City Life Starter

Written by Scott Fiddler

The Word

6 “I have manifested Your name to the men whom You gave Me out of the world; they were Yours and You gave them to Me, and they have kept Your word. 7 Now they have come to know that everything You have given Me is from You; 8 for the words which You gave Me I have given to them; and they received them and truly understood that I came forth from You, and they believed that You sent Me.

Exegesis

The kingdom of God is a voluntary kingdom. Unlike other earthly kingdoms that function because the king (the government) imposes laws on its people at the threat of incarceration or a fine, the kingdom of God functions through voluntary obedience to King Jesus. It is a kingdom truly unique in history. But because it is voluntary, the extent to which its citizens voluntarily obey the king (Jesus) and submit to His will, is the extent to which the kingdom of God manifests itself on the earth and changes the world.

The essence of discipleship is helping others be reconciled to God and bringing them into obedience to King Jesus. These are the twin tasks of the Great Commission. See Matt. 28:19-20 (“Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them . . . . teaching them to observe all that I commanded you….”).  Getting people saved is not enough; if saved people do not become obedient to Jesus, the kingdom of God will not become apparent on the earth. Both salvation and obedience is necessary. In other words, discipleship is about making good citizens of the kingdom of God, and good citizens make the kingdom of God manifest in the world.

Jesus was the model for making disciples. He discipled 12 men for the better part of three years, and while one fell away in fulfillment of Scripture, the other 11 eventually set out to baptize nations and bring them into voluntary obedience to Jesus. They did such a good job that 2,000 years later fully one-third of the world claims to be Christian. I say “claims to be” because not all who claim to be are, and not all who claim to be live their lives consistent with those beliefs. What cannot be denied is the positive influence of Christianity in reshaping the world. Things we take for granted today such as hospitals, caring for the poor, and a culture of compassion are a direct result of the influence of men and women who were reconciled to God, became obedient to Jesus, and manifested the kingdom of God on earth.

If you are wondering if this has anything to do with the scripture above, it actually has everything to do with it. Jesus says, “I have manifested Your name to the men whom You gave Me out of the world; they were Yours and You gave them to Me, and they have kept Your word.”  John 17:6. Jesus is describing how He discipled those the Father gave Him and declaring His success in doing so. That success is shown in that Jesus’ disciples had become obedient to God’s word (“they have kept your word”), which is the ultimate goal of discipleship. 

Application

Obedience to King Jesus is the ultimate goal of disciple because saved people don’t change the world; changed people change the world.