Sojourner #083: Incarnational Discipleship In The Local Church

“So, being affectionately desirous of you, we were ready to share with you not only the gospel of God but also our own selves, because you had become very dear to us.” (1 Thessalonians 2:8, ESV)

Incarnational Discipleship

We live in a world today that is inundated with disembodied activity. Whether it be the mindless “doomscrolling” on social media, binge-watching shows on streaming services, remote work, or just having our groceries delivered via Instacart so we don’t have to interact with another person, many of our activities today are carried out outside of community and relationships. We live in a constant state of “connection” without actual presence. 

It would be naïve to assume that the church has remained untouched by these trends. The temptation to embrace cultural norms to remain relevant, “fresh,” and modern has led many churches to prioritize technology, production, and content over discipleship and spiritual formation. Usually, it is not that overt. What seems to have happened is not that churches have jettisoned the ideas of discipleship and spiritual formation altogether, but rather that many churches have reduced them to content consumption. 

In-person membership classes are replaced by self-paced courses on YouTube. The church podcast takes the place of small-group and Bible study. Basically, the way a church member is discipled in many churches is simply through engaging with disembodied content as a consumer. An unintended side-effect of this is that when a consumer’s local church content is not as attractive as a larger church or celebrity preacher, they tend to replace their local church with content from more recognizable sources. 

Scripture, however, presents a radically different approach. The local church is not all about content distribution and production, but rather a community that sharpens one another as they seek to glorify God together. The biblical name of the church is “ekklesia” or “assembly.” 

To deny the embodied, interpersonal component of the church is to deny a foundational element of what God has called the church to be. God’s design for Christian maturity is not platforms, programs, or personalities, but through a redeemed people gathered together around the Word, prayer, and fellowship.

This is perhaps best embodied in the incarnation of Christ. We have just celebrated the seasons of Christmas and Advent, emphasizing the importance of God coming in the flesh and dwelling with His people. 

In Christ, God took on flesh, entered human life as truly God and truly man, and carried out a ministry of teaching, love, shepherding, and redemption in real time and real places, in-person with His people. Therefore, if we are to pattern our discipleship after the Master Discipler, we must view discipleship as a profoundly embodied experience enacted in real presence. 

The goal of the local church, then, is not to try to keep up with the cultural Joneses but rather to faithfully fulfill God’s commands and example of discipleship. Those commands and example prioritize not the latest technology, but the ordinary means of grace, including the ministry of the Word, prayer, fellowship, and the regular observance of the church ordinances, all lived out in real covenantal community.  

The Incarnational Pattern of Christ: The Model for All Discipleship

As we look to the example of the Master Discipler, Jesus Christ, we find that His ministry began with a call to embodied discipleship. In addition to teaching and miracles, Jesus called disciples. The calling of these disciples reveals much about the nature of discipleship. 

Jesus’ primary calling on the lives of the Twelve was to come and follow Him. Consider Jesus’ calling of Philip where John 1:43 states that Jesus said to Philip, “Follow me.” Or Mark’s explanation that Jesus appointed the Twelve “so that they might be with him” (Mark 3:14). Discipleship for Christ’s disciples consisted of shared daily life. 

This is further evidenced by Gospel accounts, where Jesus is engaged in real-life events such as weddings, meals, conversations, illness, and grieving. The incarnation is indisputable evidence that God does not form His people from afar but rather through relationship with Him. 

Similarly, much of Christ’s teaching occurs in the midst of such activities, such as walking, reclining at tables, and even interpersonal arguments among the disciples. In the same way, discipleship, to truly impact life rather than remain theoretical, must touch the disciple's real life. Doctrine is tethered to life.  

In Christ's discipleship class, theology was not untethered from real life. His discipleship and teaching were carried out in real presence with His people. Even His preaching and teaching ministry was carried out in person, among His people, not via livestream or technology. Yes, those did not exist when Christ came, but this is part of God's Providence. 

The incarnational approach of Jesus establishes the pattern of the local church. The discipleship of the church must include faithful formal teaching, but also clear doctrinal teaching carried out in the context of real relationships from one person to another, such as the model laid out in Titus 2. Local churches should teach truth patiently, consistently, and personally, helping one another to apply God’s Word in every area of our lives. 

The Local Church as God’s Discipling Institution

Jesus not only gave us an example of how to disciple others, but He also commissioned us, as the church, to carry out this work. The Great Commission, given to the gathered people of God at the time, called believers to “make disciples” by baptizing them and “teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you.” (Matt. 28:18-20) 

Immediately, the early church begins to fulfill this commission through close covenantal community. Acts 2 describes the church as being devoted to the apostles’ teaching, fellowship, prayer, and shared life. (Acts 2:44-47) Furthermore, the Lord added to their number day by day. 

