The Divine Call To Discipleship Series

We are curious people. People have a fascination about learning the “scoop” on other people. Live is approached like a virtual soap-opera. Some will intentionally go public with very private and personal areas of their life. There are a growing number of people who have given internet access to their personal lives by mounting cameras in the inner sanctum of their home—not understanding or caring about their sense of sacredness.

This morning I am going to participate in this game. I am going to read you a portion of a very personal letter that someone wrote to another friend. It’s okay, I have permission.

Let me give you a very important principle that should be observed when listening to other people’s “stuff.” While listening and processing, our story should be interpreted, and we should make decision about how we will live. That is what I want us to do as we listen in as Paul speaks to his close friend Titus.

The letter is about understanding the divine call to discipleship.

In 1896 Charles Shelton wrote a wonderful little book on discipleship, In His Steps. It has been translated into at least 20 languages. It touches a nerve by asking a very poignant question: “What does it mean to be a disciple?

Historically there have been numerous responses to this question. Most focus upon personal lifestyle. Others emphasize social activism. Some have taken the monastic approach. I see two extreme approaches that many Christians have taken.

First, the “name it and claim it” approach teaches a very self-centered understanding of discipleship. When you honestly study the New Testament, you will not see this. In the New Testament, discipleship is a call to obedience and service, not a call to self-absorption.

Second, many Christians still live with a hang-over theology from the revival era. In revivalistic theology discipleship became synonymous with conversion. Out of a fear that people would think they had to do something for salvation, all emphasis on obedience and service were put on the back shelf. The New Testament does not make a distinction between conversion and discipleship. When a person becomes a Christian, the next step is to become a follower, a learner and servant, a disciple of Jesus.

The Titus letter is less personal than Paul’s letters to Timothy, it is more official. The direct way it is written sounds more like a manual. It needs little explanation; the principles are clear. And, if we aspire to godliness, we need only to practice what Paul writes to Titus.

In this series, God will draw our attention to the uniqueness of the call to discipleship. We will learn principles about the faith that will challenge us to ask Shelton’s question, “What does it mean to be a disciple?” God will also help us understand what we need from Him to ascend to godliness.

It is not for the faint hearted.

It is not for the pleasure seeker.

It is not for those who only want more “stuff” for lives already cluttered with too much.

As a young man I did some outlandish things with an unspoken drive to find meaning and self-worth. I now understand, through the study of epigenetics, what it means for the transgressions of those in our lineage to be transmitted through families. My low sense of self-worth was linked to a long family history, and I was attempting to find self-worth in a lifestyle that was opposed to the one God intended. It was a life changing experience when I stopped trusting in self and flawed systems, hoping to find meaning. Accepting the challenge to become a faithful follower of Jesus was a huge step for me and my family.

1. THE CALL TO DISCIPLESHIP IS AN INVITATION TO LIVE BY DIVINE APPOINTMENT

In a society that claims to be progressive and attempts to elevate self-worth, I find it interesting that a great number of people don’t have a genuine sense of self-worth. As I did, they use systems of meaning that sound good, create short term pleasure, and then leave a person continually searching for meaning. A survey Annette Blackwell indicated 81% of the children surveyed said “there is nothing right about me.” I recall a note a third grader student hand me as she erupted in anger; over and over it said, “I hate myself!”

This feeling is not unique to a small group of children. It is a universal problem that has sin roots. While this is too deep for some and viewed as archaic to others, it cannot be denied. Our self-worth is contingent upon our connectedness to God.

Paul does not ask Titus how he feels about Himself. He simply draws his attention to the task before him.

Paul does something unique in the first four verses of his letter. In verse four he called Titus his “true son in our common faith.” Beginning in verse five he gives Titus instructions for Crete. However, before Paul jumps into these instructions, he says something about the “common faith” to which he has alluded. We need to listen carefully to how Paul describes his view of discipleship. Discipleship is the process in which a person denies self and follows Christ. At first, the feel like a blank piece of paper until God begins to write a new chapter about who they are in Christ.