After attending the Discipleship conference at Victory Baptist, I canโt shake the notion that we need to rethink what we define as fruit in our culture today. Arena-sized churches packed to capacity could indicate fruit. But how many of the attendees are truly saved, know the Gospel and have been poured into so that their faith is built on a solid foundation and Christ is being formed in them? When did we exchange disciple-focused churches, for the retention specific mentality that requires us to put on performances to keep people coming back? What if we focused instead on cultivating disciples and guiding new believers into maturity so they can witness and make more disciples dependent on Jesus and not a personality on stage singing songs or amping up their audience for that emotional stir sure get โem jacked up for...something. But is it Jesus? What if all this time we have had it wrong? What if we are seeing our country crumble, divorce rates skyrocket and a complete lack of being able to rightly divide the Word of God because we are failing to help others become doers of the Word by not discipling and not teaching pouring into others the way Jesus did. Two great take aways from the conference: 1. Jesus turned and saw the multitudes, He taught them follow me and be prepared to be beaten, tortured and die as you take up your cross. Then he watched the multitude vanish and He was left with those who truly wanted to follow Him. 2. Jesus taught His disciples by showing them, letting them do it with Him as He was present, so that they could do it on their own when He was gone. Paul taught Timothy by showing him, letting him do it while he was there, to prepare him to do it long after Paul had traveled on. What fruit, then are we trying claim we are producing and does it line up with what Jesus did? #fruitofthevine #discipleship (thoughts spurned by Malcolm Carter). https://www.instagram.com/p/CEJX6faFx8a/?igshid=1b8pgldqn9qpf