Tag: Discipleship

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Agrarian Pastor Church Clint Ministry Pastors

4 Ways to Identify Potential Elders

Many churches lack qualified elders. It’s not that they don’t have elderly men. They don’t have elders; that is presbyters (Ac 20:17,1Ti 5:17Ti 1:5, Ja 5:14,1Pet 5:1). These elders (who are also overseers (Acts 20:28; 1 Tim 3:1,2; Ti 1:7), must meet the qualifications laid out in the pastoral epistles. The challenge is how to identify those potential office-bearers. Here are four ways to spot these men in your church.

He’s a Good Church Member

There is no sense looking at a man as a potential elder if he is not a good church member first. What I’m talking about is more than simply someone who has passed through a membership process. A good church member is someone who is faithful in attendance (Heb 10:25), faithful in the “one anothers” (a phrase used 100 times in the NT), and faithful in appropriate exercise of responsibility (eg. Heb 12:12-17), submission to authority (Heb 13:17), and promotion of the gospel (Matt 28:18-20).

Since the qualifications for an elder in Paul’s first letter to Timothy map out an exemplary Christian, then the potential elder ought to be a good churchman by design.

For example, if he doesn’t bother to attend the prayer meeting, he is likely not an elder candidate. That is not to say that a man on shift work or with a lot of evening work can’t be an elder. But there should be a clear indication that the local church is a high priority for him.

He Can Teach (with an audience of one)

There are men who are growing in the Lord, but they have a hard time expressing themselves in orderly ways. That of course, is what teaching involves: assisting someone to move from confusion to ordered understanding of the subject. Men who can teach have the ability to come alongside someone else and move them from point A to point B in theological understanding.

Being able to teach (1 Tim 3:2) does not necessarily require a man to be an orator or pulpiteer. There are many men who have less skill in public speaking. At the same time, a man who has a deep understanding of the bible, ought to be able to speak in an orderly way to someone else. One-to-one discipleship is a form of this kind of teaching. If a man can teach another man in a discipling context, then they are in the habit of ‘teaching’.

This one-to-one kind of teaching is important to recognize. Often men will like to lead bible studies or teach a class, but they have little interest in the patience and obscurity that goes along with one-to-one discipling. I have found that the men who don’t disciple, yet want to have public teaching roles will tend to view the bible and theology as a hobby. They will be energized by the study in the way that a fan is energized talking about their favourite team. Added to this can be the slight ego trip of being a centre of attention and being “made much of” by other people. By contrast, the man who is content to meet together with another guy in obscurity, yet help that man grow in biblical understanding— that man is teaching as a way of life. Maybe if that man is given an opportunity, he will teach publicly in the same effective, humble manner.

Confessionally Compatible

Since elders are office bearers in a local church, they have to confess the doctrinal parameters of that church. Much of this will be discovered by seeing if the man is a good church member. But more than this, a potential elder will have to be evaluated regarding his relative understanding of the doctrinal positions of the church. It is one thing for a member to submit to a doctrinal position that they haven’t studied too much, but it is another thing for an elder to have to teach it.

Added to this is a recognition of the doctrinal triage that exists in:

  • the statement of faith
  • the church’s constitution
  • and the existing ministries and policies.

By triage, I mean the ordering of priorities in terms of clearer or less clear and important or less important. If a potential elder elevates an obscure teaching to a high degree of importance or acts callously toward the way that his local church faithfully applies Scripture in practical matters, then he will likely create disunity among the elders and in the church. Everyone doesn’t have to think exactly the same, but there should be unity about what matters and what doesn’t.

Sometimes this means that the potential elder you develop will not serve in your church but someone else’s. If you have a generous spirit, you can recognize that on lesser matters in the triage, it is okay to differ. But that may mean that a potential elder will have to go to a different church that fits his understanding of things.

Capacity for the Work

There are many godly men who are faithful as church members and who can teach, yet they are not capable of doing pastoral work. They simply don’t have the time, energy or capacity.

It is not out of laziness or stubbornness. But some men recognize that their callings as husbands and fathers require them to work in such a way that there isn’t a lot of capacity left over for being an elder.

Since managing one’s own household well is a key qualification for an elder, the lack of capacity that a man has can be a signal that he is not called to the work. It is better to have the man continue as a faithful church member, than to have him over-extended into pastoral care and wreck his marriage and ministry.

Considering these elements can go a long way toward identifying potential elders. In the end, the wisdom of pastors and parishioners will culminate in wise assessments that can be recognized by everyone.

Categories
Church Clint Gospel Spiritual Growth Theology

Four Parts of Practical Discipleship

In one of the classic passages on discipleship, the Great Commission (Matthew 28:18-20) we see that to make disciples is to baptize them into the Triune name. This gives them a common identity. The disciple may be from a certain nation, but their new identity is named by the single name of the Father, and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. It is a personal and corporate designation given to someone who has been “born from above”(John 3:3).

