John Perks - Becoming Disciples of Christ - Class 1 - Our Calling and Our Dilemma

Automatically transcribed. Accuracy is good but not perfect, and words are sometimes wrong. Trust the audio over the text.

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   This is day one of the 2026 Idlewild Bible School. Our second period teacher is Brother John Perks. His general subject is Becoming Disciples of Christ. Today's topic is Our Calling and Our Dilemma.

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   Good morning, everyone. So I want to thank you for inviting me to Idlewild. I've heard about it for many, many years, and it's nice to be here with Rachel. For those of you who don't know me, I am Silas and Owen's dad.

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   All right, so Becoming Disciples of Christ, kind of a provocative title, isn't it? Because I'm assuming most of us here are baptized, and you might be saying, Becoming Disciples of Christ? Yes, John, I am a disciple of Christ. And in this first talk, I want to challenge you on that perception. I want us to ask ourselves, Am I truly a disciple of Christ?

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   And if not, what do I have to do about that? Because that's not a good position to be in, to think we're a disciple of Christ and not truly be a disciple of Christ. So I'm going to create a bit of an unease, hopefully, in each of us. And that's one of the wonderful things about Bible schools, is that we get to stop.

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   And all the distractions in life, and all the busyness, and all the chaos, we can just stop for a week and actually reflect on our lives and our discipleship, and ask ourselves, Am I actually on the right track? Am I following Christ the way I should be? And I want to start with, as I was preparing these talks, I gave them as a Bible class a few months ago as a run -through.

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   And I'm a school teacher, I teach grade 5 and 6. And in Ontario, and I don't know if it's like this everywhere, I get hints that it is like this everywhere, schools are exploding with issues. Violence is an increasingly big problem in public schools. And I'm talking, I teach grade 5, 6, I'm in a school from kindergarten to grade 6, and the most violent kids are from kindergarten to grade 3.

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   Tearing classrooms apart, ripping everything down, throwing chairs. And I think public schools, children, are the canary in the coal mine. You know, you see what's going on there, and it is a reflection of our society and where it's going. And it's not good. There's a lot of issues. But anyway, the point of this is, our school boards are trying to help teachers deal with this.

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   You know, when a kid is violent in the classroom, what do teachers do? So they have this training that you go to, it's a day or two days, and it's called BMS training, Behavior Management System. And 90 % of it is stopping violence and violent interactions before they happen.

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   So it's knowing how to deal with those situations. 10 % is about holds, how to hold a child, how to restrain a child so they don't hurt themselves, or other children, or you, and that you can restrain a child without end up getting fired.

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    So you go to this training, and they give you a certificate when you're done, saying, okay, you are certified to use this training in your classroom. And it can help you if there was ever a legal issue. And then, two years later, they give you a half -day refresher. So this just came up a few months ago.

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    I went to this half -day refresher. And the instructor said, I want you to get with a partner. So you get with another teacher. And then they separate you, and the one teacher, they give you this scenario. He's a student who's going to be defiant. And I'm the teacher, and I'm trying to get him to go to the library.

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    So I walk in. Hey, Bob, let's head to the library. And he's like, nope. Okay? And, you know, I start to try to reason with him. And all the other teachers, there's 30 teachers doing the same thing. At a certain point, the instructor says, stop. No one in this room is using any of the training from your two -day course.

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    No one. And we were all very ashamed and sort of felt really bad about it. I mean, we were at the training. You'd think we would have clued in.

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    But he said to us afterwards, he said, you are supposed to be reading the manual on a weekly or monthly basis. You're supposed to be practicing these holds. You're supposed to be practicing these strategies that we've talked about, that you were trained in, that you were given a certificate for. And you've done nothing.

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    And so he taught, you know, encouraged us when we go back to our schools on a weekly basis, get together with other teachers, practice these holds. You need them when the situation arises.

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    And afterwards, I thought, this is a lot like discipleship. You know, Jesus has given us all these commandments. His expectation of us is to live like he did. And we do go to Bible schools. And we have Wednesday night Bible class. And we go to Sunday meeting. And hopefully we're absorbing this. Hopefully we're being taught these things.

