Devoted Disciples

Intro

Matthew 28:19–20 NKJV

19 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, 20 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.

For the past few weeks, we’ve focused on the importance of discipleship. As Jesus left for heaven, He revealed His plan to His followers, now that I am going, you are to go and tell everyone about me.

For the past few weeks, we’ve focused on the importance of discipleship. As Jesus left for heaven, He revealed His plan to His followers, now that I am going, you are to go and tell everyone about me.

Teach them, train them, and make disciples of them. Jesus did not say, go and make church members or Christians. Instead, His plan is that we would go and make disciples.

Jesus did not say, go and make church members or Christians. Instead, His plan is that we would go and make disciples.

Before we can fulfill the task of making disciples, we have to understand:

What is a disciple?

What is a disciple?

A disciple is a student of a teacher.

A disciple is a student of a teacher.

A disciple is an apprentice.

A disciple is an apprentice.

Each week as I study for the message, I learn a new definition of disciple that intrigues me. This week,

Discipleship means estrangement from the world.

Estrangement is defined, the fact of no longer being on friendly terms or part of a social group.

When we come to Christ, we come with the understanding He will disciple us and make us who He wants us to become.

When we come to Christ, we come with the understanding we are His disciples.

As His disciple, our affection with the world has to cease and our connection with God should increase.

The good news of this truth is Jesus helps make the changes.

-Play Onion Video

Jesus takes us as we are and through the discipleship process removes the layers that do not belong. With each removed layer, we become the person He wants us to become.

In the discipleship process we MUST remember, it is all about what HE does.

I talked to a man this week who is a Discipleship Pastor. He told me he read an article that explains, the question of discipleship is not, what can I do for God. Rather, it is what does God want to do through me.

For God to do what He wants to through us, we make ourselves available to Him. Jesus described this in through the Sermon on the Mount.

Matthew 5:1 NKJV

1 And seeing the multitudes, He went up on a mountain, and when He was seated His disciples came to Him.

With His disciples around Him, He shared with them the how devotion to Him enables God to do what we cannot.

1. Private Devotion

Matthew 6:1–4 NKJV

1 “Take heed that you do not do your charitable deeds before men, to be seen by them. Otherwise you have no reward from your Father in heaven. 2 Therefore, when you do a charitable deed, do not sound a trumpet before you as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets, that they may have glory from men. Assuredly, I say to you, they have their reward. 3 But when you do a charitable deed, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing, 4 that your charitable deed may be in secret; and your Father who sees in secret will Himself reward you openly.

Jesus worked with His disciples to show them what He wanted to do in them. There is a reason His command to go and make disciples came at the end of His earthly ministry and not at the beginning.

For three and a half years He modeled and taught them what it means to be a disciple. He compared the difference between the religious crowd and a true follower of Christ.

He emphasized the private nature of our devotion to Christ.

Before Jesus looked at two important devotions, He focused on the privacy of these disciplines.

Devotion is defined, love, loyalty, or enthusiasm for a person, activity, or cause.

Disciples of Jesus are enthusiastic in their pursuit of drawing closer to Jesus.

Jesus explained the

Drawing closer to Jesus begins in private and He blesses us in the eyes of the public.

Those who are deeply devoted to the Lord do not have to run around telling everyone, LOOK AT HOW DEVOTED I AM TO CHRIST. God’s blessings and their spiritual stability will speak for itself.

This does not mean we should NEVER tell anyone of our prayer life. There are times God will use our lives as a testimony to encourage others.

However, it does mean, everything starts with private disciplines.

Our private devotion enables us to witness and disciple others.

How can I publicly tell others, PRAY, READ THE BIBLE, or GIVE if I do not do them in private. Jesus calls people who do this hypocrites.

What is a hypocrite?

Hypocrites say one thing in public and do another in private.

2. Prayerful Devotion

Matthew 6:5–8 NKJV

5 “And when you pray, you shall not be like the hypocrites. For they love to pray standing in the synagogues and on the corners of the streets, that they may be seen by men. Assuredly, I say to you, they have their reward. 6 But you, when you pray, go into your room, and when you have shut your door, pray to your Father who is in the secret place; and your Father who sees in secret will reward you openly. 7 And when you pray, do not use vain repetitions as the heathen do. For they think that they will be heard for their many words. 8 “Therefore do not be like them. For your Father knows the things you have need of before you ask Him.

Matthew 6:5–7 NKJV

5 “And when you pray, you shall not be like the hypocrites. For they love to pray standing in the synagogues and on the corners of the streets, that they may be seen by men. Assuredly, I say to you, they have their reward. 6 But you, when you pray, go into your room, and when you have shut your door, pray to your Father who is in the secret place; and your Father who sees in secret will reward you openly. 7 And when you pray, do not use vain repetitions as the heathen do. For they think that they will be heard for their many words.

Matthew 6:

What is prayer?

Prayer is communication with God.

We speak to God and God speaks to us.

One author wrote, “True prayer is done in secret, but this does not rule out the fellowship of prayer altogether...”

We pray out loud together in every service, but this is not the only time we need to pray. We need to develop a consistent prayer life.

Jesus modeled a life of prayer.

As the Son of God, He recognized His need for the help of His Father. Therefore, He was intentional to spend time with Him regularly.