Following that initiation into a new identity (Matt 28:19) the process of discipleship involves four parts. They can be seen in verse 20 of Matthew 28. I’ve broken it down in this way:

  1. teaching them
  2. to observe
  3. all that I have commanded you.
  4. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.”

1. Teaching

First, there is always teaching. Discipleship requires giving instruction in the content of the gospel and all of the wider interpretations and applications which Jesus and the apostles explained and applied. This content must be taught.

When content is slender or unclear, then the disciples who are being made are not actually following the true Jesus, but a different Jesus. Like a package that has been delivered to the wrong address, it doesn’t matter if the delivery has been made, the connection between sender and receiver has disappeared. There are many groups that claim to be Christian, but they suffer from this postal fallacy. What has been delivered to them is not from the true Christ but from somewhere else.

2. Submission

Second, a disciple must submit to the instruction. Content delivery doesn’t matter much if people don’t observe or submit to what the content requires. It does no good to have an IKEA manual for building a chair if you don’t follow it. In the same way in discipleship, teaching isn’t useful unless it’s observed and submitted to.

As John said in his first epistle, “Whoever says “I know him” but does not keep his commandments is a liar and the truth is not in him” (1 Jn 2:4). Submission to the instruction by heeding and observing it is a basic part of discipleship. Submission is neither optional nor extraordinary.

3. Obligation

The third aspect is obligation. A disciple needs to submit to the instructions, observing them and following what is laid out. But it is easy for Christians to shift their hearts away from God as they submit to instruction. That is why there must always be a reminder of the One who has done the commanding. When Jesus says, “all that I have commanded you”, it is not merely a tautology which replaces “observe” with “command”. It is actually a reminder that the commands of Jesus which the disciple is taught and submits to are not impersonal. Instead they are the commands of the disciple’s sweet Saviour. There is delight in obeying the Son.

Jesus himself said:

Whoever has my commandments and keeps them, he it is who loves me. And he who loves me will be loved by my Father, and I will love him and manifest myself to him.

John 14:21

Without this orientation toward Jesus as the one who makes the commands, discipleship can become a grand demonstration of box-checking. When Christians go through lists and mark off their due submissions to what they’ve been taught, it can be easy for their hearts to shift away from Christ himself. Jesus warned of this (Mat 15:9) when he quoted Isaiah (29:13) that for all of the so-called worship that was going on, it was in vain and not directed toward the true God, rather being mere observations of human commands.

4. Presence

The fourth element in this discipleship process is the promise of Christ’s presence. It is a further reminder, that even though Jesus is ascended into heaven, disciples follow him, and he is present with them. He said, “And behold, I am with you always to the end of the age” (v.20b).

The presence of Christ assures that discipleship continues as a personal relationship. The authority of Jesus, the incarnate Son according to his divine nature is such that he can confidently promise that he will be present, even omnipresent with the disciple.

Of course, this is another example of personal discipleship connecting with the corporate. Jesus says “I am with you always”, and speaks of the “you” as the plural number of all disciples.

Discipleship involves basic elements. When we drop any of these parts, we have to ask ourselves: “Are we truly making disciples? Or are we doing something entirely different?”

Discipling by Mark Dever

unsplash-logoThe New York Public Library

photo credit


Categories
Canada Church Clint Gospel Ministry Pastors Spiritual Growth

6 Questions to Ask New People At Your Church

At the beginning of the fall semester, we always resume our Sunday School for all ages. One of the classes that we have added is an introduction to our church. It is not a membership class which outlines privileges and expectations of a potential church member. Instead, it’s a class for visitors and newcomers who we want to get to know better.

In what follows, I’ll lay out some of the questions that I ask the new folks at our church. Below each question, I’ll explain what I’m hoping to learn. Here are the six questions:

1. How did you hear about the church?

This is a question to gauge interest. If a person has researched your church and looked through the doctrinal statement in detail, you know that they have a doctrinal interest in the church. For someone else, their interest might solely be based on the warm invitation of a co-worker or friend. They don’t know about the doctrinal statement, they only know that their friend is nice and they hope the church is the same.

There is a big difference between the person who has come to the church because of the aesthetic appeal of your building’s architecture, and someone who has come because they were broken, and a church member reached out in care for them.

So asking this question helps to reveal the type of interest a person has in Jesus Christ and his church.

2. What is Your Religious Background?

This is a question to discover a framework. If we are all shaped by our backgrounds, then it is helpful to clarify what is the frame that sits around that background. This is a general question that is looking for simple, broad answers like:

  • I grew up Buddhist
  • My family went to a Catholic church
  • My parents were both atheists, we didn’t go to church.
  • I went to a Christian campus group in university.
  • I was a member of a confessional Presbyterian church.

