Dare to be a Disciple 1
For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God— not by works, so that no one can boast. For we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.
This course has been born out of a conviction that I have, in my 22 years as a preacher, teacher and pastor, concentrated too much on making converts and too little on making disciples. I have come to the realisation that the two are not the same. Jesus command is "Go and make disciples", so
Introduction
Welcome to Dare to Be a Disciple, our first Discipleship course for 2015, coinciding with Lent. Over the next 5 weeks we are going to explore discipleship.
Be warned:
Discipleship is not easy
Discipleship is a command
Discipleship is not an option for born again believers, but
Discipleship is a choice you have to make.
So, come on, Dare to be a Disciple.
Week One
This week we will attempt to answer the following questions:
What is a disciple?
What does Jesus call disciples to do?
What do the bold areas in the Lenten Gospel readings above teach us about discipleship?
Our answers, after much discussion were/are:
What is a disciple? ... someone who wants to become like the teacher
What does Jesus call disciples to do? ... anything and everything that He did (other than die on the cross for the sins of the world), bearing in mind that:
If we believe we can do all things in Christ who strengthens us ... WOW, can you imagine what such belief, such faith, will do in us?
What do the bold areas in the Lenten Gospel readings below teach us about discipleship?
Be warned:
Discipleship is not easy
Discipleship is a command
Discipleship is not an option for born again believers, but
Discipleship is a choice you have to make.
So, come on, Dare to be a Disciple.
My main resources in drawing up this course are:
Discipleship by Dietrich Bonhoeffer
Covenant Discipleship by David Lowes Watson
The Sermon on the Mount by Scot McKnight
The Sermon on the Mount by Cedric Poole
Week One
This week we will attempt to answer the following questions:
What is a disciple?
What does Jesus call disciples to do?
What do the bold areas in the Lenten Gospel readings above teach us about discipleship?
Our answers, after much discussion were/are:
What is a disciple? ... someone who wants to become like the teacher
What does Jesus call disciples to do? ... anything and everything that He did (other than die on the cross for the sins of the world), bearing in mind that:
and
that Spirit is the Spirit we read of in Mark, Just as Jesus was coming up out of the water, he saw heaven being torn open and the Spirit descending on him, that Spirit is the same Spirit who is in you and in me.
therefore,
What do the bold areas in the Lenten Gospel readings below teach us about discipleship?
Ash
Wednesday
6
‘Be careful not to practise your righteousness in front of
others to be seen by them. If you do, you will have no reward from
your Father in heaven.
2
‘So when you give to the needy, do not announce it with
trumpets, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and on the streets,
to be honoured by others. Truly I tell you, they have received their
reward in full. 3 But when you give to the needy, do not let your
left hand know what your right hand is doing, 4 so that your giving
may be in secret. Then your Father, who sees what is done in secret,
will reward you.
5
‘And when you pray, do not be like the hypocrites, for they
love to pray standing in the synagogues and on the street corners to
be seen by others. Truly I tell you, they have received their reward
in full. 6 But when you pray, go into your room, close the door and
pray to your Father, who is unseen. Then your Father, who sees what
is done in secret, will reward you.
16
‘When you fast, do not look sombre as the hypocrites do, for
they disfigure their faces to show others they are fasting. Truly I
tell you, they have received their reward in full. 17 But when you
fast, put oil on your head and wash your face, 18 so that it will not
be obvious to others that you are fasting, but only to your Father,
who is unseen; and your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will
reward you.
19
‘Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where
moths and vermin destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. 20
But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moths and
vermin do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal.
21 For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.
Lent
1 Sunday 22 February
Mark 1:9-15
At that time Jesus came from Nazareth in Galilee and was baptised by John in the Jordan. 10 Just as Jesus was coming up out of the water, he saw heaven being torn open and the Spirit descending on him like a dove. 11 And a voice came from heaven: ‘You are my Son, whom I love; with you I am well pleased.’
12 At once the Spirit sent him out into the wilderness, 13 and he was in the wilderness for forty days, being tempted by Satan. He was with the wild animals, and angels attended him.
14 After John was put in prison, Jesus went into Galilee, proclaiming the good news of God. 15 ‘The time has come,’ he said. ‘The kingdom of God has come near. Repent and believe the good news!’Lent 2: 1 March
Mark 1:9-15
At that time Jesus came from Nazareth in Galilee and was baptised by John in the Jordan. 10 Just as Jesus was coming up out of the water, he saw heaven being torn open and the Spirit descending on him like a dove. 11 And a voice came from heaven: ‘You are my Son, whom I love; with you I am well pleased.’
