Category Archives: Discipleship
Give Presence: Living Out the Incarnation
The story of Christmas is foundational for understanding Christianity in so many ways. God sent his very best, his own Son Jesus Christ, the God-man, on a daring rescue mission. In need of rescue was the human race including you and I. The mission included a display of love that led to the willing death of an innocent Rescuer for the sake of those he loved. In the end, the Rescuer wins the day, defeating all the bad guys, including death, sin and guilt, and Satan (Colossians 2:13-15, Hebrews 2:14-15). Here’s the real kicker: Now God desires that we repeat the process of being sent, loving, sacrificing, and rescuing through announcing/retelling this story to all (John 21:20, Acts 1:8, Philippians 2:3-5). When God wanted to save the world, he sent himself. He GAVE PRESENCE. Today, he continues to GIVE PRESENCE to the world through those he has rescued.
Here’s three lessons we learn about Incarnational Living from God’s giving to us. These have become filters for our church as we seek to live with a missionary posture toward our community.
- God gave the gift of PROXIMITY. John 1:14 in the Message Paraphrase says, “The Word became flesh and blood, and moved into the neighborhood.” Jesus laid aside the privileges of deity to draw near to us, walk in our shoes, and die in our place. One of the great promises of Christmas is that we do not serve a God that’s distant, that’s removed from our problems and trials. He experienced them and He overcame them (Hebrews 4:15, John 16:33). Does your current lifestyle allow you to live in proximity to the needs of others? Does your church live out its mission in proximity to the needs of the community? Jesus went so much farther than, “they know where we are if they need us.” He was always touching those he wasn’t supposed to touch and sharing life with those he wasn’t supposed to share life with. In a world filled with lonely hearts, we need to give presence and live out the gift of proximity.
- God gave the gift of RESPONSIVENESS. God gave in response to our deepest need. To respond to the needs of others requires you to forget about yourself a bit. That’s exactly what Jesus did – Philippians 2:7 says, “he made himself nothing, taking the form of a servant.” Jesus didn’t have an entitlement mentality, and if anyone was ever justified in feeling entitled to privileges and perks it should have been the Son of God, but he had a SLAVERY mentality. Becoming the lowest of the low in response to my need. Does your current lifestyle and church culture allow you to be responsive to the needs of others? The priest and levite in the story of the Good Samaritan most likely had legitimate excuses for not responding to the needs of the man lying in the road with huge needs. They had busy schedules, there’s no time for this; they were in a bad part of town; they had no training in basic life support. It was the Samaritan that demonstrated to heart of God and responded to the needs, laying aside self and becoming a servant.
- God’s generosity was RADICAL. In the Christmas story we learn that God is a RADICAL GIVER. John 3:16 says it best, “For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life.” And we see in Philippians 2:8, that Jesus willing became a radical giver for you and I – “He humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross.” God held nothing back for you and I. He gave it all. What aspects of our lives can be considered radical? Is it in the area of generosity? In desire for God? In desire for others to know the truth?
God’s Big Give: Proximity, Responsiveness, Radical Generosity. The story of Christ and Christmas.
In the next few weeks at Bridge Church, we’ll be talking about how we can give presence as we live out the storyline of Christmas. Check out the messages at http://www.bridgenorthshore.com or on Itunes.
Reaching the Next Level
One of our Northshore pastors has given a great discipleship resource to us. Pete Charpentier, Pastor of Woodland Park Baptist in Hammond, recently published Reaching the Next Level. Pete is a Pastor with a heart for discipleship and multiplication. The books are designed for one to one or one to two mentoring or discipling relationships, but I’m enjoying working through it as a personal devotional as well. It could also be used in a small group setting. Check out Reaching the Next Level. Also check out Pete’s blog.
Paul vs. James
Touching on Faith and works this weekend at Bridge Church. Remembered these charts that I found helpful about the different motivations for the teachings of Paul and James. While Martin Luther thought James to be a “strawy epistle” and some use it to defend works based salvation, I believe they were dealing with different sides of the same coin. What is the place of works in the believers life?
