The Be.Attitudes of Following Jesus Series - Part 1B: Practicing the Way - Apprentice to Jesus | Andy Yeoh

Hey, you welcome to the Generation's Church podcast. We pray you will be

blessed by this message. Today I made a word of God both encouraged and

challenge you to be all God purpose you to be. Now, let's dive

right in. We are going to continue on our discipleship series. Yes,

I must warn you most of the series will be teaching as opposed to preaching.

What's the difference teaching? I tell it preaching, I will yell it.

So today being an apprentice? Just so, what do you call this

process of being with Jesus, Becoming like Jesus, behaving like Jesus. What

do you call this process? It's called being an apprentice. Being an apprentice

to Jesus is practicing the way. Why do we use this word apprentice?

Ah? Now we're going to go into some Bible studia you okay? Why

why the word apprentice? What do just just say disciple? We understand the

pastor do we do we? Because you can put two Christians in the room

and they explain the discipleship different to you. But apprentice? Why apprentice?

Number one? The word disciple in Greek is the word methetists. Okay,

strongs three one oh one if you've got a song song courrence, you can

search it up. What does this Greek word methodists mean? It means a

learner, a pupil, a disciple. In fact, it's why the Bible

uses the word disciple, because it's literally what it means. The only problem

is we all understand the word differently. So this word methodist, which is

translated into the word disciples in the Bible, literally means a learner or a

student. So if you're a disciple of Jesus, you are a student of

Jesus. You're a learner of Jesus, you are a disciple of your methodist.

Problem is when we use words like student, learner, and learn,

we may import our own model of education. We think, oh, therefore

it's attending a class for example, Oh therefore is learning hate knowledge? I

need to know what are the ten steps? See that's the problem. Or

we may import, case this one our previous experiences with discipleship. Let's assume

it was a very bad one and we import that experience. We think discipleship,

No, I will never be disciple again. Ever in a church.

That's also not good. Right. So, actually, the word disciple is

a beautiful translation of the word, my theorists, it's just not a word

we use on a daily basis, and not always in a good way.

Right. We don't walk around say I'm a discipolo Jesus. For various reasons,

misunderstanding of the word, or bad experiences with the words, we avoid

it. But disciple is actually a very good translation. But in order to

help us understand this without some of these prejudices and biases, we use a

different word. Okay, now let's look at the Hebrew word for disciple lor

mad lomard. Disciple in Hebrew, it means to learn, teach, or

exercise, So there is an activeness in this. It's not just hate knowledge.

It's to exercise what you learn, and there's an expectation for you to

also teach others. Is it no wonder that Jesus said, go you therefore

and make disciples and teach them what you have observed a man? Makes sense?

Now? Okay, there is another word for disciple in Hebrew, which

is tell me, tell me. It means scholar. This one gives you

this this impression that you know and Bible school. How about the next word

next one? Limood sounds like a restaurant. Okay, this one means to

be accustomed to something. Disciples. All these are Hebrew words that means disciple.

Okay, next, slight please, So I searched up what it means.

I searched up some Jewish writers and try to understand from their point of

view what these words means. The Hebrew word for disciple is tal mead.

Tell me we saw this earlier, the scholar one talo med. This word

stresses the relationship between the rabbi, the teacher, the master, and the

disciple. The relationship, relationship. The relationship is important. Okay, tell

Mead. A disciple of Jesus in his day would actually give up his entire

life in in order to be with his teacher, like literally, leave home,

live town, live business, leave his burger stall and live with this

Rabbi that he wants to follow. Understand, Liza, Today, when we

receive disciple, we get to keep our house, our credit card, our

car. I'm not saying it's a bad thing. I'm just saying in those

days when these words were use, it means a whole different thing. It

means an entire complete change of lifestyle. The disciple didn't only seek to know

what the teacher knew, As is usually the case today, it was not

enough just to know what the Rabbi said. But the foremost goal of any

talmade was to become like the rabbi and do what the Rabbi did. Next

live will give you a bit more context next life. Please. The whole

point of being a disciple is that you live exactly like him. Listener,

I know some of us have followed imperfect figures in our life, and maybe

there have been manipulative, abusive, controlling, and all this bad stuff we

do not want in a leader. And so sometimes because of the experience,

we say no to discipleship. Can I say this, We don't get to

change what discipleship is. We don't get to change what the Bible says.

