The subject and emphasis on is becoming obscure— “just like Jesus.” I suppose my main contention is this– our understanding of discipleship has too much “me, and not enough Him.” This can be a gentle error of a young believer.
When Jesus who was the fullness of God in bodily form came, He came as a lowly slave. We see Him stripping down, filling a basin, and scrubbing dirty feet. He actively made Himself a broken and humble servant. It was deliberate and conscious.
Read Philippians 2. It will blow you away!
I think we learn this from Him. The disciple never exceeds his master. He made it very clear that we were to follow Him in this. It’s processed by us when we are very firmly aware that the One who knows us. To be loved by Him is enough (or is it?)
Exceptional effort is made by the Holy Spirit to help us understand. There is a repeated thought given to us in various permutations. In one of my favorite verses King David, standing in front of God, and his people, declared,
“But who am I, and who are my people, that we could give anything to you? Everything we have has come from you, and we give you only what you first gave us! 15 We are here for only a moment, visitors and strangers in the land as our ancestors were before us. Our days on earth are like a passing shadow, gone so soon without a trace.”
1 Chronicles 29:14-15, NLT
“We don’t remember what happened in the past, and in future generations, no one will remember what we are doing now.” This is the cheery assessment found in Ecclesiastes 1. This view irks us big time. Especially if we have invested so much in our wealth, gifts, experiences and accomplishments.
“Our days on earth are like grass; like wildflowers, we bloom and die. The wind blows, and we are gone— as though we had never been here.”
Psalm 103:15-16, NLT
In the New Testament, the emphasis is only stronger. Remember when James and John tried to get the corner on the authority and honor of being on “the right and left?” (My, but they were ambitious lads!)
“When the ten other disciples heard what James and John had asked, they were indignant. 42 So Jesus called them together and said, “You know that the rulers in this world lord it over their people, and officials flaunt their authority over those under them. 43 But among you it will be different. Whoever wants to be a leader among you must be your servant, 44 and whoever wants to be first among you must be the slave of everyone else. 45 For even the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve others and to give his life as a ransom for many.”
Mark 10:41-45, NLT
There are two certain issues here:
- The first is authentic discipleship.
- The second is a decided and eager servanthood.
Both ideas are often missing in our churches, and in our teaching. Somehow we are not communicating the real transferable concepts. Their simplicity evades us.
I intend to return to this fairly soon. Again, I appreciate any constructive criticism, your own thinking on this, and your prayers.
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Related articles
- Being Obscure: Just Like Jesus (brokenbelievers.com)
- Riding the Underground with Jesus (brokenbelievers.com)
- A Much More Comfortable Discipleship (brokenbelievers.com)
- Impulsive Peter (brokenbelievers.com)
Broken Believers 
Over two years have passed and still too much me and not enough him, not enough others. Kempis asked “What difference does it make whether you are corrected by a subordinate or a superior?” My Self seems to double every time a little self is overcome, like a disease. According to Fenelon in Christian Perfection, only God can remove us from our self. But I can’t see the forest for the trees. The fruit of humility seems even farther away.
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This resonates with me too, Pastor B. Thank you for continuing on with this and sharing it with us. There is a real need for discipleship. God bless you!
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John the Baptist knew about ‘decreasing’. John said, “He must increase, but I must decrease.” But isn’t it interesting that Jesus did not go the route John desired for Him. Jesus’ life was also about decreasing. He lived for His Father’s glory rather than His own.
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I use Kempis’ Imitation of Christ as a daily devotional and so much of that book points me to being content in obscurity. It is the very opposite of what the world tells us. even the church sometimes wants us to prove our faith by much outward appearances and accomplishment. The need to be recognized and have a high place takes a lot of energy. Deferring to the Lord and others eases and the yoke and lightens the burden, peace and joy begin to show up in the little places. Daily life gets a little softer and offenses begin to lose their power. His word is proven in my heart, I’m pretty sure that these are the unseen treasures that no one will ever see, his promises coming true in the inner man as I follow the best I can, far from perfect and many failings along the way, but He is the one who is true, its all about Him.
Thank you Pastor Bryan, Brother, Teacher and fellow follower, we need you.
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Yes on the Thomas a Kempis connection. He certainly has a deep down heart on the subject of humility. When he shows up on this “frequency” I do come alert. I can’t wait to sit with and just visit.
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