Discipleship
Are You A Disciple Of Jesus?
"Go therefore and make disciples of all
the nations, baptizing them in the name
of the Father and of the Son and of the
Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe
all things that I have commanded you;
and lo, I am with you always, even to
the end of the age."
Mathew 28:18-20
Introduction
1. The above statement was made by Jesus to
His apostles shortly before He ascended to
heaven - Mt 28:18-20
2. Commonly called “The Great
Commission,” notice the main thought of
Jesus' command...
Are you a disciple of Jesus?
The purpose in this study is to make clear
1.The Definition of a Disciple
a). THE WORD “DISCIPLE”...
The word "disciple" literally means A
LEARNER
According to Vine's Expository Dictionary Of
New Testament Words, it denotes "one who
follows another's teaching“
But a disciple was not only a learner, he was
also AN ADHERENT
For this reason disciples were spoken of as
IMITATORS of their teachers.
b). THE GOAL IN BEING A
DISCIPLE...
Stated by Jesus himself: to be like the
teacher - Luke 6:40
To be Christ's disciple, then, is to strive to be
like Him!
According to the apostle Paul, this coincides with
God's goal in the redemption of mankind, that
they be conformed to the image of His Son
- Romans 8:29
2. The Marks of a Disciple
a).DISCIPLE IS "ONE WHO ABIDES IN
JESUS' WORDS"
- John 8:31
This would imply being a diligent student
of the teachings of Christ
It also requires one to be a "doer" of the
Word - Mt 7:21-27;Jm 1:21-25
b) A DISCIPLE IS ALSO "ONE WHO
LOVES THE BRETHREN" - John 13:34-35
With a love patterned after the love of Jesus
("as I have loved you")
With a love that is visible to the world ("by
this all will know")
Therefore, a true disciple would...make every
effort to get to know his brethren
Remember, a disciple is one who wants to
become like his teacher
c) A DISCIPLE IS "ONE WHO BEARS
MUCH FRUIT"
-John 15:8
Notice the word "much" (also found in verse
5)
This is so important, that failure to bear
much fruit will result in being severed from
Christ - Jn 15:1-2
How can one be a disciple if he or she is cut
off from Christ?
3. The Cost of being a Disciple
a) JESUS MUST COME FIRST -
Luke 14:26
Before anyone else, including members of
our own family - Mt 10:34-37
Even before one's own self - Luke 9:23-25
b)WE MUST BE WILLING TO SUFFER
FOR CHRIST
- Luke 14:27
Trying to live godly lives in an ungodly world, we
may find that following Christ sometimes
involves ridicule and persecution – 2 Timothy
3:12
Even if we are blessed to escape such things, we
must still be willing to expend time and effort in
promoting the cause of Christ in positive ways
c). PUTTING IT SIMPLY, WE MUST
FORSAKE ALL TO FOLLOW CHRIST
- Luke 14:33
In other words, Jesus must be KING and LORD
of our lives.
Nothing can take precedent over Him and His
Will for us.
Conclusion
