Disciple Making – What is a Disciple?
I came to Christ as a young boy at around 8 years old. My mother was my Sunday school teacher at the time and one of the challenges we were working through in the class was to memorize the 10 Commandments. The reward for memorizing them was a brand new set of 50 markers. As a budding artist, I was intent on winning those markers so I set my heart to memorizing the Decalogue.
As I was working steadily through my memorization plan, I began to sense an uneasiness settling into my heart. I found my heart oddly discouraged. With each passing commandment I memorized, I became more concerned about my standing with God. “What if I don’t keep all the “rules?” What if I slip up? How much margin is there for error here? (words like margin were not in my 8-year-old vocabulary to be sure).
As I struggled through memorization goal, my mother was prompted by the Holy Spirit to share the Good News of the Gospel with me. She helped me understand that one of the main reasons the Law of God exists is to show us how much we need God and that we cannot do enough to overcome our sin. That day, I gave my life to Christ.
Yet, in spite of this wonderful moment in my life, I was never trained or taught what it means to be a disciple of Jesus. I thought that was for a select group of super Christians. I now know differently. All followers of Jesus are disciples. But what are the marks of a disciple of Jesus?
1.) A DISCIPLE WORSHIPS JESUS
To say that a disciple worships Jesus is to say that our affections are increasingly directed toward Jesus. The starting point of discipleship starts in the heart. Have we been captured by the magnificence of Jesus? So many things are warring for our hearts. The disciple of Jesus is always aware of this war and seeking to settle his/her on Christ as their supreme treasure.
So many followers of Jesus choose to not engage in his war and find themselves at the mercy of worldly affections like material gain, vocational upward mobility, sexual conquest, and physical fitness. Money, work, sex and our bodies are gifts given by God to his people. But often times these gifts are shaped into little idols that we hang on the mantles of our hearts and minds ruling everything about us.
To worship Jesus is to seek daily to see his preeminence and glory and see that all else fail by comparison.
2.) A DISCIPLE IS CHANGED BY JESUS
When we are true worshipers of Jesus, we will no doubt be changed by Him. Think about the close relationships you have in your life. Can you not see how they have affected you? Have you ever heard the old adage that pets and their owners start to look like one another over time? I am pretty sure that was the case with me and my bulldog, Jack. The answer is clear. If you are in a meaningful relationship with someone, you will begin to change over time. The closer the relationship, the more transformational impact that relationship has on us.
Amanda and I have been married for 13 years. There is no doubt that she has played an enormous role in my life for the good. The values I have now were no doubt shaped by her and visa versa. The Lord has designed us this way.
Meaningful discipleship assumes that we are in close relational proximity to Jesus. Are you? How is your prayer life? Are Bible reading and reflection part of your daily rhythms. These along with the church are the means of grace given by Jesus
3.) A DISCIPLE OBEYS JESUS
As we draw nearer and nearer to Jesus, our desire to leverage our lives for him increases. This means we start seeing every sphere of our lives as something that is being lived out under His rule and reign. As he now resides at the right hand of His Father in heaven, he wields his heavenly sceptor through person and work of the Holy Spirit in the church.
So how are we doing in this?
As Grace, we use the adage “Time”, “Talent” & “Treasure.” Is your time leveraged for Kingdom advancement? What would this look like? At work, do you do your best work you can with the goal of human flourishing? At home, do we take the necessary time to teach our kids sound doctrine and the Bible through catechism and Bible memory? Do you attend to your own self-care through Christ-centered brother or sisterhood, good nutrition, exercise, and sleep patterns are you do lazily waste away because you have burned your candle at both ends. I admit that this is me more often than I like to admit. As I press into meaningful brotherhood at Grace, God is changing that.
How about your talent? Are you using your gifts to help shape and grow the church OR are you waiting on someone else to do what you have been called & designed to do at Grace Church? Beyond the time needed, we often afraid that we don’t know enough to teach a class or we will fail on doing the task we are assigned to do. But God is patient with His people and the best teachers, leaders and servants are the ones who just do something. What do you need to do this week?
Lastly, our treasure is a sticky point. During the summer, people plan a vacation but in the process stop or delay giving because they have not planned better for their summer activities. It’s tough. We shouldn’t presume to know every circumstance that our brothers and sisters face but this is a common one. Perhaps you are in so much debt that giving to the church just seems impossible. Whatever your situation, giving is tough for many people. But there is a simple truth in Scripture that “to him who is faithful with little, God will make faithful over much.” If debt or poor planning are reasons why giving is strained, then ask God to help you reassess your situation, make a debt relief plan for 6-12 months. We did this a few years ago and 3 things happened. 1. We started seeing real progress in paying down debt. 2. We started actually giving consistently and generously to the church. 3. We began to be unyoked from our financial slavery to the “now” and became slaves to Christ.
There are many other things we can say about what a disciple is or is not. I hope this is a good start. As I close, let me share with you what a disciple is not in 4 quick one sentence thoughts:
1. Disciples are not super Christians
2. Disciples are not sinless or perfect but repentant followers of Jesus.
3. Disciples are not Bible experts but humble Bible explorers.
4. Disciples are not risk takers but faithful.
Selah!
