Book Review: Just Discipleship

I was very intrigued when I read the title of this book. My first thought was about discipling Christians to be just and fair. This should, of course, be a given, as all Christians are called to model these virtues. However, in many cases, these characteristics are lacking, which I believe is due to a lack of proper discipleship—at least in the United States.

Some of my comments are based on my own study of what is occurring in most Christian churches in this country. However, I assume similar trends may be present in other countries as well.

According to a survey conducted by Barna: 

“39 percent of all Christians are not engaged in discipleship at all. And just one-third of Christians (33%) is categorized by Barna as a disciplemaker, actively helping someone grow in faith and move closer to Christ. Overall, that leaves about two in five Christians lacking any kind of discipleship community.”1

This is a significant problem, in my opinion, especially among new members of the church (new converts). If churches are not dedicating time to proper discipleship, and if Christians are not studying their Bibles, it is no wonder the church faces so many problems. Christians are then unable to challenge unchristian behavior by their leaders.

The book Just Discipleship – Biblical Justice in an Unjust World by Michael J. Rhodes attempts to explain the reasons for these shortcomings and explores what the Bible says about becoming just disciples. I think the author does a decent job of explaining some of the problem and offering examples of how Christians can live justly. However, after reading the book, I felt the book lacked specificity about being just within the church itself.

I often say that the church needs to clean up its internal mess before trying to reach the world with the gospel. The reason the church is losing members every year is that the world sees its internal problems while religious leaders refuse to address them. Two ongoing issues I closely follow are the sexual abuse scandals in the Catholic Church and the Southern Baptist Convention (SBC). These scandals are the reason I left a church affiliated with the SBC. The SBC is unwilling to seriously address these issues. Similarly, the discrimination against women, especially in cases of domestic violence. Telling abused women to return home to their violent husbands because the Bible says a wife must obey her husband is wrong, no matter how you look at it. You are not going to read about these issues in this book, but in my view, teaching against them is definitely an example of just discipleship.   

On page 26, the author describes the main goal of the book:

“Perhaps we need a map or model that can help us imagine what it might look like for Christian communities to become just.”

I think the book partially achieves this goal but falls short in some areas. While I understand that the author had a narrow focus in mind—racial injustice—I think he missed an opportunity to influence the Christian community on other fronts. What’s missing is a direct admonishment of religious leaders and a clear roadmap for Christians to challenge toxic leadership within the church.

That being said, here is the book review.

The book is divided into four parts:

  1. Just Discipleship: Mapping the Terrain. In this section, the author explains his focus:
    “My focus on racial injustice by white Americans against Black Americans is not intended to downplay the importance of the suffering of other groups, nor to explain that suffering by buying into a problematic Black/white binary. This book focuses on the issues it does because it emerges from my personal experience reading Scripture within my context, for the sake of following Jesus on the road toward just discipleship in that context.” (p. 6)
  2. Becoming Just Disciples
    This part explores the feasts in Deuteronomy, the songs about justice in Psalms, the teachings of Proverbs, and examples of Jesus in 1 John to guide Christians in becoming just.
  3. Becoming a Just People
    The author explains how Scripture guides the internal politics of the church to support justice in the community.
  4. Discipling Politics: Just Discipleship Amid the Nations
    This section considers how Christians should navigate the political environment, using the stories of Joseph and Daniel to illustrate how Christians can approach politics in the United States.

Here are some highlights:

