his 12 disciples was responding to events, circumstances, questions and persecution.
In living life together you face everything together. When things happened to Jesus, the disciples were right there with him. When things happened to the disciples, Jesus was right there with them. How Jesus would respond to such events became some of the most crucial and memorable teaching moments of his time with the twelve disciples. In fact, in reading the Gospels, the bulk of the narrative about Jesus and his disciples is in describing how Jesus responded to events and questions that arose in the course of their lives together. These instances became the most critical lessons the disciples learned. And one could argue that these lessons were learned much better than any other thing they were taught.
When the people brought children to Jesus and the disciples balked, Jesus taught them about their importance to God. (Matthew 19:13-15)
When Jesus saw the widow offer her two pennies to the temple treasury, he pointed it out and taught his disciples about giving their all. (Luke 21:1-4)
When Jesus observed the condition of self-righteousness in the religious leaders, he told a parable to his disciples about a tax-collector begging for mercy and humbling himself before God. (Luke 18:9-14)
When a rich young man approached Jesus and asked him how to be saved, Jesus taught about sacrifice. (Matthew 19:16-30)
When Jesus saw a crowd of hungry people he responded by miraculously feeding them. (John 6:1-13)
When the Pharisees opposed Jesus and complained about his disciples “unlawfully” eating the heads of grain on the Sabbath, Jesus taught from the Old Testament about the meaning of the Sabbath. (Mark 2:23-27)
When friends of a paralyzed man lowered him through a roof in front of Jesus, Jesus forgave his sins and healed him. (Mark 2:1-12)
So many more examples could be raised. And one thing is true--had the disciples not been living together with Jesus 24/7, most of these opportunities would have been lost. But this demonstrates the power of the witness of a godly person who puts himself in contact with society and responds in godly ways to events, circumstances, needs, questions and persecutions.
We would do well to simply follow Jesus’ example and do away with religious “programs” all together. Instead of planning an event and inviting people to it, Jesus went out among the general population and did effective ministry by responding to events that arose in everyday life. And then he used those situations and responses to teach and train his disciples. After seeing how Jesus performed among society, the disciples would have a good basis for doing likewise on their own.
One of the most exciting parts of our discipleship training here in our location is that several times a week our interns visit people in the adjoining village. They go out with no agenda other than to spend time with the people, get to know them and to be sensitive to ways in which they can serve those they meet. In the course of doing this they have helped people prepare their crops for the market, repaired their houses and participated in many conversations about God and the Bible. Responding to real events and real people becomes one of the most effective forms of ministry we can do.
Five post summary:
1. Jesus’ life was already an ongoing example of effective ministry, of which he later included them, before he called them and before he sent them out to do ministry on their own.
2. After spending time in prayer Jesus chose specific people to be his disciples, to live with him and follow him for about three years. He chose a limited number of people and poured himself into them rather than trying to get as many as he could.
3. Jesus didn’t simply make scheduled teaching appearances with his disciples but invited them to live with him 24/7. They did not only hear what he was about, they saw it every day.
4. Jesus spent time teaching his disciples important concepts and truths so they would have understanding. He taught them in ways that were not available for those in the general public who followed him.
5. Jesus responded to events, circumstances, questions and persecution in society and used these as a context to teach and train his disciples.
Saturday, February 14, 2009
Jesus' Discipleship #4: Ears to Hear
Over the next few days I will share with you some of my thoughts regarding how we prepare young people to serve God. I believe that the most effective leaders are not the ones who are taught, but the ones who are discipled. Jesus knew what he was doing when he took twelve disciples to follow and serve with him for three years rather than opening a school offering classes on theology.
Discipleship requires teaching. Yes, discipleship is more than academic training. Yes, the best lessons our disciples can learn will come from the examples we give them. But if we are going to dismantle wrong ways of thinking and open their eyes to understanding relevant truths, we have to explain some things.
If we read in the gospels we will see Jesus telling the masses a lot of stories. Parables. Sometimes we assume that Jesus’ reason for telling stories was simply his folksy nature of reaching out to normal people. It is true that people will remember a story much longer than they will a theory, so using stories is an effective form of communication. However, there were political reasons, too.
When Jesus told his stories he often said something to the effect of, “He who has ears to hear, let him hear.” To ‘hear’ means to understand. Jesus wanted people to understand, but he wanted them to think about it, too. Those who would mull over the meaning of one of Jesus’ stories, and then figure out the meaning, would be one who had “ears to hear.” This also means that there would be those who wouldn’t understand the meaning of Jesus’ words. Stating plainly to the world, “I am the Christ,” would have some severe consequences. First, it would be a miscommunication knowing that most people had a misconception about who the messiah was to be and what he was to do. Second, such a statement would have gotten Jesus arrested a lot faster than he did. The time was not yet right as Jesus had to prepare his disciples first.
With that in mind, Jesus often pulled his disciples aside and explained to them the meaning of parables. He would teach them in ways not available for those in the general public who followed him. Even if the disciples didn’t have “ears to hear” for themselves, Jesus would explain so they could understand. And beyond explaining parables, Jesus often taught his disciples many lessons he did not share with the crowds.
Teaching people the truth is more than teaching doctrine. Jesus didn’t just want his disciples to be able to rattle off seven points regarding a particular systematic theology. No, he wanted them to understand. Understanding true things that were previously misunderstood is gaining the ability to “see” and to “hear.” Once we are hearing and seeing, we then become passionate about showing these truths to others so that they, too, can see and understand. Jesus said, “You will know the truth and the truth will set you free.”
