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Among Wolves: Disciple-Making in the City
How do we turn passive participants into active disciple makers in an ever changing urban context?
We have reduced Christianity to concerts, conferences, and church services. We are surrounded by passive participants of Christianity, content to soak in information without any intent to make disciples. But the question how do we turn passive participants into active disciple makers in an ever changing urban context?
Among Wolves seeks to help us move to obedience to the call of Christ to labor among wolves. You will walk through eight significant movements in the book of Matthew, beginning with Jesus establishing His presence with us, to him mobilizing an army to go and make disciples of all nations. As we follow Jesus’ patterns and teachings in Matthew, you will be equipped to establish a thriving disciple making culture in your context as your burden to see your city reached moves toward reality.
We have reduced Christianity to concerts, conferences, and church services. We are surrounded by passive participants of Christianity, content to soak in information without any intent to make disciples. But the question how do we turn passive participants into active disciple makers in an ever changing urban context?
Among Wolves seeks to help us move to obedience to the call of Christ to labor among wolves. You will walk through eight significant movements in the book of Matthew, beginning with Jesus establishing His presence with us, to him mobilizing an army to go and make disciples of all nations. As we follow Jesus’ patterns and teachings in Matthew, you will be equipped to establish a thriving disciple making culture in your context as your burden to see your city reached moves toward reality.
185 pages, Kindle Edition
Published February 10, 2017
37 people are currently reading
131 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews
February 9, 2017
I want to say that when I first started reading this book I was discouraged. The author began discussing things about his context in inner city Atlanta and I was sort of tuning him out. My context is so different that I just could not see where I could connect much.
He then began working through what he calls the "movements" in the Gospel of Matthew. This straight forward approach to look at the ministry of Christ in disciple making was very refreshing. I found much wisdom here that applies to my small town Arkansas context because the author does not let his context change the wisdom of Scripture. He instead allows his context to shape the way his ministry goes about sharing that wisdom. If you are passionate about disciple making or are feeling convicted because you are not making disciples I would say pick up this book. It is biblical, practical, and a great read.
He then began working through what he calls the "movements" in the Gospel of Matthew. This straight forward approach to look at the ministry of Christ in disciple making was very refreshing. I found much wisdom here that applies to my small town Arkansas context because the author does not let his context change the wisdom of Scripture. He instead allows his context to shape the way his ministry goes about sharing that wisdom. If you are passionate about disciple making or are feeling convicted because you are not making disciples I would say pick up this book. It is biblical, practical, and a great read.
January 4, 2019
This book is terrible. It cannot decide what it wants to be. It is part autobiography, part lessons on discipleship, and part commentary of Matthew. All of which are wanting. For example, the commentary on Matthew goes from chapter 16 to chapter 28. The entire passion week and resurrection, let alone the crucifixion narrative is skipped over. There are parables, such as the boy among the town of would be fishermen that seem out of place. Lewis is often regarded as a great disciple maker but the evidence is not listed in this book. Perhaps a better option would be Doug Logan's On the Block. It tries to do too much, often employing allegory or personal anecdote where Scripture should be presented. The conclusion to carry out the Great Commission falls flat because the sacrifice and language of covenant theology are skipped over. The application is spoken of in theory only.
July 11, 2017
I had high hopes for this book but it proved to be a rather generic and a slightly convoluted book on discipleship. It had its moments but I really failed to see any strong connection to the urban context. Nothing seemed to set it apart from any other discipleship book. He never really described who the wolves were nor did he spend any adequate length of time addressing how to reach those living in a specific urban context.
I was looking for some questions and answers on how to reach young African American men. Where do you even begin? How do you show the church and Christ as relevant when Christianity is generally despised or seen as irrelevant in the city? How do you care for, love, and disciple single mothers and their children? If the church is family, as he did rightly argue, how do you restore the family in the urban context? Those questions have to be tackled and I'm not even sure they were raised.
My other disappointment was the book lacked clarity. I am not sure who edited this, but yikes... Often a topic was presented for the next paragraph to jump into an entirely different subject with no point. There was a serious lack of coherence running throughout the book. I am not sure if the movements around Mathew's Gospel were an afterthought or not but the point he was trying to make was never clearly driven home. And often I failed to see how they specifically related to the urban context.
