Becoming Fully Trained
I came upon a remarkable scripture during my devotional one morning in October. It was one of those, “I’ve read this passage a millions times, but never saw that” kind of moment.
The verse comes out of the Gospel of Luke. It is the very familiar passage where Jesus is talking about taking the log out of your own eye before trying to take the speak out of a brother’s eye. The verse is Luke 6:40,
A disciple is not above his teacher, but everyone when he is fully trained will be like his teacher.
I had just been praying to be more like Jesus. Specifically, my desire was to be more like Jesus in the area of prayer. Earlier, in Luke 6:12, we see Jesus going out to the mountain to pray. Verse 12 says that he spent all night in prayer. Whatever else may have been going on up there on that mountain, certainly the Lord was sharing his heart with the Father and listening as the Father shared his heart with him. He came down the mountain and then selected the twelve men who would become his closest followers.
Jesus would come to pour his life into these men so that when they were fully trained, they would be like him. Jesus made them that promise. And he kept it. His disciples became like him in their boldness, wisdom, power, authority, and love. They came to change the world because Jesus fully trained them and thereby changed them. They became like him.
I want Jesus to train me fully, just like he did the twelve. I want his clarity of purpose, his passion for the lost, his kingdom authority, his healing power, his intimacy with the Father, and his ability to love.
Authentic kingdom leadership comes from the character of Christ manifest through us. It would seem like an impossible standard to achieve except for this wonderful promise: when we are fully trained we will be like Jesus. Lord, train me up in the way I should go!
Kyle Phillips