When we pray in private, God rewards us in public.

However, the hypocrites, the religious crowd did the opposite. They prayed LOUD in the streets, but they did not have a consistent walk with God.

Prayer develops in our hearts desire to let Jesus have His way in our lives. We do not SAY prayer, we simply pray. We talk to God and He talks to us.

Luke tells us by this point, the disciples asked Jesus, John taught his disciples to pray, Lord, teach us to pray ()

Matthew 6:9–13 NKJV

9 In this manner, therefore, pray: Our Father in heaven, Hallowed be Your name. 10 Your kingdom come. Your will be done On earth as it is in heaven. 11 Give us this day our daily bread. 12 And forgive us our debts, As we forgive our debtors. 13 And do not lead us into temptation, But deliver us from the evil one. For Yours is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever. Amen.

Matthew 6:8–13 NKJV

8 “Therefore do not be like them. For your Father knows the things you have need of before you ask Him. 9 In this manner, therefore, pray: Our Father in heaven, Hallowed be Your name. 10 Your kingdom come. Your will be done On earth as it is in heaven. 11 Give us this day our daily bread. 12 And forgive us our debts, As we forgive our debtors. 13 And do not lead us into temptation, But deliver us from the evil one. For Yours is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever. Amen.

Matthew 6:8-

We praise God in private, honoring His name.

We ask for God to let heaven invade our lives.

We trust the Lord to provide for us.

We believe He will help us forgive others and He will forgive us.

We look to Him in times of temptation.

We worship Him for He is eternally wonderful.

The Lord’s Prayer is less about us and more about Him.

Therefore, Jesus wants His disciples to pray. For our prayer life is an invitation for Jesus to show us what HE wants to do in and through us.

Devoted disciples recognize the private side of walk with Him, and they importance of praying.

3. Persistent Devotion

Luke 9:9–13 NKJV

9 Herod said, “John I have beheaded, but who is this of whom I hear such things?” So he sought to see Him. 10 And the apostles, when they had returned, told Him all that they had done. Then He took them and went aside privately into a deserted place belonging to the city called Bethsaida. 11 But when the multitudes knew it, they followed Him; and He received them and spoke to them about the kingdom of God, and healed those who had need of healing. 12 When the day began to wear away, the twelve came and said to Him, “Send the multitude away, that they may go into the surrounding towns and country, and lodge and get provisions; for we are in a deserted place here.” 13 But He said to them, “You give them something to eat.” And they said, “We have no more than five loaves and two fish, unless we go and buy food for all these people.”

Luke 11:9–13 NKJV

9 “So I say to you, ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you. 10 For everyone who asks receives, and he who seeks finds, and to him who knocks it will be opened. 11 If a son asks for bread from any father among you, will he give him a stone? Or if he asks for a fish, will he give him a serpent instead of a fish? 12 Or if he asks for an egg, will he offer him a scorpion? 13 If you then, being evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask Him!”

Luke 11:5–8 NKJV

5 And He said to them, “Which of you shall have a friend, and go to him at midnight and say to him, ‘Friend, lend me three loaves; 6 for a friend of mine has come to me on his journey, and I have nothing to set before him’; 7 and he will answer from within and say, ‘Do not trouble me; the door is now shut, and my children are with me in bed; I cannot rise and give to you’? 8 I say to you, though he will not rise and give to him because he is his friend, yet because of his persistence he will rise and give him as many as he needs.

Matthew 6:16–18 NKJV

16 “Moreover, when you fast, do not be like the hypocrites, with a sad countenance. For they disfigure their faces that they may appear to men to be fasting. Assuredly, I say to you, they have their reward. 17 But you, when you fast, anoint your head and wash your face, 18 so that you do not appear to men to be fasting, but to your Father who is in the secret place; and your Father who sees in secret will reward you openly.

As a friend that sticks closer than a brother, Jesus wants us to become persistent in cultivating spiritual disciplines.

Half-hearted commitment produces half-hearted results.

Disciples of Jesus pray, study the word, fast, praise, worship, and spend time with Him on a regular basis.

Jesus gives an example of how He wants us become persistent. He instructs us to ask, seek, and knock as many times as it takes.

We never know when Jesus will come through for us. Some people have quit JUST before He answered. Therefore, He calls us to stay the course in our devotional life.

How often should we spend time with Jesus?

Jesus unveils a process for His disciples, the more they draw near to Him, the more He will do in Him what only He can do.

We might think, yeah, but THEY were the disciples, I am just Daniel, how could I ever show such devotion? When we keep asking, seeking, and knocking, He will give us the Holy Spirit to help!

The Holy Spirit helps us do what is humanly impossible.

He gives us power to stay persistent in our private prayer life. Therefore, we must stay devoted.

Close:

I read a book entitled The Spiritual Formation of Leaders last year. The author described what he called the “soul room and the leadership room.”

Much focus is given to leading our families, our business, or our church. However, our leadership flows from our time in private devotion

He used the cup, saucer, and pitcher to make his point.

Personify this principle.

In private the pitcher is poured into the cup, eventually it spills out into the open.

Discipleship works from the inside out and not the outside in.

God does an inner transforming work that people begin to notice. This is a major part of the discipleship process.

Jesus wants to work inside of us, an