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| The Lazy Apprentice by Mihaly Munkacsy |
Click Here to Watch the 'Awww, Grow Up' Video for Sunday, March 6, 2011
Click Here to Listen to the Sunday, March 6, 2011 Sermon by Pastor Chip Moody
Scripture Reference:
Matthew 28:18-20
A Disciple is an Apprentice to the Master:
Would You Be Fired for Loafing?
At the end of the day, on the last day that Jesus met with his disciples following his resurrection, he gave them one last order. It was their mission statement for the rest of their lives.
And Jesus came up and spoke to them, saying, "All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth. Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age."
Matthew 28:18-20
Let me point out the “how to” specifics of this Great Commission to “Go, make disciples of all the nations (peoples).”
Step one: Baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit
Step two: Teaching them to observe (keep or obey) all that Jesus commanded his first disciples
Let me put it another way. We make disciples by inaugurating new believers in Jesus into the church through baptism. Then, we begin teaching them to observe what Jesus taught.
Simple, yes?
Since the day that Jesus spoke these words, those in this world who call Jesus their Lord understand that this mission has not changed. We are still to go into the world and make disciples for Jesus.
What does this churchy word “disciple” mean anyway? It means learner, student, or follower. In my opinion, the best word that defines “disciple” is the word apprentice. An apprentice is someone who learns from the Master craftsman. The new young apprentice, who sweeps the carpenter shop floor of sawdust, is beginning his apprenticeship on the bottom, learning the basics of keeping a clean shop. Other apprentices have learned more and are beginning to work on joinery and assembly. Those apprentices who are even further along under the instruction of the Master are doing fine woodcarving and inlaying. Everyone starts at the bottom and learns, working their way to more advanced skills.
Our discipleship is an apprenticeship with Jesus Christ. Becoming a disciple by baptism, we now begin the work of becoming like the Master Jesus in everyway he teaches us. Unfortunately, the typical Christ-follower throughout history has not been one who has been an apprentice, or gone on to train apprentices of his or her own. We seem to have left that up to professionals that Jesus never intended to be professionals: pastors, missionaries, church elders and church deacons.
So instead of asking you to become instant makers of disciples, I am going to approach this whole subject from the other end of the equation. Are you a disciple of Jesus Christ? That is have you become an apprentice to the Master Jesus?
You may be tempted to say, “Sure, I am a Christian, therefore I am a disciple.” Hmmm . . . you sure? A disciple, by definition, is one who is becoming more like the Master. While you may have become a Christian by conversion, have you become an apprentice of the savior Jesus? Are you and avid learner? Do you watch what he does in scripture and do it in your own life? Are you in the learning mode all the time when it comes to the formation of your character and your actions? Do you learn today from others farther along in the disciple path than you?
I think we have in the church of Jesus
Let me say that if I am not growing in my knowledge of what Jesus wants, followed by imitation of what he does, then I am half-disciple. I am an apprentice who shows up for work, but once I’m there, I pay no attention to the master in order to learn my craft. But my Bible says that growth is expected of a disciple. It is inherent in the word apprentice.
HEAR YE: A disciple does not stand still in his or her faith walk; a disciple learns and grows always.
Now, knowing that we are to be growing, I have to face the reality of my resistance. Yes, I resist growing. I resist it because it requires two of my most prized possessions that I don’t want to share:
Effort
and
Time.
I resist giving my effort and time. I have other things I like to do, other priorities. Out of my mouth I say Jesus is Lord; but out of my schedule I say, “My busy-ness is Lord.”
It is obvious that being an apprentice is a lordship choice.
Now, I have heard the Great Commission used nefariously. I have heard it used to badger people into giving to the building fund, for raising money for missionaries, for getting volunteers for a church program. None of these are bad things; in fact they are all necessary in their place. However, the Great Commission says the apprenticeship task is to learn “what Jesus has commanded us.”
--About living one’s neighbor, and even one’s enemy
--Being a peacemaker
--Loving others with acts of service
--How to pray
--How to persevere in tough times
--How to manage your possessions and your power
--How to worship in Spirit and in truth
So, as you view your spiritual condition, are you moving forward or standing still (which seems like regressing to me)? It’s not a hard question. Either we are doing our apprenticeship work with the Master or we are loafing on the job.
If my apprenticeship to Jesus were like my workaday job, would I be likely to be fired? I’m not saying Jesus would fire his people from being disciples. However, he can’t use us if we are malingerers standing in the corner, always waiting for break time.
Yet he can use me even if my start is simply sweeping up the shop.
Now where is that broom?
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