Welcome to Day 2123 of Wisdom-Trek, and thank you for joining me. This is Guthrie Chamberlain, Your Guide to Wisdom James – Wisdom is Faith in Action 5 – Partiality and Prejudice – Daily Wisdom Putnam Church Message – 10/03/2021 James: Wisdom is Faith In Action – Partiality and Prejudice We are continuing our series today on the Proverbs of the New Testament, better known as the book of James.  Last week we focused on Listening and Doing Good. Today we will cover some hot topics in our society, but they are even more important within the church.  Our focus is on Partiality and Prejudice.  Join me on page 1882 in the pew bibles as I read the Scripture for today. I would recommend keeping this passage open as we go throughout the message today: James 2:1-13 My brothers and sisters, believers in our glorious Lord Jesus Christ must not show favoritism. 2 Suppose a man comes into your meeting wearing a gold ring and fine clothes, and a poor man in filthy old clothes also comes in. 3 If you show special attention to the man wearing fine clothes and say, “Here’s a good seat for you,” but say to the poor man, “You stand there” or “Sit on the floor by my feet,” 4 have you not discriminated among yourselves and become judges with evil thoughts? 5 Listen, my dear brothers and sisters: Has not God chosen those who are poor in the eyes of the world to be rich in faith and to inherit the kingdom he promised those who love him? 6 But you have dishonored the poor. Is it not the rich who are exploiting you? Are they not the ones who are dragging you into court? 7 Are they not the ones who are blaspheming the noble name of him to whom you belong? 8 If you really keep the royal law found in Scripture, “Love your neighbor as yourself,”[a] you are doing right. 9 But if you show favoritism, you sin and are convicted by the law as lawbreakers. 10 For whoever keeps the whole law and yet stumbles at just one point is guilty of breaking all of it. 11 For he who said, “You shall not commit adultery,”[b] also said, “You shall not murder.”[c] If you do not commit adultery but do commit murder, you have become a lawbreaker. 12 Speak and act as those who are going to be judged by the law that gives freedom, 13 because judgment without mercy will be shown to anyone who has not been merciful. Mercy triumphs over judgment.   In many of our Christian lives, we wrestle against a form of Christianity obsessed with externals. Too many believers draw quick conclusions about people based merely on their first impressions— almost as if they had forgotten what we are told in 1 Samuel 16:7, But the Lord said to Samuel, “Don’t judge by his appearance or height, for I have rejected him. The Lord doesn’t see things the way you see them. People judge by outward appearance, but...

Welcome to Day 2122 of  Wisdom-Trek, and thank you for joining me. This is Guthrie Chamberlain, Your Guide to Wisdom James – Wisdom is Faith in Action 4 – Listening and Doing – Daily Wisdom Putnam Church Message – 09/26/2021 James: Wisdom is Faith In Action – Listening and Doing We are continuing our series today on the Proverbs of the New Testament, better known as the book of James.  Last week we discovered why we should not be misled by sin because we are God’s Prized Possessions. Today our focus is on Listening and Doing.  Join me on page 1882 in the pew bibles as I read the Scripture for today. I would recommend keeping this passage open as we go throughout the message today: James 1:19-27 My dear brothers and sisters, take note of this: Everyone should be quick to listen, slow to speak, and slow to become angry, 20 because human anger does not produce the righteousness that God desires. 21 Therefore, get rid of all moral filth and the evil that is so prevalent and humbly accept the word planted in you, which can save you. 22 Do not merely listen to the word, and so deceive yourselves. Do what it says. 23 Anyone who listens to the word but does not do what it says is like someone who looks at his face in a mirror 24 and, after looking at himself, goes away and immediately forgets what he looks like. 25 But whoever looks intently into the perfect law that gives freedom, and continues in it—not forgetting what they have heard, but doing it—they will be blessed in what they do. 26 Those who consider themselves religious and yet do not keep a tight rein on their tongues deceive themselves, and their religion is worthless. 