WHO IS A DISCIPLE? Matthew 28:19-20 “Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptising them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit; And teaching them to obey everything that I have taught you. And surely, I am with you always, to the end of the age.” NIV The dictionary defines a disciple as one who follows the teaching of a religious leader. The word disciple is basically a New Testament word. It is found several times there, but only once in the Old Testament. But discipleship is mainly used of followers of Jesus Christ. In the Great Commission, the Lord commands to go and make disciples of all nations. He wants disciples, not just converts. Conversion is the beginning of the life of a disciple. The purpose of discipleship is to continue the walk you have begun. Jesus told those who believed in him, John 8:31-32 “If ye continue in my word, then are ye my disciples indeed.” To commence and not complete is not good. Who then is a disciple? In the simplest of terms, a disciple is a learner or student. He follows another to learn from them. A disciple is like an apprentice, one who learns a trade or job from a master. He continues until they become a master. In Christianity, it is a lifelong study. After conversion, the disciple of Christ submits to water baptism and thereafter, commences a lifetime of learning the teachings of Jesus Christ. Our Lord commanded, "Teaching them to observe or obey all things that I have taught you." But learning from Christ implies implicit obedience. Our Lord said to obey all things that I have taught you. Ministers of God are to teach all that Christ taught. The Lord taught many things: repentance, righteousness, judgment, hell, heaven, Christ's coming, anger, forgiveness, meekness, humility, etc. It takes the complete teachings of Christ to make a complete Christian. The more you know about Christ's teachings and submit to them, the more you become like him. Indeed, Jesus said, Matthew 11:29 “Learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart.” As you learn, you are transformed into his image. May you become a true disciple of Jesus Christ! Welcome to a brand New Year, 2023, the year of Great Possibilities! STEPS TO BECOMING A DISCIPLE: REPENTANCE Acts 2:38 "Then Peter said unto them, Repent, and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins, and ye shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost." We know that a disciple is a follower of Christ Jesus. It begins when you submit to the claims of Christ. You accept that you a sinner, lost without Jesus and that you cannot save yourself. God loves you and sent his Son Jesus Christ to die for your sins on the cross. You are convicted of your sins, become sorry for them and repent. You turn away from sin to righteousness, from darkness to light, and from the power of Satan to the power of God. When you repent and believe in Jesus Christ, your sins are forgiven. The blood of Jesus cleanses you from all sin. The mercy of God reaches out to you for whoever confesses their sins and forsakes them shall obtain mercy (Proverbs 28:13). Repentance is the first step leading to salvation or conversion. You cannot be saved without repentance, a complete turning away from sin. You hate sin and run away from it. On the other hand, you love righteousness and embrace it. You have a new desire for the things of God. The Lord Jesus Christ taught extensively on repentance from the beginning of his ministry to the end. Mark 1:15 "The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand: repent ye, and believe the gospel." Luke 13:3 "I tell you, Nay: but, except ye repent, ye shall all likewise perish." Luke 24:47 "And that repentance and remission of sins should be preached in his name among all nations, beginning at Jerusalem." Repentance secures us forgiveness of sins, peace and mercy. If you don't repent, you will perish and be lost. However, God is not willing that any should perish but that all should come to repentance. There is joy and celebration in heaven over every soul who repents. At Pentecost, Peter urged those who heard him to repent and they did. The Bible commands all men everywhere to repent because of the coming judgment (Acts 17:30-31). Repent today if you have not done so already. STEPS TO BECOMING A DISCIPLE:BELIEVING THE GOSPEL Mark 1:15 "The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand: repent ye, and believe the gospel." Repentance and believing the gospel are the two necessary steps to salvation. They open the entrance into the kingdom of God. It is impossible for one to be saved and enter into the kingdom without these steps. What exactly is the gospel? It is the good news of what Jesus did on cross for mankind. Paul sums it up beautifully, 1 Corinthians 15:3-4 "For I delivered unto you first of all that which I also received, how that Christ died for our sins according to the scriptures; And that he was buried, and that he rose again the third day according to the scriptures." First, Christ died for our sins. Second, he was buried. Third, he rose again the third day. Fourth, believing these facts brings us justification as God imputes to us his righteousness. Romans 4:24-25 "But for us also, to whom it shall be imputed, if we believe on him that raised up Jesus our Lord from the dead; Who was delivered for our offences, and was raised again for our justification." When a sinner believe these facts (the gospel), they are acquitted and discharged in the law court of God. They are freed from all charges. It is as if they have never sinned. He takes away our sins and gives us his righteousness. To be a disciple of Christ, you must first repent of your sins and believe on the Lord's finished work at Calvary. When you do, you are washed in the blood of Jesus, your sins are forgiven; the power of sin is broken in your life, you receive power to become a child of God. Your name is written in the book of life; you have passed from death to life. Peace, joy and righteousness become your portion. Old things are passed away; everything becomes new. You have access to the