Discipleship as a spiritual discipline can be a means of hearing the gospel repeated like a wave washing over you, bringing to mind the reality of God's faithfulness consistently.

However, it is often intimidating for believers of all walks of life, because we don't know what we should say, or how to orchestrate the spiritual life of another person.

Authentic discipleship involves the love of Christ training us to love others with that same gospel. As we reach out to others with our own testimony of God's faithfulness, it builds us up as well as points them to the actual source of our faith.

At its worst, discipleship can be used as a form of manipulation to better behavior or a better lifestyle, as a means of gradually understanding God through our own works. When we get discipleship wrong, we are not only loading burdens on others, but we feel burdened to make it happen one way or the other. But within the theology of law and gospel, the only way to Christ is through grace, not our works. The grace of Christ takes the burden of discipleship off of getting people to do certain things, and instead introducing them to the person or Christ.

Gospel Mentoring (Gretchen's free online training course)

Song referenced: Craig

Fiction book: Virgil Wander by Leif Enger

Parenting book: Age of Opportunity

Episode on Confession and Absolution

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