Jesus Model of Discipleship TEXT: Matthew 4:18-25; 16:24; Mark 1:16-20; Lk.14:25-35 2 John 9 (AMP) - Anyone who runs o...
 |
| Jesus Model of Discipleship |
TEXT:
Matthew 4:18-25; 16:24; Mark 1:16-20; Lk.14:25-35
2 John 9 (AMP) - Anyone who runs on ahead
and does not remain in the doctrine
of Christ [that is, one who is not
content with what He taught], does not have God; but the one who continues to
remain in the teaching [of Christ does have God], he has both the Father and
the Son.
INTRODUCTION: For over three years, the Master - Jesus Christ taught the Apostles
and the other disciples. He taught in various places; in the temple (Jn.7:14),
the synagogue (Mt.4:23), the villages, in houses, at the shore (Mk.6:34), in
the boat (Lk 5:3), on the mountain (Mt.5:1-2) in the city,. Jesus taught at
various times; very early in the morning (Jn 8:2) and in the night (Jn.3:2).
With authority and power never seen nor experienced before, Jesus expounded the
word of life (Mt.7:29; Lk.4:32). He taught was He was, and He was what He
taught. In lesson 1, we see Jesus setting for us an example of baptism. And in
the second lesson, He taught by His practical life how to face and respond to
temptations, trial, and crisis in life. In lesson 3, the Holy Spirit taught the
core of Jesus message which is repentance and the Kingdom of God. In this
lesson we will be discussing Jesus model of discipleship and disciple-making.
1. WHO IS A DISCIPLE ? A disciple is a person in process. The
process begins when a person receives Christ and becomes a learner, and will
continue as long as the person keeps learning. A disciple is a follower of
Jesus principles, teachings and lifestyle. A person eager to learn and apply
the truths that Jesus Christ teaches him, which will result in ever-deepening
commitments to a Christlike lifestyle. The concept of disciple represents an
attitude of commitment. He is the new-born babe that need a spiritual parent to
care, protect, nurture and training him.
WHAT IS DISCIPLEMAKING ? Disciplemaking
is the process of training and bringing spiritual children to a place of mature
fellowship with Christ and service in the church. It is the integration of new
converts into the church, to keep them enlisted, to build them up spiritually
until they are able to lead others to Christ and in turn become spiritual
parents. It is the art of spiritual parenthood. Discipleship is the process of
reproducing Christ's Life in You into the life of another. (1 Corinthians
11:1).
Making Disciples is more than a “Transfer
of Biblical Knowledge”, it is a “Commitment to Spiritual Parenting”. Colossians
1:28-29. Paul’s passion was to help every believer to reach the level of
spiritual maturity that God has intended. If God’s intention is for believers
to become spiritually mature, then one must ask, “why are so many
believers
immature”? MT. 27:57; Acts 14:21 . Discipleship = Spiritual Parenting (1 Thess.
2:6-8,11-12; 1 Cor. 4:15; 1 Tim. 1:2; Titus 1:4). “A disciple is not above his
teacher, but everyone who is perfectly trained will be like his
teacher,” (Luke 6:40).
2.
The Call of Discipleship. You are called unto the fellowship of His Son. (1 Cor.1:9)
In both the Greek and
Latin the word is translated as ‘learner ‘
or ‘scholar.’ In all cases
discipleship implies that the learner not only accepts the views of the master
but also practices them. “A disciple is
not above his teacher, but everyone who is perfectly trained will be like his
teacher,” (Luke 6:40). The goal is
men and women who become more and
more like Jesus—and are able to pass this character on to others and help
them do the same. “And we all, who with unveiled faces contemplate the Lord’s
glory, are being transformed into his image with ever-increasing glory, which
comes from the Lord, who is the Spirit,” (2 Corinthians 3:18).
3. The true goal of
Disciplesip. Follow
me…and I will make you fishers of men. (Matt 4:19). It’s not to generate Bible scholars
or evangelists, or counselors or even leaders. The result of discipleship is
someone who is like Jesus. “When they saw the courage of Peter and John and
realized that they were unschooled, ordinary men, they were astonished and they
took note that these men had been with Jesus,” (Acts 4:13).
