Wednesday, September 17, 2008

Thoughts on Discipleship

The church has been given one task...to make disciples of all nations (peoples).

I (Mark) have been thinking a great deal lately about discipleship. I have a ton of thoughts about it swirling in my head, but I want to comment briefly on what I feel is the state of discipleship in the 21st century American church. My feeling is that many Christians feel this way...

"Discipleship is for the super-Christian."

Have you ever thought that? You have to be a cut above the rest to really qualify for the label "disciple of Jesus."

Simply put...a disciple is a person who is actively engaged in becoming like his or her master.

Here's where the 21st century church struggles greatly. As I observe the landscape of church life in the 21st century, for the most part, I see that today's church is a passive event where you sit and observe. That will not make disciples. It cannot.

I am leaving for Peru shortly. I am excited. We are looking to make disciples of Jesus there. I want discipleship and missions to be at the very heart of everything we do because it is at the heart of what Jesus commissioned us to do. (Matthew 28:18-20)

For you to interact with...
  1. Do you feel like discipleship is for the super-Christian or for everybody?
  2. Looking back over the last 5 years, would you say that know you have become more like Christ, or stayed about the same, or gone backwards?
  3. Any other thoughts you have about this post/discipleship...
To leave your answers click on the "comments" link below.

Blessings...Mark

Next post from Peru!!! (as soon as I can find internet)

1 comment:

Anonymous said...

I believe the bible is clear that all Christians are called to discipleship. I agree that most Christians are passive in this regard. Consequently, when we observe Christians who are committed to discipleship, they may be viewed as super-Christians or maybe even "fanatics".