TheoBros Are Shameless

At heart, TheoBros love Jesus.

Despite what others may say or insinuate, TheoBros don’t (just) sit in an ivory tower, sip some coffee or whatever, and think deeply about Calvin’s TULIP. We don’t debate Arminians online 24/7, simultaneously screeching at Beth Moore with veins popping out of our necks. That’s not who we are, or why we’re TheoBros at all.

TheoBros Fight Though

TheoBros wage war against Arminianism because of what it does to the character and nature of God. It diminishes Him. The theology repugnantly turns Him into a passive, grandfather, hoping his grandchildren turn out “Okay.” We believe God to be a warrior, One who defeats the wiles of Satan at every turn and snatches His people out of the jaws of death.

TheoBros wage war against egalitarianism because of the way it flattens Biblical gender differences, and transforms men and women from their diverse, glorious beauty into shapeless, colorless, androgynous humanoids. This diminishes God as well, who is the Creator, Original Artist, and Ultimate Authority over all that is. .

We’re TheoBro’s because we want to know God in the Person of Jesus Christ, and we want others to find their joy and satisfaction in Him too.

We are, at heart, disciple-makers, and we’re not embarrassed by it. Let’s look at Jesus, shall we:

Jesus, The Original TheoBro

“While walking by the Sea of Galilee, he saw two brothers, Simon (who is called Peter) and Andrew his brother, casting a net into the sea, for they were fishermen. And he said to them, ‘Follow me, and I will make you fishers of men.’ Immediately they left their nets and followed him. And going on from there he saw two other brothers, James the son of Zebedee and John his brother, in the boat with Zebedee their father, mending their nets, and he called them. Immediately they left the boat and their father and followed him (Matthew 4:18-22).”

In the previous section, Jesus settled in Capernaum and began his public ministry. His first act was preaching (4:17), and, in this passage, his next act of public ministry is to call his first four disciples. All four men are fishermen from around the Sea of Galilee who leave their jobs and begin to follow him. Truly, these fisherman were some of those most unlikely characters for the Messiah to choose. They would be given the task of carrying on His ministry after His death, but fishermen were regarded as unlearned, uneducated men. 

Here are four things we should note in our study of discipleship:

1. Jesus’ Sovereignty in Discipleship.

It was Jesus who initiated this discipleship relationship, because, on their own, the disciples were lost in sin, unable and unwilling to come. “You did not choose me, but I chose you and appointed you that you should go and bear fruit and that your fruit should abide, so that whatever you ask the Father in my name, he may give it to you. These things I command you, so that you will love one another (John 15:16-17).”

We are unable to be people who make disciples unless Jesus Himself, totally by grace, calls us. It was grace alone that called Peter, Andrew, James, and John that day, as well as the other 8. As Christians seeking to make disciples, we should be humble, thankful, and amazed at the fact that the Creator of all things would create in us a new heart, and that He would allow us the privilege of leading others to follow our Savior.   

2. All or Nothing in Discipleship.

In this account, Peter, Andrew, James, and John immediately left their old lives and followed Jesus. When Christ calls disciples, He demands all of their time and all of their attention. There are no half-measures in our walks with Christ. There is a clean break with our love for the world and ourselves. We must be willing to submit every aspect of ourselves to Him.

“Do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit within you, whom you have from God? You are not your own, for you were bought with a price. So glorify God in your body (1 Cor. 6:19-20).” 

When we are young in the faith, we hold tightly to much of who we are and what we desire. But as we walk with Christ daily in our Christian lives, our hearts begin to mirror His. This ongoing process of becoming more and more like Christ is called “sanctification.” 

When we disciple others, we want them to come to this same realization: Jesus is now the center of our universe. Christ is “all-in-all (Col. 3:9).”

3. The “Foolishness” of Discipleship.

Jesus chose people from the bottom rung of society to be the ones to carry on His Gospel mission after He was gone. This is not at all surprising. The same God who chose Jacob, Moses, Gideon, and David to lead His people, chose fishermen. Why? So that there would be no reason to boast in their success. All glory, honor and praise belongs to Jesus as these least-likely-to-succeed disciples experience victory after victory in the Book of Acts and beyond. 

“For consider your calling, brothers: not many of you were wise according to worldly standards, not many were powerful, not many were of noble birth. But God chose what is foolish in the world to shame the wise; God chose what is weak in the world to shame the strong; God chose what is low and despised in the world, even things that are not, to bring to nothing things that are, so that no human being might boast in the presence of God. And because of him you are in Christ Jesus, who became to us wisdom from God, righteousness and sanctification and redemption, so that, as it is written, ‘Let the one who boasts, boast in the Lord.’” 

Both Disciple-makers and Disciples must recognize their spiritual bankruptcy and clothe themselves with all humility (1 Pet. 5:5). Those whom we disciple must bear this mark. We have nothing of value to give to God outside of the Person of Jesus Christ. If we feel less-than-adequate, we are in the right place. The next step is to depend on the Lord. 

4. The Character of Discipleship. 

“Follow me, and I will make you fishers of men.” A disciple-maker is a disciple first. We study God’s Word, pray, praise, confess, love, repent, hope, believe. We are, through an intimate relationship to Jesus, being conformed daily into His likeness. But a disciple “catches” men through evangelism, and then gathers them to Jesus to be used for His glory and make more disciples. 

A fisherman is patient, trusting that God will provide at just the right time. A fisherman is diligent: he works daily in good weather, bad weather, cold weather, and hot weather. A fisherman knows his equipment: the disciple-maker is able to skillfully apply the Word of God to the lives of others. 

Shameless

Remember, TheoBros:

We are shameless disciple-makers. Let’s pass the glorious Theology we’ve learned to a new generation of TheoBros. Even though Beth Moore doesn’t really like us.

In Christ,

Justin