by Craig Etheredge

Dietrich Bonhoeffer grew up in an upper-middle-class German family of doctors and scientists. So when he told his parents that he wanted to study theology, they were not that excited. Dietrich later became one of the world’s foremost theologians and thinkers of the 20th century. He is not remembered as much for his public sermons as he is for his courageous stand against the massive wave of evil that swept over his country. Bonhoeffer served churches in Germany during World War II, and he saw the struggle within the German church under the growing pressure of the surging Nazi regime.

As the German Church officially supported the Aryan agenda, Bonhoeffer separated himself and led out in the establishment of a new Confessing Church that stood on the Scriptures. He secretly joined a resistance movement and was later implicated in a failed plot to assassinate Adolf Hitler. Just a couple of months following his 39th birthday, he was hung in a concentration camp in Flossenburg. Dietrich was a man who understood, more than most, the cost of discipleship. He was a Christian surrounded by suffering, and yet he didn’t hide from it—he embraced it with devotion to God and to the people he loved. Below are some of the greatest quotes from his book, “The Cost of Discipleship”.

“To endure the cross is not tragedy; it is the suffering which is the fruit of an exclusive allegiance.”

“When Christ calls a man, he bids him come and die.”

“Cheap grace is the grace we bestow on ourselves. Cheap grace is the preaching

of forgiveness without requiring repentance, baptism without church discipline,

Communion without confession… Cheap grace is grace without discipleship,

grace without the cross, grace without Jesus Christ, living and incarnate.”

“Being a Christian is less about cautiously avoiding sin than about courageously and actively doing God’s will.”

“Costly grace is the treasure hidden in the field; for the sake of it, a man will go and sell all that he has. It is the pearl of great price to buy which the merchant will sell all his goods. It is the kingly rule of Christ, for whose sake a man will pluck out the eye which causes him to stumble; it is the call of Jesus Christ at which the disciple leaves his nets and follows him.”

“One act of obedience is better than one hundred sermons.”

Bonhoeffer communicated to his generation the simple truth that following Jesus requires sacrifice. This was the lesson Jesus taught his disciples as He moved into the final months of His earthly ministry. Jesus had taken His disciples up into the region of Caesarea Philippi in the northern part of Israel. It was a place filled with pagan idols and the worship of foreign gods. And in that hostile environment, Jesus declared that upon the declaration of the Gospel, He would build His church and the gates of Hades could not prevail against it. Jesus was saying, “No matter how dark this world becomes, nothing can put out the light of the Gospel.”

This was a pivotal time in Jesus’ life. It was there He gathered His disciples around Him and declared, “If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me,” (Luke 9:23 ESV). With only a few months left before He would face the cross, Jesus began to speak clearly, and often about the cost of being a disciple and building disciples makers. He said to come after Him required denying our own selfish interests every day and yielding to God’s Kingdom as a priority. He said following Him meant taking up our own cross – an instrument of suffering and death – and putting Him first no matter what. In short, Jesus was saying that following Him required suffering, sacrifice and self-denial. (Luke 9:51 ESV) says that Jesus “set his face toward Jerusalem.” The term “set his face” could be translated “determined”, “resolute”; “steadfast”. Jesus was focused on going up to Jerusalem.

At this time, He began to reveal to His disciples the death He would face there. “The Son of Man must suffer many things and be rejected by the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be killed, and on the third day be raised,” (Luke 9:22 ESV). This was the first of three clear predictions of His death, burial and resurrection (Matthew 16:21; 17:22-23; 20:18–19 ESV). What awaited Jesus in Jerusalem was suffering and sacrifice. It was also during this time that Jesus’ disciples began to multiply. The Twelve quickly multiplied to The Seventy-Two, and they were deployed by Jesus to go preach and perform miracles in His name (Luke 10:1 ESV). Before long, they came back rejoicing at the wonders they saw, and the people who had come to faith in Christ (Luke 10:17 ESV). The movement had now reached the fourth generation – Jesus, the disciples, the seventy-two and the new believers. Now the movement was unstoppable. And this reality caused Jesus to be filled with joy (Luke 10:21 ESV)! The vision was becoming a reality. But that reality would not happen apart from sacrifice. It would not happen apart from suffering and self-denial.

