What is a Disciple Part 1

Me:

1. What do mean by discipleship?

a. What an excellent question!

i. When you have been around church all your life.

ii. Let us start with disciple

We:

2. If we define disciple…

a. Definition one

i. a follower or student of a teacher, leader, or philosopher.

ii. Cult leaders

b. Definition two

i. a personal follower of Jesus during his life, especially one of the twelve Apostles.

ii. If you look in the bible you will see them listed

1. You will find one of those lists in Matt 10:1-4

iii. There were more than just the 12.

iv. You could say that 5000 gathered at one time.

c. Can we be a disciple today?

i. I’m glad you asked

ii. Let me give you a third definition

d. Definition three

i. A disciple of Jesus is one who follows Jesus who is changed by Jesus and is on mission for Jesus.

ii. Three parts

God:

3. Let’s go fishing

a. Fishers of men

i. Luke 5:1–11 (NLT) — 1 One day as Jesus was preaching on the shore of the Sea of Galilee, great crowds pressed in on him to listen to the word of God. 2 He noticed two empty boats at the water’s edge, for the fishermen had left them and were washing their nets. 3 Stepping into one of the boats, Jesus asked Simon, its owner, to push it out into the water. So he sat in the boat and taught the crowds from there. 4 When he had finished speaking, he said to Simon, “Now go out where it is deeper, and let down your nets to catch some fish.” 5 “Master,” Simon replied, “we worked hard all last night and didn’t catch a thing. But if you say so, I’ll let the nets down again.” 6 And this time their nets were so full of fish they began to tear! 7 A shout for help brought their partners in the other boat, and soon both boats were filled with fish and on the verge of sinking. 8 When Simon Peter realized what had happened, he fell to his knees before Jesus and said, “Oh, Lord, please leave me—I’m such a sinful man.” 9 For he was awestruck by the number of fish they had caught, as were the others with him. 10 His partners, James and John, the sons of Zebedee, were also amazed. Jesus replied to Simon, “Don’t be afraid! From now on you’ll be fishing for people!” 11 And as soon as they landed, they left everything and followed Jesus.

ii.

iii. A disciple of Jesus is someone that follows Him.

iv. Let’s break that down even further.

b. It was a big deal to be a disciple of a Rabbi

i. They would have saw that Jesus was a great teacher

ii. It’s certain they had seen other miracles beside these

iii. But they were so convinced that he was the messiah they left everything to follow him

iv. They became his disciples

v. Let me show you the contrast from those followers to today

You:

4. I am saved

a. Saved form what?

i. From my sins and I will go to heaven

ii. And that’s all I want

iii. But I will my life the way I want

iv. See Matthew 7:21-23

b. You are not a disciple of Jesus

i. Many in that day had the same idea

ii. They listen to his teaching was healed by his touch but…

iii. Luke 9:57–62 (NLT) — 57 As they were walking along, someone said to Jesus, “I will follow you wherever you go.” 58 But Jesus replied, “Foxes have dens to live in, and birds have nests, but the Son of Man has no place even to lay his head.” 59 He said to another person, “Come, follow me.” The man agreed, but he said, “Lord, first let me return home and bury my father.” 60 But Jesus told him, “Let the spiritually dead bury their own dead! Your duty is to go and preach about the Kingdom of God.” 61 Another said, “Yes, Lord, I will follow you, but first let me say good-bye to my family.” 62 But Jesus told him, “Anyone who puts a hand to the plow and then looks back is not fit for the Kingdom of God.”

c. Here’s the point

i. Following Jesus requires us to adjust our lives

ii. The things seem so important

iii. God says they are not.

iv. E.g. Peter just had the greatest catch of his career and he leaves it all behind.

v. We can make excuses

We:

5. Making him Lord

a. Following Jesus recognizes that Jesus is the authority in our lives

i. Matthew 16:24–28 (NLT) — 24 Then Jesus said to his disciples, “If any of you wants to be my follower, you must give up your own way, take up your cross, and follow me. 25 If you try to hang on to your life, you will lose it. But if you give up your life for my sake, you will save it. 26 And what do you benefit if you gain the whole world but lose your own soul? Is anything worth more than your soul? 27 For the Son of Man will come with his angels in the glory of his Father and will judge all people according to their deeds. 28 And I tell you the truth, some standing here right now will not die before they see the Son of Man coming in his Kingdom.”

ii. Are you willing to make him Lord?

iii. Are you willing to follow him?

iv. Most will say no.

v. A few will say yes.

vi. The process of becoming a disciple is called discipleship

vii. Hiking a trail, A beautiful picture

viii. 2021 a year of discipleship