What is Discipleship? - Who is to disciple? (Part 3)

          Over the last few months as I have been thinking about the call by Christ to believers to follow after Him and to make disciples a nagging questions has kept coming up in my mind. Who should disciple others?

Often times as I have encouraged others to take on the mantle of discipleship I have heard the objection, "I am not spiritually mature enough to disciple someone else." While it may be true, you may have some work to do on spiritual maturity, does this give you a free pass on discipling someone else? Another common objection goes something like this, "I am not called to disciple other believers, that is for people who are outgoing and are gifted in that area." While it may be true, you don't have the interpersonal skills to start up a friendship from scratch and begin discipling another person, but does God list "outgoing person" as one of the qualities to look for in a person who disciples others? A final objection that I would like to address is the one that goes like this, "I would love to disciple someone but I have no clue where to start." The good news is that you don't have to develop some huge program, keep reading and hopefully you will see what I mean.

It is my contention that, all believers are called to disciple other believers; but not all are ready. I know that this is a bold statement, but my hope is to challenge you to evaluate who you can share your life with with the purpose of growing in Christlikeness.

All Believers are Called

In the past we have looked at Matthew 28 and asked who is to be a disciple? Now, I would like to take a second look at that passage of scripture and ask the question “Who is to disciple others?” 

Matt. 28:18–20 says, 'And Jesus came and said to them, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age."' (ESV used for all quotes)

At this point in His ministry Christ is giving his final charge to his disciples saying this is how you are to spread the good news of the gospel. It is interesting that what we would usually see as commands in this saying of Christ are really verbal nouns. The only imperative in this passage is Make Disciples. Does that strike you as odd? The call is not necessarily to Go, or to Baptize, or even to Teach/Equip but to make disciples. In his book The complete book of discipleship Bill Hull said this, “A commitment to be and make disciples must be the central act of ever disciple and every church.”[1]

         As followers of Christ we now are called to this very same work, make disciples. There are many different ways to do so including, encouraging others to sit under the preached word and partake of the sacraments or reading the Bible or a good book with someone else. There are many contexts: at home with your spouse or children, with a good friend or with someone you want to know better. But, the call is clear to the church Make Disciples by being people who go and evangelize, baptize, and teach people all that Christ has commanded.

        

         With this in mind, we need to now turn to the question of readiness. All are called, but not all are ready.

        

Not all are ready

            If all people are called to make disciples does this mean that all people, from the newest of Christians to the oldest saints in the faith are prepared and posses the characteristics of a person to follow? Well, no. So what are the qualities of someone who ought to disciple others?

         I hesitate in writing about qualifications or qualities that a person needs to posses to do something in the church that the Bible does not explicitly lay out. The reason for this is that there is no special class of Christian (i.e. those who are holy) versus the rest of us (i.e. those who struggle with sin). The gospel levels the play ground, it says that we are all in need of salvation from someone outside of us. There is no distinction, no super class of Christian all are in need of Christ. So, the first quality of a person who can disciple others is a strong understanding of the gospel.

         A person who is to teach and lead another in what Christ taught and how Christ lived must have a firm grasp of the gospel, the good news that Christ brought us. The gospels importance in discipleship provides the grounds of grace by which one can speak truth into someone else’s life. This is the center of our religion, the person and work of Christ. We preach (and disciple) Christ and Him crucified. We don’t give people our own wisdom, but God’s, we don’t give them a list of things to do, but a relationship to be lived out.

        

         Secondarily, a person who disciples others must be humble. Understanding that we have nothing to give others but Christ, gives the one doing discipleship a humble perspective on life. I heard Kevin DeYoung say something profound along these lines. He said that the most important thing for the counselor or discipelor to confess is what John the Baptist confessed in John 1:20 ‘He confessed, and did not deny, but confessed, “I am not the Christ.”’ When we take ourselves out of the position of the Savior we put ourselves in our place and put Christ in the place of supremecy that he belongs in.

         Thirdly, the one who leads others must be faithful, trustworthy, respectable, self-controlled and not a new believer. Does this sound familiar? The one who disciples ought to display some of the same traits of a church officer as they are laid out in I Timothy 3. But as I say that, not all who disciple need to be church officers. This common mistake, that only church officers or leaders can disciple, is flatly false and must be avoided. All Christians can, should and do disciple it is just a matter of whether they are intentional and biblical or confused and worldly. 

