Thinking Biblically: Dialing Up Believers

History shows an inverse impact on the presence and place of Christianity with Academia.

As a nation… as a world, so the analysis goes, the more educated a people become, the less they need Jesus and the trappings of the simple faith ascribed to by others. Therefore, church participation declines, evangelism wanes, and the world system gains power and presence.

While that is certainly one conclusion that could be drawn, and has been drawn, it is not correct.

For Christ followers, gaining academic knowledge is not the source of our personal and organizational decline. Rather, it is the absence of experiential knowledge, synthesizing the truth of Christ in the very core of our beings. One does not have to eliminate experiential knowledge from the discipleship process. But we do. We substitute experiential discipleship with academic studies and social expression for our own benefit, our own growth, our own holiness. After all, what could please God more than each of us being more holy? And after we do all that, week in and week out, there is no time for anything else. And so we measure how effective we are at making disciples by measuring what we are doing and ignoring what we should be doing.

We have an ever burgeoning supply of academic resources and spokespersons that add weight to the proposition that the academic disciplines and the academic process are the path to mature discipleship. In fact, these disciplines are so good and necessary, we have little time for such experiential pursuits. In fact, they are so good and necessary, there are members and leaders in churches that believe there must be a certain level of academic maturity in place before any real experiential, aka “called”, ministry should be attempted. To be clear, no one is really calling these disciplines “academic”, but they are. And I am not trying to say these are things that are bad, as if this were a simple duality. What I am saying is that these are academic, not experiential – the kind of life change in the core of your being experiential.

  • Bible Reading
  • Scripture Memory
  • Lecture Attendance (Sermons)
  • Lab Activities (Fellowships)

Which of the above did Jesus advocate with the Twelve?

You may say, “Well, they didn’t read their Bible every day, because they were with Jesus every day.”

I am, too. I am with Jesus every day. He guides and directs my life. Does the above list of disciplines help? They can, but they are also, in part, responsible for the growth of consumerism in the local church. If you pay attention, and not necessarily too closely, how often do you hear each of these responses when something unexpected – usually something negative – occurs in he life of a fellow believer?

Do you hear

  • What is God trying to teach me?
  • What is God trying to show me?
  • What is God trying to do in my life?

While these are certainly questions to consider for any believer, the academic disciple defaults to these questions. An experiential disciple also asks, and may more frequently ask

  • What is God trying to do with me?
  • What is God trying to do through me?
  • Where does God want me to go?
  • Who does God want me to impact?
  • What does God want me to say?

The Bible is no substitute for the indwelling Spirit. You can have the first one without the Other. But it is having the Other that empowers the first. You can memorize scripture all you want, but this is not a substitute for life experience that causes the truth of His word to be deeply embedded in the very soul of your being. There are scores of church members that have never repented, never placed their faith in Christ, and/or have never truly submitted to His Lordship that can and do read the Bible. Some have memorized scripture. Some have tried, and may still have, quiet times. And for them, it is the academic substitute for an experiential relationship with Christ. There are scores of other church members that are saved – they have repented and placed faith in their Lord, Jesus Christ. And they belive that the most important things they can do is quiet time, scripture memory, worship participation, and fellowship – doing life together with other believers. Where did they get this idea?

Not from Jesus. He did not die on the cross so that we could all enjoy our quiet times, scripture memory, fellowship and worship. This is not the Great Commission. This is the academics of consumerism in the church.

In addition, that time the Disciples spent with Jesus was always doing and debriefing. They did experiential ministry and then debriefed. They grew in the experience, and they grew in the debrief, so that after 3 years – and only 3 years – they were no longer the disciples following the God-Man in their midst, they were world-changers following the God-Man in the center of their beings. How long have you been discipling the people in your care?

You may say, “Psalm 119:11 tells us to hide God’s word in our heart, so that we may not sin against Him.”

Is Psalm 119:11 prescriptive or descriptive? If it is prescribed, then it is a command that every God follower and Christ follower (Old Testament and New) must follow else be guilty of sin. If it is a description, then David’s (and other Psalmist’s) writings are then expressions of their walk with their God. One can choose to follow the model or modify the model or not. But, what does the culture and experience of David (and Solomon) tell us about what this model really is?

Point to the place on your body where you’re supposed to hide his word, based on this verse. Go ahead, point.

If you’re being honest with yourself and the passage, you have not pointed at your head (the place of memorization). You have likely pointed at your heart. But even this is not low enough. When the scripture references “heart” in this fashion, it is referencing the “core of your being” – your bowels is a more accurate depiction. And the only way this kind of “hiding of God’s word” happens is through life changing experience. But, with an academic mindset, learning, and learning quicky, and always learning more are valued. Reading and reciting are highly valued. Living out opportunities for life changing experience is hard and takes place over time, so we push memorization. And we call “Bible Reading” and “Prayer” experiences. I’ve even heard pastors preach that having your daily quiet time is the same thing as taking up your cross daily. This is ridiculous.

I can hear David telling Solomon, “Through all of the years with my Lord, when I have been faithful and when I have sinned, when He has led and I have followed and failed to follow; I have taken all this to heart (see that word in this context?) all that he has shown me, all that He has done for me and with me and through me, and I have hidden these truths deeply within the core of my being.”

Or do we hear him telling Solomon, “I have memorized Genesis and Exodus, but I’m still working on Deuteronomy…”?

Was David advocating for a learned and practiced discipline, or was he expressing the truth of a life long lived in the presence and grace of the one who called him, led him, empowered him, protected him, and forgave him in his service and obedience in a world that did not know his God?

An Implication for Children

Unfortunately, there are programs and emphases that have existed for decades that substitute academic knowledge for experiential knowledge. And, as it pertains to salvation, many tragically pointing at children by well-meaning adults… in a hurry… to protect their children from the consequences of sin not yet understood.

Please stop rushing your children into salvation. Please stop telling them they are saved because they can recite memorized passages of scripture. Please stop telling them they are saved because they have memorized the socialized key words and phrases that you value as evidence of salvation.

Academic:

  • Memorized John 3:16? Check!
  • Memorized Ephesians 2:8-9? Check!!
  • Memorized Romans 3:23, 6:23, 10:9-10? Check, Check, Check!

Social:

  • “I love Jesus and want him to live in my heart forever”

Not Any Answer Will Do

Rather, ask them to explain to you what it means that they have faith in Jesus. And if their answer is only cute, but not sufficient, let them know that God loves them and is working in their lives.

Ask them instead, how Jesus being Lord of their life has changed their responses to their parents and siblings. If their answer is rehearsed, to agree with what you’ve already told them it should be like, then let them know that God loves them and is working in their lives.

Ask them when and how they repented. What does that mean to them?

Here’s a hint: if the child is too young to understand Dad jokes, they are too young to understand the gospel. Any effort to coach someone into salvation that is too young to comprehend it’s meaning may as well open a millstone factory. Any effort to dumb down scripture and redefine these terms are doing just the same (e.g., confession and repentance are not the same thing).

We have the joy of hosting our 4 Indiana grandkids 2 – 3 weekends a month. My primary job other the Chaos Control (or Contributor) is Saturday morning breakfast.

One Saturday, when Jubilee, around 7 years old, and Mercy at 3 years old were the only two that were awake while I was fixing the pancakes. Jubilee was on the sofa in the living room, reading one of her books. In our open living space, I could easily see and hear her from the kitchen. As it turns out, she could also hear us. Mercy was full of questions, more questions than anyone without coffee should have to answer before 7:30 in the morning. Standing up in a chair on the far side of the kitchen island, all of the questions began with “Why”….

And then the sequence turned to the point all Dads (and Grandads) hope for. It went something like this.

Why did you get a tissue? (I immediately knew where this was going).

Because I needed to blow my nose.

Why did you blow your nose?

Because I thought it was funny, but it snot.

And then, simultaneously both girls responded.

Jubilee, still looking at her book, giggled loud enough to make any master of the Dad joke proud.

Mercy, in her regular defiant way, said…

No, it’s not! – emphasizing every word.

Jubilee giggled again.

Cute! But sufficient? For Jubilee, this was evidence enough for me to know that her ability to understand the gospel was growing. But for Mercy, it was also evidence. Evidence that while she could say the words, she did not yet possess the ability to comprehend lordship and repentance, much less faith.

The problem is, when we declare children saved and baptize them when they cannot comprehend repentance, we steal from them the opportunity to accept Christ without the guilt of the life lived as a lie. The life lived as a lie leads anyone to hide it, to protect it, to deny the truth. Millstone.

As years pass, there is constant reinforcement that it is normal to be saved and baptized as a young child. But these children, for decades, have grown up in the church. They either leave the church at some point or some even lead the church at some point. It is not unheard of that a deacon, elder, or pastor receives salvation after years of serving in such roles empowered by the millstone of “confirmed” childhood conversion and the longstanding life of hiding the lie. This is exactly the picture of “wheat and weeds” – Matt 13:36-43.

Here is a common refrain.

I got saved when I was (pick an age: 5, 6, 7….), but:

  • I did not become serious about Jesus until I was 16
  • Jesus did not become real to me until I was 18
  • I recommitted my life to Jesus when I was 22

The scripture talks about the faith of a child… that we should accept Jesus with the faith of a child. But the Bible also talks about Lordship and Repentance. It talks a lot about Lordship and Repentance, in fact, it was the message given to John (Matthew 3) to prepare the way of the Lord’s coming. Repent, for the kingdom of God is at hand! Jesus made this part of his constant messaging from the very beginning of his ministry. Matthew 4:17: “From that time on Jesus began to preach, ‘Repent, for the kingdom of heaven has come near.’”

Imagine that the door to heaven is a safe. If you turn the dial and get the combination right, you get to pass from this place to His place.

I would say that faith is the easiest thing for a child to have. It costs nothing. It makes sense. Having faith in the Lord Jesus is childlike at its core. Turn the dial right to Faith…Tumbler 1… click!

Lordship is a bit more difficult. Not many children of 5, 6, or 7 can, with adequate comprehension, make the commitment to submission to King Jesus? They can say the words, but this costs something more than learned phrases. You never hear anyone in scripture advising childlike Lordship. The price for this is the release of personal preference and desire. They can say the words, but is it only to mimic and please their parents, pastor, or class leader rather the Jesus himself? Are they turning the dial to Service or Attendance or Scripture Memory? All of these things can feel like lordship if they are doing something that they’ve been told is pleasing to the Lord. But it is not the same thing as making him the forever Lord of their life.

Repentance is the most difficult of all. One has to know they have a life to give up. One has to know who they are so that they can choose to become whom Christ wants them to be, rather than the life they have chosen for themselves. There is no such thing as childlike repentance.

In the examples of the common refrain above, what is happening in the lives of our children is that the church introduces them to a God who loves them. Faith is likely the first tumbler to genuinely fall. Over a period of days, months, and even years, the second tumbler – Lordship – falls. Living with godly parents, submitting (willingly) to their leadership, rules, and demands gives experiential knowledge to what this means.

But it may be years more – 16, 18, 22 years or more – before that third tumbler falls, if it ever does. That place and time where the experience of life helps the one who is submissive to the Lord’s leadership, because of the faith they have in him leads them to repentance – the choice to turn from their own life’s direction and accept fully his life’s direction for them, no matter the cost, no matter the call.

That is the moment of salvation.

An Implication for The Church

We like to think that because Faith exists, so must Lordship and Repentance. We accept the testimony of Faith as sufficient, but it is not. I have asked hundreds of adults over the years about their salvation. I describe faith and asked them to describe to me when they first had faith in the Lord Jesus, and they can tell me. I describe Lordship and ask them when He truly became their Lord, and they can tell me. I describe repentance and ask them when they truly repented. Overwhelmingly I get two responses.

  • I’ve never heard of this before
  • I never have

For so many, that third tumbler has never fallen. Their salvation was confirmed for them as children, reinforced by baptism when the only tumbler that had clicked was Faith, and perhaps Lordship. They like and live in the church culture. Living the Jesus way has advantages even if you’re not a repentant believer. But for them, the third tumbler has never fallen. They have never repented. They are not saved.

And herein lies a substantive difference between academic and experiential discipleship. Academic discipleship leads us to a place of personal growth, as measured against the expectations of those who lead us this way. This is the “all that He has done for me” kind of discipleship. It is the pursuit of personal holiness through personal growth through academic means. But even those without Christ can follow an academic path.

The experiential disciple gives his or her life away. The serve the risen King outside the walls of the church (and inside). They recognize, more and more, as they grow that not only does the Lord love them as friends, but in that context, He has shared everything with them about His Father’s business… which is now their business, too. The lost are more important that the saved. If you disagree, perhaps you’ve never been that one lost sheep (Luke 15:3-7).

Herein is the reason why many pastors believe that a large percentage of their church members are actually not saved at all. Herein is why some staff members, deacons, elders, and leaders of ministry are not saved at all. Here is why you may be struggling with the vagueness and emptiness of your life with Christ.

Children that were academically “saved” by those in a hurry to help keep them from experiencing the consequences of sin grow up. They’ve been growing up for decades. They are now making the decisions. They are now leading. Look at your church. Look at yourself. How’s that going for you and your church? If all you know is academic discipleship, you lead and expect academic discipleship.

