Everything is holy!

Make those 'ordinary' things holy! Every part of the Tabernacle was holy, not just the impressive parts, but every little thing. (Exodus 40:9) If we are truly a temple built of living stones, we are all marked as holy, set apart for the Almighty's exclusive use. (Ephesians 1:13) How can you make cleaning, shopping, work and study holy? Sometimes we think of holiness in terms of what we avoid doing. Instead, begin to think more positively in terms of what you do.

Make everything holy

Even the things that give us the greatest pleasure can be enjoyed in his presence, with his blessing
and in gratitude. Sometimes we regard these things as worldly, and of course they can be if we misuse them. But they can (and should) also be brought into the place of holiness, part of the kingdom. Think of nothing as apart from him.

Worship is much more than singing songs and praising the Lord, it's also a matter of obedience. Worship is living lives that honour Jesus, it's gratefully offering our world back to him. As you read the Bible pay attention to what constitutes worship and allow that learning to reshape how you define and practice worship.

In particular consider the everyday. How do you love the Lord, the creation, and other people (how do you treat them), consider your obedience, are you willing to spend time in Jesus' company?

Not only should Jesus be at the very centre of our lives, he should also not have to share that place with anyone or anything else.

Discuss – Do you reserve certain activities for use only in church? What are they? They might include prayer, worship and communion; is it possible to take these activities out into society? If not, why not? If so how?

Jesus alone

We need to avoid the common idea that we have two lives. There's the life we live in church and the life we live at work and in our free time. One life for Sunday mornings and perhaps a mid-week evening meeting, and another life for the rest of the week. One life with Christians, another life for worldly people. One life following Jesus, another life following our own desires and needs. (Matthew 6:24, Luke 9:57-62)

Partial overlap

Recognise that it's necessary to see things very differently. All of life comes under Jesus' direction.

Discuss – How might you restructure your life around Jesus? Are there things in life that are more important to you than Jesus? Career? Financial security? A nice home? The latest in home entertainment?

Magnificently modelled mission

Make Jesus your primary model for mission. Study the ways he interacted with others, the things he said and the things he did. Prayerfully consider what you can learn from him.

Washing feet

Follow his example in leadership by recognising that he was a servant who washed his disciple's feet. He didn't have or desire any institutional or positional authority, but he had immense moral and spiritual authority. Character trumps position. Check this out in the gospels, see how Jesus led and made disciples, work to become more like him in this.

If Jesus is not the all-consuming centre of my life, I need to be asking the question who (or what) is?

Read 1 Corinthians 8:4-6 and consider what these verses mean. What do they tell you about Jesus? Jesus is described here as a channel for creation and for life. Our awareness of the Almighty's presence in our lives in and through Jesus should stir us up. It is all about him!

Jesus says he only does what he sees the Father do (John 5:19) and only says what he hears the Father say (John 12:49). He came to reveal the Father (John 14:9). It's time to start following him in this. Do only what you see Jesus do; say only what you hear him say; live to reveal Jesus. You will be surprised at the impact this will have. Gradually, even the way you think will change.

Discuss – Why did Jesus wash his disciples feet? (see John 13:1-17) Washing feet was a sign of welcoming guests into the home and honouring them. Whose home is Jesus, as a servant, welcoming them to? For more on the meaning of washing feet see Genesis 18:1-5 and Luke 7:36-50. And notice that washing feet is an action. Jesus is defined by what he does.

Jesus at the centre

We need a fresh understanding of who Jesus really is, every explosive church growth movement throughout history has had this focus. Many of these movements were persecuted and this seems to have given them a fresh and urgent vision. They let go of everything that would hold them back and clung to the core of their faith.

A royal crown

We need to know how Jesus lived and worked because he intends to live and work in these same ways through us. We can so easily block him, that's part of having the privilege and responsibility of free will. And we are often overwhelmed by the complications and demands of modern life; our focus on the essential is lost and we are distracted by so many side issues.

To get away from everything that hinders us we need to focus on Jesus much more. The Bible calls him King, Shepherd, the One and Only, the Son, Master, Teacher, Lord, the Almighty with us (Immanuel), Prince of Peace, the Word and more. Jesus himself said, 'Anyone who has seen me has seen the Father'. (John 14:9) By reading books about him, watching films about his life, and going through the gospels repeatedly we will begin to notice for ourselves what he is like, what he says, what he does and who he is.

Carefully think about where you are spiritually. How do your lives (individually and together) compare with that of Jesus? What changes would he want to see? When you meet, remember that you are meeting, as in all things, in Jesus' name. (Colossians 3:17)

The One

Deuteronomy 6:4-9 makes it very clear; Yahweh is One and we are to love him with everything we have and are. What a dramatic change from earlier times when offerings and worship had to be made to many gods, perhaps repeatedly during the day. For us, today, 'Jesus is Lord' in exactly the same way (1 Corinthians 8:6). No other loyalties are acceptable in our lives, just Jesus.

Jesus is Lord

There are at least three helpful habits we can develop; these are keeping Jesus at the centre, following
Jesus alone, and putting the gospels way, way ahead of anything else.

Discuss – Read Deuteronomy 6:4-9 and think about the difference between one and many where gods are concerned (most people 2000 years ago had to make offerings to many gods). In John 10:30 what does Jesus mean when he says, 'I and the Father are one'? And in John 17:20-23, what does he mean when he prays for all his followers – including you and me?

Jesus at the centre

It's extremely important that Jesus is at the heart of our lives, both individually and in church life too. If we don't get this foundation right we cannot be built into what he wants us to be. What would happen if you built a house of heavy stones but didn't have proper foundations?

