Imperfect Disciple , livre ebook
104
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English
Ebooks
2017
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104
pages
English
Ebook
2017
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Obtenez un accès à la bibliothèque pour le consulter en ligne En savoir plus
Publié par
Date de parution
02 mai 2017
Nombre de lectures
0
EAN13
9781493409273
Langue
English
Poids de l'ouvrage
1 Mo
Publié par
Date de parution
02 mai 2017
Nombre de lectures
0
EAN13
9781493409273
Langue
English
Poids de l'ouvrage
1 Mo
Cover
Title Page
Copyright Page
© 2017 by Jared C. Wilson
Published by Baker Books
a division of Baker Publishing Group
P.O. Box 6287, Grand Rapids, MI 49516-6287
www.bakerbooks.com
Ebook edition created 2017
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means—for example, electronic, photocopy, recording—without the prior written permission of the publisher. The only exception is brief quotations in printed reviews.
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data is on file at the Library of Congress, Washington, DC.
ISBN 978-1-4934-0927-3
Unless otherwise indicated, Scripture quotations are from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version® (ESV®), copyright © 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved. ESV Text Edition: 2011
Scripture quotations labeled KJV are from the King James Version of the Bible.
Scripture quotations labeled NIV are from the Holy Bible, New International Version®. NIV®. Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.™ Used by permission of Zondervan. All rights reserved worldwide. www.zondervan.com
Endorsements
“Jared does a great job, with his humorous yet serious style, reminding us of God’s perfection in the midst of our inconsistencies, fears, and falls—in other words he has faithfully ‘demystified discipleship.’ Whether you feel you’re barely hanging in there or riding a wave of joy-saturated obedience, the grace of God found in this book will encourage and remind the saint that there is only One who is perfect—and that perfection is enough for all who believe on the name of Jesus.”
Matt Chandler, lead teaching pastor, The Village Church
“Even though St. Paul wrote that the gospel was ‘of first importance,’ for some reason most people, even Christians (no less), don’t really believe it. What we want are practical steps about how to build a discipleship group and facilitate communication, and though those things aren’t wrong in themselves, we want to do it detached from the gospel itself. Which, of course, means that it’s doomed to failure before we even start. But this book is different. Jared ties everything he has to say about being and loving disciples to the realities of what Jesus has already done. And that, dear friends, is what sets this wonderful book apart from all the others. Please do buy it. Buy one for a friend. And then read it together—and rejoice in the gospel.”
Elyse M. Fitzpatrick, counselor and speaker; author of Because He Loves Me
“Too often discipleship is described in strings of clichés. In Imperfect Disciple , Jared Wilson cuts the string, shares his story, and helps readers envision following Jesus in clear, inviting, and realistic ways. It’s personal, prophetic, and pastoral and it will help readers reimagine discipleship as a real possibility in the midst of ordinary life.”
Mike Cosper, founder and director, Harbor Media
“Wilson takes our idea of discipleship—you know, the list of things we need to do to be a perfectly obedient Christian—and turns it on its head. Discipleship is not about our to-do lists; it’s about the glorious gospel. Wilson makes us dizzy with gospel truth and disoriented by beholding the Lamb of God. He helps us refocus so that our obedience is no longer about us. You’ll be encouraged as you read this book about discipleship.”
Trillia Newbell, author of Enjoy , Fear and Faith , and United
“Drawing from Jared Wilson’s own story, The Imperfect Disciple is a book about grace for people who know about grace. It replaces our neat and tidy notions of discipleship with the real-life messiness of real people—even the “good” ones. For anyone who draws confidence—or shame—from the belief that God is keeping track of their goodness, this book is for you.”
Sharon Hodde Miller, writer and speaker
“Follow Jared as he demystifies discipleship on this unpredictable quest into the kindness of Christ.”
Christian George, curator of The Spurgeon Library; assistant professor of historical theology at Midwestern Seminary; author of Sex, Sushi, and Salvation
“While most every Christian would joyfully acknowledge that we are saved by grace alone, many of us live as if our ongoing growth in Jesus is not driven and sustained by that same grace. In terms of our discipleship, we suffer from the same self-justifying tendencies that would keep us from the cross to begin with. I’m grateful, then, for this refreshing, grace-saturated, and realistic treatment of what it means to follow Jesus.”