But the experiential discipleship, the kind of training Jesus did with the Twelve, that discipleship resulted in them “taking to heart” all that He did with them and through them. This kind of discipleship turned the world upside down. These disciples did not focus on what Christ had done for them. I’m not saying they don’t realize and rejoice in that, just that His call was now ahead of them, their future secure. His work and presence in their lives provided motivation to share “all that He wants to do for you” with the rest of the world. Am I the only one that has noticed that the world is now turning downside up?

I was in what became a heated debate (yes, I brought some of the heat) some years ago that strikes right at the heart of this matter. The church staff (I was not a staff member) had gathered with a few interested members (I was interested) to discuss and develop a more significant evangelism ministry. One staff member insisted that our church needed to be healthy before we pursued any kind of evangelism ministry. “Health for ourselves” vs “Salvation for others” was the real debate. I insisted that health would never be ours unless we pursued salvation for others. The net result was that it was not pursued. For 30 years, neighbors were never reached, though the church property was nestled in the middle of a sea of houses. The larger community was not reached. Evangelism was occasionally taught out of books by people who had never led someone to Christ. And in the 31st year of the pursuit of personal growth, non-existent experiential discipleship, and unhealth, the church closed.

After just one or two generations of the academic approach, there are few to no leaders in place to even expect, much less plan and lead, experiential discipleship. If there is no one leading that has seen or done ministry in the wild, the abundance of academic process tools will fill the void. They are replicated from church to church, because they “work”, although that word can have many different meanings. It is just too easy to buy the next book or teach the next lesson in the curriculum than it is to provide life changing, world changing, upside down experience that results in life change for others and core deep, sold out, synthesized knowledge of the One who died in our place.

Holiness springs from the bowels… the heart, not the head. It takes time. And it’s greatest deployment is in a life long lived in the presence and grace of the one who calls us, leads us, empowers us, protects us, and forgives us in our service and obedience to change the world that does not know our God.

Thinking Biblically: Dialing Up Mature Disciples

Thinking Biblically is a vitally important aspect of the mature Christian’s life. For example, when we talk about a Biblical world view, what we mean is that one’s view of the world should align with Scripture, God’s window for us into His view of the world.

You can purposefully point your discipleship efforts at the level of Biblical Thinking that will challenge and grow those who are seeking a deeper Disciple life.

What does it mean to Think Biblically?

When you teach children, students and adults, and they memorize information and identify Bible facts, this indicates that knowledge exists, and they have the ability to remember.

A form of “thinking” is taking place, but if this is all they do, is this really what we mean by Thinking Biblically?

 When children, students, and adults can repeat in their own words one of the classic Old Testament stories – David and Goliath or Jonah and the Whale, for example, that indicates that they know something, that they have the ability to remember, AND they understand at least some of what they are saying – this indicates they have the ability to comprehend. which is a form of thinking.

But if this is all they do, is this really what we mean by Thinking Biblically?

When you teach students and adults, and they are able to “practice what you preach” – they do the things you suggest as applications to your teaching, it does indicate that they can remember and understand, as well as do what they’re told (apply), all of which are thinking activities.

Again, if this is all they do, is this what we mean by Thinking Biblically?

While doing what you’re told is a form of thinking, is this a sufficient target for our disciple maturing efforts?

If your students and adults can recognize concepts, even when different terms are used or disparate passages considered; if they can categorize information, discern the impact of one passage as applied to another passage, is this Thinking Biblically?

If they can engage in meaningful conversations like this…

Analyze the truth of the Prodigal parable (Luke 15:11-32) with Jesus’ encounter with the Rich Young Man (Matthew 19:16-22). Considering Jesus’ response, why do you think he resembles one character or another from the parable?

… is this now finally Thinking Biblically in a way that makes sense for a disciple?

Perhaps.

What if your students and adults are able to argue a point with you, with Biblical references, (whether or not they are right, partly right, or completely wrong), judge for themselves if something is Biblically true, or decide for themselves what actions, supported by Scripture, they need to take, surely THIS can be considered a disciple Thinking Biblically.

Yes, but…

Is God’s word so deeply valued and embedded in the very core of their being, that they are able to combine and organize Biblical concepts, ideas, people, resources, purpose, context, culture, and audience – and create a Biblical ministry or response to a need or challenge without having to read a book to find the recipe from how someone at some church three states away dealt with something similar?

In case you were wondering, all six of these categories do have a place in the life of a disciple. They are developmental stages. But too many stop at application. That may be because the vast majority of purchasable and downloadable resources drive toward remembering and application as the main takeaways from every lesson.

I’m not trying to knock application. It does have a place in producing mature disciples. The problem arises when the church or mentor expects the application level to be the pinnacle of the effort; that this will produce mature (synthesized) disciples. Unfortunately, we won’t be able to lead others to the solid food of synthesis by offering them the milk of remembering.

At some point, we must move past challenging disciples to remember God’s word and offering suggestions on how to apply God’s word to their life as the standard for spiritual maturity.

To mature disciples into the Creator stage, we need to stop being a source of knowledge, and become a source of wisdom.

If we have truly made and matured a disciple, we have led them in discovering the joy of the spirit-guided synthesized life with Christ. A mature disciple doesn’t need my regular contribution on how they might apply God’s word – they are in a deep relationship with the One who is constantly at work in and through their life. And trust me, God knows better what I need to apply – and what you need to apply – than does anyone else. His Word is incredibly sufficient to divide the joint and marrow of my life. He knows what I need to analyze and what next needs to root deeply in the core of my being.

Consider the above regarding the development of a mature, adult disciple, with these two similar questions:

(1)

How likely is it that a disciple is mature – has a deep, intimate walk with Christ – while at the same time is dependent on suggestions from me or the latest book to be their primary source for inspired “application”?

(2)

How can I expect a disciple, for themselves and by themselves, to Biblically…

  • Evaluate the truth in a bible study, sermon, small group, the latest Christian book or movie, and especially, the conversations and challenges by friends, neighbors, and family
  • Analyze gaps in doctrine or spiritual leadership development
  • Discover the joy of God speaking to them in the manifold depth of scripture
  • Create ministry and evangelistic opportunities by analyzing available spiritual gifts, talents, and resources, evaluating the culture of the area in question, and hearing God’s wisdom speak into them as He stirs this mixture in their heart

… if all of my discipleship efforts are encompassed by

  • Telling (lectures, sermons)
  • Scripture Memory
  • Literature driven studies
  • Fill in the blank questions
  • Video lessons

Cooks and Chefs

A primary difference between cooks and chefs is this: one follows recipes, and one creates recipes. One knows where the ingredients they need are on their shelves or in the store, and the other knows why untold numbers of various ingredients should or should not be included in their creation. Whether it is eye/hand memory, watching a YouTube video, or reading instructions from your favorite blog and recipe site, if this is your fallback cooking style, then you are a cook. There is nothing wrong with being a cook. I’m a cook. I have no aspirations to become a chef.

But most importantly, every chef began as a cook. And every cook consumed food before ever contributing to the meal plan. That’s a solid development plan: consumer, cook, chef.

I would imagine that you’ve tried at least one recipe that you saw or found online. It looked amazing. You said to yourself, “I’ll bet I can make that.” That’s what cooks do. They follow someone else’s instructions. They produce tasty dishes that contribute to the consumer’s experience and expands their repertoire. They do not create these dishes. A chef did that. A curious and creative soul that understands the chemistry of the ingredients, the resulting effects of mixing each, they type of oil to use, the time and temperature to set, the value in letting food stand or not, before and/or after cooking, and a host of other types of information.

Who knew scrambled eggs are supposed to stand after beating before cooking? I didn’t, but I learned it from a chef at 64 years of age. I still don’t do it. Because I’m a cook.

Unfortunately, far too many churches and church leaders today think they are discipling spiritual “chefs” when they are, in fact, only discipling “cooks”.

How many “chef” disciples does your church aspire to develop? A good goal is somewhere between not enough and too many. Why not consider 10% as a goal just to get your “creative” juices flowing.

Consumer Contributor Creator
1Maturity LevelBaby > 
Immature		Immature >
Maturing		Maturing >
Mature
Strategy2Delivery3Academic
w/ Labs		4Interactive w/ Life Change
DietMilkSolid FoodSolid Food
ExampleCustomerCookChef
AbilitiesRemember
Understand		Appy
Analyze		Evaluate
Synthesize
1Maturity Level – Refers to spiritual age, not chronological age.
2Delivery – Telling (eg, preaching and lecture based bible studies)
3Academic with Lab Activities – Lecture, reading, and “try this” applications.
4Interactive with Life Change – Conversational and thought-provoking bible study with hands-on experiences

There are untold numbers of books and resources available today that call out the problem of Consumer vs Contributor church members. It is true that high tides raise all ships. If your “high tide” is to mature your member disciples to the stage of a Contributor, it’s no wonder that there are so many Consumers in the church. What might happen if you developed a strategy and process to mature 10% of your adult believers to Creator disciples? What might that do the enhance your ministry of developing Contributors?

When you, as the leader or mentor, take steps to guide growth into these deeper areas of discipleship, rather than trying to foster growth via resources developed without these deeper areas in mind, those you disciple and mentor will grow further and deeper in the Christian life. They will spend less time seeking, finding, and following the next book, blogger, or lesson, and instead, they will, with growing eagerness and wisdom seek, find, and follow the Lord and his will for their rest of their lives. They will find this in His word, along with experience, mentors, authors, and wisdom from close friends. But they will always measure everything against the wisdom in His word. They will quote God more often than their favorite author or TV preacher. And they will quote God more often in context – correctly and purposefully. They will understand Him more fully and pray more closely in His will.

Consumer strategies are easy to plan, easy to deliver, and easy to measure. If your evaluation of spiritual maturity involves questions like this …

  • How many did you get right?
  • How many verses have you memorized?
  • How long did you read the Bible today?
  • How many days did you read the Bible this week?
  • For God so loved the ____________________

… then you are evaluating the Consumer. Remembering and Understanding are easy. But there is no natural bridge to cross over to the deeper four. For the sake of those you lead and mentor, you have to choose to change how you lead.

The kind of thinking that goes into Consumer strategies is not at all the Biblical Thinking that will reach our world for Christ and strengthen our churches for generations to come.

…the maturation process for a disciple stagnates without challenging growth opportunities at the level at which God has enabled us to be challenged.

Application can be more challenging, but often is it not. If the application is to read more, memorize more, pray more, and attend more, then this is really just applying Consumer level maturity. I am not saying that reading, memorization, and praying are wasted activities. I am saying that becoming a mature disciple requires one to  think biblically from the very core of their being about all aspects of their lives. And to create mature disciples, we must engage with them at those levels of development.

Contributor level builds commitment into the disciple’s maturing path. Application at this level is more about serving and sacrifice – acting on God’s direction and following His lead. It empowers contributing to ministry that has been created by someone else, and often requires the direction and accountability of those ministry leaders.

Evaluating the maturity of a disciple at this level is more nuanced. One has to evaluate the gifts, talents, skills, and experiences against the commitment and sacrifice of the Contributor to best guide them toward greater maturity. This requires that the mentor be a Creator kind of disciple. It is not possible to lead others where you have never been.

To mature disciples into the Creator stage, we need to stop being a source of knowledge, and become a source of wisdom. Your role is no longer to tell, but to engage with thought provoking questions and hands-on experiences, guiding them to discover for themselves rather than being dependent on the discoveries of the speaker or author of the day.

Think about the last Bible Study or mentoring relationship you were in as a participant or leader. Was there:

  • Much reading (remembering and understanding)
  • Scripture memory (more remembering)
  • Video instruction (watching & listening – again, more remembering)
  • “Fill in the blank” type questions (remembering and understanding). Including being asked to:
  • define things
  • list things
  • recall things
  • paraphrase things
  • share things
  • explain things
  • watch and listen to things

These are all developmental methods that align with the basic capabilities of an elementary school student. This is not to say that mature disciples did not pass through these strategies on their way to maturity or that they couldn’t at times need to or benefit from activities like this. It is to say, however, that the maturation process for a disciple stagnates without challenging growth opportunities at the level at which God has enabled us to be challenged. I am convinced that, for years, we’ve not listened when our members tell us they are not being fed. The diet of the Consumer (elementary) discipleship strategy is really only milk, regardless of whether we think it is solid food – every cook knows this. And every chef.

If the bulk of your disciple maturing efforts peak out at Remembering. Understanding and Application, these efforts generally produce less mature disciples than strategies that drive through Analysis, Evaluation, and into Synthesis.

I’m not saying these mentors or disciples lack faith or love Jesus any less than anyone else. What I’m saying is, based on how God made us, and the examples of the various levels of maturity we see in scripture, some of these things are not like the others: not as deep, not as memorable, not as life-changing. And the church can do something about it. If you are a mentor – or want to be a mentor – you can do something about it.

Maturing Disciples: Examples from Scripture

Let me preface this section by saying there is very little ink used in scripture about Jesus “making” the 12 into disciples. Oh, it is reported (“Come follow me…” Matt 4:19), but the vast majority of the Gospel accounts follow them in the maturing process after they were made into disciples.

