discipleship

Discipleship to Jesus is about “hearing and doing.” It’s about paying attention to what Jesus is saying and then putting his teaching into practice (as he makes clear in the Sermon on the Mount).

But as I’ve practiced this and discipled others, it seems our imagination for “doing” is significantly impoverished. Most people think about “doing” as either

1. Primarily cognitive (I’m going to “think about it” some more), or
2. Primarily corrective (Here’s how I’m going to fix my brokenness).

But neither of those ways of “doing” our discipleship results in transformation. The cognitive approach keeps our response in the realm of our thoughts only, ignoring the power and opportunity of bodily habits.

The corrective approach keeps me firmly in control of the discipleship process, solving problems and fixing myself. God actually is unnecessary, except to give me information about what to “work on.”

The reason you can’t make disciples is probably something that’s built into your culture that sabotages your best intentions before you even start.

Pastors, have you ever noticed that the people in your congregation aren’t quite as excited about discipleship and mission as you are? Have you ever wondered why, despite your best intentions, you can’t make disciples? [Read more…] about Why You Can’t Make Disciples

The following is a guest post from my amazing wife, Deb Sternke.

She has written before on my blog, and she is an incredibly gifted coach and discipler (as well as a great mother to our four kids!).

[Read more…] about How Asking Questions Is Transforming My Parenting

According to Eugene Peterson, there are two paradigmatic designations for people of faith: disciples and pilgrims.

I find this compelling. And I think if we would simply embrace these two images as our identity as people of faith, many things would fall into place.

Let’s think about each image, and the contrasting image that tempts us.

We want to be experts, though

People of faith are disciples. This simply means we are learners. People who are not there yet, who don’t know how to do things.

Disciples are in a position of learning from their rabbi. You become a disciple when you admit you have something to learn.

One of our great temptations, though, is to see ourselves as experts. People with answers. People who know things.

Experts stand over others and pontificate. Disciples stand with and among others and ask questions.

Experts have answers, verdicts and certainty. Disciples have questions, curiosity, and wonder.

We are disciples, not experts

Brothers and sisters, we are not experts! We are not called to be people with answers.

When was the last time you heard about someone who was swept into the kingdom of God on the coattails of an airtight theological argument? This just doesn’t happen.

Posturing as experts simply pushes genuine seekers away. It’s an ugly and proud posture that repels people who are asking honest questions about faith.

We are not experts. We are disciples. All of us. We are called to be the most curious and compassionate people on the planet.

I’m confident that as we seek the truth with and among our neighbors and friends, that Jesus will reveal himself in our midst and lead us all as disciples into abundant life.

Where do you notice the temptation to posture as an expert instead of a disciple?

Staking our claim and conquering

People of faith are pilgrims. Travelers. People who are headed somewhere rather than people who have arrived.

 

Another of our great temptations, though, is to see ourselves as conquerors, staking our claim and controlling what happens on “our land.”

(Now, I know the Scriptures explicitly say we are “more than conquerors” but that’s not how I am using this image. In Romans, Paul is saying that despite horrific persecution, nothing will be able to separate us from the love of Christ.)

A conqueror is bent on taking hold of a place and ruling it for his own benefit. Once a land is conquered, the new ruler gets what he wants, and everyone else has to deal with it.

I sometimes see the conqueror mentality in how some people of faith fight so hard for certain kinds of legislation to be passed (or not passed). We think somehow that our job is to control what happens on “our land.”

We are pilgrims, not conquerors

But we aren’t conquerors. We are pilgrims. Pilgrims are simply travelers, people who are trusting there is something better beyond where we are at.

Pilgrims are people who don’t need to hold on to the way things currently are. People who trust that God will sort all of those things out and our job is simply to continue moving in his direction, despite what is going on around us sometimes.

Where do you notice the temptation to posture as a conqueror instead of a pilgrim?

Embracing learning and traveling

Disciples and pilgrims. Two compelling images for what it means to be the people of God.

What would it look like for you to embrace these images today?