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    But then we're thrown into situations when we're driving or at the grocery store. Or in conversations. And are we actually engaging those strategies to follow what Christ commanded? Do we have any strategies? And so I want to challenge you and ask you, you know, what commandment of Christ are you specifically working on right now in your life?

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    This is just from Matthew 5, 6, and 7. You know, a great collection of Jesus' teachings. If I were to go around and ask you, what specifically are you working on in your life right now to show that you are truly a disciple of Christ? Are there any that you're working on?

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    And then I would ask, what is your family doing to teach some of these things? So just pick one. You know, letting your yes be yes and your no be no. What are you doing in your family to teach your kids how to be honest, to say yes and no, and how to deal with that?

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    Or anger. What is your strategy to turn the other cheek? What is your ecclesia doing to teach you how to turn the other cheek? What verses have you memorized so that in those situations that verse pops into your head and you know what to do? Because you are truly a disciple in Christ.

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    And these are things that pop, you know, came into my mind. What am I actually doing? Like I'm doing lots of things. I'm a good Christadelphian. You know, I go to Bible schools. I'm on a committee. You know, I go to every Sunday meeting. I do my readings. But if I were to write a book about my discipleship up to this point, it might be titled like this.

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    Undisciplined discipleship. You know, I'm a disciple of Christ, but I can't articulate it very well. I'm not really all that intentional about my discipleship. And that's a real danger in the world we live in. Because we, every single one of us, is being disciplined in the world's ways. Every time you watch a movie, listen to a song, listen to sports radio, whatever it is you do that the world is producing, you are being disciplined to behave in those ways, to react in those ways.

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    And if we're not being intentional in our discipleship and following Christ, we're in a lot of trouble. Because the world is relentless, and it is strategic, and it is enticing, and it's natural to us.

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    So my fear is that we're not transforming our hearts the way we need to. And that's why I sat down and started developing these classes. Mainly for me, but then hopefully a benefit to others. Because you name any skill worth learning. Do we have any musicians out there? Musicians? Do we have any plumbers out there?

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    Electricians? Doctors, surgeons? Anything worth learning takes time and effort and intention. You don't just take somebody who's going to be an electrician and put them in a house and automatically they become an electrician and know how to wire a house. They have to follow somebody, learn, make mistakes, hopefully not deadly mistakes, and get better at it.

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    And slowly the things that they couldn't do, they now can do. Well, I think we need to be that way with Christ. There's things that are not natural to us. Turning the other cheek is not natural. It's going to take practice and time and effort and reading and memorization. And those are the things we're going to talk about this week to make sure our discipleship is intentional.

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    And so I just want to go through. Number one, we are called to be disciples, right? The New Testament was written by disciples and it was written for disciples, learners, apprentices to Jesus. And so in Matthew chapter 28, 19 and 20, Jesus is about to leave his disciples and he gives them this command.

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    The last thing he's going to tell them, he says, go therefore and make disciples, make learners, make apprentices of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the father and of the son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all things that I've commanded you. It doesn't say teach them my commandments.

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    It says teach them to observe my commandments. Okay. That doesn't take intention. How do we do these things? How do I become a peacemaker, not just a peace keeper? We need brothers and sisters to teach us those skills. Some of us are excellent at it. We need to learn from you. Teach us how to do that.

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    How do I not envy? Some of you might be very skilled in strategies and verses. We need you to teach us these things. And Jesus is saying that's your job. Find learners, baptize them, obviously, and then teach them how to observe these things. We're called to this. If you could turn to John chapter 14.

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    John chapter 14 and 15 are fantastic chapters about being disciples. And we have this beautiful verse. Jesus is talking to Thomas and he says, I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the father except through me. I am the way. We're to look to Jesus, watch how he dealt with things and follow that example.

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    He is the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the father except through me. We have to follow his example. And then look at what he goes on to say after this. In verse 12, he says, the works I do, he will do. If you love me, keep my commandments.

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    In verse 15. In verse 21, he who has my commandments and keeps them, it is he who loves me. If anyone loves me, he will keep my word. So it's all about obedience to his word, following him. We want to know the way to the father. Jesus is saying, I'm your representative. Follow me and you'll find the father.