Why is this important? If you are leading people to believe that “making disciples” is synonymous with “discipleship”: studying, praying, applying, worshipping… then you have effectively dropped evangelism from the Jesus model. (See Making Pie…)

Jesus took 12 men that were not followers and gave them the opportunity to follow Him. They did. When they put down their nets (and tools of their other trades) – when they gave up their own lives for the lives He had for them – they became disciples. They were made. They certainly were not mature at this point, but this is when they were made (11 of the 12 anyway). For three years, Jesus matured them. But they were made first.

When you examine the lives of Biblical characters that had the greatest impact on this world, that were in fact world-changers (Acts 17:1-7, esp. vs 7), you will be hard pressed to find one that merely remembered, repeated and applied. In fact, you will be hard pressed to find where this was any part at all of Jesus’ disciple-maturing process.

There are many named and nameless encounters where Jesus engages with people who have existed in one level, but in that interaction, were challenged to change and grow deeper.

Water You Walking About? (Matthew 14:28-33)

Peter saw Jesus walking on water and asked Him to “say the word” so he could join him. This very public “maturing” step was one of many that Peter experienced. The “faith of a child” that helped him do what he was told was quickly replaced by a normal fear. The logic of what he was doing overwhelmed that simple faith. While one might praise Peter for this act of child-like faith, the wise see that Jesus was maturing Peter’s faith. It would need to be greater than that of child to carry out his mission. This is not something that could be taught, remembered, or applied. It had to be a feet-on experience, and failure was beneficial to the developmental goal.

We see the other end of Peter’s faith-maturing journey when, without hesitation, he commanded the poor beggar to “rise and walk” in the name of Jesus, the very thing he would always so vividly remember as an early failure in his own faith.

Pick a Parable

Consumer developmental levels lean into the concept that the Bible means what it says. Creator levels lean into the concept that the Bible means what it means. While it is certainly true that there is much in scripture where both of these concepts yield the same understanding, there are many that don’t. If this is something you would choose to debate, first begin by explaining to yourself why there are so many men in America that still have two good hands, two good feet, and two good eyes. (Mark 9:43-47)

Pick a parable, any parable. Jesus never meant for the audience to focus on what He was saying. At worst, He wanted them to be confused. At best he wanted them to analyze and evaluate what He was saying to discover for themselves the relationship between their own lives and the Kingdom of God.

  • The Prodigal Son? Jesus was not talking about the family of a rebellious son. His meaning was a comparison of ungrateful Jews and soon to be born again children of the king.
  • The Lost Sheep? Not about sheep.
  • The Sower? Not about farming.

The Bereans (Acts 17:1-12)

The Jews in Berea got it. They analyzed and evaluated what Paul was saying with what their scriptures (Old Testament) said. This is an example of Contributor and Creative Maturity that should be a model for maturing disciples. They didn’t compare Paul’s teaching to their feelings or opinion, to their culture or what someone else said about God’s Word, or to Paul’s earlier teaching. They compared what he taught with the Word of God.

Missionary Paul (Acts 9)

Paul demonstrated his love for Christ and his commitment to His call in his self-evaluation in this passage. We have no record of Jesus or the apostles giving him Consumer or Contributor level instructions that resemble anything like the wide-ranging strategy he describes. He evaluated the community he was in at the time, (“… to the weak, I became weak…” vs. 19-22) and created ministry and evangelism opportunities by leveraging his gifts and talents to that end (“… so that by all possible means I might save some.” v. 23).  This was Biblical Thinking at its finest!

And then there were times that Jesus did not respond in a way that we might think he would. His answers sometimes are not direct – they are instead intended to cause cognitive dissonance, self-evaluation and deeper analysis of truth.

The Rich Young Man (Matthew 19:16-28)

Here’s a man that has followed the Big 10 list since he was just a lad. But deep inside he must have known it was not enough. He knows he hasn’t followed them perfectly, but he would never admit that out loud. He knows others who say they follow the Big 10, and he knows they don’t follow them perfectly as well.

Imagine if your “discipleship” path had concluded at “follow this list of 10 things” for the rest of your life and you will be a mature disciple. But don’t miss what Jesus did in response to his question.

On the surface, Jesus just gave him another list. But in the manifold wisdom that only comes from God, what Jesus effectively did was cause cognitive dissonance (intellectual conflict that demands resolution) by supplying a comparative list. The message is clear. Your list is insufficient. Your application is without merit. Give away everything that you value and value only me.

Follow.

Me.

We don’t know if this man ever came to faith in Christ. We do know that Jesus challenged his entire belief system by that simple response. He made him think without affirming or ranking his works-driven life. “Get rid of everything you value and follow me” is a very short list – one that is undefinable, unknowable, unmeasurable; it can only be experienced. Yet this is the beginning of the kind of experiential knowledge that made world changers out of the Disciples.

Dial It Up: How does one become a Creator mentor?

Take a look the graphic below. The verbs (not exhaustive) in the outer area reflect developmental abilities associated with the meaning of the 6 stages of Discipleship – two stages for each category (Consumer, Contributor, Creator).

Evaluate the person you are mentoring. Where is he or she, and what might be a good next growth step based on these developmental goals (verbs).

In your Bible study, with them, pose questions using these verbs. And engage them in experiences that rely on the same verbs.

For example: If you are working with someone who is moving into Creator. Pick a verb, say, “prescribe”. You can then ask the same question about any number of passages in scripture that are the basis for various church structure, doctrine and polity positions. One question per week may very well wear you both out 😊.

Support/defend (two more verbs) your response to the following.

  • Baptism: Which passages are prescriptive, and which are descriptive?
  • Deacons and/or Elders: Which passages are prescriptive, and which are descriptive?
  • Giving: Which passages are prescriptive, and which are descriptive?
  • Evangelism: Which passages are prescriptive, and which are descriptive?
  • Worship: Which passages are prescriptive, and which are descriptive?

For every prescriptive response, you could follow up with something like, “let’s imagine the implications of a church that does not follow this prescription.”

For every descriptive response, you could follow up with something like, “taking into consideration the culture of our church and surrounding community and create a proposal for what would enhance the ministry of our church, while staying true to the Bible, our values, and our mission.

Dialing Up Mature Disciples

Thought provoking questions. Hands-on (feet-on?) Learning. This is how Jesus matured His disciples.

These kinds of questions are challenging – taking God’s word deep inside the heart of those so engaged.

The activity takes the mentor and mentee out of the small circle of self (consumer) into the world of creating for sake of the Gospel and those in need of it.

This is Thinking Biblically. Purposefully. Maturing Disciples that know God’s word and ways so much greater than simply reading and reciting it.

iDiscover can help. Reach out to eli.bernard@idiscover.xyz to discover how.

NOTE: The post is not a commentary on preaching content or style. It is speaking specifically about small group and mentoring strategies for developing mature disciples. While worship services and sermons are certainly part of a disciple’s experience, they will never be the core of a deliberate discipleship strategy. Jesus preached to crowds, but He discipled 12. The differences are significant.

Jesus Wept.

John 11

When our kids were children, we had to move, taking them away from their schools and friends. One night, I was out shopping and found the largest stuffed animals I had ever seen. These floppy-eared dogs were more than twice as long as my oldest was tall.

Because I wanted each child to enjoy this special gift with me, I planned to give them one at a time. Sarah came outside when she heard me drive up, and I brought out her dog! Her eyes were never so big, her joy EXACTLY what I had expected. Before I knew it, she ran inside, floppy-dog flopping even more and trailing behind her as she ran. Bethany and Jesse met her, coming the other way, and as only a child could in that instant, each must have assumed that I loved Sarah more than they. Their expressions of sadness and disbelief as they came out the door fully powered by their lack of floppy-dog.

One look at their faces and I wept. I fell to the ground with sadness. I didn’t just sniffle, rather, there were big tears best described by the term “weep”. I was so sad because they were sad. It hurt deeply that they believed I had let them down. It didn’t matter that I knew I had the same great gift for both to them. It didn’t matter that I knew that their response was that of a child, ignorant of the unseen and unknown around them. All that mattered at that moment was that I felt sad because they felt sad.

      

*Hahahahahahahahahahaha!

Not.

I simply pulled their floppy-dogs from the trunk of the car, and there were smiles all around. Hero. Strong emotions. Happy ending.

But Jesus did weep. Unfortunately, the scripture doesn’t directly tell us why. Our experience tells us that he was sad because Lazarus’ friends and family were sad, that his friend had died.

The scripture tells us:

  • He was reprimanded by Mary – “…if you had been here, my brother would not have died” (v. 32). 
  • He was moved in spirit and troubled by her weeping, and that of the Jews with her (v. 33)
  • He was escorted to the tomb (v.34)

And we are then told that He wept. (v.35)

But we’re also told in the broader passage:

  • As soon as He heard that Lazarus was sick, He announced that the story would not end in death. (vs. 4)
  • The entire episode from sickness, to death, to raised from death was planned to give God glory (vs. 4)
  • He chose to delay his departure to see Lazarus for two days, ensuring that Lazarus would die, even though John notes that Jesus loved Mary, Martha, and Lazarus. (vs. 7)
  • He knew that Lazarus had died before he left (vs. 11)
  • He clearly states that He is glad that Lazarus has died, because of the faith that would develop in this God-glorifying experience (vs. 14-15)

And because it is important to us, especially at this time in our culture, that Jesus empathize with us, we conclude that the spirit moved in Him and He was troubled by what He had allowed to happen. That’s right, He had purposely allowed Lazarus to die. And therefore, based on these two verses, we must conclude that this is why He wept. (*See Haha above.)

When one reads this for the first time, they often filter this response through their own experiences. We can think of all the reasons why we would weep, and it doesn’t take long to find one that resonates.

However, this is a common mistake – for one to ascribe to Jesus motivations that resonate with one’s own heart will at best be close, and at worst be naught. Our answer to a “Why” question is almost always less: less sufficient, less correct, less in alignment with His will, less to His glory and more to ours.

I don’t believe that Jesus wept for this reason. He was not sad because they were sad. It did not hurt Him deeply because He had not let them down. It mattered that He knew He had a great gift for them all. It mattered that He knew that their response was because they were ignorant of the unseen and unknown around them. And, of all that mattered in that moment, the least of what mattered was how they felt.

Ok, then. Why do you think He wept?

I don’t think that Jesus just ambled around the planet looking for good things to do while He was here. I believe He was the God-man on purpose. Every place He went, every conversation He had, every person He touched, every lesson He taught, and the way He taught every lesson were all by design. His three years of ministry were designed to prepare the world as a farmer would prepare the soil, as well as a small cadre of followers to how to farm. He wasted no time on this effort, as He had none to waste. It was critical to my salvation and yours, and to all those who came before, and all those that will follow, that this small cadre be forever committed to bear fruit from the Gospel.

As Jesus approached the grave of Lazarus, there were at least three things He knew. We can only be sure of two of them.

1. He knew Lazarus was dead.

Doornail dead. Dead and buried. And the scripture here informs us very well.

“And just as it is appointed for man to die once, and after that comes judgment.” Hebrews 9:27 ESV (cf Rev 20:12, 15)

There is no third option for mankind. Our eternal existence will either be a celebration in the presence of the Father or a desperate desolation absent the presence of the Father. Heaven or Hell. Eternal Life or Eternal Death. We either live once and die twice, or we live twice and die once.

Because Lazarus was dead, he was in one place or the other.

Many would say Heaven. After all, Jesus loved him and he loved Jesus. He was a follower. But, based on everything Mary and Martha said to Jesus at the funeral, did He really understand salvation?

Some might say Hell. Not because Lazarus was a bad guy (that’s not why people are separated from God), but because Jesus had not yet resurrected; He had not yet paid the price for the sin of all the world. It was not possible to be saved by faith because the grave still had its victory and death still had its sting. (1 Cor 15:55).

For the sake of this conversation, it matters little which one was true. Because the question is, Why did Jesus weep?

Let’s say that it was the latter. That Lazarus was separated from God. Standing across from that grave, Jesus would have known the price that Lazarus paid for this lesson to be taught. Jesus would have known the foreshadowing of His own forsakenness on the cross yet to come (see The Cross vs the Grave). I believe that His knowing what his friend had had to endure for days would have caused him enough duress to weep.

On the other hand, let’s say it was the former. That Lazarus was in the presence of God. Standing across from that grave, Jesus would have known the price that Lazarus was about to pay for this lesson to be taught. Jesus knew full well what it was like to leave perfection to walk among sinful mankind. He knew the glory of the Father and joy of His presence like no other. And He would know that to call Lazarus from the grave would be to call Him away – to call him back to sin, sorrow, and death once more. I believe this, too, would be cause enough for Jesus to weep.

2. He knew the Cross was next.

Two things of note happened after Lazarus came forth.

First, while many of the Jews that were there believed in Him (v.45), others ran to the Pharisees to tattle on Jesus. This act of raising Lazarus was the last straw for the Pharisees. Verse 53 summarizes the result of their conversation: “So, from that day on, they made plans to put Him to death.”

Secondly, because of this very real threat, Jesus went into hiding. But He wasn’t hiding out of fear. We know that He was able to walk through violent crowds without receiving even a scratch (Luke 4:28-30).

He was hiding because it was not yet His time. Passover was His time, and it was fast approaching. In fact, John reports nothing in his Gospel account between the Lazarus event and Passover preparation except Jesus going into hiding. Jesus knew the Cross – His time – was next.

