What is a Disciple?
Mark: Truth in Troubled Times • Sermon • Submitted
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Lost in Translation
Lost in Translation
Disciple - it is a word we throw around , it is a title we use, a designator for those in the group but do we really understand what it is
Mathetis - in Greek - learner or pupil
Disciple - a follower or student of a teacher, leader, or philosopher.
With this definition - everyone here is a disciple
We are all following something or someone
Jesus did not come to make better people - He cam to make disciples
"Christianity without discipleship
is always Christianity without Christ."
~ Dietrich Bonhoeffer
He appointed twelve, whom he also named apostles, to be with him, to send them out to preach,
So I just call myself a disciple instead of follower - no problem, I said a prayer, I come to church/ watch online, I give some money, i am even in a small group
Here is where we get lost in translation
Everyone is a disciple, but a Disciple of Jesus is and must be distinctive
It is not just about what you do, but more about who you are becoming
1st century disciples of Rabbis had one goal - be and do just like their Rabbi
Covered in the Dust of you Rabbi - walk so close that the dust the Rabbi kicks up covers me
“A disciple is a learner, a student, an apprentice – a practitioner… Disciples of Jesus are people who do not just profess certain views as their own but apply their growing understanding of life in the Kingdom of the Heavens to every aspect of their life on earth.” ~ Dallas Willard
Every part of your life touched and transformed by Christ
Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has passed away, and see, the new has come!
It’s the goal of our faith
For those he foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son, so that he would be the firstborn among many brothers and sisters.
Today we look at what a disciple is not and what one is
Mark 3
Let’s pray
What a disciple is not
Jesus entered the synagogue again, and a man was there who had a shriveled hand. In order to accuse him, they were watching him closely to see whether he would heal him on the Sabbath.
Set the scene - Jesus - Pharisees - man in need - it is the Sabbath
Perfect storm - you see they were watching to look for a reason
Pharisees - disciple of Moses - held so tightly to the law they could see nothing else
No some one like that - so locked in tradition, history, political views, or their sense of what is right they won’t bend
Here’s what happens when it becomes about doing instead of being
Use the bible as a binoculars instead of a mirror
In order to accuse him, they were watching him closely to see whether he would heal him on the Sabbath.
We use it to accuse others instead of allowing it to transform us
What was the point of the law - to be a good person or to point us to the only one who is good
Add extra rules to God’s rules
In order to accuse him, they were watching him closely to see whether he would heal him on the Sabbath.
We add things - the way we dress, the music, the time, the location
The opposite extreme is bad too - no law , I am NT Christian
“Don’t think that I came to abolish the Law or the Prophets. I did not come to abolish but to fulfill.
We still have the guidelines - we still follow - but we are saved by Grace
Loving rules and ideas more than people
After looking around at them with anger, he was grieved at the hardness of their hearts and told the man, “Stretch out your hand.” So he stretched it out, and his hand was restored.
When we care more about the carpet and it getting stained - we are no longer following same Jesus
“Being a Christian is less about cautiously avoiding sin than about courageously and actively doing God’s will.” ~ Dietrich Bonhoeffer
What a disciple is
He appointed twelve, whom he also named apostles, to be with him, to send them out to preach,
Presence - with Jesus
You are with Jesus - in his word, in a church, I am talking to Him and listening to Him
It is about abiding - dwelling in Him
I am the vine; you are the branches. The one who remains in me and I in him produces much fruit, because you can do nothing without me.
Preaching - words of Jesus
He appointed twelve, whom he also named apostles, to be with him, to send them out to preach,
Go tell the story - if i truly know Him - I will share Him
Don’t be afraid of that word - preaching -your life already preaches what you believe
We proclaim Christ everyday - how will determine if others find Him to be a big deal too
Power -works of Jesus
and to have authority to drive out demons.
It is not our own strength, we don’t save anyone
It is the indwelling of the Holy Spirit that enables us
“Be Filled”
and to know Christ’s love that surpasses knowledge, so that you may be filled with all the fullness of God.
Our lives should be marked by this power - outward evidence of inward transformation
Please understand - I’m not talking about earning anything
“Grace is not opposed to effort, it is opposed to earning. Earning is an attitude. Effort is an action. Grace, you know, does not just have to do with forgiveness of sins alone.”
~ Dallas Willard
Disciples
Disciples
We are all disciples - we are following and representing something
My question is - what value is that something
I only know of one who will transform lives and eternities
For those he foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son, so that he would be the firstborn among many brothers and sisters. And those he predestined, he also called; and those he called, he also justified; and those he justified, he also glorified.
That’s the goal of our faith - become like Jesus
This is being a disciple
When we get this - it changes everything
Church becomes lees about me and all about Him and His kingdom
We would not have to talk about giving, small groups, ministry needs, evangelism
Disciples would be all over that stuff
What are you disciple of? Does it show? - Let’s pray