Teaching our interns is an important part of our discipleship program here at our location even though it is not the only thing we do. Beyond reading the Bible on their own, our interns spend two hours each morning studying lessons and concepts regarding God and living according to his will. It is important for them not to simply be taught about God’s way, but for them to really grasp it, and to understand the real problems and issues people face in this world. One of our most common prayers we pray with our interns is, “Please give us eyes to see and ears to hear.”
Four post summary:
1. Jesus’ life was already an ongoing example of effective ministry, of which he later included them, before he called them and before he sent them out to do ministry on their own.
2. After spending time in prayer Jesus chose specific people to be his disciples, to live with him and follow him for about three years. He chose a limited number of people and poured himself into them rather than trying to get as many as he could.
3. Jesus didn’t simply make scheduled teaching appearances with his disciples but invited them to live with him 24/7. They did not only hear what he was about, they saw it every day.
4. Jesus spent time teaching his disciples important concepts and truths so they would have understanding. He taught them in ways that were not available for those in the general public who followed him.
Discipleship requires teaching. Yes, discipleship is more than academic training. Yes, the best lessons our disciples can learn will come from the examples we give them. But if we are going to dismantle wrong ways of thinking and open their eyes to understanding relevant truths, we have to explain some things.
If we read in the gospels we will see Jesus telling the masses a lot of stories. Parables. Sometimes we assume that Jesus’ reason for telling stories was simply his folksy nature of reaching out to normal people. It is true that people will remember a story much longer than they will a theory, so using stories is an effective form of communication. However, there were political reasons, too.
When Jesus told his stories he often said something to the effect of, “He who has ears to hear, let him hear.” To ‘hear’ means to understand. Jesus wanted people to understand, but he wanted them to think about it, too. Those who would mull over the meaning of one of Jesus’ stories, and then figure out the meaning, would be one who had “ears to hear.” This also means that there would be those who wouldn’t understand the meaning of Jesus’ words. Stating plainly to the world, “I am the Christ,” would have some severe consequences. First, it would be a miscommunication knowing that most people had a misconception about who the messiah was to be and what he was to do. Second, such a statement would have gotten Jesus arrested a lot faster than he did. The time was not yet right as Jesus had to prepare his disciples first.
With that in mind, Jesus often pulled his disciples aside and explained to them the meaning of parables. He would teach them in ways not available for those in the general public who followed him. Even if the disciples didn’t have “ears to hear” for themselves, Jesus would explain so they could understand. And beyond explaining parables, Jesus often taught his disciples many lessons he did not share with the crowds.
Teaching people the truth is more than teaching doctrine. Jesus didn’t just want his disciples to be able to rattle off seven points regarding a particular systematic theology. No, he wanted them to understand. Understanding true things that were previously misunderstood is gaining the ability to “see” and to “hear.” Once we are hearing and seeing, we then become passionate about showing these truths to others so that they, too, can see and understand. Jesus said, “You will know the truth and the truth will set you free.”
Teaching our interns is an important part of our discipleship program here at our location even though it is not the only thing we do. Beyond reading the Bible on their own, our interns spend two hours each morning studying lessons and concepts regarding God and living according to his will. It is important for them not to simply be taught about God’s way, but for them to really grasp it, and to understand the real problems and issues people face in this world. One of our most common prayers we pray with our interns is, “Please give us eyes to see and ears to hear.”
Four post summary:
1. Jesus’ life was already an ongoing example of effective ministry, of which he later included them, before he called them and before he sent them out to do ministry on their own.
2. After spending time in prayer Jesus chose specific people to be his disciples, to live with him and follow him for about three years. He chose a limited number of people and poured himself into them rather than trying to get as many as he could.
3. Jesus didn’t simply make scheduled teaching appearances with his disciples but invited them to live with him 24/7. They did not only hear what he was about, they saw it every day.
4. Jesus spent time teaching his disciples important concepts and truths so they would have understanding. He taught them in ways that were not available for those in the general public who followed him.
Friday, February 13, 2009
Jesus' Discipleship #3: Share Your Life
Over the next few days I will share with you some of my thoughts regarding how we prepare young people to serve God. I believe that the most effective leaders are not the ones who are taught, but the ones who are discipled. Jesus knew what he was doing when he took twelve disciples to follow and serve with him for three years rather than opening a school offering classes on theology.
How many professors do you know who actually have their students living under the same roof and sitting at the same table for every meal? Can you imagine professors sharing the same bathroom with their students, doing laundry and making trips to the grocery store together? What if a professor had his students with him when he went on speaking trips or on vacation with his family? How many people would volunteer to be professors if they were required to live with their students 24/7? How many people would enroll as students?
Well, this approach to teaching students isn’t really necessary when the subject matter is primarily academic. (Again, we almost always make the mistake of thinking that discipleship is primarily an academic endeavor.) Taking turns with the washing machine would probably not help anyone come to a better understanding of microbiology or sixteenth century literature. But it very well could provide the context for teaching about patience, respect and service.
In our training institutions most instruction is scheduled into weekly time slots that usually last an hour or so at a time, up to three times a week. Both professors and students appear for the class, instruct or receive instruction, and disappear until the next scheduled appearance. Again, this works well for learning about topics. However, it doesn’t work well for molding behavior or skills. It could work well for molding our thinking, but without more exacting supervision, there is no guarantee there will be lasting application.
