IF YOU DON'T HAVE A BUDDY WILL YOU SEEK TO GET ONE PLEASE?
If I asked my regular readers today, what do you think is the passion of my life ? I do trust your reply would be. “John it is what you call Biblical Discipleship”, and you would be 100% correct. I trust you don’t groan when you start reading one of my blogs, and think “here he goes again, John only has one string in his bow”. I personally NEVER had any form of Discipleship and had many years of being a YO YO Christian, up one day and down the next. these were sad, frustrating days, somehow knowing there was more, but not seemingly able to attain it.
We know the Great Commission is simply in essence PREACH THE GOSPEL AND MAKE DISCIPLES, but to a great degree it has become the Great OMMISSION, in that Discipleship has been watered down in to many situations to a six week class, and when you have completed the course you have been discipled!!!!!
In every generation there comes a fresh emphasis on Discipleship and I believe it is the Holy Spirit seeking to bring the Church back to truth. Either there has been no real Discipleship or sadly it is taken to extremes, and produces unhealthy relationships.
Paul Washer a prominent Southern Baptist Evangelist makes this disturbing statement:
MOST PEOPLE IN OUR CHURCHES ARE LOST, AND THEY DEMONSTRATE THEY ARE LOST, BECAUSE THEIR ENTIRE CHRISTIANITY IS NOTHING MORE THAN ‘I MADE A DECISION”
Paul tells us in Romans 10:9 that if you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you will be saved.NKJV
SALVATION IS HEART AND MOUTH COMING TOGETHER
Then immediately Biblical Discipleship must begin, what is a Disciple?
A student, a Learner, an Acolyte sitting at the feet of a Guru, a Parent/Child relationship
DISCIPLESHIP MUST ALWAYS INVOLVE ANOTHER PERSON, and because this is time consuming and a long term project, WE JUST DON’T DO IT.
Many older Christians who have NEVER been discipled and are approached to consider being in a Discipleship relationship RUN A MILE, many hate the word Disciplemaker, or Discipler, or Mentor, but have no trouble with the word BUDDY.
I DON’T CARE WHAT YOU CALL THE PERSON JUST DO IT.
Next month I am preaching two weeks running (at the Pastor’s request), on the Discipled Life, the first week, I will define Discipleship, and at the end of the sermon encourage the Believers to pray about choosing a BUDDY, who will walk with them, as on the second Sunday, I am going to teach on prayer. One sermon or class will not make a Pray-er, but in walking together for some months with a BUDDY PRAYER WILL BECOME A LIFESTYLE.
I believe there are EIGHT ESSENTIAL INGREDIENTS TO DAILY PRAYER, I do not share a formula, but there is a clear progression, in the steps, plus without the 8 ingredients our prayer life is unbalanced.
I will be giving a handout to those who request it, to assist them in this walk.
Of course Prayer is only one essential component to Biblical Discipleship.
Because of the lack of Discipleship, many Christians never learn how to pray, or how to read and study and meditate on the Word of God.
Many Christians continue throughout their life never knowing for example:
How to protect their minds from the attacks of the evil one.
What a glorious inheritance that has been procured for them NOW through the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ
To live the Spirit-filled life
How to deal with the “garbage” of the past
To be challenged relative to their character, lifestyle, their speech, their motives and attitudes
What it means to Put on the whole armour of God
And the list goes on and on, and in a Discipleship Relationship within 6-9 months a new Believer can be walking in victory, power and purity, and an increasing measure of maturity.
I trust you have not reacted to the repetition, there is a line from an old hymn that said TELL ME THE STORY OFTEN FOR WE FORGET SO SOON, and if you have never been Discipled, would you please pray about finding a BUDDY, to walk with you into a whole new level of relationship with the Lord.
WE CAN’T CHANGE THE PAST, BUT WE SURE CAN CHANGE THE PRESENT & FUTURE
