In simplest terms, discipleship is bringing the immature to a place of full maturity in Christ. By default this means we are dealing with immature people, which is always challenging, but a great privilege. One of the greatest honors in life is to help a person discover who they are in Christ instead of seeing themselves after the flesh. In this article, I’m going to share some principles about how to see people after who they are in Christ and more importantly help them to see themselves the same way so they can walk in their divine destiny.
2 Corinthians 5:16 says from now on, we regard no one according to the flesh. Even though we have known Christ according to the flesh, yet now we know Him thus no longer.
In this passage, the Apostle Paul said we aren’t to know people after the flesh. This means we aren’t to know them by their physical appearance, background, upbringing, or behavior. He then went on to say, we used to know Christ that way, but now we don’t know Him that way any longer. That’s profound!
Think about it, if you are a believer, you know Jesus, but you do not know Him after the flesh. You weren’t with Him when He multiplied the loaves and fishes, raised Lazarus from the dead, or when He hung on the cross. You weren’t with Him, yet you claim to know Him, which I believe you do. This leads to an important question. Since you don’t know Jesus after the flesh, how do you know Him? You know Jesus by the word of God and by the Holy Spirit! Learn more about that here.
If we have to know Jesus by the word and the spirit, how do you think God wants us to know others? He wants us to know them by the word and the Holy Spirit. This means we have to know them as new creations in Christ as 2 Corinthians 5:17 says. God wants us to see them that way and then help them to see themselves that way so they can walk in the fulness of their identity and fulfill their destiny.
An example of this is when Jesus restored Peter in John 21. Peter had just experienced the greatest failure in his life when he denied Jesus three times. As elated as Peter was that Jesus had resurrected, can you imagine the guilt and shame that must have been running through mind? It’s possible he wondered if Jesus was done with him. And even if he thought Jesus wasn’t done with him, it’s possible Peter was done with himself. He probably thought I blew it and denied Jesus when I thought I was all in, how can I trust myself that I won’t blow it again in the future? This is why Peter was fishing when Jesus found him. Peter’s old way of life was that of a fisherman. Peter disqualified himself from ministry and was stepping back into his old way of life because he saw himself as a failure.
With that background laid, look at John 21:15-19:
15 So when they had eaten breakfast, Jesus said to Simon Peter, “Simon, son of Jonah, do you love Me more than these?”
He said to Him, “Yes, Lord; You know that I love You.”
He said to him, “Feed My lambs.”
16 He said to him again a second time, “Simon, son of Jonah, do you love Me?”
He said to Him, “Yes, Lord; You know that I love You.”
He said to him, “Tend My sheep.”
17 He said to him the third time, “Simon, son of Jonah, do you love Me?” Peter was grieved because He said to him the third time, “Do you love Me?”
And he said to Him, “Lord, You know all things; You know that I love You.”
Jesus said to him, “Feed My sheep. 18 Most assuredly, I say to you, when you were younger, you girded yourself and walked where you wished; but when you are old, you will stretch out your hands, and another will gird you and carry you where you do not wish.” 19 This He spoke, signifying by what death he would glorify God. And when He had spoken this, He said to him, “Follow Me.”
In this passage Jesus tells Peter to feed His sheep/lambs three times. Feeding sheep is metaphoric language for ministering the word to others. Ask yourself a question, would that be the first thing you tell someone who denied you three times? I’ll be honest, that would not be my first reaction. I’d probably think, “I can’t trust them. They are unfaithful!” That would not be my reaction because often I still see people more after the flesh than I do after the spirit. Jesus was able to call Peter back into his destiny, however, because He saw him after the spirit and not after the flesh.
Jesus then went on to prophecy how Peter would end His life. Jesus said others would carry him where he didn’t want to go and that Peter would be crucified. Jesus spoke destiny over Peter. Church history tells us that Peter was crucified for preaching the gospel. While this is not a prophecy most of us would want to receive, this prophecy released the grace for Peter to step into his destiny. Jesus saw Peter after who he was and what he was in Christ and declared it!
One of the greatest things we can do for someone we are discipling is to speak prophetic destiny over them, especially after they have failed. This helps them to see themselves as God sees them and releases confidence in them to take on new challenges. As I write this, I realize so me of you are thinking, “This sounds great in theory Brian, but how do I do that? The person I’m discipling messes up a lot.”
If you are thinking that, God is inviting you to spend more time in the word and prayer. You are walking more by what you see than what the word and spirit say, which is a sign you have a hardened heart. The ancedote for a hardened heart is spending time in the presence of God. As you spend time in God’s presence, Jesus will show you who you really are; a person who is capable of discipling difficult people. As you heart embraces that reality, God will then help you see your disciple as God sees them. This includes:
- As precious in His sight.
- Able to do all things in Christ.
- As a world overcomer.
- As the righteousness of God.
- Having the mind of Christ.
- Being able to command mountains to be cast into the sea and those mountains obeying!
I hope this article has encouraged you! If you’d like to learn more about speaking words of faith over ourselves and others, check out this message I taught at Grace Life Church. Click here, to see my previous article on discipleship.