Amen. We learn what the Bible says, and then we find a way.

So I get it. I get it when we listen to this.

But but but but that guy, that leader, you know he, you

know he or she didn't I get it. But the point of discipleship,

has mentioned the Bible is to live exactly like the master, the Rabbi.

You treat people like him, you make the same choices like him. You

love and befriend people like him. You live fearless and bow like him,

your bath fruit like him. The tammidim, which is the plural for disciples,

tamidi means the total disciples, the whole group. The Tammidim would live

with their rabbi, so they could literally know how to live in every single

situation, even to the point of following the Rabbi into the bathroom in case

he says a special prayer before or after using the bathroom, Like you know,

they don't want to miss a second. And by the way, there

is such a thing. The Jewish rabbis do have a prayer before and after

bathroom. And if you're a disciple, you don't miss a moment. You

try to follow. What is the Rabbi doing, what's he saying? Their

memorize is teaching, so they could then go and teach others. This is

an expectationer. This Tamadim were not there to observe. They were there to

become so close to the Rabbi that they live exactly him in every situation.

Next life, please. Louis Weberg explains the ypership as what we might think

of as apprenticeship. The reason we use the word apprentice, because apprentice is

someone who follows after like I'm if I'm apprenticed to say Donald Trump. I

think that was a show, right, the apprentice. I'm there to learn

everything. Like what we just described exactly, I follow exactly apprentice. Apprentice

gives you the impression that you're not just there to have knowledge. I'm here

to learn every action and behavior and emulate exactly that, and then I teach

others to do the same. So it's one of the best words we have

in the English language to convey the meaning of mathist's apprentice because learning from a

master not it's not for just information, but you're learning how to become a

type of person. Listen. Yeah, we're not just teaching you behaviors like

oh, when the speaker come on stage, stand up and clap for him.

Those are behaviors. It's not just that you can do that. In

fact, I saw that in Indonesia, no one had to ask. I

saw when the one speaker comes up. You've got people in the front rower

who themselves lead churches of thirty thousand. There's one parcel there who's got eight

thousand churches under his care, and no one asked them to but they stood

up to honor the other person who's on the stage. Then they do it

willingly. But we're not I'm not here to teach you all these like behaviors.

It's not just that we'll get to that. It's more of learning to

become a type of person. I am an honoring person. I am a

honest person. A disable Jesus would be a hungry person. A disable Jesus

will be a loving person. We're learning to become a type of person,

Amen, not just behaviors, but a type of person. And when you

learn to become that type person, you can with your master, like your

master one day, do what your master does. And this is this is

this what apprentice captures what it is that Jesus is calling his followers too,

Amen, learning to become like him. You're following me so far. You

know. In the Gospels we see Jesus teaching his disciples. He sat down

and he taught them, and he preached to them, and he taught them.

But we also see Jesus taking his disciples with him to watch him do

what he does and to participate with him. You know the famous I do

you watch? I do you help? And then you do I help,

and then you do. I watch the four stages of discipleship and training in

the Gospels. We see that, right, Jesus just didn't teach. Jesus

brought them along, come with me, and then he sent them out.

It was on the job training. We see Jesus sending out the twelve and

then there's seventy two sometimes on their own, and the expectation is they do

what they have seen Jesus do, and ultimately Jesus commissions always follow us,

and then now all of us to go and make disciples of Jesus. So

this is definitely a participate, participatory style of learning. Not just hate knowledge,

not just classroom, not just information. Amen. It involves our bodies.

It's relational, it's practice based, it's holistic. Amen. Next line,

So why is it important to be an apprentice or if you understand the

word apprentice, now, I cannot interchange the word disciples when I say disciple.

