Happy Monday friends!! I am so excited that school has finally started back! With that in mind, I have been praying a lot about what to write about this week, and God has recently placed on my heart the topic of discipleship.
Discipleship was a foreign concept for me until I got into college. I was not very strong in my faith and was very uncomfortable with talking about scripture and spiritual challenges with others. I never knew that talking through those things with someone would cause my faith to grow even more.
Discipleship holds such a special place in my heart now because I love having someone that I can talk to about where I am struggling, but to also have that ability to pray for each other and hold each other accountable. I love being able to cheer each other on as we conquer the little and the significant victories in our walks with Christ.
While praying about this post, I first thought of the verse in Matthew 28:19, most commonly known as the Great Commission. The first part of this command is to go. Going to make disciples of all nations to me means that we cannot just sit and pray that God brings us someone to disciple. We must actively be seeking out and praying for those relationships.
You may ask, “but what is discipleship, and how does it pertain to me?” Discipleship is about proclaiming the name of Jesus and making much of His name by nurturing spiritual growth with someone in your life. I began reading in Colossians 1:28-29. It reads,
Discipleship involves outward-focused relationships that come from our hearts. A significant theme in Colossians is that Christ is Lord over all and our redeemer. Looking back to verse 27, we see Paul remind the Colossians that God has revealed the mystery of Christ to them and that He is present with them. Part of discipleship is getting the proclaim this fantastic news both to the lost and saved alike! Also, devoting ourselves to our discipleship relationships brings fame and praise to the name of Jesus!
When considering discipleship relationships, whether we are searching for one or currently in one, we should be continually be seeking wisdom from God as we pursue His will for this. In James 1:5, we see the command to ask God for wisdom. Spending time with God in the word and prayer is a critical part of beginning all discipleship relationships. But also some temptations may come when seeking out these relationships or trying to maintain these relationships.
A couple of temptations that come to my mind are the temptations of people-pleasing and harshness. Depending on your personality, you may like to try and avoid conflict. In discipleship, avoiding the hard conversations in hopes of pleasing the other person is detrimental to the transparency of that relationship. On the other hand, you could also be too harsh in those hard conversations. We need to be reminded of Galatians 6:1 which says we must do these things in a spirit of gentleness and love.
I have talked a lot about expectations and what discipleship should look like, but what is the goal? Why is discipleship so important? In Colossians, Paul places a lot of emphasis on the redeeming work of Christ and that as believers, it should cause us to grow in spiritual maturity. The goal of discipleship is not to simply make converts just for the sake of converts. The goal is for us all to increasingly become more and more like Christ. The purpose of true discipleship is to shepherd young believers into a life of spiritual maturity and to grow yourself through accountability and reliance on God.
When my husband and I were in college, we were small group leaders for a group of freshmen and transfer students. These groups were called family groups, and we were the “parents.” The goal of these groups was to disciple these students in hopes that they would then disciple their own group of students the next semester. Looking back, I cannot help but see the parallel used to replicate a proper discipleship relationship. Throughout scripture, discipleship is often compared to parenting. Seeking to nurture and love those that you lead, like a mother—trying to encourage them to live lives worthy of their calling and keeping the ultimate goal of launching our “children” out to start groups of their own. At the turn of the semester, having the pleasure of seeing where they were as young college Christians, compared to where they were when they started their groups, brought me so much joy.
Now let’s discuss what discipleship will cost you. No, I am not talking about your money. Discipleship is an intentional, fun, and rewarding relationship that we are called to. The word intentional is an accurate indicator in that it will take time, energy, and hard work to be a genuinely useful relationship. Now, there is nothing in scripture that says every discipleship relationship has to be at least 2 hours a week, or that you have to text at least once a day. Some of the best discipleship relationships that I have been a part of are the ones where we just do life together and take those opportunities to grow together in Christ. That could be having a 20-minute conversation while they do laundry or going on a walk with them at a park. The beauty of discipleship is getting to know them spiritually and also personally to create that intentionality and accountability.
I am well aware that this is hugely counter-culture. Our culture loves comfort; we love the convenience and solitude of our own homes, routines, and daily lives. Bringing someone in and breaking that routine is not what we should do according to worldly standards. If we live according to these selfish views, we then endanger our relationships being half-hearted.
God gives us the energy, time, and resources to pour into those relationships. We may struggle with energy and time, but if we are prayerfully going about discipleship, the Lord will grant us all of those resources. This is a crucial part of discipleship because we are simply the instruments of the hands of Jesus. As we grow in discipleship, it is valuable to always see the need for God as we partake in discipleship relationships. It is the power of God alone that does the work. Not our experience, knowledge, or leadership skills that make a productive relationship of discipleship.
I hope that you all enjoyed reading this blog on discipleship! I have such a heart for it, and I hope that after reading this you will pray about those that you are disciplining or those you will disciple. Oh, and be on the lookout for Abby’s post on Wednesday!!
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