What if we’ve made discipleship too complicated? What if discipleship is simply about friendship? Friendship with God where we experience God’s love. Friendship with others where we express God’s love. The two core practices connected to this core value are Sabbath and The Table. Experiencing God’s love and comfort positions us to share that love and comfort with others.
2 Cor 1:3-4 Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies and the God of all comfort, 4 who comforts and encourages us in every trouble so that we will be able to comfort and encourage those who are in any kind of trouble, with the comfort with which we ourselves are comforted by God. AMP
The Apostle Paul is writing this letter to the Corinthian believers. Realize that Paul went to Corinth and began sharing the Gospel in the synagogue and then he began sharing the Gospel with the Gentiles. People believed and were saved, and Paul remains with them for only 18 months. This was longer than Paul usually stayed before moving on leaving the work of the ministry in the hands of these new believers. These young believers became disciples who were making disciples sharing core beliefs and core practices involving The Sabbath and The Table.
Before you disqualify yourself from effectively making disciples ponder the reality that these believers were new believers with no formal training in how to lead the New Testament Church. Are you qualified to do this considering all of life’s challenges you have faced? The answer is found in the same chapter as we continue reading.
2 Cor 1:8-9 For we do not want you to be uninformed, brothers and sisters, about our trouble in [the west coast province of] Asia [Minor], how we were utterly weighed down, beyond our strength, so that we despaired even of life [itself]. 9 Indeed, we felt within ourselves that we had received the sentence of death [and were convinced that we would die, but this happened] so that we would not trust in ourselves, but in God who raises the dead. AMP
This life can throw a lot of curve balls our way. If you’ve ever broken a bone then the place where the bone was broken is actually stronger now than it was before. The bone actually grows back thicker and stronger at the break point. The place of the injury becomes the place of new strength.
You know what they say, “What doesn’t kill you makes you stronger.” What they don’t tell you is that it almost kills you before it makes you stronger! But it does make you stronger and then you have those experiences to point to as you strengthen the lives of others. So, stop disqualifying yourself!
If you are continuing to disqualify yourself because of the things you have been through and decisions, you have made then consider this. How did you get through it? The story of how you made it through is the testimony of God’s faithfulness!
Experiencing God is a lifelong journey that involves patterns and priorities. In fact, our patterns reveal our priorities. One of the most central patterns to knowing God and walking with God is Sabbath involving four steps:
Stop: The human being was designed to run six days. Then it would be out of gas--needing refueling. Don’t mess around with God’s carefully engineered design.
Rest: Take time rest and meditate in community (Sabbath not Solitude) with others who desire to experience God more deeply.
Delight: Purpose enjoyable activities that are life-giving. In a digital world we must purpose human moments.
Worship: Practice a deep awareness of God’s presence in everything you do.
Here are a few suggestions:
This is not a to do list but a description of patterns that are commonly included in sabbath.
The other central practice these believers practiced involved THE TABLE:
Lance Ford wrote, “If every Christian family in the world simply offered good conversational hospitality around a table once a week to neighbors, we would eat our way into the kingdom of God.”
Our city will be transformed by our hospitality long before it will be transformed by sermons preached from pulpits.
Biblical hospitality is more than entertainment. When we invite Jesus to table it becomes an altar & our lives become the offering.
A shared meal is the most basic expression of hospitality, and this could be the activity most closely tied to the reality of God’s kingdom.
Jesus is the Master at converting that which is mundane into something meaningful, but it does require sacrifice. Three phrases people love to hear the most around the world. I love you. You’re forgiven. Let’s eat! Jesus invites us to The Table where we commune with our Heavenly Father through the broken body and shed blood of Jesus Christ. This is the place where the willingness to take a drink turns into an eternal river flowing into and from you going from death to life!
GP2RL: Explore the idea of Sabbath and The Table in the context of the uniqueness of your life this week.
