Discipleship

Introduction:

Before we get to far into todays message lets first start with the definition of what disciple and/or discipleship means.

Define - Disciple is one who accepts and assists in spreading the doctrines of another.

Disciple fundamentally can mean - “a follower, or someone who is a learner”

A Christian disciple is a person who accepts and assists in the spreading of the good news of Jesus Christ.

There are two types of discipleship and I hope to convey those two types in todays message.

The two types are

1. disciples = followers of Christ - those who have accepted Christ’s claims as being God, who came to this earth in the flesh born of a virgin for the purpose of dyeing for the ransom of all who will except Him as their Lord and Savior

2. disciplers = teaching and instructing others in the Word of God/Jesus

(Share personal Testimony on how disciplers changed and shaped your spiritual life)

1. Discipled by Bill Murphy

2. Discipled by a Young Adult Small Group

Discipleship is a continuation that involves people investing their lives and testimony into other peoples life.

Christian discipleship is the process by which disciples grow in the Lord Jesus Christ and are equipped by the Holy Spirit, who resides in our hearts, to overcome the pressures and trials of this present life and become more and more Christlike. This process requires believers to respond to the Holy Spirit’s prompting to examine their thoughts, words and actions and compare them with the Word of God. This requires that we be in the Word daily—studying it, praying over it, and obeying it.

We have been commissioned by Jesus/God Himself to Go and make disciples

Matthew 28:18–20 NKJV

And Jesus came and spoke to them, saying, “All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth. 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.” Amen.

So now the question is this, How do I do this? How do we make disciples how do we become a discipler?

1. Evangelize - Making disciples of others (Matthew 28:18-20).

We are to share our faith and tell nonbelievers about the wonderful changes Jesus Christ has made in our lives. No matter what our maturity level in the Christian life, we have something to offer. Too often, we believe the lie from Satan that we don't really know enough or haven't been a Christian long enough to make a difference. Not true! Some of the most enthusiastic representatives of the Christian life are new believers who have just discovered the awesome love of God. They may not know a lot of Bible verses or the "accepted" way of saying things, but they have experienced the love of the living God, and that is exactly what we are to share.

Now turn to Mark 8:34-38

Mark 8:34–38 NKJV

When He had called the people to Himself, with His disciples also, He said to them, “Whoever desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow Me. For whoever desires to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake and the gospel’s will save it. For what will it profit a man if he gains the whole world, and loses his own soul? Or what will a man give in exchange for his soul? For whoever is ashamed of Me and My words in this adulterous and sinful generation, of him the Son of Man also will be ashamed when He comes in the glory of His Father with the holy angels.”

2. Put Jesus first in all things (Mark 8:34-38).

The disciple of Christ needs to be set apart from the world. Our focus should be on our Lord and pleasing Him in every area of our lives. We must put off self-centeredness and put on Christ-centeredness.

Not only are we to evangelize as well as put Jesus first in all things, and teaching others to like wise but we are also to follow Jesus’ teachings.

Lets quickly take a look at John 8

John 8:31–32 NKJV

Then Jesus said to those Jews who believed Him, “If you abide in My word, you are My disciples indeed. And you shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.”

3. Follow Jesus' teachings (John 8:31-32).

We must be obedient children and doers of the Word. Obedience is the supreme test of faith in God (1 Samuel 28:18), and Jesus is the perfect example of obedience as He lived a life on earth of complete obedience to the Father even to the point of death

Philippians 2:6–8 NKJV

who, being in the form of God, did not consider it robbery to be equal with God, but made Himself of no reputation, taking the form of a bondservant, and coming in the likeness of men. And being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself and became obedient to the point of death, even the death of the cross.

True Discipleship will always be evident in a follower of Christ. The evidence is in the fruits we bare.

Turn to John 15

John 15:5–8 NKJV

“I am the vine, you are the branches. He who abides in Me, and I in him, bears much fruit; for without Me you can do nothing. If anyone does not abide in Me, he is cast out as a branch and is withered; and they gather them and throw them into the fire, and they are burned. If you abide in Me, and My words abide in you, you will ask what you desire, and it shall be done for you. By this My Father is glorified, that you bear much fruit; so you will be My disciples.

3. Fruitfulness (John 15:5-8).

Our job is not producing fruit. Our job is to abide in Christ, and if we do, the Holy Spirit will produce the fruit, and this fruit is the result of our obedience. As we become more obedient to the Lord and learn to walk in His ways, our lives will change. The biggest change will take place in our hearts, and the overflow of this will be new conduct (thoughts, words and actions) representative of that change. The change we seek is done from the inside out, through the power of the Holy Spirit. It isn’t something we can conjure up on our own. While we are living a life that abiding in Christ we are qualified then to be the disciplers God desires us to be. We can then walk beside another teaching them to observe all the things Christ has commanded.

now the final point I wish to make this morning in regards to discipleship is this.

4. Love for other disciples (John 13:34-35).

This discipleship thing is not a to be a competition. There should never be any kind of prejudice within the body of Christ.

We are told that love of other believers is the evidence of our being a member of God's family (1 John 3:10).

Love is defined and elaborated on in 1 Corinthians 13:1-13. These verses show us that love is not an emotion; it is action.

We must be doing something and involved in the process. Furthermore, we are told to think more highly of others than of ourselves and to look out for their interests (Philippians 2:3-4).

The next verse in Philippians (verse 5) really sums up what we are to do when it comes to everything in life:

Philippians 2:5 NKJV

Let this mind be in you which was also in Christ Jesus,

in its most basic form this is saying "our attitude should be the same as that of Christ Jesus." What a perfect example He is to us for everything we are to do in our Christian walk.

Conclusion:

A disciple of Christ is to a discipler by showing, growing and teaching others to evangelize, teaching others to put Jesus first in their lives, to teach others to follow Jesus’ teachings, to teach others to abide in Christ in order to become good fruit bears, and to teach others to love the brethren, the church.