Jumpstarter 7 of 10

Ideas to help restart your discussion

Question 7

Menno Simons’ rebuttal—“If your faith is as you say, why do you not do the things which He has commanded you?”—directly confronts a faith that claims new birth and the Spirit but shows little effect; what specific commands Bercot listed (enemy-love, nonresistance, no oaths, not suing, treasures, divorce) most expose the gap between what you profess and what you practice?

Another way to ask: Menno Simons asked, “If your faith is real, why don’t you do what Jesus commanded?” Which commands on Bercot’s list (loving enemies, nonresistance, no oaths, not suing, money/treasures, divorce) most show the gap between what you say you believe and how you live?

Direct Answer Bercot’s list highlights commands that most clearly separate disciples from normal society; the transcript doesn’t rank them, but it presents these teachings as the ones that most expose whether our “new birth” has real, visible power.

Support from Transcript:

Menno Simons challenged claims of faith and Spirit: “If your faith is as you say, why do you not do the things which He has commanded you in His Word?”
Bercot says authentic discipleship includes commands “that truly separate His followers from the world.”
He names specific examples: “non-resistance,” “loving our enemies,” “not accumulating treasures on earth,” Jesus’ “strict teachings on divorce,” “not taking oaths,” and the teaching that “a Christian does not take his brother to court.”
He says obedience to these “distinguish an authentic Christian from a mere professing Christian.”
He ties this to the Anabaptist core: Christianity is “discipleship,” an “objective reality that transforms a person’s life… witnessed by others.”

Discussion Follow-ups Which of these commands do you explain away most quickly, and why? If someone watched your life, which command would they say you clearly obey—and which would they doubt you take seriously?

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