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    Now question, why? What is the reason Jesus asks us to be diligent about following his commands? So I don't know if any of you have ever heard of Survivor or watch Survivor? I don't know if they're like on their 50th season or something. Eventually, all of us are going to be on Survivor because they're just going to run out of people.

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    Is that the purpose? Jesus is just giving us these random rules to follow to see if we're obedient. You know, don't even question them. Just do it. Is that the purpose? Or is it like a fraternity or sorority to show your allegiance to the fraternity and they give you all these random things to do to show that you're, you know, clearly this isn't why Jesus asks us to be his disciples.

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    I think he's asked us because they're good for us. Follow my commandments. These things are good for you. They're blessings. They're going to make your life better, not just in the kingdom, but now. They're going to improve your relationship with your spouse, with your family, with your ecclesia, with your community. This is a better way to live.

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    That only makes sense. That's what, you know, our heavenly father through his son is giving us. The father wouldn't just say, I've got these rules for you. We have these rules so our kids can benefit because they're blessings. We've been through it. We know. So here's some of the blessings and continuing on in John chapter 14 and verse 27, after saying, follow my commandments, live them, you show your love if you do them.

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    He says, peace I leave with you. My peace I give to you. Not as the world gives, do I give to you. Let not your heart be troubled. Let it not, let it, neither let it be afraid.

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    My peace I give to you. This way of life, these commandments, following them, is going to bring a peace into your life. And these are blessings. They're not something, oh, we have to do this. I have to turn the other cheek. You know, I have to be a peacemaker. Your life is going to be better.

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    And then in John 10 verse 10, he says, I have come that they may have life and that they may have it more abundantly. And I don't think he's just thinking quantity, like we'll be in the kingdom and live forever. I think Jesus is saying right now, you follow my commands and your life is going to be more meaningful, more purposeful.

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    It's going to be abundant. You're going to be what God meant you to be. And it's not going to be just abundant for you. It's going to be abundant for your family, for your ecclesia, for your community. People are going to want to be near you, live near you.

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    And one more, just this invitation to be his disciples. There's a vision that he's giving us in Matthew 11 verse 28 through 30. He says, come to me, all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. How many people in this world would just love to have rest in their lives, to be at peace in some way?

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    Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. This world needs rest for their souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light. And yes, Jesus is appealing to those in that time who were under the burden of the 613 rules of the Pharisees and the Judaism.

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    I'm just relentless, this burden. And he's saying, no, follow me. It's a lighter yoke, but I think it's applicable to our days as well.

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    I think it's in Ezra 9 and Deuteronomy 23 where God says, never seek the peace of the people around you. That is not rest. It is not an easier yoke. It is not a lighter life. It's hard. And yet, there's a peace, an abundant life. There's rest for our souls by following the commandments of Christ.

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    So this is the vision Jesus gives us. Kind of got this messed up. But what would that look like? Practically, on a day -to -day basis, what would that look like in your life? We're following Christ's commands. We're living them. Well, I think it would be a number of things. Now, this is not to say that there would be no trouble.

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    Yes, we're going to have heartache and sorrow and loss. The Bible is very clear about that. That's life. But just think about it. If we're following Christ's commands, I think we'd experience some of these things. I think we'd have good, healthy relationships with brothers and sisters and our children and our community. We'd be mutually benefited by people who follow Christ.

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    We'd have time to appreciate the beauty in this world. Small things and big things. We'd have a sense of awe in life. We'd have contentment. No more of this fear of missing out or trying to achieve and be like other people and have what they have or this need to be noticed. There'd be a contentment.

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    There'd be this ability to forgive. You know, I've heard that when we hold grudges and anger and aren't able to forgive, it's like holding a hot coal in your hand. You're burning yourself. And yet following Christ and His commands, there'd be an ability to forgive and let things go.

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    There'd be gratefulness throughout the day. Just the ability to appreciate all that we have. A feeling of closeness to God. I don't know if anyone here has ever watched Fiddler on the Roof.

