Disciples: Follow Truth

Discussions of discipleship at church.

Been asking about it for a while. What does it mean to disciple someone? How does that go? What do?

I had it in my head before that there's immediate and blatant and abrasive proclamation of the Gospel--condemnation of sin (yes), justification of God (yes), glorification of Christ (yes), extension of mercy (yes), reconciliation to right relationship and right order with God through Christ (yes). And...expectation that conversion would be immediate, regeneration would be immediate...and sanctification would then be the part of the "process" where discipleship entered into the picture.

Yeah, well.

I keep being reminded of Jesus with his disciples. A motley crew, the lot. But they were those whom the Father gave him to instruct through close acquaintance, during daily walking out faith in righteousness.

We aren't as Him, and there's a definite danger in trying to adapt some sort of methodology rather than depending upon Him for direction...but He has definitely given us His Words and His directions in order to guide and instruct us and lead us. So it seems good to look to the Lord, when attempting to discern what He even means when He says to make disciples.

Because...He has all authority. And it's upon His authority that He tells us to go and make disciples. And to baptize them. And to teach them.

So, what's a disciple? I've asked that a lot.
Simplest form is one being instructed.

I look back at my time with the Lord and realize even before converting me, He was leading and teaching me. I would not have dared to call myself a disciple back then--would not have wanted to, even. But He was drawing me and instructing me in some very difficult things, nonetheless. Of loss, of gain, of pain, of value, of what is worth pursuing. Of falsity and emptiness, even to cherish truth and fulfillment. Of lack and true abundance.

He interfered in my life regularly. And yes--interfered. Not merely intervened, as though in some way only doing so when it was to spare my life or miraculously manifest provisions. But also in ways which were overt and clear reminders of who He is. An ongoing discussion of and revelation of and direction to the Gospel of Jesus: Repent, be cleansed, the Kingdom is at hand.

He troubled me with His presence, even. Manifest blessing, beyond all, in the midst of blatant rebellion...He still continually evidenced His love. Blatantly.

And I would be irked and ultimately disdain His presence, shrugging it off after sometime initial joy at being momentarily at peace, momentarily so many things. But would ultimately experience something of discomfort and unease, wanting to be rid of Him, to shrug Him off as some soiled garment...when, in truth, He is all righteousness and it's my sin and sinful nature which was and is the wretched, horrid travesty against reason. Defilement, even wanting to be quit of His presence.

He changed me, though. Even to relish His presence always and increasingly long for the veil to pass, in full...though moments of indulgence and distraction do still yield to a forsaking of the depth of awareness of Him and His truths...

...but part of learning to love Him was learning how great is my need to be near Him, always, never parted. So that being distracted too long yields to a bleak despair, as of prior to embracing Him. Unconscious attention slips from Christ and from His love and peace, and distractions begin to hold too much sway...and peace becomes less loud, love becomes less encompassing...and anxiety becomes increasingly incapacitating, as do many things likewise.

There's nothing but to cling to Him, then. Even being shown again and again that it's Him who keeps me resting in His love--I'm so easily distracted and constantly distracted (even by thoughts and emotions, requiring no outside interference though that's constantly assailing, too)...unless He actively kept me, I'd be completely lost to Him all the time. But part of His keeping has been to increase dependence upon His peace, such that forsaking Him is increasingly difficult to bear.

I don't want to wander.

But it's been a gradual, very slow, and often repeating series of experiential revelation of the Word, unto understanding. Reading, understanding. Understanding, reading. Depending.

A process. Began prior to my willing submission to Him as Master.
Commander.
Supervisor.
Manager.
Director.
Instructor.
Rabboni.
Lord.

Peter comes to mind. Flashes of revelatory insight. A great deal of fervor. But zeal without knowledge isn't good.

Willingness to follow, though.

Yet how long had some of these men been familiar acquaintances with Jesus? A couple were his cousins, according to flesh. And others, in what ways did God prepare them to follow Jesus?

Just...my ideas of where discipleship begins and how it works have been very limited by conceiving only of my own abilities and understandings. God doesn't have those limitations. If there are disciples of Christ, they are foremost His disciples. Even being discipled under others who are His disciples, also.

None of us knows Him wholly. None of us knows entirely what we don't know of Him, either. We're blind to our blindness, until He gives sight.

Yet He does.

But it's as that with discipling, it seems. Ongoing discussion of truth. Ongoing revelation. Ongoing interest, curiosity increasingly sparked to desire and pursue deeper levels of understanding our God...increasingly according to His will and His ways.

I want to understand things. It's a character flaw and it makes things difficult to receive, often. Not being able to understand makes it so that I hold things forever at arms' length, refusing to embrace and accept His good will. But...He is gracious, on all fronts.

And, these are just a few preliminary thoughts on the matter. Talking and walking with people who are at various points of acknowledging the truth...is so very disconcerting, except that Jesus keep me from attempting to ponder too deeply and instead just trust Him with each and with myself in the midst.

...

Oh yeah. I forgot: We make disciples who are to make disciples. The call is to all. So, we all gotta' go. Whether at home or in the streets.

Wherever He leads. Always, always, always testing all things against Scripture, that we would know the spirit in which a thing is given. Whether of God or not.
Always.

Always.

Always.
Period.

Due diligence. Required. And He helps or we'd have no hope of it, from the outset.

...
*Edit 2:*

And it's worth keeping in mind that most folks who even get to the point of entering a church don't get baptised the first day they're there. Vast majority.

Western society has very much an insta-finished mentality that makes it seem as though anything which isn't immediately producing obvious and good results is somehow going to entirely fail and isn't on track for potential progress. But...no.
Love covers a multitude of sins. And we're not here to debate over words but to win people to the love of Christ, remembering it's by His kindness and love we were led to repentance. Speaking truth in love, then. Trusting the Lord will direct steps and provide speech.

He does. Faithfully.

So I will trust Him. Because I see the work He's done in me, and He's allowed me to realize how utterly hopeless my case would have appeared to anyone except Him for two decades. He didn't give up. Even when things got much worse before getting even marginally better. Unto death, again and again, even.

He can and does do things. Even as some plant what others harvest, then so long as the seed is sown. And He said the fields were ripe for harvest, though.

I don't know how any of that works. And I don't necessarily know that it's my place to do absolutely anything (okay, it's not--it's Christ's). But to follow as He leads, without expecting anything except to trust Him blindly even without ever necessarily witnessing fruit of efforts on this side of eternity?

That might be a thing.
Walking by faith and not by sight, then.

And now, please, no more edits. Sleep. Much drive, many prayerful listenings tomorrow. sleep