Truth

Touch, TIme and Truth are the elements of Discipleship. Truth is the goal; the centerpiece of discipleship. It is the area in which we most often fail.

First. We often try to deposit Truth without having it ourselves. It is impossible to deposit Truth into the life of another unless it is securely part of our own life. We need to make sure we possess truth before we try to give it to someone else.

Truth isn’t a set of true facts. We often make the mistake of believing that truth is a set of beliefs. Not so. Jesus explained, “I am the way, the truth and the life.” The truth we are called to deposit is not a set of ideas; it is the person of Jesus Christ. It is a living truth that can respond to and address all the question and needs of life. We can’t transform another’s life, by substituting their beliefs for ours.

We often believe we can deposit truth instantaneously, without investing touch or time. While it is true that Jesus gave the Good Thief on the cross all he needed in a matter of moments, we are not Jesus and the person we are trying to disciple is not hanging, dying on a cross, next to the savior of the world. We should stick to the tried and true methods.

In order to deposit truth, we have to overcome some strong “modern” ideas. The first is the idea that there is no absolute truth. Most believe that truth is relative. What’s true for me, isn’t true for you. That’s a lie. After investing time and touch, we need to create a curiosity in others to learn what we have that they don’t. We need to create a recognition of a need for the Truth that has changed our lives. Another idea is that the “truth” of the gospel is “outdated” and “not for these times.” Others assert that Christianity is cultural; okay for the west but not for eastern minds, for example. Jesus is the truth for all times and for all people.

The process of discipleship has been summarized as: Make a Friend. Be a Friend. Bring a Friend to Jesus. That may not completely explain the process, but it gives us enough of an outline to keep us on the right track.

There are dozens of people in our lives that desperately need Jesus. There’s discipleship work to be done.

Let’s get to it.

Nick