  • “In his first sermon, Jesus identifies himself as the just, liberating king who declares good news to the poor and proclaims the year of the Lord’s favor (Lk 4:16-21). He brings justice to victory by healing the sick, gently caring for the ‘bruised reeds’ and ‘smoldering wicks,’ offering hope to the nations, restoring those with physical disabilities, casting out demons (Mt 12:13-31), and prophetically confronting the religious establishment for neglecting justice (Mt 23:23; cf. Lk 11:42).” (p. 22)
  • “‘While God is not hung up on the details of festival party planning, He’s deeply committed to an inclusive guest list.’ The lavish feast to which Yahweh invites His people is one in which all are welcomed and provided for… Because of this, orphans, widows, Levites, … received far more at the feast than food, drink, and an occasional vacation; this feast provided for the inclusion of the vulnerable as kin.” (p. 56)
  • “Both local government and the private sector worked systematically to turn what was a ‘stable, racially mixed neighborhood’ in 1910 into a community both racially segregated and economically poor by 1953. Mayor Crump (Mayor of Memphis, Tennessee, 1910-1915) used federal ‘slum clearance’ dollars to destroy a ‘stable, middle-class, Black neighborhood’ and turn it into a 900-unit public housing complex. Through redlining, the bank then systematically denied FHA-backed mortgages to would-be homeowners in the neighborhood. Predatory lending practices emerged to fill that gap. In 2012, Wells Fargo ‘settled for $432.5 million for targeting Memphis’s minority neighborhoods with predatory loans.’” (p. 64)
  • “Studies demonstrate that the justice of worker-ownership and profit-sharing is a form of just wisdom.” (p. 123)
  • “Black families were repeatedly denied the opportunity to build wealth well into the twentieth century. Indeed, the U.S. government persistently blocked Black people from participating in America’s largest wealth-building initiatives, such as the Homestead Act, FHA-backed mortgages, and the GI Bill.” (p. 199)
  • Pastor (Dr.) Geoffrey Schoonmaker suggests, “churches could practice such reparations by giving substantial freewill offerings to historically Black congregations with no strings attached.” (p. 201)
  • “Lifeway Research summarized polling conducted just before the hotly contested 2020 presidential election. When white evangelicals-by-belief were asked, ‘Who do you hope your presidential vote benefits the most?,’ 61% said their primary goal was either to benefit ‘people nationwide who are like me’ or ‘me and my family.’ Non-evangelicals were 11% less likely to identify these as their primary goals and 9% more likely to identify ‘people who our country had failed’ as those they most hoped to benefit… Why self-interest, and interest for ‘people like me nationwide,’ would be significantly stronger among evangelicals than among other Americans. Indeed, one might expect Jesus’ call to love our neighbors as ourselves to push in the opposite direction.” (p. 227)
  • “But given the openly self-focused goals of evangelical voters, perhaps we can understand why, when we say we’re concerned about ‘religious freedoms,’ critics accuse us of meaning ‘religious freedom for people like us.’” (p. 228)
  • Regarding Joseph’s story and his family: “Joseph’s treatment of the Egyptians is bookended on both sides by a reminder that while Egyptians are saved through slavery, Joseph’s family is saved through generous, royal gifts (Gen 47:11-12; 47:27)… Joseph stands squarely with those whose primary political goal is to improve the plight of their own family and others like them… Instead of receiving the best of the land as a reward for the skillful manipulation of food surpluses, Joseph’s enslaved descendants will be forced to build bigger and better storage cities for Pharaoh, including the city of Rameses (Ex 1:11)… The overall message is clear: live by the political sword, die by the political sword. Build your tribe’s kingdom in the land of Goshen through self-serving politics, and end up as slave labor building somebody else’s kingdom in the same land later on.” (p. 234-235)
  • “Scripture offers us the tragedy of Joseph’s politics to help us avoid repeating such tragedies in our own political engagement with the nations… Unfortunately, we American Christians have often far exceeded the failures of Joseph… Rather than seeing ourselves as citizens of the just and righteous countercultural kingdom of God, we have frequently fought to gain political power for ourselves.” (p. 242)
  • “Christian nationalism claims promises God made to His people for a contemporary nation-state. Such nationalism needs to be named for what it is: idolatrous heresy.” (p. 243)
  • “Make no mistake: our political idolatries do not put God’s kingdom at risk. But they do put our participation in God’s kingdom mission of bringing blessing to the world at risk, not least as those idolatries continue to disciple us toward injustice.” (p. 246)
  • “Faithful Christian witness requires moral discipleship oriented toward justice.” (p. 249)
  • “Because political power tends toward the idolatrous, participation requires constant vigilance, deep discipleship oriented toward allegiance to God, a primary identification with God’s countercultural people, and a habituated commitment to justice. Such discipleship is necessary if the people of God are to gain the wisdom necessary to know when and how they can collaborate with secular political powers, and when and how they must reject such collaboration.” (p. 265)

In conclusion, while the book provides valuable insights, I believe it falls short in addressing the critical internal problems plaguing the church in the US. Issues like pervasive sexual abuse, discrimination against women, political power grabs, and the church’s focus on wealth and corporate-like structures need urgent attention. Pastors and Christian organizations profiting excessively at the expense of their members are unbiblical and undermine the church’s mission.

Overall, Just Discipleship is a good resource for studying why the church is struggling to fulfill its mission and follow Jesus’ teachings. However, it does not provide the “aha” moment or actionable solutions that many readers might hope for.