For you to multiply your life, it will require a paradigm shift. Instead of living your life to please yourself, and instead of living to accomplish your temporal goals, it will require that you set aside your self-centered interests and begin to live a life focused on others. It will require you to sacrifice at times your own comfort and convenience, so you can fully obey Jesus’ commission. Jesus said in (John 12:24 NLT),

“I tell you the truth, unless a kernel of wheat is planted in the soil and dies, it remains alone. But its death will produce many new kernels–a plentiful harvest of new lives.”

It was through Jesus’ sacrifice on the cross that many people were saved. In the same way, when you die to yourself and the plans you have for your life, only then can God truly multiply your life in a powerful way.

This was certainly the same mindset in the Apostle Paul who said: “For me to live is Christ and to die is gain,”(Philippians 1:21 ESV). He also said, “I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live but Christ lives in me…”(Galatians 2:20 ESV). Paul had made up his mind, he was going to live for Jesus no matter what, and his life is still bearing fruit today. He single-handedly ignited a movement by taking the Gospel to the nations, How will you live your life? Will you live it for yourself or will you give your life away to something greater? You have no idea what God could do with your one single life if you lived it completely and passionately for Him. Don’t waste your life—multiply your life!

Used with permission.

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Fear can hold you back, but the Spirit can make you bold.

Probably the biggest excuse that keeps us from talking about Jesus is fear. We are afraid to talk to someone we don’t know. We are afraid of how they will respond. We are afraid of looking foolish or saying the wrong thing. We are afraid of getting into a conversation that will go over our heads. Fear paralyzes.

While most experts say each of us when threatened, has a fight or flight instinct, the reality is we also have another instinct — freeze. It’s a fascinating study of why people freeze up and don’t respond even when facing a life-threatening situation. That’s because fear makes us freeze. It renders us powerless to move or even react appropriately.

Most of the time, we are afraid of sharing our faith because we think that means we are going to be forced to knock on doors, or preach on the street corners. Confrontational styles of evangelism may not fit your personality or gifting. That’s OK. But we can’t let fear keep us from sharing what Jesus has done for us. So how can we move past fear? Let me answer that question with a story.

In Acts 3-4, Peter and john were headed to the temple in Jerusalem to worship when they encountered a man who couldn’t walk. Sensing the prompting and power of the Holy Spirit, Peter reached out his hand to this man and miraculously healed him. While everyone saw this miracle as a mighty movement of God, the religious leaders were not so excited. Peter and John were quickly called before the high court and interrogated by the very men that had plotted the death of Jesus. You would think that in this intense and intimidating situation Peter and john would cower in fear — but they didn’t.

Then Peter, filled with the Holy Spirit, said to them: “Rulers and elders of the people! If we are being called to account today for an act of kindness shown to a man who was lame and are being asked how he was healed, then know this, you and all the people of Israel: It is by the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, whom you crucified but whom God raised from the dead, that this man stands before you healed. Jesus is ‘the stone you builders rejected, which has become the cornerstone.’ Salvation is found in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given to mankind by which we must be saved.” When they saw the courage of Peter and John and realized that they were unschooled, ordinary men, they were astonished and they took note that these men had been with Jesus. (Acts 4.8-13 NIV)

Far from being fearful or quiet, Peter and john became bold. They boldly spoke the name of Jesus. They declared that Jesus died and rose from the dead. They even radically proclaimed that Jesus is the only way to salvation. And their boldness was shockingly noticeable! Look again at verse 13:

“When they saw the courage of Peter and John … they were astonished and took note that these men had been with Jesus.”

Peter and John were common, ordinary men standing before the most learned and religious men of their day. They certainly didn’t have the education and knowledge that the Pharisees and religious leaders had, but they did have one thing — boldness. They were courageous and unafraid. That is what God wants from you and me — a courageous boldness to step into any situation and declare the hope we have in Jesus.

Afterward, Peter and John were warned and released. They quickly ran back to the other disciples and they all began to pray.

“Now, Lord, consider their threats and enable your servants to speak your word with great boldness,” (acts 4.29 NIV).