The apostle Paul, who devoted his life to equipping believers to be
followers of Jesus, embraced this. No wonder he wrote: “Be imitators of me,
just as I also am of Christ,” (1 Corinthians 11:1, NASB).
4.
The Cost and Demand of Discipleship - Luke 14:25-35; Mt.16:24
Counting the
Cost: Jesus clearly taught His disciples about counting the cost of becoming a
disciple.
In
Mathew 21:28-32 Jesus tells a parable of a man who had two sons. He tells the
first to go and work in the vineyard and he refuses to go, but afterwards
repents and goes. The second says he will go but does not obey.
When Jesus
calls us as His disciples He tells us to go and work in His vineyard. To
quickly say we will go and then turn back is hypocrisy and brings shame. We
need therefore to count the cost first. We need to ask ourselves if we really
believe the Gospel, if we really know the Lord. If we are convinced we should
follow with all our hearts. There are many in the church today who say “yes
Lord” but do not obey in practice.
To truly
follow Jesus Christ, we must consider the cost and put Him above everything
else. It’s either all or nothing. Jesus must come before personal relationships
(mother, father…..Lk.14:26-27); personal reputation and realization (…..yes,
even their own life…Lk.14:26) Salvation is both absolutely free and yet it
costs you your very life. You receive it freely at no expense to you, but once
you receive it, you have just committed everything you are and have to Jesus
Christ (Lk.14:33). It requires the hardwork and planning of a builder
(Lk.14:28-30), the discipline and courage of a warrior (Lk.14:31-32), and the
genuineness and thoroughness of a witness (Lk.14:34- 35).To follow Jesus is to
be a practical witness and expression of His person and power. Able to flavour,
heal, burn and penetrate like salt impacting His domain for Jesus. We must also
consider the ridicule of not counting the cost before following Jesus.
a. The Disciple Must Deny
Himself: Then said
Jesus unto his disciples, if any man will come after me, let him first deny
himself, take up his cross, and follow me. (Matt. 16:24). The Greek for ‘deny’
means to ‘totally reject.’ This does not mean that we are to reject ourselves
in the obvious sense. It means to totally reject the self-will, the desire to
do our own thing, to follow our own goals and ambitions in order to follow
Christ. Denying self is not about denying things
but Denying SELF. Denying self is much more than doing without
certain kinds of food, going without sleep, or doing without
certain pleasures. Jesus didn’t say deny yourself things. It’s denying yourself.
Simon Peter
forsook his nets early on, but it was a long time before Simon Peter forsook
Simon Peter. Are you ready now to take Self off the throne and enthrone Jesus
there instead? Are you ready to say, “None of me and all of Thee”?”
b.
Surrender to Christ: We must turn from the Kingdom of self into the Kingdom of God. When
we do that Jesus becomes our King, and we must therefore obey Him. To deny
oneself means that we surrender our will, our affections, our body, our soul.
We no longer seek our own happiness, but seek the Kingdom of God.
c. Obey Christ. Not everyone who says to me ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter into the Kingdom
of heaven, but only he who
does the will of my Father who is in Heaven. (Matt.7:21) Jesus here
shows the important of simple obedience.” It
is obedience more than profession that makes us disciples.
Throughout the Old Testament we see the whole-
hearted obedience that was required of man.
·
To the Israelites it was to
obey; “With all your heart and all y our soul.” (Deut. 26:16)
·
To Joshua it was the price of
success. (Jos 1:8)
·
To Abraham it demanded he give
up the thing most dear to him, his only son. (Gen 22:2ff)
·
For Saul it was better
than sacrifice. In vv22-23. God points out ti him the absolute
need for obedience. (1 Sam.1:15)
d.
Love Christ above all else. Priotise the Kingdom and its Righteousness. If anyone comes to me and does not hate his own father and mother
and wife and children and brothers and sisters and yes even his own life, he
cannot be my disciple. (Luke 14:26)
This word
‘hate’ is used elsewhere in Scripture to denote this same thought. Gen.29:30,
31. Jacob loved Rachel and ‘hated’ Leah, meaning that he loved Leah far less
but did not abhor her. The love we have for even ourselves must be so far less
than that we have for Jesus that by comparison it might be termed hated. Luke
10:27 Commands to love the Lord “with all your heart, and with all your soul,
and with all your strength, and with all
your might.”
