Friday 8 March 2024

Decisions for Jesus

When someone decides to follow Jesus, there is alot going on. We should never understand it as merely an intellectual response - but one that includes the emotion and the will of the person. Above all it is a spiritual response.

The reality is that for many people their response is actually a series of responses. Rather than one simple before/after decision, they are making a number of steps along the way. I suspect that this reality applied in the gospels and Acts too: although the accounts may suggest to us simple decisions, dig deeper and it is more messy. For example it took a while for the closest disciples to really get what Jesus was telling them, and Cornelius was already seeking & calling on God before Peter arrived. Others had had "John's baptism" but not the baptism of Jesus and His Spirit, and so on.

When working with enquirers, I have found it is helpful for us to find a language for these multiple steps. It enables us to talk with people about where they are at, recognise & encourage progress, and point towards the total surrender to the Lordship of Jesus that He calls us to. Sticking to a simple (binary) mantra I have found to be unhelpful.

I am indebted to Mark Greenwood's book 'Big Yes Little Yes Healthy Maybe' for giving a good language to use with people. Greenwood argues the same - that most make several steps, and sets out helpful thinking on how we therefore journey with people as they come to Christ response by response.

He characterises those who are basically open to finding out more as giving a 'Healthy Maybe' response. They are not saying 'no' to the gospel, but they are not able to say 'yes' either. Being open might mean that they would be willing to sit down and explore together - that is a healthy response, hence the 'Healthy Maybe'.

As people explore for themselves, they reach points where things start to make sense - but they are not ready to jump all in. There are bits they believe, others they do not (yet), and many things that seem fuzzy. Mark calls these 'Little Yes' responses. The point here is that a person may make many 'Little Yes' responses, as they journey onwards. It is not for us to define the number or the exact points - they are like spiritual response stepping stones.

Eventually something clicks. The person realises that for them there is no real alternative but to follow Jesus with all their mind, soul and strength. This is the 'Big Yes' response, from which we hope there will be no turning back. Baptism and God's filling with the Holy Spirit are the Biblical follow-ons for a person making this response. If you want to talk in terms of crossing the line, then this is it.

Friday 1 March 2024

Field Number Three - Discipleship in Small Settings

An important mission distinction that is now being realised by Western Christian leaders is between making disciples rather than counting decisions. Many churches have concentrated on the latter and neglected the former. The Great Commission of Matthew 28 is very clear: Make Disciples.

As we meander fields 1 & 2 in the Four Fields model of working amongst new people, we are praying and hoping by God's grace to see people to say a 'Big Yes' to Jesus and embark on a life of discipleship. But the discipling process starts straight away in Field 2 - Gospel Sharing - as we discover who is spiritually open and willing to journey with us in some form of Discovery Bible Study. In those discovery sessions we typically look at the gospel stories of Jesus, to help the enquirer discover Jesus for themselves. As we do that we share and model good discipleship habits, chiefly asking each time: 'Based on this discovery, what do you think Jesus would have you do?'. In simple terms this means modelling obedience to Jesus.

For example an enquirer was doing these kind of sessions with me, looking through episodes in Mark's gospel. Previously we had covered the man lowered through the roof, the man with the withered hand, healings and demons commanded to be quiet in the crowds, calming the storm, and the legion demoniac. This had enabled my new friend to begin to appreciate Jesus as one who can forgive, heal, command the demons, and command the storm. For each aspect we compared what this was saying about Jesus to the gods of his own religious background, and his understanding of those god's capabilities. Through these sessions modelling discipleship included looking to Jesus for healing, accepting that He has the plain & simple authority, and being still with Jesus even in the storms. Story by story the penny started to drop - and we used prayers that I would characterise as 'Little Yes' responses to Jesus.

