I just received an email from the District office promoting a campus ministry seminar aimed at “Helping you make Christ-followers on Campus.†It moved my hand to write on something I have often considered putting down on paper (what an antiquated idiom).
I want to move carefully here because I do have dear friends who use this language often in well-intentioned ways. I understand that some would think that suggesting that speaking of Christians as Christ-followers is as simple as looking up disciple in the thesaurus.
But quite simply, speaking of making Christ-followers especially in the context of mission sounds like our mission is simply to take people doing anti-Jesus stuff and turn them into people doing Jesus stuff. It sounds like we just want them free of one philosophy to follow the philosophy of Jesus instead. It even leaves room for those who wish to welcome Christ as a wise guy with wise sayings while simultaneously rejecting him as God or Savior.
What this talk does is ignore the center that rests between sin and newness of life, between not following Christ and following him. It ignores the redemptive work of God in Jesus Christ through Word and Sacrament. And in my experience, those who regularly use this language speak often of what Jesus taught we should do and speak very infrequently of what Jesus did and does for us. Jesus then is learned by the hearer as a new lawgiver and not the Christ set apart to save.
The only way to make Christ-followers is to make them Christ-receivers. To speak to them about what Jesus has done for them. To lead them to the font where their not Christ following will be killed and their Christ following will be raised to life.
Disciples are made through baptizing and teaching, both actions which cast the hearer in the role of receiver. And only such receiving leads to the Christ-following the scriptures speak about.
Interesting. I like the way you always make me think, Phil.
I don’t usually hear the term “Christ-follower,” so I have no preconceived notions about exactly how people may use (or misuse) it. But Christ told his disciples to follow Him… and today that’s what we do. As we get to know Him better through His word, we follow Him through His earthly life, persecution, death, resurrection.
I’m OK with the term.
As one who regularly uses the phrase (and is comfortable with it), I understand your concerns. Most people that I know that use this term don’t load the word with “easy believism” or the like but, rather, just the opposite. They see a Christ-follower as one who has been shaped by the cross and resurrection and therefore is following God in the way of Jesus in terms of renewing, restoring, reconciling, etc. I can see your hesitations…i really can, but i can say, honestly, that most of those who use the phrase don’t devalue the cross or resurrection (in fact this is the supreme motivation of our Christ-following life). Perhaps, as you suggested, it would serve us better to speak more of cross, resurrection, the sacraments, etc. We don’t see Christ-following as simply viewing Jesus as the rock star dude that we ride with until the next person or cool idea comes along….we view Christ-following as extremely difficult, intense, wonderful, full of life, shaped by the life, death and resurrection of Jesus and sustained by His Spirit and the communion of saints and by our association with the faith in baptism (in which there is a death to self and a raising to new life), and by the sacraments. Thanks for the reminder that you provided!
Phil, I really do like the way you think and I admire your ability to easily put your thoughts into words. In this instance I whish I was more like you. But do you think that here you may be blowing a little smmoke? I mean, you object to the term “Christ-followers” and then conclude with a way to do that ie Word and Scrament. I do not disagree with what you are saying. I just think it a little smokey. :>) Larry.
Tom – your comment is so beautiful. I am reading it over and over to remind myself of who I am and who I want to be.