Why?
“We must help everyday people understand why they should choose to become Jesus’ disciples—fully committed followers who are learning to believe like, live like, love like, serve like, and lead like their master, Jesus. And then we must help them do so out of love for him, love for others, and obedience to his call. Only in this way will we see the church revitalized and the world revolutionized for the kingdom of the heavens.”
My wife and I spent much of the Christmas season this year in Florida. No, it wasn’t sunny and it wasn’t warm, much to my wife’s disappointment. But we were able to be at my niece’s wedding, my mom’s ninetieth birthday, and celebrate Christmas with family for the first time in many years. Being a pastor in Maui for the last fifteen years meant we missed family Christmas on the mainland.
This year we invited my wife’s nephew, his wife, and three children—which included little three-year-old, Enzo— to join us at our condo in Orlando. Three-year-olds are energetic and Enzo is more than most. They are also infinitely inquisitive as they are taking it all in and learning from everything that’s happening around them. That means they ask a lot of questions. What and why seem to top the list.
Why are you putting on your shoes, Uncle Jay?
Because we’re going outside.
Why are we going outside?
So we can take you to the playground.
Why are we going to the playground?
So you can play on the swings and the jungle gym. “And because your mom needs a break and some rest,” I thought to myself.
Why do we have to wait to open the presents?
Because it’s not Christmas Day yet.
Why do we have to be quiet when we wake up?
Because 3:00 am, though it is Christmas, is too early for your parents and us to get up.
Why?
Because we’re old and we need the rest to keep up with you the rest of the day.
Why are we going to church today?
Because it’s Christmas Eve and we want to celebrate Jesus’ birthday with others.
Now it was my turn to ask a question. Why did Jesus come to be born on Christmas? His eight-year-old sister immediately answers, “So he could die for our sins and be our Savior.”
Immediately, Enzo breaks out with … “The B-I-B-L-E, yes that’s the book for me. I stand alone on the word of God, the B-I-B-L-E”. I sat in wonder and gratefulness to God for His goodness and grace.
We had prayed for Debbie’s nephew for nearly thirty years before he and his wife invited Jesus into their lives. The radical difference in their family was astounding. We are so thankful for the Christ followers who were investing in them through their church in Minnesota.
Why?
Sometimes the answers are simple and obvious. But sometimes they are complicated and very, very difficult.
Why did you allow our dear friend to suffer and die from this horrible cancer? She was such a wonderful, sweet, Christian who loved her family and served you faithfully.
Why?
Why did you take my dear friend so suddenly and without any warning leaving her with the question, “Why?”
Why did that marriage break up? Why did that business fail? Why did those dreams and ambitions not come true? Why is there so much suffering in this world? Why do the evil seem to prosper and the righteous struggle? Why?
The list of why questions goes on and on.
But I’d like to try to offer an answer to one why question here …
Why commit to disciple-making as a top priority?
I was listening to an old song, For the Sake of the Call, by Steven Curtis Chapman the other day and I think the lyrics come close to providing the best answer to that question I’ve ever heard. Take a moment to listen and then scroll down a bit to keep reading.
Simply because it is Jesus who called
And if we believe we’ll obey.
Jesus Christ, the promised Messiah of Israel, the creator and sustainer of all things, the God who took on human flesh, the Lamb who was slain for the sins of the world, the risen and reigning King of kings and Lord of lords, the one who will sit in judgment of the entire human race, that Jesus, calls us to come to him in faith, to lay aside our personal ambitions, to deny ourselves, and follow him as his disciple.
He is the only Master of life worth following. He alone deserves our full allegiance. He alone is worthy. He came to be our Savior (a word used of him only 24 times in the New Testament) and our Lord (a word meaning “master,” used of him 433 times in the New Testament).
Jesus set Peter, James, John, and the other disciples on a mission that we are called to continue today with these words recorded in Matthew 28:
“Now the eleven disciples went to Galilee, to the mountain to which Jesus had directed them. And when they saw him they worshiped him, but some doubted. And Jesus came and said to them, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.”
Many church leaders are coming to realize that the Christian church in the West has all but failed in this most critical mission. We’ve truncated the good news of the gospel to something that sounds like “You don’t want to go to hell when you die do you, so repeat after me”, or “Walk this aisle, say this prayer, and continue living as you always have, just so long as the eternity question has been settled it will all be ok in the end.”
But we’ve forgotten Jesus’ declaration, “If anyone desires to be my disciple, let him deny himself (disregard, lose sight of and forget his own interests), and take up his cross and follow me” (Matthew 16:24). That, of course, is a much harder sell. If we want to fill up the church, we have to make the call more palatable.
Thankfully, there is a growing awareness among many churches and church leaders that we must get back to the great commission—and that is so much more than just sending missionaries across the sea. We must help everyday people understand why they should choose to become Jesus’ disciples—fully committed followers who are learning to believe like, live like, love like, serve like, and lead like their master, Jesus. And then we must help them do so out of love for him, love for others, and obedience to his call. Only in this way will we see the church revitalized and the world revolutionized for the kingdom of the heavens.
Why am I so excited about The Bonhoeffer Project?
Because I know of no other organization that is as committed to the mission of making disciples who make disciples who make disciples. Because we help leaders journey through the struggle of becoming exponential disciple makers.
Why should you consider joining a Bonhoeffer Project cohort?
Because you will dive deep into what, why, and how to become a disciple maker yourself.
Why should you consider supporting The Bonhoeffer Project?
Because it is money well spent, and invested in the lives of disciple making leaders here at home and across the globe. It is an investment with eternal reward.
Why become a disciple maker?
Simply because it is Jesus who calls and if we believe we’ll obey.
Grace and peace to you.
