Why We Don’t Disciple: The Destructive Dichotomy

As most of you know, assuming you’ve perused through my blog before, I enjoy writing about the authentic application of Christian faith in real-world situations; this post will most assuredly stem from the same vein of thought. But before you change the channel in an effort to skip a “re-run,” I humbly ask you to read through this message with an open heart and mind. Although I’m not a fan of using an overly-solemn tone in a casual, blog environment, I’ve recently been struck with a significant Truth that I believe merits an attentive audience. To me, it’s a borderline epiphany; I pray it will be a liberating discovery for you also.

Olivet Baptist Church, the local body of Jesus Christ to which I belong, has been in the process of making “discipleship” less of a concept and more of a reality. To be sure, it doesn’t require much study in the Scriptures to see the incredible impact of Christian discipleship upon the life of someone; in my estimation, the leaders of Olivet are in a very worthwhile pursuit. Nonetheless, I’ve recently been pondering the obstacles to discipleship, asking myself questions such as: Why is it such an uncommon practice in contemporary American churches? How is it possible to cultivate a genuine desire for discipleship? What intellectual and spiritual equipment does one need to disciple a fellow Christian? These questions and others have led me to realize a major cultural dichotomy in the modern Christian ethos. I have come to believe that modern-day, American Christians have either purposefully, or more likely, subconsciously adopted a set of destructive false assumptions about the applicability of their faith.

First off, at some level, I think that many church-going Christians believe that the mission of the church is to be completed through salaried church personnel. Although it may not be audibly voiced, there is this subtle, corporate conviction that tithing exists in order to provide staff salaries, which equips them to “grow” the church. But we have to ask ourselves: Why does our modern Christian culture carry this sentiment? Why is there this aura of deferring “Kingdom” responsibilities to church leadership? Here’s where we insert the next false assumption. I also think, at some level, that many American Christians believe it is too difficult to accomplish “Kingdom” work unless they are in a full-time ministry position. We perceive that our pastors are on the frontlines of spiritual warfare, but we envision ourselves at the back of the war party, doling out our monthly checks to buy war supplies for the leadership. And so once again, why do Christian laypeople in America carry this worldview? I think we can find our answer by unpacking the secular, cultural nonsense we’ve been consorting with.

Growing up in public school, I was taught all the standard disciplines; math, science, history, english, fine arts, etc. I was taught how to do them, and if any student asked why we needed to know them, the answer was always “real-world preparation.” Beyond this reason, there was never any other reason provided. And so we learned that high school existed to prepare students for college; and that college existed to prepare students to achieve gainful employment; and that jobs exist to provide money so we can get by. And so on Wednesday nights, I would go to youth group and hear Brian talk about “living for Jesus.” Then I would go back to school on Thursday and learn about math so I could go to college, get a job and make money. Now while this dissection may seem trivial to you, allow me to amplify the implications.

The modern American culture and the public school system have taught me that there are two divided groups of knowledge. There is objective, non-biased knowledge and subjective, faith-based knowledge. They purport that all rational people must know the objective knowledge and should never apply their religious convictions to it – that’s simply not what rational people do, they say. And they claim to care less about the subjective arena; tolerance and acceptance is all they talk about here. And so I grew up operating more like an emigrant than a citizen; I spoke the language of “irrational” faith on Wednesday and Sunday with my church family, and spoke the language of “rational” real-world preparation the rest of the week. This, my friends, is the issue. This is the dichotomy of which I speak.

Essentially, most Christian Americans do not operate in full-time ministry positions. They operate in the “real world.” And thus, we have all been programmed by our culture to believe that there really is no place for faith in the workforce. There is, of course, the encouragement to not cheat or lie, to be nice to coworkers and to share Jesus with them; but what about the application of Jesus Christ in the content of our profession. For example, God most definitely heals people in unexplainable, miraculous ways; but does He not use doctors to heal people? Do Christian doctors not see that they are on the frontlines of God’s Kingdom, using their profession to heal? What about attorneys? God most definitely protects the weak and punishes the wicked; but does He not use attorneys to carry out His will? Do Christian attorneys not see that they are the preservers of God’s justice on Earth? For a less tangible application, consider a mathematician. It doesn’t require faith in Jesus Christ to know that 2+2 always equals 4. But tell me why 2+2 always equals 4? Is it true just because that’s the way it is? Or can the Christian mathematician talk of the singular Truth of God’s order, and His nature being revealed in mathematical singularity? To some degree, many Christian laypeople have decided that they cannot be on the frontlines of God’s Kingdom work, simply because they chose to work in the “secular” arena. That’s a lie! All truth is God-breathed and everything can be done for the glory of and service to God.

So back to the original issue; I think Christian laypeople minimize the significance of discipleship, and simply don’t do it, because they have been duped into believing that their faith cannot possibly be applied to every facet of their life. We’re so accustomed to this “objective truth/subjective truth” dichotomy that we’ve simply adopted it as a working worldview; the proof is in the pudding. We live like emigrants, speaking the language of our “people” one day a week and going back to the “trade” language for the other six days. Jesus Christ has made all things new, not just some things.

Finally, although our culture says that it’s possible to operate “objectively,” that’s simply impossible. We are religious beings by nature and we naturally worship; removing God from the picture doesn’t change that – it just changes what we’re worshipping. Our culture worships money, professional success, instant gratification and independence. The “objective” truth professed in our public schools and by our culture is tailored to provide these ends. Thus, we cannot idly stand by and assume that we are being “bigoted” and “narrow” by adopting a fully holistic Christian worldview; our culture proclaims that judgment upon us in defense of their idols. And what’s worse, if we believe it, we’re sure to mitigate our significance for God’s Kingdom. Instead, we must choose one master to serve. Discipleship is a byproduct of authentic Christian change and joy, and stems from the conviction that Jesus Christ is the most precious treasure in the universe; if we believed this, we would most definitely share it. But if we continue to rob ourselves by worshipping idols for six days of the week, we’ll never make room for the Spirit to lead us into a discipling relationship.