When you ask the background question, you are discerning where people are coming from in terms of the belief systems they’ve been around. You’re not finding out if they had a good or bad experience in those contexts yet, because that’s the next question.

What you will discover is the difference between the background of a Pharisee or a Gentile or a Samaritan. And you will start to see (and help them to see) how they are affected positively or negatively by their framework. Which leads to the next question.

3. What has been your experience in churches (if you have any)?

This question is more specific, and reveals a person’s perspective on ‘church’. This question differs from the previous one because many people have gone to a doctrinally sound church, but for whatever reason, their experience was negative. Or for others, their religious background may not have been Christian, but it was generally positive in their eyes. As a result, they might have a different perspective that will not assume that the gospel and the church is better than what they’ve had.

Experiences with religious groups can make or mar us. Consider the experience of the woman who was entrapped by the Pharisees and charged with adultery in John 8? Her background was Judaism like the Pharisees, but her experience of it was wholly negative. Jesus deftly confronted the Pharisees, offered her hope, and called her to repentant, believing obedience.

This is also a question to discover is someone may have been disciplined out of a church or at least created problems somewhere else. How people interpret their experiences with the church will reveal a lot about their spiritual state.

4. Why Join a Church?

Asking people what they want is always helpful. And the same goes for asking them why they want to join the church. This question reveals their aspirations.

When people outline their reasons for joining a church, they will admit what they are really after. Maybe they want to serve in a ministry but will go wherever there is a need. Others may want the church to be a platform for them to find self-expression. Others may not have thought about why they would join the church, except that they like the people there and want to have those people as their new social circle.

I remember in the early days of our church plant a woman visited who showed me the bible she had revieved from a famous preacher. She listed all of her qualifications and then inquired about our worship services. After all of this, she informed me that she was looking for a church where she could “use her gifts”. It was clear that she wanted to use the church for her own self-expression.

You will also find the good motives people have for joining a church, like wanting to grow, disciple others, and fulfill their roles in accord with lists of gifts from Romans 12, 1 Corinthians 12 and Ephesians 4.

In an introductory way, many aspirations will start to come to light.

5. What Barriers Prevent Someone from Joining a Church?

This is a question that solicits an admission. In a class, people may not reveal too much personally, but at least people can admit that being a confessing, covenanted member of a church requires faith in Jesus Christ, and not walking in blatant, known sin that would immediately be cause for church discipline.

You might get an admission about the church discipline question. Or you might get further clarity about how people think about the ‘inside/outside’ aspects of the gathered church.

If someone thinks that the only barrier to joining a church is growing up in a different religious family, then you will know that there is a lot of teaching to do to correct that admission.

What is the Gospel?

Is there a confession of gospel among the newcomers? This is the most important question. It is both simple, yet surprisingly intimidating: What is the gospel? Many people are so confused about religion that they can have masses of theological data to share, but lack clarity about what are the essential pieces of the gospel.

Keep the answers to a short elevator pitch. Some theology stars might wish to present a lecture. You don’t want that (and nobody else will). The goal is to see if people are clear enough about the gospel that they can give a concise, orderly confession of it. The main categories will be God, Man, Christ, and Response. Each of these can be filled out, but your question will reveal how much work you have to do in teaching the gospel to new people.

What you will find is that people with extensive church backgrounds may lack clarity about what the gospel is, and what it isn’t.

The hope of these introductory questions is to begin an ongoing evangelistic and discipleship connection with these newcomers. The hope is that they would become gospel-believing, Jesus-following, covenanted members of your church.

Asking these questions can be a starting point along that journey.

unsplash-logoArtem Maltsev

Categories
Church Clint Global Gospel Ministry Society

It’s Costly To Make Disciples Underground

In the last month, I’ve been told reports about how costly it is to make disciples underground. In a closed Asian country and a closed Middle Eastern country, two friends told me about the same problem in different cultural contexts. It is really hard to make disciples when there are few around, and the governing authorities want you silenced, punished or executed.

Governments That Don’t Like Underground Disciples

In both cases, the friends I spoke with made it clear that their governments did not want their citizens to be underground disciples of Jesus Christ. It was okay for expats– the foreigners who lived in the country for work. It was not okay for locals. Locals had heavy surveillance on them at all times. They live in highly controlled environments. So to use the little freedom you have in order to explore the claims of Christianity, then an inquirer needs great courage.

Discipleship is costly. But it is even more costly for these underground disciples.

Pushing Disciples Underground

Like the disciples of Jesus in the Soviet Union, when public faith is above ground, it can get squeezed out of open society. As Alexander Solzhenitsyn wrote in The Gulag Archipelago *:

[T]hey were supposedly being arrested and tried not for their actual faith but for openly declaring their convictions and for bringing up their children in the same spirit.

