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Powerful Thought from Dallas Willard
Imagine a church sign that read “We Teach All Who Seriously Commit Themselves to Jesus How to Do Everything He Said to Do.”
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Why Could We Not Cast It Out?
Mark 9:14-29. The disciples couldn’t cast out the demon from the boy. The father easily confessed his belief and lack of belief and asked for more. Yet… the disciples are baffled. Mark, in his gospel, leaves the disciples baffled more than the other gospel writers. One of the heart-searching things about the Gospel of Mark is how I find myself…
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The Offer They Couldn’t Refuse
We are in the Gospel of Mark this week. Pay attention to the significant differences between Luke, Matthew, and Mark. Mark starts off like a starter’s pistol in a sprint. He doesn’t seem to slow down for anything in the first few chapters. But I want him to slow it up. I want him to explain to me how Jesus…
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Fixing Our Attention
There are probably many in our world who still erroneously believe that Christianity is for the weak. It is for those who cannot think for themselves. It is for those in need of a “crutch.” Something like that. The claim I have made for years is the exact opposite. Christianity is not for the weak of heart. Have you met…
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The Process of Discipleship and the Beauty of Communion
I wrote earlier about the process of discipleship. When it comes to obedience, we so often need to “loop” right back up to faith. Discipleship isn’t “linear.” It’s a cycle. It’s a cycle that grows, but we never “leave” a certain step or stage of the process. We build. That is the beauty of communion. It “loops” us around. We come…
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Jesus Mean and Wild
We like the “meek and mild” Jesus. The tough side of Jesus gets hidden. (Mark Driscoll reverses that, but he’s another story.) In Matthew 8 and 9 we have a lot of stories about miracles and few stories about discipleship. In Matt. 8:18-22 we have one tough lesson on discipleship. The question is basically this: “Are you here to follow,…
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The Sermon on the Mount and the Process of Discipleship
For years I have taught that the Sermon on the Mount is the clearest teaching on the Kingdom of God in found in one place in Scripture. Going through Matthew this time as our church prepares for Sunday, I’ve walked through the passage again to find if that still holds true as a statement for me. The pattern I have…
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The Power of the Grace of God
Grace isn’t just about forgiveness of sins. It is the power to live. Titus 2:11-14 gives an outline on the power God gives us through grace. There are things TO do… and things NOT to do. I am reminded of Dallas Willard saying Christians should burn through grace every day like a jet burns fuel on take off. We need…
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You are DEAD… and That is Good News!
Before there was a TV show about hoarders, I lived it. Well, I didn’t personally live it. My dad was in business and some customers he dealt with were in that category long before there was a TV show. Too bad those folks died so many years ago, those TV producers would have LOVED them! Before there was the TV show, there…
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Am I Immersed in the Mission?
“Our mission is to make disciples of Jesus, immersing them in the trinitarian LIFE in the Kingdom of God, teaching them to do what Jesus said.” — Dallas Willard
Tag: Discipleship