Good foundations

The fact is, this forgotten way is fundamental; everything else depends on it and results from it. We need Jesus to be in the right place because he is the only foundation we can trust
(Matthew 16:15-20, 1 Corinthians 3:9-11). Has this way been truly forgotten? Not completely, perhaps, but we have sometimes been half-hearted in following it.

Discuss – Do you follow Jesus in everything? List some parts of your life where you do follow him. List some parts where you don't. Is he the foundation of your daily living, truly?

Six parts of a connected whole

The six forgotten ways are utterly dependent on one another. Think about a tree. Trees have four principle parts – roots, trunks, branches and leaves. But if any part is missing the rest of the tree will die. Without roots the tree has no supply of water. Without the trunk the root won't receive food from the leaves, the branches would have no support and the leaves would lack water and wither. Without branches the leaves would not spread wide in the sunlight. Without leaves there would be no food supply and the tree would starve.

More than community

Strong and vibrant communities develop where there is a shared ordeal. We need to be on a risky journey together; we need to be drawn out of our comfort zones. It's not necessary to be persecuted, but it is necessary to be stretched in significant ways in our lives together.

Latest version of JDMC

The latest version of JDMC is now live for download. Version 2, release 15.10.18, adds some additional material to the final section,  Last words.

A living organism

This session looks at some important differences between organisations and organisms, particularly as they involve movements, networks and growth. As the body of Christ we are an embodiment of Jesus' life and resurrection.

Gifts for building

The fourth forgotten way involves the gifts of service identified by Paul in Ephesians 4:11- 16. The gifts of apostle, prophet, evangelist, shepherd and teacher work together. Do we recognise these gifts in our brothers and sisters? The apostolic gift lays foundations and releases and stirs up the other gifts. All of them are there in every one of us, but we tend to be strongest in one or two.

Outward and integrated

People who follow Jesus will be driven to go out into the world and will also feel the need to be deeply present in the surrounding culture and society.

Becoming disciples

This second forgotten way is about revealing Jesus to the people around us by becoming more and more like him. (John 13:34-35) It demands a lifetime of challenge and we must grapple with it every single day.

Jesus at the centre

As his followers, Jesus should be central in all we do. Few would argue with that! The alternative is to do things in our own strength and wisdom and we know this will never be enough.

Slogans help us communicate

Big businesses, newspaper sellers and political parties have something in common - they all know the power of good slogans. The early church knew this too, they had a great slogan:

Key factors

Alan Hirsch identifies six factors that he calls 'forgotten ways'. These factors were all active in the early church and in other examples of explosive growth; think of them as the DNA of the church. Alan suggests that if you follow Jesus, you already have this DNA, but perhaps some of it is inactive. Jesus is our righteousness, but are we a 'faithful city'? (Isaiah 1:26). Have we, like the church at Ephesus, forgotten the love we had at first? (Revelation 2:4)

Why doesn't it grow?

Here's a question to get you thinking. 'Why doesn't church in the West grow explosively like the church described in the book of Acts?'

Version 2 available to download

You can now download a copy of JDMC version 2. Expect this version to change often as it's not yet finished - but it seems important to get it out there as soon as possible as it contains three new sections to cover topics that some readers have asked me about. There are also corrections, additions and rewritten parts in the existing sections, and I've added many more active links for those reading on screen (both online and the downloaded PDF).

A new version

It's been quiet around here for a while, it's high time I posted something again.

Master and apprentice

Here's the first paragraph of the JDMC section on 'Becoming disciples'.

Aiming for the centre

Here's the opening paragraph from JDMC on 'Jesus at the Centre'.

Start a bandwagon

J

Jesus - Start small, begin with one thing - or rather, start with one person - Jesus. Is he at the centre of your life? Is anyone or anything else trying to share that place with him?

Check out 'Jesus at the centre' in JDMC.

What it's all about

The cover of JDMC shows a colour wheel with a bright white centre. The phrases on the
wheel describe six essential factors for growth. Jesus must be at the centre of everything –
we need to become (and make) disciples – we must go out and become rooted in our local
environment – we need to recognise those who are gifted in enabling the church to become
mature – we need to grow and flourish and multiply like a living thing – and we need to
work through challenges together.

How is it working out so far?

Jesus, Disciple, Mission, Church (JDMC) is reaching further and is showing signs of effectiveness. The pace is definitely picking up. The material is starting to be used in Nottingham and I'm going through it with two groups in St Neots. One of my friends, John, is really fired up about it and may soon explore ways to reach others here in the town (he's planning to go out and deep). Copies are being downloaded around the world and I have no idea how these are being used, nor do I know if others are distributing or modifying the material.

More than community

Church is a community, so church life is a form of community life. But what kind of community should church be? After all, a music appreciation society is a community, but so is an orchestra. Which is most like church?

A living organism

We all know what a living organism is, it's a plant or an animal or even a bacterium. But in terms of church life, what do we mean by a 'living organism'?

Gifts for building

The church has had a long history of misunderstanding the five gifts of service mentioned in Ephesians 4:11-13. What is perfectly clear is that Christ himself provides apostles, prophets, evangelists, shepherds and teachers to equip us to serve - that is what the passage says. And his purpose is clear too, he wants us to reach unity in the faith, to be knowledgeable about him, mature, and growing to fully measure up to him.

Outward and integrated

This is an important piece of the jigsaw; movements cannot exist unless there is an effective process of spreading. In the case of the church, spreading involves going out from where we already are and becoming embedded in the culture wherever the 'going out' takes us.

Christian Books Free

Many thanks to Christian Books Free who have made JDMC available to their readers. If you haven't visited this site before I suggest you take a look.

Review by Felicity Dale

Felicity Dale has just reviewed JDMC on her blog, Simply Church. She writes: