NEVER MAKING

NEVER MAKING

Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you travel across sea and land win a single convert, and when you have succeeded, you make him twice as much a child of hell as yourselves.

-Matthew 23:15

Jesus was born unto the horrid landscape of synthetic, hollow and burdensome religion. This illegitimate offspring of sin and human industry was altogether removed from the joy and simplicity of Eden and God’s intent.

Prior to humanity’s rebellion there was only always the untarnished beauty and elation of extravagant abundance merely dwelling in the radiant presence of God.

Before the foundation of the cosmos, God had already reconciled that He would go to Calvary. Jesus, our Creator, understood both the depths of our depravity, as well as the futility of our misguided intentions of diseased industry.

All have turned aside; together they have become worthless; no one does good, not even one.

-Romans 3:13

Eden’s revelation is one of predisposition. A propensity as corrupt miscreants, autonomous idolaters, and narcissistic reprobates toward austere rebellion. Rebellion of a crafty variety - not against injustice, equality, liberty, or peace, but rather against the Almighty Himself. Rebellion against the One from whom all blessings flow - and flow abundantly.

Eden simply revealed our default inclination to rebel against governance, sovereignty, obedience, humility, surrender, and altruistic service in favor of synthetic autonomous industry.

Industry is universally recognizable. Bigger, faster, efficient, sterile, insulated, consuming, and disconnected. This fact is true for corporations - of which religions are the most abject and reprehensible.

The Bible tells us that the nation of Israel was apt to adopting this model of corporate industry as their national religion. Despite God’s pervasive, active, personal, and tangible involvement in their history (through leaders, prophets, kings, priests, and ongoing revelation), Israel’s insatiable frenzied lust for industry ultimately led to foreign conquests and occupation, the temple’s destruction, an inoperative priesthood, the kingship’s demise, revelation’s abatement, and Israel’s expulsion from the Land of Promise. Of monumentally preeminent significance was the Object to which all those gifts, symbols, and beacons (temple, priesthood, kingship, law, and land) pointed, i.e. God.

Israel’s religion was that of constant, perpetual, and repeated prostitution of themselves out for paganism, legalistic ritualism, and every form of idolatrous malfeasance imaginable. Anything was desirable over authentic, humble, surrendered, obedient and true worship. Israel’s religion was, at it diseased root, one of rebellious synthetic industry.

Nothing of any significance has truly changed.

In the twenty-eighth chapter of Matthew, we find the “Great Commission” passage (vv. 18-20), which has been mangled, misused, and mutilated beyond recognition, i.e. that of simple obedience, into one of human industry. A typical English translation might be:

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…”

Let us briefly examine two key words here:

First, the original Greek word πορευθέντες, which is typically translated “Go” is not an imperative verb, but rather a passive one indicating external influence and power; such as a patient being transported by an ambulance. One does not leave the scene of a horrific crash and arrive at the hospital’s emergency room by “going,” but rather passively “in being brought.” Therefore, it is more appropriately translated “in being brought” or “in being carried along.”

Next, the original Greek word μαθητεύσατε is typically lost as the imperative verb (focal point) and erroneously translated “make disciples” rather than simply being rendered “disciple.”

Thus far, this entire work has attempted to graphically illustrate the calamitous history and unmitigated folly of human industry.

Does it seem likely, or even remotely reasonable, that God Almighty would intend to, upon His departure, commission flawed, inept, broken followers (we who are prone to sink, deny, flee, and hide) with the advancement of His imminent eternal kingdom via fastidious industry?

Instead, might it be likely that Jesus intended to communicate that in the midst of our (His disciples) being carried along - in fact passively transported, by the πνεῦμα, the Wind, Breath, and Spirit of God - our privileged part would be to quite simply “disciple” rather than plotting, scheming, or striving to make, build, manufacture, construct, or produce anything of our own.

Just a few chapters prior, Jesus said to the tenaciously industrious religious leaders of the day, “Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you travel across sea and land win a single convert, and when you have succeeded, you make him twice as much a child of hell as yourselves.”

As Oswald Chambers notes, “Jesus did not say - Make converts to your way of thinking.” Nor did Jesus tell us to make disciples or supporters of any great cause - even that of evangelism! Rather, Jesus calls us to personal, intimate, intricate, and transformative life with Him. He calls us to simply abide in Him.

It is neither in the ecstatic revel of producing converts, the emotional highs of visitations, the fulfillment of missionary endeavors, the intoxication of revivals, nor the industrious saying, doing, or making of anything, which avails the disciple to the rhythmic consistency of unyielding perseverance.

Simple obedience, resolute devotion, and tenacious grit spring forth not from human industry, but rather in humble surrender to the zephyr wind of God.

We, like those fools erecting Babel’s Tower, are engrossed and consumed with building campaigns, steering committees, social boards, projects, programs, and religious industry. We rarely, if ever, pause to listen or allow ourselves to be carried - in fact divinely transported by the Wind, Breath, and Spirit of God - somewhere we never would or could have ever imagined.

Jesus invites those keenly aware of the glorious debacle our autonomous industry into the kind of relationship where confidence is rightfully deferred to Him. A confidence that paints Him, the One who has graciously ransomed us, as the overarching and central figure of our lives.

Faith is never making, but perpetually being reforged and refined into the perfection of His will. The life of a true disciple lays itself down willingly to be crushed, trampled, scattered, and transported on the πνεῦμα - Wind, Breath, and Spirit of God - with this unquestionable assurance: lives are radically altered, legitimately baptized into unity, and rightly taught obedience.

In allowing ourselves to be transported and engaged in that simple imperative, “disciple,” Immanuel promised to be manifest in our midst unto to the very end.

Blessings,

-Kevin M. Kelley

aMostUnlikelyDisciple.com