One of my passions in this life, both with my family and within the church, is discipleship. There are many important points of discipleship; however, one truth must be known: Everyone is always being discipled. The question is, by what or whom are you being discipled? Are you being discipled by the Word of God? The news? School? Co-workers? Friends? These things are vying for our attention and influence in our lives. While this is not necessarily bad, when we let anything overtake the discipleship we receive from God, we have fallen into sin.
John 17:16 reads, “They are not of the world, just as I am not of the world.” (ESV). While in the world, we are strangers and aliens here, but not of the heavenly realm. We are members of God’s family who happen to be living in the world. We must live our lives in such a way that not only do we know what is right and good in the sight of the Lord, but we must do what is right and good in the sight of the Lord. This, my friends, is the most challenging part of the life of a disciple in today’s day and age.
According to the article “Discipleship” by Dallas Willard, “During the mid-to-late 20th Century, evangelicalism came to define itself in terms of the profession of correct beliefs alone. Holding correct doctrine was standardly presented as the condition of forgiveness of sins.”[1] While this notion is completely repudiated by the Scriptures (James 2:14-26, for example), it has crept into the hearts and minds of believers all over, but especially in the Western world. Today, we would call such a belief “easy believeism,” or the idea that being saved and being a Christian requires no effort, just some belief. In this case, a correct belief in doctrine, even if there is no evidence of that belief in the person’s life. While I completely understand that, for a true professing believer, a confession of faith will lead to a changed life, it is too easy for someone to spout out correct doctrinal beliefs and claim to believe in them.
I strongly believe that the idea of “correct beliefs alone” has led to a drop in serious discipleship and a rise in couch-potato Christianity. Too often, we see people in churches ascent to what is being taught and agree with how Christians must live their lives but make absolutely no effort to effect those changes in their lives or those around them. This is a symptom of what Dean Inserra calls cultural Christianity in his book The Unsaved Christian.[2]
As believers, we must be in the business of, amongst many things, self-discipline. “Have nothing to do with irreverent, silly myths. Rather train yourself for godliness; for while bodily training is of some value, godliness is of value in every way, as it holds promise for the present life and also for the life to come.” (1 Tim. 4:7-8). Part of this is living out your faith. No, works don’t save, but salvation will cause works to happen. “So also faith by itself, if it does not have works, is dead.” (James 2:17).
So, what do we do about such a situation? First and foremost, discipline yourself for godliness. Pray. Read the Bible. Worship the Lord. Tell people about Jesus. Memorize Scripture. Live your life as a believer. Work “out your own salvation with fear and trembling.” (Phil. 2:12). In other words, don’t just go to church and say that you are a Christian; back that up with when you leave the church and live your life as a Christian.
Here are some books to check out:
Spiritual Disciplines for the Christian Life by Donald Whitney
Praying the Bible by Donald Whitney
Disciplines of a Godly Man by R. Kent Hughes
Disciplines of a Godly Woman by Barbara Hughes
Disciplines of a Godly Family by R. Kent and Barbara Hughes
Knowing God by J. I. Packer
The Cost of Discipleship by Dietrich Bonhoeffer
[1] Dallas Willard, “Discipleship by Dallas Willard,” accessed October 19, 2023, https://www.thespiritlife.net/73-process/process-publications/702-discipleship-by-dallas-willard-.
[2] Dean Inserra, The Unsaved Christian: Reaching Cultural Christianity with the Gospel (Chicago: Moody Publishers, 2019).
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