The word “disciple” bears a close resemblance to the word “discipline.” In English, discipline can mean “punishment,” “course of study,” or “training.” A disciple, in the model of twelve disciples of Jesus, is one who is being trained. A disciple is not someone who is just being taught (or punished, for that matter).
Training goes beyond teaching. Some say training is void of teaching—getting people to learn skills through repetition without any instruction regarding the concepts or reasons behind those activities. However, that is not true training—that is animal training. True training is where trainees are taught the concepts and reasons as a foundation for understanding and then are coached repeatedly until they are able to master the skills at hand. Mere teaching is assuming that if the concepts are taught, students will be able to go out there and do them on their own. And, unfortunately, this is where most of our Christian leadership training stands.
The difference is in what we impart to those we instruct. If we have students, we primarily impart knowledge. If we have disciples, we impart behavior as well as knowledge. And, to put it bluntly, knowledge is much easier to impart—especially if we ourselves fail in the behavior arena.
When I think about Christians I’ve known through the years who have most influenced me, I don’t think so much about the ones who may have been very smart and full of good knowledge and theories. Instead, I think about the people I’ve seen actually live out their faith in their daily lives and consistently demonstrate the fruit of the Spirit (love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, gentleness, faithfulness and self-control). These are the qualities, if possessed, that will make Christians the most effective as they purpose to influence those around them. These qualities will make them more effective than if they just have a lot of knowledge, but do not possess these fruit. And so having these fruit of the Spirit is so much more important than academic knowledge. Yet, in most of our modern training institutions, students are never rigorously graded on these behavior qualities like they are on academic knowledge. Our grading systems betray where our real values lie.
Now, before I go further, please don’t assume I am saying academic knowledge is not valuable. It is very valuable! However, it is not primarily valuable. It is not an either/or question—everyone will agree that the best student or disciple is one who possesses both the academic and the behavioral qualities. The problem is when we pay “lip service” to training people to be loving, patient, good, gentle and self-controlled, and then spend 95% of our time filling their brains with knowledge. Even Paul said that knowledge “puffs up” but love “builds up.” (1 Corinthians 8:1)
As an instructor of others (whether that might be a professor, preacher or teacher) it is easy to fool people. I can appear for classes, services and conferences to teach on a topic such as “evangelism” and give the best and most inspiring stories and theories. People may love what I teach, write it down, publish it and teach it to others. But what happens when I leave their presence and go out among people who do not believe in Jesus? When an opportunity arises to speak about Christ do I share, or do I move on because I am too busy? Do I treat them with the same love and respect that I do my peers?
If I had a disciple traveling with me, he would feel me rather hypocritical if he heard me speak one way and then live another. However, if the opposite were true, and my disciple saw that I shared with people a certain way and I therefore taught about evangelism in the same way, then he would most likely learn to put it into practice. Those who just hear me teach learn about evangelism as a topic. Those who see me teach one way and live another are disenfranchised. But those who see me live the right way and later on teach accordingly, will be the ones who really get the lesson.
This is what Jesus did with his twelve disciples. Jesus didn’t simply make scheduled appearances to his disciples to teach them. No, he invited them to live with him. In fact, most or all of his lessons to them weren’t even scheduled, but were in response to real events and circumstances that arose in their lives. The disciples watched Jesus. They saw what he did when he encountered children, beggars, Pharisees, widows, prostitutes, soldiers and sick people. They lived with Jesus 24/7 and were therefore able to see what really motivated him—what he really was all about.
Effective discipleship (which produces effective people) demands that we share our lives with our disciples. It requires more than making “teaching appearances.” First of all, it requires that we, ourselves, possess the behavioral qualities we wish to impart to others. Secondly, it requires that we let our disciples into to our lives enough so that they see us react and respond in the right way to unplanned events that arise in course of everyday living. When they experience this with us, then they get the lesson.
Our approach here in our location is to have this close relationship with our disciples. Not only us, but those we have discipling our interns live with them on a daily basis to demonstrate proper behavior and to coach and guide them in the same.
Three post summary:
1. Jesus’ life was already an ongoing example of effective ministry, of which he later included them, before he called them and before he sent them out to do ministry on their own.
2. After spending time in prayer Jesus chose specific people to be his disciples, to live with him and follow him for about three years. He chose a limited number of people and poured himself into them rather than trying to get as many as he could.
3. Jesus didn’t simply make scheduled teaching appearances with his disciples but invited them to live with him 24/7. They did not only hear what he was about, they saw it every day.
How many professors do you know who actually have their students living under the same roof and sitting at the same table for every meal? Can you imagine professors sharing the same bathroom with their students, doing laundry and making trips to the grocery store together? What if a professor had his students with him when he went on speaking trips or on vacation with his family? How many people would volunteer to be professors if they were required to live with their students 24/7? How many people would enroll as students?
Well, this approach to teaching students isn’t really necessary when the subject matter is primarily academic. (Again, we almost always make the mistake of thinking that discipleship is primarily an academic endeavor.) Taking turns with the washing machine would probably not help anyone come to a better understanding of microbiology or sixteenth century literature. But it very well could provide the context for teaching about patience, respect and service.
In our training institutions most instruction is scheduled into weekly time slots that usually last an hour or so at a time, up to three times a week. Both professors and students appear for the class, instruct or receive instruction, and disappear until the next scheduled appearance. Again, this works well for learning about topics. However, it doesn’t work well for molding behavior or skills. It could work well for molding our thinking, but without more exacting supervision, there is no guarantee there will be lasting application.