27 Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world. A debilitating disease is crippling the body of Christ—a syndrome so common that it seems to affect every believer with either a mild or an acute case. This insidious condition neutralizes the church’s impact and nullifies its testimony. It can diminish effectiveness and paralyze production. The problem? A divorce between confession and deed, theology and action, listening and doing. As a result, God’s Word fails to make it from the head to the heart for too many Christians. God’s Word gets lodged between the heart and the hands for many more. In developing his overarching lesson that real faith produces genuine works, James has already dealt with the Christian’s perseverance through trials, which proves our faith (1:1-12), and the believer’s victory over temptation, demonstrating our character (1:13-18). As our theme for this series states, Wisdom is Faith in Action.  In this final section of chapter 1, James zooms in on the believer’s appropriate response to God’s Word. The break in the relationship between belief and behavior may be pandemic among Christians, but James reminds us that the two estranged partners of the Christian walk can be reconciled.   -1:19-20 — James begins with a reminder: “My dear brothers and sisters, take note of this” Unquestionably, he’s writing to believers, brothers, and sisters in Christ. And he begins by acknowledging that they should already know what he’s about to say.  In the NLT, James

Welcome to Day 2121 of  Wisdom-Trek, and thank you for joining me. This is Guthrie Chamberlain, Your Guide to Wisdom James – Wisdom is Faith in Action 3 – God's Prized Possession – Daily Wisdom Putnam Church Message – 09/19/2021 James: Wisdom is Faith In Action – God’s Prized Possession We are continuing our series today on the Proverbs of the New Testament, better known as the book of James.  Last week we started mining the rich wisdom that makes this letter a treasure trove of practical advice we can use daily. Today we will discover why we should not be misled by sin because we are God’s Prized Possessions.  Join me on page 1881 in the pew bibles as I read the Scripture for today. I would recommend keeping this passage open as we go throughout the message today: James 1:13-18 When tempted, no one should say, “God is tempting me.” For God cannot be tempted by evil, nor does he tempt anyone;  but each person is tempted when they are dragged away by their own evil desire and enticed. Then, after desire has conceived, it gives birth to sin; and sin, when it is full-grown, gives birth to death. Don’t be deceived, my dear brothers and sisters. Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting shadows. He chose to give us birth through the word of truth, that we might be a kind of firstfruits of all he created. Let me read verse 18 also from the NLT, as I feel it gives a better intent of how God views us: He chose to give birth to us by giving us his true word. And we, out of all creation, became his prized possession. So hold that thought. In last week’s message, James dealt with the kind of “trials” of life that test a person’s endurance—the ability to keep the faith under extreme pressure to give in (1-12). Next, James explores the other meaning of that Greek word for trials: a test of moral endurance (13-18). (Bulletin Insert) In six short verses, he presents the truth about temptation in a straightforward manner. Rather than skimming the surface of temptation, as many preachers and teachers tend to do, James probes deeply below the surface to reveal the inner workings of temptation. But less like a psychologist and more like a physician, James begins with certain facts that describe temptation (13-16), then moves to a focus that determines victory for overcoming temptation (17-18). Verse 13 James wants his fellow believers to understand at least four things about temptation. First, temptation is always present, and nobody is exempt from temptation. Once again, James says, “when,” not “if.” Like trials in the form of tests of faith, trials in the form of temptations are inevitable. There is no “spiritual vaccine,” no “get out of temptation free” card, and no alternate route to avoid the traps along the trail. Not a person here is immune or innocent. The aging monk in the monastery is no safer from temptation than the young person in the inner city. The lowly saint in prayer wrestles with temptation just as much as the executive in his Porsche.   Second, God never prompts temptation verse 13 in the NLT says, And remember, when you are being tempted, do not say, “God is tempting me.” God is never tempted to do wrong, and he never tempts anyone else. God doesn’t whisper evil thoughts into our minds or create an alluring mental image. God isn’t even indirectly involved...

