Discipling The Rich Rebel
Today we crossed a major threshold in the parable of the lost son. Something amazing happens between Luke 15 verse 17 and Luke 15 verse 18. While it is easy to see in the parable - once you know what you're looking for - we decided to take the practical next step and develop a strategy to help make it happen in the real world.
You see, we, as believers are called to be disciples. In our Red Letter journey, Jesus' entire mission was to proclaim the kingdom of God. So we developed a very real approach by simply asking what if and then answering those questions with scripture. And we applied this to probably the most unapproachable person we might come into the contact with. We call him the rich rebel. a particular subset of the unconscious rebel. That person is rich, wildly successful, seems happy and from a spiritual perspective, unapproachable.
Discipling is a little bit like dating. My dad gave me this advice when I was going to my first junior high home coming dance. He said, "Son, don't be afraid just because she is the prettiest girl in your class! If you don't ask her to dance, she will sit there all alone because everyone is intimidated by her. That is exactly what happened. She was there with the rest of her girlfriends but nobody was asking her to dance! When I finally did get the nerve, I asked her. And we danced! And we talked and had a great time. To the disciple, the rich fool is like that. Why would that person want to know about God? He's rich and successful and ultimately unapproachable.
The younger brother in the parable has an advantage in one sense. He knows the Father. He has knowledge. He is the conscious rebel. What if we approach the unconscious rebel, and to make it a little bit more difficult, this person has money. If you want to picture him, metaphorically he is a golden tin man. A rich man without a heart of God. How do you disciple to a person like this? When Jesus, said it is easier for a camel to walk through the eye of a needle, this is the challenge we are facing with the rich rebel.
You may find the notes for this episode particularly useful. They lay out practical questions and scripture for conversation and bible study with the rich rebel.
Notes for discipling the rich rebel
Episode Link:
https://www.rabbitholesandmeditations.com/discipling-the-rich-rebel/
