D17 Part 6: Discipleship of the Whole Person

Perhaps your introduction to "discipleship" was like mine - basically equated with the "spiritual disciplines" (daily Scripture reading, prayer, simplicity, fasting, etc.). How do you disciple someone? Teach them the spiritual disciplines! How am I doing as a disciple? Well, my spiritual disciplines are going well, so I'm doing well as a disciple!

I am in no way diminishing the importance of the spiritual disciplines and how they relate to discipleship. They are crucial, and disciples simply don't grow much at all without them. But they aren't the same thing as discipleship. We need them, but they aren't sufficient. They facilitate spiritual formation, but there's far more to spiritual formation.

Consider the following:

• Jesus tells the experts in the Law that disciples love the Lord their God with all of their heart, soul, mind, and strength (Mark 12:28-31). Not just spiritually, but physically, emotionally, and mentally. Not just a half-hour every morning, but every bit of every part of you. Being a disciple involves every part of your life, including loving your neighbor as yourself (v. 31).
• Jesus tells the Pharisees that discipleship is far more than just the religious duties, like tithing. Rather, following Jesus involves pursuing justice, mercy, and faithfulness (Matt 23:23). There's a societal element to following Jesus. Disciples are disciples in part by seeking out the societal good.
• James says that real religion is to minister to the vulnerable, such as widows and orphans (James 1:27). This is another example of societal mercy, but focuses on a heart for individuals in their distress. Following hard after Jesus cannot be accomplished while ignoring one's neighbor, especially the ones in need. In the next chapter, James chastises any religious man who would ignore those without adequate clothing and food (James 2:15-16).

That brings us to the sixth of seventeen truths of discipleship (the "D17"):

Discipleship must be holistic.*

Discipleship is not just about one's spiritual health! It's about our minds, our hearts, and even every ounce of strength. It's about our role in society, adding value to our neighborhood, working for justice, meeting the needs of those in want. If we are to love the Lord our God with all our strength, then discipleship includes things like diet and exercise! How you treat your neighbor is part of following Jesus. Holistic.

You've likely heard the Hebrew word Shalom. Often translated as "peace," it means so much more than that. Shalom includes wellness, health, sufficiency, relationships, and so on. It's holistic. There's "peace" with society, with finances, at one's borders, in each corner of life. Discipleship pursues every aspect of Shalom. Holistic.

I just heard a friend talk about the "edge." The "edge" is where Shalom and chaos are at war. Chaos in its various forms is the opposite of Shalom. Where we feel distress is at the "edge," where these two concepts do battle in the war theater of our lives. We experience chaos and then crave Shalom.

That is why discipleship must be holistic.

* This statement about discipleship is taken from the teachings of Caesar Kalinowski.

D17 Part 5: Individual Identity

After the resurrection, Jesus has a famous exchange with the one who denied Him three times, Peter. Jesus questions him three times about whether or not he really loves Him like he claimed to. A perfectly tailored moment meant only for Peter. Jesus' method of discipleship of Peter would not have made sense applied to anyone else on the planet. Asking John those questions just wouldn't have been fitting. Jesus concludes this discipleship moment in the same way He first introduced Himself to the disciples in chapter 1, "Follow Me."

Peter thinks this is great! He's back in a positive relationship with Jesus, plus he has some direct instructions, "Tend My lambs." Yes! We've got ourselves a discipleship model with Jesus! Everyone should go through this process! John! John should do this!

But then Jesus also tells Peter that following Him is going to end up in his own death. He will be a martyr for the Gospel.

Then looking around at John, Peter asks Jesus, "What about him?" In essence, what's going to happen to him as Your follower? How do our two paths of discipleship relate to each other? Will our paths be similar?

Jesus says, "If I want him to live until I come back, what concern is that of yours? You follow me!" (Jn 21:21-22).

Jesus, who had just tailored a discipleship moment uniquely to Peter, tells him that He will work in the lives of disciples individually. There is no "one size fits all" in discipleship. Jesus will not ask John the same questions he asked Peter, He won't necessarily give him the same instructions to tend lambs, and He won't prescribe a cookie-cutter set of experiences as a follower. He will deal with John individually, just like with Peter, just like with you.

This leads us to our fifth of the "Seventeen Truths of Discipleship" (D17):

Discipleship must be individually-tailored, based in one’s identity in Christ.

Last week, we said that discipleship must be community-based. That's no less true - we must do discipleship in community, but community is the unity of a diverse group of people. God has designed each person uniquely, and does so for a purpose. How we're uniquely designed is a revelation of how God wants us to walk and serve as disciples.

Therefore, our discipleship of one another must be tailored to how God individually designs each one. We cannot create a set formula, set curriculum, set sequence, cookie-cutter form of discipleship.