The word “disciple” bears a close resemblance to the word “discipline.” In English, discipline can mean “punishment,” “course of study,” or “training.” A disciple, in the model of twelve disciples of Jesus, is one who is being trained. A disciple is not someone who is just being taught (or punished, for that matter).
Training goes beyond teaching. Some say training is void of teaching—getting people to learn skills through repetition without any instruction regarding the concepts or reasons behind those activities. However, that is not true training—that is animal training. True training is where trainees are taught the concepts and reasons as a foundation for understanding and then are coached repeatedly until they are able to master the skills at hand. Mere teaching is assuming that if the concepts are taught, students will be able to go out there and do them on their own. And, unfortunately, this is where most of our Christian leadership training stands.
The difference is in what we impart to those we instruct. If we have students, we primarily impart knowledge. If we have disciples, we impart behavior as well as knowledge. And, to put it bluntly, knowledge is much easier to impart—especially if we ourselves fail in the behavior arena.
When I think about Christians I’ve known through the years who have most influenced me, I don’t think so much about the ones who may have been very smart and full of good knowledge and theories. Instead, I think about the people I’ve seen actually live out their faith in their daily lives and consistently demonstrate the fruit of the Spirit (love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, gentleness, faithfulness and self-control). These are the qualities, if possessed, that will make Christians the most effective as they purpose to influence those around them. These qualities will make them more effective than if they just have a lot of knowledge, but do not possess these fruit. And so having these fruit of the Spirit is so much more important than academic knowledge. Yet, in most of our modern training institutions, students are never rigorously graded on these behavior qualities like they are on academic knowledge. Our grading systems betray where our real values lie.
Now, before I go further, please don’t assume I am saying academic knowledge is not valuable. It is very valuable! However, it is not primarily valuable. It is not an either/or question—everyone will agree that the best student or disciple is one who possesses both the academic and the behavioral qualities. The problem is when we pay “lip service” to training people to be loving, patient, good, gentle and self-controlled, and then spend 95% of our time filling their brains with knowledge. Even Paul said that knowledge “puffs up” but love “builds up.” (1 Corinthians 8:1)
As an instructor of others (whether that might be a professor, preacher or teacher) it is easy to fool people. I can appear for classes, services and conferences to teach on a topic such as “evangelism” and give the best and most inspiring stories and theories. People may love what I teach, write it down, publish it and teach it to others. But what happens when I leave their presence and go out among people who do not believe in Jesus? When an opportunity arises to speak about Christ do I share, or do I move on because I am too busy? Do I treat them with the same love and respect that I do my peers?
If I had a disciple traveling with me, he would feel me rather hypocritical if he heard me speak one way and then live another. However, if the opposite were true, and my disciple saw that I shared with people a certain way and I therefore taught about evangelism in the same way, then he would most likely learn to put it into practice. Those who just hear me teach learn about evangelism as a topic. Those who see me teach one way and live another are disenfranchised. But those who see me live the right way and later on teach accordingly, will be the ones who really get the lesson.
This is what Jesus did with his twelve disciples. Jesus didn’t simply make scheduled appearances to his disciples to teach them. No, he invited them to live with him. In fact, most or all of his lessons to them weren’t even scheduled, but were in response to real events and circumstances that arose in their lives. The disciples watched Jesus. They saw what he did when he encountered children, beggars, Pharisees, widows, prostitutes, soldiers and sick people. They lived with Jesus 24/7 and were therefore able to see what really motivated him—what he really was all about.
Effective discipleship (which produces effective people) demands that we share our lives with our disciples. It requires more than making “teaching appearances.” First of all, it requires that we, ourselves, possess the behavioral qualities we wish to impart to others. Secondly, it requires that we let our disciples into to our lives enough so that they see us react and respond in the right way to unplanned events that arise in course of everyday living. When they experience this with us, then they get the lesson.
Our approach here in our location is to have this close relationship with our disciples. Not only us, but those we have discipling our interns live with them on a daily basis to demonstrate proper behavior and to coach and guide them in the same.
Three post summary:
1. Jesus’ life was already an ongoing example of effective ministry, of which he later included them, before he called them and before he sent them out to do ministry on their own.
2. After spending time in prayer Jesus chose specific people to be his disciples, to live with him and follow him for about three years. He chose a limited number of people and poured himself into them rather than trying to get as many as he could.
3. Jesus didn’t simply make scheduled teaching appearances with his disciples but invited them to live with him 24/7. They did not only hear what he was about, they saw it every day.
Thursday, February 12, 2009
Jesus' Discipleship #2: Choose a Few, Train a Lot
Over the next few days I will share with you some of my thoughts regarding how we prepare young people to serve God. I believe that the most effective leaders are not the ones who are taught, but the ones who are discipled. Jesus knew what he was doing when he took twelve disciples to follow and serve with him for three years rather than opening a school offering classes on theology.
Most approaches to Christian ministry take a “reach all you can” approach. Churches try to become as big as they can, as fast as they can. Some even boast about how fast they’ve grown. “We’re one of the fastest growing churches in America!” Mission agencies try to recruit anyone they can who will agree to go overseas and plunge into the work. Bible colleges try to recruit as many students to come to their campuses and fight vigorously to keep high school youth group members from choosing to go to the university.