3. He knew His Followers Still Did Not Get It.

Just consider the following comments from his followers in this passage. This is not an attempt to belittle those closest to Jesus. Neither you nor I would have gotten it at this point either.

vs 16: Upon hearing that Jesus would not be deterred from going to Lazarus, Thomas “knew” that they were all going to die. (His followers’ early death was not at all part of His plan.)

vss 21-27: Martha’s first words to Jesus were of complaint and blame. You can just hear her cry, “This is all your fault!”

Then she turned to a request only He could fulfill, but she really didn’t believe it. She says that “…even now I know that whatever you ask from God, God will give you.” Sounds like faith. But when Jesus tells her that Lazarus will rise again, she repeats the promise of the resurrection in the distant last days. She was really speaking out of her pain and loss, and wanted Jesus to cure that pain and loss. (Nowhere is it in God’s plan that those who are called by His name will be absent pain and loss. In fact, it’s just the opposite. The world is not our home. The world system is not our friend. Christians are belittled, maligned, mistreated, ostracized, and/or murdered in places all over the world because of Christ.)

vss 28-36: Now it’s Mary’s turn to blame Him, repeating what she and Martha must surely have repeated to one another time and again while they waited for Jesus to come. “If only he had been here….”

vss 38-40: He had told them that God would be glorified, but they argued with Him!

Jesus: Remove the stone.

Crowd: That can’t be right! Don’t you know the dead body will stink by now?

Jesus knew Lazarus was paying a high price.

He knew that the Cross was next.

And He knew that His closest followers still did not yet get it. And this living parable was the last opportunity to correct that.

I would have wept, too.

How is it possible that we have the faith to believe that Jesus is in control, and yet argue with Him and blame Him when things don’t go our way?

How is it possible that we can believe that Jesus suffered, bled, and died so that the whole world through all generations to come would have the opportunity to know Him, while at the same time believing that Jesus is most interested in our feelings?

Sometimes, we don’t get it either.

Two Reasons Why We’re Not Making Disciples

We didn’t “learn” either one of these things by reading a book. We learned them experientially. We’ve heard the announcements from the pulpit, read them on our church websites, attended discipleship groups – be they D-groups, small groups, community groups, Sunday School, or any other name that promotes the idea that “disciple making” happens better in small groups or in circles.

How ironic it is that we have learned experientially to “teach” passively. 

  1. We have “learned” that disciple making is the process of improving the spiritual state of saved people.
  2. We have “learned” that telling people what to think, rather than how to think, is the disciple making process

Reason #1: Improving Our Spiritual State

This is the flaw. The re-definition so that what we do appears to match what scripture says. Disciple making doesn’t happen better in small groups. Disciple making doesn’t happen at all when everyone in the room is saved. Disciple making can only happen when at least one lost person is in the conversation. And disciple making can only occur when that conversation is about accepting Christ as Lord/Savior. And disciple making ONLY occurs when one without Christ accepts the salvation of Christ – in that case, a disciple is made.

Maybe you want to make a bank teller. You wouldn’t go get a bank teller, stand them at a different window (small group) and announce to the world, “Look at the bank teller I made”.

Maybe it’s a doctor you’d like to make. You wouldn’t go get a doctor from Mercy General and take them to All Saints Urgent Care and say, “Look at the doctor I made.”

Making disciples, like doctors and bank tellers, starts from scratch. You start with someone that can become a doctor or teller; someone that is not a doctor or teller, and then you make that person into a doctor or teller. You make disciples by taking people that are not disciples and introducing them to Christ. If they accept Christ, then you are free to announce to the world, “Look at the Disciple Christ made.”

The only reason that we need more people in medical school is that we need more doctors! We certainly don’t need to keep people in medical school because the school needs to keep their enrollment up.

If you’re reading this, then you’re likely very familiar with this passage – Jesus’ “famous last words”. aka, “The Great Commission”:

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.”

Matthew 28:19-20

But odds are you’ve never been in a church that actually does this in a deliberate, replicable way.

With doctors, and bank tellers, there is an end in mind. Training is designed to produce the intended result. Unfortunately, for the church, the end that is too often in mind is passive behaviors that can be held accountable – “being discipled” rather than being and doing. What is the end in mind for the “disciple making” ministry in your church?

  • More people in a small group study?
  • More people having a quiet time?
  • More people memorizing scripture?
  • More people journaling?

Did Jesus take saved men and instruct them in bible study, quiet time, scripture memory and journaling? Or did He engage them in active, hands-on, experiential learning that aligned with the challenging conversations He had with them.

None of these disciplines, in and of themselves, are bad. What is wholly insufficient is that today, these are the marks of a disciple rather than the making of disciples; rather than being actively engaged in world-changing, life-changing ministry.

Some will certainly say, “But those disciplines create disciples that do what you’re saying.” 

To that, I have to ask you if you have noticed the state of the church in the United States – the church that for decades has emphasized these passive disciplines as self-contained behaviors? Organizations that emphasize these disciplines are not producing disciple makers unless they are combined with purposeful hands-on, experiential learning. And here’s the kicker – whatever personal spiritual disciplines you might ascribe to Jesus’ training with the Twelve, those disciplines followed rather than preceded their engagement in hands-on, experiential learning.

Unfortunately, It’s just easier to take a headcount of how many are doing the disciplines.

I once heard a sermon out of Acts 4. One of the points that the speaker made was that because (in vs 13) Peter and John were “…unschooled, ordinary men…” we didn’t need to be trained either. We just need to trust the Holy Spirit for boldness like Peter and John did. I found that very odd, because in the aforementioned passage, Jesus commanded that disciples be taught (trained, schooled…?) to obey everything He taught. And, while it should be obvious to anyone who is more than just a casual reader of scripture that the Priests and Sadducees in this passage were referring to Peter and John’s lack of “priestly training” or “training in the traditions and Law”, it should also be obvious that Peter and John had spent three years in intensive, hands-on, experiential training with the “Master Trainer” before He told them in Matthew 28 what to do with all that training!

Jesus sent them into a world where NO ONE was saved. NO ONE had come to salvation (save the smattering of people that had been committed followers with the now Apostles). There is no possible way to interpret Jesus’ command to “make disciples” as “gathering saved people in small groups to improve their spiritual state”. (That activity is contained in the subsequent command… “teaching (training) them to obey everything I commanded…”)

You see, what Jesus did with Peter and John (and at least 9 others) was – and don’t miss this – He made disciples. He took those who were not saved and brought them to salvation. And in the process, He trained them in everything they needed to know for them to make disciples and in turn train those new disciples. He experientially trained them in the Gospel message, in the meeting of needs and giving of grace SO THAT they could share the Gospel message. The Holy Spirit took trained men and made them bold in sharing the Gospel message. We cannot expect this to happen from passive classroom or small group teaching. Training requires active, experiential learning.

No Fear

I was once a member of a church where one of the well-respected volunteer leaders liked to teach “Share Jesus Without Fear”. Unfortunately, there was no uptick in sharing, no stories of folks in the church sharing Jesus with or without fear. In a telling personal, private moment with just a few key leaders, we were all asked to share the last time we had led someone to Christ. This individual could not think of one time – he was almost 60 years old at this time – and he could not think of one person that he had led to Christ. He had grown children whom someone else must have led to Christ. You may not be surprised that this church is now closed after a 30 year existence. Not because of this one individual, but because of the pervasive idea that disciple making is a passive classroom activity designed to improve the spiritual state of those who already know Christ.

When we don’t agree with Jesus that the starting point is those without him, we are left with what is effectively a death spiral like the one illustrated above. We are left then, to begin with those that already know Christ. In our effort to be obedient, we continually strive to “teach” them more and more how to be like Jesus, how to be closer to Jesus, how to please Jesus – all without training them – without giving them the intensive, hands-on, experiential training required for boldness and leading others to that saving relationship with Christ. (You might consider that this would please Him most of all.) This is a death spiral because we have to find new and “better” ways to communicate the same truths over and over again. This is untenable due to the decades-long life Christians lead as they seek to be more like Jesus without making disciples. More and better is only temporary. Solomon said it best, “There is nothing new under the sun.”

Most will stop attending regularly over time. Most will drop out over time. Some will relocate to other cities. Some will pass away. Some will change churches due to preferences, splits, life-stage changes, etc. And the reality of today – many will just stop attending altogether. Most churches are dependent on disciples moving into their area to maintain attendance levels. They are also dependent on this “new blood” for leaders – disciples that have been trained elsewhere.

One of the nails in this coffin is the often stated purpose of this effort. For ME to be more like Christ. For ME to be closer to Christ. For ME to know more of His word. For ME to be equipped. This is exacerbated by the implication that we’re never close enough, know enough, or equipped enough, because we must always be in a group… learning.  (Please re-read the Great Commission and identify the part of the passage where it’s all about you.)

A second nail in this coffin is the lack of new disciples. This is the root of why thousands of churches are closing each year. We are too busy being trained to be better – or not being trained at all – to spend any time or concern making disciples.

Don’t hear me say that there is an endpoint to what we can learn from Christ and His word. But please do hear me say that Jesus thought that three years of His “classroom”, “apprenticeship”, and “guided learning” were enough. Do hear me say that I believe it was never His intention that we spend our life’s spiritual energy on learning everything that can be learned. Paul battled with “learning based” folks like this (Gnostics) throughout his ministry. But what Jesus did do after three years was set them loose on the world to do and be. But He didn’t just tell them to go and find something to do. He gave them specific instructions. He knew before He trained them what their assignment would be and He trained them for that end. 

Jesus knows that we learn so much more by doing and being than we do in a classroom or small group. He knows this because he made us – and he made us to be experiential learners. And it turns out that it is not nearly so necessary to manufacture motivation for people to “learn more” or “follow closer” or “be more like Christ” when they are actively involved in the life changing work he calls us to. The work itself reveals how much we need him, how wonderful he is, and this drives our seeking after him all the more. This is one of the reasons why it is true, that if you want to get something done, ask a busy person to do it. They are already motivated.

Let’s all agree that we’re not nearly the trainer that Jesus is/was. Since that’s true, let’s all agree that three years may be a bit ambitious. However, we do have His word and the Holy Spirit, so can we agree on six years? Nine years? At what point should a disciple be more about doing and being than about classroom learning? If that point never arrives, then perhaps we should just admit that what we’re really about is gnostic-ship training instead of disciple-ship training. How much easier it would be if only Jesus had said, “Go into all the world and teach them everything you can think of.”

And this then, is why most people have never experienced this deliberate, replicable ministry. Churches do groups and classes well. While key leaders have better hearts and intention than this, unfortunately the win for the church is maintaining head count. The win for some is increasing headcount. But whether it is the number of people in the morning service or the number of people in groups, the gathered quantity is still the win. 

  • How many have been released into ministry? 
  • How many life-changing efforts are led by non-staff disciples? 
  • How many disciples have been trained with the end in mind that they will be part of a church plant or  mission team? 
  • How many disciples have been trained to replicate themselves? 
  • How many disciples HAVE replicated themselves?
  • How many have been trained (the Jesus way – active, real world, hands on) to lead others to Christ… to actually “make disciples”? 

These “wins” are very different than the headcount wins of most programs. While I love hearing about people getting saved in worship services, I would much rather hear about a continual flow of people receiving Christ in the wild because disciples were trained to do what Jesus commanded.

Try This

Create a four year plan for ministry growth and development. In that plan, list the leadership and service positions that will be necessary for the success of that plan. Then set 10-25% of those positions specifically for the placement of “newly made disciples” that were then subsequently trained with this end in mind, so that they can complete the assignment for which they have been trained. And then you better get after it! You can’t wait for year four to roll around to decide it’s about time to lead someone to Christ and see if they’re up for being trained in this way. You need to start now and never stop.

Or try this. What spiritual gifts are present in your church? What ministries would benefit from leaders with those gifts? Create a training pipeline to develop leaders with those ends in mind, so that they can lead in ministries that either exist or are on your drawing board. But whatever you do, make sure you train them to be disciple makers, too.

Reason #2: Telling Them What to Think

You may think that people are thinking for themselves in your group discussions. But in fact, most aren’t. If you are using any form of curriculum the way it is intended to be used (there may be rare exceptions to this), then you are preparing to tell your group what to think. Each lesson has several points, generally contained within the context of the passage (see Acts 4:13 for the problem with this). As the leader, you spend your time studying the material so you tell/lead your group to learn the points contained in the lesson. At the end, the win is for the  participants in your group to agree with what they have been told to think.

See Dialing Up Mature Disciples.

Because finding volunteers for this type of effort has become increasingly difficult, DVD lessons by inspiring speakers are available for anyone to use. In these cases, the leader only has to ask questions that he/she has been told to ask, so they can discuss what they’ve been told to think, albeit having been told in an inspiring way.

The problem here is that inspiration doesn’t last. Inspiration and conviction are not the same thing at all. Inspiration evokes enjoyment.  You may hear things like, “That was great!” or “I really like the way she phrased that.” Or “I’ve never thought of it like that before.” And “That was so inspiring!” 

Those are really positive and affirming messages. None of which speak to any conviction or life change.

Conviction evokes life change. Inspiration generally lasts until the next problem arises, even if it is a traffic jam or argument on the way home from the group.