Furthermore, we must based discipleship on our identity is Christ. Who we are as "in Christ" ones defines everything else - our doing flows from our being. Who we are in Christ is completely (COMPLETELY!!!) forgiven followers who stand before God covered entirely (ENTIRELY!!!) by the righteousness of Christ. Once in Christ, there is nothing (NOTHING!!!) we can do improve our standing before God. So complete is Grace that we have nothing left but to accept that we can't do one little thing that will make God more satisfied with us, because we are in the One who satisfies Him completely. Once we accept that, then we can begin to really grow as disciples.

Therefore, to disciple one another, we must get to know one another, to see how God has made each one unique, and then encourage one another especially in the unique ways God has made us, to fit together like a mosaic creating a picture of Christ far greater than any one of us. We must based our discipleship on who we are in Christ, not based on who are in the world.

In order to disciple one another, we must first be authentic friends who listen first and rely very little (or not at all) on pre-manufactured, one size fits all, discipleship methods. We must have an eye to how each one of us can be uniquely discipled to more of how God designed us each to be, and everything must grow from our true standing before God "in Christ."

D17 Part 1: From Unbelief to Belief in Every Area

A frantic man steps out of the buzzing crowd, his son in his arms, and the weariness of his son's affliction carved deep into his face. "Teacher! Here's my son. He can't talk. A spirit has possessed him - it thrashes him and pounds him into the ground. My son ... he ... foams at the mouth and grinds his teeth uncontrollably. And then he stiffens up as hard as a board. I've tried everything ... everything! I tried your disciples, and not even they could help." He didn't need to ask Jesus for anything - his utter helplessness was enough of a plea. Jesus steps forward, and the demon attacks the boy yet again, but for the last time.

9:21 Jesus asked his father, “How long has this been happening to him?” And he said, “From childhood. 9:22 It has often thrown him into fire or water to destroy him. But if you are able to do anything, have compassion on us and help us.” 9:23 Then Jesus said to him, “ ‘If you are able?’ All things are possible for the one who believes.” 9:24 Immediately the father of the boy cried out and said, “I believe; help my unbelief!”

(Mark 9:21-24)

What an amazing admission! "I believe; help my unbelief!" I believe. I believe enough to bring my boy to your disciples. Even their failure doesn't deter me - I still believe you can have compassion and can help us. But I also don't believe. I hedge my request by asking "if you are able," because I don't yet fully believe you are. I don't really understand you, and I don't know all that it means for me if you actually pull this off. So, not only will you help us by saving my son, will you help me with my unbelief? Because you said anything is possible for those who believe.

Too often, we reduce following Jesus to a binary question, yes or no. Do you believe? Yes or no! Check one. How cruel would Jesus have been shove a note into this man's hand with only two checkboxes, yes or no, like the binary love letters we passed around in grade school. The man believes, but he doesn't believe. We believe, but we don't believe.

Yes, there is a singular moment when a person can pass from the kingdom of this world to the Kingdom of God, and that happens only through believing. But we don't pass so cleanly in binary fashion from belief to unbelief. We believe unto salvation, but even as we are born anew, we are not completely rid of unbelief. There remain areas of our lives where we continue in unbelief, sometimes for years.

I have received the irrevocable gift of eternal life (by grace through faith), but I still don't fully believe God in every area of life. For me, it's sometimes about my future. Sometimes, it's about taking a risk in the present, needing God to "show up," but not fully believing that He will. Sometimes, it's unbelief about where my true happiness will be found - in things or experiences, rather than in Christ alone. I believe! Help my unbelief!

"Discipleship is the process of moving from unbelief to belief in every area of your life in light of the Gospel." If we understand that the moment of salvation where we become "regenerate" (reborn) is an event of incomplete faith, but faith nonetheless, we can then see that the rest of our walk with Christ is the ongoing process of replacing every remaining area of unbelief with belief. My unbelief about my happiness or my future replaced by belief in the Gospel of Christ says about happiness and the future - that's me being discipled. In other words, becoming a more complete follower of Jesus. It's not "just believe Jesus more," but "believe Jesus in ways that I have been stuck in unbelief."

But remember, "discipleship" is not something that begins after salvation. Discipling someone can (and should!) happen before salvation. We see it in the pages of the Gospels, but also in our daily lives - those curious about Jesus, moving from ways of unbelief to belief in areas of their lives before they receive eternal life. Eventually, that faith intersects with God's sovereign election, and a person becomes regenerate. But he merely continues on, moving from unbelief to belief in more areas of life. Discipleship.

The Elders have been wrestling with a list we're calling "The Discipleship 17" - 17 truths about discipleship that cause us to dig deeper into what it means to follow Jesus and live life on mission. This truth of moving from unbelief to belief is the first of the "D17," a definition we pulled from a book by Cesar Kalinowski.

Spend a few moments pondering this definition. How does this truth affect what your life as a follower should be? How can you help one another move from unbelief to belief in various areas of light in light of the Gospel? How does this change how to raise your children? How does this help you interact with those who are unconvinced that Jesus is the Son of God? What would it mean for the areas of unbelief in your life were one by one replaced by belief?