A Manifesto for Recovering the Way of Jesus

Jesus constantly shattered people’s assumptions about what it meant to follow God. 

Most people assume Christianity is primarily about what we do—attend church, avoid sin, and read the Bible. They also think it includes praying, serving, and giving. Finally, they include doing outreach (evangelism).  These practices matter, but they were never meant to replace the deeper call. Jesus’ call is far more radical. He did not come merely to change what people do. He came to transform who they are.

This manifesto is a call to recover the way of Jesus: the lifelong journey of being with Him, becoming like Him, and doing as He did. 

The call to discipleship is not first a call to do more for Jesus. It is a call to become a different kind of person through life with Jesus. Everything else flows from that. Jesus is after the person before the performance. He knows that transformed lives produce transformed actions. He is not merely recruiting workers for His mission; He is forming people into His likeness. Once that truth is grasped, every command of Jesus begins to make sense.

• The call to discipleship is not a call to simply attend church.
  It is a call to become part of a spiritual family that follows Jesus together.

• It is not merely a call to believe the right things about Jesus.
  It is a call to surrender every area of life to Him as Savior and King.

• Discipleship is not about practicing a religion.
  It is about becoming an apprentice of Jesus.

• Jesus did not call us to admire Him.
  He called us to imitate Him.

• It is more than occasional spiritual experiences.
  It is a daily walk with Jesus.

• It is not enough to simply know more Scripture.
  God's Word is meant to reshape the way we think, love, desire, and live.

• It is not a call to merely change your behavior.
  It is a call to have your mind renewed, your loves reordered, your motives purified, and your actions transformed.

• It is not a call to become a better religious person.
  It is a call to become more like Christ.

• Following Jesus is not about performing for God.
  It is about abiding in Christ and trusting Him to produce His fruit through your life.

• It is not a call to accomplish impressive things for Jesus.
  It is a call to faithfully obey Him in both the ordinary and extraordinary moments of life.

• It is not a call to consume spiritual content.
  It is a call to obey what Jesus teaches.

• It is not merely a call to receive ministry.
  It is a call to become a disciple who makes disciples.

• It is not a call to build your own kingdom with God's blessing.
  It is a call to abandon your kingdom for His.

• It is not a call to pursue personal success.
  It is a call to pursue faithfulness, whether anyone notices or not.

• Jesus never promised a life of comfort and self-preservation.
  He called us to take up our cross, lose our lives for His sake, and discover the life this world can never take away.

• It is not a call to fit Jesus into your life.
  It is a call to reorder your entire life around Him.

• It is not a call to become the best version of yourself.
  It is a call to die to yourself so that Christ may live through you.

• It is not a call to make Jesus part of your story.
  It is a call to discover that your life now belongs to His story.

• It is not a call to earn God's love.
  It is a call to live from the security of His love.

• Nor is it a call that ends with conversion.
  It is the lifelong apprenticeship of being with Jesus, becoming like Him, and doing as He did.

The Radical Call of Discipleship   

This is the radical call of discipleship: not merely changed behavior, but the lifelong transformation of the whole person into the likeness of Christ. Jesus is not simply making believers. He is making disciples. Jesus is not merely gathering followers. He is forming people. Jesus is not only preparing us for heaven. He is preparing us to live as citizens of His Kingdom here and now. That is the radical call of discipleship.