Category Archives: Discipleship

His Disciple: Sometimes We Just Don’t Get It

For instance, the story of Lazarus told in John, chapter 11. Every point the disciples made in this story was wrong, but I learned a few things from them.

Jesus said “Let us go back to Judea” when He heard about Lazarus being sick (actually, three days later). The disciples argued that people tried to kill Him in Judea. Jesus responded with words that can sound confusing to us, but basically mean that there’s only so much time to do the work we are called to do, so don’t waste it being afraid. (that’s my take on it. You may have a different interpretation. If you’re feeling angsty about it, go with yours.)

Don’t waste Kingdom time on earthly fears.

Then He told them that Lazarus had fallen asleep. He meant Lazarus had died, but the disciples, bless their hearts, thought He meant their friend was napping, like a sick man would do. Because, as was so often the case, Jesus had a spiritual perspective while His disciples had an earthly perspective, and man, doesn’t that sound just like us?

Where we fix our eyes will give us our perspective.

Thomas said “Let us also go, that we may die with Him.” His assumption was based on common sense – that if they returned to Judea, Jesus would be killed and so would His followers. Thomas was there for it, so, wow. Good on him. On one deep space level, Thomas had it right. Jesus did eventually go to His death, and called us to follow Him in doing likewise by taking up our cross every day. But practically speaking, Thomas made an assumption because he had no idea what Jesus’ mission was actually about. It made sense to him that going back to Judea would end in death.

Common sense can keep us from trusting God.

Mary & Martha both said to Jesus, “if You had been here, my brother would not have died.” They judged His heart according to their pain. He was the same Jesus they had been following, serving, and loving. But because their lives had just changed, they assumed He had changed.

We are not the lens for the goodness of God. We cannot use our circumstances or our pain to judge His heart.

“Take away the stone.”

“Lazarus come out.”

“Take off the grave clothes and let him go.”

Beautiful words that reveal the greater thing that Jesus was doing that His disciples couldn’t see.

Just because we can’t see what He’s doing, doesn’t mean He isn’t doing something good.

Those early ones are our mirror and today they show us that sometimes, we just don’t get it. But we are growing, just like they grew. Learning where to put our gaze, learning to trust Him more, follow more closely, and become more like Him and less like us.

And one day, we will see Him face to face, and we’ll get it. It will be the best. day. ever.

His Disciple—They Went

“These twelve Jesus sent out with the following instructions: “Do not go among the Gentiles or enter any town of the Samaritans. Go rather to the lost sheep of Israel.  As you go, proclaim this message: ‘The kingdom of heaven has come near.’ Heal the sick, raise the dead, cleanse those who have leprosy, drive out demons. Freely you have received; freely give.” – Matthew 10:5-8

They were to go without His physical presence with them, but with His authority and power on them. He told them where to go and where not to go. What to say, what to do. In other words, He sent them with His purpose and strategy not theirs.

And once again He reminds me that I do not call the shots for my life. I am not the decision maker in this relationship.

“Do not get any gold or silver or copper to take with you in your belts— no bag for the journey or extra shirt or sandals or a staff, for the worker is worth his keep.” (vs. 9-10) 

He allowed them no means to provide for themselves and it would be their first lesson in trusting the One who sent them out.

“If anyone will not welcome you or listen to your words, leave that home or town and shake the dust off your feet.” (v. 14) 

Don’t spend breath and time trying to make someone listen to you. Just go. Move on. I wonder if that was as hard for them as it is for us. To just walk away from someone who isn’t ready to repent, instead of trying to convince them to accept something they don’t want.

We are a people called to carry a message to the world. But we are not a people called to try to convince the world to believe and receive our message. Neither are we called to dress the gospel up or dress it down, to cover it in soft sounding language and prime it with the best songs and lights and coffee in the lobby. I’m not saying having coffee for people is wrong. I’m not a monster. I’m just saying that, in so many ways, what we are doing today looks very different than it looked then and I don’t know if that’s such a good thing.

