If you’re a regular reader of this blog, you know I recommend discipleship materials from time to time. Invariably that leads to questions, usually centering around, “Does that material contain explicit teaching about X?” where X is some particular emphasis the questioner feels strongly about.

The general answer to that question is that unless you carefully write the material yourself, no discipleship tool will have the exact balance that you would prefer. So choose one appropriate for the person you are helping and go with it.

The specific question someone asked the other day was whether a particular discipleship program stressed the importance of the Holy Spirit. Since the program talks about the Holy Spirit early and often, I can only assume that my friend thinks it might not have “enough.” On that, I do have an opinion, and it leans toward not overloading people with too much information. Here’s what I wrote:

I believe that less is more when it comes to talking about the Holy Spirit’s role. Is he there? Absolutely. Do I have to understand in detail how he works? I don’t think so, not any more than I have to be an expert in exercise physiology to know that exercise is good for me. I can work out, or walk, or run, expecting that the process will make me stronger without knowing exactly how that process works.

My grandson is getting his master’s in exercise physiology. What I know about exercise, compared to him, is minuscule. But I know enough to work out.

One more example: how much exercise physiology does a grade school PE teacher share with her 4th graders? Zero. She just takes them out and runs them around! When we are making disciples, especially of new believers, we are dealing with 4th graders. We need to “run them around” by teaching them how to read the Bible, how to memorize scripture, how to apply scripture to life. The Holy Spirit will do his job – we don’t need to worry about that.

If we cooperate with God by engaging in good spiritual disciplines (“Train yourself for godliness,” 1 Timothy 4.7), growth occurs whether we understand all the mechanisms or not.

And [Jesus] said, “The kingdom of God is as if a man should scatter seed on the ground. He sleeps and rises night and day, and the seed sprouts and grows; he knows not how. The earth produces by itself, first the blade, then the ear, then the full grain in the ear. (Mark 4.26 – 28, ESV)

Yesterday, I wrote about three of Peter’s impetuous outbursts, trying to tell Jesus what to do, and Jesus’ three different responses. Today, let’s contrast Peter’s responses to two miraculous catches of fish: Luke 5 and John 21.  
The fish-catching events set up the same.

• Peter had fished all night and caught nothing. (Luke 5.5, John 21.3)
• Jesus directed them to try again. (Luke 5.4, John 21.6)
•  Peter obeyed. 
  • “At your word I will let down the nets.” (Luke 5.5)
  • “So they cast [the net].” (John 21.6)
• They caught more fish than they could handle. (Luke 5.6. 7, John 21.6)

At this point the responses differ.

In Luke 5, Peter says, “Go away for I am a sinful man.” This is the fear-based response of someone raised in rules-based, perfection-requiring religion with “holy men” separated (that’s what “Pharisee” means – separated) from regular people. 

In John 21, Peter can’t get to Jesus fast enough. “When Simon Peter heard it was the Lord, he put on his outer garment for he was stripped for work and threw himself into the sea.” (John 21.7) This is the response of someone in a love relationship with Jesus (as the discussion in John 21.15 – 17 shows). 

Interestingly, both stories end the same.

• In Luke 5, they leave their nets to begin the adventure:

And when they had brought their boats to land, they left everything and followed him. (Luke 5.11, ESV)

• In John 21, Peter plans to continue the adventure

He said to him the third time, “Simon, son of John, do you love me?” Peter was grieved because he said to him the third time, “Do you love me?” and he said to him, “Lord, you know everything; you know that I love you.” Jesus said to him, “Feed my sheep…Follow me.” (John 21.17…19, ESV)

Our choice is clear:

There is no fear in love. But perfect love drives out fear, because fear has to do with punishment. The one who fears is not made perfect in love. We love because he first loved us. (1 John 4.18, 19, NIV)

Aren’t you glad Jesus patiently varies his responses?

Have you noticed how many times Peter tried to tell Jesus what to do? The first thing that comes to mind is after Peter’s confession, “You are the Christ…” in Matthew 16 (a good thing!), he tries to tell Jesus not to go to the cross (a bad thing).

From that time Jesus began to show his disciples that he must go to Jerusalem and suffer many things from the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be killed, and on the third day be raised. And Peter took him aside and began to rebuke him, saying, “Far be it from you, Lord! This shall never happen to you.” But he turned and said to Peter, “Get behind me, Satan! You are a hindrance to me. For you are not setting your mind on the things of God, but on the things of man.” (Matthew 16.21 – 23, ESV, emphasis mine)

But the pattern started early. After the miraculous catch of fish, Peter’s reaction is, “Go away!”