Notice they didn’t pray, “Lord, protect us from these leaders,” or, “Lord, help us be wise in how we react to these threats.” They prayed for boldness to speak unashamedly and fearlessly.

What was the secret to their boldness? What made them step forward in courage instead of shrinking back in cowardice? The secret is found in verse 8:

“Then Peter, filled with the Holy Spirit, said…,”

Did you see that? It was the Holy Spirit who gave them boldness in that moment to speak what needed to be said.

In fact, all through this chapter you see both “boldness” and the “Holy Spirit” mentioned repeatedly. After the disciples prayed for boldness, look what happened…

“After they prayed, the place where they were meeting was shaken. And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and spoke the word of God boldly,” (Acts 4.31 NIV).

When you are filled and controlled by the Holy Spirit, you will speak boldly for Jesus. He will empower you. He will give you the words to speak. Jesus promised His disciples,

“When you are brought before synagogues, rulers and authorities, do not worry about how you will defend yourselves or what you will say, for the Holy Spirit will teach you at that time what you should say,” (Luke 12.11-12 NIV).

That is exactly what happened! Peter and John stood before the rulers of Israel, and the Holy Spirit gave them the words and the boldness they needed. The same is true with you. If you will be faithful to make your “Top Five” list, look for opportunities to move conversations toward God, pray for your lost friends and intentionally speak about what Jesus has done for you, the Holy Spirit will give you the boldness and the words in the moment you need them. Don’t let fear hold you back anymore! Ask God to fill you with His Spirit and with great boldness!

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By Craig Etheredge. Used with permission.

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By Craig Etheredge: In 1992, a book was published that took off like wildfire. To date, it has sold more than 10 million copies, has been translated into 50 different languages, and earned a spot on Amazon’s top 100 best seller’s list of all time. That book is “The 5 Love Languages”, by Dr. Gary Chapman.

A counselor and pastor, Dr. Chapman describes five ways through which people receive love — words of affirmation, touch, gifts, acts of service and quality time. I can remember this book having a powerful impact on my marriage as Liz and I tried to apply these principles to our relationship. What stood out most to us was the fact that every person has a primary love language. Every person has a unique way he or she receives love. The other ways are good — and we enjoy them — but there is one way that stands out above the rest that really touches our hearts.

Did you know that God also has a love language? There is one primary way He receives love from you, one way that touches His heart. On the night before His death, Jesus gathered with His men in an upper room. His heart was heavy because they would never meet like this again. In that darkened room, with shadows dancing on the ceiling, Jesus spoke about His love language. He said …

“If you love me, you will keep my commandments,” (John 14:15 ESV).
“Whoever has my commandments and keeps them is who loves me,” (John 14:21 ESV).
“If anyone loves me, he will keep my word,” (John 14:23 ESV).

Did you see it? Three times Jesus said, “If you love me, you will do what I’m commanding you to do.”

I want you to notice what He did not say. He did not say:

“If you love me, you will worship me.”
“If you love me, you will serve me.”
“If you love me, you will read and know the Bible.”
“If you love me you will give financially.”
Are those things good? Yes. Does God receive those things as good? Yes. But if you do all of those things but not the primary thing, then it doesn’t matter to Him.

What shows Jesus that you truly love Him — what touches His heart more than anything else — is when you do what He has commanded you to do! One proves the other!

Your love for God and obedience to Jesus cannot be separated. I know people who say, “I love God,” but their lives are not lined up with what Jesus clearly teaches. They claim to love God, but they are harboring bitterness, they spew out anger, they are driven by greed, they ignore the Great Commission — you name it. There is very little obedience to King Jesus in their lives. There is something wrong with this picture.

Jesus is saying, “What’s wrong with the picture is a heart issue. They don’t really love me.” Over 28 times in the Gospels, Jesus commands His followers to listen to Him and do what He says. “Listen carefully.” “Hear my words.” “Do what I say.” “Obey my commands.” “Act on what I say.”

Obedience is a big deal to Jesus, but it’s seen as optional today. I believe that the heart of the problem of why so many Christians are not experiencing the abundant, overflowing, God-blessed, joyful life that Jesus wants to give them is because of this one problem. Many really do not love Him enough to obey Him.