“I was in prison and You came to me” Matthew 25:36
One of the goals for our current church plant in West St. Tammany Parish was to develop a sustained discipling presence at our local jail (which houses over 1,100) and to connect with their families on the outside. We have been able to walk with a group of guys through Celebrate Recovery, we’ve began a Sunday AM worship gathering at the Jail complex, we hope to launch a state approved Faith based recovery program this month, and we have seen several families of inmates plug in with Bridge Church. I have personally enjoyed being involved in these ministries and seeing the transformation in lives of men on the inside. Why? Two reasons at 10pm on Thursday night:
- The goal is community transformation. To transform a community requires a willingness to go to the dark corners with the light. What good is it, if our church grows, but the community continues to deteriorate. Reducing recidivism and bringing hope to the inmate is one way for churches to push back darkness in our communities.
- The heart of Christ – “I was in prison and You came to me.” Christ’s example to us was, whatever it takes, and that’s how he desires for us to live.
Last weekend, Bridge Church, sponsored the first ever Family Day at a local Work Release Center. It was great to see the second part of that goal coming to pass as we connected with families of inmates. It was also great to see members/partners of Bridge Church giving themselves in service to the prisoner.
Here’s part of a recent letter received at our church, written by an inmate in a local jail:
“Thank you for your part in bringing something so goo to a situation that is mostly filled with loneliness and loss and despair.”
“It is lonely here as a Christian and you coming here and bringing the Spirit you have is bitter sweet. It just magnifies the lack of it in so many others we are forced to live with. So, thank you for the time you spend with us.”
Glad to be part of a church that reflects the desire of Christ – “I was in prison and You came to me.”
Worth Reading: Untamed: Reactivating a Missional Form of Discipleship
One of my summer reads was Alan & Debra Hirsch’s, Untamed. Actually picked this one up at Exponential ’10, where I was privileged to meet Alan, get the book signed (“Stay true Bro! Alan”), and try to talk him into moving to New Orleans. I would suggest reading The Forgotten Ways ahead of Untamed, if you’ve never read Hirsch. I’m certain that this book, like Hirsch’s previous works, will definitely be much help to the body of Christ as we continue to experience mission shifts in the 21st Century. A few of my favorite quotes:
- To fail in disicipleship and disciple making is therefore to fail in the primary mission of the church.
- You simply cannot be a disciple without being a missionary – a sent one.
- Technique is a terrible substitute for God – an idol – and it’s too easy to revert to it to “grow the church” while the authentic experience of the Holy Spirit is being edged out the back door.
- The implicit message church members get from a church that adopts a consumer driven model is that they are essentially discerning consumers and that the local church is a vendor of religious goods and services.
- Disciples tithe to the Lord; consumers are merely paying for services.
- Every disciple carries within themselves the potential for world transformation.
- If every Christian household regularly invited a stranger, or a poor person, or a work colleague into their home for a meal with the family once a week, we would literally change the world by eating!
- If missional defines our being sent out into the world, then incarnational must define the way in which we engage the world.
- Morality may keep you out of jail, but it will not keep you out of hell. – Spurgeon quip
What Does Missional Look Like?
The call to mission may cause you to memorize the names of everyone on your street; take new co-workers out for lunch; throw parties to connect friends who don’t know each other; go out of your way to ask people, “How are things going?” You might intentionally give some money to help people or support church, civic, or global causes that meet practical needs. You might feel the call to give time to volunteer. You might even participate in local or global missions.
What is Community?
The call to community is more than just going to church on Sunday. A commitment to community might change the way you think about your Christian friends. Instead of working to impress them with your spirituality or your “edginess”, you might find yourself entrusting them with your struggles. Which might lead to better relationships. Which might lead to you going on mission together. Which is the whole point.
Good stuff from the TK Primer, which our church is tracking through this Summer.
Motives
…if someone is pre-committed to falsity and will not pursue God with pure heart and motives, they will hear only what they want to hear. The horrifying result of impure motives is that people sincerely believe it is God who has spoken, when all along it is was their own lying hearts.
Alan Hirsch in Untamed: Missional Discipleship
Worse than not doing Christianity, is doing Christianity with selfish and impure motives.
Lane Corley 