WE Are His Disciples

John 1:43-51

“Speak, Lord, for your servants are listening.” Give us ears to hear Jesus calling, “Follow me.” Help us find ways to “Come and see.”

The calling of disciples is a mystery, something profound, sacred, and beyond complete human comprehension. It usually involves divine intervention in a person’s life and a deep personal transformation with significant changes in their beliefs, values, and behavior, and deepening of spiritual awareness and understanding

So we have to ask:

Who is called to be a disciple?

What qualities are required to be a disciple?

What is a calling? According to the Webster International Dictionary, ‘Calling’ is a strong inner impulse toward a particular course of action, particularly when convinced of divine influence.

Calling disciples involves Jesus approaching individuals, often fishermen or other ordinary people, and inviting them to:

“Follow me,”

The people left their current occupations and families to become Jesus’ followers.

They heard a voice only their inner self could listen to. Once heard, the call redirects their lives. They had found meaning in following Jesus.

Isn’t it interesting that Jesus never said to make disciples by taking them to church—or a Bible study group? Not that these activities aren’t an integral part of a disciple’s growth, but the calling is much more personal.

What makes us and others disciples of Jesus?

• People more concerned about individual souls than numbers to fill a church.
• People striving to be like Jesus rather than complaining, criticizing, and confronting from a distance.
• People willing to leave their comfort zone to teach instead of hiding behind four walls and waiting for someone to appear.
• People standing up for the gospel’s truth rather than caving when friends or family members exert pressure.
• People who know what the Bible says and say what the Bible teaches instead of giving personal opinions or quoting off-the-wall scholars.
• People praying without ceasing instead of constantly harping.
• People with open hearts and homes and Bibles rather than closed off to offering their time and presence.

Maybe they’re nowhere near you. So you have a great opportunity: become one of them. Learn how to become a faithful follower of Jesus Christ. Start from scratch. You and the Holy Spirit. You and the divine power of God. You and the gospel truth of Jesus that transforms lives and saves souls.

When Jesus returned to heaven after His resurrection, He left His followers explicit instructions for the people there with Him that day and for every follower of Jesus who would come after them. He said,

“Go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you” (Matthew 28:19–20).

God wants his people to go out into the world. The religious folk prefer clusters and cloisters, the safety of numbers where one can sway with the crowd and avoid risk in the work of the Kingdom.

Which am I?

Which are you?

The Kingdom begins with me. I, for one, am determined that it will not end with me.

Will you join me?

Jesus only has us to become disciples and encourage others to join us. Faith passes from person to person. Discipleship is simply helping people become better friends with God.

Jesus Himself used the concept of friendship to describe what He’s looking for from us in John 15:14-16:

“No longer do I call you servants, for the servant does not know what his master is doing, but I have called you friends, for all that I have heard from my Father I have made known to you.”

Jesus did not call exceptional, famous, or influential people to be his friends.

• He publicly endorsed Matthew – a despised tax collector who stole from his people.
• He commissioned a naked man possessed by demons as his first missionary.
• He entrusted a promiscuous Samaritan woman with his testimony.
• He held up a Roman centurion, the military enemy of the Jewish people, as an outstanding example of faith in Israel.
• He let Mary of Bethany – a woman- sit at his feet in the place of a man.
• He handpicked James and John – uneducated fishermen as his protégés.
• He selected Peter – a headstrong, unfaithful loudmouth to be the foundation for his church.
• He chose Paul – the murderer of the church, to proclaim his name to the Gentiles, their kings, and the people of Israel.

Over and again, Jesus picked the most unlikely characters to represent him—the least of these, the outsiders, the bottom of the food chain.

He calls each of us to become disciples, doing what we can to expand the teachings of Jesus and the Kingdom of God.

So, I challenge you to reach out to just ONE person, carrying the message of the Love of God and salvation through Jesus. It isn’t that hard:

• Greet someone here who you do not know 
• Talk to someone at coffee hour and ask them to come again
• Ask your neighbor to go to a church function.

If you do, marvelous things can happen!

Remember the words of Saint Teresa of Ávila:

Christ has no body but yours,
No hands, no feet on earth but yours,
Yours are the eyes with which he looks
Compassion on this world,
Yours are the feet with which he walks to do good,
Yours are the hands, with which he blesses all the world.

Yours are the hands, yours are the feet,
Yours are the eyes, you are his body.

Christ has no body now but yours,
No hands, no feet on earth but yours,
Yours are the eyes with which he looks
Compassion on this world.

Christ has no body now on earth but yours.[1]

Will you commit yourself to becoming a disciple of Jesus?

Let us pray:

We come before you with a heart open to your guidance and a spirit eager to walk in the path of discipleship. Lord, we recognize the call to follow you, to be your disciple, and to grow in our faith each day.

Grant us the strength to leave behind our old ways and embrace Jesus’ teachings. Please help us to surrender our will to yours and to trust in your divine plan for our lives.