Jesus must be our ‘first love’!
e.
The Disciple Must Bear His Cross: The expression to ‘carry our own cross’ would therefore mean to
‘endure whatever comes our way because
we have made a decision
to follow Christ.’
Who for the joy that was
set before Him suffered the
cross, and endured the shame. (Heb.12:2). In seeking to do the will of God we
will have to endure hardships and even persecution. This is the cross that we
have to bear. A servant is not greater than his master, if they persecuted me
they will persecute you also! (John 15:20). All who desire to live a godly life
in Christ Jesus will suffer persecution. (2 Tim. 3:12). We know that our old
self was crucified with him so that the sinful body might be destroyed, and we
might no longer be enslaved to sin. (Rom. 6:6). For I am crucified with Christ.
(Gal. 2:20). And those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh.
with its passions and desires. (Gal. 5:24). The cross was an implement of slow,
tortuous death. Jesus here is looking at the process of daily death to selfish
desires and of the willingness to bear reproach for His name’s sake. Since our
Savior suffered the rejection and agony of the cross, if we follow after Him,
we must be prepared for the same treatment. If people revile us for being
Christians, we must bless them in return (Rom. 12:14). We should never do
anything to provoke persecution, but if we suffer for the sake of
righteousness, we must entrust our souls to a faithful Creator in doing what is
right (1 Pet. 4:19).
f. WE MUST GIVE UP ALL OUR
POSSESSIONS (14:33): After telling the two
parables about considering the cost before making a commitment, Jesus
concludes, “So therefore, no one of you can be My disciple who does not give up
all his own possessions.” Does Jesus mean this literally, that we must get rid
of everything we own and take a vow of poverty in order to be a Christian? What
does He mean? I believe that Jesus is getting at the fact that there are two
possible lords that we can serve and the two are exclusive: God or Mammon. Most
of us think that we can combine them, with God taking the lead: “I’ll serve God
mostly, but I’d also like to serve money.” But Jesus says that won’t work: “You
cannot serve God and Mammon” (Luke 16:13, emphasis mine). In other words, you
can’t just add Jesus to your already materialistic lifestyle as a way of
rounding out your spiritual needs. To be a Christian means that you have been
bought with a price and you are not your own (1 Cor. 6:19-20). Nothing you own
is your own. You become the slave of Jesus Christ and He owns everything. To follow Christ truly, we must put Him
above everything else in life
g.
The Disciple Must Follow Jesus: The main Greek word used for ‘following’ is ‘akoloutheo.’
(Denying self, taking up the cross, and counting the cost, are simply preparations of the heart,
attitude and mind to follow Jesus.) Following is
taking His yoke upon us so that we might learn of Him. In this sense the
‘following’ is the beginning of discipleship. It is as we follow that we become
a disciple.
Note the reaction of James and John to the call of Jesus in Mathew
4:22. They immediately left the boat and their father, and followed Him. Jesus
waits patiently through
our deliberations and considerations for our commitment to follow Him.
Conclusion: Is
there any relationship that comes ahead of Christ in your life? If He is first,
then obviously you will be spending consistent time alone with Him in His Word,
in prayer, and in devotion. You will be fellowshipping with Him every day. You
won’t allow any other relationship to draw you away from obedience to Him. You
will confess and forsake every sin that hinders fellowship with Him.
Is
He the Lord of your plans, your thoughts, and of all that you do? Or, could you
selfishly be clinging to your plans, to your way, instead of seeking to please
Him in all things, beginning with every thought that you
entertain? If
you don’t hate your own life and daily carry your cross, you’re not His
disciple.
Is He Lord of
your finances and possessions? Are you faithful in managing these things for
His purposes? Do you give generously and faithfully to His work? Or, could the
love of money be choking out the Word in your life?
Salvation is absolutely free, but once you receive it, it costs you
everything. To truly follow Christ, we must
consider the cost
and put Him above everything else. “He who has ears to hear, let him hear.”
Are you personally following Jesus? Does
your day revolve around Him: as you start the day with seeking Him, as you go
through the day serving Him, and end the day with thanking Him? Believers are
Christ's personal followers in a Christ-less world.
No comments