“I am sending you out like sheep among wolves. Therefore be as shrewd as snakes and as innocent as doves. Be on your guard; you will be handed over to the local councils and be flogged in the synagogues. On My account you will be brought before governors and kings as witnesses to them and to the Gentiles.” (vs. 16-18)

He didn’t sugarcoat it for them. Didn’t frame it as a great adventure. He told them the truth—this was going to be hard. Dangerous. They were being sent out on mission with the authority and power of Jesus on them, and a mandate to preach the gospel, heal the sick, and cast out demons. And, with a promise of suffering.

So they went. Perhaps that is the most surprising thing of all. They chose to trust and obey and they just went. The simplicity of it is stark in comparison to our months and months of trainings and preparations and fund raising and our “let me pray about it” mentality. (Yes, yes, in our world today all of that feels so necessary, and practically speaking it is, I get that. But don’t you just long for the early days? The days when trust was literally all they had?)

They were His disciples, and He said go, so they just went.

Father, break us free from ourselves and our propensity to run with our own plans and to complicate the mess out of what You’ve called us to do. May it be said of us, in this time, that we just went, because You said go and we had learned to trust You.

His Disciple: A Table for Sick Sinners

While Jesus was having dinner at Matthew’s house, many tax collectors and sinners came and ate with him and his disciples. When the Pharisees saw this, they asked his disciples, “Why does your teacher eat with tax collectors and sinners?”

On hearing this, Jesus said, “It is not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick. But go and learn what this means: ‘I desire mercy, not sacrifice.’ For I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners.” – Matthew 9:10-13

Close your eyes and imagine the scene. It’s ok, just play along with me. Close your eyes. What do you see?

I see a table full of people I probably wouldn’t spend time around. I see the people our society hates, the ones we turn away from, the ones our religious spirit avoids.

And at the head of the table I see Jesus. Laughing, passing the green beans, telling stories. Loving the ones in front of Him because He knows how desperately they need what He has come to give them. A way out. Stripped of their filthy rags and given clean garments. Life. Love. Freedom. Redemption. Forgiveness.

It’s what we all need, but for some reason, the ones who have already had their time at the table of sinners with Jesus resent the ones who are drawn to that same table. And when the religious spirited people have the boldness to ask His disciples about it, Jesus slaps back with what we all need to hear.

I came for these. For sick sinners. I didn’t come for anyone who is already healthy. Do we get what He was saying? Maybe this will help us pick up the sarcasm in His voice – “There is none righteous, no, not one.” (Romans 3:10)

The only difference between us and the sick sinners around us is that we came to the table before they got there. We sat with Him, just as sick as they are, and found healing, forgiveness, and eternal life – all the things they need. The table for sick sinners is as much our table as it is theirs.

We are His disciples. The ones who get to watch Him heal the sick, deliver the oppressed, feed the hungry, and offer forgiveness to all of them, because we watched Him do it in us. Let’s choose to watch with joy, gratitude, and fascination rather than with scorn. Let’s invite sick sinners to the table, instead of questioning why they’ve come and why on earth is Jesus sitting there with them. Let’s get over our indignation that Jesus loves them the same way He loves us.

You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies. (Ps. 23:5)

Father, forgive us for when we choose to bow to a religious spirit rather than to You. Teach us how to invite others to the same table where we found forgiveness and eternal life. Give us eyes to see people the way You see them instead of the way we see them.

His Disciple: Where Is Your Faith?

One day Jesus said to his disciples, “Let us go over to the other side of the lake.” So they got into a boat and set out. As they sailed, he fell asleep. A squall came down on the lake, so that the boat was being swamped, and they were in great danger. The disciples went and woke him, saying, “Master, Master, we’re going to drown!” He got up and rebuked the wind and the raging waters; the storm subsided, and all was calm. “Where is your faith?” he asked his disciples. – Luke 8:22-25

Here is what I see.

