"Follow Me as I Follow Christ": A Discipleship Curriculum

(Extracted - Beginning with Overview of Module Three, Lesson Three) Living the Christian life is challenging, and leading God’s people is even more difficult. You have explored why there are challenges and the composition of the opposition. During this lesson, you will focus on methodologies to overcome the complexities of leadership as prescribed by Paul in his letters to his protégé Timothy. As mentioned earlier, we do not want you to be surprised by the conflicts you encounter as you begin leading God’s people. Remember, our Master, Jesus, had to overcome the same challenges you will face, and He did so. Some may say that because He was God wrapped in human flesh, they would not expect any less than Him defeating the forces of evil with whom He clashed. In this lesson, we will also examine Paul in all his humanity and how he endured persecution and suffering, leaving a roadmap you can study and practice as you strive to become who God has called you to be. You are coming close to embarking on a special time of service that requires preparation. Jesus came and lived on earth for thirty-three years while all the time anticipating the time when He would have to suffer and die for the sins He did not commit and pay the price humans could not pay. He understood the gravity of what was about to happen, and as physically painful as it would be, He said, “For this purpose I have come to this hour” (ESV, 2001/2016, John 12:27). He knew He would experience physical pain and the pain of denial from His Father. However, when the time came, Luke recorded that Jesus was unflinchingly determined to face the challenge ahead of Him in Jerusalem (Luke 9:51). Earlier, a crowd was going to throw Jesus down a cliff, but as Jensen (2021) described Luke 4:30, Jesus in His gentle presence and the power of the Holy Spirit somehow went on His way to complete His earthly mission. He knew He would face opposition, was prepared, and did not allow anything to prevent Him from reaching His appointed time and accomplishing his divine objective. Then, consider Paul as you prepare to face the world's tribulations. Upon his conversion on the road to Damascus, God let Ananias know that Saul, the persecutor, would go from persecuting to being Paul, the object of maltreatment. Ananias had the unenviable task of being around when God showed Saul that he would be the one to take the gospel to the Gentiles and suffer because of that decision (Acts 9:15-16). Along the way, Paul connected with Timothy, and Timothy became an eyewitness to Paul’s persecutions and sufferings in Antioch, Iconium, and Lystra (2 Timothy 3:11). With an eye toward the close of his ministry, Idowu (2017) posited Paul’s warning to a next-generation leader, Timothy, that tough times were ahead and that things would go from bad to worse as “challenges to the faith develop[ed] from within” (p. 94). As you continue with this FMIFC process, you must remember to have and continually develop the spirit to urgently seek God and understand who He has called you to be and to become. Objectives: Lesson Three To Urge and Request Prayer The lyrics of a song I heard the other day mentioned that if some folks did not experience difficulties, they would never pray. How many of you have listened to someone recall that things got so bad that all they could do was pray? Well, the truth is, prayer must be option number one. As we look at these methodologies to overcome the complexities of leadership, the FMIFC process prioritizes prayer. Look at Jesus Jesus, God’s Son, prioritized prayer in His life so much that it is one of the practices He intentionally taught and modeled for them. Matthew recorded Him teaching His followers how to pray (Matthew 6:9). Mark included an instance of Jesus prioritizing prayer in preparation for preaching (Mark 1:35-38). In Luke, His disciples requested that He teach them how to pray (Luke 11:1). John 17 preserved for posterity what has become known as Jesus’s high priestly prayer when Jesus prays for His current followers and for those who would believe in Him because His current followers would faithfully spread the word. After Jesus died, resurrected, ascended, and sat at the right hand of His Father, the writer of Hebrews informed us that “He lives to make intercession” for us (ESV, 2001/2016, Hebrews 7:25). Jesus is interceding for us because He knows the strong opposition His people face. When they faced that opposition, He gave directions about what to do. As counter-cultural as it seemed and seems, Searle (2009) argued that praying for those persecuting you was evidence of loving one’s enemies, and though it was difficult, it is not impossible. While hanging on the cross, Jesus prayed to His Father to forgive those who were crucifying Him. Look at Paul When Paul provided instructions for Timothy, he specified the priority of actions. MacDonald (1990) called attention to the likelihood of Paul instructing in 1 Timothy 2 for public prayers and noted that what was suitable for public prayer was not out of line for his private prayer life. Praying must be at the top of Timothy's list and include various prayers for all people – including secular leaders (Evans & Holman, 2019). It seems reasonable to believe Paul was also making a personal request for prayer because he continued, later in the passage, stating that his “desire” was for men everywhere to pray (ESV, 2001/2016, 1 Timothy 2:8). Evans and Holman (2019) emphasized the necessity of prayer when they described it as people on earth asking heaven to intervene in history. While there will be tribulation, God’s people must believe, like the Hebrew boys of Daniel 3:17, that God can deliver His people when they call. Paul, writing to the believers in Ephesus, encouraged them by letting them know that God could do much more than they could think, dream, or even imagine (Ephesians 3:20).