         These are but a few of the things that ought to mark our lives as believers in Christ. But not all of us have lives that are marked by these characteristics, so what are we to do? First, rest in the gospel truth of what is true about you. Where you failed Christ suceeded. Where you disobeyed Christ obeyed. Where your character falls short, Christ's abounds. Now that you are united to Christ, His righteousness is now yours and your failures and shortcomings were taken by Him and nailed to the cross. Second, through prayer cling to cross and find forgiveness for sin and ask for the discipline to live in the power of the Spirit. Third, find someone to help you grasp these realities and grow into the image of the firstborn. Fourth, start to practice on your family and in your discipleship of your family see that you are fulfilling Christ's call to make disciples.

         Praise God that he uses clay pots to pour out his grace on others!

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[1] Bill Hull, The complete book of discipleship (Colorado Springs, NavPress, 2006) 26

The Rare Jewel of Contentment

 I don’t know about you, but I need the tenth commandment.  One of my tendencies is toward materialism, so I need to guard against the abundance of possessions (Luke 12:15).  The command not to covet is so entirely against the norms that we see around us every day.  Just take a drive up and down the streets of San Diego, and what do you see?  You see the endless temples to the goddess of our American culture: the strip mall.  Or worse, the mecca where all must pilgrimage at least once per Christmas season – the UTC Mall.  If that’s not enough of a fix, the Mission Valley Mall – or even the Parthenon of shopping, Horton Plaza beckons us.  Inside these temples you find the shrine for our idol of choice - The god called “Gimme.”

In an article for Christianity today titled “Trapped in the Cult of the Next Thing,” Mark Buchanan puts it this way:

 I belong to the Cult of the Next Thing. It's dangerously easy to get enlisted. It happens by default—not by choosing the cult, but by failing to resist it. The Cult of the Next Thing is consumerism cast in religious terms. It has its own litany of sacred words: more, you deserve it, new, faster, cleaner, brighter. It has its own deep-rooted liturgy: charge it, instant credit, no down-payment, deferred payment, no interest for three months. It has its own preachers, evangelists, prophets, and apostles: ad men, pitchmen, celebrity sponsors. It has, of course, its own shrines, chapels, temples, meccas: malls, superstores, club warehouses. It has its own sacraments: credit and debit cards. It has its own ecstatic experiences: the spending spree. The Cult of the Next Thing's central message proclaims, "Crave and spend, for the Kingdom of Stuff is here." 

The tenth commandment cuts at San Diego (and all American) culture like no other:

“You shall not covet your neighbor’s house; you shall not covet your neighbor’s wife, or his male servant, or his female servant, or his ox, or his donkey, or anything that is your neighbor’s.” (Exodus 20:17)

Our culture feeds on the religion of the next thing. Only in America is something two years old considered a relic.  We are tempted to sinfully desire that which we do not possess on a daily basis in this country, and in the face of this God speaks to us a simple and clear message:  do not covet.  We are naturally beings who desire.  To want something is not wrong in itself, but the danger is found when our desires rule over us and we want that which God has not given to us.  Because of our coveting spirit, we would be hopelessly lost if not for the saving blood of Jesus.  As we’ll see in this command, the antidote is found in fostering deep and true contentment in the sufficiency of Christ.  Over the next couple of Lord’s Days in the preaching of God’s Word we will discuss the way to find true contentment in this life.  Contentment is the calling of every Christian, though it is a mystery because it goes against the grain of our culture and our flesh.  To find true contentment is a “rare jewel.”  The struggle is that we confuse our “wants” with our ONE great need.  The puritan preacher and pastor Jeremiah Burroughs in his book The Rare Jewel of Christian Contentment speaks of the difference that occurs when conversion takes place in a person:

Before, the soul sought after this and that, but now it says, I see that it is not necessary for me to be rich, but it is necessary for me to make my peace with God; it s not necessary that I should live a pleasurable life in this world, but it is absolutely necessary that I should have pardon of my sin; it is not necessary that I should have honor and preferment, but it is necessary that I should have God as my portion, and have my part in Jesus Christ, it is necessary that my soul should be saved in the day of Jesus Christ. The other things are pretty fine indeed, and I should be glad if God would give me them, a fine house, and income, and clothes, and advancement for my wife and children: these are comfortable things, but they are not the necessary things; I may have these and yet perish for ever, but the other is absolutely necessary. No matter how poor I am, I may have what is absolutely necessary: thus Christ instructs the soul.

This reflects what Jesus said to the rich man who wanted to inherit eternal life, and thought he was justified before God because of his law-keeping:

Jesus looked at him and loved him. "One thing you lack," he said. "Go, sell everything you have and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me."  At this the man's face fell. He went away sad, because he had great wealth. (Mark 10:21-22)

Is it wrong to have possessions, even wealth?  NO!  This is not the point.  Jesus wasn’t condemning him for being wealthy, but rather He went to his heart sin: the man coveted his wealth, and was faced with the great question – what is my TRUE need?  Do I need more and more to be content in this life, or am I content in Christ alone, where my only hope is found?  When we zealously seek the overwhelming riches of God’s mercy given to us at the cross, then the things of this world lose their luster: 

For you know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that though he was rich, yet for your sake he became poor, so that you by his poverty might become rich. (2 Corinthians 8:9)

As we probe the intricacies of the tenth commandment in the coming weeks, let’s pray that God would show us the way of contentment in Christ alone.

Seeking our true treasure,

Pastor David

Bringing the Gospel to Covenant Children Pt 1 (Book Review)

At our church we believe that children of believers are “covenant children.”  As such, these children are entitled to the sign and seal of baptism.  But if you are like me, having our children baptized leads naturally to other questions.  For starters, what exactly does it mean that my child is a “covenant child?” How are they different from other children? Other important questions follow: Should I assume my child is an unbeliever until a profession of faith is made?  Or should I assume he/she is regenerate until a profession of unbelief?  Do they need to have a profound “conversion experience?”  Do they need to be converted at all?   What does it mean to train them in the fear and nurture of the Lord?  How do I do it?  If you have ever found yourself wresting with any of the above questions, than I encourage you to pick up Joel Beeke’s short booklet: Bringing the Gospel to Covenant Children.   A part of his Family Guidance Series, Beeke focuses on three major concerns that relate to evangelizing our covenant children: (1) Understanding the need, (2) Teaching the proper content, and (3) Using the proper means.  This blog will summarize the first part, properly understanding the need to evangelize our covenant children.  The second and third parts will be treated in a later post.  

Understanding the Need

Beeke defines a covenant child as “a child born to at least one confessing Christian parent, who is baptized, and is growing up in the community of the church with all of the riches and privileges which that entails.”  His concern in this section is to help Christian parents avoid the twin mistakes of overestimating or underestimating the covenant relationship their children have to God. 

  

Parents who overestimate the covenant do so by assuming their child is regenerate until they prove they are not (presumptive regeneration).   These parents come close to identifying covenant membership with the regeneration and conversion of their children.  This view leads to tragic consequences, as parents may see no need to tell their children they must be born again and come to faith and repentance.  The necessity of the new birth, a personal relationship with God, and self-examination by the Scriptures are all minimized.   On the other hand, many parents underestimate the covenant relationship.  Many of these parents believe that under the new covenant the children of believers no longer have promises extended to them and thus have lost their special place in God’s covenant - a conclusion contrary to the Biblical testimony.  Many reformed churches underestimate the covenant relationship, not by refusing to baptize the children, but by “reducing the sacrament to mere form and custom without insisting on what it should mean for the lives both of the parents and their baptized children.”  Such a church “has no eye for the promises of God in baptism, no heart for pleading those promises in prayer, and no clear understanding of how God earnestly calls covenant children to a lifestyle consecrated to Himself and separated from the world.” 

What then is the significance of a child’s covenant relationship to God?  Beeke gives six points to help parents properly estimate the covenant while avoiding the extremes which treat the covenant either as a substitute for regeneration or as a matter of indifference.  

