On my trek through the New Testament striving to look intently at what Jesus and the early believers had to say about what it was to be the body of Christ in the world, one of the interesting ah-ha sideline discoveries came out of a desire to watch for themes or patterns of topics which Jesus taught to His disciples. I’m through John now, and it’s pretty clear the core of Jesus’ message was an understanding of how to look at… well… stuff. To say the world would be inadequate. To say possessions would be short sighted. Even to say life would sell His message short.

In the book Spiritual Leadership Henry and Richard Blackaby outline the work of a spiritual leader to move those over whom we have influence off of the agenda they are on and on to God’s agenda. I read that book over two years ago. Now, having plodded through Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John it appears in retrospect Jesus was carefully and methodically watching what His Father was doing in the lives of those who followed Him [Jesus] closest and relating it all to an adjusted view of everything with God and His agenda at the center.

Most of us carry some sort of planner. I carry a Palm Treo 700wx. It’s my feeble attempt to stay on agenda. Well, my agenda and the agenda dictated to me by the pressures of work, family, household, etc. typically fall into the arena of the critical urgent. Fires that need to be put out, projects that someone needs me to get done, stuff my honey would like me to do, just… well… stuff.

This re-read through the New Testament has re-ignited my passion to be on THE agenda that matters. If you want to, pray for me as I seek to see and walk in the path that is laid out straight before me as I trust and ponder He who matters most! (Prov. 3:5-6)

So, the pastor at the church we attend just finished an interesting series… The Untouchables. He touched on three difficult issues before believers that really shouldn’t be that difficult. The first week he led us down the path of examining our views on race.
Having grown up in a military family, as a kid I lived on the east coast and the west coast, then in my church ministry years areas in between the coasts. I thought I had a pretty good handle on the race thing. Then, while telling a story to a group in Colorado before moving to the Nashville area I shocked myself when I realized I had referred to one of the characters in the story by indicating he was a (insert race here) man but neglected to indicate the race of the other man when referring to him (a Caucasian person). WHAM! It hit me… I discovered in that moment, though I thought I had made pretty good progress, I had indicated a prejudice when the attitude of my heart poured out of my mouth. It wasn’t a racial slur or even anything derogatory toward a particular race. It was just the simple reality that for no reason other than the fact this character was not Caucasian I used his race to identify him in a story without identifying the race of the other character.
I had another one of those ah-ha moments during this series. Since the day in Colorado mentioned above I’ve been doing very well. As a matter of fact just days before the message at our church I had been telling someone standing on my front porch about a young man who lived across the street on the corner and was able to successfully describe who he was without saying the (insert race here) kid on the corner. Sounds simple, but try it yourself. Then the morning of the racism message it hit me… clearer than the day in Coloraod. As I was reading around passages the pastor was reading and referring to it hit me that when God created Adam and Eve He created one race. Period. Races were created by man. We truly are one very big family… all from the same original family tree. Thank you God for that revelation. We are ALL family.

So I’m into Mark now. Whew! Matthew’s pretty long one chapter a day. Today I read in Mark 2 about the paraplegic man brought to Jesus by his friends. I highly recommend reading familiar stories again. Each time, what God is doing in and around your life adds to your understanding.

Today, I was reminded of the importance of acting on what you hear. Several years ago, God began working on me about how much hearing without doing there was going on in my life (and in today’s world). I’m sure it’s gone on for centuries, but there is so much great “teaching” at our fingertips today. We “hear” as much as we want to and often if we choose. But I was shocked as I thought about the little difference it seems to make in people’s lives.

In the story I read today, Jesus told the paraplegic man to “Get up. Pick up your stretcher and go home.” (Mark 2) What if, like we so often do, this man had sat through some great teaching and shook Jesus’ hand as he was carried out agreeing with others that “That was a great message Rabbi” and not really thought about it again. Where would he have been? Probably still laying on his mat carried around by his friends.

I’m more convinced than ever that everytime we hear from God (and we hear from Him in lots of ways) we must consider how to adjust our lives to come in line with what we’ve learned. Even if rather than a 180 degree turn we only make an adjustment of less than one degree. Nothing to adjust? Hard to believe!

Think back to the last time you conciously set out to adjust your life to bring it in line with something God had taught you. Should be easy… chances are it’s not. Now, think back to the last “teaching” you remember. What captured your attention? How could you take one step toward gaining ground in that area of your life? What’s one way you could make a minor adjustment today in an attempt to adjust your life in line with recent teaching from God’s word?

It really is simple! If you heard it… then go do it!

