A few days ago the Holy Spirit and I un-demonized a young man. We were meeting in my living room processing the challenge he faces to maintain his connection with God. This young man said something that caused the Holy Spirit to prompt me to dig deeper into what he had shared. Soon we both became aware that a demonic force was involved, so we got rid of it. It was beautiful – powerful – and supernaturally natural. His ability to understand his abiding connection with Jesus just went up several levels. It happened because I invited him into a disciple relationship and he invited me to speak into his life. I’m sharing this testimony to pose a question: why isn’t this happening everywhere, all the time?
I believe, in the core of my being, that one of the greatest challenges we face, as the Ekklesia, is the desperate need to reclaim God’s call to go and make disciples. The challenge is great because most of us (believers in Jesus) don’t even know what we are up against. You see, nobody disagrees with the assertion that discipleship is important; it’s just that nobody seems to know, precisely, what it is. We can read how Jesus did it, but we aren’t sure how to replicate that in our cultural contexts, yet thousands of people desperately desire just this kind of relationship. Tens of thousands are seeking help navigating the endless voices and ideologies bombarding them every second of the day. We are all looking for an authentic, vibrant, visibly victorious relationship with Jesus, but it is impossible to reach in the vacuum we call “my personal relationship with Jesus”. Jesus said, “Go and make disciples . . . and I will build my Ekklesia”. It is not okay for us to flip His priorities – evangelize the world, create churches, and then ask God to disciple them.
Somehow, we have to make space in our lives to experience the believer’s journey with others – together. We have to find a way to process, together, the struggles and limitations to our faith and to experience, together, the transformational presence of the Father.Your culture won’t assist you, you are going to have to fight for it. It’s a fight for your schedule. It’s a fight against the fear of vulnerability. It’s a fight against your comfortable lifestyle. It’s a fight for Jesus’ Great Commission. “Go and make disciples of all nations . . .” Matthew 28:19
Drew, thank you for this meaningful commentary. I recognize the importance of spending time with young people to listen, share and encourage them. Discipling is our call!