THE MAKING OF CHRIST DISCIPLE

BY ISAIAH-PHILLIPS AKINTOLA

Discipleship means many things to various Christians and non-Christians alike, depending on their spiritual and doctrinal orientation and exposure. In my biblical spiritual view, being a disciple is a call to undress from the old life and nature of the first man, and be re-cloth in the ascended life and nature of the second man, the last Adam.

Being a disciple of Christ is an opportunity to rediscover my eternal image and identity in him; it is an invitation to regain my lost place within the redemptive nature of my Lord and to represent his eternal prophetic objective in the earth.

This call offers the opportunity to move away from the alternative of what religion has to offer from the wisdom of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. Being a disciple of Christ gives me the privilege to share in the glorious nature that was once my image and identity.

However, this call begins from the realm of getting to know who Christ is from what other religions and organized Christianity defined him to be. It is easy to assume that one is being discipled by Christ when one is not acquainted with the manipulation of the spirit of the false Christ out there, pretending to be the real Christ.

The call to serve God is a journey into the life of discipleship, which starts from the center-core of getting to know who the ascended Christ is. It is possible to be a disciple by another christ who is not the Christ [God] of the Bible? Absolutely yes, and in fact, many today are being discipled by this false christ they have created for themselves.

Many have allowed Satan through the workings of deception of self-delusion to form the religion [image] of another within their minds, and they are bowing down in worship to the false christ, but worst of all, they actually believe that they are the ones with the image and revelation of the true Christ.

Being a disciple of our Lord Jesus Christ is a journey way beyond theological knowledge as much as one needs sound, biblical knowledge. This knowledge, however, is not one sourced through human idea or definition of who Christ is to them. We are told that only the Father can reveal the Son just as only the Son can reveal the image of the Father.

The image of Christ and that of his Father, are non material features; they are not image and likeness of pigmentation. The image, and likeness of God is spiritual in nature and character which speaks to their virtues and personalities, which is the right way of identifying spiritual people. Spiritual people cannot and should never be identified by their color of skin, nationality, sex, or material, financial position. If any man is in Christ such a person is a new creation, old things have passed away, and behold all things have become new.  

To know Christ is to accept the pathway of a true disciple, which makes you an authentic, biblical spiritual being. I emphasize a truly spiritual, because many are purported to be spiritual just because they have lots of theological or theoretical exposure to the bible.  This note is not one that is mainly focused on how to be a disciple; if anyone desires to discover the way of becoming a disciple, I will be more willing to share some of the material we use in training.

This note, however, seeks to draw our attention to what happens to us when we chose to accept the call of becoming a disciple of Christ. This is my own experience in the call to move from what I choose to call organized Christianity to a journey of rediscovering the life of Christ.  

There is no general definition in discovering the pathway of being a Christ, disciple because we are all uniquely chosen by the material with a specific touch of training and dealing unique to our assignment for his glory. Each person will have to discover the part of his or her discipleship calling and training, and of course, our yieldedness of obedience and faith to his desire will determine how the process of becoming his disciple plays out. 

Once you accept your enrollment of becoming a Christ-focused disciple, you will be facing some of the gruesome drillings that will expose your own very inner weakness and man-made strength, fears and doubt, disbelieves and disappointments, love, and hate, and of course, insecurity. I call this the path of the making of a true disciple of Christ in place of what religion and organized Christianity has offered as discipleship.

Being a Christian disciple is not about being part of a Church denomination; it’s never about how qualified you’ve become to join a department or ministerial position in a church. Becoming a disciple of Christ is a call to become more like Jesus Christ in its true essence, purpose and identity.

Are you a person that genuinely seeks to be a disciple whose life and essence of existence is dedicated to the ascended, glorious ministry of Lord Jesus Christ? Then, get ready for this lifetime voyage of spiritual discovery that will challenge and change your sense of spirituality.

This discovery will test your faith, obedience, emotional strength, and limits; you will be exposed to your true self, fear, insecurity, and disillusion about many things you thought you knew will set in. You will fill like running away and hiding from God.

 You will detest prayer and other spiritual activities. Your soul will desire to give you over to the enemy of the mind Things you once thought was the truth but were mere religious fantasy will collapse before your very eyes.

Christian brethren, you thought should have your best interest at heart will fail and disappoint you. You will be pierced with arrows from some icons you respect. You will question the fundamental spiritual theories and principles your faith and commitment were built around

These are some of the ways the Lord will employ to shift your focus from men. Until there is a true shaken and deep dryness in your spiritual life, you cannot truly learn to hear, know, and appreciate the revelation of the ascended Christ.

All of these unpleasant realities are intended to kill every iota of insecurity, self-preservation, soulish coping mechanisms, unforgiveness, the bitterness, irritations, hanger, and self-view that has replaced Christ’s perspective will be brutally dealt with.

This is part of God’s divine appointment for your invitation into a life way beyond your imagination. You may be a Christian leader who has not truly answered the call of God even though you are every active in your Christian service. The Lord is not impressed by what we do for him; he moved by our complete obedience.

Until your life means nothing to you any more than what the Father intended it, you will not find the joy of following the way of the master. Please let me clarify what I mean; I am not suggesting that your life should no longer matter in the sense of having a drive and a hope to live. Life is a gift from God, and it must be cherished to its fullness.

No one should allow the enemy to suggest suicide. Oh, I know your religious mind will try to shout out this statement as something evil that should not be said. However, this does not erase the fact that millions of Christians, including its leadership, are contemplating death. Death is what happens when the agenda of our good works are not recognized or appreciated by other Christians.

Things we have put all our strength and resources to build for recognition and acceptance by society will fail us in the path of making a disciple out of you. Infect, if, in your faith-walk, you have not reached this point of giving up and desiring death, it means I may not be talking to you. If you can relate to what I am saying now, you need to understand that this is the hope. Hope becomes a luxury when we seem to have lost everything we seem to have worked for.

 The Lord has not called anyone to work for him. As a matter of fact, we are all called to give up our lives, so we can be his faithful follower, and by so doing, we will be working for him. Therefore, if you find yourself at a point when you are contemplating giving up your faith to work due to the present pressure, I will advise you to reconsider your decision. What you are faced with now cannot be compared with the glory that is about to be revealed in you. Keep up the faith, do not lose heart.

Your God is coming with a great shout to save you! Please make this prayer declaration aloud! Father, I come to you today just as I am. I may not have the true picture of what is happening in my life right now, but i believe you are at work in my present situation.

I surrender to your dealing, your pruning, and refinement. Whatever it takes to make me your disciple, I yield to it. You are my Father; your plans for me are far better, and more significant than any idea I may have desired for myself for now or in the future. You are my future, and I am learning to wait for you to reveal it as i daily follow you.

Let the process of your kingdom bring me to the end of my self so that you will have a place in my life. Today I give up struggling with your desire. Let your mighty hand rest on me until every iota of self-dies in me. Let your kingdom come, and you will be done in my life, my ministry, and my household.

Make me your disciple, a disciple that knows your way, truth, and life; make me a disciple that caries you light to the ends of the world. Make me your disciple, a disciple that never questions your authority and leadership.

Make me your disciple, a disciple that always yields to your voice and direction, a disciple that genuinely represents your life and light amid the darkness.

 Make me your disciple, a disciple that is forever intimate, faithful, and loyal to your demand even when it is painful.

 Oh, how I long to represent you even to the point of death.

 Make me your disciple, Jesus, my Lord.