First, baptized children must be born again.  Baptism affirms the covenant privileges and responsibilities of the child, but it does not make them partakers of Christ.  Grace is not automatically conveyed through baptism and faithful child-rearing.   Second, our children must be directed to Christ as the only way of salvation.  Third, our children must be taught that their baptism (as well as ours) demands heartfelt obedience to God.   They must be taught that being outwardly good and obedient falls short of their covenantal obligation to God.  Fourth, Baptism requires parents to instruct their children in the Christian faith.  Fifth, God has a claim on our children even in their unregenerate state, “just as he had a claim upon all the children of Israel, calling them His even when many were not truly born again.”  Sixth, God ordinarily works savingly among his covenant seed.  We do not presume regeneration, but we can have confidence that “among his covenant people, His saving grace is the norm.”  God is not obligated to save our children, but “Scripture affirms that the Holy Spirit richly blesses the evangelizing and nurturing of covenant children in knowledge, faith, love, and obedience (Prov 22:6). Faithful parenting, by the Spirit’s blessing, frequently issues in regeneration and a life of covenantal faithfulness (Psalm 78:1-8).”  

Beeke concludes by emphasizing that the covenant relationship of our children should urge us to diligent effort in raising our children and not lead us to complacency. “…The covenant of Grace offers parents a great deal of hope outside of ourselves in a sovereign, covenant-keeping God, who will not forsake the works of His own hands.  Covenant theology should encourage us to evangelize our children as we daily, prayerfully, and expectantly depend upon the triune God for his blessing upon our efforts.”

Family Worship by Joel Beeke (book review)

A few weeks ago Lindsay and I had the opportunity to attend the “Reformed Family” conference in Chino, CA. One of the speakers that we especially enjoyed was Dr. Joel Beeke, the president of Puritan Reformed Theological Seminary in Michigan. During the conference he gave a presentation on family worship which was without a doubt the most helpful presentation I have heard on the subject in some time. After the presentation I bought a small booklet he authored on family worship, from which his conference presentation was taken. What follows is a summary of the material in this booklet. Lindsay and I were both challenged and encouraged by this material, and my hope in relaying it is that (1) families will be encouraged to begin or renew their commitment to worship together on a regular basis, and (2) families will get some help from a “seasoned pro” on how to do family worship and how to navigate the many practical difficulties that often surround it.

Family Worship by Joel Beeke

Dr. Beeke divides his booklet into five sections: (1) Theological Foundations for Family Worship; (2) The Duty of Family Worship; (3) Implementing Family Worship; (4) Objections Against Family Worship; and (5) Motivations for Family Worship.

Theological Foundations and the Duty of Family Worship:

In the first two sections Beeke makes a biblical case that family worship is not optional, but commanded by God. He is concerned that one of the major reasons that current polls on the retention of children in the church are so dismal is because of the lack of stress on the vital importance of family worship. Fathers have the privilege and the responsibility (Deut 6:6-7; Josh 24:14-15; Eph 6:4) to lead their families in daily instruction in the Word of God, daily prayer to the throne of God, and daily singing the praise of God. He concludes: “We are more than friends to our children, we owe them prophetical teaching, priestly intercession, and royal guidance.”

Implementing Family Worship:

In this section Beeke gives practical guidance on how to “do” family worship. He breaks it down into three categories: (1) preparation for family worship, (2) during family worship, and (3) after family worship.

With regards to the preparation for family worship, he makes several suggestions:

1. Each child who can read should have their own Bibles in front of them

2. Use “helps” such as Bible commentaries, devotional books, Confessions/Catechisms to help you lead and plan the worship

3. Decide on portion of scripture to be read and memorized as family

4. Decide on the place and time for family worship. Make this a place that is as free from distractions as possible, and make every effort to not let anything interrupt you during this time.

Next, regarding what to do during family worship:

1. Be Brief. If you go too long it will be counterproductive and may provoke your children to anger. If you have younger children, 10 minutes may be the max. With older children you may be able to go as long as 20-25 minutes. He suggests 10 minutes for Scripture reading and explanation, 5 minutes for reading a daily portion of edifying book, 5 minutes for singing and 5 minutes for prayer.

2. Be consistent. Don’t allow for excuses not to do it. If you lose your temper, for example, don’t use that as an excuse to skip family worship but rather start the worship by asking for forgiveness from your family and leading them in prayer. Even when you are exhausted after work, pray for the strength to carry out this fatherly duty.