About the Author:

Michael J. Rhodes (PhD, Trinity College/University of Aberdeen) is the lecturer in Old Testament at Carey Baptist College. He is an ordained pastor in the Evangelical Presbyterian Church, and has spent more than 12 years living and working in economically marginalized communities. He is the author of Just Discipleship: Biblical Justice in an Unjust World (IVP, 2023); Formative Feasting: Practices and Virtue Ethics in Deuteronomy’s Tithe Meal and the Corinthian Lord’s Supper (Peter Lang, 2022); and Practicing the King’s Economy: Honoring Jesus in the Way We Work, Earn, Spend, Save, and Give (with Brian Fikkert and Robby Holt; Baker, 2018).2

  1. https://www.barna.com/research/christians-too-busy/ ↩︎
  2. https://www.amazon.com/stores/author/B07C34H6KQ/about?ccs_id=3880f1ab-92d4-46d4-80d1-bee1bd8b1e21 ↩︎

47 thoughts on “Book Review: Just Discipleship”

  1. Discipleship was something they did back in the day. I have witnessed so many churches “commercialized “.. and ministers have actual quotas to meet to justify their salaries. Mission, evangelism, community outreach have all fallen by the wayside in many church communities.
    I appreciate the review, Edward. I know it’s a difficult topic to address as there are so many things that need fixing within the church as a whole.

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    1. Thank you, Nigel. Commercialization is a huge problem, and like you said, it’s all about growing the membership base and making money to justify salaries. I can’t believe there are pastors earning millions while church members are struggling to make ends meet.

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    1. You’re welcome, Wynne. This is definitely an important issue, and I hope it gets serious consideration from church leaders across all denominations in the near future. Thank you for reading and commenting, my friend.

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  3. This is a solid review, Edward. Don’t tell me where I’m failing without telling me how I can fix that. And, we don’t want guidance from those who wouldn’t follow their own advice. We have to respect the authority to see them as leaders.

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    1. Thank you, Mary. It’s hard to follow leaders who are unwilling to admit when they’re wrong or accept correction from church members. Also, church members need good discipleship to prosper in their faith.

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  6. I appreciated more your personal input regarding the need to address profoundly the sexual scandals and domestic violence against women by religious institutions than the insights and highlights of the book itself. As you said, many things need to be cleared internally for discipleship, Christian or other, to make sense. It’s a delicate topic, often avoided because of censorship and elite comforts, but when we consider the personal delicacy of each one abused and ignored, I guess there is no other option. Many things need to be exposed and seen, so the real values of church and of being human can come to light and reign in “modern” society. Wonderful post, as always, Edward! You always help me to see the other side of humanity, not only the problems but also the practical potentials for a better life for all. Thank you! Lots of light and blessings to you, my friend*

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    1. Thank you so much, Susana. I think we need to continue highlighting the issues and pushing back on unacceptable behavior. These institutions are once again gaining too much power, and of course, we don’t want to return to the old ways when their deeds went unchecked. I think the author missed an opportunity, or maybe he titled the book incorrectly. “Racial Injustice” or just “Racial Justice” would probably have been better fits. “Just Discipleship” implies more than what the author highlighted. Blessings, my friend.

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  7. I admire your courage in addressing the tough issues that many shy away from. Your review isn’t just a critique—it’s a call to action for all of us to pursue justice more intentionally. Thank you for your honesty and your commitment to truth. You’re an inspiration!🤝🎉🌿

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  8. Discipleship means putting Jesus first and following Jesus’ teachings. Churches are so far away from Jesus, it’s frightening. This sounds like an interesting book. But as you point out, it certainly doesn’t offer solutions to the most dangerous unbiblical issues. It is puzzling how church leaders, who supposedly read the Bible, and take courses to become leaders, seem to not understand the simple words. Jesus said that one way people would recognize Christians is the way they love one another. People who call themselves Christians should know this above all. Or maybe since there are so many translations of the Bible, maybe we aren’t reading the same Book? But I can’t imagine any translation of the Bible that approves of sexual abuse, discrimination against women and other people for any reason, vile political divisiveness, or Christian organizations profiting excessively at the expense of those who have so much less. I’d love to see solutions on how churches can change this, and I love to see those changes in action.

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    1. Rose, thank you for your thoughtful comments. I agree with you. The message is simple, but theologians, Bible teachers, and church leaders are making it way too difficult. I guess simple, in their eyes, is not good. It doesn’t bring the political power and money they want. The example is Jesus, and I’m not sure why the church is coming up with something else. All the Bibles read about the same (at least the ones I’ve read in English and Spanish), but human intervention, in the form of doctrines, is what’s causing the problems.

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  9. Wow, Edward, you don’t shy away from deep topics. I think it is very interesting that at a moment in our history when people are searching for meaning, guidance, and connection, that churches are not succeeding in their leadership and recruitment. Churches are shrinking and closing. Are they welcoming, embracing new members as part of the community and working together to build hope and justice? I’d say very few are.

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    1. I agree with you. Very few are truly welcoming. I’m still looking for one in this area. They are forgetting that it’s all about community, not scripted agendas. On any given Sunday, what you get in the evangelical church is: a welcome, a handshake, music, some announcements, more music, a sermon, and then “goodbye, see you next Sunday.” All in about an hour. Sad commentary, in my opinion, and a big missed opportunity.

