July 31st, 2026
by Chris Smith
by Chris Smith
Six Calls Every Believer Cannot Ignore
There is a question that has the power to change everything about the way we live as followers of Christ. It is not a complicated question, but it is a demanding one: What kind of church are we supposed to be?
The church — not the building, not the organization, but the people who have been saved by grace and filled with purpose — has been entrusted with something the world is desperately searching for. And yet, so often, we find ourselves settling into routine, blending into the background, and quietly waiting for something to happen rather than stepping into the extraordinary life we have been called to live. What follows are six mandates, six non-negotiable calls, that define what it means to be the church in this moment.
One: Prepare the Bride
Scripture paints a striking picture in Revelation 19:7-8, describing a bride who has made herself ready for the wedding of the Lamb. This is not merely poetic language. It is a direct challenge to every believer. The church exists for one groom — Jesus Christ — and yet so much of what we do is shaped by a desperate desire to be accepted by everyone else.
There is an ‘idolatry of acceptance’ that can quietly take root in the life of a church. We adjust our message, soften our convictions, and reshape our identity in hopes that the world will approve. But a bride who prepares herself for everyone is not a bride at all. Ephesians 5:25-27 describes Christ's desire to present the church as radiant, without stain or wrinkle, holy and blameless. That kind of purity does not happen by accident. It happens through daily, intentional pursuit of Him — seeking Him first, washing in His Word, and living with eternity in view.
The honest question to sit with is this: What do I need to do to be ready for His return?
Two: Be Proactive in the Great Commission
In Matthew 28:18-20, Jesus gives a clear and active command — go and make disciples of all nations. Not a suggestion. Not an aspiration. A mandate. And yet one of the great reversals in modern church life is that we have become busy trying to build the church while waiting for God to make disciples. He said He would build His church and told us to go make disciples.
Discipleship is not a program or a class reserved for new believers. It is the ongoing, lifelong discipline of becoming more like Christ and helping others do the same. It involves being poured into and pouring into others. It requires openness to correction, accountability, and the kind of honest relationship where sharpening can actually take place. You are never too mature to be discipled, and you are never too new to begin discipling someone else.
Ask yourself honestly: Am I being discipled? And who am I discipling?
Three: Plant New Testament Churches
The mission of the church is not to build the largest gathering in one location. It is to extend the kingdom into every nation, every tribe, every tongue. Ephesians 3:10 describes God's intent that through the church, His manifold wisdom would be made known. That happens not when one congregation grows enormous, but when churches multiply and take root in communities everywhere.
Planting churches is not something done from a position of perfect readiness. It is done in faith, for the sake of strength — so that the gospel has a sustained, living presence in more places. Competition between churches is a distraction from the real mission. There is one bride, one Groom, and one Gospel. The question is not which church wins, but how many people come to know Christ.
How will you participate in the work of planting churches?
Four: Produce Leaders, Not Just Followers
Jesus did not call His disciples to simply trail behind Him forever. He discipled them, then He sent them out, two by two, without Him physically present. They had to lead. They had to trust. They had to step into what they had been taught.
Ephesians 4:11-16 makes clear that the role of pastors and teachers is to equip God's people for works of service — so that the entire body grows to maturity. Every believer is called to lead in some capacity. You lead your family. You lead your neighbors. You lead your workplace by the way you live. You lead people toward Christ by the way you handle hardship, love others, and stand firm when everything around you is falling apart.
The church's mandate is not to create dependence. It is to raise up mature, Spirit-reliant, mission-focused leaders who carry the Kingdom into every corner of their lives.
What will you do to become the leader God has called you to be?
Five: Become a Priesthood of All Believers
First Peter 2:9 does not leave room for spectators. Every believer is described as part of a royal priesthood, a holy nation, called to declare the praises of the One who brought them out of darkness. A priest points people to God. And that is the calling of every single person who has been saved by grace.
There are no exemptions based on personality, past hurt, or perceived inadequacy. The world around you — your neighbors, your coworkers, your family — needs someone who will point them toward Christ. That someone is you.
What is your role according to God's plan, and are you walking in it?
Six: Pursue the Lost
Jesus said in Luke 19:10 that He came to seek and save the lost. Not to wait for them to find their way in. To seek them. Actively. Intentionally. And in Luke 5, when the religious leaders questioned why He was eating with sinners, His answer was simple: the sick are the ones who need a doctor.
The lost are not typically going to wander through the doors of a church on their own. They need someone to go to them. To invite them. To love them without an agenda other than wanting them to encounter the living God.
What will you do this week to share the good news with someone who needs it?
A Life Worth Living
This faith was never meant to be boring. It was never meant to be a Sunday tacked onto a life lived for ourselves. It is meant to be walked, lived, and carried into a world that is desperate for exactly what we have been given.
You and I hold the cure for what the world is suffering from. The question is simply whether we are hiding it or sharing it. Let conviction, not guilt, be the thing that moves us forward — because God has not entrusted us with the Gospel so we can keep it to ourselves. He has entrusted us with it so the world can know Him.
What will you do with Jesus?