Welcome to Day 2120 of  Wisdom-Trek, and thank you for joining me. This is Guthrie Chamberlain, Your Guide to Wisdom James – Wisdom is Faith in Action 2 – Trials of Life – Daily Wisdom Putnam Church Message – 09/12/2021 James: Wisdom is Faith In Action – Trials of Life We are continuing our series today on the Proverbs of the New Testament, better known as the book of James.  Last week we were introduced to James, the half-brother of Jesus, and learned a lot about his life and leadership within the first church of Jerusalem.  This week we start mining the rich wisdom that makes this letter a treasure trove of practical advice we can use daily.  Join me on page 1880 in the pew bibles as I read the Scripture for today. I would recommend keeping this passage open as we go throughout the message today: James 1:2-12. Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance. Let perseverance finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything. If any of you lacks wisdom, you should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to you. But when you ask, you must believe and not doubt, because the one who doubts is like a wave of the sea, blown and tossed by the wind. That person should not expect to receive anything from the Lord. Such a person is double-minded and unstable in all they do. Believers in humble circumstances ought to take pride in their high position.  But the rich should take pride in their humiliation—since they will pass away like a wildflower. For the sun rises with scorching heat and withers the plant; its blossom falls, and its beauty is destroyed. In the same way, the rich will fade away even while they go about their business. Blessed is the one who perseveres under trial because, having stood the test, that person will receive the crown of life that the Lord has promised to those who love him.   You don’t have to live long or experience much life, especially as an adult, before realizing that life is complicated and unfair. Instead, there seems to be a mountain of hurts, heartaches, pain, problems, disappointments, discouragements, sicknesses, suffering, disease, and death that sometimes overshadow life's sweet songs. As a result, we could become discouraged unless we understand the purpose. This letter from James helps us to gain that understanding. Let’s focus on verses 1-4 As we discovered last week in the introduction to James, the recipients of this letter were people enduring adversity. Having been “scattered abroad,” they were disoriented, disillusioned, and probably downright depressed. In addition, they were bearing the brunt of the criticism, brutality, and unjust treatment.   James greets these beleaguered believers with a single word in verse 1: “Greetings.” Though this was a common form of official greeting at that time, it meant “to rejoice,” as in Romans 12:15—“Rejoice with those who rejoice; mourn with those who mourn.” This contrast between his readers’ harried situation and James’s exhortation to “consider it pure joy” in the following line sets the tone for his letter.     So, without hesitating, James leaps headfirst into his most pressing issue, trials, which appears a second time in verse 12. The word...

Welcome to Day 2119 of  Wisdom-Trek, and thank you for joining me. This is Guthrie Chamberlain, Your Guide to Wisdom James – Wisdom is Faith in Action 1 – Who is James – Daily Wisdom Putnam Church Message – 09/05/2021 JAMES: WISDOM IS FAITH IN ACTION – WHO IS JAMES? As mentioned last week, we are beginning a new series today on the Proverbs of the New Testament, better known as the book of James. This letter is chocked full of practical wisdom on how to live the life of a radical disciple, which we focused on during August. Today I want to provide a background of who James is, and why he is so uniquely fit to author the first book written in the New Testament. Since most of the lesson today sets the stage for our study through James, which may take many weeks to complete, we will only cover one verse today, James 1:1. Thus, this lesson will be somewhat academic in nature before we explore the depths of the wisdom found in James. James 1:1 (NIV) James, a servant of God and of the Lord Jesus Christ, To the twelve tribes scattered among the nations: Greetings. James 1:1 (NLT) This letter is from James, a slave of God and of the Lord Jesus Christ. I am writing to the “twelve tribes”—Jewish believers scattered abroad. We live in a world where politics rules the day. In this world, a person’s public reputation too often drowns out the private reality. Who you know usually trumps what you know. Name-dropping often gets you farther than talent or skill. These cynical sayings not only apply to the political realm, where quid pro quo is the status quo. Unfortunately, the “good of boy” system also tends to corrupt most areas of business, academia, entertainment—and, yes, even the church. This is why the opening words of the book of James are so refreshing. Like a cool spring breeze blowing through a musty room, the unassuming nature of these first few words drives out arrogance, ego, and presumption. Written by a man who could have dropped the Name above all names, this simple, straightforward greeting sets the tone for a letter that assaults our natural human tendencies toward sin and selfishness with a radical message of authenticity and humility. That begs the question, which is today’s message titled ‘Who is James?’ From the very first phrase, the name “James,” this short letter presents us with a problem: Which “James” wrote this letter? Unfortunately, his humble self-identification as “a bond-servant (or slave) of God and of the Lord Jesus Christ” (1:1) doesn’t get us far. So, unless we were among those first recipients of the letter, we are left to some old-fashioned sleuthing to determine which James penned these words. If you run through the New Testament, you’ll come across four men with this name. It’s relatively easy to rule out a couple of these. First, James, the father of Judas (not Iscariot), never appears in the New Testament except in Luke 6:16. James, the son of Alphaeus, is probably the same as “James the Less.” Although he is one of the Twelve, he disappears from the biblical account after the upper room experience on Pentecost (Acts 1:13). So these two can be safely dismissed as unlikely candidates for authorship. This leaves James, the son of Zebedee and brother of the apostle John, or James, the half-brother of Jesus. Though the first James, a “Son of Thunder,” played a significant leadership role in the infant church as one of Christ’s inner three (Peter, James, and John), he was the first of the Twelve to suffer martyrdom under Herod Agrippa I. That occurred around ad 44 in persecution that resulted in further scattered the Jewish Christians throughout the Roman world (Acts 12:2). Shortly after this...

Welcome to Day 2118 of  Wisdom-Trek, and thank you for joining me. This is Guthrie Chamberlain, Your Guide to Wisdom Becoming A Radical Disciple 5 – Dependence and Death – Daily Wisdom Putnam Church Message – 08/29/2021 Becoming A Radical Disciple – Dependence and Death My purpose in this series is to consider eight character traits of Christian discipleship that are often neglected and deserve to be taken seriously.  In the past four weeks, we have explored Nonconformity, Christlikeness Maturity, Creation Care, and Living a Simple and Balanced Life.  This week we look at the final two character traits of dependence and death.  Let’s first explore the following: Dependence I must admit that I continually struggle with one area of life: dependence on others.  But I know in my heart that a radical disciple must depend on others to live a rich and satisfying life. As I reflect on the past 65 years of life, as an adult, there are four significant times when there was no choice but to depend on others.   The first significant time was when, after nearly 18 years of running a successful computer business that we had expanded to three locations and had over 50 employees, we were forced to close and lost most of our finances.  I indeed take responsibility, and we made some unwise choices of growing too fast by acquiring two other computer businesses.  We did not realize that the values and worldviews of the other owners were not as closely aligned with ours as we had thought. As a result, we did not do enough due diligence and did not have the financial strength required.  The dot com boom of the day went bust shortly after those acquisitions, resulting in the financial markets drying up for technology businesses, and we went bust with the markets.  During that time, we realized how valuable dependence on family, friends, and even Putnam church, allowing us to work with the youth provided the foundation to get back on our feet again. We had to work hard to overcome the failure, but I learned some valuable lessons.   The second time was when Hazel was diagnosed with Leukemia, and there was nothing we could do. But, again, dependence on God, family, and many friends, helped our family through those difficult days.   The third was when I made the unwise choice to combine a very large chain saw with an extension ladder. As a result, a not-so-huge branch snapped back and kicked me off onto the cement sidewalk below, fracturing my left femur right below the hip joint.  It could have been so much worse, and I praise God that it was not. Right after the fall, I dependent on my nephew was required, who had to prop up my back, so I wouldn’t move my leg, which stuck out at an odd angle. Again, dependence on Paula, my brother, the ambulance, the entire medical staff, and the surgeon were all needed. I was once again reminded that we all are dependent on others.   The final story is more recent, and happened the same night I started speaking full-time at Putnam on May 16th.  My Dad died that night, and the primary responsibility for all the funeral arrangements was mine, the oldest son living in Marietta.  If it were not for my brother Jack, several other siblings, our kids, and, very importantly, our church family, there would have been no way to handle it.  Being dependent on many people that week allowed us to have a beautiful church, graveside service, and family celebration afterward.  It also allowed me time to prepare a message for the next day’s church service.   I have realized that God can use dependence on others during these experiences to...

Welcome to Day 2117 of  Wisdom-Trek, and thank you for joining me. This is Guthrie Chamberlain, Your Guide to Wisdom Becoming A Radical Disciple 4 – Living a Simple and Balanced Life – Daily Wisdom Putnam Church Message – 08/22/2021 Becoming A Radical Disciple – Living A Simple and Balanced Life My purpose in this series is to consider eight character traits of Christian discipleship that are often neglected and deserve to be taken seriously.  In the past three weeks, we have explored Nonconformity, Christlikeness Maturity, and Creation Care.   Living a Simple Life   I suggest that the fifth characteristic of radical disciples is simplicity, especially regarding money and possessions.  As Christians, citizens of God’s kingdom, we claim to have received a new life from Jesus Christ. What lifestyle, then, is appropriate for us?  In particular, how are our lives to be distinguished from the lifestyle of those who make no Christian profession?  How should our lifestyle reflect the challenges of the present-day world?   Much of the world is alienated from God.  Most people, especially in affluent countries, view the earth’s resources differently, as if they own them. That is not the truth, for God has created the world for the enjoyment of all.   We live in a country where it is a dog-eat-dog world. We buy things we don’t need to show off to people we don’t like.  The old saying goes, ‘we have to keep up with the Joneses.’ So our garages or attics overflow with stuff we rarely use, and then we have to spend more on storage units for the overflow. Then, when we die, we leave it all to our children and grandchildren, so they have to sort through it all and give most of it away, or worse, have to throw it out because it is no longer useful, if it ever was.   All of us should be shocked by the poverty of millions and disturbed by the injustices. The country of Haiti is a perfect example, as are many emerging nations.  Yet, most of the time, we feel somewhat helpless about how to help effectively. Yet few of us desire to give up anything substantial to help.   There is nothing wrong with, nor should we ever envy, a person who, as a believer, has abundant resources by God’s grace. It boils down to that familiar verse we also covered in the Sermon on the Mount in Matthew 6:19-21 “Don’t store up treasures here on earth, where moths eat them and rust destroys them, and where thieves break in and steal.  Store your treasures in heaven, where moths and rust cannot destroy, and thieves do not break in and steal.  Wherever your treasure is, there the desires of your heart will also be.   As citizens of a kingdom, we have a higher calling.  Those who live in affluent circumstances, including most Western cultures, must accept our responsibility to develop a more simplistic lifestyle and contribute generously to relief and evangelism.   Of course, living a simple life requires prayerful wisdom, insight, and understanding.  God expects us to be prudent with the resources he has given us to manage.  God permits a few people to be abundantly wealthy, but their treasures must be stored up in heaven so they can effectively help others in need.   Since we are only managers of all God has given us, our purpose today is to consider our responsibility in becoming a radical disciple and how that is connected to living a simple and balanced life. Of course, there are many advantages to living a simple life, but let’s look at some essential aspects.  ...

