Discipleship in Holiness
The only way to be holy is to be a disciple of Jesus. Being a disciple of Jesus is the only way to progress in holiness. (cf. Eph 4:24) This is because holiness is not “the labor of our hands,” but is the condition of being touched by the presence of God—resting ourselves in His hands. And Jesus is God-drawn-near-to-us. Jesus is God Himself, presented to us and present with us. So no one becomes holy apart from drawing nearer to Christ. Holiness is following Him and opening our lives to His presence. Holiness happens in discipleship. Discipleship makes us holy.
What is discipleship? Discipleship is following Jesus, moving closer to Him, and letting Him influence our lives more completely. But notice two things about discipleship that are often overlooked. First, discipleship is a command: disciples are expected to be made. When were you discipled? Who have you discipled? We should have specific answers to those questions. But most of us don’t. We’ve forgotten that making disciples is a thing Jesus expected to see done. Second, discipleship requires relationships. No one can disciple themselves. We are discipled—and not by Jesus or by Scripture or by the Spirit or by internet preachers, but by people we know, observe, and can talk to. Discipleship happens in relationships, in community.
So on the one hand, there is a thing that Jesus wants to see done: made disciples who can make disciples together. And, on the other hand, there is a thing that Jesus wants to see but it will never be done in this lifetime: being transformed into the image of Christ by the Spirit, one degree at a time, together with God’s people. The first thing we might call “being discipled”, or “making disciples.” The second thing we can call “discipleship” or, for a congregation, a “discipleship culture.” This is when we enter a fellowship of people who encourage one another to follow Jesus through the changing tides of life. But we need both; both are biblically mandated.
The first thing, making disciples, is not what we are here to discuss. We are going to discuss the second thing, a discipleship culture. Churches have a culture. That is, churches lean a certain way, learn to respond a certain way. After an extended time in that church, you too will lean a certain way, know certain things, have certain values, so you react in certain ways. The question for us is whether our churches are leaning and teaching us to lean toward and on Jesus in all things. Are we learning to follow Jesus together? Are we becoming more His? Are we becoming more Christ-like human beings? Are we becoming whole?
What direction are we going together, friend? Is it deeper into a Christ-like holiness? Are we walking closer, together, with our Holy Lord? Is the Spirit of Holiness welcome in our lives, to lead us in The Way? Let make this our prayer together today.
Lord God, we are Your people. And so we long to "learn Christ." We have heard of Him and have been taught His way, the way of truth. And so we long to put off our old selves, corrupted through deceitful desires, and we long to be renewed in the spirit of our minds. Help us, then, to put on our new selves, our Christ-selves, re-created to be like You, in Your image, righteous and holy. Give us this longing, we pray, and give us this help. In Jesus' Name. Amen.
Photo by Ivana Cajina on Unsplash