You know what I mean? Now? Right, when I say disciple,

it's not just program, not just some kind of like decipit program.

It's it's the idea of learning to become exactly like a master. So why

it is important? Next life because everyone is already a disciple of something or

someone. Every single person sitting here today, You're already a disciple of something

or someone. It just may not be Jesus. That's the part we have

to be careful of. You may be a Christian, you may come to

church, but you're you may not be a disciple of Jesus. That's the

part we need to watch. But the part that is guaranteed is you are

already a disciple of something or someone. It could be a sports personality,

it could be a business person. It could be someone you follow on podcasts.

It could be a superhero from Marvel. It could be an ideology,

it can be whatever. But you are already a disciple of something or someone.

We live in a world today they talk about radical individualism. They talk

about being the self made man, like nobody gets to tell me who I

become or what I do. I am my own person. Friends, that

life is a myth. Nobody here is your own person. Really. Even

the shirt you're wearing right now, you saw it somewhere. Your hairstyle,

your shoe, the way you talk, we're all modeling after someone. Can

you imagine if you were not intentional about modeling after Jesus, your body after

someone who is not Jesus, Well, i'll call it yourself a disciple.

That's a dangerous game. Everybody wants to be a leader, not a follower.

Or maybe you don't agree that statement, let me say this way.

Everybody wants to be in control, not to be controlled. We don't like

being told what to do. I know, I understand, But if you're

a Christian who is a disciple, this is not really an option. We

talk about being free and at liberty. Yes, it's true we're free from

sin, we're no longer slaves, but have you read your Bible? We're

no longer slaved to sin, but you are slaves to righteousness. Still a

slave. I know where you're a slave, it's just who are you a

slave to? Either where you're a servant? Are you serving which God?

Like you know not? The reality is none of us come into this world

by ourselves. That's not how we are created. We are created to become

like someone else or something else. That's how we're designed. That is why,

left to your own you are already being discipled by something or someone,

an ideology, a personality, whatever. Yeah, we are not as self

made as we like to think we are. It's just not how our human

body and human makeup is wired by God. Whether you come at it through

the lens of Christian theology, or you think away from a very scientific point

of view, or think away from a very sociology point of view. But

however you look at it, none of us as human beings are made to

be by ourself sustainable on our own. It's just not how it works.

How it works follow me so far to acknowledge that we are all already apprenticing,

To acknowledge that we are already in right now, in this very moment

in our lives, being discipled by something or someone is to be honest about

our human condition. We are humans. We are going to be discipled by

something. We are going to apprentice someone. We are going to be shaped

by something or someone. Admitting that it is not weakness everything that is to

be human anything that is to say, I'm not unaffected by my environment.

My environment shapes me like it or not. Of course I'm affected. And

the choice I do have is where I aim my attention and my affection.

Follow me. You don't have a choice whether you have affection for something or

not. You don't have a choice, go to a mate. We're made

to be affected. The choice you do have is what am I aiming my

affection towards? What am I aiming my attention towards? That's the choice that

you have. Am I aiming my affection and attention in a direction that makes

me more purposeful, more meaningful, more fulfilled, and significant? If we

aim our affection and attention towards Jesus, towards following him, towards becoming more

like him, then yes, we will be purposeful, meaningful, fulfilled people.

Next like whoever or whatever we aim our lives at, well, then

shape us into its image. You get this right? It will determine who

we become. Next night, we become who we follow. So you can

be in a church you call yourself Christian. But if you read Donald Trump

a lot and you like him and you follow, you're gonna become Trump Trump

beat maybe a little Trump. I'm not even knocking him. I'm just saying,

we become who we follow. It is ineffinitable is going to happen.

Discipleship is asking the church, college is to be intentional. I'm not gonna

follow Trump or Biden. Or whoever I'm gonna follow Jesus. I wanna aim

my affection and attention towards Jesus. So to be a follow of Jesus is

simply to say, I want to very intentionally aim my attention and my affection

at Jesus, and by so doing, over time, I will be formed

increasingly into his image because I become who I follow. If you follow Adam

Grant, you will be like him with without hair. I love him.

