What is a New Year’s Resolution that you have made?

Some interesting facts about New Year’s Resolutions

• 65-75% of Americans make New Year’s Resolutions
• Younger generations are more likely to make Resolutions than older generations
• 46% of resolutions are on health 37% are on self-improvement
• Gyms are packed and exercise equipment gets back ordered
• The average American spends $500-$1,000 on resolutions each year
  

What is the difficulty with many New Year’s Resolutions?
We try to change but often fall short. 93% of resolutions fail in the first six months of the new year. Why?

1. Resolutions aren’t specific enough (lose weight, exercise more, etc.)
2. Resolutions aren’t framed positively (eat more fruits and veggies vs. don’t eat junk food)
3. Resolutions aren’t about you
4. Change based on the calendar, not self-readiness
5. Deal with symptoms, not root causes
6. Lack of clarity of what we are actually trying to create
   

As we think about the idea of getting Spiritually fit, we must first have clarity of vision concerning what God desires for us to become. What is God’s desire for us? What does God want us to become according to Matthew 28:18-20?
God’s desire is that we would be disciples of Jesus.

If God’s desire is that we are disciples, what is a disciple?
Simply put, a disciple is a believer in Jesus who seeks to follow Him. Disciple is not a term for the spiritually elite or those in positions of leadership but for all Christians. We are always disciples to Jesus, learning from and following Him. Not all are good at being disciples. “When Jesus spoke of disciples he had in mind what would be the normal Christian life, not the abnormal” (Wilkins, 46) Following Jesus happens in the real world where God has placed us and does not always mean leaving where we are or what we are doing.

What does a disciple of Jesus look like according to Jesus?
Luke 6:40- The goal of a disciple is to become like their master. As disciples of Jesus, we seek to become like Jesus.

Luke 14:25-33- God’s desire is that God is number one in our lives above all other things.

John 8:31-32- Jesus says that if we abide in his word then we are truly His disciples. The idea of abide in His word is to live, move, breathe, dwell. The idea here is that we remain in the life-giving word of God so that it becomes a part of us and our life flows forth from it. Jesus is saying that being a disciple is more than just saying that we believe in Him but is a way of life.

John 13:34-35- In these verses, Jesus is making clear that it is from being loved by God that we in turn learn what love is and then how to love God and love others. As we live the life of a disciple we live in the endless supply of God’s love for us. Love is truly what happens as God changes and transforms us into His image as the darkness and sin are no longer ruling in our hearts and lives but is being exchanged for love of God and love of neighbor.

John 15:1-17 (especially verse 8)- When God is working in us, there will be fruit. Jesus is very clear in these words that the fruit is not something that we are able to muster or produce on our own, but come from God working in our lives.

What discipleship is not?

1. A way to earn salvation– We are saved not because of anything we have done but solely on the merits of what God has done for us in the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus. Discipleship is a Holy Spirit-enabled, grace-filled response to the work of God flowing forth from His salvation. Discipleship is only possible because of God’s grace at work in our lives.
2. The task only of the beginner- We do not graduate from being a disciple. Jesus will always and forever be our master whom we are following, learning from, and trying to become like. Often times discipleship is wrongly seen as the on-ramp to the Christian life, instead, discipleship is the journey of the Christian life.
3. Only for the deeply committed or leaders within the church– Churches or individuals have often taken others under their wing to prepare them for a position of leadership and have called this discipleship. This can give the faulty assumption that discipleship is something for some not all. As Dietrich Bonhoeffer says, “the following of Christ is not the achievement or merit of a select few, but the divine command to all Christians without distinction.” (Cost of Discipleship, 47)
4. A program– In the church, we are obsessed with programs. As Bill Hull says, discipleship is often turned “into a curriculum that a serious disciple completes then graduates from. Instead of supporting an ongoing process, a program focuses on finishing the material, learning the information, and developing certain skills such as giving a testimony or using different methods of Bible Study… Many good programs provide information and skills, but they’re just tools of the growth process, not discipleship itself.” (Hull, The Complete Book of Discipleship, 36)
5. One size fits all– Just as God did not create all of us the same, so also every disciple will be unique. Just look at the 12 disciples in the Gospels and the book of Acts. The goal of discipleship is not to take away someone’s personality or uniqueness. The goal is not to make clones. The goal is to form people into the image of Christ. What this looks like is as unique as the individual. There are certain commonalities that will be seen throughout all disciples but this does not mean that discipleship is one size fits all.
6. A system of beliefs– Discipleship is far more than intellectual assent to a certain set of beliefs. “The American gospel teaches that faith equals agreement with a set of religious facts. Believing in Jesus has no meaning if we don’t follow him in discipleship. Believing without discipleship isn’t believing, it’s agreeing to a set of facts about a religious figure.” (Hull, The Complete Book of Discipleship, 43) Bonhoeffer puts it this way, “for faith is only real when there is obedience, never without it, and faith only becomes faith in the act of obedience.” (Bonhoeffer, The Cost of Discipleship, 64) Scripture speaks of this truth saying, “You believe that God is one; you do well. Even the demons believe-- and shudder!” (Jam 2:19 ESV)

