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Four Hindrances to Discipleship

“Stunningly few churches have a church of disciples,” concluded pollster George Barna, even as he recognized that most churches have programs for this purpose. “Never before in the history of the United States has the gospel of Jesus Christ made such inroads,” George Gallup observed, “while at the same time making so little difference in how people actually live.”

The first step toward tackling this pervasive and deeply rooted problem is to understand the hindrances to discipleship. First, we need to overcome two frequent and significant areas of hindrances in our own ministries. Then we need to help believers deal with two imposing barriers in their lives — cultural subversions and personal issues.

Ministry weaknesses divide into two categories: flawed ministry goals and defective approaches to disciple making. Examples of the first include: striving for growing attendance instead of pursuing life transformation, and being satisfied with compliant and zealous members rather than seeking their ongoing spiritual maturation. One of the most common approaches that falls short is reliance on attendance at church services and activities. At best, they should only be part of an intentional strategy for making disciples.

Cultural seductions include the blatant lure of wealth, possessions, success, and entertainment. They also involve misbeliefs that infiltrate our minds through constant exposure and shape our values. Examples include: The present is what is important; the physical world is more real than the spiritual, and God exists to take care of our needs. These seductions produce spiritual anemia instead of growing discipleship.

Many personal issues also thwart discipleship growth. For example, in a fallen world painful experiences inflict deep wounds in our spirit. These often cause us to turn to substances and behaviors, such as workaholism, to numb the pain. They easily become compulsive or addictive, and rob us of the time, energy, freedom, and will to follow God’s direction for our lives. Unless overcome, they block meaningful discipleship.

If we want to fulfill Jesus’ Great Commission to make disciples (Matthew 28:19), we must overcome ministry-related hindrances and show believers how to overcome hindrances in their lives through the enabling of God’s Spirit.

Stephen Lim, Springfield, Missouri