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        1. Definitely, cliques ruled. You can see that as soon as you enter one. Sometimes, people don’t even acknowledge new faces coming through the doors. Three years ago, a pastor saw me and noticed that I was new. He approached me three times, each time inviting me to have a cup of coffee. I’m still waiting for a call.

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  11. This is an insightful and meaningful review and post, Edward. I’m as guilty as anyone in failing in my Christian responsibilities, and need to do better. Intelligent, well-meaning, constructive criticism like this is something the American church is in dire need of.

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  13. As always a great assessment with honesty and well documented truths pointed out, Edward. What I really don’t like about religious practices and many churches is he when the powers that be claim to be God and take over. The last straw for me was when our minister of 30 years who walked his talk and had was a recovery alcoholic for 30 years when some on the board said he talked about recovery too much. He was the best minister we ever had and the numbers plummeted when he was forced out. That was my last straw with organized religion. 🥹

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    1. Wow, that’s sad. The last time I checked, Jesus’ disciples were all recovering from something, not to mention Paul and his 180-degree turn from persecuting Christians to following Jesus. They all talked about recovery all the time. Like you said, some claim to be God, and that’s a problem. Thank you for sharing that, Cindy.

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  14. Sir, well stated. Discipleship is one place where the church, especially the American church, is slipping. The self-centeredness of American culture may seem a cop-out, but its largely to blame for that lack.

    I also wanted to thank you for addressing the ridiculousness of telling a woman to return to an abusive situation. There is a way to protect the woman without abandoning biblical values and truth.

    I will say that man-made or man-run institutions are not perfect. While Jesus established the church, imperfect men are leading them. We need to hold leaders to a biblical standard while not being surprised when they mess it up. The true indication of a good leader is the ability to recognize when it’s time to step down from or leave an organization.

    Not sure if any of that made sense. Thanks for sharing your heart.

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    1. Amen, and it made a lot of sense, brother. Self-centeredness is an issue sometimes, and church elders need to do a better job ensuring their leader is doing the right thing and, when necessary, guiding the leader to step down. I know of so many cases where the lead pastor committed sin and returned to the pulpit after receiving just a few weeks of “treatment.” No one is perfect, and we are all sinners, but church leaders are measured by a different set of rules clearly defined in Scripture.

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      1. That’s what I’ve been saying for years. It’s the reason I’m so hesitant to step into the role. I know how messy I am. Paul warned that leaders would be judged more harshly, so it can be intimidating to take that on.

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  15. Hi, Ed. As always, a thought-provoking post. Christian leaders need to model discipleship to Jesus so the new converts know what it looks like. My prayer is that believers become more bold and courageous to speak the truth. God’s word is the truth. However, you cannot speak what you don’t know. At some point, I began to wonder if our leaders even know God’s word. The Holy Spirit is here. I pray that He moves so that people will begin to hear, see, and receive the truth. This has to be a collaborative effort.

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    1. Sandra, you’re so right, and I wonder the same sometimes. I read the New Testament and then look at some of our Christian leaders, and I’m like, What in the world is going on? Are we even reading the same Bible? Thank you for your comments.

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    1. Absolutely! What really bothers me is that these theologians do not use their knowledge to truly challenge those who are twisting religion and using it to advance their personal agendas, which have nothing to do with the church and are affecting so many. Thank you, Liz.

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  18. Hi Edward, your article is very interesting, and your opinions are shared. In Italy in my opinion the situation is not better, indeed, I consider it even worse. I do not think differently from most of Europe. Something like less than 2 out of 10 who declare to be Catholic attend places of worship, you can imagine how many of these even go so far as to take active action. Regarding knowledge of the Bible I can give you my estimate based on the many acquaintances: those who really know it, or at least those who follow at least the basic criteria are close to 1%. I believe that this desire to be modern in concepts, sometimes denying the roots, is completely harmful. More and more small groups are distinguishing themselves that become too extreme, and a large group of people convinced of following the word of God without realizing that they are at the service of Babylon. I have some convictions about the dishonesty of the actions, therefore of the voluntariness of what is happening and that you also, in some way, mention. Maybe it’s my dystopian vision, but I have a certain conviction based on facts. I hope I’m wrong, but I have hope and realism only in that sentence that says “true faith will start again from a small church”.

    Sorry for the length, but believe me when I say I’ve been pretty restrained 😅

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    1. Thank you very much, Simon. I think you are absolutely right about your last comment: “True faith will start again from a small church.” At some point, I believe Christianity will return to its roots and a small group of the faithful. The “Christian Institution” has become too big and corrupted.

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