The Fatal Flaw Of Not Being An Obedient Disciple

We should ask the question: Is an obedient disciple becoming unconverted with regards to his faith in a gospel message. The OBD (Obedience-Based Discipleship) answered “yes.” Furthermore, the OBD posits that it is a normative trajectory of the New Testament discipleship-making.

However, biblically, the reply is “no.” The regeneration progress not just the faith but the life of loving being obedient. There are no significant definitions of “obedience or disciple” that don’t assume the realism of regeneration. A natural person’s mind will be “hostile to God, since it doesn’t submit to the law of God; indeed, it can’t” (Rom. 8:7). In spiritual things, the category that certainly includes Jesus commands can be understood only by those that possessed the Spirit in 1 Cor. 2:14. Jesus Christ taught that the lack of new birth, one can’t even see a kingdom in John 3:3, much lesser obey spiritual truths. In obeying God’s law keenly from the heart will only be accomplished through the Holy Spirit’s power and the presence in Ez. 36:26. It is the very substance of that new covenant, in which one should enter by faith alone. Only the regenerated person will truly obey Jesus Christ in a meaningful sense.

We’re seeing this truth in stark relief if we consider that an initial command repeatedly subjected by Jesus and the apostles is not possible apart from the Holy Spirit’s regenerative work in conversion: to believe the gospel after repenting in Mark 1:15. The obedience where we are to stride as disciples are the faith obedience in Rom. 1:5. All else that doesn’t come from faith will be a sin in Rom. 14:23. There’s no introductory command of Jesus Christ prior to this which may be accomplished in a flesh apart from the new spiritual life working in a human heart.

Only the regenerated individual can really follow Jesus in a meaningful sense

The issue is compounded if we will consider a longer-term aim of OBD. Some advocates of the disciple-making movements had as the goal the rapid increase of OBD teams facilitated even through unconverted unbelievers. If “disciples” can be unconverted, and when part of the “disciple’s” mandated is to create another “disciples” therefore, defined, the inevitable outcome is that the whole disciple-making movements will be statistically computed where there’s no conversionary gospel talk had in fact happened. Yet if a Great Commission mandated is to fill our world with outside obedience to Christ’s general commands—like the love of neighbor, while staying unbelief, we may rightly say that the task is done!

The question becomes: what kind of “obedience” is being accomplished by the OBD when not the obedience slowing from faith and regeneration in the completed redemptive work of Jesus?

Conclusion

In total disclosure, this issue is approached from the theological and biblical perspective—although the eerie similarity in between the OBD must be noted and what has been observed personally in the attractive and seeker-driven churches in the world. Anybody should be aware of the self-professed OBD practitioner that because of the different moderating factors, had been actually practicing a ministry style closer to the “proclamation-based or traditional” evangelism. Therefore, it is important that we approach the issues with the spirit of grace and charity.

But with regards to OBD in the “purest” form, it must be clearly spoken. The power of the gospel to save can be discovered in God’s grace purchased by Christ in Rom. 1:16 and 1 Cor. 2:1-4 and not the outside obedience of the seekers ignorant of a cross.