Welcome to Day 2116 of  Wisdom-Trek, and thank you for joining me. This is Guthrie Chamberlain, Your Guide to Wisdom Becoming A Radical Disciple 3 – Maturity and Creation Care – Daily Wisdom Putnam Church Message – 08/15/2021 Becoming A Radical Disciple – Maturity and Creation Care My purpose in this series is to consider eight character traits of Christian discipleship that are often neglected and deserve to be taken seriously.  In the past two weeks, we have explored Nonconformity and Christlikeness.  Today our focus will be on Maturity and Creation Care.   Maturity What would be your answer if I were to ask you to summarize the Christian scene in the world today?  While it is somewhat difficult to know with certainty, I would sum it up in just three words, namely ‘growth without depth.’   There is no doubt of the church’s phenomenal growth in many parts of the world, including the western cultures. The statistics of church growth are tremendous.  Unfortunately, the news media, even many Christian ministries, focus on the negative aspects.  ‘Explosion’ is not too dramatic a word to describe it. It is an exciting time to be alive as a citizen of God’s kingdom.  For example, the church in China and India has grown at least one hundredfold since the middle of the twentieth century. More Christian believers now worship God every Sunday in China than in all the churches of Western Europe.  Many churches have been forced underground, but persecution has grown and strengthened God’s kingdom throughout the ages. Bible.com and Biblegateway.com have experienced tremendous growth as more people are connected online. Never before have there been so many Biblical resources available today, especially on the internet, where many are either free or very inexpensive.  For many years, the top category for podcasts worldwide has been Religion and Spirituality, with Christianity being the majority.  A 2021 American Bible Society survey showed that 71% of Americans read the Bible regularly. To make a long story short, the kingdom of God is expanding rapidly, and when Christ returns a second time, it will be to establish His kingdom in a worldwide Eden.  With all the negative news out today, this is the Good News that we can rally behind.   While this is good news, we have to keep in perspective this is not an indication that many of these people desire to become radical disciples, for it is numeric growth without depth. Therefore, the third character trait of a radical disciple is Maturity.  A lack of maturity is an issue in western culture and the church worldwide.  Church leaders throughout the world indicate that this is an issue.   There are superficial disciples everywhere; as we see, there is a massive problem with a lack of godliness and integrity.  The church universal lacks a solid biblical or theological foundation of its own.  This rapid growth results in an increasing number of immature disciples because few mature, knowledgeable Shepards are available to train the sheep.  This fact is one of our calls to radical discipleship.   The lack of radical discipleship is not new; the church’s rapid growth fuels it.  We can say this because the apostles whose letters we find in the New Testament rebuke their readers for their immaturity and urge them to grow up. Consider, for example, Paul’s critique of the Corinthian church in 1 Corinthians 3:1-3 Dear brothers and sisters, when I was with you I couldn’t talk to you as I would to spiritual people. I had to talk as though you belonged to this...

Welcome to Day 2115 of  Wisdom-Trek, and thank you for joining me. This is Guthrie Chamberlain, Your Guide to Wisdom Becoming A Radical Disciple 2 – Christlikeness – Daily Wisdom Putnam Church Message – 08/08/2021 Becoming A Radical Disciple – Christlikeness As mentioned last week, my purpose in this series is to consider eight character traits of Christian discipleship that are often neglected and deserve to be taken seriously. In addition, last week, we considered four major secular trends threatening to engulf the Christian community. In the face of these, we are all called, not to feeble-minded conformity, but to radical nonconformity.   As we face the challenge of pluralism, we are to be a community of truth, standing up for the uniqueness of Jesus Christ. As we face the challenge of materialism, we are to be a community of simplicity and pilgrimage. As we face the challenge of relativism, we must be a community of obedience to God’s precepts. Finally, as we face the challenge of narcissism, we must be a community of love.   Today we will consider Christlikeness.   Throughout our lives, we ask ourselves, what is our purpose during our pilgrimage while we remain here on earth? It is this: God created us to be his imagers, and as such, God wants his people to become like Christ, who is the perfect imager. For Christlikeness is the will of God for the people of God. Therefore, as citizens of God’s kingdom and imagers of God, we should imitate the only perfect imager, which is Christ.   In today’s message, we will consider three steps in our process to Christlikeness.  First, to lay down the biblical foundation for the call to Christlikeness; second, to give some New Testament examples; and third, to draw some practical conclusions.   The Biblical Foundation of the Call to Christlikeness This foundation is not a single text, for the foundation is more substantial than can be summed up in one text. Instead, the foundation consists of three texts connecting us from the past to the present and giving us a glimpse of the future: Romans 8:29, 2 Corinthians 3:18, and 1 John 3:2.   The first text is Romans 8:29: For God knew his people in advance, and he chose them to become like his Son, so that his Son would be the firstborn among many brothers and sisters. The second text is 2 Corinthians 3:18: So all of us who have had that veil removed can see and reflect the glory of the Lord. And the Lord—who is the Spirit—makes us more and more like him as we are changed into his glorious image.   Before I read the third text, we need to understand that the perspective has changed from the past to the present, from God’s eternal foreknowledge to his present transformation of us by the Holy Spirit.  From God’s eternal purpose to make us like Christ, to his historical work by his Spirit to transform us into an imager like Christ.   The third text is 1 John 3:2: Dear friends, we are already God’s children, but he has not yet shown us what we will be like when Christ appears. But we do know that we will be like him, for we will see him as he really is. Since God is working to this end, it is no wonder he calls us to cooperate with him. ‘Follow me,’ he says. ‘Imitate me.’   So, returning now to 1 John 3:2, we don’t know in any detail what we shall be, but we know that we will be like Christ. Therefore, there’s no...

