If you aim at nothing, you will hit it every time
If you asked for a description of the sun and were told that it is “a little round object in the sky”, it would be correct but not very precise.
Consider this option:
The Sun is the star at the center of the Solar System. It is a nearly perfect sphere of hot plasma, with internal convective motion that generates a magnetic field … roughly three quarters of the Sun’s mass consists of hydrogen the rest is mostly helium, with much smaller quantities of heavier elements, including oxygen, carbon, neon, and iron. (Wikipedia).
The first might be adequate for a child, but not for a student of astronomy. When we define a disciple as a learner, it is like saying the sun is a little round ball in the sky; adequate for toddlers but not for serious believers. If discipleship is our ultimate mission, we will need more to work with than a toddler’s description.
A disciple is an apprentice of Jesus and His kingdom.
In developing the anatomy of discipleship, we begin with the “profile” of a disciple which includes both a definition and a description. I suggest a definition that captures the Hebrew meaning of discipleship (vs. a Greek one) could be:
A description of a disciple adds clarity and more detail to the definition. Here is my “Wikipedia” description of discipleship:
The personal pursuit of knowing, reflecting, and sharing Christ by means of (6) spiritual practices in the context of (3) supporting relationships.
1. The personal pursuits of a disciple. (See TADB 23-27)
There are three lifelong pursuits of a disciple that run through the teachings of Jesus and Paul. They are each critical and distinct but also connected and complementary.
In Jesus’ prayer found in John 17, He looks back over His ministry and ahead to His ascension. He reviews three core ideas:
- The pursuit of an intimate relationship with the Father.
- The pursuit of glorifying the Father by manifesting His name
- The pursuit of doing the will of the Father
I refer to these three essential pursuits on the resurrection side of the cross as knowing, reflecting, and sharing Christ. In his letters to the churches Paul identifies these same three pursuits in Phil 3:8-10 (Knowing Christ), 2 Cor. 3:18 / Rom. 8:29 (reflecting Christ), and 2 Cor. 5:20 / 2 Cor.2:14 (sharing Christ).
These 3 pursuits are like the coordinates of a 3D compass (GPS), keeping us locked onto our target destination. They are lifelong pursuits and they define our journey as apprentices, reorienting us when we get off course. Once we put them in as our desired destination, our spiritual MapQuest will give us directions regardless of how far we have wondered off course (2 Tim. 3:16-17).
2. The spiritual practices of a disciple (See TADB 28-31)
God has not only given us our direction but also the means by which we negotiate the journey. The means have been called by various names: habits of the heart, spiritual practices, or disciplines. They are how we partner with the Spirit as we abide in Christ and live out our salvation (John 15:5; Phil 2:12). Dallas Willard describes it this way:
“Spiritual disciplines are what we do so God can do what we cannot do.”
There is no comprehensive list of these spiritual practices, but we can identify some of the more critical ones by observing the life of Christ as well as the lives of saints down through history. Dawson Trotman from the early days of The Navigators, used a wheel to illustrate these critical disciplines. They include:
- Christ the center (the hub of the wheel and source of power)
- Obedience (the outer rim of the wheel which impacts our world)
- Prayer
- Word
- Witnessing
- Fellowship
As we mature in our apprenticeship, these core disciplines create traction for depth in the Christian life. They are like the basic skill sets in the game of baseball that must be practiced at every level of performance no matter how long a player has played the game. We are deceived if we think we can know, reflect, and share Christ without intentionally mastering and maintaining critical spiritual habits. Learning these skills may seem mechanical and a duty at first, but once learned they become a joy and delight as they equip us for our spiritual journey. They are like tracks on which our spiritual train can run. No tracks, no progress!
3. The supportive relationships of a disciple (See TADB 32)
Although discipleship is personal it is never done in isolation. Jesus had His band of 12 and Paul had his missional teams and wherever Paul made disciples, he formed communities for continued discipleship.
Paul’s relational strategy is illustrated in 2 Timothy 2:2. First, Paul discipled Timothy individually. There was a clear mentor to mentee relationship that was so close Paul referred to Timothy as “his true child in the faith”.
Secondly, he mentored Timothy in the context of other men and women who were witnesses of Paul’s teaching. This provided Timothy with a team of men and women who were also on the same spiritual journey. We, too, need not only mentors in our lives but a band of likeminded disciples who are serious about and committed to the same goal. We need a team because much of what we learn in our apprenticeship to Christ comes from our likeminded teammates.
The third relational dynamic Paul taught Timothy was to pass on (i.e. entrust) what he had learned to the next generation of men and women who in turn, would be faithful to pass it on to others forming continuous links in a spiritual chain. Spiritual parenting is part of God’s plan for developing maturity as it raises our level of competency whenever we effectively pass on what we know.
You are a critical link in the chain
These three supportive relationships provide the strength and critical learning environments for transformative growth. We need mentors, a team of likeminded disciples, and someone willing to learn from us to create a three generational relational structure (Ecc. 4:9-12).
Apprenticeship to Jesus and His kingdom means
The personal pursuit of knowing, reflecting, and sharing Christ by means of spiritual practices in the context of supportive relationships.
Questions for reflection:
1. How are the three pursuits of knowing, reflecting, and sharing interrelated? 2. Which of the six spiritual concepts/disciplines needs attention in your life and what can you do about it?