The “reach all you can” approach is not unique to Christian ministries. Actually, Christian ministries are just copying what they see all around them in the world. Politicians try to get as many people as they can to vote for them. Activists try to get as many people as they can to join their cause. Television shows try to get as many people as they can to watch their programs. Sporting events try to get as many people as they can to fill their stadiums. And businesses try to get as many people as they can to buy their products.
Why do they do this? It is simple, really. More money. More power. More of their fame in our lives. There are financial advantages of reaching many. Politicians want the power they receive when elected. Television shows want the ratings, which translates to a higher price they can charge to their commercial advertisers. More tickets sold means more money. Coca-Cola wants to put a can of their soda in the hands of everyone on earth—not because they feel they are contributing to the betterment of humanity, but because if they can get everyone in the world to give them just 50 cents, they are making billions of dollars.
So how about Christian ministries? Big numbers means big success if we look at it the way the world does. A larger congregation means churches have reached more people (and can collect bigger offerings). A larger enrollment means Bible colleges can educate more future preachers (and receive more tuition and dormitory fees). A large and growing church means the preacher gets offers to speak in many different high-profile venues and offers to write books. These things increase our wealth, our power and our fame.
Now, don’t get me wrong. I like big churches. I like big ministries. I think many of them are doing great things for kingdom. I hope they continue to do so! Jesus said to go into all the world and preach the gospel to every creature, so that is a big job to do and we better get to doing it.
The issue is motivation (Why are we doing this way?) and method (Whose example are we following?). If our motivation is money, power and popularity, then we have a basic problem. If we claim it is not, but in our hearts it is, we have a bigger problem. If our method comes from politicians and businesses, we may tend to water down our message to reach more people or require less to sell more. I would dare say that selling a can of Coke is much easier to do than training someone to be a faithful follower of Christ. Christ requires much more. Coke only requires about 50 cents.
It is interesting to see the method Jesus took to redeem the world. Could he have done the large crowds, tent meetings and crusades? Of course he could have. On a number of occasions he spoke to very large crowds. He also fed a meal to a pretty numerous crowd one day. But his method for reaching the world in addition to preaching his message to the masses, was to take twelve young men with him everywhere he went for about three years, train them, and then later send them out to the world.
Sometimes we get the wrong image of Jesus and his disciples. We think that twelve was all he could get to devote three years to him. If we imagine a hippie-looking guy with long hair, a big beard and a white robe walking around speaking in King James English in our modern American cities, we would be surprised to think that he could get FIVE others to don robes, grow their beards and follow him around speaking like that, much less twelve!
But actually Jesus had hundreds of people following him. When he chose his disciples he wasn’t just trying to snatch up whoever he could get. No, his choosing of the disciples was more of a limiting decision than a rallying call. If Jesus would have chosen, he could have had many more disciples. In fact, even in Luke 10 he sends out 72 of his followers in a similar way he had sent out his twelve. But only twelve were designated apostles. Only to them did he teach and train in a special way different from the masses. Only twelve “made the cut” so to speak.
In the books of Matthew, Mark and Luke it shows us that Jesus spent time alone and in prayer and fasting before he chose his first disciples. (It was during this time that Jesus was tempted, and one of the temptations Satan presented to Jesus was to rule “all the kingdoms of the world.” Satan said, “It will all be yours” if Jesus only worshiped him.) He didn’t choose them haphazardly, and he didn’t put up a sign asking for all who are interested to come and apply. No, he went to them and called them. He chose them specifically. And out of hundreds that he could have chosen, he chose twelve, “that they might be with him and that he might send them out to preach.” (Mark 3:14)
Instead of getting as many as he could, Jesus chose a smaller number of those with whom he could work. He wanted to keep the teacher-student ratio low, so that they could benefit the most from their time with him. Instead of teaching many a little bit, he chose a few to train a lot.
And who did Jesus choose? Did he go to their high schools and ask the teachers for a list of their top students? Did he go to the Pharisees and ask for a few of their most promising pupils? Did he go to the synagogues and ask for those with the best attendance? No; none of the above. He didn’t choose those who were the best looking, who had the most money, were the most talented, the smartest or the best educated. Those people probably wouldn’t have agreed to follow Jesus like the disciples did anyway. No, he chose fishermen who were noted as being uneducated. We don’t know much more about them. But I believe Jesus chose those not with all the ability, looks, money and intelligence, but those who had an honest heart. They weren’t all that talented, but they were faithful, available and teachable. And Jesus poured himself into them.
It has been demonstrated that those who win two or three people to Christ, disciple them, and then send them out each to do the same—reach two or three people for Christ and disciple them—will end up seeing more people come to Christ over time than the super-preacher who reaches 10,000 people to Christ by himself every year. The cell church model is built on this precept. In 20 years, the super-preacher who reaches 10,000 per year will have reached 200,000 people. However, the movement where three people are discipled per person each year, in 20 years will have reached well over 4.5 million people.
So, in our ministries it is better to reach a few and disciple them a lot rather than reach all we can and disciple them a little. Instead of focusing on “reaching all we can” we should focus on discipling as much as we can. Even if the world around us is in a “reach all you can” mode, we should not follow suit. We know better. Most families do not choose to have as many babies as they can. Why? Because then you have to feed them and raise them all. And we know how much energy that takes. Raising people to be Christ-like shouldn’t take any less energy.