The story about the rats is a case in point. It's not really about the rats but that's what he focuses on only to try and make the point of the story something else in the end. An editor would have caught that (hopefully) and corrected it.
I did appreciated the focus on understanding the church as a family but like the rest of the book it was all very generic stuff.
I've found Maria Garriott's A Thousand Resurrections to be far more helpful. Though it's not specifically about discipleship it will disciple you as you read it.
For a frame of reference I am a pastor in multi ethnic context in Philadelphia.
I was looking for some questions and answers on how to reach young African American men. Where do you even begin? How do you show the church and Christ as relevant when Christianity is generally despised or seen as irrelevant in the city? How do you care for, love, and disciple single mothers and their children? If the church is family, as he did rightly argue, how do you restore the family in the urban context? Those questions have to be tackled and I'm not even sure they were raised.
My other disappointment was the book lacked clarity. I am not sure who edited this, but yikes... Often a topic was presented for the next paragraph to jump into an entirely different subject with no point. There was a serious lack of coherence running throughout the book. I am not sure if the movements around Mathew's Gospel were an afterthought or not but the point he was trying to make was never clearly driven home. And often I failed to see how they specifically related to the urban context.
The story about the rats is a case in point. It's not really about the rats but that's what he focuses on only to try and make the point of the story something else in the end. An editor would have caught that (hopefully) and corrected it.
I did appreciated the focus on understanding the church as a family but like the rest of the book it was all very generic stuff.
I've found Maria Garriott's A Thousand Resurrections to be far more helpful. Though it's not specifically about discipleship it will disciple you as you read it.
For a frame of reference I am a pastor in multi ethnic context in Philadelphia.
July 26, 2019
I think Dhati Lewis is one of our best contemporary thinkers/practitioners when it comes to forming a culture of both discipleship and the church as a family. There are insights laid out here that I plan on returning to over and over in pursuing those, whatever context in which I find myself.
Lewis aims to "develop a strategy that will help indigenous disciple-making in two foundational ways: (1) embrace the density and diversity of the city context, and (2) create a culture of effective disciple-making as they establish new local families in the city."
Outlines 4 main components of disciple-making: life on life, theological training (gospel fluency), leadership development, and mobilization.
"Don't seek to start a church; instead, aim to establish a family."
"The church is not LIKE family, it IS family."
"You can teach what you know, but you only reproduce who you are."
"If it takes a village to raise a child, it takes a church to raise a Christian."
"Disciple-making isn't a ministry of the church, it is the ministry of the church."
"The gospel changes people, and people change the world."
Lewis aims to "develop a strategy that will help indigenous disciple-making in two foundational ways: (1) embrace the density and diversity of the city context, and (2) create a culture of effective disciple-making as they establish new local families in the city."
Outlines 4 main components of disciple-making: life on life, theological training (gospel fluency), leadership development, and mobilization.
"Don't seek to start a church; instead, aim to establish a family."
"The church is not LIKE family, it IS family."
"You can teach what you know, but you only reproduce who you are."
"If it takes a village to raise a child, it takes a church to raise a Christian."
"Disciple-making isn't a ministry of the church, it is the ministry of the church."
"The gospel changes people, and people change the world."
April 24, 2018
A must read!
Simply loved it! Lewis is an urban church planter. What does he have to say to this suburbanite? Everything! He pulls together the basic tenets - things I know- and presents them in a simple, gripping, new way. These are principles for all Christ followers!
Simply loved it! Lewis is an urban church planter. What does he have to say to this suburbanite? Everything! He pulls together the basic tenets - things I know- and presents them in a simple, gripping, new way. These are principles for all Christ followers!
July 10, 2022
I loved Dhati's statement that disciple making is THE ministry of the church. It is one thing to invite people into you church, however, Jesus's final command is to go, make disciples and teach them to obey. For me that means make disciples who make disciples, who make disciples.
November 4, 2017
Superb read on the essentials of the Christian faith.
"You can teach what you know, but you only reproduce who you are."
Amen
"You can teach what you know, but you only reproduce who you are."
Amen
September 14, 2019
Fantastic reminder of what it really means to make disciples. What sets this book apart is the clear and genuine call to go and act. Dhati is aggressive in his push on the reader to pursue the great commission, but he does so with grace and most importantly, robustly aligning with Scripture. I would highly encourage all Christians to read and be reminded of the call to make disciples.
Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews