“‘Paul and Silas have caused trouble all over the world,’ they shouted, ‘and now they are here disturbing our city, too.’” (Acts 17:6 NLT)

 

The Christian life is more than just saying a prayer, walking down an aisle, and receiving “fire insurance,” as it were. The Christian life is meant to be dynamic. It’s meant to be exciting. It’s meant to have a radical effect on the way you live, because Jesus Christ not only wants to be your Savior, but He also wants to be your Lord. He not only wants to be your friend, but He also wants to be your God.

In Acts 17, we see just how dynamic Christianity can be. When Paul and Silas arrived in Thessalonica, their reputations preceded them. The Jewish religious leaders had heard of the impact the two missionaries had had on other cities, and they determined (too late) not to let them have the same impact in Thessalonica. Their call to arms is the perfect description of dynamic Christianity. “‘Paul and Silas have caused trouble all over the world,’ they shouted, ‘and now they are here disturbing our city, too’” (verse 6 NLT).

Christianity isn’t a quiet belief system that we keep compartmentalized and bring out only on Sundays and holidays. Christianity shakes people to the core. It upends social norms. It doesn’t settle for the status quo. Christianity is a very real threat to darkness and evil. It changes the world one life at a time. That’s the Christian experience that God desires for us.

But I’m afraid that many people today are settling for a substandard Christian experience. They’re failing to receive all that God has for them. They’re failing to make the impact that He intends for them. They’re failing to carry out the Great Commission that fueled the spiritual intensity of the earliest Christians.

How did a handful of ordinary people living in the first century turn their world, as they knew it, upside down? They did it without television, without social media, without megachurches, and without all the resources that we think are so important today in reaching the goal of world evangelism.

How is it that they were able to do it? I think you could sum it up in one word: discipleship. They were disciples of Jesus Christ—not fair-weather followers, but true disciples. They weren’t living an anemic, watered-down, ineffective version of the Christian life. They were living the Christian life as it was meant to be lived—as Christ Himself offered it. If we want to impact our culture today, then we, too, must be disciples.

On the road to discipleship, there are many inviting detours that lead to dead ends. There are many rugged, difficult paths. There are many lonely stretches. It’s tempting to take an easier route, one that isn’t so narrow and challenging. It’s easy to lose our way and become wanderers. If that’s happened to you, now is the time to return. The world is waiting to be changed. And you’re just the person God can use to change it.

 

Reflection question: How can you make an impact as a disciple of Christ? Discuss Today's Devo in Harvest Discipleship!

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