I really stuff. That's not what I'm saying, and I saying don't really.

I'm saying, how intentional are you about whose image you're being forming too?

Because it's happening already anyway. I'm answering the question why is it important

to be Jesus, because you'll be disciple already anyway. Be intentional imen.

The question is are you a disciple? No, the question is who or

what are you a disciple of? Next life? Did you know that Jesus

did not invent on earth the concept of discipleship. It was already in motion

by the time Jesus showed up on Earth in the flesh. It was already

in the Jewish culture. It was something that the Jewish people already was practicing

and living by He did not invent the concept of discipleship on earth. He

did not. He just redirected it. He was woven into the first century

Hebrew world. It was part of the Hebrew Jewish educational system. Follow me

apprenticeship. Discipleship. Following a rabbi is like today's term masters or degree the

mass. You finish school, your next stemer to become whoever you want to

become, is to find a rabbi and follow the guy follow me. Usually

around twelve years old. That starts. That's why jesus disciples except Peter,

the rest of them were all younger than twenty. To be your context,

it's the exclusive thing. Before Jesus came, it was an exclusive not not

every Jewish kid get to follow a rabbi around. If you're a Jewish kid

and you have a rebbi to follow around, you are at us. You

are somebody. Amen. That's why it boggles the mind when Jesus came,

I suddenly say, whoever wants to follow me? Because those days it's like,

you want to follow me, let me background check. You check your

bank accounts and your family background. No, sorry, you can't make it.

Only the really really really really I doesn't want to get to follow rabbi

around. So when Jesus give me si, you know what, forget all

that anyone wants to follow me come. He's like Elon my singer. He

tweets and say, whoever wants a scholarship all the way to phg just send

me email and you will get it. Anyone. So when Jesus said,

whoever wants to follow me, follow me, Everyone's like huh. Really,

of course someone said who are you. Jesus was not the only rabbi with

apprentice and disciples walking around those days. He was one of the many,

because it's the only part of culture. But jesus invitation was radical. He

said, anyone follow me. They already understood what following ray means. Earlier.

It's he go bathroom, I go bathroom. He said, a prayer

before being I pray the same prayer too, pepp or whatever whatever the pray

is. I followed, Oh it is he praying before eating his right hand.

Oh okay, what does it do? Is thinking of it? If

they follow and here comes Jesus say, hey, I am from heaven,

I am God, I am the I am the Creator of everything, follow

me. And when someone says yes Jesus, they will leave their homes,

their business, sometimes their own family. They so Peter left their nets,

follow Jesus. Why because they're no longer. It's about that life. Remember

last week we talked about Jesus is inviting you to a new way of life.

Not religion, not change I see or change name, is live an

entirely different life. So when someone says yes, Jesus will follow you,

you're saying I'll change the way I think about money, I'll change the way

I think about marriage, or change the way I think about everything because I

want to follow you, Jesus. That's the type of sheep amen you already.

So when Jesus said follow me, he's saying this, I don't know

what used to be your center. Maybe your center was I want to be

a successful fisherman. Maybe your whole life is centered around I want to be

a good son or have a good career, all good things. But when

Jesus said follow me, he's saying, now, make me the center.

Make me the ani mating center. Any means will become life. Make me

the life giving center of your life. That means, uh, wherever you

go, I'm about to go into university. I come back to my center.

I say, Jesus, is the path of you're mean to take?

You're about to get married to somebody, or you've you've met someone on Tinder

or something coffee meters, baker or whatever it is you are, and you're

you're like, okay, it's Tinder, But Jesus, is she all right?

Would you swipe? Is it leftl right? Okay? Whatever? Ah,

Dad, Jesus the center. I'm about to invest here. Jesus,

you come back to the center. Everything revolves around Jesus. That's discipleship.

Amen. When you said follow me, he's saying, make me the center.