It was Jesus who led the way to the other side of the lake, not the disciples, and I remember that, as a disciple, I don’t choose where we go, Jesus does.

Jesus led them into a storm, but the only reason those disciples experienced that storm is because they were disciples, obediently following their Rabbi. Jonah hit a storm too, but it was because of his disobedience. Storms will come, but I’d much rather have it come to my obedience than to my rebellion.

Jesus slept and I bet it’s because He was tired. In His humanity, He knew what it feels like to give of ourselves to the point of exhaustion. So if you think He doesn’t get how dog-tired you are, you’re wrong. He felt it enough to fall asleep on a boat knowing a storm was on its way.

“They were in great danger.” They didn’t just panic for no reason. These were seasoned fishermen who knew the real danger of a sudden squall threatening to capsize their boat. So what did they do in their panic? They did the obvious. They woke Jesus up and let Him know they were all about to die. The point I want to make is that they didn’t try to save themselves. They didn’t get busy doing what they knew to do. Even if we come to Him with our hair on fire in panic, coming to Him is the best possible thing we can do.

Where is your faith? Maybe this is controversial, maybe not, but here is what I believe. I don’t think Jesus was questioning their faith because they were afraid. I think this storm was worthy of a healthy amount of fear, but it was not worthy of their faith. I can’t help but think He was asking them where they were putting their faith during the storm.

In other words, where is your faith? In the storm, or in Jesus?

As His disciples we will experience storms, but we will experience them with Him on the boat with us, not watching us from the shore. May we always trust that the One who is with us is far greater than what comes against us.

Lord, no matter what my storm looks like, You are still the God who commands the waves. Help me trust You to be greater than the storm.

His Disciple: There’s A Cost Either Way

Large crowds were traveling with Jesus, and turning to them he said: “If anyone comes to me and does not hate father and mother, wife and children, brothers and sisters—yes, even their own life—such a person cannot be my disciple. And whoever does not carry their cross and follow me cannot be my disciple. – Luke 14:25-27

  • Large crowds were with Him, but not necessarily following Him.
  • They were told that unless they were willing to hate their family, they could not be His disciple. Let’s stop right there.

What is this hate He speaks of? The word is miseō, and like most words, it means different things depending on context. Here, it does not mean to hate in a “you detest me” sort of way. It means to prefer one thing over another, and is used in much the same context as “the impossibility of serving two masters.” In other words, you cannot put anyone, including parents, children, siblings, or even your spouse, above Jesus. Your allegiance is to Him first, otherwise, you cannot be His disciple. There is no murkiness to these waters. Nothing open to interpretation, just plain and simple – Jesus above all things. This is part of the cost of following Him, not just being with Him.

AND (in additon to, plus, also)… if we are unwilling to carry our cross, we cannot be His disciple. If we will not allow yourselves to be crucified to the things of this world, to our own passions and pleasures, to anything and everything that is of us but not of Him, we cannot be His disciple.

Do you feel the weight of it yet?

We all want to be with Him, don’t we? We all want to reap the benefits of His goodness, His power, and His love. And here is truth – we can be with Him and not become like Him, but that is not the life of a disciple. Unless we are willing to pick up and carry the suffering in our flesh, dying to all that opposes His will, then we will be just part of the crowd.

We will not wear the dust of our Rabbi as part of the crowd.

And maybe that’s just fine with you. Maybe you’re ok just trying to walk in the basic teachings of Jesus, trying to be moral and good, but not going overboard on the whole “Jesus thing.” And I’ll be honest, somedays, that sounds good to me too. Somedays, I’m just not all that interested in dying to myself again. But there is one thing that Jesus said that keeps me from staying in that place.

“Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. Many will say to me on that day, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name and in your name drive out demons and in your name perform many miracles?’ Then I will tell them plainly, ‘I never knew you. Away from me, you evildoers!’ – Matthew 7:21-23

So, two questions.

Have you counted the cost of being His disciple?

Have you counted the cost of not being His disciple?