When Simon Peter saw this astonishing miracle, he knelt at Jesus’ feet and begged him, “Go away from me, Master, for I am a sinful man!” Simon Peter and the other fishermen—including his fishing partners, Jacob and John, the sons of Zebedee—were awestruck over the miracle catch of fish. Jesus answered, “Do not yield to your fear, Simon Peter. From now on you will catch men for salvation!” After pulling their boats to the shore, they left everything behind and followed Jesus. (Luke 5.8 – 11, Passion Translation, emphasis mine)

Then, in John 13, Peter tries to keep Jesus from washing his feet. 

He came to Simon Peter, who said to him, “Lord, are you going to wash my feet?” Jesus replied, “You do not realize now what I am doing, but later you will understand.” “No,” said Peter, “you shall never wash my feet.” Jesus answered, “Unless I wash you, you have no part with me.” “Then, Lord,” Simon Peter replied, “not just my feet but my hands and my head as well!” Jesus answered, “Those who have had a bath need only to wash their feet; their whole body is clean. And you are clean, though not every one of you.” (John 13.6 – 10, NIV, emphasis mine)

Three impetuous declarations, three responses:

• Go away! Jesus responds with encouragement and invitation. You will be part of my mission.
• You won’t die! Jesus responds with rebuke: “Don’t mess with MY mission.”
• You won’t wash my feet! Jesus responds with explanation. 

Jesus reminds us that there is no “one size fits all” approach to interactions. Or, as a friend of mine said once, “Answer the questioner, not the question.”

Let your conversation be always full of grace, seasoned with salt, so that you may know how to answer everyone. (Colossians 4.6, NIV)

And we urge you, brothers and sisters, warn those who are idle and disruptive, encourage the disheartened, help the weak, be patient with everyone. (1 Thessalonians 5.14, NIV)

Another gem from my recent study of Colossians 4 were observations on prayer:

Continue steadfastly in prayer, being watchful in it with thanksgiving. At the same time, pray also for us, that God may open to us a door for the word, to declare the mystery of Christ, on account of which I am in prison— that I may make it clear, which is how I ought to speak. Walk in wisdom toward outsiders, making the best use of the time. Let your speech always be gracious, seasoned with salt, so that you may know how you ought to answer each person…Epaphras, who is one of you, a servant of Christ Jesus, greets you, always struggling on your behalf in his prayers, that you may stand mature and fully assured in all the will of God. (Colossians 4.2 – 6, 12, ESV)

Paul asks us to pray, being steadfast, watchful, and with thanksgiving. For what?

• Open doors for the Word
• Clarity in communication
• Maturity for believers, “fully assured” in all the will of God 

Those guys were praying for things I don’t always pray for. My friend Bill Mowry calls these “macro prayers” in chapter 4 of The Ways of the Alongsider. 

On the other hand, I don’t always pray for the little stuff either, but I did on Wednesday. I was waiting to deliver a 5-minute eulogy at Col Craigie’s burial service, a eulogy that only existed on my phone. I looked down and noticed that the battery which had been over 70% a few minutes before was at 43%. If that precipitous decline continued, I could lose all power AND my script! 

So I prayed that the battery would hold. When I finished my talk, it was still at 43%! Answers like that to the little things encourage me to pray for the big things as well.

I am the vine; you are the branches. If you remain in me and I in you, you will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing. If you remain in me and my words remain in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for you. (John 15.5, 7, NIV)

And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the Lord’s people. Pray also for me, that whenever I speak, words may be given me so that I will fearlessly make known the mystery of the gospel, for which I am an ambassador in chains. Pray that I may declare it fearlessly, as I should. (Ephesians 6.18 – 20, NIV)

I was struck by this verse at the end of Colossians:

And say to Archippus, “See that you fulfill the ministry that you have received in the Lord.” (Colossians 4.17, ESV)

Who was Archippus? All the commentators, I think, assume he is a leader of the church. A “minister,” since he “received a ministry in the Lord.” For example, here’s the note from The Passion Translation:

It is believed that Archippus was a spiritual leader in the region of Colossae, perhaps the bishop of Laodicea; he is also mentioned in Philem. 2. We can only speculate why Paul wanted this exhortation to be made to him. Some believe he was a minister of Christ who was discouraged and needed to be exhorted to not abandon his calling.

The fact is, no one knows. He’s only mentioned here and at the beginning of Philemon, a letter sent along with the letter to the Colossians to Philemon, who lived in Colossae.  

