Chapter 4
The Gospel and Intentional Discipleship
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We are utterly hopeless, until God acts decisively in the incarnation of the Word and the sending of the Spirit. By God’s Word and Spirit, we discover the glorious truth about God’s nature and purposes, as well as the realities of mercy, grace, and love made freely available to us. Christ himself personally makes possible our restoration to God through his threefold office as prophet and priest and king. And the Holy Spirit personally enables us to know and to participate in Christ in such a way that we become like him. All of this demonstrates that, far from remaining aloof from creation or abandoning us out of anger or disappointment, God reveals God’s true nature and identity as love, inviting us to share in God’s own life.
Jason E. Vickers and Thomas H. McCall, Outpouring: A Theological Witness
Let’s talk about the gospel and ask if it has anything to do with being an intentional disciple of Jesus. From what we read in the New Testament it should be clear that the gospel is central to our understanding of Jesus. It was the focus of His preaching and teaching ministry. The gospel was also the focus of the teaching and practice of the early church which formed after Jesus’ resurrection. For example,
And He [Jesus] went throughout all Galilee, teaching in their synagogues and proclaiming the gospel of the kingdom and healing every disease and every affliction among the people. (Matthew 4:23)
Now after John was arrested, Jesus came into Galilee, proclaiming the gospel of God, and saying, ‘The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand; repent and believe in the gospel.’ (Mark 1: 14,15)
For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jew first and also to the Greek. (Romans 1:16)
In Him you also, when you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation, and believed in Him, were sealed with the promised Holy Spirit, who is the guarantee of our inheritance until we acquire possession of it, to the praise of his glory. (Ephesians 1:13–14)
Isn’t the gospel just about how to go to heaven?
Some assume the message of the gospel is simply about how a person can be saved from their sins and go to heaven when they die. It is likely that you have heard the good news of the gospel presented as something like the following:
The issue is, How can my sins be forgiven? What is it that bars me from heaven? What is it that prevents my having eternal life? The answer is sin. Therefore, I need some way to resolve that problem. And God declares that the death of His son provides forgiveness of my sin…. Through faith I receive Him and His forgiveness. Then the sin problem is solved, and I can be fully assured of going to heaven. [1]
This simplistic summary of the gospel does contain truth about universal human need and God‘s loving provision through Jesus to forgive us and save us. Our churches today are filled with people who love Jesus and who came to faith in Him after hearing the gospel explained in this way.
However, we also see churches filled with people who have never seriously considered what it means to be a disciple of Jesus (intentional or otherwise). Consequently, they do not look, sound, or act much like Jesus to those around them and often contribute to the general opinion that Christianity is irrelevant to modern life and the goals of human flourishing.
Why are there so few intentional disciples of Jesus? Perhaps this simplistic interpretation of Jesus’ gospel is too small, focusing on only one dimension of what Jesus accomplished and leaving out other essential things.
As N.T. Wright has written,
The problem Paul is addressing, you see, is not just human sin and the danger of eternal punishment. The problem is the crisis of the whole cosmos, within which human beings were from the start designed to play a vital role. Here in chapter 8 [of Romans], at the climax of the letter so far, Paul says that the whole creation will be rescued from its groaning, sorrow and chaos when humans are raised from the dead to take proper charge of it. Salvation is not just God’s gift to his people, it is God’s gift through his people.[2]
What if the gospel is about making disciples?
I would suggest an important clue to what Jesus had in mind when He preached and taught about the gospel is found in His final instructions to His first disciples.
All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. 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 28:18–20)
The end game for Jesus was to make disciples. He didn’t say to go into all the world and save people from their sins. While forgiving sins is vital, it is only the first step into a forever relationship with Jesus, but forgiveness is not the whole story.
The Gospel that leads directly to Intentional Discipleship
The gospel of the Kingdom is not an abstract philosophical idea or ideal. It is the story of God’s initiative to rescue His creation. The gospel is the declaration of the fact that the creator has successfully achieved His intentions through Jesus and that His will is in the process of being worked out “on earth as in heaven.”
