Discipleship in 21st Century Boston

In Chapter 19 of Holiness, Ryle urges Christians to be like the tribe of Issachar, who had “understanding of the times” (1 Chronicles 12:32). Ryle says, “all ages have their own peculiar dangers for professing Christians, and all consequently demand special attention to peculiar duties” (Ryle 392). He was talking about 19th-century England. What about 21st-century Boston? What would be a peculiar danger for professing Christians in our context? Is it fighting the intellectual battles of biblical inerrancy? Engaging in apologetics against new age or pseudo-Christian cults? Debating militant atheists on college campuses? These are indeed significant challenges, but there is a more insidious danger.

Here is the lay of the land: Boston is a city marked by busyness and transience. Many come here for education or work, often without family ties. The city is known for its cold weather and its cold people. Rent is expensive, real estate is limited, and as a result, a general sense of isolation pervades, and independence and a tendency to leave quickly are common traits among Bostonians. As Christians, the temptation to mirror the surrounding culture is always present. The peculiar danger for Christians is to adopt this culture of isolation and independence, bringing it into the church. When this happens, the church too becomes cold and impersonal. Preaching may start to feel like lectures, Bible studies may resemble book clubs, and fellowship times might devolve into plastered smiles and shallow conversations. With no communal support and a sense of disconnection and detachment, people leave, and there is a discouragement to invest in each other’s lives, perpetuating a vicious cycle.

In the six years that I have been in Boston, I have witnessed this firsthand. However, I have also seen remarkable transformations when genuine, heartfelt, intentional, life-on-life discipleship occurs. When brothers and sisters meet regularly to study Scripture, pray together in each other’s homes, and share their lives, it radically changes everything. Suddenly, they want to plant themselves in Boston, living like missionaries, mastering their “tent-making” craft to afford the high cost of living, starting families, and discipling others to do the same. And so, a virtuous cycle begins.

If Ryle lived in Boston in 2024, I believe he would say that the times require us to prioritize life-on-life discipling, a model of encouraging and teaching others to follow Jesus through close, personal relationships in Christlike, countercultural pursuit of others. This is the only sure-fire way to revitalize churches and gain critical mass for longer-term spiritual thriving. While the household should be the primary setting for this, there also needs to be space for discipleship outside the family within the church. Consider the countless single men who have no idea what godliness looks like in a man, especially in an age of rampant absenteeism among fathers. Consider the ideologically confused woman studying on a liberal college campus. Consider the newlywed couple whose families live hundreds of miles away. The field is ripe for harvest through intentional life-on-life discipleship. We must make a concerted effort to emphasize the value of biblical community and discipleship.

I acknowledge that I might be speaking like an idealist. I do not claim to know exactly what this looks like in practice, but I want to be part of it, and I long to see our community continue to grow in love, faith, and hope. May God pour out His Spirit upon His churches in Boston and grant us a bountiful harvest. Soli Deo Gloria. Amen.

Works Cited

• Ryle, J.C. Holiness. Banner of Truth, 2014.