Foundational Function-Discipleship Part 1

2ndFoundational Function of the Church

Introduction

Illustration-Electrical apprenticeship

Why does the church exist as a gathered community?

Specifically, What does God intend to happen to His people as they gather as a community of believers?

Answer: The church exists as a gathered community for Edification or Discipleship –

· To strengthen each other for spiritual growth and development (become more like Jesus)

· To help each other in their walk with Christ,

· To equip each other for ministry.

This is accomplished with:

· Teaching and preaching of Word

· Bible study, both group and one on one

· Fellowship-spending time with each other, involved in each other’s lives

Not only is discipleship spending time with each other, it is also spending time with Jesus

Spending time with Jesus is absolutely necessary to be His Disciple

· Prayer, worship, and Scripture study

To be effective in discipling others, we must first be a committed, obedient disciple to Jesus.

· A disciple is - A follower or learner of Christ. A disciple is one who has come to faith in Jesus Christ.

· During Christ’s ministry on earth, He was the Teacher with a capitol T.

· And the 12 men Jesus chose to follow Him learned from Him.

· These 12 apostles were the first disciples.

· We’ve talked about when we come to faith, we have a new purpose for our life. New priorities and desires.

· Loving God and loving others is the driving force in our life.

· But we haven’t looked into what that looks like.

· We will look at Matthew 16:24-26 for a more in-depth look as well as characteristics of a disciple of Jesus.

Text

Matthew 16:21, 24-26

21 From that time Jesus began to show his disciples that he must go to Jerusalem and suffer many things from the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be killed, and on the third day be raised.

24 Then Jesus said to His disciples, “If anyone wishes to come after Me, he must deny himself, and take up his cross and follow Me.

25 “For whoever wishes to save his life will lose it; but whoever loses his life for My sake will find it.

26 “For what will it profit a man if he gains the whole world and forfeits his soul? Or what will a man give in exchange for his soul?

Exegesis

Context: Vs 21 sets up the context of these versus:

· “From that time”, marks a new stage in the Gospel’s events. It shifts from His ministry to the road to the cross.

· Jesus is preparing His disciples as He foretells His death and resurrection

· What Jesus is teaching us in 24-26 is in light of eternal life-what is accomplished by Christ’s suffering, death, and resurrection

· He is also preparing His disciples for how they should live and the mindset they should have if they are to follow Him

· It also indicates how costly it is to be a disciple of Jesus

· Jesus came as a humble suffering servant denying Himself and sacrificing His life for the forgiveness of sin.

· So we too must deny ourselves and sacrifice our lives to follow Him

· The text starts with, “If anyone would come after me (would follow me) lets us know what He is teaching is for all believers of all time.

· “Must deny” – 3rdperson imperative or command. In Greek, means it is essential to deny.

· Same word Jesus uses in vs 21. It too is essential that Jesus will suffer, die, and be resurrected.

· 3 actions: Come, deny, and take up - Death to self is not so much a prerequisite of discipleship to Jesus as a continuing characteristic of it. Each is in the present tense, disciples must heed them continually.

· “Take up his cross” - expect and go through suffering as Jesus did. To accept that we will be rejected by the world because of our faith just as Jesus was rejected.

· Like Christ’s literal death, we die to self, live for Christ.

· However, suffering on earth for Christ’s name sake leads to eternal glory in Heaven.

John 18-20

18 “If the world hates you, know that it has hated me before it hated you. 19 If you were of the world, the world would love you as its own; but because you are not of the world, but I chose you out of the world, therefore the world hates you. 20 Remember the word that I said to you: ‘A servant is not greater than his master.’ If they persecuted me, they will also persecute you. If they kept my word, they will also keep yours

· To give your whole self to Jesus and share in His suffering and rejection.

· Paul in Galatians 2:20

20 I have been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me. And the life I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me.

· “Life” vs “Soul” – Our priorities and what we value in our life on earth determines where our soul resides in eternity.

· Question ourselves: Do we live for the world now, or do we live for the world to come? You can’t have both.

Since taking up our cross is dying to self, it means that we are obedient to every command Jesus gives us

· If we proclaim we are Christians, we can’t just pick and choose the commands the commands we agree with and those we don’t agree with.

· We can’t pick and choose the ones we will obey.

· This is idolatry because we have made ourselves God.

Biblical definition of obedience

· Hearing God’s Word and acting accordingly; to trust, submit to, and surrender to God’s Word.

6 ways as to why obedience important?

1. Jesus calls us to obey

John 14:15, 20-21

15 “If you love me, you will keep my commandments.

20 In that day you will know that I am in my Father, and you in me, and I in you. 21 Whoever has my commandments and keeps them, he it is who loves me. And he who loves me will be loved by my Father, and I will love him and manifest myself to him.”

2. Obedience is the foundation we build our lives on

Matthew 7:24-27

24 “Everyone then who hears these words of mine and does them will be like a wise man who built his house on the rock. 25 And the rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew and beat on that house, but it did not fall, because it had been founded on the rock. 26 And everyone who hears these words of mine and does not do them will be like a foolish man who built his house on the sand. 27 And the rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew and beat against that house, and it fell, and great was the fall of it.”

3. Obedience is an act of worship

· True obedience comes from a heart of gratitude for the grace and mercy shown to us through Christ’s work on the cross.

4. God rewards obedience

Luke 11:28

“Blessed rather are those who hear the word of God and keep it!”

5. Obedience shows our love for God and for others

1 John 5:2-3

2 By this we know that we love the children of God, when we love God and obey his commandments. 3 For this is the love of God, that we keep his commandments. And his commandments are not burdensome.

6. Obedience demonstrates our saving faith

James 2:14-17

14 What good is it, my brothers, if someone says he has faith but does not have works? Can that faith save him? 15 If a brother or sister is poorly clothed and lacking in daily food, 16 and one of you says to them, “Go in peace, be warmed and filled,” without giving them the things needed for the body, what good is that? 17 So also faith by itself, if it does not have works, is dead.

Conclusion

· We looked only at a few versus in Matthew today. However, Matthew’s Gospel as a whole teaches us that to be a disciple of Jesus requires us:

· To believe all that Jesus says.

· To obey all that Jesus commands

· And to imitate all that Jesus does.

We can’t do this on our own strength

· Life transformation to denyourselves and live for Jesus, to obey His commands comes from receiving the grace of God through Christ’s death on the cross.

· And we only have the power to do it through the indwelling Holy Spirit sent to us after Christ’s accenssion.

Application

1. We must count the costs for following Jesus

· “If anyone should come after me”

· Add, “If anyone makes up their mind to come after me”

· Jesus wants each of us to choose whether or not we could or would give up all things, including ourselves to follow Him.

· He wants His disciples to be resolved to lose their life for Jesus as He was to lose His life to redeem sinners

We must choose between two approaches to life

· Deny yourself

Live for yourself

· Take up your cross

Ignore the cross

· Follow Christ

Follow the world

· Lose your life for His sake

Save your life for your own sake

· Forsake the world

Gain the world

· Keep your soul

Lose your soul

· Share His reward in eternity

Lose His reward in eternity

2. Review the passages listed on bulletin

· Personal evaluation regarding a disciple of Jesus

· Are there commands you are ignoring, why is that?

· And if so, are you now willing to be transformed by the Word of God preached today to obey all of Christ’s commands?