Father, help us take up our cross. I pray that each of us will be led by the Holy Spirit to the same conclusion – You are worthy of anything in me that needs to die. Worthy of being put above all else, including family. You are worthy of it all.

His Disciple: Teachable

Now when Jesus saw the crowds, he went up on a mountainside and sat down. His disciples came to him, and he began to teach them.

He taught them. He didn’t send them to the Pharisees, to Rome, or to any other source to learn how to be His disciple. Instead, He called them to Himself and then He taught them. And much of the time, He was quoting the Old Testament.

And then they wrote down His teachings, and they taught others, and then the others taught even more others. But the reason there was something to teach, is because Jesus taught teachable disciples.

Today, we have so many sources of teaching, and I wonder if it’s made us lazy. It’s so much easier to be taught through listening to a podcast than to sit down and open our bible. A whole world of teachings is available at our fingertips, and it is enticing. But so very much of it is simply untrue and, unfortunately, because we are not actually reading our bibles, we are drawn in by what sounds good to our ears, perhaps unaware that it contradicts the Word of God.

Only the Scriptures will teach us what is true and if we don’t believe that, we are starting from a deficit. Without a plumb line, everything will be skewed.

There are good sermons, good books, good podcasts, good voices out there who are teaching good theology, grounded in scripture. But there are also plenty who are teaching a “different gospel, that is no gospel at all.” People who don’t like what the bible teaches, so they’ve decided it’s not true, and they’ve made up their own truth. They twist the bible to fit what they believe, rather than allowing what they believe to be formed by the bible. It’s not a new thing. It was actually happening in Jesus’ day, Paul’s day, and every “day” since. It’s no less dangerous now than it was then.

The problem is not that we aren’t teachable, it’s who or what, we allow to teach us.

A couple of lines from John, chapter 6:

“On hearing it, many of his disciples said, “This is a hard teaching. Who can accept it?”

 “From this time many of his disciples turned back and no longer followed him.”

They didn’t like what He taught, so they walked away, much like so many people are doing today. He didn’t chase after them to try to convince them, and He never once apologized for the truth. He gave us free will, and He allows us to use it. But what we can’t do is reject His Word and still claim to be His disciple. It just doesn’t work. If we attempt to separate Jesus from the whole of the scriptures, we only end up with a god of our own making.

Listen to this interaction out of Matthew 16:

 When Jesus came to the region of Caesarea Philippi, he asked his disciples, “Who do people say the Son of Man is?” They replied, “Some say John the Baptist; others say Elijah; and still others, Jeremiah or one of the prophets.”

“But what about you?” he asked. “Who do you say I am?” Simon Peter answered, “You are the Messiah, the Son of the living God.”

Jesus replied, “Blessed are you, Simon son of Jonah, for this was not revealed to you by flesh and blood, but by my Father in heaven.”

Many people said (and say) many things about Jesus, and those many people were wrong. But Peter knew the truth, and I believe it is because He was with Jesus, following Him, learning from Him. He was teachable to the truth because he was following closely to the One who is truth.

We are not told that we shouldn’t listen to other teachers. The scriptures tell us that God gave teachers to the body. But there is a way we are to listen to others who are teaching us.

Acts 17:11: “Now the Berean Jews were of more noble character than those in Thessalonica, for they received the message with great eagerness and examined the Scriptures every day to see if what Paul said was true.“

They eagerly listened to the teachings of Paul, but then they verified what he taught by searching the scriptures. Sadly, many today use their feelings as verification of whether something is true or not. How it makes them feel, and whether or not it lines up with what they think should be true. Truth is now subjective to each person and their viewpoint, their feelings, their experience, and their trauma. And when you have a generation of people seeking to have their feelings validated, it is guaranteed that there will be a multitude of people willing to step in and do that as a means to build their own platform, bank account, or kingdom. God help us.