I believe everyone has received a ministry in the Lord, and it could be their regular work. And it needs to be fulfilled. How do we know Archippus wasn’t the custodian? Or maybe he was running a business to help meet people’s needs? I am VERY thankful for all the people at my hospital last week fulfilling their ministry, whether they knew it was from the Lord or not. (Some did, and I may write about them later.) We checked in for surgery at 5:30a, Tuesday, July 28, and people were there! Very impressive. Everything ran like clockwork because everyone: doctors, nurses, assistants, physical and occupational therapists, custodians, people in the dining hall… were fulfilling their callings – their ministry.  

I wrote almost three years ago about being asked to bless the food at a birthday party because “Bob is the closest thing we have to a minister here.” I prayed, but not before saying, “We’re all ministers here.”

“Minister/ministry” is just a word for “serve,” the word that’s used in this vignette from the life of Jesus:

And he arose and left the synagogue and entered Simon’s house. Now Simon’s mother-in-law was ill with a high fever, and they appealed to him on her behalf. And he stood over her and rebuked the fever, and it left her, and immediately she rose and began to serve them. (Luke 4.38, 39, ESV)

Archippus might have been discouraged and needed encouragement, to be sure. But it’s pure assumption that the “ministry” was ecclesiastical and not something else. The very idea that Paul would encourage an ordinary guy doing ordinary things seems beyond our grasp. 

So let me leave you with the most important thing I can say to you:

See that you fulfill the ministry you have received from the Lord…whether it’s school-teaching, computer programming, car sales, hair styling, jewelry making, whatever. And along the way, I believe your ministry includes, as I wrote recently, seeking God, loving people, and teaching others to do the same.

Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for human masters, since you know that you will receive an inheritance from the Lord as a reward. It is the Lord Christ you are serving. (Colossians 3.23, 24, NIV)

This is the first blog I’ve actually composed since the surgery. I hope the “time delay” entries were useful for you.

Yesterday, I spoke at the graveside service for my friend, Col Don “Crusher” Craigie, at the Air Force Academy. With surgery just 8 days before, it was a monumental effort for me to be there, but God got me through it! In addition to Taps, always moving, the highlight of such a service is the “Missing Man Formation” flyover. A four-ship approaches, in this case, the team was from his last assignment when he was Wing Commander at Vance AFB, near Enid, Oklahoma. At the last second one of the planes pulls up and leaves the formation, symbolizing the departed. I tear up as I write.

A few minutes before, I closed my remarks with verses from 2 Corinthians 5. Crusher had suffered much over the past year, and especially the last four weeks. This encouragement from Paul seemed appropriate:

…We know that when these bodies of ours are taken down like tents and folded away, they will be replaced by resurrection bodies in heaven—God-made, not handmade—and we’ll never have to relocate our “tents” again. Sometimes we can hardly wait to move—and so we cry out in frustration. Compared to what’s coming, living conditions around here seem like a stopover in an unfurnished shack, and we’re tired of it! We’ve been given a glimpse of the real thing, our true home, our resurrection bodies!…When the time comes, we’ll be plenty ready to exchange exile for homecoming. (2 Corinthians 5. 1 – 8, MSG)

Crusher, welcome home.

I thought it would be fun to send a couple of pictures from the memorial service of my friend Colonel Don “Crusher” Craigie, Sunday, July 26, at which I spoke.

In addition to some personal vignettes, I included my observations on God and warriors that I shared here on July 24.

After I finished speaking, I received this picture from my son David in Atlanta:

David was watching the service through the miracle of livestream. When I got up to speak, our youngest grandson, Caleb, who turns two in October, recognized my voice from all of our FaceTime conversations. He climbed into the chair to see “GrandBob.”

What an age to live in. Our daughter, Melody, also watched the service from China!

On display in the lobby was this plaque presented to Don back in January:

Don was a 28-year veteran of the Air Force. Full colonel, fighter pilot, Wing commander, AND he was a servant. Often behind-the-scenes, the church recognized him for “Quiet work, abundant influence!”

And Jesus called them to him and said to them, “You know that those who are considered rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and their great ones exercise authority over them. But it shall not be so among you. But whoever would be great among you must be your servant, and whoever would be first among you must be slave of all. For even the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.” (Mark 10.42 – 45, ESV)

For what we proclaim is not ourselves, but Jesus Christ as Lord, with ourselves as your servants for Jesus’ sake. (2 Corinthians 4.5, ESV)

I wrote yesterday about our Bible study on Colossians 3.18 – 4.1: let our relationship with Jesus be the model and impetus for our relationships with others. My friend Joel pointed out that we are being called to a higher standard.

For example, I said it was important for subordinates to submit because, when I was a commander, I told the folks, “I really want to be nice, but I don’t have a range of skills between ‘please’ and ‘the hammer.'” Joel’s response: “We’re called to a higher standard. If you didn’t have the skills you needed, you should have developed them!” A good word.