In the upper room, Jesus was sharing His last words with the men He had loved and poured His life into for more than three years. Last words are really important. In that moment He said, “Men, it is really important that you live a life of obedience to me!”

You may ask “Why? Why should I alter my life to obey Jesus?” It’s like the conversation when a parent tells a child to do something and the kid asks, “Why?” Usually, the parent will say something like, “Because I told you so!” Well, Jesus could have said that. He could have said, “Obey me because I’m your King!” But He didn’t. In this passage, He actually says, “If you really love me and you alter your life to obey me, I will bless you.”

Through obedience, you experience the power of the Spirit (John 14:15-17 ESV), the love of the Father (John 14:21, 23 ESV), and the nearness of Christ in your life (John 14:21, 23 ESV). Do you want to experience all that God has for your life? You can, but these things come pouring into your life through the funnel of obedience. This week we are going to look at what it means to live a life of obedience to Jesus.

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By Craig Etheredge. Used with permission.

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By Craig Etheredge: Are you a disciple?

Are you making disciples in the world around you?

A disciple is a person who is devoted to Jesus. Disciples are consistently developing in the character and competencies of Jesus. They are continually being changed both inside and out. This disciple is also deployed into the mission of Jesus and are actively sharing the Gospel and investing in believers. That’s a truly formed, fully mature disciple.

That is what Jesus calls us to be and calls us to build. Now some people might say, “I don’t see Jesus going into that detail when He told us to make disciples. How do we know that’s what He had in mind?” Remember, what was common knowledge to His disciples in their culture, is not so common to us today. So let’s go back to the beginning and try to understand what those early disciples were thinking when they heard Jesus’ invitation to “follow Me”.

In the time of Jesus, the people of Galilee were some of the most religious Jews in the world. Many famous Jewish teachers came out of Galilee. The town of Nazareth, where Jesus was raised, was established by people waiting for the coming of the Messiah. They named their village Nazareth, from the Hebrew word netzer, which means “a sprig from the root of an olive tree.” In Isaiah 7 the prophet tells us that the Messiah will come up like a sprig from the “root of Jesse”. So, these passionate, Messianic devotees literally named their town “from the nezter” or “sprig town”, in hopes that the Messiah would emerge from their village.

These were religious people. They had a great reverence for Scripture, and they fiercely resisted pagan influence. In fact, it was the Galileans who led a revolt against the Romans that ended in bloody defeat in 66-74 AD, and ultimately sealed the fate of their total domination under Roman rule. They were the last to hold out against Western paganism. This was the environment in which Jesus and a majority of His disciples grew up. These people loved God, loved the Torah and were radically committed to raising their children to do the same. From birth, boys and girls heard the reading of the Torah as their parents and grandparents recited the Scriptures over them. Often, an infant’s first words would come from God’s Word. By age five, boys and girls entered formal education at the synagogue, taught by a Rabbi (teacher). This was called the Bet Sefer (house of the book), fashioned much like our elementary schools today. It was there that children learned the Hebrew alphabet, reading, writing and the fundamental teachings of the Torah. Most children had the entire first five books of the Old Testament memorized by the age of ten!

It was said that people could hear the “chirping of children” as they recited their verses, (“The Jewish People in the First Century”, pg. 953). After age ten, the next step was to learn a trade. Young boys learned the trade of their fathers, and young girls learned to work alongside their mothers. Only the very best and brightest were allowed to continue their studies. Around age ten, these chosen few entered Bet Talmud (the house of learning), or Beth Midrash (the house of study) much like our high schools and universities, where they learned to master the Law, the oral traditions, and the Rabbinic interpretations. Of course, this involved even more memorization. Most families did not own a copy of the Torah, so they memorized it, reciting aloud large passages of Scripture and debating its meaning. The Jewish Encyclopedia states, “There were 480 synagogues in Jerusalem, each containing a bet ha-sefer (primary school) and bet Talmud (same as bet ha-midrash), for the study of the Law and the traditions.”

