We Don’t Need Discipleship

This may ruffle some feathers.

The early church (30 – 300AD) needed discipleship. In order for the early church to grow, they had to depend upon the quality and character of their lives. That was all they had. There was no other growth engine to rely upon (until, of course, the crusades. But that’s another story.)

And history tells us that they did! By the 4th century (approx. 315AD), Christianity had become such a cultural force that it became politically savvy to adopt it as the official state religion. Which is exactly what Constantine did.

Julian - the last Emperor prior to Rome’s conversion - wrote that “nothing has contributed to the progress of the superstition of these Christians more than their generosity. These impious Galileans care not only for their own poor but for ours as well.” It took about 300 years, but they became a culture-changing force through the character and quality of their faith.

Over the course of the last 40 years or so, we’ve discovered new ways to grow. We’ve learned that we can grow through sound business principles, highly visible locations, great marketing strategies, engaging Sunday gatherings, etc. Alan Hirsch, in his book The Forgotten Ways calls this the “church growth principle” era. This isn’t an argument against these things, but we have found ourselves in a place where we no longer need our lives to be the message.

We don’t need discipleship.

We’ve got other options. But in the midst of these options, I worry that we’ve lost something. And I fear that if our other options were suddenly removed, our lives wouldn't be enough.

Interestingly, during this same 40-yr time-period ruled by church-growth-principles, the church in the west has continued it's long-standing decline and become less of a cultural force. Not more. This week, I read in an article in Relevant Magazine that between 1990 and 2009, 9% fewer people identify themselves as Christian. And nearly 8% more people identify themselves as “no religion.” Clearly something isn’t working.

Maybe I’m being an alarmist, but this all seems broken. Even though we’ve got other options – maybe we should live as though the quality and character of Christ in us was all we had. Yeah - it might take another 300 years, but we might become culture-changers again.

(Agree? Disagree? I'd love to hear your thoughts.)