Fill us with the wisdom of your Word so that we may understand the depth of your love and the purpose you have for us as a disciple. May your Holy Spirit guide our steps and illuminate our understanding as we strive to follow in the footsteps of Jesus.

Amen.

 

(Starts at 3:36–15:42)

Delivered at Ohio Living Westminster Thurber Tower and Westminster Terrace, Columbus, OH; 14 January 2024

 

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[1]      Saint Teresa of Avila (1515-1582), No Hands But Ours

The Southern Baptist Convention Throws Transgender People Under The Bus

Yesterday delegates to the annual meeting of the Southern Baptist Convention (the largest Protestant body in American, with around 16 million members) approved a resolution concerning transgender people. The points they affirmed about transgender people are below, each followed by the supporting text from the affirmed resolution. Following these points is the whole of the resolution from which this support is derived.

Transgender people are crazy. (“[Transgender people experience] a perceived conflict between their biological sex and their gender identity.”)

Transgender people are delusional. (“Gender identity should be determined by biological sex and not by one’s self-perception.”)

Transgender people are rejecting God’s will (“We affirm God’s original design to create two distinct and complementary sexes, male and female.” “We affirm distinctions in masculine and feminine roles as ordained by God.”)

Transgender people are rejecting God’s plan. (“We affirm that male and female designate the fundamental distinction that God has embedded in the very biology of the human race.”)

If transgender people would pray more they’d stop being transgender. (“We invite all transgender persons to trust in Christ and to experience renewal in the gospel.”)

Transgender people should not be protected by law. (“We call upon all judges and public officials to resist and oppose the efforts to treat gender identity as a protected class.” “We commit ourselves to pray for and support legislative and legal efforts to oppose the Employment Non-Discrimination Act and other legislation like it that would give gender identity the same legal protections as sex and race.”)

No law should ever in any way validate transgender people. (“We continue to oppose steadfastly all efforts by any court or state legislature to validate transgender identity as morally praiseworthy.”)

It’s immoral for a transgender person to alter their body to reflect their gender identity. (“We condemn efforts to alter one’s bodily identity [e.g., cross-sex hormone therapy, gender reassignment surgery] to bring it into line with one’s perceived gender identity.”)

Children need to be protected from the idea of transgender people being normal. (“We oppose all efforts by media and entertainment outlets and public schools to mainstream transgender identity in the eyes of our children.”)

Hate speech from the pulpit against transgender people should be practiced and protected. (“We call on Southern Baptist churches to commit to guard our religious liberty to teach and preach the Bible’s message about sex and gender.”)

All Christians should actively teach and preach against transgender people. (“Our love for the gospel and urgency for the Great Commission must include declaring what God’s word teaches about God’s design for us as male and female persons created in His image and for His glory.”)

Transgender people are welcome in church as long as they repent. (“We welcome them [transgender people] into our congregations as they repent and believe in Christ.”)

The Southern Baptist Convention loves transgender people. (“We love our transgender neighbors, [and] seek their good always …”)

People belonging to the Southern Baptist Convention aren’t transgender. (“We will teach and model for our own children the Bible’s message about manhood and womanhood.”)

It’s wrong for transgender people to be bullied. (“We condemn acts of abuse or bullying committed against [transgender people].”)

Before moving on to the whole of the resolution concerning transgender people ratified today by the Southern Baptist Convention, I would like to propose a resolution concerning the Southern Baptist Convention:

On the Southern Baptist Convention

WHEREAS, the Southern Baptist Convention continues to speak and act in ways that are profoundly contrary to the spirit and Gospel of Jesus Christ; and

WHEREAS, the Southern Baptist Convention continues to foster great pain and suffering in this world by codifying its condemnation of entire populations of human beings; now, therefore, be it

RESOLVED, That the Southern Baptist Convention is sad beyond expression and a tragically perverted version of Christianity that the march of time cannot soon enough trample into the dust.

Here is the whole childish mess of the SBC’s anti-transgender resolution:

On Transgender Identity

WHEREAS, about 700,000 Americans perceive their gender identity to be at variance with the physical reality of their biological birth sex; and

WHEREAS, the American Psychiatric Association removed this condition (aka, “gender identity disorder”) from its list of disorders in 2013, substituting “gender identity disorder” with “gender dysphoria”; and

WHEREAS, the American Psychiatric Association includes among its treatment options for gender dysphoria cross-sex hormone therapy, gender reassignment surgery, and social and legal transition to the desired gender; and

WHEREAS, news reports indicate that parents are allowing their children to undergo these “therapies”; and

WHEREAS, many LGBT activists have sought to normalize the transgender experience and to define gender according to one’s self-perception apart from biological anatomy; and

WHEREAS, the separation of one’s gender identity from the physical reality of their biological birth sex poses the harmful effect of engendering an understanding of sexuality and personhood that is fluid; and

