Dear Steve – Think On These Things

I’m certain. I’m absolutely 100% sure. I know Steve Johnson has made that commitment! Steve thinks on these things.

August 10th 2008 was a start. Here a fresh Portland Story is in the making. Steve’s undertaking will spur on a new form of dedication, to be totally dedicated, not to a man, not to a movement, not to an organization, not to a sect, but Jesus Christ and His church!

Steve in my mind has become elastic. Here, elasticity will prove its worth where people become the opposition rather than being forced on the same team. Indeed, few movements have survived those defining moments when they should have been more elastic, and that because they were not, did not live to see the next day. Now is the time for Steve Johnson to go against probability in seeking unexpected outcomes.

Bottom-line. Steve I ask you. What would our lives, our spiritual underpinnings be like if Kip McKean like Bob Mumford (co-founder of the Shepherding movement) would come forward and unceremoniously apologize: Discipleship was wrong. I repent. I ask forgiveness?

Yes, other proven ICOC church builders said it, but succumbed to the groups chosen methods. Mike Taliaferro stated during the 2004 Faithful Conversations: We are a fellowship right now of independent, Bible-believing churches. Yes, we are going to have a man lead the movement, and that is going to be Jesus Christ. Kip McKean said something similar in Portland 2006: I will be with disciples agreeing to build a movement centred on one personality. And His name is Jesus.

But it was not to be.

ICOC Discipleship methodologies did waver in 2003. Kip reacted with disgust in the year 2004. Today many churches in the ICOC fellowship have either abandoned discipling relationships or compromised them by teaching there is no such thing as teacher-student (one-over-one discipling) relationships in the Scriptures. This is a devastating false teaching. (2 Timothy 4:1-4)

Mike Taliaferro said the ICOC had a Discipleship Crisis late in 2005. His solution. To embrace all over again the Biblical pattern of discipleship relationships… Here in the San Antonio church we have made certain that every disciple has a discipleship partner with whom they can meet on a regular basis. It was late last year when we decided to once again become involve in close personal relationships in the congregation. Mike thought people have over-corrected the principle of closer friendship with a few as seen with Jesus and the apostles’ friendships. Antonio ready itself for close, dedicated, specific relationships in order to monitor people spiritual wellbeing to confess their sins, receive encouragement, or give an admonishment. Thus avoiding turning into a sort of impersonal spiritual experience now based on one another passages.

Steve Johnson you openly supported this mousetrap in 2005, while many in the fellowship waited for an outcome of a steering committee pending on February 1st 2006. I want to do exactly what I did in Boston in 1979 or in New York in 1983 – in regards to teaching people how to teach people how to teach people to become disciples. I’ve not come up, and I haven’t seen anyone else that has come up with a better mousetrap. And I assure you that when I see one, I’ll adopt it just like I did when I moved to Boston to be trained by Kip back when the dinosaurs roamed the earth. The following year in 2006 you become an Associate Lead Evangelist of Kip’s congregation.

Finally, a proposal document arrived in March 11th 2006 stating in page two the way forward learning from past mistakes without over-reacting to them and, at the same time, maintaining faithfulness to biblical principles. Here “biblical principles” become a mix bag of theological conclusions paralleling from Jude 3 along with teachings developed in the campus ministry days of the early 1970s. Consider the following quote in page four. In order to best communicate our beliefs, we are striving both to articulate the theological framework of “the faith that was once for all entrusted to the saints” (Jude 3) and to reaffirm those truths and emphases that have particularly shaped our branch of God’s movement, from the campus ministry days until now.

There is this bench near Mount St Helens. Steve, you have your mountain in front of you and your bench. Yes, much of the destruction seems to be well covered by nature, but under it all lays the memories, the history, the facts, the path of destruction. Look at her, her face is scarred. Perhaps the photograph of St Helen on your church website makes a pretty picture, but it is up to you now to come up with a better mousetrap.

Bottom-line. Steve I ask you. What would our lives, our spiritual underpinnings be like if you like Bob Mumford (co-founder of the Shepherding movement) would come forward and unceremoniously apologize: Discipleship was wrong. I repent. I ask forgiveness?

Why don’t you travel back there, and take with you these few pages of history. Written by man. Relate if you can to them and then try to adopt it.

If you please:
Errors of Hierarchical Discipleship
1988 Letter to Boston Elders

In Him is Brotherly Kindness

Sarel de Wet