Inspiration, however, does raise the bar for the next small group experience. You’ll need to continue to find inspiring material to keep participants engaged. Once you’ve enjoyed an inspiring teacher who does all the work for you, it will be hard to go back to something not as easy or inspiring. 

You will also likely run in to the common complaint of, “I’m just not being “fed”, because once someone already thinks what you’ve told them to think, telling them the same things under cover of a different lesson or different teacher really is less filling.

No Room for Error

Years ago, after relocating to the east coast, we were visiting a variety of adult classes in a church that we later joined, in order to find one that would work for us. But in one of the 7 classes we tried, this one is most memorable. I arrived before the leader, to a room with the chairs in an open horseshoe. At the open end was a small desk and chair. The leader came in with his three-ring binder, took the seat at the desk, and after announcements and prayer, began to read his notes to the group. It was hard to find a way to participate, because any comment would have been an interruption. One hour of being told what to think. 

If you don’t allow for thought, for discussion, for conclusions good and bad, then you can be sure of three things.

  • No one will disagree with what you tell them to think
  • No one will learn how to think
  • No one will actually know why they think what they’ve been told, and their “beliefs” will wither under pressure.

Generalities are Only Helpful… Not Truth

Some years later, I attended an adult Bible study for the first time at a church we were visiting. The leader had his notes in front of him – a sheet of paper with single spaced bullet points (FRONT and BACK) – with the apparent intention of getting through them all in the hour. Being new, I tried to take a passive position. If you know me, you know this to be a futile effort most of the time. The topic of the day appeared to be “yeast”. Lots of passages about yeast. Lots of bullet points about yeast.

And then he said it. Yep, he pulled on that thread that made passivity futile for me. He said, “Every passage of scripture that refers to yeast is a reference to sin.” He had done two things in his effort to tell this group of people what to think: 

  • he had drawn an incorrect conclusion
  • he had announced it as something that we should learn, know, and agree with

I spoke up, interrupting his delivery. “What about the passage where Jesus compares the Kingdom of Heaven to yeast?” (Matt 13:31-33)

And then he doubled-down. Because he had taken a stand, he wasn’t going to back down, so he said something to the effect of, “Well, that’s also a reference to sin if you look at it the right way.”

To which I said, resulting in many head nods in the room, “We’ll just have to agree to disagree.”

He then continued with the bullet points, telling us what to think.

How much better if he had just asked us to discuss the differences and similarities between Matthew 13 and any one of the other passages from which he drew his conclusion. One of the things that surely would have arisen out of this effort to train people how to think would be this: Generalities can be helpful, but we shouldn’t take them as absolutely true.

100 Years

I had the opportunity a few years ago to lead a training session for a group of adult Bible study leaders – there was more than 100 years of experience in the group of 12 or so leaders.

To begin, I asked this question:  “Tell us a story about someone in your group whose life has changed as a result of your Bible Study?”

Silence was the response. What seemed like many minutes went by. Finally, one leader said that a member of his class had begun reading the Bible every day.

100 years of Bible study and one person is reading their Bible regularly. Not to diminish the change for that person, but…. wow.

This was an established church that used curriculum for all of their classes. For years – members of this church had gathered together to be told what to think by someone who had spent hours studying a lesson so they could tell them what to think.

The Jesus Experience

This is not what Jesus did. Jesus made the disciples (and others) think. He made them decide. He made them discuss what they thought. And (hold on now) he let them live with the consequences of thinking badly and making mistakes. He let them learn experientially.

Oh, yes, he did do a lot of telling, too. Just look at the Sermon on the Mount. Lots of telling there. Jesus was both preacher and trainer. He preached to the crowds. He trained the few.

His training of the few was different than his preaching to crowds. He asked questions. Not because questions are good, but because the kind of questions He asked caused his followers to learn how to think. And he allowed for wrong answers and bad conclusions. He allowed them to learn from each other. He used comparisons and contrasts to generate deeper level thinking. He used analogies and parables and required that they think through the meanings and implications of the ideas and concepts he was leading them to comprehend and synthesize into their lives. 

(Note: compare for yourself the difference in impact of a concept that is learned vs that concept comprehended vs that concept synthesized. Yes, you’ll have to think. Google and dictionary.com might be helpful. Hint: Bloom’s Taxonmy.)

Jesus first made disciples – “Come follow me!” – and they did. Then He trained them in everything they needed. His training sessions were generally one to a few questions, followed by a wide variety of hands-on learning experiences. Followed by debriefing sessions. Followed by more training. Over three years, he trained them through the experiential learner’s model: (1) I do it and you watch. (2) I do it and you help. (3) You do it and I help. (4) You do it. He then sent them out to (5) do it with another watching.

His small group sessions would really have only been theoretical without the real world training. They may have “learned” what He said, but they would not have “LEARNED” what He said. You can’t train people how to share Jesus without fear (and expect bold, Holy Spirit results) if you don’t take each and every one out and show them and then enable them with you to share Jesus, first with fear, and in the repeated experience, without fear. (See “The T-Ball Approach” in the post, The Problem With My Neighbors.)

You can’t train someone (and expect bold, Holy Spirit life change) how to lead a Bible study by handing them a piece of curriculum and telling them to follow the directions.

You can’t have effective deacons and elders by waiting until they’re approved by the church and then give them a book to read on their responsibilities.

The Great Commission is not a linear list of commands; it is a circular, replicable “so that” life cycle. Mature beings are capable of reproducing. And He intends for us to do that.

OR

  • Go (so that you can) …
  • Make Disciples (so that you can) …
  • Teach (train) them everything Jesus commanded (so that they will)…
  • Go (so that they can) …
  • Make Disciples (so that they can) …
  • Teach (train) them everything Jesus commanded (so that they will)…

We really can and should be making disciples. Reach out if you’d like to explore next steps for your ministry or group. You can leave a comment below, or email me at eli.bernard@idiscover.xyz.

The Meaning of Forgiveness in an Abusive World

by Eli Bernard & Bethany Persons

Words matter. Rather, the meanings of words matter and by that, we mean – words matter.

At the risk of stepping into the universe where the reader’s meaning often matters more than the author’s meaning, our attempt here is to speak to what The Author meant by this amazing word that we misuse. While focusing on the Author’s meaning can be helpful for analysis and open dialogue, comprehending it is much more vital to the “peace that passes all understanding” (Phil 4:7) in our own lives.

In the recent weeks, there has been a flurry of devastating reports about those that teach, expect, and seemingly demand forgiveness as a response to a horrendous assault. We are afraid that the way the word “forgiveness” is perceived – perhaps by those assaulted and to many who enter the conversation only through media – is as

  • a sort of magic wand, whereby the assaulted or offended waive away any consequence or responsibility of the offender “because that’s what good Christians do” or
  • a weapon used to silence the assaulted, demanding greater spiritual maturity from them than their attacker.

Forgiveness is not a magic wand and it does nothing to remedy the attack or solve problems larger than the one experienced by the one assaulted. To weaponize forgiveness in order to silence those assaulted is a reprehensible power play, worthy of any Pharisee Jesus encountered.

We do not know what the intention or heart is of those who have advised forgiveness in any of these reported or many unreported offenses. We were not there. We did not hear their tone or the full context of their comment. We only know how it reads in the media – and it is that reading that prompts this response.

  • Forgiveness does not absolve the offender of guilt
  • Forgiveness does not bring resolution to implied or apparent larger problems
  • Forgiveness does not abdicate the responsibility of the offender
  • Forgiveness does not eliminate the need for accountability
  • Forgiveness does not supersede the necessity for consequences
  • Forgiveness does not demand or imply the restoration of relationship

One of the things that we should do is strive to understand the full meaning of what The Author meant by the words that He used. And He never used the word “forgiveness” in these ways.

Visiting the Example of the Author of Forgiveness

Jesus’ death is the price that was paid for our forgiveness. He loves us and died for us. And because He forgave us, we have eternal life with Him. While this is true, it is a too-simplistic and gap-filled explanation of the magnitude of that event, and it does not suffice.

Jesus did indeed offer us – the whole world – forgiveness by his death/resurrection. But no one – no one in the whole world – received forgiveness simply because it was – and is – available.

Forgiveness is for the benefit of the offended, wounded and the assaulted – not for the ones doing the offending and assaulting.  We know that flies in the face of contemporary religious thought. But it is to the benefit of the wounded and offended to offer it, not to the benefit of the abuser/offender. The offended offering forgiveness should have no fear of the offender receiving it absent true repentance. It matters not what words they say or actions they take. Only true repentance aligns with true forgiveness. Additionally, since forgiveness does not imply or demand the restoration of relationship, the offended need not fear some obligation to the same.

Jesus offers forgiveness, not because we need it (although we absolutely do), but because He wanted to offer it. The fact that we need it does not mandate it. The fact that God wants a relationship with us is what mandates it. Certainly, we benefit from it should we receive it. But it is not possessed by anyone who does not demonstrate their desire by repentance. The unrepentant are not forgiven. As much as we need forgiveness, it is not to our benefit; it is to His.

“But wait, what about…”

  • Confessing with my mouth and believing in my heart (Rom 10:9)
  • Saved by grace through faith (Eph 2:8-10)
  • Believe in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved (Acts 16:30-31)
  • Praying “the sinner’s prayer“
  • Asking Jesus into my heart

Without delving deeply into these for their own merits and implications, unless repentance is the attitude of the heart, then these are motions merely gone through; insufficient regardless of sincerity. To be clear, asking without a repentant heart is to ask vainly. Believing with an unrepentant heart is not the belief that leads to salvation. (James 2:19)

“But wait, where do these passages say I need to repent?”

This question illustrates a telltale failure of contemporary preaching and curriculum driven teaching. It is the whole Bible, not any one passage that gives us the whole truth. John the Baptist, Jesus and the Apostles preached repentance from the beginning of their earthly ministries (Matt 3:2, Matt 11:20-21, Luke 5:32, Luke 13:1-5, Luke 15, Acts 2:38, Acts 13:24).  We don’t forget about that just because we’re reading from a different passage. To do that is tantamount to Jesus saying, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven has come near, but you won’t need to do that if you just wait until Paul writes Romans 10:9.”

To do that is tantamount to Jesus saying, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven has come near, but you won’t need to do that if you just wait until Paul writes Romans 10:9.”

Let’s say that you asked me for my favorite biscuit recipe. I might tell you:

In a large mixing bowl sift together ½ tsp salt, 2 cups of flour, and 1 tbsp of baking powder. Cut in ½ cup shortening with fork or pastry blender until mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Pour ¾ cup of buttermilk into flour mixture while stirring with a fork.

After rolling out, cutting, and baking the biscuits, you offer me one – one of the blandest, most tasteless biscuits I’ve ever had.

“Where’s the salt?”, I ask.

‘Oh, I didn’t think I needed to add it since it was the first thing you said. I thought I only needed to add the stuff that made them look like biscuits.”

Forgiveness is the way for the wounded and offended to release the offense, to not carry the grudge, to not hold it to the account of the offended. It is because this is how the Author understands forgiveness that eternity with Him is available – He does not hold our sin to our account. He, who first loved us, has made that possible by offering forgiveness. That is to His benefit because it is He who first wanted a relationship with us.

Forgiveness has no effect or impact on the offender until the very high and humbling price of repentance is paid. Forgiveness is good for the forgiver. The only impact on the offender is that it is available. It is not received simply based on that availability. It cannot be claimed by the offender simply to gain its benefit.

Forgiveness allows the forgiver to heal, to move forward, to live life without a grudge, to not hold on to the devastating event as if it is now the basis of who they are – the driving force that defines their life and future. Forgiveness is the path to freedom from a life controlled by the sin of others.

But, for the offender, the forgiveness offered by others imparts no such freedom. The forgiven receives no inherent or automatic benefit of forgiveness offered. No wand is waived. No magic exists. Forgiveness exists, much like a gift. The one forgiven may see it and want it – but it is not theirs simply because it has been expressed and placed in a common space.

The abuser/offender only receives the benefit of forgiveness through the path of repentance evidenced in part, by godly sorrow. The only way that forgiveness granted influences forgiveness received is the awareness of its existence. The offender must still humble themselves or be humiliated into such sorrow. The offender must be repentant of their offense, honestly and sorrowfully so. This is the benefit to the offender. True, whole-hearted, sorrowful repentance is their path to the freedom from a life controlled by their own sin.

Forgiveness is the path to freedom from a life controlled by the sin of others. 

Repentance is the path to freedom from a life controlled by my own sin.

Here is the truth.

  • Should the offender never repent, the offended can still be free from the spiritual grudge-controlled life by forgiving.
  • Should the offended never forgive, the offender can still be free from the spiritual guilt of the offense by repentance.
  • They can both be free and never know of the other’s freedom.

Unfortunately in our media-driven world, these are areas that are only truly visible to the Author of forgiveness. No one can tell if forgiveness has truly been given – but the forgiver and Author will know, and that is sufficient for them. No one can truly know that the offender has sorrowfully and remorsefully repented. The repentant and Author will know, and that is sufficient for them. They both know that the Author of forgiveness (and repentance) knows.

For the rest of us – the observers of lives thrust into the public view, we should be careful to allow time and space for both forgiveness and repentance in lives that are not our own. Should we not, we are not far from the ocular plank (Matt 7:3-5). (It may well benefit us to realize that the media cares little about planks.)

And since words matter, “repentance” does not mean remorse, sorrow, apology, fear, sadness, or any other number of terms or adjectives that are in common understanding today. The Author of forgiveness says that repentance is a complete turnaround. The offender chooses to never offend again. Those hiding the offense choose to never hide the offense again. Those who believe that their actions and attitudes were normal (“That’s just who I am”), now believe those actions and attitudes to be abhorrent and vile. That is repentance. Expand that definition with “sorrowful” and “remorseful” and you will begin to understand what the Author of forgiveness has in mind.

Let’s bring that down to today’s news. Pastors and missionaries, missionary organizations, associational and state convention employees that commit or hide such abhorrent behavior need to repent. Without it, forgiveness from the assaulted is not yours, even if those assaulted have given it. They know it. You know it. And the Author of forgiveness knows it.

It matters little if your repentance is from your own volition, or if it comes from being outed to your shame. It matters little if anyone believes you have repented. The Author of forgiveness will know. And that is not only enough, but it is also all that really matters eternally. But on this earthly coil, it will not and should not alleviate consequences. It will not and should not by necessity, restore your reputation or relationships. But it will matter – to you and to the One to whom it should.

The Illusion of the Evangelical

It took me years. Years of ignorance and mistakes. My first lesson in financial management was the day I left for college (one day in January 1975). My parents drove me the 3 hours from Salisbury, NC to Raleigh. (Go Wolfpack). On the way out of town, they stopped at the bank. They opened a checking account in my name. And a credit card account. Three hours later, I began managing my own finances.

Terribly.

We didn’t have much when I was growing up. I remember the four kids getting an allowance when I was very young – one penny for every year we were old. I got a whole nickel when I was five. Allowances stopped before I turned ten. Working to earn money was normal. I carried a newspaper route. I did a little babysitting. Yard work. My senior year of high school, my dad helped me get a summer job with a man he knew… pumping septic tanks. But every dime I earned I was able to spend on whatever I wanted. I didn’t have a piggy bank. Or a savings account. Or any idea that I should.

The concept of saving was foreign to me. Earn enough to deal with everything on the list. Rent? Check. Food? Check.  Car repair? Credit card.  Credit card payment? Check. Check. Check.

Somewhere between 10 years old and pumping septic tanks I must have at least heard about the concept of personal savings, but it must not have registered as anything important for me. I had no problem with other people saving. But I only ever had enough money for things I wanted, and a credit card for the things I needed. I did not hear about saving from my parents. And the only thing online in those days were clothes out to dry.

… just because you have your money in an institution that makes savings accounts available, does not mean that you are a saver.

Today, I do save. I understand the long-term implications of that practice, and I am approaching the other side of that long-term timeline. However, I’m afraid that too many who should be savers are not. They are checkers like I used to be. I’m also afraid that too many savers don’t pass on the need, practice, skill, and strategy to those who should be savers.

Back in Time: How I Became a Saver (After I Became an Evangelical)

Jesus invaded my life at Ft. Jackson, SC during boot camp in the summer of 1974. I was on my knees, not because there is something holy in that posture, but because I was so desperate that I could not stand. Though I had been in church (non-evangelical protestant) for years, I had never – never – actually prayed. I was on my knees crying out to God for help – and he invaded me – I felt Him enter my life, and everything changed. But not immediately.

Because my saving occurred without anyone explaining the 4 Spiritual Laws or scaring me with the threat of a fiery hell, I didn’t know that God’s plan for believers includes personal evangelism. I went through college (in an evangelical church), thinking that what I should focus on was getting college students from other churches to come to my church. God called me to ministry while in that church, and I started seminary in 1982 without ever having told anyone how Jesus could change their life.

In 1983, my friend, John White, asked me to be his prayer partner for 13 weeks while he learned how to share the gospel through a program at our church. In seminary, you can’t say “no” to a request like that, but the very thing he was studying was something foreign to me. Uncomfortable. A bit anxiety producing.

Fast forward 13 weeks. Sunday night “graduation service”. Dozens of people had learned how to personally share the gospel*. I was sitting on the back row of the church. Uncomfortable. Anxious. And the God that had invaded my life in South Carolina broke my heart that night in Texas – my proud, hard heart. How could I so enjoy His salvation and not tell others? In tears I begged Him to make me into a “saver”.

Two weeks later I was leading a mid-week youth Bible study for a friend of mine. I didn’t know any of these students. After the study, we were all hanging out outside. I was talking to this one kid – and he said to me something like, “I need to be saved. Can you help me?”

Uncomfortable. Anxious. I realized in that moment, even with all the Bible I thought I knew, I had no concise way to explain the Gospel to him. With a prayerful mind heavenward, and eyes on the kid, I just started with what I knew. I answered his questions. God answered my prayer. I became a saver that night. And the kid became a believer.

Back to Today

There was a time when someone was considered to be an “evangelical” when they were personally involved in evangelism – the sharing of the good news – the saving work of the church. It no longer means that to those without Christ. Unfortunately, it also no longer means that to most of the folks who call themselves evangelicals. Today, it is not uncommon for those outside of the church to have “politics” as a first thought, when they hear the word “evangelical”. Today, for those inside the church, all that need be true for one to be considered an evangelical is to belong to a church that is identified, by virtue of its brand, as an evangelical church. It is no wonder that those outside the church had to discover for themselves how to define an evangelical, because most evangelicals aren’t. Most evangelicals on your block aren’t. Most evangelicals in your town or city, aren’t. Most evangelicals in the church… aren’t.

You see, just because you have your money in an institution that makes savings accounts available, does not mean that you are a saver. It is silly to call yourself a saver if you are only a checker. To announce to the world (either implicitly or explicitly) that you are a saver when you are not is an exercise in deception – of self, others, or both. Hanging out weekly with savers, learning their lingo, using their lexicon, nodding your head, and saying “Amen” in all the right places help shroud the checker in a false cloak of saving. And as the balance of members between checker and saver shifts ever more toward checker, saving can become a lost, uncomfortable, anxiety producing exercise.

Evangelical checkers (false savers?) think our country is in trouble because of the political climate. Too many evangelical checkers have rested on the size of our constituency to shape the direction of our country. Too many evangelical checkers think they are already humble, and that if only those outside the church would seek God’s face and turn from their wicked ways, He would heal our land. Sorry. That’s not how it works. That’s not what a Saver is called to. That is not what the passage means. I have to ask, how in the world can you imagine that a humble, contrite, repentant seeking of His face and turning from wicked ways will not result in turning toward the ways He has always prescribed? “Go ye therefore” has always been about personal evangelism. Someone saved, sharing the saving message with one not saved.

If we were to truly humble ourselves and seek His face, can you not see that this would result in more savers coming out of the doors of the church instead of staying inside the church, checking things off of their list?

Certainly, somewhere between 10 years old and today, members of evangelical churches must have heard about the concept of personal evangelism (personal saving), but it must not have registered as anything important for them. Churches budget for the things that they want. But look at your church’s budget for the money that goes toward training and empowering that saving work. If you are counting on the preacher to do the work, and he does, they you are a checker in an institution that has one saver. If you do and he does not, there may very well be no savers in your church at all. Churches where spiritual parents pass on the need and practice of saving to their spiritual children understand the long-term implications of everyone being involved in the personal practice of saving.

You can find out for yourself about your own church. Ask as many people as you can 2 simple questions:

  • What drew you to this church?
  • What do you like best about this church?

Keep notes in two columns or two lists.

Items on the saver list would include things like:

  • I met Christ here.
  • People are coming to Christ here on a regular basis
  • I learned how to share my faith here.

Items on the checker side include things like this:

  • Strong Biblical Teaching
  • Great youth ministry
  • Great children’s ministry
  • Great worship
  • This place is so friendly

While it may be rare for a saver church to be so without many of the items in the checker list, it is not at all rare for a checker church to have every item from their own list, and none from the saver list.

Humble yourself. Pray, and seek His face. Turn from your wicked ways. Become a Saver.

————————————

*Note: Dozens of people had learned how to personally share the gospel.

While it is true that many were saved in their very active learning process, they became savers because they shared the gospel, not because others were saved. It is up to us to share. It is up to Him to save.

It Didn’t Kill the Cat

Do you every wonder “Why?” Not as in a passing thought like “I wonder why it’s so cold today…”, but rather, the kind of thought that charges your curiosty. That keeps you awake at night. That demands an answer before rest can be obtained.

Perhaps you remember Christmases as a child. I watch my grandchildren today much like I watched our own children when they were that age. Wonder is in their eyes at the beauty of the decorations. Questions about the reason for certain ornaments or light colors or house decorations or family recipes abound. “Are we going to have Papa’s stuffing this year?” And inspiring music and stories fill the time with family.

Wonder, inspiration, and such questions (Papa’s stuffing?) may seem to some to be versions of curiosity. And in some small degree, there is overlap. But questions that seek confirmation and status are not the kind of curiosity that landed man on the moon. The wonder illustrated above is just that: wonder! Beauty never before seen. Lighting effects that stretch the imagination. They cause wonder! Which may be followed by curiosity, but is wholly different from it. Being inspired at best creates a drive to replicate or improve one’s experience, but it is not curiosity.

Real curiosity fires the imagination and causes us to explore the unknown and search for answers. A child’s Christmas curiosity is best found in packages that make no noise when shaken, that mysteriously appear under the tree with no “to … from” sticker. As the pile grows higher, and Christmas Eve approaches, children in homes around the world have their curiosity fired! They struggle to go to sleep because they know their curiosity will be finally satisfied, just a sunrise away. They can’t wait for the time – when everyone has arrived, and the gift opening begins. And parents equally can’t wait, often weary of how often they have to say, “Not yet”, “I don’t know”, and “you’ll just have to wait and see”.

Some years ago, when I was with the North American Mission Board in Alpharetta, Georgia. I along with the rest of the staff suffered through what can only be called a failed effort in deploying an online learning system. A lot of money had been invested in providing this benefit to the staff, but less than 30 people had signed up, most showing little interest in the opportunity. They had not even had any interest in discovering if it was something that would be beneficial to them or not.

Because of some creative training I had done before, I was asked to manage a relaunch, to see if we could generate interest and involvement. Over a period of two months, I repeatedly triggered curiosity among the staff. I had the IT department create an email alias for me, “Carmen and Sam Diego”. For two months, “Carmen and Sam” emailed the staff at least once a week, with clues as to where they might be on a certain day at a certain time. I came in on the weekends and created large foam core stand up characters of Carmen and Sam, and moved them around the building. I had them at the entrance, on various floors; even coming out of the ceiling in a couple of places. The tag line? “Where in the world are Carmen and Sam Diego”.  On the day, at the place, at 10 am, two-thirds of the staff were lined up to get in to find out how their curiosity could be satisfied. 200 people participated in the registration and information fair.

They couldn’t help themselves. Their curiosity was triggered. They just HAD to know.

Do not let this irony slip past you. A five figure program to provide education and training for staff development failed to provide education, training or staff development – until their curiosity was triggered.

Does this sound familiar? We offer it but they don’t take advantage of it. We offer Bible studies but most don’t attend. And I will tell you that in almost every case, there is tacit blame on those that don’t attend (“they should want to…”). We shouldn’t blame them, but we also should not blame the church leadership. They’ve never been told of the power of triggering curiosity. They’ve never been taught how to ask GREAT questions. But they have been taught to follow the literature.

After graduating from seminary I went on to spend about ten years in youth ministry. I then went back to seminary to study for an EdD. Because it had been so long between degrees, I had to take three education classes from the Master’s program to remediate my qualifications for the doctoral program. In the “Adult Education in the Local Church” class, I had an experience that illustrates this all too well.

The purpose of this class was to inform and demonstrate for the theology students the various denominational educational resources available to them. As the only adult education course that was required for them, this was where they would get their introduction to the educational ministry of the church. I will never forget that class.

After ten years of leading people to faith in Christ; ten years of developing students and leaders; ten years of training them in life changing Bible study practice and methodology, I hear the professor say one day, “It is not possible to train your people to lead a better Bible Study week in and week out, than what they get in the literature (provided by the denomination).”

Sometimes, I just can’t help myself. So, I asked, “Then, is my job, as a minister of education, to  order literature? I don’t need to train people how to teach? How to prepare a life-changing Bible study?” The reason I don’t recall his answer is that he didn’t give one. I don’t think I made a friend that day.

But this is also not to blame the seminary professors or literature publishing houses. Perhaps no one has ever told them the value of the curiosity trigger. We have somehow come to believe and expect that it is the disciple’s responsibility to  get discipled. It is, after all, one of the spiritual disciplines that will prove spiritual maturity. This is a tragic re-assignment of Jesus’ command. Jesus told the mature to disciple the saved. I can’t find any place in scripture where Jesus commands the saved to seek out more mature believers who will lecture them about the facts and content of Bible passages, dictionaries and commentaries. (See Reason #2: Telling Them What to Think in the post Two Reasons Why We’re Not Making Disciples.)

