It's hard to fathom that another Christmas is just days away. But clues are everywhere. Full calendars, hurried shoppers, Christmas music and festive lights. Every December also ushers in special traditions for Christ-followers, including the observance of Advent.
I love Advent because it shifts our focus from presents to presence, from the weighty efforts of holiday prep to waiting for the coming King. Unfortunately, like many ancient Christian practices, Advent has fallen by the wayside at a time when the church could use solid reminders of the importance of preparing our hearts and minds for the Messiah. The reflections of candles representing hope, peace, joy and love are just what our broken world needs now.
This year the concept of Advent is especially meaningful because of a deep dive into personal spiritual formation I started this spring. Several things led to my decision to seek renewed discipleship, including a spiritual formation class I took with my wife, Cynthia, and a book by John Mark Comer.
“Living like an apprentice of Jesus is naturally appealing to me ...”
Comer is the author of "Practicing the Way: Be with Jesus. Become like Him. Do as He Did," which encourages readers to become apprentices of Jesus.
Living like an apprentice of Jesus is naturally appealing to me since discipleship is one of the cornerstones of our Cru® Inner City teams. As we work in some of the nation's most vulnerable communities, our heartbeat is not only to lead people to Jesus but to also disciple them into committed Christ-followers who will keep the circle going. Discipleship is learning to live Christ-forward lives every day.
The concepts Comer is talking about — stillness, solitude, silence, Scripture and the Sabbath —are not new-fangled ideas, they are steeped in ancient Christianity, just like Advent. But through his writings, the author is helping this current generation understand who Jesus is, what Jesus requires, and how to live that precise way.
At its basic premise, it comes down to these two questions: Who are you a disciple of and what are you being discipled into?
Interestingly, the New Testament word Christian is only used three times. Do you know what two-word phrase is used 269 times? His disciples. We're not called to be Christians. We are called to be His disciples. I believe the closest modern term for discipleship would be apprenticeship.
When you look at the New Testament, the practice of a disciple would be to go live with the rabbi under which they were studying. It wasn't a 9-to-5 job where you leave it all behind in the evenings and weekends to hang with family and friends. You immersed yourself in the lifestyle of the rabbi. It's not a transactional lifestyle where I give you this and you do that.
No, it's a consuming lifestyle. It's about the practice of giving and leaving it all. It says, do I allow Jesus to consume everything about me or only for an hour or two on Sunday morning? If He doesn't consume everything about us, then we are not His disciples.
At the heart of consuming are the five ancient spiritual disciplines Comer focuses on in his book.
Apprentices of Jesus are expected to regularly practice stillness, solitude, silence, Scripture and the Sabbath. I am working to incorporate all of these as daily habits as I pursue the posture of an apprentice.
Most recently, I have enjoyed being quiet and being still. They have meant a lot to me for when I'm quiet, when I'm silent, I get to listen to God and that has led to personal revival.
“I am learning to better walk in God's presence ... moment to moment, second to second, heartbeat to heartbeat, breath to breath.”
These five practices are teaching me how to abide in Christ, and isn't that what Advent is all about, too? Abiding?
Through these experiences, I am learning to better walk in God's presence and to remain aware of God's presence daily, moment to moment, second to second, heartbeat to heartbeat, breath to breath.
As a result, I'm even more excited about discipleship because it ties me to — and connects me with — the ancient teachings of formation and transformation.
I am remembering that this Advent, with its focus on hope, peace, joy, and love. It is my prayer that this season of deep reflection, of ancient practice, comes alive with modern relevancy throughout the year and not just a bookend at the end of the calendar.
P.S. In another example of how counterculture Jesus is, the secular notion of being an apprentice would involve working as hard as you can to sop up the skills and expertise required to earn your promotion to a journeyman. But in the economy of Jesus, we are called to do the opposite, slow down and be.
Milton Massie has been involved with Cru since 1979 while in college at Chicago State University. He and his wife, Cynthia, joined Cru Inner City in 1986, two years after they were married. They have served on the Chicago team ever since. Milton now serves as Executive Director and Steward of the national Inner City teams.
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