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Words of Life

The Missing Key

By Dr. Tony Evans September 2, 2018 Words of Life

One of the greatest tragedies of the twentieth century was the sinking of the Titanic in the chilly North Atlantic Ocean on April 15, 1912. Over 1,500 people died in the frigid waters of the Atlantic during the maiden voyage of this elegant ship that was believed to be unsinkable. The cause of the catastrophe is commonly understood to be the ship’s hull being ripped open by a largely submerged iceberg, but the tragedy occurred primarily because of a lesser-known yet more strategic reason. 

David Blair was the second in command, scheduled to make the journey from Southampton, England, to America. However, on the day before the scheduled departure, Mr. Blair was reassigned. Mr. Blair had in his pocket the key to the crow’s nest locker, which contained the high-powered binoculars that were used by the crew member who watched from the elevated crow’s nest for any potential dangers. 

Because Mr. Blair inadvertently kept the key with him, the binoculars were unavailable at the moment they were needed most. Thus, the iceberg was not visible in the distance as it would have been had the binoculars been available. This ultimately led to the deadly crash we know today as the sinking of the Titanic

If it wasn’t for the missing key, the tragedy could have been averted. 

Similarly, a key is missing in Christianity today. It is a critical key – its absence has resulted in weak, defeated believers, family disintegrations, ineffective churches, and a decaying culture. Without the full use of this key, followers of Christ lack the tools needed to fully live as heaven’s representatives on earth. 

What is the missing key? 

You guessed it – it is discipleship. 

Kingdom disciples are in such short supply that a bevy of powerless Christians attend powerless churches, resulting in a powerless presence and impact in the world. Until this key called discipleship is recovered and utilized, we will continue to fail in our calling to adequately live as heaven’s representatives on earth. The power, authority, abundance, victory, and impact promised in God’s word to His own will be ours only when we understand and align ourselves with His definition of discipleship. Until then, we can anticipate that disappointments and losses will be the norm in spite of all the Christian activities we engage in. 

Discipleship is the missing key to a life of authority under God. But surrender to Christ’s lordship and obedience to His rule and love are the grooves that make up that key, which when used rightly will unlock the power to bring heaven to bear on earth. 

A kingdom disciple can be defined as a believer in Christ who takes part in the spiritual developmental process of progressively learning to live all of life in submission to Jesus Christ. The goal of a kingdom disciple is to have a transformed life and to replicate God’s kingdom values in the lives of others. Through his kingdom disciples, God exercises His rule from heaven to earth.

 

Watch Tony Evans all this week on LIFE TODAY. This is an excerpt from Kingdom Disciples: Heaven’s Representatives on Earth by Tony Evans. Copyright 2017 by Anthony T. Evans. Published by Moody Publishers. Used by permission.

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