Today we finish up with our new year series – About Discipleship which we called the Last Arrow.

Allow me one final time to remind you what we are talking about when we talk about being a Disciple of Jesus.

A disciple, Believes like Jesus believed

A disciple, Lives like Jesus lived

A disciple, Loves like Jesus loved

A disciple, Ministers like Jesus ministered

A disciple, Leads like Jesus led

5. A disciple, Leads like Jesus led

A disciple, Disciples others like Jesus discipled.

A disciple is an apprentice of Jesus and the goal of a disciple is to become Just like Jesus.

Over the last two weeks we have discussed three important steps to becoming a disciple.

1. Never quit until the last arrow breaks

2. Count the cost – You will be asked by the Holy Spirit to give things up to follow Jesus.

3. Burn the plow – Un tether yourself from the thing(s) that are holding back from going all in.

Today we tackle what I believe is the hardest principle and the biggest obstacle for many Christians in becoming a disciple of Jesus.

Not money – not sex – not power

Today we are talking about RELATIONSHIPS.

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If we were to title today’s message it might be-

Relationships: The Discipleship Frontier

Webster defines frontier as: The extreme limit of settled land beyond which lies wilderness.

And: A new field for exploitative or developmental activity.

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In the American church the practice of Relationships is the unexplored frontier that lays in front of all who desire to be a disciples of Jesus.

We are an individualistic people by culture. We are private,

READ A LITTLE FROM THE ARTICLE

Did you notice the two areas of the world where people are less individualistic?

South America and the Middle East.

Where do our OT Scriptures originate from?

Where was Jesus from?

This would explain this text

2 Corinthians 13:12 ESV

Greet one another with a holy kiss.

2 cor

I have not plans to try to get us kissing one another.

But I do hope that after today we will take relationships seriously when it comes to being a Disciple of Jesus.

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So, let me start today with a BANG!

The Bible never calls us to an Individual Relationship with God!

Hear what I am saying.

Yes, you as an individual need a relationship with God through Jesus.

But no, you are never called to live in that relationship as an individual.

This is not to be a PRIVATE FAITH

But a faith deep in your personhood with God that is wrapped in relationships with others.

Romans 13:9 ESV

For the commandments, “You shall not commit adultery, You shall not murder, You shall not steal, You shall not covet,” and any other commandment, are summed up in this word: “You shall love your neighbor as yourself.”

Matthew 22:37–40 ESV

And he said to him, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the great and first commandment. And a second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself. On these two commandments depend all the Law and the Prophets.”

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When Jesus calls us He calls us into a relationship with Himself and into a relationship with everyone else He has called.

Matthew 4:18–22 ESV

While walking by the Sea of Galilee, he saw two brothers, Simon (who is called Peter) and Andrew his brother, casting a net into the sea, for they were fishermen. And he said to them, “Follow me, and I will make you fishers of men.” Immediately they left their nets and followed him. And going on from there he saw two other brothers, James the son of Zebedee and John his brother, in the boat with Zebedee their father, mending their nets, and he called them. Immediately they left the boat and their father and followed him.

1 Corinthians 12:12–13 ESV

For just as the body is one and has many members, and all the members of the body, though many, are one body, so it is with Christ. For in one Spirit we were all baptized into one body—Jews or Greeks, slaves or free—and all were made to drink of one Spirit.

John 13:34–35 ESV

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. By this all people will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another.”

;

How will they know that you are disciples of Jesus?

By your knowledge? Power? Influence? Money? Health?

No by your love for one another.

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Discipleship Takes us into the wild frontiers of relationships.

There are five essential relationships every disciple must develop.

The first one being our relationship with Jesus.

The next four are centered, wrapped in, and focused on Jesus.

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RELATIONSHIP WITH THE CHURCH FOLK

Galatians 3:26–29 ESV

for in Christ Jesus you are all sons of God, through faith. For as many of you as were baptized into Christ have put on Christ. There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free, there is no male and female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus. And if you are Christ’s, then you are Abraham’s offspring, heirs according to promise.

Gal 3:2

In the church of Galatia the cultural dividing lines were between slave and free, male and female, Jew and Greek.

Yet the church was full of all of these people.

People who are different - see the world differently- vote differently- speak differently - look differently.

And it was hard!

The Church forces us to grow in love, tolerance, and longsuffering for those not like me.

We grow in deeper understanding of people who come from different lives.

We grow in compassion towards people with different problems.

You are not called to be friends with everyone in the local church

You are however called to love and to put the other before yourself.

Jesus uses the relationship of the church to mold us into his image.

Without a relationship with the multi-grained church, you will never learn how to love like Jesus.

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PEER RELATIONSHIPS

Matthew 16:5–7 ESV

When the disciples reached the other side, they had forgotten to bring any bread. Jesus said to them, “Watch and beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and Sadducees.” And they began discussing it among themselves, saying, “We brought no bread.”

The 12 disciples were in a peer to peer relationship.

We all need this kind of relationship with at least five other people.

It is in this relationship we struggle together to figure out how to live the words of Jesus.

