If you want to be My disciple, it will cost you everything. Don’t underestimate that cost!

Luke 14:33 (VOICE)

 

The call to radical discipleship has never been more urgent. In an effort to remain relevant, the church is fast becoming indistinguishable from the surrounding culture. We must not be like the world. Rather we are to be different because Jesus has set us apart for His Kingdom's work.

The word, “radical” comes from a Latin word meaning "root". It implies that our life in Christ is rooted in our oneness in Him. As we learn to live out the truth of our new identity and receive His anointing, gifts, and power, we join Him as co-creators in healing a broken world and freeing the oppressed. This returns us to our biblical roots, as patterned in Acts, where there is boldness in our preaching, audacity in our praying and generosity in our sharing.

We are not called to act the same as everyone else.

While we may not be welcomed everywhere we go, we are to do good to everyone, even to those who hate or harm us. It is obvious that we don’t immediately benefit from the good things we do. Yet, if we don't weary in doing good, we will reap a harvest if we do not give up. It is this counterintuitive faith that makes the early disciples such a disruptive force. They were described by their detractors and foes as the ones “who turned the world upside down” because of their unwavering witness to the gospel (Acts 17:6). Like them, we are called to transform our world with the upside-down truths and values of the Kingdom of God.