It was at this point, that most completed their education. These young men went back to work in their father’s trade. But there were a few – the elite – who moved to the next level in education. This usually happened around age 15. Those who were especially gifted academically would seek out a Rabbi to study under, often leaving their homes to devote their lives to learning from this master and becoming like him. This student was called a “talmid” or “disciple”. A disciple was much more than just a student or a learner. A student wants to know what his teacher knows, but a talmidim wants to become what his master has become. Once a “talmid” chose the Rabbi he wanted to sit under, he would ask if he could “follow” the Rabbi. The Rabbi would thoroughly evaluate him to see if he had the mental ability, commitment and necessary character for the task. And if the “talmid” was accepted, he would hear the Rabbi say those coveted words, “Follow me”. It was then that young “talmid” would devote the next 15 years of his life to the Rabbi.

Now think about the words Jesus gave His first disciples. At the time Jesus approached them, they were probably between 16 and 19 years of age. They were working with their fathers. They had gone as far as they were going to go academically. They most likely had been passed over by other Rabbi’s, considered not good enough to go to the next level. When those early disciples heard Rabbi Jesus say the words “Follow me,” (Matthew 4.18-20 ESV), they knew what He meant. They knew He was calling them to a lifelong commitment. Scholar and writer, Ray Vander Laan writes, “The decision to follow a rabbi as a talmid meant total commitment in the first century as it does today.” Jesus is still offering this incredible invitation. He wants you to follow Him. He wants you to be devoted to Him as your master, to develop His character and priorities in your life, and then to deploy you as His change agents in the world. This is the invitation to discipleship.

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By Craig Etheredge. Used with permission.

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By Craig Etheredge: Be ready to give an answer for the hope that you have.

Questions

The restaurant was packed and busy, but we didn’t notice. We were deeply engaged in conversation. “But how can I believe that the Bible is true?” he asked. “I think it is just a bunch of good sayings and thoughts, but not without error, and I’m sure it has been changed over the years.” I had been inviting this person to church for months, and we had struck up a solid friendship. He knew where I stood with Jesus, and I knew where he stood. Often he would say things for the shock effect, but I never reacted. He liked that. On this day, we were tackling the questions he had about God, the Bible and eternity.

Many people have questions. The days when people just accept the fact of God’s existence or the reliability of the Scriptures are all but gone. Due to our pluralistic culture and the ability to travel and access information, the world is filled with many and various thoughts about God. Therefore, most people you share the Gospel with will have questions.

Now for many Christians, this scares them to death. Most of us feel woefully unprepared to lay out detailed arguments and intellectual support for the simple Gospel message. That kind of stuff is left to the scholars and experts. But you don’t need to be afraid of questions. In fact, questions are our friends. The more questions asked, the more we are talking about Jesus. The more we talk about Jesus, the more opportunity there is for God to work on people’s hearts.

In my experience, most questions that spiritually exploring people ask are either smokescreens or roadblocks. Just as a magician may throw smoke to cover up what he is doing on the stage, some people ask questions just to divert the conversation to something other than the simple Gospel message. These are stall tactics. Other people pose questions simply because they love to debate. They love the back-and-forth dialogue. They love to hear and make arguments. Some have a desire for learning, but they have no intention of actually placing their faith in Jesus. In each case, the person is using his or her questions as a smokescreen, but internally, there is no real desire to find truth.

There are also people who ask questions that are roadblocks keeping them from taking their next step toward Christ. They just can’t get past these questions, and therefore, they are stuck in their pursuit of Jesus. I truly believe my friend was hitting roadblocks the day we had lunch. He really had some issues he had to work through before he could legitimately pursue Jesus.

As you talk to your lost friends, it is important to pray God will give you discernment to know if their questions are smokescreens or roadblocks. For those who are throwing up smoke but have no real interest in investigating Jesus, you may not want to spend much time with them (Matthew 10:14 ESV). There are many people out there who are eager to hear the Gospel. Jesus said the field is “ripe for harvest,” (John 4.35 NIV). When those who are truly seeking get stuck on an issue, you want to help them explore the claims of Christ and find answers to their spiritual questions.

