I don’t want to simplify discipleship, but I also don’t want to make it something it is not. Discipleship is not setting in a chair,or pew, on Sunday and listening to someone else tell you about Jesus or just tell you how to live. It’s not going to the next Sunday school class or small group.
What I see discipleship as being is;
- Learning from Christ through the Holy Spirit
- Sharing life with someone who is either a fellow traveler or who is farther or shorter in their walk with Christ than you are.
No one can live the life for you. You have to be willing to live in fellowship with Christ in order to learn from him. As with any relationship you will get out of it exactly what you put in. Discipleship is no different. I don’t want to make it sound like a law, but talking to the Father and letting him talk to you through prayer or bible reading is essential. This has become easier for me since it was demystified by a good friend. If you have been in church long you have heard all this. But many act like reading the bible and praying for 30 minutes to an hour each day before you do anything else is the only way. It’s not. Prayer is a genuine act. It should be restful and peaceful not practiced and recited. As you begin to find rest in Christ, you will begin to relax and share your life with him. Remember, nothing you can do will ever earn you more grace than you have already been given. So relax and let him build you up and don’t force your growth.
Sharing life with others is the second part of discipleship. We get stuck. We need to have people in our lives to bounce questions and ideas off of, about what we are learning on the journey. Paul brought Timothy along and learned from/with Barnabas and others. You need people in your life and no, not necessarily in a church setting.
So what is discipleship? Living and learning in Christ and with others.
About Steve Crenshaw