Then we came to the story of Jesus bringing back Jairus' daughter from her death. This proved to be a key discovery. There was no equivalent story in their own religious background - it is only Jesus who has the power over life and death! His immediate 'Big Yes' to Jesus response takes us into Field 3 - Discipleship in Small Settings. We will continue with the same tools of Discovery Bible Study, but with the shift of context from 'Is Jesus worth following?' to 'What does following Jesus mean for us today?'. The shift is a natural one because remember we were already modelling discipleship from the very first session! Sessions can be done one-to-one or in a group - either way it is a small setting, making it deeply relational and personal for those involved.

Note that we are not so concerned with 'church' yet! That will come ... if the small setting involves more than one (plus the leader), or the enquirer(s) are able to share and start sessions with their own contacts, then you have the first signs of church forming on a micro-scale anyway.

Tuesday 13 February 2024

To the One Who is Victorious

The seven letters to the seven churches in Revelation chapters 2 & 3 each have recurring start and closing phrases, with only minor variations between them. In the close of each are the words 'To the one who is victorious ...'.

This raises good questions: What does it mean to be victorious? Is it just victorious at the very end or in any way victorious right now?

Other translations have 'the one who overcomes' which helps shed light on being victorious. The final letter adds 'just as I was victorious and sat down with my Father on his throne' (3:21), which suggests victory in the form of enduring through persecution, and Jesus endured through the cross.

Whether the meaning of being victorious is narrow or broad, the one who is victorious is promised:

  1. The right to eat from the tree of life
  2. to not be hurt by the second death
  3. some of the hidden manna (plus a new name)
  4. given authority over the nations (plus the 'morning star')
  5. to be dressed in white, never blotted from the book of life
  6. to be made a pillar in the temple of God, bearing the name of God, the city of God, and a new name
  7. the right to sit with Jesus on the throne

By any standards that's a pretty awesome list!!

Continue to stand firm in Christ, whatever comes at you, and discover His life-giving resources. Have no fear of death, and enjoy the blessing he brings. We get to rule with Him, and He dresses us accordingly. With others we bear the name of God, forming a new each-a-temple-of-the-Holy-Spirit community. Our ultimate victory is bound up with His victory - it is His rule we join!

Wednesday 31 January 2024

Did You Hear that Differently?

A handy tool to use when talking with a friend or acquaintance about Christian faith topics is (when it seems appropriate) to tell a simple story that Jesus told. Many can be told in less than 60 seconds which means you can use it within the flow of your conversation (it also means you can record as a YouTube short or TikTok video!). An open and inviting question to then ask is: "What does this story tell you about God and people?".

Be totally cool with the fact that their answer may be nothing like what you expect!

That's especially true if they are coming from a different culture or religion. Not long ago I had the opportunity to share the story of the 'Lost Coin' with three different people. For each I asked the same inviting question. Two of them said (independently) the same answer: 'If you go looking for a god, you will find it'. I was fascinated, because that is 180 degrees from our classic understanding of God searching for lost people! For one of those I played with the concept with them to see if they could hear the story flipped back round, but their understanding really remained in the 'search for a god' mindset.

Both of the people are originally from a southern Asia culture and religious background, which entertains a plurality of gods. This is where storytelling is so useful: it is effectively a universal communication channel that can be used across the globe - we all like to hear & process stories. Stories invite others to process and think for themselves, which is better than us trying to download truth-content to others, because ultimately people need to receive spiritually, and not simply assent to your faith statements. But while stories are a universal comms channel, the exact meaning heard by the listener will be unique to them, and heavily influenced by their own background and understandings.

The good news is that in a friendly conversation, whatever their answer may be, it gives a starting point from which to dialogue further, even if it seems to be quite different to the Christian textbook response. Remember that Jesus started from where people were at, and then journeyed from that point ...

Interestingly the third person I told the story to was a young person with a White British background with a fair degree of Christian influence. Although their answer was pretty much the classic one, they also offered an alternative similar to my first two friends, saying: 'If you search for God, you will find God' - echoing (without realising it) Deuteronomy 4:29, 1 Chronicles 28:9 and 2 Chronicles 15:2.