In brief, the story of the entire bible can be summarized something like this: Adam and Eve were put in Eden (the place where heaven and earth overlapped, where God’s presence was manifest to His family, and from where God ruled)[3] to live in relationship with God as part of His family and as key participants in His kingdom rule and administration of creation.
Humans were assigned responsibility as image-bearers for the physical realm of God’s creation to fill it, subdue it, and rule it. That is, they were assigned the job of extending the order and goodness of Eden (God’s presence and goodwill) across the whole earth.
In Eden, the first humans were tempted to idolatry when they listened to and obeyed something that was not God. This led to their disobedience and treachery[4] against their Sovereign Creator. With their relationship with God broken they were driven from God’s presence in Eden. This ultimately resulted in God’s decision to turn the nations (Adam and Eve’s progeny) over to their own devices and to the principalities and powers, till such a time as God’s rescue operation initiated in the Abrahamic covenant was complete (Deuteronomy 32:8,9; Acts 17:26,27).[5]
The story of the creator’s rescue plan ultimately is woven through the biblical narrative of Israel and ultimately to the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus. Through Jesus, God achieved His goal of rescue and created the path to “bless all the nations” and restore humanity to His original plan. Now it was possible again for humans to live with Him and manage His kingdom purposes “on earth as in heaven.”
Looking Ahead
In the chapters that follow in Section 2, we will turn our attention to how we can live as intentional disciples of Jesus within the reality of God‘s plan to restore all of creation. One of the challenges you may face is from the contrary worldview that you have been raised to see as normal. You may find it resistant to being replaced by the biblical worldview of Jesus’ Kingdom. We encourage you to wrestle with this process and do the work of deconstruction that may be needed to be set free. I pray that you will come to see for yourself who God is, who you are, and how to live your live as you were created to live.
Here are some questions for consideration and discussion.
When did you become aware of the Gospel, and how did you respond?
If someone asked You, “What is the gospel?” how would you answer?
What challenges your thinking or your lifestyle in this chapter about the gospel?
Chapter 4 Daily Scripture Readings
How to spend some quality time listening to what Jesus would like to say through the scriptures:
In preparation, acknowledge the Lord’s presence and love for you and settle yourself before Him (in your mind and heart).
Read the day’s text carefully; take your time.
Reflect on what you have been reading with a listening ear – what word, phrase, or sentence speaks to you from the text?
Now, talk to the LORD about what you hear from this text. What has Jesus stirred in your heart?
If you were with Him walking from one Galilean village to another, what would you say to Him about this?
Chapter 4 - Day One: Mark 9:2-29
Chapter 4 - Day Two: Mark 9:31-10:12
Chapter 4 - Day Three: Mark 10:13-52
Chapter 4 - Day Four: Mark 11
Chapter 4 - Day Five: Mark 12:1-17
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[1] Charles Ryrie, as quoted by Dallas Willard in his book, The Divine Conspiracy, p. 53. Dallas Willard called this version of the gospel the Gospel of Sin Management.
[2] Wright, NT, Into the Heart of Romans, p. 5
[3] Wright, NT, The Day the Revolution Began, p.331
[4] See Daniel 9:7 where Israel’s refusal to listen and obey the words God spoke to them through His prophets is defined as treachery. Many scholars recognize a parallel between the sin of Adam and Eve in the garden and the sin of Israel in the promised land.
[5] Michael S. Heiser, The Unseen Realm: Recovering the Supernatural Worldview of the Bible. For example, “The divine transgressions of Genesis 3 and 6 are part of a theological prelude that frames the rest of the Bible. These two episodes, along with a third we’ll cover in this chapter, are core components of the supernatural worldview of ancient Israelites and the Jewish community in which Christianity was born.” p.127
There are two ways you can go deeper with this material, if you are finding this helpful.
First, read How to get the most from this book. I offer some suggestions about how to do more than skim the pages and move on with minimal impact.
Second, read How to use this book with a small group. This material was formed and proven in a small group setting that has been very effective at helping participants engage with Jesus at a much deeper and transformative level than is typical in our churches today.