The church is the institution God commissioned to disciple others. When discipleship is separated from the local church, it becomes unstable and ineffective. If discipleship becomes detached from accountability, fellowship, and the oversight of elders, it can easily become subjective and internal rather than realized. The church, according to God’s design, sees believers mature within the body, where truth is taught and affirmed, biblical correction occurs, and love and theology are lived out amongst one another. 

Again, the church need not invent new methods to carry out this mission. Scripture identifies the ordinary means by which God matures His people. The Word is to be preached and taught faithfully (2 Tim. 4:2). Prayer is to mark both the corporate life of the church and the daily lives of believers (Acts 6:4). Fellowship involves mutual exhortation, encouragement, and watchfulness over one another’s souls (Heb. 3:12–13). 

Additionally, Christ gave His church two ordinances, baptism and the Lord’s Supper, as visible proclamations of the gospel. These ordinances do not replace the Word, but they reinforce it, reminding the church of Christ’s saving work and calling believers to ongoing faith and obedience (1 Cor. 11:26). 

God matures His people not primarily through extraordinary experiences or constant innovation, but through ordinary faithfulness. The slow, steady ministry of Word, prayer, fellowship, and the ordinances forms disciples who are grounded, discerning, and enduring.

Ministry of Presence: Discipleship in the Grain of Everyday Life

Discipleship, then, is not confined to formal settings and programs such as classrooms and sanctuaries. Discipleship often unfolds as believers share life together and apply Scripture to their situations in real time. Paul embodies this approach in 1 Thessalonians 2:8, where Paul claims that they were not only sharing “the gospel of God, but also our very own selves.” Paul was not only sharing the information of the Gospel, but was sharing his life in an attempt to disciple the Thessalonian believers. 

The very next verse in 1 Thessalonians calls the Thessalonian church to remember how Paul lived among them and embody his example. Discipleship flourishes where believers are accessible to one another and willing to walk together patiently. This is not only a pastoral responsibility. Congregational discipleship involves members bearing one another’s burdens, speaking the truth in love, holding each other accountable, and encouraging faithfulness through shared life. 

This will look slightly different depending on the individual ministry context. But discipleship cannot happen apart from being with one another. In rural contexts such as my ministry setting in the mountains of Southwest Montana, discipleship often happens shoulder to shoulder. Helping friends skin and process an elk, fixing a fence, moving cows, cutting firewood, or sharing a meal or cup of coffee after a long day provides natural opportunities for meaningful biblical conversation. 

In these situations, theology is not forced into the discussion, but neither is it absent. As believers labor alongside one another, questions will naturally arise about suffering, providence, sin, forgiveness, biblical parenting, and hope. 

Discipleship in these moments looks like Scripture discussed in real-time, applied to real situations, by faith. 

These conversations reinforce what is taught from the pulpit and studied in small-group settings. Doctrines and truth discussed in the midst of shared labor tend to stick in the mind. Rather than waiting for the sermon series to possibly address these concerns, believers address them together as they arise because they share life together. Truth is connected to lived experience, helping believers see that theology is not merely something to affirm but something to live.

Discipleship is about more than just the conveyance of information, it is about transformation as believers are conformed more and more into the image of Christ. Believers learn not only from listening but also from observing. The ordinances are evidence of this as they display the Gospel to the eyes. 

Watching how mature Christians respond to hardship, confess sin, pursue holiness, and trust the Lord shapes younger believers over time. True discipleship aims at the renewal of the whole person, heart, mind, and conduct. Growth does not require extraordinary settings, only faithful obedience lived out in everyday life. 

When the church prioritizes the truth of God’s Word lived out in close proximity and love, it reflects the incarnational pattern of its Lord and embodies faithful discipleship.

Conclusion: Recovering Confidence in God’s Design

In conclusion, the local church does not need to chase new trends, technology, or tactics to make disciples. God has already given us everything we need, in His Word, “that the man of God may be complete, equipped for every good work.” (2 Tim. 3:17) Furthermore, God has given us everything necessary for life and godliness according to 2 Peter 1:3. None of this is to say that mediums such as podcasts, YouTube videos, and livestreams have no place or benefit. However, these must never be the primary strategy for discipleship. 

On the other hand, when the church commits to presence, the faithful ministry of the Word, prayer, fellowship, and the ordinances, all lived out in everyday life, it forms disciples who reflect Christ in doctrine and devotion. 

This type of discipleship is seldom flashy or “relevant” by the world’s standards, but it is supernatural and extraordinary in that it is the ordained means God has given His church to make disciples. 

Faithful discipleship is personal, messy, slow, and often unseen. Yet, it is eternally effective because it rests in the truth and promises of God’s good design. 

May we recommit to discipleship based on biblical truth and the example of Jesus Christ.

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