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“Philosophers,” wrote Karl Marx, “have only interpreted the world differently; the point is, however, to change it.” However unlike they are in fundamental affirmations, the Christian gospel and communism are at this point in agreement. But the agreement goes little further. Distinctively, the church proclaims the changed world as the consequence of changed men. Reflective man produces new philosophies; it is only regenerate man who holds the clue to a society that is really new.
One has to go to the New Testament, and the Gospels in particular, to really see the plan of Jesus.
We must remember that the witnesses who wrote the books not only saw the truth; they were changed by it.
Contrary to our superficial thinking, there never was a distinction in his mind between home and foreign missions. To Jesus it was all world evangelism.
He lived, he died, and he rose again according to schedule.
His concern was not with programs to reach the multitudes, but with men whom the multitudes would follow.
One cannot transform a world except as individuals in the world are transformed, and individuals cannot be changed except as they are molded in the hands of the Master.
Jesus doubtless would not be considered among the most productive mass evangelists of the church.
Jesus was not trying to impress the crowd, but to usher in a kingdom. This meant that he needed people who could lead the multitudes.
The result is our spectacular emphasis on numbers of converts, candidates for baptism, and more members for the church, with little or no genuine concern manifested toward the establishment of these souls in the love and power of God, let alone the preservation and continuation of the work.
A few people so dedicated in time will shake the world for God. Victory is never won by the multitudes.
Everything that is done with the few is for the salvation of the multitudes.
We must decide where we want our ministry to count—in the momentary applause of popular recognition or in the reproduction of our lives in a few chosen people who will carry on our work after we have gone.
Having called his men, Jesus made a practice of being with them. This was the essence of his training program—just letting his disciples follow him.
Knowledge was gained by association before it was understood by explanation.
Jesus made it clear that before these men were “to preach” or “to cast out devils” they were to be “with him.”
Preaching to the masses, although necessary, will never suffice in the work of preparing leaders for evangelism. Nor can occasional prayer meetings and training classes for Christian workers do this job. Building men and women is not that easy. It requires constant personal attention, much like a father gives to his children. This is something that no organization or class can ever do. Children are not raised by proxy. The example of Jesus would teach us that it can be done only by persons staying close to those whom they seek to lead.
With such haphazard follow-up of believers, it is no wonder that about half of those who make professions and join the church eventually fall away or lose the glow of a Christian experience, and fewer still grow in sufficient knowledge and grace to be of any real service to the Kingdom.
This means that some system must be found whereby every convert is given a Christian friend to follow until such time as he or she can lead another.
Jesus expected the men he was with to obey him.
It soon became apparent that being a disciple of Christ involved far more than a joyful acceptance of the Messianic promise: it meant the surrender of one’s whole life to the Master in absolute submission to his sovereignty.
He was training leaders for the Kingdom, and if they were going to be fit vessels of service, they were going to have to pay the price.
Jesus did not have the time nor the desire to scatter himself on those who wanted to make their own terms of discipleship.
Obedience to Christ thus was the very means by which those in his company learned more truth.
In his human nature he continually gave consent to the will of his Father, which made it possible for God to use his life fully according to its intended purpose.
The cross was but the crowning climax of Jesus’ commitment to do the will of God. It forever showed that obedience could not be compromised—it was always a commitment unto death.
There is no place in the Kingdom for a slacker, for such an attitude not only precludes any growth in grace and knowledge but also destroys any usefulness on the world battlefield of evangelism.
Love is like that. It is always giving itself away. When it is self-contained, it is not love.
Jesus prayed: “O righteous Father, the world knew thee not, but I knew thee; and these knew that thou didst send me; and I made known unto them thy name, and will make it known; that the love wherewith thou lovedst me may be in them, and I in them” ( John 17:25–26).
All the disciples were asked to do was to let the Spirit have complete charge of their lives.
Looking at it from this perspective, it was better for Jesus, having finished his work, to return to the Father and send the blessed Comforter to come and take his place ( John 16:7).
The whole thing revolves around the person of the Master. Basically, his way was his life. And so it must be with his followers.
We must have his life in us by the Spirit if we are to do his work and practice his teaching.
The very ability to give away our life in Christ is the proof of its possession.
Here is the great paradox of life—we must die to ourselves to live in Christ, and in that renunciation of ourselves, we must give ourselves away in service and devotion to our Lord.
One thing is certain: unless they grasped the meaning of prayer, and learned how to practice it with consistency, not much would ever come from their lives.
Another aspect of Jesus’ life that was vividly portrayed to the disciples was the importance and use of the Holy Scriptures.
In everything it was made abundantly clear that the word written in the Scriptures and the word spoken by Christ were not in contradiction, but rather complemented each other.
Jesus was so much the Master in his teaching that he did not let his method obscure his lesson.
He let his truth call attention to itself, and not the presentation.5 His method in this respect was to conceal the fact that he even had a method. He was his method.
Everything he said and did was a personal lesson in reality, and since the disciples were there to notice it, they were learning practically every moment of their waking day.
Jesus was always building his ministry for the time when his disciples would have to take over his work and go out into the world with the redeeming gospel.
Like a mother eagle teaching her young to fly by pushing them out of the nest, Jesus pushed his disciples out into the world to try their own wings.
He first reaffirmed his purpose for their lives. They were to go and “preach the kingdom of God, and to heal the sick” (Luke 9:1, 2; see Matt. 10:1; Mark 6:7).
Christian disciples are sent men and women—sent out in the same work of world evangelism to which the Lord was sent, and for which he gave his life. Evangelism is not an optional accessory to our life.
We must always remember, too, that the goal is world conquest. We dare not let a lesser concern capture our strategy of the moment.
Disciples must be brought to maturity.
Jesus intended for the disciples to produce his likeness in and through the church being gathered out of the world.
This was the way his church was to win—through the dedicated lives of those who knew the Savior so well that his Spirit and method constrained them to tell others.
Leadership was the emphasis.
