“Saying Yes to Jesus: The Long Journey of a Disciple”
Then he [Jesus] said to them all, “If any wish to come after me, let them deny themselves and take up their cross daily and follow me.” – Luke 9:23 NRSV
“Discipleship is a long obedience in the same direction.” – Eugene Peterson
“The Great Commission of our Lord is to go and make disciples, not converts. The most important number in the Church today – the most critical statistic – is not the number of attendees attracted, or members enrolled, or even converts baptized. The most vital barometer of the health, strength, and longevity of the Church is only this: the number of disciples made.”
- Matt Friedeman
A day after I turned 60, I dropped by the Woodbury Public Library. I thought it would be good to start a new decade by checking out a book that can inspire me. Sure enough, I came upon a book titled, The Gift of Change: Spiritual Guidance for a Radically New Life. But it was not the title that drew my attention to the book at first. It was Monet’s painting, Water Lilies, on the book’s cover. It was the bridge, however, and not the water lilies, that captured my imagination. I wondered to myself, “Is the bridge a symbol of something?” I decided to borrow the book, and sure enough “Crossing the Bridge,” was the title of chapter one.
“Life as we know it is passing away, and something new is emerging to take it’s place.”
This was the opening sentence of chapter one. It made me imagine that moment when Jesus called his disciples to follow him and just like that, Simon and Andrew dropped their fishing nets and “crossed the bridge” to a new life with Jesus. The power of Jesus’ presence and voice convinced them that it was time to let their old life pass away and embrace the new thing that was emerging right before their very eyes. They must have felt scared when they made that decision. But there was someone greater than their fear that kept them going.
Jesus. Yes, Jesus was that someone.
He was not just a carpenter from some obscure, little-known village called Nazareth. In his voice they heard someone bigger, stronger, and yet someone also full of love, tenderness and compassion. Jesus was God come to earth in-the-flesh. And this Jesus was saying something like, “If you want join me in the new world I am creating, here’s what you need to do: deny yourselves, take up your cross and follow me.
And so 12 men and several women did. They didn’t get it at first. It took them awhile while to cross that bridge from their old life to the new life. But they persevered. And because they did, here we are, over two thousand years later, we got to know Jesus through their faithful witness and the written records they preserved: the Bible. Many of us have decided to cross the bridge ourselves. The bridge that brought us from a life devoted to just ourselves, to a life devoted to God, above all else. And who are we following?
Jesus. Yes, Jesus. The same Jesus who called a ragtag group of men and women, and led them to a life of “long obedience in the same direction,” as the late Eugene Peterson described it. Lifelong disciples crossing the bridge, trying to keep our eyes focused on Jesus.
Discipleship. It is a familiar word to all who grew up in church. It’s not literally mentioned in the Bible but it’s derived from the word, disciple, that Jesus frequently used. Disciple simply meant learner, or apprentice. Discipleship. Apprenticeship. This is what disciples and apprentices engage in. And for that to happen, they need a Teacher to show them the way. In the Christian life, Jesus is our Master Teacher. He wants us to be like him and he commands us to go out and recruit learners, apprentices to train with him.
The church’s mission is to recruit learners for Jesus. But before we can do that, we need to make a commitment to follow Jesus and become lifelong learners ourselves. The three courses in Jesus’ curriculum are: Deny yourself, Take up your cross, and Follow Jesus. A refresher on these three subjects is helpful even for the most seasoned and committed disciple.
Here’s my attempt to refresh and renew what we signed up for when we decided to follow Jesus and cross the bridge to the new life with him.
Deny yourself does not mean deprive or hurt yourself. The Greek word in this verse means to “say no.” To deny ourselves is to say No to self-obsession and saying Yes to Jesus as the One who defines who we are as beloved sons and daughters of God, and not the limited view of ourselves or those of others based on false assumptions that distort our view of ourselves as bearers of God’s lifegiving image.
Take up your cross daily. This does not mean taking up Jesus’ cross. Jesus already did that. He willingly offered himself on the cross of Calvary, so we will be free to take up our cross of discipleship, of apprentices in Jesus’ workshop where we learn to be more like him in loving and serving God and our neighbor.
Follow Jesus. Follow Jesus means that we are willing to set aside or give up anything that hinders us from taking the cues from Jesus. To follow Jesus also means we are not spectators but participants, actively helping Jesus in the work of creating a whole new world where instead of dying, the world is resurrected to new life and new growth.
I believe that learning and growth are not just for the young people among us. In the journey of Christian discipleship, we are constantly called by Jesus to keep learning and following his lead. As we begin a new season, please join me as we cross the bridge to the new life that God has for us and to be bold but humble followers of Jesus. Let us pray, dream and act on the new vision God has for us in the coming years while remaining faithful in the present mission entrusted to us by the Lord.
Have a safe, healthy and fruitful September! God bless all families, learners of all ages, teachers and teaching staff! May Jesus, the Teacher of all Teachers, our Lord and Savior lead us on.
Yours in Christ,
Pastor Carla
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