We should, instead, meet many people and then choose a few to disciple especially. When we choose, we should choose those who have the heart that is needed to be a faithful disciple of Jesus and servant of God—not those who are just talented. When the time comes to send them out, we don’t want them to crash and burn, and neither do we want them to get off track with the wrong motives.
This is our approach here at our location. I am very careful about choosing the right people. If I tempted people here with the idea of making a lot of money, learning English or being sent to study in America, I could get a lot of people. However, these people would rarely, if ever, come back to reach and serve their own people. Instead they would just continue going out and away to develop themselves and seek their personal fortune. But we choose people who have demonstrated a heart for God, even if they have not finished high school, do not know any English and have only known living in the countryside. These upland farmers here are like the fishermen of Galilee. Not all of them are ready, but a few of them will be trained and one day sent out to reach their brothers, sisters, friends and families. Please pray for us and for them!
Two Post Summary:
1. Jesus’ life was already an ongoing example of effective ministry, of which he later included them, before he called them and before he sent them out to do ministry on their own.
2. After spending time in prayer Jesus chose specific people to be his disciples, to live with him and follow him for about three years. He chose a limited number of people and poured himself into them rather than trying to get as many as he could.
Wednesday, February 11, 2009
Jesus' Discipleship #1: Do It First
Over the next few days I will share with you some of my thoughts regarding how we prepare young people to serve God. I believe that the most effective leaders are not the ones who are taught, but the ones who are discipled. Jesus knew what he was doing when he took twelve disciples to follow and serve with him for three years rather than opening a school offering classes on theology.
The very first thing that we must do when we want to teach or train (disciple) others is to do it first. We must do the things we want them to learn how to do before we begin training them. We must be the things we want them to be before we begin teaching them.
When you first read this, you might say, “Well, of course!” But this basic principle is so often bypassed. We feel we don’t need to be actually doing something in order to teach it to others if we already understand the theory. So, we just teach the theory. Or, maybe we’ve done it in the past, but are not currently doing it any more. That is better, but it still falls short.
The problem is that we major on theory and minor on experience. We think that we can train someone in a classroom to understand every facet of the theory (and we can) and then send them out to be effective in doing it. This is a flawed model, depending upon the subject of study. It is a very flawed model for preparing people for ministry, but it is the model we mostly employ in our Sunday schools and Bible colleges. Sure, Bible college students may be required to put in so many “ministry hours,” but those hours are usually not spent with their professors who are also doing the ministry, and in comparison to hours in the classroom, it is very small. We major on theory and minor on experience.
Jesus did the opposite with his disciples. First, Jesus was involved in ministry (successful, difference-making ministry) before he even called his disciples. When he did call them, he took them along. For a period it appears that they just followed him around and assisted him in his ministry. The best method for discipling others is to give them a good example of a successful ministry, and to let them take part in that ministry over a long period of time.
In most Christian academic settings (Why do we think that preparation for ministry is primarily an ‘academic’ endeavor?) students are mostly impressed with the teaching ability, the intelligence or the publishing success of their most talented professors. Students who are inspired by such professors typically want to become professors themselves—because that is the example they’ve been given. What is unfortunate is that the vast majority of Bible college professors spend nearly 100% of their time around other Christians and next to no time with people outside the Christian community.
Jesus didn’t make this mistake. A quick reading of the Gospels will show that he spent as much (if not more) time with the “unreached” community as he did with the religious leaders and even privately with his own disciples. Jesus’ ministry was at the junction of the rubber and the road and consequently spent the most time on the very issues that are the most common when it comes to serving and reaching the lost. He spent very little time in deep theological debates on whether or not angels have free will or in the linguistic parsing of Hebrew verbs. The Pharisees and Sadducees were good at that.
When the Pharisees met Jesus’ disciples they noted (pointed out) that the disciples were “unschooled” men. This meant that they hadn’t attended religious schools of the day, been ordained or theologically trained in a formal setting. They certainly had that option in those times and that was the typical route for religious people to take. Instead, the disciples were learning “on the job” with Jesus. He was their example of how to make a difference in the world—not just how to understand abstract theories.
As we seek to train young people here at our location we purpose, first, to be doing the kinds of things we want them to do. If we want our disciples to evangelize, we need to be sharing the gospel and allowing them to join us as we do. If we want them to lead a Bible study, we need to give them a good example of how that is done. If we want them to read their Bibles, we need to be reading it every day. If we want them to love others and serve them, we need to be doing that, first, so that they will see how it is done, and then what happens when it is done.
Not only must I be an example, but so must those I have overseeing our interns on a daily basis. For this reason I have been very careful in choosing those who will disciple our interns. I found a couple of good young men who are honest seekers and servers of Jesus and good examples to all the interns who will come and study with them.
Someone once said, “Jesus didn’t practice what he preached. He preached what he practiced.” This makes a very good point. We must ‘be’ and ‘do’ before we attempt to teach others to be and do those same things.
The very first thing that we must do when we want to teach or train (disciple) others is to do it first. We must do the things we want them to learn how to do before we begin training them. We must be the things we want them to be before we begin teaching them.
When you first read this, you might say, “Well, of course!” But this basic principle is so often bypassed. We feel we don’t need to be actually doing something in order to teach it to others if we already understand the theory. So, we just teach the theory. Or, maybe we’ve done it in the past, but are not currently doing it any more. That is better, but it still falls short.
