Center For Biblical Discipleship and Mission

Have you ever lost something?

Maybe it was money, a toy, the television remote, your favorite piece of clothing, or a water bottle. We have all lost things in life, and when we do, we usually try to find them. The more important the item is, the more time and energy we spend looking for it. The less important it is, the quicker we are to move on.

But when something matters, we want it found.

I remember losing my car keys one morning. Now, I have seven kids in my house: three teenagers and four toddlers, or “the littles,” as we call them. So when something goes missing, only God knows what could have happened to it.

I tore apart the living room. I checked the bedroom multiple times. I ran from room to room, moving anything I could, looking in places I would never leave my keys, hoping somehow they would be there. Each passing moment became more frantic as I got closer to being late for work and making my children late for school.

Then my moment of desperation turned to relief when I found the keys exactly where I had left them: in the cup holder of the couch.

It is easy to spend time and energy looking for the things we know we have lost and need. But what about the things we do not even realize we have lost?

That happens all the time, doesn’t it? People lose money and never even realize it. They lose time and never stop to notice. They lose focus, direction, and purpose, and only discover it later.

But the church has lost something worth far more than money, time, or misplaced keys.

In many ways, we have lost clarity about our identity, purpose, and mission as the people of God. As followers of Christ, we have often traded purpose for convenience, new creation for new trends, transformation for improvement, conviction for personal truth, and witness for comfort. In the process, we have lost something we did not even realize we were missing.

As a result, the world is losing the visible gospel presence of the people of God.

The Center for Biblical Discipleship and Mission was formed to help Christians rediscover what the church cannot afford to lose.

Christianity is not merely something people do. It is not simply an activity we participate in, a worship service we attend on Sunday, the songs we sing, the groups we join, or the stickers we place on our cars. To be a Christian is to be given a new identity.

Scripture says, “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come” (2 Corinthians 5:17).

If we truly belong to Christ, then being a Christian is not first about the activities we participate in. It is about who we are. Our identity is found in and given through the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ. At the moment of salvation, when we repent of sin and trust in Christ as Lord and Savior, the old self that found identity in the world and in sinful desires passes away. In Christ, we are made new.

Our new identity is in Him, and because of this given identity, God sees us as righteous in Christ.

If the church is going to fulfill the mission Jesus has given His people, we must rediscover our identity in Him.

As we rediscover our identity, it becomes clear that we have also lost gospel clarity, missional urgency, and biblical formation.

I pastor a local church and serve as a campus pastor at a local school. Because of these two roles, I get to speak with people from many different walks of life. Often, when I ask someone, “What is the gospel?” the response is alarming.

Whether I am speaking with students, people interviewing to work at a Christian school, adults in the church, or even people who have taught Sunday school, the answer is often the same: it is usually not the gospel.

Sometimes the answer is that Jesus wants us to be happy. Sometimes it is that Jesus helps us live a better life. Sometimes there is simply a blank stare.

Rarely do I hear a clear explanation that there is a good and holy God, a sinful people in need of a Savior, and Jesus Christ, who is truly God and truly man, who lived the perfect life we could not live, took our sin and punishment upon Himself on the cross, died, and rose again, conquering sin and death. Rarely do I hear that salvation is offered to all who repent of sin, believe in Christ, and confess Him as Lord. Rarely do I hear that Jesus will come again to judge all things, restore creation, and establish the new heavens and new earth.

This is alarming for many reasons, and we will discuss those reasons in future posts. But one of the main reasons The Center for Biblical Discipleship and Mission exists is to provide resources, training, and partnership that help churches ensure their people not only claim Christ but can clearly explain the gospel to anyone in need of a Savior.

The gospel is not merely the starting point of Christianity. It is the foundation for everything we believe and do.

It should be the filter through which every decision, desire, priority, and practice passes. Because this is true, we must also understand that the mission Jesus has given His people is not optional.

After rising from the dead, Jesus said to His followers:

“All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of age” (Matthew 28:18–20).

The mission of the church is to make disciples.

This mission is not reserved for pastors, missionaries, or especially committed Christians. It belongs to every follower of Jesus. Every moment of every day is an opportunity to live on mission. We are called to carry the gospel as we go: in our homes, workplaces, neighborhoods, schools, churches, and communities.

Could you imagine what the world would look like if Christians lived as though every moment belonged to the mission of God and not merely to themselves?

The truth is, the church in America is not struggling because the gospel has lost its power. The church is struggling because, in many places, it has lost its witness. As the people of God, we must rediscover the mission entrusted to us by Jesus.

The Center for Biblical Discipleship and Mission was created to help followers of Christ see that being on mission is not a burden. It is a blessing. Our aim is not only to provide resources, but to come alongside Christians and churches to help them discover how God wants to use them on mission right where they are.

As they go.

But we cannot understand our identity in Christ or our call to join God’s mission if we are not being formed into the image and likeness of Christ.

The mission Jesus gave His people is not merely to get people to make decisions, attend church, or be baptized. The mission is to make disciples who follow Jesus and obey all that He commanded. That means discipleship is not simply a program. It is the lifelong process of being formed into the image of Christ.

Jesus commands us to teach others to obey all that He commanded. Of course, this assumes that we ourselves are also learning to obey Him.

Yet the truth is, many Christians are not being deeply formed by the Word of God. Bible reading is often inconsistent. Prayer happens in times of desperation and need, but not as a daily rhythm of communion with God. Silence feels impossible. Fasting has been forgotten. Serving others is often replaced by the desire to be served.

We have become a people who admire the example of Jesus but often neglect the command to follow Him.

The Center for Biblical Discipleship and Mission desires to see Christians move from cultural Christianity to true biblical formation. We long to see people who are not merely Christian because they participate in Christian activities, but who are being daily formed into the image and likeness of Christ.

Through study guides, training, seminars, partnerships, and resources, our goal is to help followers of Jesus no longer be “conformed to this world,” but be “transformed by the renewal” of their minds (Romans 12:2).

As Christians rediscover their identity in Christ, gain gospel clarity, understand the urgency of mission, and grow in Christ we will no longer be a people who merely attend church on Sundays. We will become the embodied witness to a dying world that Christ has called us to be.

And hope is not lost.

Jesus Himself said, “I will build my church, and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it” (Matthew 16:18).

If hell will not prevail against the church, then there is hope.

But we cannot do this alone. Throughout history, Christians have relied on other Christians to help them understand their identity in Christ, grow in the gospel, live with urgency on mission, and be formed into the image and likeness of Christ. Again and again, we see that God carries out His purposes in the world through His people. The Center for Biblical Discipleship and Mission simply wants to be part of that long tradition.

We want to come alongside Christians, churches, families, and leaders. We want to walk with you, grow with you, and do everything we can to help you not only participate in Christian activities, but grow into the image and likeness of Christ.

Because the church has lost something.

And by God’s grace, it can be rediscovered.