The Apostle Peter gives us some good counsel on this subject. “But in your hearts revere Christ as Lord. Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have. But do this with gentleness and respect,” (1 Peter 3.15 NIV). Peter was encouraging a church that was in the middle of intense persecution. They lived in a hostile environment. Peter’s message was, “Be sure you are putting Christ first in your life.”

The strongest evidence for Jesus is your changed life. As people see how you live and how you love Jesus, it will help them deal with the questions they are facing. Peter goes on to say, “Be ready to give an answer.” Other versions say, “Be ready to explain it;” “Make a defense;” “Give the reason for the hope that you have.” We need to be ready and prepared to answer key questions of the faith.

Remember, if you are asked a question to which you don’t know the answer, it is perfectly appropriate to simply say, “I don’t know. That’s a good question. Let’s look into this together.” Then you can do some research, find sources and unearth answers that address this particular problem. You do not have to have every answer ready all the time. You just need to be prepared to share the Gospel clearly and be available to help your friend work through these vexing questions.

Don’t ever forget that you have the truth, and you have the Holy Spirit. You don’t need more than that.

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By Craig Etheredge. Used with permission.

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Following Jesus

By Craig Etheredge: Jesus gave the same invitation to everyone. It was simple, direct, and called for a decision. It could be accepted or denied, but not ignored. The invitation was simply, “Follow me.” More than twenty-four times in the Gospels, Jesus invited people to follow Him. He invited the wealthy and powerful, the casual observer, the spiritual seekers, and even the religiously devoted. Jesus called everyone to follow Him.

One day while walking along the Sea of Galilee, Jesus passed by fishermen caring for their nets. They had known Jesus for a while, but now it was time for them to make a decision.

“And he said to them, ‘Follow me, and I will make you fishers of men’”(Matthew 4.19 ESV).

For those men, following Jesus meant leaving behind their old life to go with Jesus. It meant being trained by Jesus, learning to obey Jesus, and coming under the authority and leadership of Jesus. Ultimately, it meant living a life that looked just like Jesus — reflecting His character, priorities, and practices. Jesus offers the same invitation today. He still calls men and women to follow Him.

While following Jesus doesn’t mean physically following Him around, it does mean turning from living your own life and choosing to live a new kind of life with Jesus in charge. Essentially, there are two ways to live. You can live with yourself in charge, going your way, and pursuing your own happiness. Or you can live with Jesus in charge, going His way, and pursuing what makes Him happy. You will discover that the first way to live always leads to a dead-end and separation from God, while the second way always leads to purpose, peace, and assurance.

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By Craig Etheredge. Used with permission.

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Source: The Great Adventure

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The Path

By Craig Etheredge: The path you choose determines your destination.

This is a simple way to share the Gospel. The Gospel begins, “in the beginning.” In our day and age, we cannot assume someone has a Biblical worldview, or even believes in a personal God. It’s best to start with the idea that God exists, that He created the world, and that He has a plan for your life.

As you sit down to share the Gospel, you want to start with the reason God created each one of us in the first place. When God created the world, He created people with the desire and capacity to know Him in a deep and personal way. All of us were created like this. We all desire to know God and discover His purpose for our lives.

As you share the Gospel, start out by drawing a line with an arrow on the end.

You may say something like this: “The path you choose in life determines your destination. If you are living in Dallas and you want to go to California, you won’t get on a highway headed east. You might end up in Georgia, but you will never get to California that way because the path you choose determines your destination. And in the same way, the path you choose in life determines what kind of life you will have and where you will end up. This line represents God’s path for your life. God created every person to know Him in a deep and personal way.”

Psalm 16:11 says, “You make known to me the path of life; in your presence there is fullness of joy; at your right hand are pleasures forevermore.”

Write “Path of Life” along the line.

Then continue: “Along this path you can know God. You can experience His peace and discover His purpose for your life, and you can have assurance that you will be with Him for eternity when you die.”

As you say those words, you can write them at the end of the path line — peace, purpose, assurance.

The Detour

We have traded God’s way for our way.

After you have drawn out God’s path of life and written the words “peace, purpose and assurance” at the end of the line, you are ready to describe the problem.

You may say, “While God has a path that is good for us, not everyone is on that path. All you have to do is look around to see that there is a lot of evil and hurt in this world. Something has gone terribly wrong.”

