Tag: Disciple

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God wants seekers.

Reading Time: 3 minutes

He replied, “You are permitted to understand the secret of the Kingdom of God. But I use parables for everything I say to outsiders, so that the Scriptures might be fulfilled: ‘When they see what I do, they will learn nothing. When they hear what I say, they will not understand. Otherwise, they will turn to me and be forgiven. Mark‬ ‭4‬:‭11‬-‭12‬ ‭NLT‬‬

Mark gives a now famous parable (a simple story with a hidden truth), and gives us the Jesus’ commentary, like the director’s comments about the story and the bonus explanation. Jesus wants his disciples not only know the meaning of the parable, but maybe even pickup the teaching style itself.

Does God hide for us to find him? Both Matthew and Mark write, “Then he told them many things in parables.” An old quote rings true, “For when the disciple is ready the Master is ready also.” Learning seems to require curiosity! Parables and object lessons both help us to mentally dig a little, forcing our brains to get a little messy meddling in the dirt of a plethora of information. Parables encourage us to connect the dots, to make sense of what we hear. How often do I approach God with everything but patience, humility and a holy openness of curiosity? I have needs. I want answers. But to sit and be still? Or to come to God’s Word just to hear His voice echo through the pages. As the reader, what am I looking for? Truth? Knowledge? Results?

I come to the words in this story without the context of the original listeners. I am missing the wispy-wind off the lake. That smell of fresh water mixed with what reminds me of lake-life. The feeling of sand beneath my feet. And hearing the Master’s words reverberating off the water.

I am not lost to the irony of Jesus telling a farming story while delivering it from a boat! Jesus often told stories while he was in the environment of the story itself. Picking a grape while talking about wineskins or picking figs along the road while teaching about the dangers of looking like religious leaders, but not capable of producing real spiritual fruit. Jesus speaks of sowing seeds while on the water. Maybe it was a farmer’s meetup at the Galilee shores that day?

Jesus, remembering the words of Isaiah (6:9-10), knew that he was both experiencing and fulfilling what the ancient prophet foretold – they will see and hear, but will learn nothing! Jesus was also fulfilling the truth of what Ezekiel was teaching the Israelites about disappointment of hearing, but never following through with doing. Ezekiel (33:32) writes, “Indeed, to them you are nothing more than one who sings love songs with a beautiful voice and plays an instrument well, for they hear your words but do not put them into practice.”

Doesn’t that just sound like us today? We may know a lot of God’s Word and even about God’s character, but it MUST show up in our lives as behaviors. Followers of Jesus were never meant to be simply Snapple-cap facts or some form of Bible-pedia. Jesus promises, when we seek we will find him. However, the proof of finding is most effective in others when we DO what God’s Word says to do. If you have found Jesus, now what are you going to do with your life?

Prayer

​Dad,
You found me. And, I was a mess when you did! I am so thankful you rescued me when you did. Now, I have spent the entirety of my life fulfilling Your calling on my life. The sum total of my life will be seen as a surrendering to Your will and Your ways. Let my actions always reflect what I know about You. May everyone see Jesus in and through me. Amen.

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Paul’s neighborly prayer.

Reading Time: 3 minutes

“So we have not stopped praying for you since we first heard about you. We ask God to give you complete knowledge of his will and to give you spiritual wisdom and understanding. Then the way you live will always honor and please the Lord, and your lives will produce every kind of good fruit. All the while, you will grow as you learn to know God better and better.” ‭‭Colossians‬ ‭1‬:‭9‬-‭10‬ ‭NLT‬‬

I’ve been thinking and talking about how to be a neighbor, a good neighbor. I believe it’s all about listening and watching for opportunities, being led by the Holy Spirit. Times where we should see moments that appear to be odd or random as providential not accidental. Those moments could be happen at the grocery store, the gas pump, the quick-serve lunch or while walking through our own neighborhood.

I think it’s important to swap names, introducing ourselves like well-mannered people used to do. I think it’s important to write those names down to be able to do the exact thing that Paul is doing with the folks he met in Colossae. To be able to remember people’s name, because it’s very important for them to be seen and known. The other is to speak their name, before God, in prayer. Then using Paul’s prayer as a template, we can begin to pray for them and trust God for future moments of opportunity to love and serve our new friends.

Paul’s prayer is simple and can be easily memorized. We can ask God to give our neighbor and new friend a complete knowledge of his will, spiritual wisdom and understanding. Then we can pray that God will help them to live a life that honor and pleases God, producing every kind of good fruit (think of the 9 fruits of the Spirit). Then, wanting them to keep going and growing, that they would learn to know God better and better.

This prayer, that Paul prays over Colossae’s community of faith affirms something else I believe. Something simple, but should remind every one of us as believers that we are all responsible for. The word is DISCIPLE. And the thought is BE ONE, MAKE ONE. If we are a disciple, a follower of Jesus, we should be learning about God more and more, just like Paul stated. However, as believers, we should also be doing what Jesus commanded as he left for heaven. We should all be about making disciples. Who are you following, and who is following you? Who are you walking with to strengthen your faith, and, who is walking with you to do the same.

Being a good neighbor has the potential to being a good friend and hopefully that can turn into being a disciple by having someone follow you in your faith. Jesus had a group of 70 following him. Jesus chose to focus on 12 of them. But he specifically mentored 3 of them. This pattern is for all of us who say we are followers of Jesus! Who’s your 70, 12 and 3?

Prayer

Dad,
I am so thankful to not only follow you, but also have several men and women that have poured into my life. Some have discipled me, a few have mentored me. Thank you for Paul’s written pray for the folks in Colossae. It helps me know what to pray for with so many people on my own “neighbor” list as well as those who more closely follow me as I follow Christ. Most of all, thank you for continuing to help me grow and learn in wisdom and understanding, as well as grow in my faith.