Grace is not Cheap

What is Discipleship? To many Christians today, discipleship has lost any meaning that it may once have held. Even just recently a person was explaining to me that they thought that becoming a Christian meant they would not have any problems. They understood that becoming a Christian meant God would take care of all their needs, physically and financially and that their life would become much easier and better. Even as I write this I trust that none of us have been taken in by this deceitful and wicked misconception of the new life we have in Jesus Christ.

Dietrich Bonhoeffer wrote a famous study on Christian discipleship entitled "The Cost of Discipleship". In it he makes the statement, when Christ calls a man, He bids him come, and die. The point of the book and this saying is that the call to life in Christ is a call to die to oneself so that we might live to God. Jesus' own words on the subject were "If anyone would come after me let him take up his cross and follow me." We recognize clearly in this and other commands a requirement that we put to death our old way of life and put on the new man who is recreated in the image of Christ.

Discipleship is the process we go through in fulfilling that calling. Paul sums it up in Romans 12:1-2 by saying ¹ Therefore, brothers, by the mercies of God, I urge you to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God; this is your spiritual worship. ² Do not be conformed to this age, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, so that you may discern what is the good, pleasing, and perfect will of God. Transformation is the end result of discipleship. But what transformations are we expected to undergo. Those who say that the goal of the new birth is to make us wealthy would answer from rags to riches, from want to plenty. What if Jesus died not to make us happy, but to make us holy and to teach us how to love.

If so (and I believe the latter answer is the correct one) we can make a few observations about the process. First we will live out our discipleship in community with other believers. This will require that we learn not only how to get along with people who are different than us but also how to demonstrate love to the same. Along the way we will encounter people who are further along their transformation than are we. These will offer us encouragement and sound advice. We will also encounter those for whom we can provide guidance and support. In Solomon's words; "Iron sharpens Iron, so one man sharpens another."

Secondly, since God wants to make us holy we must deal with the presence of Sin in our lives. The salvation we receive from our new standing with Christ is a completed project. We are saved. Sin however is still present and we must allow the Holy Spirit to convict us of it and also convince us of the righteousness that is available in Christ. This is His job. Careful study of Scripture and prayer is the method He uses to carry out this work. This part of our discipleship is done both privately and in community with other believers. We must find time alone to hear God's voice and time with other believers to learn to live out that obedience.

Another point to consider is that we must be intentional about our discipleship. It is not easy. Grace is not cheap. God offers it to us freely for us to receive. But like the parable of the treasure in the field, it will cost us all that we once were. We give ourselves freely to Chris without holding back. This is not an accident but something we must be involved in as a regular part of our day.

There is also a personal level to discipleship that will be different for each of us. Just as sin does not affect each of us to the same degree and in the same manner, the path of our transformation will be different for each of us. There is a close relationship between the gifting and calling we receive from God and the plans He has for our discipleship and transformation. Following the call of God for your life is the way you are to be a Disciple. This call and ministry must be different for each of us and it is up to the Holy Spirit to spell this out for us.

A final point is our discussion but far from a final point on the subject) is that we must be humble in acknowledging our needs. Not only humble before God, but with each other. No one of us is perfect and no one of us is beyond reach. My grandfather used to tell me "There is so much bad in the best of us and so much good in the worst of us, that it ill behooves any of us to speak ill of the rest of us." We must be humble enough to be honest and trustworthy enough not to gossip.

So let us tomorrow look at how we "do" Discipleship as one of the functions of International Baptist Church. What are we doing to provide each other the opportunity to sharpen one another and be sharpened by one another? How are we providing people the opportunity to learn to be holy and loving?

Blessings,

Pastor Eric