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    And the main character has this relationship with God where he can just start speaking to God. It's just this familiarity with our Heavenly Father. And I just, the first time I watched that, I thought, that's a beautiful picture. Now, obviously, in reverence, this is our Creator, the one true, almighty, holy God. So there must be a reverence, but just this conversational.

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    At any time, break out in prayer and discussion. And then, of course, praise. Time for praise and worship. And it's meaningful. And you're thinking about the words and what you're doing. Prayer and reading. And, of course, self -control. Knowing how to control yourself and those temptations you have. And this was supposed to be the last one.

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    You know, going to bed at the end of the day and feeling like you did something meaningful. That you meant something to someone. That you made some sacrifices. That you were a blessing. That you added value to people's lives.

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    But would you say this is your life? Is there a disconnect from this? And perhaps it's because we're not following, as closely as we should be, the commandments of Christ. We're not taking them seriously.

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    So I just want to talk about, there's perhaps this evidence of a disconnect. And just from personal experience. I find in my life that there's times. Now, this, we're all at different stages. And some of you have little kids. And some of you are retired. And some of you are empty nesters. Just starting off your new life together.

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    But there, it doesn't seem to matter. A lot of people just don't seem to have time and space for the things of God. You know, you have to squish your readings in to different places. In prayer, oh, I forgot to pray again.

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    Or you're saying to the young people, you know, you go to meeting on Sunday and then Wednesday, it's Bible class. And you're like, oh, where's my Bible?

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    You know, isn't that embarrassing? That you went Monday and Tuesday without even pulling your Bible out? And Wednesday's like, oh, where is it? Where did I put it on Sunday? You know, we just get busy with life. And it looks like in the world, and I don't know about in our community or in our lives, but there's a lot of worry, a lot of anxiety.

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    And Jesus tells us, don't worry. So maybe there's a bit of disconnect. Maybe there's burnout. People feel burnt out. Like I'm just going to disengage from the ecclesia for a while. I just feel burnt out. I'm doing too much. Is that a sign of this easier yoke, this lighter life, rest for our souls?

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    Maybe there's a disconnect. Maybe ecclesial activities are jobs instead of joys. I find in my own life, I keep getting in the way of myself. You know, Paul said, you know, the things I want to do, I don't do. And the things I don't want to do, those are the things I end up doing.

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    You know, there's these struggles that we all have. And so maybe that's a sign that there's a disconnect. Here's another one. It's how we're viewed by outsiders. Do people view us and say, wow, those are disciples of Christ, or they're doing something differently? They're not anxious. They're peaceful. There's a love about them.

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    But I think there's a disconnect in the way Christians are viewed. So Barna, how many people have heard of Barna Studies? They do a lot of religious surveys. And so he asked Christians, what makes you different from everybody else? And so I'm going to ask you, you don't have to put up your hand if you don't want to, but just think about it for a second.

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    What makes you different from your neighbor or people at work? Just think about it. So he asked people, and I got some fantastic answers from the teens. Really good answers. They were like spot on. But here's what Christians answered in the survey. They said, well, we cuss less in public. Okay. Not bad.

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    We give more to charitable causes. That's a good one. We buy fewer lottery tickets. And we're less likely to recycle. Top four. Which is interesting. Like the message of the gospel. Right there. Right? You know, what should that say? You know, think about it. And this is what the teens really responded well with.

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    They said things like, more willing to forgive. More generous. Willing to sacrifice for others. More joyful and peaceful, they said. I think that's a better reflection of somebody who's following Christ. And that's what people should be seeing. Um, Barna went on in this survey. He said, Christians are just as likely as non -Christians to visit pornographic websites, to get drunk, to do drugs, and to be willing to lie to get out of difficult situations.

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    And his summary was, non -Christians don't think we're different because we're not different. We're just as anxious, just as undisciplined, just as angry, lustful, and jealous. So that's the way we're viewed. Now, hopefully, as Christadelphians, we set a higher bar. As disciples of Christ, we're really active in being disciples.

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    But he went on in the study, and he said 64 % of Americans say they're Christian. But only a certain percent meet the criteria of being disciples of Jesus. So, George Barna went through scripture, and he said, here's six criteria that would demonstrate you are a disciple of Christ. And I think they're pretty good.