The church — not the building, not the organization, but the people who have been saved by grace and filled with purpose — has been entrusted with something the world is desperately searching for. And yet, so often, we find ourselves settling into routine, blending into the background, and quietly waiting for something to happen rather than stepping into the extraordinary life we have been called to live. What follows are six mandates, six non-negotiable calls, that define what it means to be the church in this moment.
One: Prepare the Bride
Scripture paints a striking picture in Revelation 19:7-8, describing a bride who has made herself ready for the wedding of the Lamb. This is not merely poetic language. It is a direct challenge to every believer. The church exists for one groom — Jesus Christ — and yet so much of what we do is shaped by a desperate desire to be accepted by everyone else.
There is an ‘idolatry of acceptance’ that can quietly take root in the life of a church. We adjust our message, soften our convictions, and reshape our identity in hopes that the world will approve. But a bride who prepares herself for everyone is not a bride at all. Ephesians 5:25-27 describes Christ's desire to present the church as radiant, without stain or wrinkle, holy and blameless. That kind of purity does not happen by accident. It happens through daily, intentional pursuit of Him — seeking Him first, washing in His Word, and living with eternity in view.
The honest question to sit with is this: What do I need to do to be ready for His return?
Two: Be Proactive in the Great Commission
In Matthew 28:18-20, Jesus gives a clear and active command — go and make disciples of all nations. Not a suggestion. Not an aspiration. A mandate. And yet one of the great reversals in modern church life is that we have become busy trying to build the church while waiting for God to make disciples. He said He would build His church and told us to go make disciples.
Discipleship is not a program or a class reserved for new believers. It is the ongoing, lifelong discipline of becoming more like Christ and helping others do the same. It involves being poured into and pouring into others. It requires openness to correction, accountability, and the kind of honest relationship where sharpening can actually take place. You are never too mature to be discipled, and you are never too new to begin discipling someone else.
Ask yourself honestly: Am I being discipled? And who am I discipling?
Three: Plant New Testament Churches
The mission of the church is not to build the largest gathering in one location. It is to extend the kingdom into every nation, every tribe, every tongue. Ephesians 3:10 describes God's intent that through the church, His manifold wisdom would be made known. That happens not when one congregation grows enormous, but when churches multiply and take root in communities everywhere.
Planting churches is not something done from a position of perfect readiness. It is done in faith, for the sake of strength — so that the gospel has a sustained, living presence in more places. Competition between churches is a distraction from the real mission. There is one bride, one Groom, and one Gospel. The question is not which church wins, but how many people come to know Christ.
How will you participate in the work of planting churches?
Four: Produce Leaders, Not Just Followers
Jesus did not call His disciples to simply trail behind Him forever. He discipled them, then He sent them out, two by two, without Him physically present. They had to lead. They had to trust. They had to step into what they had been taught.
Ephesians 4:11-16 makes clear that the role of pastors and teachers is to equip God's people for works of service — so that the entire body grows to maturity. Every believer is called to lead in some capacity. You lead your family. You lead your neighbors. You lead your workplace by the way you live. You lead people toward Christ by the way you handle hardship, love others, and stand firm when everything around you is falling apart.
The church's mandate is not to create dependence. It is to raise up mature, Spirit-reliant, mission-focused leaders who carry the Kingdom into every corner of their lives.
What will you do to become the leader God has called you to be?
Five: Become a Priesthood of All Believers
First Peter 2:9 does not leave room for spectators. Every believer is described as part of a royal priesthood, a holy nation, called to declare the praises of the One who brought them out of darkness. A priest points people to God. And that is the calling of every single person who has been saved by grace.
There are no exemptions based on personality, past hurt, or perceived inadequacy. The world around you — your neighbors, your coworkers, your family — needs someone who will point them toward Christ. That someone is you.
What is your role according to God's plan, and are you walking in it?
Six: Pursue the Lost
Jesus said in Luke 19:10 that He came to seek and save the lost. Not to wait for them to find their way in. To seek them. Actively. Intentionally. And in Luke 5, when the religious leaders questioned why He was eating with sinners, His answer was simple: the sick are the ones who need a doctor.
The lost are not typically going to wander through the doors of a church on their own. They need someone to go to them. To invite them. To love them without an agenda other than wanting them to encounter the living God.
What will you do this week to share the good news with someone who needs it?
A Life Worth Living
This faith was never meant to be boring. It was never meant to be a Sunday tacked onto a life lived for ourselves. It is meant to be walked, lived, and carried into a world that is desperate for exactly what we have been given.
You and I hold the cure for what the world is suffering from. The question is simply whether we are hiding it or sharing it. Let conviction, not guilt, be the thing that moves us forward — because God has not entrusted us with the Gospel so we can keep it to ourselves. He has entrusted us with it so the world can know Him.
What will you do with Jesus?
Posted in Calling, Devotions, Discipleship, Encouragement, Perspectives
Posted in Change the world, Gospel, the lost, Salvation, the Church, purpose of the church
Posted in Change the world, Gospel, the lost, Salvation, the Church, purpose of the church
Recent
Categories
Archive
2026
January
March
April
May
2025
January
March
May
July
October
2024
February
March
April
No Comments