At this point, you can draw a line coming off God’s path that turns and goes in the opposite direction.

Say, “The problem is that we have lost our way and veered off course from God’s path. Isaiah 53:6 says, “All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned—every one—to his own way.” The Bible calls this straying away from God’s path sin. Romans 3:23 says “for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.” In a very real way, we all have fallen short of God’s path. We have taken our own path, exchanging God’s way for our way. Although we may not realize it, we are going the opposite direction from God.

Now draw a vertical line in front of “my path” on the diagram, showing a dead end.

Say, “Ultimately, if we continue down this road, we will hit a wall. Usually this comes in the form of a crisis or difficulty. It is then that we realize we are missing something. We don’t have a relationship with God. We don’t have His peace. We don’t know His purpose. We don’t have assurance of what will happen to us when we die. Oftentimes, this wall is God’s way of getting our attention.”

You may want to pause here and see if that resonates with them. However, if we continue to go down this road, then ultimately we will hit the wall of God’s judgment.

Romans 14:12 says, So then each of us will give an account of himself to God. Each one of us will have to stand before God and be judged for our sin. Because God is holy and perfect, He must judge the wrong in the world and the wrong in us.

Romans 6:23 says, For the wages of sin is death. We have sinned against God, and our sin is leading us down a road that is far from God and will end in not just physical death, but spiritual death and separation from God forever.

This is the bad news of the Bible. We’ve lost our own way, and we are powerless to get back on our own.

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By Craig Etheredge. Used by permission.

The post How to Share the Gospel appeared first on Discipleship.org.

Source: How to Share the Gospel

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By Craig Etheredge: Not only will this world resist you, but this world will also tempt you. The culture will oppose you, and if that doesn’t work, it will try to lure you away from following Jesus by enticing you to sin. Jesus experienced both.

Those who opposed Jesus resisted Him outright, but He also was tempted. In both Matthew 4 and Luke 4, we see Jesus facing temptation from Satan himself. We will take a deeper look at these passages tomorrow, but know this… if Jesus faced temptation, you will too. Where do these temptations come from? We know that temptation to do evil does not come from God. “God never tempts us to do what is wrong” (James 1:13; Luke 11:4 ESV).

Look at how James answered that question: “Temptation comes from our own desires, which entice us and drag us away. These desires give birth to sinful actions. And when sin is allowed to grow, it gives birth to death,” (James 1:14-15 NLT).

Satan tempts by stirring up our own wayward and wicked desires to do wrong. Notice the aggressive language. When you give in to temptation, you are “dragged away.” You are no longer in control, but you are under sin’s control and that one temptation can lead to devastating results. Thoughts lead to actions. Actions become habits. And habits destroy lives.

You probably know people who thought they could play with temptation only later to be consumed and destroyed by it. There are three main areas where temptation strikes. “Do not love this world nor the things it offers you, for when you love the world, you do not have the love of the Father in you. For the world offers only a craving for physical pleasure, a craving for everything we see, and pride in our achievements and possessions. These are not from the Father, but are from this world,”(1 John 2:15-16 NLT).

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The areas in which we are most vulnerable to temptation are physical pleasure, the constant craving for more things, and pride for what we have and what we’ve done. John is saying, “these longings don’t come from God, but are shaped by the culture around us.” Behind it, all is an intentional plan to destroy you and draw you away from Jesus.

Peter warns, “Stay alert! Watch out for your great enemy, the devil. He prowls around like a roaring lion, looking for someone to devour,” (1 Peter 5:8 NLT). The struggle is real. The enemy is resolute and determined, but you can stand under temptation because God has provided you a way out.

Notice what Paul says about every temptation you face: “The temptations in your life are no different from what others experience. And God is faithful. He will not allow the temptation to be more than you can stand. When you are tempted, he will show you a way out so that you can endure,” (1 Corinthians 10:13 NLT).

The temptations you face are common to everyone. Your enemy is not very creative. He uses the same temptations over and over. We all face them, but notice – God is faithful. Faithful means 100 percent. That means that God is faithful 100 percent of the time!