WHEREAS, some public school systems are encouraging parents and teachers to affirm the feelings of children whose self-perception of their own gender is at variance with their biological sex; and

WHEREAS, some public school systems are allowing access to bathrooms and locker rooms according to a child’s self-perception of gender and not according to their biological sex; and

WHEREAS, the state of New Jersey prohibits licensed counselors from any attempt to change a child’s “gender expression”; and

WHEREAS, the United States Senate passed last year legislation titled the Employment Non-Discrimination Act (ENDA), which would radically alter the idea of protected classes in American law, granting sexual orientation and gender identity the same employment protections as sex and race; and

WHEREAS, ENDA would make it illegal for certain businesses and organizations to fire or to refuse to hire or promote an employee because of his or her gender identity that is at variance with biological sex; and

WHEREAS, Although recent formulations of ENDA contain a religious exemption, they do not contain an exemption for rights of conscience or religious freedom to protect businesses with a religious character (such as religious bookstores, publishers, and parachurch ministries) and other businesses with religious owners or managers; and

WHEREAS, Such legislation jeopardizes our First Amendment freedoms by establishing in law the principle that disapproval of transgender behavior is a form of bigotry, equivalent to racism; and

WHEREAS, these cultural currents run counter to the biblical teaching that “Man is the special creation of God, made in His own image. He created them male and female as the crowning work of His creation. The gift of gender is thus part of the goodness of God’s creation” (BF&M 2000, “III. Man”); now, therefore, be it

RESOLVED, That the messengers to the Southern Baptist Convention meeting in Baltimore, Maryland, June 10-12, 2014, recognize that all persons are created in God’s image and are made to glorify Him (Genesis 1:27; Isaiah 43:7); and be it further

RESOLVED, That we recognize that the Fall of man into sin and God’s subsequent curse have introduced brokenness and futility into God’s good creation (Genesis 3:1-24; Romans 8:20); and be it further

RESOLVED, That we extend love and compassion to those whose experience of this brokenness includes a perceived conflict between their biological sex and their gender identity (Romans 8:22-23); and be it further

RESOLVED, That we affirm God’s good design that gender identity should be determined by biological sex and not by one’s self-perception—a perception which is often influenced by fallen human nature in ways contrary to God’s design (Ephesians 4:17-18); and be it further

RESOLVED, That we affirm God’s original design to create two distinct and complementary sexes, male and female (Genesis 1:27; Matthew 19:4; Mark 10:6); and be it further

RESOLVED, That we affirm that male and female designate the fundamental distinction that God has embedded in the very biology of the human race; and be it further

RESOLVED, That we affirm distinctions in masculine and feminine roles as ordained by God as part of the created order, and that those distinctions should find an echo in every human heart (Genesis 2:18, 21-24; 1 Corinthians 11:7-9; Ephesians 5:22-33; 1 Timothy 2:12-14); and be it further

RESOLVED, That we invite all transgender persons to trust in Christ and to experience renewal in the gospel (1 Timothy 1:15-16); and be it further

RESOLVED, That we love our transgender neighbors, seek their good always, welcome them into our congregations as they repent and believe in Christ, and spur them on to love and good deeds in the name of Christ (2 Corinthians 5:18-20; Galatians 5:14; Hebrews 10:24); and be it further

RESOLVED, That we regard our transgender neighbors as image-bearers of almighty God and therefore that we condemn acts of abuse or bullying committed against them; and be if further

RESOLVED, That we condemn efforts to alter one’s bodily identity (e.g., cross-sex hormone therapy, gender reassignment surgery) to bring it into line with one’s perceived gender identity; and be if further

RESOLVED, That we continue to oppose steadfastly all efforts by any court or state legislature to validate transgender identity as morally praiseworthy (Isaiah 5:20); and be it further

RESOLVED, That we commit ourselves to pray for and support legislative and legal efforts to oppose the Employment Non-Discrimination Act and other legislation like it that would give gender identity the same legal protections as sex and race; and be it further

RESOLVED, That we call upon all judges and public officials to resist and oppose the efforts to treat gender identity as a protected class; and be it further

RESOLVED, That we oppose all efforts by media and entertainment outlets and public schools to mainstream transgender identity in the eyes of our children; and be it further

RESOLVED, That we call on Southern Baptist churches to commit to guard our religious liberty to teach and preach the Bible’s message about sex and gender; and be it further

RESOLVED, That we will to teach and model for our own children the Bible’s message about manhood and womanhood; and be it finally

RESOLVED, That our love for the gospel and urgency for the Great Commission must include declaring the whole counsel of God, including what God’s word teaches about God’s design for us as male and female persons created in His image and for His glory (Matthew 28:19-20; Acts 20:27; Romans 11:36).

Read more: http://www.patheos.com/blogs/johnshore/2014/06/the-southern-baptist-convention-throws-transgender-people-under-the-bus/#ixzz34LKWYFcw