3. Involve every member of the family. Have your children take turns reading the scripture. Get them their own study Bibles with different explanatory notes that you can ask them to read as well. If you have a child who cannot read, take them on your lap and whisper a few words at a time so they can repeat it. Ask age appropriate questions to your family to encourage dialogue: 5 year olds should be asked 5 year old questions and 14 year olds should be asked a 14 year old question. Ask older children to think of possible applications to what you have read. (See objection # 5 below).

4. Bible Reading: be plain in meaning and help your family make applications. Don’t be afraid to share how a particular passage has impacted and shaped your own life. Be affectionate in your manner towards your family as you carry out this task, but require attention as this is God’s word and it deserves to be heard.

5. Praying: be short, simple, direct, natural, and varied.

6. Singing: teach them the great psalms/hymns of the faith

After family Worship:

Pray for God’s blessing on your family worship.

Objections Against Family Worship

In this section Beeke interacts with the common objections against family worship that he has encountered in his 30 years as a pastor and teacher.

1. There is no explicit command

a. Answer: See his section on theological foundations and the duty of family worship.

2. Our Family does not have time

a. Answer: If you have time for recreation and pleasures but not time for family worship, something is wrong. Time taken to seek God’s blessing is never wasted. He quotes Samuel Davies: “Were you formed for this world only, there would be some force in this objection, but how strange does such an objection sound coming from an heir of eternity! Pray, what is your time given to you for? Is it not principally that you may prepare for eternity? And have you no time for what is the greatest business of your lives?”

3. There is no regular time when all of us can be together

a. Answer: Even if all of your family cannot be together, do not cancel family worship. Change or cancel the activity that threatens worship, if possible. Family worship should be a non-negotiable in your home, everything else is secondary.

4. Our family is too small

a. Answer: Matt 18:20

5. Our family is diverse for everyone to profit

a. Answer: Have a plan for all ages. Read from a bible story book for little children; apply a proverb for the older ones; read a page or two from a book for teens. A wise plan can overcome a diversity of age. Remember also that (1) age diversity only affects about a third of worship - it does not affect praying and singing, and (2) you do not have to directly apply biblical instruction to every child present all of the time. As you teach older teens, litter children are learning to sit still. As you teach younger children, the teens are learning how to communicate biblical truth to younger children.

6. I’m not good at leading family in worship

a. Answer: There are plenty of resources that can help you. Also, ask for guidance from church leaders and fathers. Ask them to visit your home and show you how to do it or observe how you do it and make suggestions. Also, start simply.

7. Some of our family members won’t participate.

a. Answer: No family worship = No food.

8. We don’t want to make hypocrites of our unconverted children

a. Answer: An unconverted person may never plead an unconverted state to neglect duty. God may use this means of grace to convert them.

Motivations for Family Worship:

In this final section Beeke provides several motivations to encourage us in the duty of family worship:

1. The eternal welfare of your loved ones

a. God uses means to save souls. Most commonly he uses preaching, but he also uses family worship. Proverbs 22:6 makes this point. See also Psalm 78:5-7. We don’t know the secret will of God, but we do know that God binds himself to means. We are called to labor in hope.

b. Furthermore, the thought of children spending eternity in hell must be overwhelming to any God-fearing parent. Imagine also facing eternity having to confess that we have not seriously labored for the souls of our children. Fathers, use every means to have your children snatched as brands from the fire. Pray, teach, sing, weep, admonish, plead.

2. The satisfaction of a good conscience

a. Who can bear the reproach of a stinging conscience that condemns us because we failed to bring up our children in the fear of the Lord? What a shame to have failed to take seriously the vow we uttered at our children’s baptism to raise them in our concessional doctrines. How happy is the man who can say to his children on his deathbed “I do not believe that one of you will dare to meet me at the tribunal of Christ in an unregenerate state.”

3. Assistance in child-rearing

a. Family worship establishes closer bonds as a family.

4. The shortness of time

5. Love for God and his church

Concluding Comment:

If you are interested in getting a copy of the booklet, contact me by email and I will get you a copy. Also, for those who are interested in hearing the presentation, he gave it in essentially the same form at the Bethlehem conference for pastors a couple of years ago, available at the following link:

http://www.desiringgod.org/blog/posts/conference-for-pastors-joel-beeke-on-leading-family-worship