I was reading recently and ran across a quote that resonates with something that has been on my heart for some time.  Here’s the quote by Dietrich Bonhoeffer, “When Christ calls a man, he bids him come and die.”

That is a message consistent throughout Scripture concerning those who would be Christians…  “Then Jesus told his disciples, ‘If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me.” (Matt. 16:24, ESV).  “I have been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me. And the life I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me’.”  (Gal. 2:20, ESV)

That should make all of us stop and re-evaluate, or evaluate for the first time, where we are in our walk with Christ!  Words like “bids him come and die” from Bonhoeffer, who did give his life for his faith and obedience following his faith – executed by the Nazi’s after imprisonment in a military prison and later a concentration camp.  The apostle, Paul, also gave himself over to persecution, imprisonment, and a martyr’s death to prove how he was “crucified with Christ” to the point that he would give up life on earth for faithfulness to his Savior.

Listen, when Jesus says, “let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me”, he wasn’t joking, and followed through to his  own death for our salvation.  Those words “deny” and “cross” are words that should haunt we who call ourselves Christians, and who live in the comforts and safety of our Western, United State, independence and freedom.  Because the comfort and safety we have enjoyed has made us soft spiritually, and it has engendered us to an easy believism that has stolen our power and witness.

But, alas, the days are coming, not too much further into the future, when that comfort, safety and soft spirituality is going to disappear.  The wind is at the back of cultural forces that are attacking things that are at the core of what we have believed as Truth, and there is great disdain for the One who IS the Truth.  Those who hold to biblical teaching of the new covenant in Christ’s blood are already under the beginnings of attack, and the attacks will continue to get broader and involve more of us soon.

It is time, if we haven’t waited too long already, to return to the business left for us to do until he returned – making DISCIPLES.  That’s what he told us to do – “Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.” (Matthew 28:19-20, ESV).

He didn’t leave us here to be good people, although we should be.  His purpose is not just to get people to come to church, though it is good to go to church.  Our God-given purpose is not really even just to get people to join the church.  Nor is our primary purpose to get folks to say a prayer and ask Jesus to be their Savior – which is indeed the beginning of the Christian life.

But no, Jesus said to those early followers, and still says to us today, make DISCIPLES.  That is a word that means many things.  It means to be a follower of Christ, actually an emulator of Christ.  It means to identify with Christ’s death and resurrection as our only hope, and to crucify our old life to live a new life in him.  It means that after coming to faith in Christ, we then launch into an adventurous life and lifestyle of obeying him, and his Word.  And it carries with it the promise that – as we do those things and mature in our faith and walk with him – the one who has all authority in heaven and on earth will be with us as long as we live on this earth.

And as much more than just a casual observer of Christianity, and in fact one who sees our Christianity and church life lived out in more detail than I sometimes wish I had, I can tell you that I don’t see deep and life changing disciple making at the root of who we are, in general, and in the church today.  There is far too much conflict and infighting in the body of Christ today.  There is way too shallow an understanding of biblical truth among church people today.  There is a dirth of those committed to biblical stewardship of life, resources, talents, abilities, and availability.  I am convinced that if a church has financial problems, it is a discipleship problem; if there is lack of leaders, it is a discipleship problem; if there is debilitating conflict among believers, it is a discipleship problem; and if no one is ever getting saved from a churches ministry, it is definitely a discipleship problem.

We don’t know how much time we have left before God calls an end to history as we know it.  So, it is past time for we who call ourselves believers in, and disciples of, Christ; and for gatherings of the body of Christ wherever they exist; to get back to the basics of commitment to strategically and intentionally “GO and MAKE DISCIPLES” for Christ!!