We encourage one another on - We argue over ideas of faith - We wrestle together to understand and live out the way of Jesus.

Who are you in a peer to peer relationship with?

Who do debate with, struggle over the faith with, study with?

If you do not have this relationship you will be stalled out before you really ever get going.

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PEER TO MENTOR RELATIONSHIP

In Acts we meet a man called Barnabas, which means son of encouragement.

It was Barnabas who included Paul into the disciples.

Acts 9:26–30 ESV

And when he had come to Jerusalem, he attempted to join the disciples. And they were all afraid of him, for they did not believe that he was a disciple. But Barnabas took him and brought him to the apostles and declared to them how on the road he had seen the Lord, who spoke to him, and how at Damascus he had preached boldly in the name of Jesus. So he went in and out among them at Jerusalem, preaching boldly in the name of the Lord. And he spoke and disputed against the Hellenists. But they were seeking to kill him. And when the brothers learned this, they brought him down to Caesarea and sent him off to Tarsus.

It was Barnabas who went with Paul on His first missionary journey.

Acts 13:1–3 ESV

Now there were in the church at Antioch prophets and teachers, Barnabas, Simeon who was called Niger, Lucius of Cyrene, Manaen a lifelong friend of Herod the tetrarch, and Saul. While they were worshiping the Lord and fasting, the Holy Spirit said, “Set apart for me Barnabas and Saul for the work to which I have called them.” Then after fasting and praying they laid their hands on them and sent them off.

And it was Barnabas who was the leader… at first.

Acts 13:7 ESV

He was with the proconsul, Sergius Paulus, a man of intelligence, who summoned Barnabas and Saul and sought to hear the word of God.

And it was Barnabas who wilfully allowed Paul to eventually take the lead.

After verse seven Saul is called Paul and Barnabas is mentioned second not first.

We all need an elder person in our lives who are an encouragement.

Someone who does not want to hold us down but rather see us flourish.

With out a PEER to Mentor Relationship we will be like orphaned children.

Always looking for approval of man because we never had that Man or Woman in our lives that gave us the security we need.

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SACRED CIRCLE - THE BROTHERHOOD OF WAR

This relationship is made up of two or three at most.

This is the people who you can be fully real with.

Your deep shadows of your soul can be exposed to them.

You trust them deeply

They love you deeply and forgive you without question.

They know the real you and you know the real them.

There is no hiding, no masks, only the full unfiltered you.

Warts and all.

This is a relationship we often find born out of war.

A soldier friend you would never leave behind

You would risk your life for them and they for you.

A bond that is deeper than blood.

Proverbs 17:17 ESV

A friend loves at all times, and a brother is born for adversity.

In this relationship your heart can be transformed.

Your true self is exposed

And correction can happen because you trust one another with your lives.

It is in this relationship life changing truth can be spoken.

It may hurt but you know the one speaking would die for you.

You never fear of them running and telling others

You never fear your sin will end up on the prayer chain by accident.

This is a foxhole relationship and it is only built by growing to war together

and building trust over time, sweat, and tears.

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Sadly, many in the church never enter this relationship with other followers of Jesus.

Instead we choose people outside the faith

Outside of discipleship to Jesus to bear our souls and fears.

It is hear where we must do soul searching.

Why will people not trust me

Why will people not give their heart to me

Why do I not trust you with my shadows of the heart

THIS IS THE MOST IMPORTANT RELATIONSHIP IN OUR DISCIPLESHIP JOURNEY.

THIS IS THE RELATIONSHIP THAT WILL LEAD TO REAL, DEEP, SOUL TRANSFORMATION.

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THE LAST RELATIONSHIP

FRIEND TO SINNERS

Luke 7:34 ESV

The Son of Man has come eating and drinking, and you say, ‘Look at him! A glutton and a drunkard, a friend of tax collectors and sinners!’

Luke 15:2 ESV

And the Pharisees and the scribes grumbled, saying, “This man receives sinners and eats with them.”

Our last relationship is with those who do not know Jesus.

A Disciple DISCIPLES like Jesus did.

That means we disciple those Jesus discipled.

I will go into this at length later in the year but for now let me say this.

We cannot disciple the world without being a friend to the sinners as Jesus was.

Discipleship starts by introducing people to the Master we serve.

But let me warn you as well.

If you do not take care of the other relationships - You will be poorly equipped to lead anyone yourself into a Discipleship relation with Jesus.

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It is a wild frontier but we are called to explore it and to make it our home.

Relationships with Church Folk

Peer to Peer Relationship

Peer to Mentor Relationship

Sacred Circle or Brother Hood Relationship

Friend of Sinners.

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Where do you struggle?

What relationships do you need to work on?

I would recommend this week you think deeply on those questions.

Pray over them, then make a phone call and ask one or two people to help you.

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Communion -

Half the church break a piece of bread off dip it in the juice and take the communion

then take another piece dip it into the juice and take it to a person on the other side.

And offer it to them bay saying Brother or Sister

We are in this together.

Then we will worship