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    View the Bible as God's true and reliable words, and use it as a moral guide. Consciously and consistently try to avoid sinning. Pursue consistent obedience to God. They repent, acknowledge and confess sins, and seek salvation through Jesus. They read, pray, study, engage in daily activities. And their life purpose is to love and serve God.

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    So in his surveys, however he did it, sent out, what percentage do you think he felt met a disciple, a Christian? Any guesses? Three. Three percent. Five. Ten. Ten. Do I hear twelve? No. Two to three percent. Two to three percent met those criteria. So it would be interesting, as Christadelphians, to do a similar scenario.

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    How many of us meet all those criteria? I think we do well. We have a good heritage of teaching these things, and we'll get into that in our fourth class this week. But it's interesting to ask, how many of these things are we doing and actively engaged in? Here's another sign of perhaps a disconnect.

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    So this was written in 1978 by Michael Hart. It was the first book that came out where he was ranking people. And he was criticized for being so arrogant to put people in a ranking. So this is the ranking of the most influential persons in history. Does anybody want to guess who he put as number one?

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    Number one was Muhammad. Number two was Sir Isaac Newton. And number three was Jesus. Now what I found was very interesting was his reasoning why he put Jesus third. Because he knew he was going to be attacked for this. People were coming after him. But listen to what he said. He said, Jesus' teachings, which were not a part of Judaism of Jesus' day, nor of most other religions, they are surely among the most remarkable and original ethical ideas ever presented.

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    If they were widely followed, I would have no hesitation in placing Jesus first in this book. But the truth is, they are not widely followed. In fact, they are not even generally accepted. Most Christians consider the injunction to love your enemy as at most an ideal, which might be realized in some perfect world, but one which is not a reasonable guide to conduct in the actual world we live in.

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    We do not normally practice it, do not expect others to practice it, and do not teach our children to practice it. Jesus' most distinctive teaching, therefore, remains an intriguing but basically untried suggestion. So his perspective is that Jesus has fantastic,

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    not compared to anything else, but people just don't follow it. And so there's this disconnect. We've been called as disciples. We've been given a vision of what it could be like. Jesus is saying this is in a more abundant life. It's an easier yoke. It's rest for your souls. And yet people just say, meh.

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    And lastly, I think Scripture gives us as well this idea that there's this disconnect, that Jesus is going to bring these teachings. He's going to call us to it, but there's going to be very few who actually are obedient to it. And it's somebody 10, 11, 15? Okay.

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    Yeah? Okay. All right. So warnings from Scripture. The Bible itself tells us there are going to be people who claim to be followers of Christ, but just aren't. Let's turn to Revelation 3.

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    And I'm not an expert in these letters. I've heard different theories about application of these letters. Maybe it's to different periods in history. But I think we can all agree that starting in verse 14, the letter to the Laodiceans

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    does sound eerily familiar to the time that we live in, at least in the Western democratic world. Let's just read. Let's start at verse 14. And to the angel of the church of the Laodiceans write, These things says the Amen, the faithful and true witness, the beginning of creation of God. I know your works, that you are neither cold nor hot.

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    I could wish you were cold or hot. So then, because you are lukewarm and neither cold nor hot, I will vomit you out of my mouth. Because you say, I am rich, have become wealthy and have need of nothing, and do not know that you are wretched, miserable, poor, blind, and naked. I counsel you to buy from me gold refined in the fire that you may be rich, and white garments that you may be clothed, that the shame of your nakedness may not be revealed, and anoint your eyes with eye salve that you may see.

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    As many as I love, I rebuke and chasten. Therefore, be zealous and repent. Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and dine with him and he with me. To him who overcomes, I will grant to sit with me on my throne as I also overcame and sat down with my father on his throne.

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    He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches. So this painting that I have up here was a painting by a British fellow named Holman Hunt. And it's based on Revelation 3 verse 20, which we just read. Behold, I stand at the door and knock. And when he painted it, it actually went on tour through Canada and the United States, New Zealand, Australia.

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    And everywhere it went, it created a religious revival of some sort. They say in Australia, two -thirds of Australians went to see this painting when it toured through Australia. I just want you to look at it closely. Why would this painting, you know, get into people's hearts where they would say, I've got to make a change in my life.

