This week’s issue of Leadership Network Advance features an interview with Bob Roberts, author of Transformation, the third book in the Exponential Series.
Why did you write Transformation?
There was a time where I was discouraged our church wasn't growing. As I struggled with that, God seemed to say to me, "When will Jesus be enough? I felt it was a calling to give up seeking to build a big church and instead focus on hearing from God and obediently do as He leads.
I discovered what it meant to know not just the Gospel of Salvation, but the Gospel of the Kingdom--which is what Jesus talked about--and how it really is livable and transforming. I started on a journey and began to see things happen that were far more than I expected.
We have settled for way too little in terms of what it means to follow Jesus and how radically he changes ourselves, our church, the city, and the world when he truly gets a hold of us.
What ideas do you want readers to contemplate as they read Transformation?
Is Jesus enough for you? When he is the primary focus in your life, you'll start to make a difference in the world. We call it "Kingdom In / Kingdom Out." As the indwelling of the Holy Spirit works in a believer's life, the Christian goes out into his or her community to engage the world.
Once a community of Christians understands that being a disciple is more than being saved and studying the Bible, what if the church were the missionary? It would focus on a place, and mobilize the members according to their jobs and connect with the society first.
What do you hope readers take away from the book?
I hope readers understand they can be a disciple who is making a radical difference glocally (globally + locally), no matter who they are or what their job is. When we begin to obey Jesus, he takes everyday ordinary people in ordinary experiences and uses those things to be huge game changers in our lives and in the world.
Following Jesus is being a disciple. A disciple hears and obeys. We've made discipleship into something that is based on information, when it really should be more about behavior, engagement and personal disciplines. Those disciplines. . . continue reading this article.
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Stephanie Plagens is the Publications Manager for Leadership Network.
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