I was a member of a church some years ago that highly valued servant leadership. I was dumbfounded when I discovered how they trained their students to be servant leaders. It began with incoming 7th graders each year. Every year, on the first Sunday when the new students moved up, they had a lunch, and they required that the 7th graders serve the high school seniors. This is because they wanted them to the Learn? Know? Obey? that they were to be servants. In case you don’t share my #dumbfoundedness, do you remember how Jesus taught servant leadership? Remember when he sat down and made all of His disciples wash His feet?

You don’t remember that because that’s not what He did. How much more powerful would it have been for the seniors to serve the 7th graders? And not just at a first week breakfast, but for an entire year. Those seventh graders would have discovered experientially the joy of service; of giving their lives for others. That someone so powerful (a senior) had consistently been there for them, would fire their imagination of what it would be like for them to give away their own life in the same way. (And tangentially, how many more 7th graders would participate, year after year, when word got out about the senior servant leader model?)

Do you remember 7th grade? Did any high school senior ever care for you in any way at all, other than being the target of some joke? Odds are, being ignored was the best you could hope for. Imagine the curiosity that Jesus triggered, and that high school seniors could trigger, when lives are invested in those less fortunate and less powerful. During and after those experiences, most seventh graders would want to become the same kind of servant for the incoming classes.

I soon discovered that this backwards service idea came from their literature.

Contemporary studies in curiosity have occurred two or three times.

“The first, in the 1960s, focused mainly on curiosity’s psychological underpinnings. The second, in the 1970s and 1980s, was characterized by attempts to measure curiosity and assess its dimensionality.” – 

The Psychology of Curiosity: A Review and Reinterpretation, Loewenstien, Psychology Bulletin, 1994, Vol 115.

There is a third view on this subject to be considered:  in Lowenstein’s work, he

“…interprets curiosity as a form of cognitively induced deprivation that arises from the perception of a gap in knowledge or understanding.”

Ibid

To simplify Lowenstein’s overview, curiosity has been studied from the standpoints of:

  • Psychological underpinnings – how curiosity affects human behavior (good and bad)
  • Measurement – how much cause and how much effect is involved (this effort failed to make any substantial determinations)
  • The Curiosity Trigger – we HAVE to discover how to fill the gap in knowledge or understanding

This third view is why the iDiscover method works. GREAT questions create the perception of a gap in knowledge or understanding. This is how Jesus had so much fun with the religious. He asked them GREAT questions that exposed the gap in their knowledge vs their behavior. This is why he asked GREAT questions of the Disciples. He created the perception of a gap in their knowledge and they just HAD to discover the answer. He did not show up and lecture them every day, expecting them to retain a level of interest, just because they were supposed to. He made us, and therefore He knows how he designed us to learn, to engage, and to be changed. Jesus was a master of triggering curiosity.

Some years ago, I was leading a home Bible study in Colorado. A very nice lady in our church had opened her home. As we discussed the parameters and logistics of the study, the reality that her husband (1) was not a believer and (2) would be present, flavored our preparations. He was in management with his company. They had a very nice home. These facts, among others, spoke to an accomplished and financially successfully life.

He was not antagonistic about Christianity. But it was very clear that he was also not interested. He was attending out of politeness and early on I could tell his plan was to silently observe. Experience tells me that he may have had it in his mind that he could gather ammunition from the experience to “prove” to his wife her “mistake” in believing in Christ

Three GREAT questions into the study, he could not help himself. His curiosity to discover resolution – to fill the gap – had been triggered. He HAD to answer. He HAD to engage. He HAD to participate and find the resolution and truth regarding the questions posed. He interrupted another participant, albeit kindly, to share his thoughts on the concepts in question.

This is why my friend, John Moore has said this about iDiscover:

“I have been teaching Bible study since 1985 and I was amazed at this fresh approach to the classroom….an approach where the newest convert can participate along with the seasoned ‘veteran’.”

www.idiscover.xyz/testimonials

And this is a key way that iDiscover is different from any other process you may have learned. This is not about showing up with enough information to fill the hour, enough doctrine to educate the masses, or enough inspiration to garner the respect of the class. iDiscover is about creating curiosity by asking GREAT questions that cause participants to engage. This is not about showing up with the just the right gizmo, gadget, or toy to illustrate a point. This is about asking such GREAT questions that those in the group just HAVE to participate with others and with God’s word. And, there is nothing better for an in-person or online group than thought-provoking and engaging questions.

I was able to share some iDiscover principles with my dear friend, Matt Edwards, a few months ago. He put them into practice the next week. After the third week, he called me. This is what he said:

“For more than 30 years, I’ve been considered a preacher, a prophet and evangelist. For the first time in my ministry, someone has called me a Bible teacher.”

Pastor Matt Edwards, Spring Creek Church, Weatherford, TX

iDiscover can help you and your ministry, whether you are on staff or simply lead a small group in your home. iDiscover is not for sale, but I’ll give it away to anyone wants to learn a better way.

You can contact me at eli.bernard@idiscover.xyz

One more thing. Curiosity did not kill the cat. And they don’t have nine lives.

Leading In to the Walls

You cannot lead anyone further than you’ve already been. And if you want to lead someone well, you need to travel that road a while. Travel that road often.

My Bachelor’s Degree is in Math Education. With that degree, I was able to teach all levels of high school math in an era before calculus was standard fare. I taught Algebra, Geometry, and Computer Science (this, before the first PC was sold in the US.)

To get that degree, I had to take Number Theory (where we spent time in base 2 and base 7 instead of base 10). I had to take four semesters of calculus. The only reason I didn’t fail that last semester is the prof chose to not fail me. There were two take home exams that semester. We were given a week to accomplish each. I attempted to answer all 7 of the questions on the mid-term and passed that one. I don’t remember the specific details of the final, but it was only 2 questions. The first question left me staring into space, wondering what in the world I was supposed to have studied for the 4 prior months. I never got to the second question. The first question went something like this:

In a cage you have a male and female bunny. Under normal conditions, bunnies reproduce 5 time per year with 4 kits per litter. In the water supply for the rabbits, you introduce a small ratio of alcohol, that ratio increasing by a certain amount over time. Alcohol serves to impede the reproductive rate of bunnies at a certain rate by volume over time. Assume that the litters, over time, average out to have the same number of males and females. Bunnies are able to reproduce beginning at 8 months old. Based on these conditions…

How many bunnies would you have after 24 months?

Not only did I have no words, I had no math. Not for bunnies anyway.

But what the number theory and calculus courses did do for me was take me a long way down that math road. Past potholes, pitfalls, and precipice. I could teach Geometry and Algebra in my sleep because of the depth of training I received.

You certainly can choose to journey together down a new road, but you can’t lead anyone. You’ve not yet seen the potholes or precipice. You’ve not experienced the detours and difficulties. And you’ve never found the amazingly powerful truths the exist beyond the pitfalls that cause most to turn back. Leading someone requires experience. Often, enough experience to fail and succeed.

If you agree with this, then let’s consider one implication.

Evangelism is Dead
 I grow weary of hearing the erroneous conclusion of oft-cited “survey” that tells us the difficulty in reaching people for Christ. “If we don’t reach them by a certain age”, the report goes, “then the chances of reaching them grow dim.”

The tipping point age used to be 18, then 16. Now, according to some, it is 12. If we don’t reach them by the age of 12, then our chances of reaching them diminished significantly.

And in every church that I’ve heard this quoted, it is used to promote the idea that we need to invest more in our children’s ministry and preteen ministry. After all if we don’t reach them in those ministries, they won’t be reached. And in many churches, this translates to reaching them before the age of accaountability. Reaching them before they comprehend their need. Reaching them before they can possibly understand the verses we’ve had them memorize or the prayer we led them to pray.

So you don’t miss a serious implication, let’s agree that “reached” does not mean attendance or presence or participation. “Reached” in this context refers to one giving their life Christ. So then, the serious implication is that in so many cases, the children may have gone through the motions, but they are not “reached”. We have effectively applied spiritual millstones around their necks.

The warning raised by the stat caused us to Lead In to the Walls – to turn inward to those who were already among us or will find us under their own steam – inside our walls. The real solution would be to Lead Out in to the Wild – creating effective ministries that turn outward – where the real need is.

How did we get here?
We got here because you can’t take anyone further than we’ve already gone. Our churches are filled today with people that made their salvation decision for Christ inside the walls of the church. The number of believers that are passionate about evangelism that actually practice evangelism in the wild seems to have diminished faster than the reachable age.

So, to paraphrase how this oft-cited quote is misunderstood, “If we don’t reach the children for Christ that are already in our walls or will come inside our walls by their own effort before they turn 12, we may not ever reach them”.

A corollary to this is something like:

“What we’re doing doesn’t work for those in the wild, even though it is supposed to. We’re going to keep doing what we’re doing and just blame the difficulty on the lost people – they’re just harder to reach.”

That oft-cited quote should have raised alarm bells to develop evangelism efforts in the wild. We should have created opportunities that took advantage of the system that would have us removed from schools and the public square. We didn’t do that because you can’t take anyone further than you’ve been. And our churches are lacking critical mass in people who met Christ in the wild, to help move the church out to the wild.

I don’t have any stats, but in the last six churches that I’ve been a member of, only two of the pastors practiced and talked about experiential evangelism in the wild – reaching the lost where they live, work and play.

Unfortunately, neither of those two ever trained anyone while we were there – they never took anyone with them to learn this increasingly rare behavior. In both cases, the church members were always glad and excited that people got saved. Just never glad and excited enough to demand that their pastor train them in a hands on, experiential way. But to be clear, I know for a fact that these pastors were challenged to take members out and train them. They just didn’t.

Of greater misfortune, three of the remaining pastors did not practice evangelism in the wild. They were glad when people got saved in their church, but they had no stories to tell, no effort to share of them reaching people where they live, work, and play.

And of greatest misfortune, one of those pastors admitted to me that they had never led anyone to Christ in a one-on-one conversation. Certainly people had responded to a Gospel presentation before, but no experience with personal evangelism.

Sadly, in all six churches, from the tepid challenge to “tell your story” to a strong admonition to share the gospel, not one of these churches leveraged their God-given resources to build a church-based evangelism effort. They limited there challenge to the individual. “You. You go. You go to your friends and family.” And even one of them actually said, “And we (the staff) will be here if you need anything.” (See “The Problem With My Neighbors” to understand why this has never worked broadly in the US.)

Let that sink in.

The reason that students and young adults are harder to reach has little to do with their social, emotional, or educational development. It has everything to do with these facts:

  1. We think disciple making is the activity of improving the spiritual state of saved people.
  2. We think the process of disciple making is best done by telling believers what to think instead of training them how to think.

If we think disciple making is fundamentally about working with saved people, then we make evangelism optional. The Great Commission (Matt 28:19-20), then, does not include it. Therefore:

  • it is not required by Jesus (not to mention)
  • uncomfortable for us (and finally, after all)
  • it is the pastor’s job

We therefore don’t need to be concerned about it other than to be happy when it accidentally happens.

You can’t lead anyone where you’ve never been. So we have effectively killed evangelism. That is why it is harder to reach people over the age of 12. Not because they are hard to reach, but because we’ve stopped doing the hard work of reaching others in the wild.

If you’ve never been trained, go to your pastor and demand it. Demand that he connect you with an evangelistic mentor for the express purpose of learning how to share the gospel in a hands-on, experiential way.

Now I know for a fact that you’ve been challenged, too.

Illustration and Dissonance

2 Timothy 3:16 tells us God’s Word  “is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness.”

  • Teaching – Giving instruction
  • Rebuking – Identifying where a mistake has been made
  • Correcting – How to return to the correct line of action or behavior
  • Training in Righteousness – How to never need rebuking again!

These four useful “turns” of instruction of God’s word can be very helpful in developing engaging and life-changing lessons. The beauty of the facilitating the self-discovery of truth is that it greatly enhances the effectiveness in our culture for communicating the most difficult of the four, “rebuke” and “correction”. People generally will change their mind about something if they discover the truth for themselves. We are all prone to resist rebuke and correction when it comes at us head on.

We live in a culture where the masses at church love the teaching and training, but resist the rebuke and correction. Yet, we know from our own childhood and from raising our own children, that rebuke and correction are vital to to the entire training process.

Here are some other “turns” on lesson development that may prove useful to you, especially on the more familiar or more difficult passages as they come through your curriculum.

Supportive (and Illustrative) Passages

Other Bible passages that reveal more information regarding the concept of the lesson, or illustrate the point of the main passage can be a significant part of an engaging lesson. Have participants compare and contrast the information in each passage. This is not the same is proof-texting, where you find a trove of passages that use a word or concept out of context from the main passage, in an effort to “prove” some point through and abundance of textual evidence.

Dissonant Passages – As a facilitator, a tremendously effective approach to life changing Bible study is to cause “cognitive dissonance” in the minds those in your study group. Cognitive dissonance is the process where what a person believes to be true is confronted or conflicted by something else that seems to be true, but is in conflict with the original belief. Cognitive Dissonance is especially helpful in correcting misguided beliefs, passages taken out of context, extra-Biblical material, and experiences and opinions that are contrary to Biblical truth. It can also be very effective in reinforcing and establishing Biblical belief systems.

The right Icebreaker can lead participants to express what they believe to be true on the concept at hand. Then, as the passage(s) are studied, the Biblical truth will cause the mental dissonance that will lead to change.

