Pastor's Circle - Ed Litton

Ed Litton has served as the the senior pastor of First Baptist North Mobile since 1994. He joined the Pastor's Circle to talk about the mission of his church. Below are the "CliffsNotes" of his segment.

Your mission statement talks about "making disciples." What does it mean to make a disciple?

That's a great question that we have been asking ourselves and re-asking ourselves. God's been taking us through a season of inspecting the words we use and the things we say we believe.

To us, discipleship begins when you hear the call and respond to the call to follow Jesus Christ. And then, of course, there are steps that you take.

Martin Luther said that it is the default of the human heart to be "religious". We don't believe that Jesus came to establish a religion.

We've discovered and rediscovered what it means to have our hearts on fire because of what Jesus did for us. That's what fuels my soul.

What is the antidote for a church that is focused internally?

That's right where we're at. It's interesting to me that 95% of southern evangelicals have never led a person to Christ. That tells me that we don't have a passion in our heart that makes us care.

Our church was becoming a social club. Jesus confronted his disciples on a regular basis about their moralism. That's not the place that we're supposed to be.

I noticed as a pastor that I saw the gospel as a diving board that got me into the pool of God's Kingdom. The fact is, the gospel is the pool.

If I was missing it, I knew everyone else was missing it. I think that's why the nation is in the state it's in. It's dark because the light is hidden.

God has also been taking us to the woodshed about idolatry.

What is an idol?

Anything that I love more than God. It could be Alabama, Auburn, Mississippi State; it could be basketball or baseball; it could be hunting; it could even be my wife and family.

What are some of the idols in the pastorate?

There are deep-rooted idols that are very challenging to get out. For me, it's approval. It's the fear of man, it's wanting people's approval.

Which leads us to not being as fruitful. Most people who do what we do are approval junkies.