Yes, I'm still alive. I'm back in Taiwan now, and with all the missed time while away for my Dad's funeral, I had a lot to catch up on. That shouldn't be an excuse since anyone can spare a few minutes a day to write, but I didn't. But, I hope to be back to writing regularly now.
A few months ago, an old friend asked to meet with me. He is facing a crisis in his life and that has caused him to think more about the meaning and reality of his faith. We talked a bit about what he is feeling and thinking and then he turned to me and said, "You know, I've been a Christian more than 20 years, but I've suddenly realized that I really don't know much about what I believe. Once I was baptized, I sort of stopped trying to read my Bible or learn more. I had made my decision to accept Christianity, but once I did, it seems like that was enough. I don't know God any better now than I did then and I'm finding it hard to deal with this crisis." He is now reading his Bible regularly and praying about entering seminary because he wants to know more and wants to be able to encourage others to continue to grow in their faith.
The following morning, in our devotional time at the office, a coworker shared about a lady who had given a testimony at his church the day before. She has cancer and said that she realized that everyone was trying to comfort her, but they didn’t have much to say that meant anything. Was God really in control, and did he really care as her Christian friends said? She realized that the Bible that the church had given her at her baptism many years ago had not yet been opened. She began reading it and now is giving testimony to others to continue to pursue a greater knowledge of God.
Then, I read something written by a young person after a former classmate had died suddenly. One thing that struck me was her statement that suddenly she was afraid to die. However, her fear of death was not because she wasn’t sure of God’s salvation and that she would be with him in heaven. Her fear was that she felt that she had not yet done anything except satisfy her own desires. She hadn’t led anyone to Christ and hadn’t really served Him.
Why is the church so focused on getting people baptized, but satisfied to leave them there. I remember a Taiwanese pastor telling me proudly how many people his church had baptized in the previous year, and I asked him how many of those were active in the church still and were growing in their faith. He looked puzzled and just asked why I had asked that question. “Because the Great Comission didn’t say that we were to baptize all nations. It said that we are to make disciples of all nations, and baptism was just one of the steps along with going and teaching them to observe all that I have commanded. That’s not just teaching, but teaching them to obey. It’s not just knowledge; it’s obedience. If we aren’t making disciples, we have failed in our mission.”
He thought for a few minutes and said, “I never thought about that. I just wanted to get them to heaven. Actually, I think only one is even coming to church regularly. I need to think about that”
Why is it that we stop so soon? Is our focus on just getting them a ticket to heaven a sign of our continued human-centric value system? We are so focused on saving people from hell, that we forget that God’s priority is something far more valuable, and that is a restored relationship with Him. God created man to know Him, to serve Him. We belong to God, but we have left him. He is not looking for believers; for the baptized. He wants disciples and we are cheating Him, ourselves, and others if we forget the rest.
So, why do we stop so soon? What should the church be doing differently? What should I be doing differently? How much of a disciple am I?