Alexander Solzhenitsyn, The Gulag Archipelago, 37.

Solzhenitsyn then quoted from a female poet who received a 10-year sentence for what she wrote:

You can pray freely

But just so God alone can hear

Tanya Khodkevich quoted in The Gulag Archipelago, 37

Those Who Had Not Worshipped the Beast

We know that the threat of the beast is real (Rev 13:15). Regardless of your view of the millennium, Christians can hope in the future reign of the ones,

“beheaded for the testimony of Jesus and for the word of God, and those who had not worshiped the beast or its image and had not received its mark on their foreheads or their hands.”

(Rev 20:4)

Let us pray for the underground disciples of Jesus Christ as they seek to bear witness to the gospel with their words and their lives.

*affiliate

Categories
Christel Marriage Puritans Spiritual Growth

The Priority of Spiritual Motherhood

discipleship
Photo by Alexis Brown on Unsplash

This is a post which appeared recently at The Gospel Coalition Canada. Here’s an excerpt:

Anne Bradstreet (1612-1672) was a puritan woman and a published poet, but what fascinates me most about her is the priority she placed on spiritual motherhood. She wrote letters, proverbs and biblical advice for her children (even into adulthood). When it came to building up her children’s faith, she didn’t leave it to the experts. She took every opportunity to invest in her children’s spiritual good.

Read the rest at TGC:

The Priority of Spiritual Motherhood

Categories
Christel Gospel

Studying Mark’s Gospel: Good News for Imperfect Disciples

Credit: Steve Halama

At Calvary Grace, our women’s group has been studying the gospel of Mark. No matter how many times I’ve read it, I still find the gospel astounding.

Jesus consistently taught his disciples that his mission was to suffer many things, to be rejected and killed, and then rise again on the third day (e.g. Mk. 8:31). But his disciples didn’t know what he meant and were afraid to ask him about it (Mk. 9:32). I can’t really blame them. The whole episode that Jesus undergoes is both too horrific to contemplate and also too wonderful to comprehend. It’s horrific because the blood Jesus shed seems gory to my modern sensibilities, and the payment he made seems unbearable. And yet without blood there is no remission of sins (Heb. 9:22). This impossibly bad news is also paradoxically the best news: every sinful thought or deed that God’s children have ever done (or ever will do) is paid for in full by his “once for all” sacrifice (Heb. 10:10).

Leading up to the cross, the depth of human depravity is starkly juxtaposed with Jesus’ sacrificial love for us. The problem of sin is not whitewashed in Christianity. Even Jesus’ closest companions and star disciples fail him at every turn. The disciples sleep when they should pray. One betrays Jesus. Peter denies him. Nowhere is it implied that if people are given enough opportunity, they can eradicate their own sin problem.

Even the women who knew Jesus best–Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of James, Salome, Joanna and others (Lk. 24:10) who traveled with Jesus and provided for him “out of their means” (Lk. 8:2)—were momentarily paralyzed by fear when confronted with the empty tomb. These women would have heard Jesus teaching on his death and resurrection, they were eyewitnesses of the former brutality, and of his burial, but still did not understand that Jesus would rise. When confronted with the empty tomb “they said nothing to anyone for they were afraid” (Mk.16:8).

Jesus disciples were far from perfect. The fact of this is both depressing and wonderful. As I read these final pages in Mark, I’m rooting for them. I want them to do better, and yet, I relate to their imperfections. I’m afraid when I should rejoice. I’m asleep when I should be praying. I’m silent when I should be speaking. But Jesus didn’t come to save perfect people, he came to save sinners.

The religious leaders of the time accused Jesus of blasphemy because “Who can forgive sins but God alone?” (Mk. 2:7) And yet, Jesus freely forgave sinners. Despite the unbelief of the Scribes and Pharisees, the gospel accounts all testify that Jesus is the Son of God, both fully God and fully man, and uniquely qualified to redeem humanity and provide deliverance from the weight of sin.

I’ve been a Christian for many years and I still can hardly grasp the gospel. The cost is both too great and too little. Jesus paid an inconceivably vast debt and I paid nothing at all. As the classic hymn says, “All the fitness He requireth. Is to feel your need of Him”.

Jesus came to save sinners, not those who imagine themselves spiritual superstars. When the religious leaders were angry with Jesus for eating with unworthy people (i.e. “sinners and tax collectors” (Mk. 2:16)), Jesus replied, “Those who are well have no need of a physician, but those who are sick. I came not to call the righteous, but sinners” (Mk. 2:17).

This is good news for imperfect people. Yes, sin is a great problem.  But Jesus is a greater Saviour.