Faithful to do what? God is faithful to ensure that you are never tempted beyond what you can handle in His power. He is faithful to show you a way out every time you are tempted. There will always be an exit sign; you just have to take it.

By Craig Etheredge of discipleFIRST. Used by permission.

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Source: The Lure of Temptation

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By Craig Etheredge:

Let’s just say it out loud.

We are addicted to programs.
We are tied to our traditions.

Just as an addict reacts emotionally when weaned off of his drug, people react negatively when their favorite program is changed or canceled. This reality has kept even the bravest leaders from making necessary changes lest they find themselves looking for other employment! So, why risk it? Why make changes? The answer is the danger of misalignment.

Ask your mechanic what happens when your tires are misaligned. Ultimately, the excess rub and drag of one tire misaligned will lead to a blowout. I remember sitting in a leadership training seminar. They showed us a picture of a championship rowing team. Each team member was in his place, rowing in perfect precision. Each one was doing exactly his part. They were completely aligned to accomplish their goal. Now imagine the same team, but this time one member is out of sync. His oar is colliding with the others or dragging in the water too long. Maybe he doesn’t like facing in the same direction as everyone else and wants to change his seat. What is he doing? His misalignment is hurting the team and ultimately the cause.

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When you have programming that is good, but is not aligned to your disciple-making philosophy of ministry, it hurts the team and the cause. Misalignment is dangerous. For example, misaligned programs distract. They distract people from being involved in mission-critical initiatives. Misaligned programs dilute resources. Finances, facilities, and leadership given to these programs take away from more important and effective plans. Misaligned programs clutter the schedule and compete for promotional time. Misaligned programs are not strategic. They move by their own inertia, not because they make a significant contribution to the direction of the church. Misaligned programs are often “off-limits” to any critical assessment. Their results and effectiveness are seldom evaluated.

What can be done about the misalignment in your church? Well, I don’t recommend that you unilaterally decide what needs to change and announce it from the platform on Sunday. Abrupt changes only engender defensiveness and conflict. Don’t say, “I’ve decided we are going to be a disciple-making church and so we are going to scrap all that we have been doing and go in a new direction.” That might be your last sermon. Even Jesus drew a hostile reaction in Nazareth when he proposed a change in their thinking. The better way is to lead your church to embrace and celebrate a culture of ongoing evaluation.

By Craig Etheredge of discipleFIRST. Used by permission.

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Source: What Are You Pouring Your Life Into?

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Making Disciples

By Craig Etheredge: “So if I buy into what you are saying, what is going to be different about my ministry six months from now?” It was a good question, coming from a seasoned pastor. As we shared lunch together in a nice restaurant, the topic of conversation was making disciples. This pastor had led his church to become one of the most influential churches in his district, seeing people come to Christ and watching the church expand. However, over the past few years, the church numbers were beginning to sag. Other churches in the area were gaining traction while his ministry was sputtering. He wanted to know more about making disciples because God had put in his heart that the problem was deeper than just the weekend attendance.

Raise Up Stronger, More Committed Believers

He was convinced that he needed to raise up stronger, more committed believers, but he was unclear what that would look like or how to do it. Around that table, we talked about Jesus as the model for making disciples and the definition of a disciple. I briefly explained that Jesus had a simple four-step strategy for producing disciples and disciple-makers. Then he dropped the question. “What’s going to be different six months from now if I course-correct and head this direction?” You may be wondering the same thing. Up until now, you probably agree with most of what you’ve read. But does disciple-making really make a difference in a church?

Disciple-Making Changes Things

The short answer is yes. Disciple-making changes the DNA of your church from being about managing activities to investing in people.

Every man pours his life into something. What are you pouring your life into? If there was ever a time we needed pastors to make disciples and raise up godly men, the time is now. The church needs you. Men need you. If you will follow the example of Jesus and give yourself to making disciples, your influence will live on in the men who come after you, and your impact will remain until He returns.

I don’t know about you, but I don’t want to give my one and only life to maintaining an organization. However, I would readily give my life to a movement that changes people.

By Craig Etheredge

Used by permission. Originally posted here:

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Source: Move from Religious Activity to Relational Investment

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