Some Traditions Refuse to Die, Like This One
Welcome to another Thursday UNFILTERED substack article, the only substack newsletter that wants to thank everyone who wrote in its 8th grade yearbook “Stay Cool” because it certainly has. The inspiration was appreciated and the command obeyed.
I still keep seeing it. I keep hearing it. And it’s false.
“We’ve been commissioned by the Lord to make disciples not converts or church members.”
Nope. Nada. Wrong.
That statement is based on a number of false assumptions.
Let me ‘splain.
Falsehood #1: In the New Testament, a convert is a disciple. You cannot separate the two when you read the Story of the primitive church.
Falsehood #2: In the New Testament, a disciple/convert is part of a local ekklesia (usually mistranslated “church”).
The two – disciples and ekklesia -- cannot be separated in the Story.
The disciples (collectively in a locality) = the ekklesia in that city.
But ekklesia, in the first century, was NOT a church building or a two-hour service on Sunday morning. It was a 24/7 living, breathing community.
Also, the great commission was given to apostolic workers who Jesus trained for three years and then sent out to preach the gospel of the kingdom and raise up ekklesias.
Jesus told His apostles to make disciples of all nations. But here’s a question rarely asked:
How did they do that?
Did they set up discipleship programs or classes?
Did they get on social media and say, “Hey, any of you bird dogs want me to disciple you? I’ll meet with you once a week to read the Bible, confess your sins, and pray.”
That’s not how they made disciples.
The Story is clear. The apostles raised up ekklesias, which in the first-century were shared-life communities where Jesus Christ through the Holy Spirit was absolute head.
And in the habitat of those ekklesias, believers were naturally “discipled.”
Just like a child learns how to be a human by being in a family.
I am struck with the fact that the church in our day has such a low place in our hearts and in our thinking.
The Catholics, Anglicans, and Orthodox honor the church. And even though they view it as a liturgical institution, they regard it a lot higher than most Protestants and evangelicals do.
According to the New Testament, she – the ekklesia -- embodies and expresses God’s kingdom. She is the number one thing in the Lord's heart and mind. She's His ultimate passion and magnificent obsession, as I’ve stated many times.
She's here on this earth to know Him and make Him known, to exercise His authority and express His image.
And that's what the first-century apostles did. They raised up ekklesias, miniatures of the kingdom of God in the cities where they traveled. Now that is an astounding thing.
Unfortunately, what I’ve suggested in this short article is like nailing butter to a wall in our day. But there are four places where you can see the full development of these ideas as well as responses to objections:
Discipleship in Crises (gratis eBook)
Insurgence: Reclaiming the Gospel of the Kingdom (book)
From Eternity to Here (book)
(See them all HERE.)
The Romance of the Ages (“Stairway to Heaven” remixed and elevated).
All are paradigm-shifters in a day when religious traditions that contradict Scripture are the default and part of the Christian consciousness.
Until next Thursday,
Your brother,
fv