The problem is that we major on theory and minor on experience. We think that we can train someone in a classroom to understand every facet of the theory (and we can) and then send them out to be effective in doing it. This is a flawed model, depending upon the subject of study. It is a very flawed model for preparing people for ministry, but it is the model we mostly employ in our Sunday schools and Bible colleges. Sure, Bible college students may be required to put in so many “ministry hours,” but those hours are usually not spent with their professors who are also doing the ministry, and in comparison to hours in the classroom, it is very small. We major on theory and minor on experience.
Jesus did the opposite with his disciples. First, Jesus was involved in ministry (successful, difference-making ministry) before he even called his disciples. When he did call them, he took them along. For a period it appears that they just followed him around and assisted him in his ministry. The best method for discipling others is to give them a good example of a successful ministry, and to let them take part in that ministry over a long period of time.
In most Christian academic settings (Why do we think that preparation for ministry is primarily an ‘academic’ endeavor?) students are mostly impressed with the teaching ability, the intelligence or the publishing success of their most talented professors. Students who are inspired by such professors typically want to become professors themselves—because that is the example they’ve been given. What is unfortunate is that the vast majority of Bible college professors spend nearly 100% of their time around other Christians and next to no time with people outside the Christian community.
Jesus didn’t make this mistake. A quick reading of the Gospels will show that he spent as much (if not more) time with the “unreached” community as he did with the religious leaders and even privately with his own disciples. Jesus’ ministry was at the junction of the rubber and the road and consequently spent the most time on the very issues that are the most common when it comes to serving and reaching the lost. He spent very little time in deep theological debates on whether or not angels have free will or in the linguistic parsing of Hebrew verbs. The Pharisees and Sadducees were good at that.
When the Pharisees met Jesus’ disciples they noted (pointed out) that the disciples were “unschooled” men. This meant that they hadn’t attended religious schools of the day, been ordained or theologically trained in a formal setting. They certainly had that option in those times and that was the typical route for religious people to take. Instead, the disciples were learning “on the job” with Jesus. He was their example of how to make a difference in the world—not just how to understand abstract theories.
As we seek to train young people here at our location we purpose, first, to be doing the kinds of things we want them to do. If we want our disciples to evangelize, we need to be sharing the gospel and allowing them to join us as we do. If we want them to lead a Bible study, we need to give them a good example of how that is done. If we want them to read their Bibles, we need to be reading it every day. If we want them to love others and serve them, we need to be doing that, first, so that they will see how it is done, and then what happens when it is done.
Not only must I be an example, but so must those I have overseeing our interns on a daily basis. For this reason I have been very careful in choosing those who will disciple our interns. I found a couple of good young men who are honest seekers and servers of Jesus and good examples to all the interns who will come and study with them.
Someone once said, “Jesus didn’t practice what he preached. He preached what he practiced.” This makes a very good point. We must ‘be’ and ‘do’ before we attempt to teach others to be and do those same things.
Tuesday, February 10, 2009
Jesus' Discipleship Intro: House of Cards
Have you ever try to build a house out of playing cards? I used to be pretty good at it. One of the things that is frustrating when you're first starting out, however, is getting those first few cards to stand up. You prop two cards against each other and then try to put a roof on it and then... poof... it all falls down. Sometimes you get a little further along and it falls down. Sometimes, as you get going building different levels and wings you spend as much time picking up fallen cards as you do constructing new cards. It becomes just as difficult to keep a card standing as it does to stand it up in the first place.
I often feel that ministry is the same way. We want to build a big church for God's glory. We know that it is not a building, but made up of people. But as soon as we get a few people in we try to get a few more in. But with more people, the flavor of the group changes... attention is divided among more people... different people take on different roles... etc. When new people come in, the original people leave. They are like the cards that you just can't seem to keep standing up for a long time in your house of cards.
I believe with all my heart that God doesn't want us to build his church as a house of cards. In fact, I am quite certain that God is in favor of firm foundations--building on the rock, not on the sand, etc. So, how does this apply to church planting? One word: Discipleship.
It is sad that we tend to differentiate between evangelism and discipleship, as if they are two completely separate endeavors. However, in the most quoted Biblical text on evangelism (the so-called "Great Commission" in Matthew 28:18-20) Jesus' command is not to "preach the good news" but it is to "make disciples" and to "teach them to obey everything I have commanded you." We don't do discipleship after we do evangelism. We do evangelism by doing discipleship. Have you ever thought of that before?
Much of this discussion could center on the theology of salvation, but I don't want to get into that here on this blog. I do believe that a Christian is a disciple of Jesus, a disciple of Jesus is a Christian. I do not believe someone is a Christian if they are not a disciple of Jesus. But my convictions about this doesn't lead me to "water down" discipleship, by saying that anything is discipleship (like mere church attendance) because this person is a Christian. No, instead it leads me to "beef up" evangelism.
It is relatively easy to get people to raise their hands and say they will be a Christian. Just like it is relatively easy to give birth to a baby. However, like a newborn baby, these new believers will soon die if they are not fed and taken care of. Or, they will continue to exist at a state of believing they are saved when they have still not been transformed. Perhaps they have simply accepted a new religion but have not been born again.
When a baby is born the work of the parents is not over. (Anyone with children is laughing now.) No, the work just begins. And if I am the one who fathered (or mothered) this child, then it is my responsibility to raise this child. Will I always raise this child? Of course not. Part of the whole point of raising a child is to teach the child to be able to do things on his or her own without the help of the parent. They must learn to become independent. And, one day, we all hope they will have their own children. But if we abandon them at birth, none of that will likely happen.
