Gospel Centered Discipleship (III)

Chapter 3: Twisted Motives: The Failure of Discipleship

This chapter begins Part 2: Getting to the Heart in the book, and Dodson explores the reasons why discipleship can fail. One of the reasons is the accountability and one's take on it. One type of twisted accountability is religious accountability, when it becomes legalistic, and "the religious person insensitively admonishes others to obey God's word without extending God's grace". From punishments, to strictly quoting scripture, we become accountable to keeping records and staying on top of who is to be punished.

The second type is "confession-booth" type accountability. Confessing sins to one another, to the point where repentance component has become separated. Whereas true confession "brings the blessing of forgiveness, and forgiveness brings us back under God's blessing to enjoy his grace and peace." When we sin, we fall away from the perfect image of Christ, and through our confessions and repentance we are renewed in our image and made right with God again.

"upon the condition of confession, we receive God's forgiveness and cleansing. We return to Christ our righteousness, where we are perfectly loved and accepted."

Now, there are two wrong motivations behind discipleship, one is religious performance, where it is all about performing well and earning God's acceptance through what we do and say. On the other hand, there is spiritual license is when we take God's forgiveness and grace for granted; disobeying because God has forgiven me anyways.

Religious performance is countered by understanding that we do not serve so that God loves us, but instead acknowledging that God already loves us and because of his everlasting love, we are compelled to serve in return. Spiritual license is countered by recognizing that "God's forgiveness frees us from judgement, not from obedience", that "because God has forgiven me in Christ, i'm bound to obey.".

"gospel centered disciples drink deeply from the cup of costly grace and fight to live lives of obedience to King Jesus."

verse of the day: Psalm 32:1-2

¹ Blessed is the one
    whose transgressions are forgiven,
    whose sins are covered.
² Blessed is the one
    whose sin the Lord does not count against them
    and in whose spirit is no deceit.