I heard recently of a Christian (so I’m told) husband who admits to “anger issues.” Well, guess what? We don’t get to have anger issues.

• Husbands, love your wives, and do not be harsh with them. (Colossians 3.19, ESV)
• Fathers, do not provoke your children, lest they become discouraged. (Colossians 3.21, ESV)

Sometimes we let ourselves off too easy. I’ve written before that the early church changed the world by living out the gospel. The behavior the Apostle Paul was calling for was counter-cultural. The men and I discussed that if we can’t do what we’re called to do, then we not only “trust God” and “rely on the Holy Spirit,” we train.

Train yourself for godliness. (1 Timothy 4.7, ESV)

“The spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak” (Matthew 26.41) is a temporary condition. I’m weak post-surgery, but that’s temporary. That’s why I’m training and going to physical therapy. I’m “rebuilding the house,” physically and spiritually. I hope you’ll join me!

Now go up into the hills, bring down timber, and rebuild my house. Then I will take pleasure in it and be honored, says the LORD. (Haggai 1.8, NLT)

[Surgery update inserted early August 3. Sorry I didn’t get one in before. I tried once but must have missed a step. Surgery went well. I was awake and alert through it all (lots of sawing and hammering!). Doc said the old knee was a mess. We came home Thursday as normally happens with my doc. I’m getting around OK with walker or cane.. I took my last narcotic early Friday. Just Tylenol now. I’m gradually (but slowly) getting stronger. Not much stamina.] 

The past few months I’ve had a lot of fun going through Colossians with a few men, at least one of whom has not done formal bible study before. I keep it simple: Observe (what does the text say?), Organize (what are the main ideas?), Obey (how can I put something into practice?).

We recently looked at Colossians 3.18 – 4.1, the relationship section: wives/husbands, children/parents, bondservants/masters. The main thing I noticed beyond the fact that instructions were given to both sides of each relationship was that we are called to behave the way we do because of our relationship to Christ:

• Wives submit…as is fitting in the Lord.
• Children obey…for this pleases the Lord.
• Bondservants obey…fearing the Lord…work heartily as for the Lord…you are serving the Lord Christ.
• Masters, treat your bondservants justly and fairly, knowing that you also have a Master in heaven.

The parallel passage in Ephesians has strong instructions to husbands and fathers based on the example of Christ and our relationship to him.

• Husbands, love your wives, as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her. (Ephesians 5.25, ESV)
• Fathers, do not provoke your children to anger, but bring them up in the discipline and instruction of the Lord. (Ephesians 6.4, ESV)

Jesus was clear about this! We love others because Jesus loves us. We treat others as Jesus treats us. It’s a higher standard, and I’ll say more about that tomorrow.

A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another: just as I have loved you, you also are to love one another. (John 13.34, ESV)

Jesus, knowing that the Father had given all things into his hands, and that he had come from God and was going back to God, rose from supper. He laid aside his outer garments, and taking a towel, tied it around his waist. Then he poured water into a basin and began to wash the disciples’ feet and to wipe them with the towel that was wrapped around him. (John 13.3 – 5, ESV)

I met recently by phone with John Degner, national coordinator of Every Man a Warrior, and one of his questions was, “Why do the men in some groups experience life-changing transformation while men in other groups do not?”

One of my friends lists several possible reasons:

• Men don’t mind a little change around the margins, but deep-down they don’t want transformation. That’s what Matthew Kelly wrote, and I reported, about a year ago.
• Most of us are held back by one or more of fear, pride, and laziness. (That will preach!)
• They may not even know what transformation looks like.

Those are good reasons. In addition, I think it goes to the groups’ leadership. After all, as I say whenever I’m touting particular discipleship materials:

Materials don’t make disciples; people make disciples!

If I walk into a men’s group of any kind, I can usually tell within a few minutes, if not a few seconds, whether the group has an eye for transformation or it’s merely information exchange (or information argument). And that’s a function of the leader. Even the best materials, if used in a group led by an information guy rather than a transformation guy, will rarely result in any transformation. It’s an old problem: the Apostle Paul wrote about it in the early days of the church:

Remind everyone about these things, and command them in God’s presence to stop fighting over words. Such arguments are useless, and they can ruin those who hear them. Work hard so you can present yourself to God and receive his approval. Be a good worker, one who does not need to be ashamed and who correctly explains the word of truth. Avoid worthless, foolish talk that only leads to more godless behavior. (2 Timothy 2.14 – 16, NLT)

But don’t just listen to God’s word. You must do what it says. Otherwise, you are only fooling yourselves. (James 1.22, NLT)