Brave Are you brave? Maybe a better question is how do you know? I suppose nobody walks around thinking that they are a coward. However, sometimes we can excuse or cover up cowardly behaviors and attitudes by using less critical labels? My grandmother was a nervous type of person. She was what we call a “worrier” just by nature. But what does it mean to worry? It means we are not trusting that whatever happens, good or bad, is under control. I suppose every culture honors bravery, but the issue is how we identify it. I personally rather dislike being high off the ground. Since this is the case, I do not find sky diving to be brave at all, but rather dumb. Why would any sensible person jump out of a perfectly good airplane?! Of course I’m joking (kind of) but some things that we may call brave simply are the result of sheer stupidity. Fools do foolish things. Just because the foolish thing is dangerous, does not make the fool an example of courage. It is also possible that many things tallied in the courage column are the result of naivete. The person may be doing a good and noble thing but without the maturity and wisdom to realize what they are committing to in the long run. I have heard that there is a reason we send twenty year olds and not fifty year olds to war. But it could actually be that much of what gets classified as brave in our culture is real just bravado or arrogance. By this I mean that pride is at the root. Now, courage is a virtue and in most cases pride is a sin. Certainly sin cannot be the root of virtue. So what seems courageous, could at times, just be pride. A person could be pushed to take amazing risks to avoid shame and embarrassment. Real Courage Courage is not an optional attribute. It is not just something that would be good to have but it is essential if you are a genuine Christian. Listen to the warning we have about those who will experience the second death: Revelation 21:8 “But as for the cowardly, the faithless, the detestable, as for murderers, the sexually immoral, sorcerers, idolaters, and all liars, their portion will be in the lake that burns with fire and sulfur, which is the second death.” I think we tend to overlook the first couple of groups mentioned. Cowards will go to hell! This is serious! The reason is that to be afraid in a world where God is in complete control, is to doubt God. The reason the cowardly will be cast into the lake of fire is because their fear is the manifestation of their lack of belief in God. The second category named is the faithless. This probably refers to those who themselves could not be trusted or to those in rabid opposition to God. However, it seems to me that these groups are probably prone to overlap quite a bit. In light of this truth being a coward should scare us to death. The Bible actually tells us to be brave in several places. In Joshua 1:9, we are told, “Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be frightened, and do not be dismayed, for the LORD your God is with you wherever you go.” Notice Joshua is not told to just put on a brave face. Rather, he is given a reason to not be afraid. He is told that God is with him wherever he goes. But beloved God has made us that promise as well, that He will never leave us or forsake us (Hebrews 13:5-6). The Apostle Paul even tells us that we have not been given a Spirit of fear (2 Timothy 1:7). Brothers and Sisters, we are called and equipped by God to be people of courage and commitment. These are at the very heart of what it means to truly trust and rest by faith in God and His precious promises.
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What? Discipleship is one of those words we tend to throw around in the church without a firm grasp of what it means. You may be thinking, "I know what discipleship means." Okay, define it. I'll wait! Harder than you thought, right. If you did come up with a workable definition then I would simply ask, "How do we accomplish your definition?" When we are trying to define discipleship the most natural and grammatical route is to take the word disciple which means pupil or student and conclude that discipleship is essentially educational. That is, of course, correct, but does that mean that discipleship is supposed to be accomplished in the classroom? Or to ask the question another way, while discipleship is educational, is it utterly academic? Jesus is the master teacher,but the disciples do not always seem to be the most studious pupils. In fact, among the initial twelve disciples, none of them, from the limited information we have, would probably be considered academic, with the only exceptions being Matthew and Judas Iscariot. Jesus is the model for disciple making but not necessarily the academy as we would conceive of it today. In this post, I would like to consider three key components of faithful discipleship. No Class Jesus called His disciples to follow Him. He didn't just enroll them in a weekly meeting or schedule a time to crack the books. These forms are not useless, but they are not alone definitive of discipleship. Jesus' call to follow Him was a call to be with Him in all the varied encounters of life. Jesus wanted His disciples to hear His teaching and see His life. The disciples are going to be not only the eyewitnesses of His resurrection but of His perfectly virtuous life as well. Jesus leads by example! Example is a crucial part of the discipling process. Just because someone is a good teacher doesn't mean they can make godly disciples if their personal character is a mess. Consider the Apostle Paul's instruction to Timothy: 2 Timothy 3:10-11 ESV You, however, have followed my teaching, my conduct, my aim in life, my faith, my