I don't know what used to be your center. I don't know what

you used to set to your life around. I'm not sure. But when

you say yes to me, this is it. So how do we do

this next like this next life? We do it by being intentional with the

process. Discipleship has to be intentional. It has to be intentional. You

have to choose every single day to be discipled by Jesus and not something someone

else. When you're driving on the road and someone cuts your lane, that

moment right there, you have to choose to be like Jesus and not the

last grap driver could use some hopkin bad word or something dude. Intentional with

this process, what process? Intentionally be with Jesus, Intentionally become like Jesus,

intentionally behave like Jesus. And like I said, this is a process.

Every day you are practiced saying. It's not about perfection, it's persistence

and consistency. Amen. Yes, you will get it wrong sometimes, but

get back on the path and the direction aim your affection and your attention towards

Jesus. This is something you have to self evaluate, self feedback, whatever,

self reflect You can take any snapshot of any week of your life and

you look at how much attention and time and focus you're given to what.

Anyone can look at that and can tell you without being a prophet, who

or what you're becoming like. And trust my heart, I'm not even saying

those things are bad things, good things, but not all good things is

what Jesus wants for you. Amen. So how how do we do this?

We need we we be intentional? Amen. We first first goal is

to be with Jesus. Second goal is to become like Jesus and goes to

behave by Jesus. Over the next few weeks we'll process these three things,

but today will as we end, we will summarized very quickly briefly touch on

them. Okay, next life, please, we're all following something or someone.

You know that you get this really right? Say, hey, we're

all following something or someone. We're all investing right now. You're investing time,

energy, focus, You're all investing. That's why they call it spend

time. Time is being spent. You just spent the last three seconds hearing

me say, we're spending time, and you have to be intentional. What's

the last few things seconds worthwhile? Cause if it is not worth allie,

don't spend it there. Right, But we're spending time, I say,

anytime spent on Jesus is worth everything. So you're following something and someone already

we are investing the hope of the healing of our soul, the hope of

us becoming the kind of people we all wanting to become, and living this

life you want to live, and discovering happiness and peace. So all these

things, we're investing our hope and time for all these wonderful things we want.

But The question is this, what way or path do you follow?

For example, I want happiness? Is happines is a bad thing? No,

it's not, it's good. In fact, the beattitude blessed is he

who due? The word blessed can be translated to happy. Happy is he

who's poor in spirit? Same word. So let's say I want happiness?

What way? What path am I following to get happiness? Do you know?

Some of us can get happiness through drugs. Some drugs makes us happy.

I think the drug. I'm happy. Some games make you happy.

Some very liberal relationships makes people happy. There are many paths too happy.

It's just that as disciples, we want the path too happy. Be Jesus,

amen. Really this is a question of next, like who do you

trust? Some of us don't want to admit it, but we don't trust

the Bible and Jesus as much as in your own branks. I trust that

investor a bit more. I seen him make money. I think he knows

how to handle my money more than the Bible, which is written a few

thousand years ago. But as you know, it's really this question of who

you're following is a question of who do you actually really trust? Because uh,

you are banking your entire future purpose fulfillment on this person or this method.

You know what I'm saying. It's a question of who do you actually

trust? Because whoever or whatever your rabbi is, it could be an ideology,

a celebrity, a historical figure, a religious figure. It could be

Jesus too, But whoever or whatever your rabbi is, would be the person

you trust to be your source of wisdom and insight into the life that you

desire to have. So again, I want happiness. Now who do I

trust to get wisdom inside? To get happiness? To ask my mother,

father, dog, goldfish, pastor friend, tinder coffee is bigger? Or

do I ask Jesus how to get happiness? When Jesus tells me how to

get happiness his way, when I follow? Because no need to lie one.

If you don't trust, you just fall back on. Hello, friend,

I asked Jesus last week. I don't think his way works. Can

you tell me how to get happiness? We just fall back? Question is

who do you trust? Discipleship is intentionally putting your trust in this age all

ancient book called the Bible, and Jesus calls himself the word words have meaning.

Jesus is the word follow me. Thank you for joining us. We

trust you have been blessed by the word of God. If you like what

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