On Being a Disciple

All human beings were created for a spiritual journey to a final destination of loving God and others (Mark 12:30-31; Eph.2:10), and along this journey, though we may not realize it, we are being discipled. The question is, by whom or by what are we being discipled?

To answer this question, we first must understand what it means to be a disciple and what it means to be discipled. A disciple accepts and assists in the spread of a belief or set of beliefs, and we are discipled by anyone or anything that helps us with the process. We can be discipled by money, reputation, fame, fear, or power; but the Christian should be discipled by the life and teachings of Christ through the power of the Holy Spirit.

John Wesley, the founder of Methodism, believed this spiritual transformational journey ends with people who are delivered from the bondage of habitual sin and filled with God’s pure, holy love. He referred to this entire process as sanctification. Embarking on this journey with a personal commitment to surrender to the sanctifying power of the Holy Spirit is what it means to be a disciple of Christ. In his exhortation to the Corinthians, Paul reminded them that, “... the Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom. And we all, with unveiled face, beholding the glory of the Lord, are being changed into his likeness from one degree of glory to another; for this comes from the Lord who is the Spirit” (2 Cor. 3: 17-18).

Are we being discipled by postmodern cultural beliefs related to money, power, and sexuality? Will such discipling lead to the final destination of a loving relationship with God and others?

Becoming a disciple of Christ requires an inner transformation from only knowing about God to knowing God intimately through a personal relationship with Christ, our Lord, and Savior. The spiritual disciplines are tools to assist us on this journey of building a loving relationship with God and others and are critical in providing the path for this spiritual growth to take place during this journey. Utilizing these disciplines demands action individually and corporately. They require the intentional setting aside of time and space despite our busy schedules. In his book, Celebration of Discipline, Richard Foster categorized the spiritual disciplines into inward (prayer, fasting, and study), outward (service, submission, and solitude), and corporate (confession, worship, and guidance).

How can we consistently walk on this path of ever-increasing degrees of spiritual maturity? Identifying our personal and corporate seasons and rhythms is a key determinant of how successful we are in implementing these disciplines. For example, at a personal level, we need to know where we are in our spiritual journey and clearly understand our season in life. Are you studying or established in a career? Self-employed or an employee? Do you have young children? Corporately, is your church in a rapid growth phase, a season of stability, or a season of decline? Your personal and corporate seasons (stages in life) will impact the rhythms (good habits) you can establish as you practice the disciplines, and as seasons change, so will the rhythms.

In the coming months, we hope to explore these spiritual disciplines on second Sundays, during small groups, and during some of our Wednesday evening discussions. This will be augmented through practical applications corporately and at the level of the small groups.

Thanks to John for reminding us of our call to action. “Little children let us not love in word or speech, but in deed and truth” (1 John 3:18)

For His Glory,

Pastor Earlando