patience, my love, my steadfastness, my persecutions and sufferings that happened to me at Antioch, at Iconium, and at Lystra—which persecutions I endured; yet from them all the Lord rescued me. Paul says that Timothy had done more than just follow his teaching but also his conduct, aim in life, and so much more! Paul even points out his persecutions and sufferings that will certainly be true for his young protege also. Or consider what Paul said to the Thessalonians: 2 Thessalonians 3:7-9 ESV For you yourselves know how you ought to imitate us, because we were not idle when we were with you, nor did we eat anyone's bread without paying for it, but with toil and labor we worked night and day, that we might not be a burden to any of you. It was not because we do not have that right, but to give you in ourselves an example to imitate. Here, Paul points out that he was even willing to give up his right to compensation, so as to give them an example of the Christian work ethic. The point is clear, that Jesus and the Apostles considered discipleship as mentoring or apprenticeship just as they considered it an academic pursuit. Some Class However, information and more importantly truth must be communicated and received for real discipleship to take place. Jesus' disciples heard Him teach a lot. As a matter of fact, they heard Him teach the same material or content over and over again. This reality explains two things: how they were able to learn and internalize so much truth in that short season and how we harmonize the different ordering of Jesus teachings in the gospels. The point is that Jesus and the Apostles were teaching and preaching the gospel of the kingdom and its implications. We must be examples but we also must explain with words and instructions the truth of God's Word. Disciplemakers teach disciples how to read and understand God's Word. This requires the teaching of principles, practices, and the use of tools (dictionaries, commentaries, etc.) so that the disciple can learn for themselves the rich realities contained in God authoritative and sufficient revelation. Christians are the people of the book and as such we must be in the book. This part does require reading, thinking, studying, and learning on a daily basis from the Bible and the mature believers that God has put in our lives, primarily in our own local church. Full Class In the Scriptures we are repeatedly told to call on the name of the Lord. This is the essence of following Christ. This phrase really means to become a worshipper of Yahweh! It is not limited to one time decision or prayer but to a way of life centered on honoring and exalting our heavenly Father, the Lord Jesus Christ and the promised Holy Spirit. This so much more that the musical portion of the weekly meetings. We must be people who praise God daily, regularly giving thanks for His goodness and grace. We are told in scripture to be people of constant prayer. All of these things are parts of being a disciple so they must be parts of discipleship. Disciples are worshippers! Conclusion If we are going to make disciples, first we have to be true disciples. I can't teach my kids to ski or play an instrument because I can't do those things. But if we are disciples ourselves then discipleship is just bringing others who have come to Christ along with us as we follow Him! Discipleship is a big topic but it at least means us being an example, giving exhortation and explanation, and exalting Christ with all our lives. Fake News The hardest thing to grasp in our current cultural climate is what things are really true. It is interesting that we have lived through the information revolution, yet confidence in the information is at an all time low. Some of us trust this source, others trust that source, but everyone is, to some degree, making assumptions about who or what to believe. One of the problems with this kind of uncertainty is that we are tempted to accept as true what we want to believe, even if we know it isn’t true. We accept a kind of self deception that at least aligns with our understanding of reality. I do not mean that we pick the “facts” we like, only that we pick the “facts” that we are predisposed to think are true even if they are not true. Really True In Job 27:2-6, the sufferer says this: “As God lives, who has taken away my right, and the Almighty, who has made my soul bitter, as long as my breath is in me, and the spirit of God is in my nostrils, my lips will not speak falsehood, and my tongue will not utter deceit. Far be it from me to say that you are right; till I die I will not put away my integrity from me. I hold fast my righteousness and will not let it go; my heart does not reproach me for any of my days. As I was reading this it stood out to me that Job was not willing to say what everyone wanted him to say. The prevailing theology and ideology of the time was that if Job was suffering it was as a result of Job’s personal sin. While Job, like all other men descended from Adam, was under the curse of sin, his misfortune was a result of God sovereign purposes and his satanic attack was not retribution for his sin. But throughout Job’s story we see his friends, his wife, and a young “know it all” named Elihu, each implore him to admit his fault so as to end his suffering. But notice Job cannot put away his integrity just to make others happy. He cannot say something is true that he does not genuinely believe to be true. As we are living in this time when honestly it is tempting to go along with a narrative about all that is happening just to get along, we must be like Job utterly committed to our integrity and to speaking and living according to what we actually believe. Grace If