Welcome to Day 2114 of  Wisdom-Trek, and thank you for joining me. This is Guthrie Chamberlain, Your Guide to Wisdom Becoming A Radical Disciple 1 – Nonconformity – Daily Wisdom Putnam Church Message – 08/01/2021 Becoming A Radical Disciple – Nonconformity Over the past couple of weeks, we moved from radical choices, to a radical teacher, and now the title of this new series, ‘Becoming a Radical Disciple.’ Thinking of yourself as radical may make you uncomfortable.  For others, it may be empowering. So let’s say I have a radical element in me, but I suspect that most of you also do in some area of life.   First, why am I using the term ‘Disciple’ instead of ‘Christian?’  It surprises many people to discover that the followers of Jesus Christ are called ‘Christian’ only three times in the New Testament.   Luke’s comment in Acts 11:26 was that it was in the Syrian Antioch church where Jesus’ disciples were first called ‘Christians.’  This is significant because Antioch was known to be an international community. Consequently, its church was an international community too. Therefore, it was appropriate that its members were called ‘Christians’ to indicate that their common allegiance to Christ overcame their ethnic differences. However, as a matter of trivia, the term Christian means ‘Little Christ’ and was used by outsiders in more of a derogative manner.   The other two occurrences of the word ‘Christian’ prove that it was beginning to be more commonly used. When Paul was on trial before King Agrippa and challenged him directly in Acts 26:27, Agrippa interrupted him. “Do you think you can persuade me to become a Christian so quickly?” Then the apostle Peter, whose first letter was written against the background of growing persecution, found it necessary to distinguish between those who suffered ‘as a criminal’ and those who suffered ‘as a Christian’ in 1 Peter 4:16, But it is no shame to suffer for being a Christian. Praise God for the privilege of being called by his name!   Both words (Christian and disciple) imply a relationship with Jesus, although perhaps ‘disciple’ is the stronger of the two because it inevitably means the relationship of the pupil to teacher. During his three years of public ministry, the Twelve were disciples before they were apostles. As disciples, they were under the direct instruction of their teacher and lord.   In some ways, it would be better if the word ‘disciple’ had continued into the following centuries so that Christians were self-consciously disciples of Jesus and took seriously their responsibility to be ‘under discipline,’ which means continuing to learn.   My concern is that we who claim to be disciples are not serious enough in our commitment to the Lord Jesus, which will provoke him to say again:  “So why do you keep calling me ‘Lord, Lord!’ when you don’t do what I say? (Luke 6:46). For genuine discipleship is passionate discipleship; this is where my next word comes in.   So, secondly, why ‘radical’? Since this is the adjective I am using to describe our discipleship, it is crucial to indicate the sense in which I am using it.  The English word ‘radical’ is derived from the Latin root word radix. Initially, it seems to have been applied as a political label to people with liberal and reformist views....