12 At once the Spirit sent him out into the wilderness, 13 and he was in the wilderness for forty days, being tempted by Satan. He was with the wild animals, and angels attended him.
14 After John was put in prison, Jesus went into Galilee, proclaiming the good news of God. 15 ‘The time has come,’ he said. ‘The kingdom of God has come near. Repent and believe the good news!’Lent 2: 1 March
31
He then began to teach them that the Son of Man must suffer
many things and be rejected by the elders, the chief priests and the
teachers of the law, and that he must be killed and after three days
rise again. 32 He spoke plainly about this, and Peter took him aside
and began to rebuke him.
33
But when Jesus turned and looked at his disciples, he rebuked Peter.
“Get behind me, Satan!” he said. “You do not have in mind the
concerns of God, but merely human concerns.”
34
Then he called the crowd to him along with his disciples and said:
“Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves
and take up their cross and follow me. 35 For whoever
wants to save their life will lose it, but whoever loses their life
for me and for the gospel will save it. 36 What good is it for
someone to gain the whole world, yet forfeit their soul? 37 Or what
can anyone give in exchange for their soul? 38 If anyone is ashamed
of me and my words in this adulterous and sinful generation, the Son
of Man will be ashamed of them when he comes in his Father’s glory
with the holy angels.”
Lent
3 : 8 March
John
2:13-22
13 When it was
almost time for the Jewish Passover, Jesus went up to Jerusalem.
14 In the temple courts he found people selling
cattle, sheep and doves, and others sitting at tables exchanging
money. 15 So he made a whip out of cords, and
drove all from the temple courts, both sheep and cattle; he scattered
the coins of the money changers and overturned their tables. 16 To
those who sold doves he said, “Get these out of here! Stop turning
my Father’s house into a market!” 17 His
disciples remembered that it is written: “Zeal for your house will
consume me.”18 The Jews then responded to him, “What sign can you show us to prove your authority to do all this?”
19 Jesus answered them, “Destroy this temple, and I will raise it again in three days.”
20 They replied, “It has taken forty-six years to build this temple, and you are going to raise it in three days?” 21 But the temple he had spoken of was his body. 22 After he was raised from the dead, his disciples recalled what he had said. Then they believed the scripture and the words that Jesus had spoken.
Lent
4: 15 March
John
3:14-21
14 Just
as Moses lifted up the snake in the wilderness, so the Son of Man
must be lifted up, 15 that everyone who believes may
have eternal life in him.”16 For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. 17 For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him. 18 Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe stands condemned already because they have not believed in the name of God’s one and only Son. 19 This is the verdict: Light has come into the world, but people loved darkness instead of light because their deeds were evil. 20 Everyone who does evil hates the light, and will not come into the light for fear that their deeds will be exposed. 21 But whoever lives by the truth comes into the light, so that it may be seen plainly that what they have done has been done in the sight of God.
Lent
5: 22 March
John 12:20-33
20 Now
there were some Greeks among those who went up to worship at the
festival. 21 They came to Philip, who was from
Bethsaida in Galilee, with a request. “Sir,” they said, “we
would like to see Jesus.” 22 Philip went to tell
Andrew; Andrew and Philip in turn told Jesus.23 Jesus replied, “The hour has come for the Son of Man to be glorified. 24 Very truly I tell you, unless a kernel of wheat falls to the ground and dies, it remains only a single seed. But if it dies, it produces many seeds. 25 Anyone who loves their life will lose it, while anyone who hates their life in this world will keep it for eternal life. 26 Whoever serves me must follow me; and where I am, my servant also will be. My Father will honor the one who serves me.
27 “Now my soul is troubled, and what shall I say? ‘Father, save me from this hour’? No, it was for this very reason I came to this hour. 28 Father, glorify your name!”
Then a voice came from heaven, “I have glorified it, and will glorify it again.” 29 The crowd that was there and heard it said it had thundered; others said an angel had spoken to him.
30 Jesus said, “This voice was for your benefit, not mine. 31 Now is the time for judgment on this world; now the prince of this world will be driven out. 32 And I, when I am lifted up from the earth, will draw all people to myself.” 33 He said this to show the kind of death he was going to die.
Lent
6: 29 March
Palm
Sunday
Jesus
went all the way through the tests and still didn't break. If we
believe we will break in the face of temptation, we will break in the
face of temptation. If we believe we can do all things in Christ who
strengthens us ... WOW, can you imagine what such belief, such faith,
will do in us?
