Confusion was the number one response Jesus’ disciples had to Jesus’ teaching. I thought their normal response would have been awe and wonder. Nope. Jesus taught, and they replied, “Huh?” In Mark 7:14-16, Jesus taught a parable prioritizing the inner cleanliness of a person’s heart over outward appearance. Verse 17 says that after the teaching, when Jesus and His team had entered a house, they questioned Him about the meaning of His teaching. Jesus replied, “Are you so lacking in understanding?” (Mark 7:18).
They were confused and needed clarification.
So, Jesus moved from preaching to personal discipleship. He transitioned from teaching a large crowd in public to training a small group in a house. The small group was not a once-a-week relationship. Jesus loved and walked with these men. He got to know them and shared life with them. Jesus was a veteran in the faith loving, counseling, and training those in need.
Where can a follower of Jesus find that kind of access today? How can Christians gain access to veterans in the Lord, men, and women who bear the scars and trophies of years in the faith? Where are veterans in the Lord seeking those in need with whom they can love, counsel, train, and send in the faith? Confusion certainly still reigns. The teachings of Jesus can be challenging to understand, let alone successfully apply. How does a person earnestly walk in a relationship with the Almighty God of all creation?
MAKE: Unlock People – Personal Discipleship Jesus’ Way dispels confusion about personal discipleship. Veteran Christians have a mandate from Jesus to reproduce themselves in others. But many, if not most, of us, are confused.
We have questions like:
Where would I begin?
What does it look like to disciple others?
How many do I work with?
How long do we meet?
What about content?
What if they ask a question I can’t answer?
How could someone like me be qualified to disciple others?
Confusion reigns.
MAKE: Unlock People will clarify and simplify personal discipleship. You can confidently and joyfully engage Christians in need and co-labor with the Holy Spirit to shepherd God’s people to confidence and maturity in the faith. I understand the prospect of disciple-making can be daunting. But when you finish MAKE: you will feel energized to discover who the people are our Father has for you.
You can join the army of emerging disciple-makers our Father is sending to His people. God wants His people strong. He wants them free. He wants them faithful. And He wants to send you as His child to love and train those in need.
My next blog will share a powerful story of how a confused person became a disciple-maker.
And Jesus came up and spoke to them, saying, “All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth. Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.” Matthew 28:18-20