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    Because the words are there, we read them often, but there's something about this painting that really does make you stop and think. Does anyone notice anything in particular about the painting?

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    I apologize to the people in the back. Look at the door. Does anybody notice anything in front of the door? So, what's that? Yeah. So there's all these weeds that have grown quite high up this door.

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    What is that sort of telling us? You know, we infer that door has not been opened in quite a while. Those weeds have grown up. And there's no door handle on the outside. It can only be opened from the inside. And some people have said if they look closely the hinges are rusted.

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    I don't know about that. But it's quite an image. of Jesus standing at the door of this ecclesia. I would say even of our families and of your life. And he's knocking. I'm standing at the door and I'm knocking. And I'd love it if you'd just open the door and let me in.

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    Can you imagine getting that letter from Christ as an ecclesia? and the arranging board calls the ecclesia together and says we've got a letter from Christ and he says he'd like to come into our ecclesia.

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    But we haven't opened the door. I think it would just stab you in the heart. And so people looked at this and they said I've got to make a change. Have I truly opened the door to Christ? Am I actually following his commands? I guess first do I know his commands and am I following them and what am I doing to make sure I'm following his commands?

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    And to me you know it's an ecclesia seems like they're meeting but but the reprimand is you're neither cold nor hot. that to me sounds like undisciplined discipleship. You say you're following me but what are you actually doing? What are you doing in your families to practice these commandments and teach them and know them?

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    And I had always thought when I read this Jesus at the door knocking that this is at his return. Right? We know that there will be a knock at the door one day. But this is a letter and he's knocking now. He's knocking at each of our ecclesias door. He's knocking at our family door.

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    He's knocking at our door and he's saying I want in. He's not going to force his way in. You know we're the one with the doorknob we can invite him in. And this is beautiful. He says if anyone hears my voice and opens the door I will come into him and dine with him.

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    There will be fellowship with Christ. And it made me think of Zacchaeus. You know who obviously knew and was curious about Christ. And then Jesus dined with him. And it completely changed Zacchaeus' life. Transformed him. It's the power of dining with Christ. The fellowshipping with him. So maybe there's this disconnect.

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    And the last one we're going to go to before we stop is in Matthew chapter 7. At the end of all of these wonderful teachings a good collection of his commands, which we should be very familiar with.

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    And he says in verse 21, not everyone who says to me, Lord, Lord, shall enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of my father in heaven. So there's going to be people who are, Lord, Lord, we're followers of you. We're disciples of you. Many will say to me in that day, Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in your name, cast out demons in your name, and done many wonders in your name?

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    And then I will declare to them, I never knew you. Depart from me, you who practice lawlessness. You're practicing lawlessness. You're doing your own thing. You have your own compass telling you what's right and wrong. And Jesus is saying, I've got my commands. I've asked you to follow them. And this whole section from verse 21 to the end and about the houses and those who build on the rock.

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    It's all about those who do his commandments. And we have to make sure we're doing his commandments. You know, this passage always sent chills up my spine. I don't want to be those person, those people saying, Lord, Lord, he said, I don't even know you. You didn't come alongside me. You didn't take on my yoke.

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    And so hopefully I've created a little bit of discomfort or at least a little bit of intention to look at this seriously, our discipleship. An opportunity this week, as we go through this, to say, what can I do to truly bring following Christ into my family, into my ecclesia, into my daily practice?

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    So hopefully this week will be very practical, the things that we can do to be disciples of Christ. So just in summary, we have a calling to be learners, to be apprentices of Christ, to watch him as we read, to listen to him, to look at how he dealt with conflict and how he dealt with when he was insulted and when there was temptation and to say, that's who I want to be like.

100. 42:22

     I want to think like he thinks. I want to see things the way he saw them. And we have this beautiful vision he's called us to, blessings of following his commands.

101. 42:36

     But there's this, perhaps, this evidence of a disconnect. And so as we move forward, we're going to look at what's the solution so that we don't feel that disconnect and so that people don't see a disconnect from what we say and what we live. I'll stop there. Thank you.