February 2014
Luke 6:13 “And when day
came, he called his disciples and chose twelve of them, whom he also named
apostles”:
When you ask what we as Christians are
supposed to be doing, the answer should be making disciples. The problem with that answer is two-fold; first,
what is a disciple and second, how can we make disciples if we refuse to be disciples?
In regard to the first problem, my definition
of a disciple is a follower of Christ who is so into Christ that everything he/she
strives to do reflects Christ. As a
Methodist, we are in constant training to love God with all our heart, soul, and
mind and to love our neighbor as ourselves.
We don’t always get it right, but becoming a disciple is a continual
process it is not a onetime thing.
The second problem, (pardon the redundancy)
is more problematic. How can we make disciples
if we ourselves will not become disciples?
Attending church once a week is not being a disciple. Doing a good deed here and there is not being
a disciple. Just being a nice person is
not being a disciple. If we truly desire
to make disciples for Christ, then we must become disciples of Christ and that
requires following Christ, knowing Christ, learning from Christ and listening
to Christ.
How
can we expect someone to take up a cross that we refuse to bear? The Pharisees
did that and you know where that got them. How can we expect someone to learn something
if we refuse to study? How can we expect
people to have a deep relationship with Christ if we are not willing to dive
into that very relationship?
I have heard that not everyone can be a
disciple, but I believe that is a flawed statement. I believe everyone is called to be a disciple
in the context God has for them. I
believe that every person that we come in contact with can be a disciple, but
we must first be disciples. I also believe that if our churches truly desire to
be disciples, then you will see a revival of epic proportions. If we truly desire to follow Christ, then the
world will change, hunger will be no more, poverty a memory, homelessness a
thing of the past. Following Christ will
change everything.
Ultimately becoming a disciple is a response
to Christ’s act of salvation in our lives.
So now is the time to respond to what Christ has done in your life, and
bring others to him. Let’s be the
disciples Christ is calling us to be.
Amen
