Sermon Tone Analysis
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Apple has revolutionized technology.
I say that as someone who has fallen for it hook-line-and-sinker.
I have an iPhone.
I have an iPad.
I have a MacBook.
My television at home is mostly run through an Apple TV system.
So, there is a ton of interaction with Apple technology every day in my house.
Let me tell you what I like about it.
Simplicity.
It’s not complicated.
It’s not overwhelming.
It’s not overloaded with mind-boggling choices.
When you buy an Apple phone or computer, it doesn’t come with any instruction manual.
It doesn’t need to.
All you have to do is take it out of the box and turn it on.
If you want an Apple phone, there’s only a few options from which to choose.
If you want an Apple computer, only a few options.
Want an Apple tablet?
Only a few options.
They keep it simple.
As much as we American might say that we love options and want our choices, the truth is that we are actually much happier when the options are fewer, and thereby less complicated.
Simplicity helps.
Simplicity gives clarity.
Simplicity gets unnecessary clutter out of the way.
Could this be true of our faith and our Christian journey of discipleship as well?
Might we be overcomplicating our faith to the point of getting lost?
It seems to me that the Lord and savior of the universe, who calls us to be his disciples, would not then make it so complicated to follow him that it’s almost impossible to actually be a disciple of Jesus.
Yet for so many of us, this is exactly what happens.
With all the best intentions, you and I engage in a life of discipleship to follow Jesus, and then start to get lost.
We get lost in all the rules and commands.
We get lost in all the teachings and beliefs.
We get lost in all the activities and happenings.
Being a Christian becomes overwhelming, overcomplicated, not simple.
Can I pause here and give one item of Clarification?
Simple does not necessarily mean easy.
Simple can still take work.
Simple still requires effort.
Simple is not the same thing as easy.
Simple means clear.
Simple means understandable.
Simple means achievable.
All these things are true of discipleship.
But Jesus never said that following him would be easy.
Being a Christian requires effort.
It takes work.
So, what does the Bible have to say about this?
Where can we go to gain a sense of simplicity in our life of faith?
Let’s start out this week by considering these instructions from the Apostle Paul to the Christians living in the town of Ephesus.
What kind of disciple does God want me to be?
Disciples all have different gifts from God
This passage from the Bible is laying out some simple basics of discipleship.
The first thing that Paul is telling his church is that there are different kinds of disciples.
We all have different giftedness.
The path for one person to live as a disciple of Jesus may look different from another person’s path to live a disciple of Jesus.
This is because God has created a world full of diversity.
People are not all the same.
And this is not an accident.
God meant to do this.
That makes it a good thing that people are not all the same—because it comes from God.
So, the first question to ask is, what kind of disciple does God want me to be?
What are my gifts?
What am I good at?
Where do my passions find their fullest expression?
I want us to begin here for a very good reason.
As disciples of Jesus, the Holy Spirit is constantly molding us more-and-more into the image of God.
Our path of discipleship is always a journey of sanctification into holiness.
And this is a journey that must always keep God as the center of our focus.
So, we begin by pressing into God’s will for our lives as disciples.
This means for us that we take a look at what Paul writes here in scripture and ask ourselves some questions about how God has uniquely gifted us to be a disciple for him and in his church.
I know there are some churches in which every member is signed up on a rotation to take a turn as a Sunday greeter at the door.
This is a bad idea.
This assumes that every single person in your church has been given the gift of warm hospitality.
For those who have the gift of hospitality, they serve wonderfully as greeters who welcome people into God’s house for worship.
For those who do not have the gift of hospitality, visitors and guests get a bad first impression of the church
Not everyone is good with their hands and should serve on the facility crew.
Don’t put any power tools in my hands.
I’ll most likely cause more damage than good, and will probably get hurt in the process.
Often, we find opportunities to serve other people in a time of need by helping out with a meal.
Some of you out there know very well that you should never even try cooking and sharing a meal with anyone.
We all serve as disciples of Jesus in different ways.
And that’s okay.
So, ask yourself what kind of disciple God wants you to be.
Richard Foster, Celebration of Disciple
And all of us grow in faith as disciples a little bit differently as well.
Richard Foster, in his classic book Celebration of Disciple works through and explains a variety of spiritual disciplines that help Christians grow in faith.
Foster divides these spiritual habits and rituals into three categories.
He talks about the inward disciplines, the outward disciplines, and the corporate disciplines.
Inward spiritual disciplines include things like prayer and fasting.
These are the kinds of habits we are focusing on with our 40 Days of Prayer going on right now.
Outward disciplines include habits like service and simplicity.
We do these habits as expressions that carry a direct outward impact.
And corporate disciplines such as worship and confession are habits that we do together in in groups because they benefit the greater body of Christians.
Foster’s point is that we all have different personalities and could all benefit from a balanced diet of spiritual habits.
Those who are naturally introverts might find the most personal benefit from inward spiritual habits.
A full day to practice solitude sounds wonderful to an introvert—and torturous to an extrovert.
On the other hand, mutual greeting or fellowship time after the service is invigorating for an extrovert, while introverts just want to run and hide somewhere.
All of these habits can have a spiritual benefit when practiced as a spiritual discipline.
God provides many different ways we can grow as disciples because we are all created just a little bit differently.
And once again, ask yourself what kind of disciple God wants you to be.
What kind of disciple do I want to be?
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