When we lead someone to Christ, the work has just begun. Yes, they are a new life, but we want to make sure that life grows strong and that faith is rooted to the point that they will survive and grow. I think you understand the analogy.
So I believe the core of every ministry should be discipleship. I don't think we should do evangelism until we have a system of discipleship ready to go. The next question is... what is discipleship?
In planning meetings with other Christians the topic of discipleship often arises. Then, invariably, the discussion always moves on to "discipleship materials." To us, discipleship is reading a book or lesson material together with someone, meeting with them once a week to discuss it, and then going through a workbook together where we each write our answers in blanks following questions about the reading material. Now, doing something like that is not a bad thing to do. But is it discipleship? I say it is not... at least, not completely.
One time I heard a Seminary professor respond to someone's question about what kinds of discipleship programs they had at his church. In truth, they didn't have anything designated "discipleship" but just did all the regular activities traditional American churches do. But wanting to sound professorial and sophisticated, this professor said that their Sunday services are their discipleship program. Their potluck dinners are their discipleship programs. Everything the church does was their discipleship program.
Now, I agree that everything a church does should be for discipleship rather than for religious tradition or mere entertainment. Hopefully the worship and sermons help people to grow in their faith. But are typical church services and potluck dinners discipleship? I say they are not.. at least, not completely.
So, what is discipleship? I think the answer to this is found in the example of Jesus who took twelve disciples to follow him. So, over the next few days we will look at Jesus' discipleship and see how he did it. Perhaps there are other ways to do it, and I am not arguing there are not. But for what it is worth we will examine Jesus' approach.
Stay tuned...
I often feel that ministry is the same way. We want to build a big church for God's glory. We know that it is not a building, but made up of people. But as soon as we get a few people in we try to get a few more in. But with more people, the flavor of the group changes... attention is divided among more people... different people take on different roles... etc. When new people come in, the original people leave. They are like the cards that you just can't seem to keep standing up for a long time in your house of cards.
I believe with all my heart that God doesn't want us to build his church as a house of cards. In fact, I am quite certain that God is in favor of firm foundations--building on the rock, not on the sand, etc. So, how does this apply to church planting? One word: Discipleship.
It is sad that we tend to differentiate between evangelism and discipleship, as if they are two completely separate endeavors. However, in the most quoted Biblical text on evangelism (the so-called "Great Commission" in Matthew 28:18-20) Jesus' command is not to "preach the good news" but it is to "make disciples" and to "teach them to obey everything I have commanded you." We don't do discipleship after we do evangelism. We do evangelism by doing discipleship. Have you ever thought of that before?
Much of this discussion could center on the theology of salvation, but I don't want to get into that here on this blog. I do believe that a Christian is a disciple of Jesus, a disciple of Jesus is a Christian. I do not believe someone is a Christian if they are not a disciple of Jesus. But my convictions about this doesn't lead me to "water down" discipleship, by saying that anything is discipleship (like mere church attendance) because this person is a Christian. No, instead it leads me to "beef up" evangelism.
It is relatively easy to get people to raise their hands and say they will be a Christian. Just like it is relatively easy to give birth to a baby. However, like a newborn baby, these new believers will soon die if they are not fed and taken care of. Or, they will continue to exist at a state of believing they are saved when they have still not been transformed. Perhaps they have simply accepted a new religion but have not been born again.
When a baby is born the work of the parents is not over. (Anyone with children is laughing now.) No, the work just begins. And if I am the one who fathered (or mothered) this child, then it is my responsibility to raise this child. Will I always raise this child? Of course not. Part of the whole point of raising a child is to teach the child to be able to do things on his or her own without the help of the parent. They must learn to become independent. And, one day, we all hope they will have their own children. But if we abandon them at birth, none of that will likely happen.
When we lead someone to Christ, the work has just begun. Yes, they are a new life, but we want to make sure that life grows strong and that faith is rooted to the point that they will survive and grow. I think you understand the analogy.
So I believe the core of every ministry should be discipleship. I don't think we should do evangelism until we have a system of discipleship ready to go. The next question is... what is discipleship?
In planning meetings with other Christians the topic of discipleship often arises. Then, invariably, the discussion always moves on to "discipleship materials." To us, discipleship is reading a book or lesson material together with someone, meeting with them once a week to discuss it, and then going through a workbook together where we each write our answers in blanks following questions about the reading material. Now, doing something like that is not a bad thing to do. But is it discipleship? I say it is not... at least, not completely.
One time I heard a Seminary professor respond to someone's question about what kinds of discipleship programs they had at his church. In truth, they didn't have anything designated "discipleship" but just did all the regular activities traditional American churches do. But wanting to sound professorial and sophisticated, this professor said that their Sunday services are their discipleship program. Their potluck dinners are their discipleship programs. Everything the church does was their discipleship program.
Now, I agree that everything a church does should be for discipleship rather than for religious tradition or mere entertainment. Hopefully the worship and sermons help people to grow in their faith. But are typical church services and potluck dinners discipleship? I say they are not.. at least, not completely.
So, what is discipleship? I think the answer to this is found in the example of Jesus who took twelve disciples to follow him. So, over the next few days we will look at Jesus' discipleship and see how he did it. Perhaps there are other ways to do it, and I am not arguing there are not. But for what it is worth we will examine Jesus' approach.
Stay tuned...
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