Equilibrium is a state of balance between two opposing forces. But when there is an imbalance between them, we say there is a disequilibrium. Based on this understanding, we will be considering Disequilibrium in Discipleship. Discipleship as we know is a process of following someone, somebody or something. Now because you consider someone to be higher or greater than you, you abandoned your own pursuit, you abandoned it for that pursuit, pursuit towards becoming like the person. You simply abdicate your own ambition to seek another ambition somewhere else. For example, when you abdicate your throne as King, what it means is that you are no longer the King. It means someone else will be reigning in your stead. You cannot abdicate your throne and still sit on it at the same time.
When you are enthroned in your ambition, it means all you seek is your own. All you want to do is to please yourself and seek your own glory. Now when you abdicate that kind of ambition, what it means is that you are abandoning it. You are no more present on that ambition, but you are seeking something else outside it. A man who is in discipleship is a man who has abdicated his own ambition as it were and is now in pursuit of something else, or someone else, trying no longer to become like himself, but to become like someone else or something else.
When you pick iron ore for instance in its raw form, it exists somewhere under the ground; and you pick different or all manners of ores or metals, maybe tin ore or iron ore and you happen to pick them in different places, and you gather them together, now they individually exist on their own initially and probably have their different ambitions. But when you bring them; you take them out of their original state, you bring them into a new state, they forgo the old and they now come together to form an existence, and they seek to become something else. And so later they can now become a material for vehicle for example. When you see a vehicle, you see a material they can transport you from one place to the other. But the materials for the making of that vehicle were existing independently somewhere else, and fulfilling their own personal purpose or relevance. But the moment they were taking out of that places, they let go of that existence and unite with another materials and form a whole, and they now become a new entity that now serves a new purpose.
Take a look at a piece of furniture for instance. It would have a foam, it would have either of clothing or a leather material as a covering, there is going to be wood in its making and sometimes an iron frame in the base to make it stand and support it. If you look at this different components, hitherto they existed somewhere else, some of them were like trees on their own. The wood was a part of a tree or a tree fulfilling a purpose in the forest. The stainless steel was part of something else, the same thing with the clothing or the leather which was taken from an animal that was existing somewhere else. When they let go of their original existence, they now become a candidate to become something when collated or combined with other materials to form a new entity or identity. And so, the old purpose ceases, a new purpose is adapted or adopted.
This is like introducing us to what the Holy Spirit has brought for us. You could be existing on your own, you could be reigning or living somewhere else. But it is also possible for God to detach you from what you were living or existing in or with and to bring you into a new state where the old purpose no longer relevant but where you have a new passion or a new focus or ambition. If we examine the life of Paul of Tarsus, he was a learned man, a lawyer, a Pharisee and a Roman citizen, even though he was a Jew. Before he encountered Jesus, he had always assumed that the purpose of his living was fighting and defending the cause of God, even to the point of death. He was also aware that for him to be relevant, he needed a lot of certifications, he needed a lot of recommendations from higher authority. Many things that he thinks he needed, he got them. He was even trained by the best in the Israel, Gamalieal.
And so, he had prepared his own path for the destiny ahead of himself that he had envisioned for himself. He was busy doing this until he encountered Jesus. Even himself said when he met Jesus that he could not disobey the heavenly vision when he met Jesus. His life that was hitherto going to a different direction, took a different turn. He now said that the things he used to count as important in the days he has not met Jesus, he now counted has dung. What does this show us? Can a man count all the things he deemed precious as dung? No! It means it is possible for you to have a change of taste and perspective. Things that you consider precious to you now could suddenly become something that are just useless or meaningless to you. The question then is: what are the things that you consider precious to you now? Do they have a permanent lifespan, or are they things that are momentary and will fade with time?
These are questions that you must ask as we examine disequilibrium in discipleship. What even bring things to a state of disequilibrium? You remember the law that says everything remains in a state of rest until man external force is applied to it. Is it that things goes to disequilibrium by themselves or they are forced into disequilibrium? These are things that we should look at. Now those that establish balance and live a balance life in discipleships as it were, what keeps them in balance? Is the balance a good thing or is disequilibrium the thing that we must all yearn for?
Let us examine the book of 2 Corinthians 4:1-16.
"Therefore, since we have this ministry, as we have received mercy, we do not lose heart. But we have renounced the hidden things of shame, not walking in craftiness nor handling the word of God deceitfully, but by manifestation of the truth commending ourselves to every man’s conscience in the sight of God."
2 Corinthians 4:1-2
If we pause there and examine what Apostle Paul, the man that encountered Jesus on his way to Damascus, a man who had always thought that becoming the best of the Pharisee was the best of life to live, who encountered Jesus and at that moment asked: Lord what would you have me do? Have been trying to do things by myself, thinking i was doing it for God? What kind of life would you have me live? Have been trying to become great by myself, but now i am faced with the reality that the things that i have thought they are important aren't as important as i thought. Now if you examined what Apostle Paul said, it showed a man who has left something, and he is looking forward into something else. You will see a man whose value has changed. You will see a man whose priority has shifted.
From that verse two. It says: "But have renounced….." That tells you that when you renounce something, it means you used to do those things but now, you no longer do them. You don't renounce what you have never done. .."the hidden things of dishonesty, not walking in craftiness, nor handling the word of God deceitfully…." This also signifies that Apostle Paul; before he encountered Christ, had handled the word of God deceitfully. "…but by manifestation of the truth commending ourselves to every man's conscience in the sight of God."
It is because you have done something, and have done it over and over again, and have considered by revelation and better light that what you have been doing is wrong, then you renounce the old. For you to go on in this journey it means certain things that used to be important to you must cease to be important to you. The things you used to do, you must come to a point where you drop off certain things that you used to do. Those things you considered precious and all of it. Verse six(6) says the light of God shines on a man's heart and that makes man to have a re-think or a change of attitude or course.
To be continued!……..