What does a growing disciple look like at Our Savior?
Engage people with a great God

• Worship is an important part of the rhythm of life (Hebrews 10:19-25)
• All of life is seen as worship (Romans 12:1-2)
• Abide in God’s Word (John 8:31-32)
• An active prayer life (1 Thessalonians 5:17)

Encourage people within the context of a Christ-centered community.

• In meaningful relationships with other Christians to practice love, grace, care, and true Christian community (1 Corinthians 12:12-27)
• Live with relational generosity towards other people (1 John 3:16-18)

Equip people for lives of following Jesus.

• Growing as a follower of Jesus (Colossians 3:1-17)
• Developing skills for service inside and outside the church (Ephesians 4:11-16)
• Engages in the difficult questions of life and faith (1 Peter 3:15)

Launching people into lives of mission.

• Embrace one’s personal calling/vocation (1 Corinthians 15:58)
• Love as Jesus loved (John 13:34-35)
• Invest in the areas where God has planted them (Jeremiah 29:4-9)

How does Lutheran theology speak into our understanding of discipleship?

• Justification and Sanctification- Ephesians 2:8-10, Romans 6:1-4, Romans 8:1-11, 1 Thessalonians 4:1-8, Philippians 2:12-13, James 2:14-17
  Justification is the once and for all act of God saving us. Justification is solely the work of God outside of ourselves. Our justification was accomplished in the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus. There is nothing that we can do to add to or earn our justification.
  Sanctification in a wider sense “comprehends the entire work of the Holy Ghost, by which He leads the sinner unto eternal life” (2 Thessalonians 2:13). In a narrower sense, sanctification is “that part or work of the Spirit’s work, by which He incites and directs believers to a godly life.” (155) Sanctification is an ongoing process that begins with God’s work in justification and continues until we are glorified on the last day. Sanctification does not save us but is that which flows forth from our justification. You cannot have one without the other.
• Living out our Baptism- Luther’s Small Catechism Fourth Question on Baptism (CPH, 1991) What does such baptizing with water signify? It signifies that the old Adam in us, together with all sins and evil lusts, should be drowned by daily sorrow and repentance and be put to death, and that the new man should come forth daily and rise up, cleansed and righteous, to live forever in God’s presence.
• Cheap Grace vs. Costly Grace- Cheap Grace is grace without discipleship. It is belief without the life. Costly Grace is the life that bids us to come and die and follow Jesus. Costly grace leads to the life of discipleship.
• The Third Use of the Law- “Third, the Law teaches us Christians what we should and should not do to live a God-pleasing life (a guide). The power to live according to the Law comes from the Gospel.”
• Simul Iustus et Peccator
  We are at the same time saint and sinner. We are justified freely by the work of Jesus Christ and so by His work we are completely saved (saint). Yet this side of Heaven we will continue to struggle with sin and never completely be sanctified. This phrase coined by Martin Luther does a good job of helping us understand discipleship. We are seeking to live out our salvation as the saints that we are in Christ Jesus and yet our discipleship will never be perfect because we are still fallen sinners. This is the same struggle that Paul dealt with in Romans 7:15-25.
• Confession and Repentance
  Martin Luther began his famous 95 Theses by saying, “Our Lord and Master Jesus Christ willed the entire life of believers to be one of repentance.” At the heart of the life of any disciple is confession and repentance. Confession and repentance drive us to our knees as we acknowledge our own sinfulness and unworthiness as well as our need for God and His work in our lives. In confession, God graciously gives to each of us the forgiveness of sins and we are sent forth to live the life that God has called us to live. In private confession, the pastor after someone has confessed and announced absolution sends the penitent away with the words “Arise and sin no more.”
  One must see the importance of confession and repentance in discipleship. Confession and repentance must not be mistaken with simply being caught or saying I’m sorry, for repentance is acknowledging our sin and coming to the foot of the cross asking God through the power of the Spirit to help us to turn around our life to align it with God’s will and Word.