The Dna of a Disciple: Imparting the Life of Christ in the 21St Century

By chad lynn

The DNA of a Disciple is a book about how to "be" the type of disciple Jesus intended us to be. The book conveys with passion and intensity the shortcomings of modern discipleship and communicates a powerful alternative to seeing lives changed.



The DNA of a Disciple was never intended to be a "how to" book. Instead, the author believes that the Life of Christ is transferred when someone decides to be like Jesus. Written in new language and with a new perspective, "The DNA of a Disciple" will challenge you to look at discipleship through a brand new eyes.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Xlibris US
• Release date: Dec 17, 2010
• ISBN: 9781456827366

chad lynn

Chad Lynn is the director of New England Masters Commission in Portsmouth, New Hampshire. Chad has been directing Masters Commission and discipling young adults for over a decade. He is also part of the leadership team of Masters Commission International, a movement that is reaching around the globe. There is a desperate need for change in New England and NEMC is deeply committed to seeing that change through discipleship of the young adults of the region. New England, thought to be one of the spiritually dark places in the country, is experiencing a resurgence among it's youth and young adults. NEMC is at the forefront of this resurgence among young adults and believes that change has reached it's tipping point.

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I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full

John 10:10

Ask yourself this question: Do you want to be stuck in neutral your whole life and just exist, or do you want to live all-out? Do you want to just survive or do you want your life to be great? People everywhere are indulging in some insane activities to make sure they live a life full of rich experiences. To be sure, the pursuit of an exciting and fulfilling life can lead us down some strange paths. In this pursuit some people become successful businessmen while, on the opposite end of the spectrum, others become drug addicts just to get more out of life. The different paths we choose are as diversified as the people on this planet.

We must all admit that the paths we experience can be ruthless at times. Instead of getting better life often gets increasingly difficult and painful. How do we cope when life gets hard for us? In an attempt to lessen the pain we look for something to dull the hardship of life’s tougher moments. We reason that if we find enough joy, excitement, ecstasy, fulfillment, or success, life’s more difficult moments will not get the best of us.

We have pushed ourselves to the limit trying to find answers to these questions. People are looking for the next thrill, the next fad, the next high, or anything else that may make their lives feel better—if just for that moment. To experience life in this manner people have gone to extreme measures just to make sure they don’t miss anything.

This is why we are driven to take risks and try dangerous activities, even if we can only muster enough courage to watch someone else risk their life or do something dangerous. The need for excitement and thrill is universal. Scientific research tells us that dangerous and risky behavior releases powerful chemicals such as dopamine, endorphins, and serotonin. These chemicals released by the body during dangerous activities trigger pleasurable feelings inside of us. Take endorphins, for example. Endorphins make us feel better, improve our mood, increase pleasure, and minimize pain.1

If risky behavior creates an experience that is positive, people become addicted to finding ways to cause their bodies to release these chemicals over and over again. The question to be asked is, Is it worth risking one’s life just to have a pleasurable and temporary feeling?

Forbes magazine published a story by James M. Clash that gives a hair-raising account of one particular thrill seeker, Joe Kittinger. Although Mr. Kittinger has not become a household aviation name like Neil Armstrong or Chuck Yeager, what he did for the U.S. space program is comparable.

On Aug. 16, 1960, as research for the then—fledgling U.S. space program, Air Force Captain Joseph Kittinger rode a helium balloon to the edge of space, 102,800 feet above the earth, a feat in itself. Then, wearing just a thin pressure suit and breathing supplemental oxygen, he leaned over the cramped confines of his gondola and jumped into the 110-degree-below-zero, near-vacuum of space. Within seconds his body accelerated to 714 mph in the thin air, breaking the sound barrier. After free-falling for more than four and a half minutes, slowed finally by friction from the heavier air below, he felt his parachute open at 14,000 feet, and he coasted gently down to the New Mexico desert floor.

Here is the account of this breathtaking feat in Kittinger’s own words. "We got up at 2 a.m. to start filling the helium balloon. At sea level, it was 35 to 40 feet wide and 200 feet high; at altitude, due to the low air pressure, it expanded to 25 stories in width, and still was 20 stories high! At 4 a.m. I began breathing pure oxygen for two hours. That’s how long it takes to remove all the nitrogen from your blood so you don’t get the bends going so high so fast. Then it was a lengthy dress procedure layering warm clothing under my pressure suit. They kept me in air-conditioning until it was time to launch because we were in the desert and I wasn’t supposed to sweat. If I did, my clothes would freeze on the way up.

"It took an hour and a half to get to altitude. It was cold. At 40,000 feet, the glove on my right hand hadn’t inflated. I knew that if I radioed my doctor, he would abort the flight. If that happened, I knew I might never get another chance because there were lots of people who didn’t want this test to happen. I took a calculated risk, that I might lose use of my right hand. It quickly swelled up, and I did lose use for the duration of the flight. But the rest of the pressure suit worked. When I reached 102,800 feet, maximum altitude, I wasn’t quite over the target. So I drifted for 11 minutes. The winds were out of the east.

"You can see about 400 miles in every direction. The most fascinating thing is that it’s just black overhead—the transition from normal blue to black is very stark. You can’t see stars because there’s a lot of glare from the sun, so your pupils are too small. I was struck with the beauty of it. But I was also struck by how hostile it is: more than 100 degrees below zero, no air. If my protection suit failed, I would be dead in a few seconds. Blood actually boils above 62,000 feet.

"I went through my 46-step checklist, disconnected from the balloon’s power supply and lost all communication with the ground. I was totally under power from the kit on my back. When everything was done, I stood up, turned around to the door, took one final look out and said a silent prayer: ‘Lord, take care of me now.’ Then I just jumped over the side.

"It’s the beginning of a test. I had gone through simulations many times—more than 100. I rolled over and looked up, and there was the balloon just roaring into space. I realized that the balloon wasn’t roaring into space; I was going down at a fantastic rate! At about 90,000 feet, I reached 714mph. The altimeter on my wrist was unwinding very rapidly. But there was no sense of speed. Where you determine speed is visual—if you see something go flashing by. But nothing flashes by 20 miles up—there are no signposts there, and you are way above any clouds. When the chute opened, the rest of the jump was anticlimactic because everything had worked perfectly. I landed 12 or 13 minutes later, and there was my crew waiting. We were elated.

It hurt—there was quite a bit of swelling and the blood pressure in my arm was high. But that went away in a few days, and I regained full use of my hand.2

We often take great risks to experience life to the fullest. Why would a man like John Kittinger jump out of a helium balloon on the edge of space? Was this for research? Why would anybody risk their life just to see how high they can skydive? It’s all about the fall and it’s not about the research. What other reason would anybody jump out of a perfectly good airplane or helium balloon gondola except to feel the rush of their life racing towards the ground? So they can collect data?

Other people experience thrills by attaching themselves to a rubber band and jumping off a bridge. Skiers ski off the face of a cliff to feel the adrenaline release. Drug addicts become hooked on drugs because life feels better for them high than sober. Businessmen may do something unethical so they can make more money and gain more possessions, thinking that will make their lives fuller. When it comes to experiencing life we could say that we would rather die than miss out on something that will make our life feel better.

This search for life in its fullest measure doesn’t have any boundaries. No matter what background, race, religion, or socioeconomic level we come from, all of us are hoping that our lives will be fulfilling. We want to possess, to attain, to be recognized, to be loved, and to be respected. In our search for more very few people have gained the understanding of contentment. We think life would be better if we had this, or knew him, or worked there.

Why do people always want what they don’t have? Why does it appear as though something is missing from our lives? It doesn’t matter where you look; people are always striving to make life all that they want it to be. The human race is in a crazed pursuit for more out of life.

If we were to poll people on what made life truly meaningful or satisfying we may find answers like love, friendship, peace, joy, service to others, excitement, and respect. We know the answers to what makes life better, but it seems that these things are always out of our grasp. Why is a better life so elusive to the human experience? When we consider that love, friendship, peace, and joy are prerequisites to experiencing deeper satisfaction, we may need to revisit some of the truths we know as Christians.

Because of our relationship with God, Christians should have an advantage in living a life of love, respect, peace, and joy. Even though this should be true the exact opposite seems to be the case. Both Christian and non-Christian homes have virtually the same 60 percent divorce rate. Depression, suicide, and many other social ills occur with the same frequency in Christians as they do in people who don’t confess Christ. Not to mention the pervasiveness of addictions that are as rampant in the church as they are out on the street.

Is there something drastically wrong with this picture of modern Christianity? If we are honest with ourselves we must admit that the life of Christ has not taken root in us and isn’t bringing sufficient change to our lives. If it were taking root wouldn’t we be more like Jesus? If we were more like Jesus wouldn’t there be greater harmony in our society? Wouldn’t there be more unity and happiness in our marriages? Wouldn’t there be less addiction and vice? Wouldn’t our churches be healthier and growing?

The disciple of Christ’s idea of living life should be something so revolutionary that it will provoke transformation. Of all the people in the world, shouldn’t a Christian know how to love and live the most fulfilling life? Shouldn’t we have more joy, more peace, and more satisfying friendships than people from any other walk of life? As followers of Christ, we are not promised that everything will be perfect. In fact, the Bible tells us that we will experience difficulty in our lives (John 16:33). However, with God resident inside of us we should be able to handle trouble, face pain, have joy, experience love, and encounter all that would make life better because Christ has overcome the world.

Furthermore, the Bible tells us that abundant life is made available to us by God Himself. First Peter 1:3 tells us plainly, His divine power has given to us all things that pertain to life and godliness, through the knowledge of Him who called us by glory and virtue. We have a promise for everything we need for life and godliness through Jesus Christ. We should be compelled to let people know that a satisfying life is available in Christ (Matthew 28:19-20).

Now that we have been reminded of our charge as followers of Christ, what do we do next? This book examines living a Christian life to the fullest before our God and allowing those closest to us to see and emulate that life. By living the way Jesus lived, we can show others the excitement and passion of God’s ways. In 2 Corinthians 3:2 the Bible calls us living books that are seen and read by all men. Ink and parchment were the medium of communication in the time that the Bible was written. Today, people communicate through text, TV, and the Internet. Let’s consider this metaphor in modern-day terms. There is a reality TV show on MTV called The Real World that attempts to show people in real-life situations and how they live their lives. Maybe the scripture above would read like this in light of our modern age: Your lives are a reality show seen and heard by all who watch.

What we need to realize is that people are watching our lives. If Christ is in your life, those watching should observe the supernatural life of Christ shining through you. Our lives are an example to others. People often imitate what they see, so we need to realize that what they are observing in us is what they will receive from Christ. How can we be sure that we are actually transferring the DNA of Jesus?

For many years in the church we have discipled others using the Sage on the Stage approach to instruction, whereas the person holding the information stands before a group of people and delivers the information to them.3 This is the basis for many of our institutions of higher learning, our schools, and our church services. In an academic sense, this model will never completely disappear. In spite of this, those who choose to disciple need to know that if you are teaching others how to live a Christian life in this manner, it will never be enough.

The church has in many ways completely adopted the above model of teaching, even though studies have shown it not to be the most effective. One of the characteristics of a good teacher is the ability to take something complex and make it simple and accessible. In teaching people Christian truths, we have attempted to simplify the gospel to make it more understandable for others. In doing this, we have unknowingly packaged God and discipleship into formulas and bullet lists. We have Christian curriculum companies whose primary function is to help us compile the information necessary to disciple someone and create syllabi to walk them through it in an orderly manner.

Creating ways to make things easier through the development of formulas is human nature, especially to the logical-sequential learner.4 The problem is that discipleship has been watered down to memorizing a formula or a bullet list. We have a lot of people who know the necessary information but do not know how to live life as someone called