… everyone is commanded to be discipling. This should be really simple for every believer to understand. But we have so lost this simple truth.

And He personally gave some to be apostles, some prophets, some evangelists, some pastors and teachers, for the training of the saints in the work of ministry, to build up the body of Christ, until we all reach unity in the faith and in the knowledge of God’s Son, [growing] into a mature man with a stature measured by Christ’s fullness.
* The bracketed text was added by the translators for clarity.
Ephesians 4:11-13

The Ephesians 4:11-13 passage pretty clearly states that God provided some individuals for the task of training all believers for ministry. But what ministry? Coming to a church building and participating in programs? For years the Great Commission has been considered Christ’s marching orders for believers.

Go, therefore, and* make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe everything I have commanded you.
* Lit and instruct, or and disciple (as a verb)
Matthew 28:19-20a

So the marching orders for believers includes the responsibility to, as we are going [read as you go about your day to day life], teach other believers to observe everything Christ commanded. Problem is we have translated that into serving donuts, shaking hands at the door, passing an offering plate, mowing the lawn, or dozens of other similar tasks to keep an organization going… an organization to which most believers have abdicated their Christ-commanded responsibility to be teaching everything Christ commanded (discipling). An abdication based on Ephesians 4:11-13 claiming not everyone is called to be a teacher. But, the teachers and other individuals of Ephesians 4:11-13 are those who teach or train the disciplers to disciple; they train or equip the believers for the work of ministry to which Christ commissioned believers.

The “as your are going” aspect of our commision from Christ indicates this is something we are doing as we live life and throughout our life as a believer. Who discipled you? Not who were your preacher/pastors, the leaders of your Bible studies, or your Sunday School teachers, but who spent one on one time with you for the purpose of intentionally training you to observe everything Christ commanded and for the purpose of equipping you to pass on that training to your own disciples? To whom are you passing on your own training so they will be equipped to pass on to their own disiples everything Christ commanded?

And what you have heard from me in the presence of many witnesses, commit to faithful men who will be able to teach others also.
2 Timothy 2:2

I’ve recently rediscovered the importance of this simple truth. I’m grateful for those who commited to me what they had heard from someone else. These individuals had a major impact on who I am today in Christ. I’ve come face to face with the simple formula I lost for many years of looking past the individuals and focusing on the multitude.

I’m back on track with a commitment to entrust to faithful people what I heard so they will be equipped to teach others also. How about you? Who’s investing in you? Maybe you should find someone. Into whom are you investing what you’ve learned? Maybe you should ask God to bring a disciple your way. Then you will be fulfilling the comission of your Savior.

So, in my continued reading through Matthew another revelation jumped out at me.

When Jesus saw his ministry drawing huge crowds, he climbed a hillside. Those who were apprenticed to him, the committed, climbed with him. Arriving at a quiet place, he sat down and taught his climbing companions. (Matthew 5:1-2)

Time after time we see multitudes gathering around Jesus. Often, Jesus seemed to be seeking ways to get away from the crowds (climbing a mountain, getting into a boat, slipping away to pray in private). And although Jesus always made accomodation for the multitude (teaching on the mountain, feeding the five thousand, etc.) He never lost His focus on the individual (Nicodemus, woman at the well, the demon possessed man, the one leper who returned – or, and maybe most important Peter, James, John and the other 9 apostles).

The stories He told the crowd were typically the subject of discussion for the smaller more intimate group soon thereafter. Could it be He was relating the broader concept about His Father’s Kingdom to the crowd because it was actually the kingdom topic He already intended to train His apostles about later?

I wish we had more record of the discussions Jesus had with the individual apostles. There’s no way we have the entire record of the conversations He had over His three year public ministry. What did Jesus and Peter talk about that’s not recorded? When Jesus and the apostles were walking from Judea to Galilee what did He and John talk about? Sitting under a tree on the way to Jerusalem, what did Jesus say to Judas?

I’m confident much of what is recorded in the New Testament by those who encountered Jesus one on one was not only inspired by the Holy Spirit, but was also the result of conversations the writers had while hanging out with Jesus for three years. Jesus’ life and death on the cross had eternal impact for all of the human race. But, as far as His teaching throughout the generations it was not so much Jesus’ time with the multitude that has shaken the world for generations as it was the impact He had on the twelve and even three individuals within the smaller circle.

Having been a Bible study leader for years, this has challenged me to consider where my focus is placed. What about you… reflecting on your own experience has your focus been more on the multitude or the individuals? (More on this and me tomorrow!)