we do this we are inevitably going to find ourselves in conflict with some, if not many, around us. We may even find ourselves in opposition to friends or even our fellow believers in the local church. So how should we proceed? First, we must have the integrity to speak honestly. Our relationships will not be served by concealing the truth or covering up our thoughts and motives. Communicating clearly and accurately is key, especially when we disagree. Secondly, we must commit to the first principles of the gospel and our covenant to one another under Christ. The first principles that I am referring to are humility and grace. We must commit to only saying what we believe is true, but also being willing to hear evidence to the contrary, especially Biblical precedents. Finally, even if we still end up holding different views, we must be able to treat one another with grace. We as believers are ultimately recipients of grace and as such we must be able to give grace. One of the ugliest things to see is a professing Christian more concerned about their rights or their stuff than extending to others the very grace that has saved us from our heinous sins. Current Events The political events of the last fews days, even the last year, have proved to be quite overwhelming. By using that word I am not meaning that I am in fear or dread, but only overwhelmed by the onslaught of these events. All that we have seen take place has been a lot to process. Part of this is also confounded by the reality of exactly what is true and not true about everything that is going on. This is more than just the politics; it includes the pandemic as well. We have been deluged by so many factors over the last several months that our senses have been overwhelmed. It has become almost impossible to keep up with all the information and misinformation, or even to keep straight those sources that can be trusted or that should not be trusted. We have lived for years in a 24 hour media cycle that has only been made more hectic with the internet and social media. All of these have tended to raise the “normal” level of stimuli far beyond anything that any previous generation could have called normal. One of the problems that this creates for us, is it keeps us from being able to focus on the most important things, because of the massive distractions all around us. One of the issues that I have been dealing with recovering from COVID and pneumonia is the brain fog. (This post may not be the clearest thing I have written.) The sheer amount of information makes it difficult to assert the truth or come to clear conclusions. I certainly don’t have the answer for all that is happening in our political climate, but as believers we must have grace for one another in the midst of these challenging times. Gospel Hope However, we can also be overwhelmed in a positive way. The Apostle Peter wrote: 1 Peter 1:3-12 Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! According to his great mercy, he has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, to an inheritance that is imperishable, undefiled, and unfading, kept in heaven for you, who by God’s power are being guarded through faith for a salvation ready to be revealed in the last time. In this you rejoice, though now for a little while, if necessary, you have been grieved by various trials, so that the tested genuineness of your faith—more precious than gold that perishes though it is tested by fire—may be found to result in praise and glory and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ. Though you have not seen him, you love him. Though you do not now see him, you believe in him and rejoice with joy that is inexpressible and filled with glory, obtaining the outcome of your faith, the salvation of your souls. Concerning this salvation, the prophets who prophesied about the grace that was to be yours searched and inquired carefully, inquiring what person or time the Spirit of Christ in them was indicating when he predicted the sufferings of Christ and the subsequent glories. It was revealed to them that they were serving not themselves but you, in the things that have now been announced to you through those who preached the good news to you by the Holy Spirit sent from heaven, things into which angels long to look. In this text, Peter speaks of the gospel in these glowing terms but notice that this imperishable, undefiled and unfading gospel that we rejoice in comes in the midst of various grievous trials. Peter wants the exiled believers to recognize the hope of the gospel in the testing of their faith. He states that this will result in praise and honor and glory at the revelation of Jesus Christ. So we also ought to expect that in the midst of what seems overwhelming to our senses the Lord is accomplishing something for His own glory these days. Also, notice that Peter says that the believers will rejoice with joy that is inexpressible and filled with glory! Peter even goes so far as to point out the operation of the prophets and the preaching of the good news by the Holy Spirit. Even in the overwhelming days in which we live we ought to be even more overwhelmed by the magnificent reality of the hope of the gospel that we have in Jesus Christ! Thank You I have also been personally overwhelmed with all your love and support. Thank you! You all prayed so fervently and checked on me and I have been truly blessed by all the love and care that you have all shown to me during my illness. I really don’t know how to express just how powerful and truly helpful you have all been. Thank you for caring for me and praying for me. |
AuthorEddie Ragsdale Archives
May 2024
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