Example: Icebreaker:  What is the Biblical process for dealing with conflict between believers? (If there are believers of any level of maturity in your group, someone will refer to Matt 28.)

Question somewhere in the lesson:  “Explain why you think that Paul did, or did not, sin in Galatians 2:11-14?

CAUTION:  As always, you must stay in context when interpreting the Bible. However, a temporary (deliberate) misinterpretation may affect the desired results. ALWAYS identify the misinterpretation, and it’s place in the process you’ve just completed. Most Christians have heard a pastor employ an effect like this at one time or another. For example, a pastor encouraging his congregation to read along with his sermon passage may say, “According to Romans 3_23, some have sinned. Correct?” While the truth is, ALL have sinned, the pastor as used this technique to cause a little dissonance, to reinforce the truth in the minds of his congregation.

Maintaining context is a huge need in our culture. The concept of a lesson may focus on an experience with context more than on any one Biblical truth.  Helping Christians learn how to “rightly divide” God’s word is always a valuable lesson. Many believers today think that they should interpret the Bible through their on lives and experiences, when in fact, it should be just the opposite: we should interpret our lives and experience through God’s word.

The Relationship Windshield

If you’ve never done this, then give it a try. Find a stretch of road without any oncoming traffic and while moving the speed limit, look AT the windshield. Now, no cheating. This will only take a second. Don’t look through the windshield, look at it. It might help to find a spot to look at.

It would be normal to have a sense of panic to some degree. There is an immediate sense that you’ve lost control of this moving vehicle, that you have no idea what’s coming at you from any direction because you’re looking AT the very thing that is intended to be looked through. It doesn’t matter if the horizon is bursting with the view of a snow-capped mountain sunset or a double rainbow in the eastern sky. You don’t see any of that if you’re looking at the windshield instead of through it.

But the windshield is helpful. It allows us to take in all the beauty before us, without the worry of bugs in our teeth or flying objects in our face. It also allows us to give some attention to the others who are in the car with us. The windshield It is a tool best used when considered invisible.

If you’ve never done this, then give it a try. Become so familiar with the elements of the small group session, that you don’t look at the material the entire time. You look through the material at the eyes of the people in your group. You listen through the material to their responses to the questions and their dialogue with one another. You react and respond to the life around you rather than to the next question or activity in the session. Here is the snow-capped mountains and the burst of sunlight that we all crave in our small groups. This is how relationships can grow and be strengthened as you together meet with God through His word. This doesn’t exist on the windshield; it is on the other side.

Now let me quickly say that the material may indeed be vital (but may be less so as the leader matures spiritually). It can keep the bugs out of your meeting and stop frustrated members from flying in your face. The material gives you a plan, a way to see and get to the beauty of the group. But let’s stop looking AT the material, and look to the relationships beyond.

Many small group leaders are afraid of losing control of their “vehicle.” While God’s Word and strong relationships are the stuff of life change – the beauty of his creation – we often point at spots on the windshield rather than taking in all that is available in the group.

It can happen like this:
“Somebody read the first question….”
“Let’s use our time watching a DVD.”
“We need to get back to the lesson…”
“Everybody turn to page 14 …”

These statements (and subsequent page flipping in the material or passive viewing of a screen) tell the group participants that the material wants to know that they think; the lesson is interested in their response, or the commentary of the latest celebrity speaker is more valuable than the relationships in the room.

You might be missing the relationships because you’re looking AT the very thing that is intended to be looked through.

Can you sense the difference in these questions?
“Let me ask you a question…”
“Hows does that thought relate to our passage…”
“Let’s try this…”

Questions like these are generated by familiarity with the scope and sequence of the lesson elements. But the difference is that the material is “invisible” to the discussion. Eye to eye and ear to ear, participants can grow together with each other and with God.

Try this in preparation for your next small group session (see page 36):

  1. Write down your questions and activities in the order they should occur.
  2. Re-write this list in short-hand and abbreviations. After all, you are the only one that needs to know what the abbreviations mean.
  3. Re-write the list on a sticky note using only one or two words (OK, use 3 or 4 if you need to) for each question or step. By the time of this third draft, you should be able to just glance at a phrase and know what to ask or do.
  4. Place this sticky note in your Bible next to the passage you will study.
    When the study begins, just glance at your sticky note and you will be reminded of the ice-breaker/opening question you have planned.

But look at their eyes, listen to their words. Let them know that you want to know what they think and feel. While the group is responding to your question, just glance again at your list, and you’ll know what comes next. And you won’t have to juggle two books in your lap!

Bonus: In being comfortable in what comes next, you will often be able to sense the exact time to move naturally on to the next step. You’ll be able to say something like, “That’s a great question! Let’s try something to see what we can learn about that.” Natural transitions and good eye contact communicate volumes to your group as to what kind of listener you are. What kind of friend you are.

Lead them to the beauty of the relationships in the group. 

Use your small group material.

Use it well. 

But use it as a windshield.

Visit www.idiscover.xyz and register for access to Microsoft Word ® and PDF versions of digital sticky note templates.

It All Hangs in the Balance

Balance. This is something that we seem to be moving farther away from. While we tout an understanding of the two Great Commandments – to “‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind” and “Love your neighbor as yourself” (Matthew 22:37-39), we seem to have functionally degenerated into a debate on which one is greater. This was never God’s point. Had man not been created, there would be no hearts, souls, or minds, to love Him. And the simple fact of the matter is that you can’t Love God with all your heart, mind, and soul without loving your neighbor. And you can’t love your neighbor as you love yourself without concern, thought, and effort for your neighbor to know the God you love. You may not realize it, but God wants your neighbor to love Him with all their heart, mind and soul, also. These commandments are symbiotic. They are in balance. They are God’s design.

Please don’t assume that by balance I mean equality. The greatest commandment is the greatest. But the second – now don’t bet upset that I name drop here – according to Jesus, is like it: similar, close, in balance. And this simple reality flies in the face of our current and prolific move away from balance. You see, you have to take one position, not two. You can’t hold one position and agree with part of another. You have to choose which one is right. They can’t both (or all) be. And while your emotional identity may be tied to the singular position of your choosing, the eternal lives of the lost hang in the balance. And when we change the balance, their lives may truly be lost.

Early in my ministry, I remember heavy debates on whether “evangelism” or “discipleship” was the most important ministry of the church, and by implication and intent, for individual Christians as well. The passionate debaters would seek sides and identify your side, whether you had one or not. Those who favored evangelism were painted with the abandonment brush – as in, “All you’re concerned about is their spiritual birth… you abandon them so that you can move on to the next spiritual birth.” I even heard it referred to as the highly offensive “spiritual stillbirth.” Those who claimed discipleship as the greatest value were often painted with the cowardice brush – as in, “You are just afraid to share the Gospel” or the failure brush – as in, “You’ve just taken that position because no one is getting saved in your ministry.” As rounds of debate came to an end, each participant would retreat to their corner, determined to prove the other wrong, rather than seeing that both sides make one whole. And the lives of the lost and the ministries of the saved hang in the balance.

Evangelism comes easier to me than most. Because of the God-invasion in my life, I became a bold and vocal Christian (though sometimes, not in the best of balance). Because He answered a broken-hearted prayer out of my fear of evangelism, that boldness encompassed the sharing of the Gospel. This became and is a passion for me. So passionate, that not only do I want others to know my Christ, I want other Christ-followers to know how to share and how important it is to live lives the align with the message they share. I remember early Tuesday morning breakfast meetings with students, teaching them how to share their faith and debriefing with them on how the previous week had gone. I remember times in our Wednesday night teaching/worship time that students who knew how to share their faith would leave the room with a friend so that they could purposefully and deliberately give that friend an opportunity to accept Christ. I remember taking ministry leaders with me so that they could learn the “how” behind the “what” – the “do” beside the “know” –  that they had studied for years; years in rooms filled with Christ-followers but no new followers.

Discipleship and Evangelism. Loving God and loving your neighbor. Balance. The lives of the lost and ministry of the saved all hang in this. They are symbiotic. This is God’s design. And here, I believe, is an illustration for why much discipleship is in name only. You see, in the memories above, I never used a program – someone else’s creation of resources that were, with the best of intentions, designed, packaged, and sold out of someone else’s experience – experience that I did not possess. You can only lead from where you’ve been. Discipleship is not merely book study – although studying books can be part of the process. If you’ve not gotten your hands dirty, you won’t be able to show anyone else how to dirty their hands. Discipleship is not passing on what you’ve read. Discipleship is not passing on what you’ve been taught. It is not passing on what you merely understand.

Discipleship is passing on what you experientially know by helping others to know it experientially.

I’ve been in churches where leaders talked about the need for evangelism. In particular, I won’t soon forget the lay-leader that spoke to the need, believed in accountability for the staff in this area, and even taught classes on how to “share Jesus without fear”. When asked to share about the last time he had led someone to Christ in his 60+ years of life, he could not think of one. That’s like asking someone about the day they got married and not being able to remember anything about it. Like asking about the birth of their child and not being able to remember anything about it. The likely truth is that such a person has not actually been married or had a child. And the lives of those who don’t know Christ hang in the balance – the balance of know and do. The balance of talk and go. The balance of faith and action. The balance of worship and witness. The balance of evangelism and discipleship.

Faith without works.
Is.
Dead.

Today, the debate terminology has changed, but the message is still the same. It is still Spiritual Us vs Spiritual Them. Even when Jesus’ instructions included to simply “leave them alone” (Luke 9_49:50), we still struggle to realize that telling those without Christ about Christ is a more important pursuit than trying to convince those with Christ that either Calvin or Arminius is correct and the other incorrect. Even though the lives of those without Christ hang in the balance of how we live and communicate today, we spend time trying to convince those with Christ about how and when they will see Him in the future be it pre, post, or a. If their lives really hang in the balance (and they really do), then please stand in front of a mirror (so as to have someone to convince) and elaborate for just a minute or two on this question: How does your understanding of Christ’s return, and your subsequent passion to convince other believers of your position, make any difference in how you love your neighbor as yourself” or in your ability to pass on this experiential knowledge to others? Your neighbor’s lives hang in the balance.

We have, unfortunately, learned to defend our doctrinal positions and Biblical knowledge much like our politicians defend theirs. We’ve learned debate techniques from our favorite Fox or CNN politicos. “My” side is the truth and has value; the other side is not true and has no value. I applaud Christian leaders that resist this pull. Theirs is the effort to maintain balance in a world that increasingly seeks to divide, debate, and destroy. Fortunately for us, God’s word provides the balance we need. Unfortunately, many of the side-seekers most often don’t follow the full wisdom of God in their pursuits. There are favorite passages, powerful passages, and reasoned conclusions based on these passages. However, there are other passages – either ignorantly or deliberately ignored – that can provide greater balance. This proof-texting builds communities and followings, but this debate about words does not build the kingdom.

As time and resources are all the more consumed by the world and culture around us, the church is feeling the squeeze to do more with less, and what often is the “more” is what is expedient or easy, rather than what is required. We have more Bible studies so that we can “know Him more”. We have worship pageantry so that we can “love Him more”. We align our purpose with these priorities – to know God more (a good thing), to love God more (a good thing). We proclaim that we worship in spirit and truth (both good things). But this leaves little to no time for loving our neighbors. Can you feel the pendulum pulled to the God side? Love the Lord your God with all your heart… (a really good thing). But as it is pulled to the God-side, it is pulled away from the neighbor side (not a good thing). Because Jesus said that this side is like the God-side. I will promise you that your available knowledge of and worship toward God will be wholly incomplete without sharing what you know with those who don’t.

Did you know that there are couples that by choice have no children? Absolutely their right. This is their choice. I am confident that these couples love each other. They, in fact, have a chosen path whereby they can give all of their love and affection to one another. They sacrifice for one another. They enjoy life together. In fact, regardless of their professions, they have greater resources to enjoy life and help others than do couples who have children. And ultimately, their heritage and lineage stop with them. This fact does not impugn their decision to be childless. It is, however, the undeniable and ultimate conclusion that the end of their lives is the end of the line.

Churches whose singular focus is on loving and knowing the Lord their God, do in fact love Him. I am confident that He loves them. They have more resources to spend on enjoying life with Him than churches who expend resources on making and developing spiritual children. And it is the undeniable and ultimate conclusion that the end of their church will be at their lives end. How has it become possible, in some circles, that Calvinism, Arminianism, Pre-millennialism, Post-millennialism, and/or Amillennialism (this is NOT an exhaustive list) consume more time and effort than evangelism?

I will never be one to say that Bible Study and Worship are not valuable; that learning of and loving God are not priorities. However, alone they are out of balance. God desires that we also love our neighbors as ourselves. In like fashion, it will never be my position that you are not entitled to your position. (Please don’t be offended, however, if I choose to simply leave you alone.)

Take a look at scripture and see which characters focused on worship and knowing God’s word to the exclusion of loving their neighbors. What characters spent more time talking about what they believed than living what they believed? What characters spent more time debating the minutiae of God’s Word in deference to the magnitude of His commands? Love the Lord your God. Love your neighbor as yourself. Go. Make Disciples. Teach them (experientially). Your ministry, and their lives, hang in the balance.