Category: Bible Study

Posted on

How To Pray, Part 1 | Clothing, Location And Posture

We’re living and working in Indonesia, a nation that puts great emphasis on prayer. We are reminded of it six times a day when we hear the “call to prayer” sounded from loud speakers all around the city. In this country how, when and where one prays is important.

Prayer on Knees

In American “church” culture we can see some interesting traditions as well. Some groups pray to crucifixes, statues of Mary or other saints and kneel for certain prayers. Others seem to think praying in a ‘church’ building is more special than other places.

The Bible says that, “All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, that the man of God may be complete, equipped for every good work” (2 Tim 3:16-17). Prayer is definitely a good work, so lets see what the Bible has to say about it.

Obviously, this will not be a complete list, it is a blog post not a doctoral dissertation, so please add your comments in the comment section.

Proper clothing for prayer. We can observe some religious groups prescribing certain clothes for men and/or women to wear when they come to God in prayer. But, in the Bible we see people wearing a variety of clothing types when praying.

  • Dirty bloody clothing and chains (Acts 16:25)
  • Work clothes (Neh 2:4-5)
  • Sweaty military clothing (1 Chr 5:20)
  • Probably everyday clothes (Luke 6:12-13)

For a thorough study of the head covering see Kevin Moore’s five part series titled Female Head-coverings in 1 Corinthians 11:2-16.

While there is no prescribed special clothing that we must wear in prayer there are, of course, other principles found in Scripture that would govern the clothing we wear in prayer. For example, the principle of modesty should tell us that we should dress appropriate for the location we are at.

Location for prayer. For some groups a certain location and/or direction is important when praying. However, when we look at the Bible we see just about any location conceivable being used as a place of prayer. We see people praying in the following locations just to name a few.

  • Outside in a garden (Mat 26:36)
  • On the beach (Acts 21:5)
  • In a house (Acts 12:12)
  • On the battlefield (1 Chr 5:20)
  • At work (Neh 2:4-5)
  • In jail (Acts 16:25)

If we are to pray without ceasing (1 Thess 5:17) then any place we find ourselves is an appropriate place to pray.

Body posture in prayer. For some groups body position is very important. They even have prescribed postures at certain points of their prayers. Others may seem to think that raising their hands is more spiritual than other body positions. In the Bible we see the following body positions used in prayer.

  • Standing (1 Sam 1:26; Matt 6:5; Mark 11:25; Luke 18:11,13)
  • Standing bowing the head, while striking the breast (Luke 18:13)
  • Hands spread out and/or lifted heavenward (1 Kings 8:22-23; Neh 8:6)
  • Bowing the head (Neh 8:6)
  • Bowing the head, with face between the knees (1 Kings 18:42)
  • Lifting eyes heavenward (John 11:41; 17:1)
  • Kneeling (Dan 6:10; Luke 22:41; Acts 9:40, 20:36, 21:5; Eph 3:14)
  • Face on ground (Matt 26:39; Mark 14:35)

Hendriksen and Kistemaker have done an interesting job of interpreting the significance of some of the various body positions found in the Bible. Get their commentary here.

Brother Kevin Moore also has an excellent article on the subject of raising hands. Read it here.

When we read the Bible and use it as our only guide, it becomes clear that there is no prescribed special clothing, location, or posture that a New Testament Christian must follow when praying.

If you found this post helpful please spread the love by sharing it!

Question: What other examples from Scripture would you include for clothing, location and posture in prayer? Leave a comment by clicking here.

Posted on

4 Ways God Answers Prayers

Prayer

As we were preparing to come to Indonesia there were many different steps we had to take to get here. For example, we had to get our visas, find a sponsoring congregation and raise the support, to name a few. As each step was accomplished it seemed like someone would say that it was an answer to prayer. It was… but what if we didn’t raise the support or get our visas, would that still be an answer to prayer?

Oftentimes it seems that if we don’t get what we request from God there is no praise given to Him. It is as if we think He either didn’t hear us or didn’t answer us. However, just because we don’t receive what we ask for when we ask for it, that doesn’t mean that God did not answer our prayers. This is because there are at least four ways God answers prayers.

1. Sometimes God says, “Yes.” This is most likely to happen when we put His kingdom and His righteousness first in our lives (Matt 6:33; cf. Pro 3:5-10), make our request according to His will (1 John 5:14) and live our lives according to the Bible (1 John 3:22; Isa 59:1-2).

Lets look at Paul as an example. While he was in custody in Rome he wrote and asked the Christians in Colossae to pray for opportunities to preach (Col 4:3) and the the Ephesians to pray for boldness (Eph 6:18-20).

Paul then stayed two years in custody in Rome preaching and teaching boldly (Acts 28:30-31) with the result that even people in Caesar’s household were converted (Phil 4:22).

That is an amazing “yes” answer to prayer. But look at Paul’s life. He definitely put the kingdom and God’s righteousness first, asked according to God’s will and lived the best he could according to the Scriptures.

2. Sometimes God says, “Yes, but wait.” A great example of this is found in John 11. There we find that Lazarus was very sick so his sisters sent for Jesus, assuming that He would heal him (John 11:1-3, 21, 32). However, Jesus didn’t come right away, instead He waited for Lazarus to die (John 11:4-16). The sisters did not know what Jesus was planning and had basically thought He had said “no” to their request (John 11:17-37). But, Jesus actually said, “Yes, but wait” (John 11:38-44). He did more than just heal Lazarus, He raised him from the dead.

Why did Jesus say, “Yes, but wait”? Because it was better for Him and His plan to save mankind (John 11:15, 41-42).

When you think God may be saying, “Yes, but wait” make sure that you are putting Him first in your life (Matt 6:33), asking according to His will (1 John 5:14) and keeping His commandments (1 John 3:22). Also remember that there may be a very good reason He is having you wait. Be patient.

3. Sometimes God says, “Yes, but not as you expect.” Take Paul as an example again. Paul planned to go and preach in Rome (Rom 1:15; 15:24-26; Acts 19:21). We know Paul was a man of prayer (Eph 6:18; Col 4:2; 1 Thes 5:17). Yet his plans to go to Rome didn’t turn out just like he had planned. Rather than dropping off the collection and heading for Rome he was arrested and spent two years in jail before he was transported to Rome as a prisoner, suffering shipwreck and a viper bite along the way (Acts 21:27-28:31).

Sometimes God answers our request differently than we may anticipate. For example, if we ask God for strength and perseverance He may give us trials to bear like He did the Philippians (Phil 1:29-30). Trials which in turn will develop the virtues we prayed for (Rom 5:3-4, James 1:2-3).

4. Sometimes God says, “No.” One last time we turn to Paul as an example. He had asked God three times to take away his thorn in the flesh (2 Cor 12:8). Obviously, God said, “No” (2 Cor 12:9). But, like when God says “wait” there was a good reason. In Paul’s case, God said “No” because that was what was best for Paul and for God’s plan (2 Cor 12:7, 9).

So, when we don’t get what we ask for from God what should we do? Make sure we are right with Him (Matt 6:33; 1 John 5:14; 1 John 3:22; Isa 59:1-2), knowing that He wants what is best for us and that all will work together for our good (Rom 8:28).

Question: How has God has answered one of your prayers in an unexpected way? You may leave a comment by clicking here.

 

Posted on

10 Books on “How to Study the Bible” Worth Checking Out

When we want to learn how to invest in the stock market, hunt desert cotton tail rabbits or start a web based business, we often buy a book that will teach us how to do it. Learning how to properly understand the Bible and apply it to our lives is no different. If you are not familiar with science of studying literature, particularly the Bible, you may want to grab a book or two on how to study the Bible.

Marked Bible

Books on how to study the Bible explain the process of Bible study. Some of them are very technical and theoretical while others are extremely practical. I have personally read every one of the books listed below. Most of them are saying basically the same thing just presenting it in a different style, order and levels of detail. However, you should be aware that some of them have an improper view of the role of the Holy Spirit in Bible study. I consider all of them practical books that can be used by anyone. Some are so practical that they even have workbooks available to take you through the exercises step by step.

There are other great books on the subject but I tried to limit my recommendation to only practical books. (*) indicates that to the best on my knowledge these are brotherhood books.

Recommendations:

Question: What other books would you recommend? You can leave a comment by clicking here. 

Posted on

8 Bible Study Tools You Should Invest In

Just like with any task we are going to do, whether it is rebuilding an engine, baking cookies, or studying the Bible, there are certain tools we need. Some of those tools are absolutely necessary, like a Bible. Others, while not necessary, will make the job much easier and make us more efficient. In this post we will look at several of those tools.

An Exhaustive Concordance
Most Bibles have a concordance in the back of them. However, because of limited space there are a limited number of references included in them. An exhaustive concordance lists every time every word is used in the English Bible and tells you what verse it is located in.

This can be especially helpful if you can’t remember a particular verse reverence. If you can remember at least one word from the verse you can look it up and find its reference. For example, lets say I can’t remember where in the Bible it says that we should “mortify our members.” I could easily look up the word “mortify” in an exhaustive concordance and find the reference.

Tools

Most English translations have an exhaustive concordance that you can buy separately. It is important that you use the exhaustive concordance that matches the version you are using to study from. For example, if you are using the KJV to study from you need to use the KJV exhaustive concordance.

An exhaustive concordance is also helpful in word studies since it links every English word to the word it is translated from in the original language with a corresponding number (Strong’s Number) and a brief definition.

The ability to search for specific words in the Bible is also available with any basic Bible study software, phone app and on many websites.

Recommendations:

 

The Englishmen’s Greek Concordance of the New Testament
The Englishmen’s Greek Concordance of the Greek New Testament takes concordance work to the next level. Just like an English concordance which lists every English word in the English Bible, this concordance lists every Greek word used in the Greek New Testament and gives the references where it is found. This can be helpful in word studies because it will show you how a particular Greek word is translated differently in different verses.

Recommendations:

 

Bible Handbooks

A Bible Handbook is a companion to Bible reading. It is arranged in the order of the Bible and is designed to be read along with the Bible. It will provide you with an overview of the book you are reading, along with valuable background information, photos, illustrations, charts and tables.

Recommendation:

 

Topical Index
A Topical Index groups scripture references together according to general topics (i.e. Baptism, Capital Punishment, Salvation, Witchcraft, etc). A Topical Index can be very helpful when doing a topical study. You should be aware that the verses selected to be included for a particular topic may be influenced by the compilers theological bias. So, be aware and make sure the verses listed actually apply to that topic.

The Topical Indexes I recommend are available in print and on basic Bible Study Software or online.

Recommendations:

  • Nave’s Topical Bible
  • R. A. Torrey’s New Topical Textbook
  • Thompson Chain Topics

 

Bible Dictionaries

Bible Dictionaries will help you more fully understand biblical words than a modern dictionary will. This is because many words used in the Bible are not in common use today and some may have changed meaning over the centuries. Some of these words might include; repentance, phylacteries, cubit, cherubim and dropsy. Remember a Bible Dictionary can be very helpful, but again, definitions can be influenced by the theological bias of the authors. So, be aware and make sure to check the context.

Recommendations:

  • Easton’s Bible Dictionary
  • Smith’s Bible Dictionary
  • New Bible Dictionary, Third Edition
  • Holman Illustrated Bible Dictionary
  • Harper’s Bible Dictionary
  • Eerdman’s Dictionary of the Bible

 

Bible Encyclopedias

Bible Encyclopedias are similar to a dictionary but have much more in depth explanations for each entry. They will often include the historical and cultural background as well. They are usually multiple volumes.

Recommendations:

  • International Standard Bible Encyclopedia (4 volumes)
  • Baker Encyclopedia of the Bible (4 Volumes)
  • Zondervan Pictorial Encyclopedia of the Bible (5 volumes)

 

Lexicons
Lexicon is just a fancy word for foreign language dictionary. These dictionaries are designed for people who either don’t know or know very little of the original language of the Bible but still want to go a little deeper in their word studies. They are usually keyed to Strong’s Numbers. Many of these recourses are available in print, in basic bible software or online.

Recommendations:

  • Strong’s Exhaustive Concordance of the Bible, With Greek and Hebrew Dictionary
  • Thayer’s Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament: Coded with Strong’s Concordance Numbers
  • A Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament and Other Early Christian Literature, Third Edition
  • Vine’s Complete Expository Dictionary of Old and New Testament Words: With Topical Index
  • Brown-Driver-Briggs Hebrew and English Lexicon

 

Commentaries
Commentaries give the authors thoughts and interpretations on biblical text. They usually have helpful background information, some word studies and insightful applications. Again, as always, but even more so here, you must be cautious of the authors theological bias. It would be wise to stick with brotherhood commentaries as much as possible, at least at first until you have a better handle on interpreting Scripture. Commentaries are the last resource you should look at in your study. Your best work will be done through original investigation. Going straight to a commentary is kind of like cheating. (*) indicates that to the best of my knowledge this is a brotherhood commentary 

Recommendations:

  • The College Press NIV Commentary Series: New Testament (19 Volumes)*
  • The College Press NIV Commentary Series: Old Testament (16 Volumes)*
  • The Old Testament Survey Series (5 Volumes)*
  • Coffman’s Commentary Series (37 Volumes)*
  • The Fourfold Gospel and Commentary on Acts of Apostles*
  • The Truth for Today Commentary Series*
  • Gospel Advocate New Testament Commentaries*
  • Barnes’ New Testament Notes
  • Adam Clarke’s Commentary on the Bible
  • C. H. Spurgeon’s Treasury of David
  • Treasury of Scripture Knowledge

 

Bible Study Software
Computer Software
Every resource listed and hundreds more are all available in print form or on computer software for Mac, PC, IOS and Android. Some of this software is free while others aren’t.

The free computer software is usually made up of old public domain resources. These resources, while being old, still have much value to you as a student of the Bible.

There is also premium Bible software available but it can be quite expensive. However, with premium Bible software you will be receiving the latest recourses and Biblical scholarship available. Plus, it will contain many advanced features that the free software is lacking.

Buying a bundled package of the premium software will be hundreds if not thousands of dollars less expensive than it would be to buy each book included in that package individually in its printed form.

Recommendations:

Logos is the worlds best Bible study software and it also has a price tag to match its quality. They truly believe in the saying you get what you pay for. I have been using it for years and love it!

Question: What are some of your favorite tools in your Bible study toolkit? You can leave a comment by clicking here. 

 

Posted on

Why You Should Have More Than One Bible

Stack-of-BiblesAs mentioned in an earlier post, the Bible was originally written in Aramaic, Hebrew and Greek. That means you will be relying on a translation of the Bible, unless you can read the original languages. However, as the saying goes, there is more than one way to skin a cat and, as anyone who has studied languages knows, there is more than one way to translate any given sentence.

While you will need a primary Bible you will also want to have a couple of other versions to use for comparative study. Sometimes the wording in one translation may be difficult for you to understand while another translation may clear it up. For example compare Colossians 3:5 in the following translations.

My Literal Translation
You all kill, therefore, the members on the earth, fornication, uncleanness, passion, desire evil, and covetousness, which is idolatry.

King James Version (KJV)
Mortify therefore your members which are upon the earth; fornication, uncleanness, inordinate affection, evil concupiscence, and covetousness, which is idolatry.

English Standard Version (ESV)
Put to death therefore what is earthly in you: sexual immorality, impurity, passion, evil desire, and covetousness, which is idolatry.

New American Standard Bible (NASB)
Therefore consider the members of your earthly body as dead to immorality, impurity, passion, evil desire, and greed, which amounts to idolatry.

New Living Translation (NLT)
So put to death the sinful, earthly things lurking within you. Have nothing to do with sexual immorality, impurity, lust, and evil desires. Don’t be greedy, for a greedy person is an idolater, worshiping the things of this world.

The Message

And that means killing off everything connected with that way of death: sexual promiscuity, impurity, lust, doing whatever you feel like whenever you feel like it, and grabbing whatever attracts your fancy.

From the above comparison, you can see that there is quite a difference between the different versions. Some add a lot to the text while others may be harder to understand. In this particular verse the ESV seems to strike the best balance between literalness and readability.

If you were using the KJV as your primary study Bible and had a hard time understanding what “mortify” meant in this context, after reading a couple of other versions you could be sure that it meant “put to death/kill”.

Notice that the NASB changed the main verb from “kill” to “consider.” In my opinion this is an interpretation not a translation.

As you can see from this one example, comparing translations of the Bible can be very helpful in trying to understand what a difficult verse is getting at.

Recommendations:

  • Go cheap when buying Bibles for comparison.
  • I would not worry too much about the quality of the binding and cover of these Bibles since they will mostly stay in one place. Standard pew Bibles will work just fine.
  • Of course, if you study near your computer, tablet or smart phone you could easily and quickly use the internet or a Bible app to help with comparing different translations.

Question: Which Bible translation do you like to use for comparison and why? You can leave a comment by clicking here.

Posted on

How To Choose The Best Bible For You

To study the Bible the first thing you will need is, a Bible. I know that is obvious, but with so many different Bibles available, which one should you choose as your primary study Bible for daily reading, memorization and for teaching and preaching from? Should you get a King James Version (KJV)? An American Standard Version (ASV)? How about the New American Standard Bible (NASB) or the English Standard Version (ESV)? What about the New International Version (NIV) and the New Living Translation (NLT)? It can be confusing trying to decide which one you want to spend your hard earned money on.

King-James-Bible

First choose a Bible Translation
Since the Bible was originally written in Hebrew, Aramaic and Greek you will be relying on a translation of the Bible, unless you can read the original languages. So the first thing you should decide on is which translation to get.

Bible Scale

Not all Bible translations are created equal. They range from more literal (word for word) translations such as the KJV and ASV to more paraphrased versions such as The Message. The chart below illustrates where each translation fits in this spectrum.

Choose a more literal translation
For serious Bible study you will want to choose a more literal translation. This is because you are trying to find out what God actually says rather than what the translators interpreted Him to mean. As you develop your skills, you will be able to determine for yourself what God meant. However, you wont be able to do that if the translators have obscured what God actually said.

Choose a modern translation
You will also probably want to select a translation that uses modern English. The KJV and ASV, while being excellent Bibles and very literal, can be difficult to understand for people who are not accustomed to the archaic language used in them. In fact, sometimes they can be down right confusing. Some of the words and phrases used in those translations have changed meaning since they were translated. This is especially true for the King James Version.

Below are a few examples. Hover your mouse over the scripture reference to read it in the English Standard version.

  • Genesis 43:25, KJV: “And they made ready the present against Joseph came at noon.”
  • Exodus 19:18, KJV: “And mount Sinai was altogether on a smoke.”
  • 1 Samuel 5:12, KJV: “And the men that died not were smitten with the emerods.”
  • Psalm 5:6, KJV: “Thou shalt destroy them that speak leasing.”
  • Luke 17:9, KJV: “Doth he thank that servant because he did the things that were commanded him? I trow not.”
  • 2 Corinthians 8:1, KJV: “Moreover, brethren, we do you to wit of the grace of God bestowed on the churches of Macedonia.”
  • James 2:3, KJV: “And ye have respect to him that weareth the gay clothing.”
  • James 5:11, KJV: “The Lord is very pitiful.”

As my primary Bible I am currently using the English Standard Version (ESV) Classic Reference Bible but I would also recommend the NASB and the NKJV as good choices for your primary Bible.

Choose a Bible that is easy to read, has a sewn binding and does not have commentary notes
Once you have decided on a translation, you will next need to decide on a format. Do you want a traditional double column format with center column references? Maybe you want one with no references or footnotes. Maybe a single column Bible with side column references. It is up to you.

The binding of your Bible is also important to consider. Bibles with a glued binding don’t usually lay open on a table top easily and often fall apart quickly. A sewn binding will usually cost more but you will appreciate it down the road when all your pages are still there. A genuine leather cover will also last significantly longer than a bonded leather cover. This is something that you will be using daily for may years. Get one that will last.

I would avoid a “Study Bible” with extra comments and notes at the bottom of every page. They may be helpful in your study but not a great choice in a primary Bible. It is too tempting to just look at the notes when we get stuck and accept what the publisher says the verse means rather than doing our own work and figuring it out the hard way.

Recommendation:
ESV New Classic Reference Bible (Black)

What about e-books and Apps?
E-books and Bible apps new comers to the Bible study scene. If this is how you would rather read and study a book, more power to you. Personally, I enjoy doing my daily reading on my iPad Mini using an app that reads aloud to me as I read along. However, I would still recommend that your primary Bible be a print addition.

If you do choose to use an iPad or other tablet be aware that they can be distracting to others if you use it in worship. Also, if you like to read at a coffee shop or in the break room at work nothing beats reading from a print version. Since a printed Bible is distinctive, others will know that you are reading the Bible and not just watching Youtube or playing Angry Birds. You might be surprised at the number of people who start up a conversation with you because they see you reading your Bible. It is more difficult to let your light shine in this way while reading on a tablet or phone.

Question: Which Bible would you recommend and why? Please be specific. You can leave a comment by clicking here.

Posted on

Jesus Told Me to Hang Myself!

Hanging-Man-Window-Cling-zoomWhen Joe was a young Christian he desperately wanted to follow God’s will for his life. He knew the Bible was the place to go to find it, but he didn’t know how to go about it. So, he decided that he would simply close his eyes, open the Bible and randomly point his finger at a passage. “Wherever my finger lands,” he thought, “will be God’s will for me today.” 

So, with great anticipation, he closed his eyes, flipped open his Bible and put his finger down. He read, “and he went out and hanged himself” (Matt 27:5). 

Not knowing what to make of that, he closed his eyes, flipped a few pages and tried again. This time the Lord’s “will” for him was to “go and do likewise” (Luke 10:37). 

Completely baffled by this, he closed his eyes, flipped a few more pages and tried a third time. He found Jesus telling him, “What you are about to do, do quickly” (John 13:27).

Joe never expected discipleship to be so costly!

Obviously, this is a humorous story that, most likely, never happened to anyone, but it does illustrate the importance of knowing how to study the Bible.

As disciples who love Jesus and want to obey every command God has given us we need to be careful. We need to be careful to properly understand how to figure out which of His commands apply to us and which do not. We don’t want to end up like Joe, who attempted this without knowing what he was doing. 

Some parts of the Bible are easy to understand, easy to apply, and cause us no real difficulty, but other parts of it are not as easy (2 Peter 3:15,16).

We will all be answerable to God individually and judged by the standards of His Word (John 12:48). Therefore, we don’t want to rely solely on our preachers, commentators or the internet to tell us what the Bible means and how to apply it. We want to listen to God Himself by studying His Word and be confident that we can pull the truth out of a text ourselves. 

This series of posts are designed to help us do that. 

Question: What other, off the wall and out of context things have you heard people blame God for? You know, the “God made me…” or “God wants me to…” type of things. You can leave a comment by clicking here. 

Posted on

Why Study the Bible, Isn’t Going To Church Enough?

As Christians, of course, we “go to church,” to use the common expression, but, is that enough? Jesus said the greatest commandment was to, “Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength” (Mark 12:30). Does just “going to church” enable you to love the Lord in that way?

ESV Bible Read Me

The greatest commandment involves four areas of our life that must be focused on God; our heart, our mind, our soul and our strength. In essence, Jesus is saying we must love God with our total self.

So let me ask you a serious question. How would you feel if your spouse or significant other spent 1-4 hours a week listening to you, but ignored you the rest of the week, except to ask you for things? How do you think God feels when we treat Him like that?

Jesus also said, “If you love Me, you will keep My commandments” (John 14:15). How can we keep His commandments if we don’t know what they are? Obviously, we can’t. Even if we know His commandments we still need to be motivated and encouraged to keep them. God does this through the Scriptures (Romans 15:4; Hebrews 12:1).

So let me give you five reasons why you should study the Bible on your own.

  1. You should study the Bible so you can listen to God and build a deeper relationship with Him (Psalm 119, Yes, the whole Psalm).
  2. You should study the Bible so that you know the commands that you will be held accountable for on the day of judgment (John 12:48).
  3. You should study the Bible so that you can be equipped to obey God’s command and be ready for every good work (2 Timothy 3:16,17).
  4. You should study the Bible to confirm that what your preacher said is actually true (Acts 17:11).
  5. You should study the Bible so that you can share it with others and make disciples (Matthew 28:18-20).

“Going to church” is an awesome experience that we get to enjoy every week. Hopefully, you are blessed with the opportunity to get together with the church at least four times a week. Equally wonderful is our daily time with God as we read and study His Word.

Question: What other reasons would you list for studying the Bible? You can leave a commit by clicking here.

Posted on

The Discipleship Wheel

In the Great Commission Jesus told His disciples that all authority had been given to Him in Heaven and on Earth. Therefore, they were to go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that Jesus had commanded them (Matt 28:18-20). This command has direct application to us today because we are at the end of a long line of people who have been taught the Gospel and taught to obey all that Jesus commands.

To help us initially make disciples we have tools like the Personal Bible Study Series that can help equip us for this task. However, once we have baptized someone how do we go about teaching them to observe all that Jesus commanded?

As we strive to answer that question it would help to have an organized way to lay a strong foundation of teaching and action (John 14:15; Tit 2:14). These series of posts on Practical Discipleship are designed to help you lay that foundation. The lessons are based around an old yet effective illustration, The Discipleship Wheel.

The Discipleship Wheel

In this post I just want to introduce you to the idea of The Discipleship Wheel. In later posts I will elaborate on each of the components and provide lessons that you can download to use personally or with a new disciple of Christ.

When looking at a wheel it is pretty clear that in order for it to function properly it must have at least 3 parts; a hub, spokes and a tire. Similarly, there are certain things that a disciple of Christ must have in his life.

Let me show you.

The Hub: The Lord (Phil 2:9-11)
The hub of a wheel delivers power and direction to the tire. It tells the tire when to go forward, when to go backwards and when to turn right or left. Without the hub the tire would be useless. In fact, the spokes and the tire exist to serve the purpose of the hub.

The Lord is the hub of the Christian’s life. He is the one that gives him direction in his life and the power to live accordingly. In fact, Christians and the church exist to serve the purposes of Christ, their Lord.

For a Christian to function properly he or she must follow their Lord and allow Him to empower them through the spokes.

The Tire: The Obedient Christian in Action (John 14:15; 15:8;
Titus 2:14; 3:1,8,14)
The purpose of the tire is to fulfill the commands of the hub. When the hub says go forward the tire obeys and carries the hub (and the rest of the vehicle) forward. While it is the hub that gives direction and power, it is the tire that actually makes contact with the road. If the tire is bad the hub’s commands may not be followed well.

For example, the hub may be delivering all the power and direction a tire needs but if the tire is bald and the road is icy the tire may not perform very well. A properly maintained tire always performs the best.

In this illustration the Christian is the tire. Christians are the ones that make contact with the world. When the Bible tells us that Jesus wants the widows and orphans taken care of it gives us the direction that we need. When God provides us with jobs to earn a living and homes to live in He has provided us with the resources we need to fulfill His command. It is the same with evangelism. The Lord gives us the command (Matt 28:18-20), the power of human communication and we make contact with the world, telling them about Jesus. It is really that simple. It may not be easy, but it is that simple.

The Spokes
In order for the tire to receive direction and power from the hub it must be attached to it in some way. In our illustration it is by four spokes.

  • The Word
  • Prayer
  • Fellowship
  • Evangelism

The two vertical spokes, The Word and Prayer, have to do with our vertical relationship with God. The two horizontal spokes, Fellowship and Evangelism, have to do with our horizontal relationships with each other and the world.

These four spokes make up four fundamental areas of a disciples life.

It is my conviction that the sooner we can train young Christians in these areas the more fruitful their lives will be.

Spoke 1: The Word (John 8:31; 1 Tim 3:16-17)
The Word is a fundamental aspect of a disciples life because it is God’s communication to him. The Word gives us the commands we must follow. It can also embolden us and empower us to act as we should.

Paul wrote, “All Scripture is inspired by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, for training in righteousness; so that the man of God may be adequate, equipped for every good work” (2 Tim 3:16-17). Without knowing the Scriptures we can’t know what God wants us to do nor be equipped to do it.

The Word of God gives us power and direction.

Spoke 2: Prayer (Phil 4:6-7)
If the Bible is God’s communication to us, prayer is our communication to Him.

When the rubber meets the road and we are having a hard time obeying our Lord, we can talk to Him about it.

Let me illustrate. What happens to a tire that is over loaded? It has poor handling, right? It has slow responsiveness, poor breaking, poor acceleration, low gas millage and the tire could blowout.

What happens to our spiritual life and our activity for the Lord when we are over loaded with the cares of the world? We too have poor handling; we are slow to respond to the Word, slow to turn from sin, have low endurance and are in danger of burn out.

One of the blessings of prayer is that it allows us to unload our burdens on the Lord so we can perform better for Him. If we can give our burdens to Jesus we will be more likely to joyfully perform better for Him, “when the rubber meets the road.”

Spoke 3: Fellowship with Other Christians (John 13:34-35)
Fellowship is a fundamental aspect of being a disciple because God created us to need community. We need the encouragement, advice and building up by our brethren we receive when we fellowship with them (1 Thes 5:11, Heb 3:13; 10:24,25).

Christian fellowship also provides us with many opportunities to serve one another and in effect serve Jesus Himself (Matt 25:40).

Fellowship helps strengthen us to lovingly and obediently obey our Lord, “when the rubber meets the road.”

Spoke 4: Evangelism (Matt 28:19-20)
Evangelism is a fundamental part of being a disciple because we are to become like our Teacher (Luke 6:40), who came to seek and save the lost (Luke 19:10) and told His disciples the do the same thing (Matt 28:18-20). If we are Christ like we are disciple makers.

There is also a very pragmatic reason that evangelism is a fundamental aspect of being a disciple. Without evangelism the whole enterprise stops. We must make new disciples to replace ourselves at a bare minimum. But, Jesus doesn’t just want us to replace ourselves He wants us to multiply ourselves.