I am asking myself what may seem like simple questions, ones I’d like to answer quickly, but I know that it requires an honest look at my life:

Am I still teachable? Who is teaching me? Do I verify what I’m hearing by going to scripture? Am I willing to learn hard things from the Bible?

Lord, forgive us for what we’ve done with Your Word. I pray for a revival of the holy scriptures in me, and in Your Church today. I pray for a great thirst to come over us, a thirst for Your truth, found in Your Word. I pray that the heart of the Bereans would be in me, and that Your Word would be my plumbline, always.

His Disciple: Surrendered

And Jesus, walking by the Sea of Galilee, saw two brothers, Simon called Peter, and Andrew his brother, casting a net into the sea; for they were fishermen. Then He said to them, “Follow Me, and I will make you fishers of men.” They immediately left their nets and followed Him.– Matthew 4:18-20

To follow a rabbi… meant living with the rabbi, sharing life with him and taking part in the rabbi’s whole way of life. A disciple might accompany a rabbi on all his daily routines: prayer, study, debating other rabbis, giving alms to the poor, burying the dead, going to court, etc. A rabbi’s life was meant to be a living example of someone shaped by God’s Word. Disciples, therefore, studied not just the text of Scripture but also the “text” of the rabbi’s life.” – Edward Sri, Into His Likeness: Be Transformed as a Disciple

The life of an early disciple was a life of following close, not at a distance. They weren’t part of a crowd of onlookers. They wore the dust of their rabbi’s feet, and in order to do that, they had to leave their own lives behind.

Peter answered him, “We have left everything to follow you! – Matthew 19:28

I see it when I read the gospels, and again when I read Paul’s letters to the churches. There is a leaving that must happen in order to follow Jesus; a surrendering of my plan for my life, in favor of His. There is no way to read the New Testament and come away thinking that we still get to call the shots. That we decide the when, the what, and the where for our lives. Not if we’re His disciples.

What have I left in order to follow Jesus? This is the question, and part of it I can readily answer. My right to choose where I live and work has been surrendered so that He could put me where He wants me. My desire to walk away when something became too difficult, too painful even, so that I could let Him transform me through the difficult and the painful thing. To teach me to love difficult and painful people (and to realize that sometimes, I am the difficult, painful one). I forgave people I didn’t want to forgive, remained where I didn’t want to be, and left when I didn’t want to go.

But there is always more leaving to do. The temptation to take the reins is ever present, breathing down my neck. The desire to do what I want to do with my remaining years, which would involve laying on a beach everyday, mostly in silence. The thought that I could pick when and where I retire, or whether I even get to retire, is a wonderful thought indeed. But that’s not how following Jesus works.

He leads, I follow, and in that, my heart must reach the place of surrendering all the ‘I wants’ and ‘I needs’ that keep calling for me to do it my way. Surrender, not control, is what I signed up for. A life that pleases Him more than it pleases me.

If it weren’t for my desire to remain close to Him, I would not have made many of the choices I made in my faith journey. I would have lived where I wanted, worked where I wanted, kept only the relationships I wanted, walked away when it got hard, set way more boundaries around me… all of it. But I wanted to follow at His heels, not at a distance. I wanted proximity to Jesus, not just the identifier of “Christian.” And this is still my greatest want. To be near Him. To follow Him, even when it’s hard. He has become and remains my greatest obsession, worth every bit of leaving and surrendering and hard thing I’ve had to do.

Today, I am challenged to look at my life again and ask Him where I am still trying to maintain control. To assess whether I’m still following Him, or if I’ve veered off to follow the many voices I have access to in this life, or even if I’m just simply following myself. Am I still His disciple, or am I just a Christian in the crowd?

It is good to look around at our lives and figure out if we are still following Him, or just acknowldging Him.

Father, help us be honest with You and with ourselves. Turn us, if we have veered off. Call us up if we have fallen behind. Remind us that You, not this earthly life, are our greatest reward, and that You are worthly of our lives laid down. Help us become people who are fully surrendered to You and not to this world or our flesh.

Thanks for reading. See you next time!