THE FIRST LESSON IN DISCIPLESHIP - II

WBS.005

DISCIPLESHIP 101

THE FIRST LESSON IN DISCIPLESHIP - II

Matthew 11:29 Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls.

Last week’s study established the case for genuine discipleship beginning when a person chooses Yahushua Messiah to be his Master, and voluntarily submits to take upon himself His yoke, knowing that once inside the yoke, 1) he is no longer his own person, 2) he belongs to the Master, 3) his life is resolved to serve only the Master’s will, because 4) there is no freedom inside the yoke to pursue his own will.  Another term for this transaction is ”repentance,” the first legitimate response to the gospel.  “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.”

It is important to realize that the Master’s yoke is a double yoke.  Messiah is not holding the reins.  He is in the other side of the yoke.  The Greek word for “yoke” is derived from the word meaning “to join.”  Yahushua invites us to join him in the yoke that he had already chosen for himself.  If you will recall, throughout the record of his life, he said that he came to do the Father’s will.  The works that he did were the Father’s works.  He did nothing without the Father first revealing to him what to do.  He did always the things that pleased the Father.  In fact, the only place in the Scripture where the will of Yahushua is ever exposed was in the Garden before his crucifixion when he asked if there was another way that he could accomplish the redemption of man.  Even facing a horrible and humiliating death he said, “Not my will, but thine be done.”  Yahushua relinquished the right of self-rule, of self-determination, to be mastered by Elohim, and to learn of Him…to become like Him in every way.  In the last meeting with his disciples, he told Philip, “He that has seen me has seen the Father” (John 14:9).  So, when Yahushua invites us to take his yoke, he is inviting us to join him in the yoke he wears, to let him teach us how to be like the one he is like; to do the will of the one whose will he performs…to become the servants of Elohim.

Once we have chosen to join Yahushua in his yoke, the learning begins.  Discipleship is about becoming like the Master in every possible way.  The first thing the Master instructs us to learn of him is that he is meek and lowly in heart.  Looking around at the masses in the church world, would you have guessed this was lesson #1?  Do you think the world looks at professing Christians and observes this as the most obvious characteristic of those who profess to know the Master?  The truth is this attribute is contrary to the way of contemporary Christianity. Its glaring absence is one of the reasons why “the few” sit in the pews on Sunday and feel like they cannot breath…like a fish out of water.  Church is an alien environment to the yoked life.

True discipleship begins with learning in what way Messiah is meek and lowly in heart.  Meekness is regarded as a weakness in today’s society.  A meek person is perceived to be timid, shy, a pushover.  This is not the scriptural form of meekness.  True meekness is “power under control.”  What is the first purpose of a yoke?  It is to harness the power of the beast.  A stallion is full of strength and self-will.  Freedom and independence runs through its veins.  It is unruly and undisciplined; but once it has been captured (drawn by the revelation of the Truth), broken (brought to repentance) and yoked (submitted to the mastery of another), the stallion’s strength can become harnessed and useful to its master.  Like the stallion, when we join the yoke of the Master, our independence and self-will must be forfeited before we can become useful.

Picture a man sitting at the bar in a cafe who is accosted by another man who is out to pick a fight.  He is pushed then challenged to do something about it.  The man, however, simply gets up and walks out of the café.  He appears to be cowardly to all who are watching the event unfold; but our man, unknown to all in the café, is a third degree black belt martial artist who knows it would take mere seconds to subdue the bully.  He has no need to assert or to demonstrate his superior position; and he is willing to appear to be a coward in order to spare the bully. This is an example of scriptural “meekness” (power under control).  Like the harnessed stallion, he no longer has the freedom to prove himself.  He belongs to another; and he is okay with this.

You may envision several other examples of this.  The thing to observe is your own heart’s reaction to such scenarios.  Do you feel you would be at peace with others thinking you a coward?  Would your inner man be screaming to prove you could beat up the bully very easily?  True meekness has no such inner screaming.  There is as much peace within the meek when he walks away as there is before the bully ever showed up.  Why is this?  It is because the yoked life is not about us?  It is no longer our desire to protect our own image, defend ourselves or stand up for our own selfish interests.  The yoked life is about being harnessed by another, and He is capable of defending Himself.

Meekness is the attribute that Messiah would teach us so the yoke does not sit uncomfortably upon our shoulder. It is in our resistance to the yoke that we feel it at all.  The meek is content to be under the control of another.  The meek knows that when life is no longer about himself, he is actually liberated from all responsibilities except one---doing the will of the Master.  Everything else is the Master’s responsibility.

The second attribute of Messiah a disciple is to learn of him is lowliness of heart.  One may feel he has gotten a handle on meekness, not allowing any circumstances to rile or agitate, and all the while feeling quite proud about his success.  This is why meekness and lowliness of heart go hand in hand.  Being quiet on the outside is not the same as being quiet on the inside.  The outward expression of meekness without lowliness of heart is not unlike keeping the law without experiencing the objective of the law.

A man could refrain from committing adultery and thus keep the law; but keeping the law alone could not prevent man’s heart from desiring another woman.  A man could refrain from stealing and thus keep the law; but the law alone could not prevent the man from desiring another man’s possessions.  The law could only regulate outward behavior.  It had no power to control the inner man of the heart.  Meekness by itself does not affect the attitude of the heart; thus a lowly heart provides the balance required to become like Messiah.

What is lowliness of heart?  Literally, it means a bowed or lowered head.  It refers to the conviction that one is not better than any other person.  I remember, years ago, reading:

Philippians 2:3  Let nothing be done through strife or vainglory; but in lowliness of mind let each esteem other better than themselves. 

I put my bible down and spoke out loud, “How can I do that when I am better than some?”  I remember comparing myself with many who refuse to study the Scriptures, with those who have no passion for IAUE, with those who have never ministered supernaturally in Messiah’s name.  I was able to come up with all sorts of reasons why this verse seemed unreasonable to me.  Then the Spirit sent me to:

2 Cor 10:12  For we dare not make ourselves of the number, or compare ourselves with some that commend themselves: but they measuring themselves by themselves, and comparing themselves among themselves, are not wise.

and

1 Cor 3:7   So then neither is he that planteth any thing, neither he that watereth; but Elohim that giveth the increase.

Painfully, I learned that I am nothing special.  No matter what I may have learned, it was all revealed by the Father.  No matter what giftings I had, they were all given to me by the Father.  No matter what experiences I have had, they were permitted by the Father.  Even those who walk in abject darkness are only different from me because they have not yet received the Father’s enlightenment.  This experience was my introduction to lowliness of heart.  It wasn’t an easy lesson to learn; but it was imperative in order to progress in my walk in the Spirit.

Meekness without lowliness of heart is like being satisfied with doctrine without the revelation of the Truth; being satisfied with the commercial without purchasing the product.  The pursuit of meekness will manifest your need for lowliness of heart, like dross surfacing exposing your pride.  Pride is the evidence of the importance of self; and self-importance is the enemy of the yoked life.

So, that is the initial play.  If you want to pursue genuine discipleship, you must earnestly seek the face of Messiah to let him teach you how HE is meek and lowly in heart.  He will surely do it.  It is not within my skill-set to “reveal” this to anyone.  I can only present the information, market the product.  To acquire the product, one must go to the Master and pay the price for the Truth.