Michael Kelley, director of discipleship at Lifeway Christian Resources; author of Boring: Finding an Extraordinary God in an Ordinary Life
“This is the most refreshing and encouraging book of discipleship I’ve read in the past decade. For twenty-one years, I had the priceless experience of being pursued, loved, and fathered by a 5’6” gospel Yoda named Jack Miller, who taught me, showed me, and prayed into my bones that my need for Jesus is far greater than I’ll realize in this life, but that the grace of Jesus is exponentially more extravagant, outrageous, and liberating than I could ever imagine or hope. With tears, I write this ‘blurb,’ because Jared has given fresh words, voice, and understanding to this grand reality. Everything about me is imperfect, so I’m just like you. Together, let’s seek to discover the much-more-ness of the perfect gospel. Jared helps us do so, with his words and heart.”
Scotty Smith, teacher in residence, West End Community Church, Nashville, Tennessee
“I’ve read too many ‘discipleship’ books that made me feel, somehow, less. This book is the exact, wonderful opposite. It’s like talking with a very insightful friend about Jesus. It’s honest, thoughtful, and unpretentious. Thank you, Jared.”
Brant Hansen, storyteller/radio guy, CURE International
“In a world—and church—infatuated with ‘leaders,’ ‘platforms,’ and ‘influence,’ The Imperfect Disciple offers a much-needed antidote to our leadership overdose: following. Jared Wilson reminds us that following Christ is not about what we do but about who we are. And we need be no more—or no less—than flawed but faithful disciples of the One who has already won all of our battles for us.”
Karen Swallow Prior, PhD, author of Booked and Fierce Convictions— The Extraordinary Life of Hannah More
Dedication
For Mom and Dad, who imperfectly but consistently lived out in front of us normal, regular, non-weird Christianity.
Epigraph
But she came and knelt before him, saying, “Lord, help me.” And he answered, “It is not right to take the children’s bread and throw it to the dogs.” She said, “Yes, Lord, yet even the dogs eat the crumbs that fall from their masters’ table.”
Matthew 15:25–27
Contents
Cover 1
Title Page 2
Copyright Page 3
Endorsements 4
Dedication 5
Epigraph 6
You Should Probably Read This Introduction 11
When You Wonder If This Book Is Worth Reading
1. Sin and the Art of Soul Maintenance 15
When You Can’t Get Your Act Together
2. Good News for Losers 33
When You Don’t See the Advantage of Being at the Bottom
3. Staring at the Glory until You See It 53
When You Struggle to Believe Beholding Is Better Than Behaving
4. The Rhythm of Listening 73
When You Think God Is Giving You the Silent Treatment
5. The Rhythm of Spilling Your Guts 99
When You Realize You’re the One Giving the Silent Treatment
6. The Revolution Will Not Be Instagrammed 117
When You Think Church Would Be Better without All the People
7. The Nine Irrefutable Laws of Followship 147
When You Feel Stuck
8. Will the Real Me Please Stand Up? 175
When You’re Not Happy with the Person in the Mirror
9. Does Grace Go All the Way Down? 197
When You Wonder If It Could Get Any Worse
10. Lurv Wins 211
When You Look Forward to the End
This Conclusion Isn’t Very Long 229
When You’re Almost Done Reading This Book
Notes 231
About the Author 235
Back Ads 237
Back Cover 241
You Should Probably Read This Introduction
(When You Wonder If This Book Is Worth Reading)
Here’s a question I used to ask the people I taught in church: “What comes to mind when you hear the word discipleship ?”
Some people would play word-association and I’d get a string of adjectives in response: difficult , trusting , adventurous , obedient , and so forth.
I don’t recall many people thinking too long about the question. Very quickly somebody would offer up the “right answer”—at least, the right answer for our context—“Discipleship means following Jesus.”
Well, yeah.
Christian discipleship does mean following Jesus. It means following Jesus wherever he goes. It means lashing ourselves to him like a sailor in a storm-tossed boat might lash himself to the mast.
When church people say, “Discipleship means following Jesus,” I think they tend to picture a group of suntanned dudes in cantata-quality robe costumes peacefully strolling through green pastures, perhaps stopping here and there under the comfortable shade of a tree to watch Jesus smile at them and tousle the hair of precocious children scampering about at his Birkenstocked feet.
Or maybe I’m just cynical.
When I ask, “What comes to mind when you hear the word discipleship ?” I’d love to hear people answer more along these lines:
“Believing God has a plan for me even when I’m afraid he doesn’t.”
“Believing God loves me even when I feel like nobody else does.”
“Trusting that God is doing something for my good even though my life has always been terrible up till now.”
“Following Jesus even though my feelings speak more loudly.”
“Denying myself in order to do what’s right although I don’t really want to.”
“Imagining a time when I won’t hurt as much as I do now.”
“Imagining a time when my spouse or child won’t hurt as much as they do now.”
You get the idea, I hope. None of those responses really suffices as a definition of discipleship like you’d find in a theological dictionary, but they all