Father because you are a royal son of the kingdom of God. This is the beginning of dynamic discipleship. STEPS TO BECOMING A DISCIPLE: WATER BAPTISM Matthew 28:19-20 "Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptising them in the name the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit; And teaching them to obey everything that I have taught you. And surely, I am with you always, to the end of the age." NIV After repentance and faith in Jesus Christ, the next logical step is to submit in obedience to baptism in water. This is what the Lord commanded in the Great Commission. The disciples of Christ exhorted those were convicted of their sins at Pentecost to repent and be baptised (Acts 2:38). Philip the evangelist baptised the Ethiopian eunuch the moment he professed faith in Jesus Christ. Acts 8:36-38 "And the eunuch said, See, here is water; what doth hinder me to be baptized? And Philip said, If thou believest with all thine heart, thou mayest. And they went down both into the water, both Philip and the eunuch; and he baptized him." Water baptism should be conducted in a river body or a pool of water. The eunuch was baptised in water. Jesus Christ was baptised in the River Jordan. Baptism should be by one immersion, in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. Sprinkling as a mode of baptism obscures it's meaning. Neither should we baptise infants, as they are incapable of comprehending the gospel. Water baptism is important for several reasons. One, it is a public testimony of your faith in Christ. Two, it signifies that you are dead, buried and risen with Christ. Romans 6:3-4 "Know ye not, that so many of us as were baptized into Jesus Christ were baptized into his death? Therefore we are buried with him by baptism into death: that like as Christ was raised up from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life." Three, baptism signifies a break with the past, and the beginning of a new walk in Jesus. Four, it is the fulfillment of all righteousness (Matthew 3:14-15). Finally, baptism is the answer of a good conscience towards God (1 Peter 3:21). Through baptism a disciple gains entrance into the local church and partakes of it's life. If you are not baptised scripturally, locate a Bible-believing church and get on board. STEPS TO BECOMING A DISCIPLE: THE GIFT OF THE HOLY SPIRIT Acts 2:38 "Then Peter said unto them, Repent, and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins, and ye shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost." The Holy Spirit is a gift given to every child of God. It is variously called the baptism of the Holy Spirit, the promise of the Father, the infilling of the Spirit, and the enduement of power from on high, among others. The gift of the Holy Spirit is the clothing of power. Jesus said it was good he went so the Spirit would come. The Spirit is Another One exactly like Christ, the Comforter, who takes his place and ministers to the believer everything that the Lord did to the disciples whilst he was on earth. The Spirit empowers disciples to witness about Christ (Acts 1:8), teaches them all things, including the word of God (John 14:26), gives new power in prayer (Romans 8:26), guides them (Romans 8:14), show them things to come (John 16:13) and supplies the love of God (Romans 5:5). In summary, the Holy Spirit gives believers power to live the Christian life in all aspects. To receive the Spirit, you must be a child of God, be obedient to God (Acts 5:32), thirst and hunger for him and ask in faith. Luke 11:13 "If ye then, being evil, know how to give good gifts unto your children: how much more shall your heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to them that ask him?" You must remove fear from you. God will not give another spirit to his children who asks for the Holy Spirit. Don't doubt. The Lord will give you the Spirit as easily and as quickly as one asks for water. Isaiah 44:3 "For I will pour water upon him that is thirsty, and floods upon the dry ground: I will pour my spirit upon thy seed, and my blessing upon thine offspring." When the Spirit comes upon us, we speak in a new language we have not learnt before. The Spirit gives us utterance, that is, he prompts us to speak. It is not the Spirit that speaks: you speak as he gives you the words. You do this by faith. The Holy Spirit opens a whole new dimension to the world of the disciple of Christ. As pray in your new language daily, a doorway to the supernatural would open. TERMS OF DISCIPLESHIP: DENIAL OF SELF Matthew 16:24-25 “Then said Jesus unto his disciples, If any man will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me. For whosoever will save his life shall lose it: and whosoever will lose his life for my sake shall find it." To be a disciple of Christ is not an easy thing: It is a risky business. He does not compel anyone to follow him, but for those who voluntarily chooses to go after him, the Lord has taken time to spell out the terms or conditions of discipleship plainly. The first condition of discipleship is denial of self. “If any man will come after me, let him deny himself.” To deny yourself is to say no to self. It is to completely dethrone self and enthrone the Lord Jesus Christ. Self loves ease, softness, pleasure and everything that goes contrary to Christ. To deny self is to set aside it's interest and aspirations. It is to put aside your reputation, honour, name and all that you lean upon in life. Our Lord Jesus set a perfect example for us. Philippians 2:5-7 “Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus: Who, being in the form of God, thought it not robbery to be equal with God: But made himself of no reputation, and took upon him the form of a servant, and was made in the likeness of men.” You must have the mind of Christ, if you are to deny self. Although he is God, he emptied himself of his Godhead, put aside his powers and attributes. He became a common man, born in a manger, and went through all that a man goes through and suffered indignities. God becoming man is the highest of denial of self. Denial of self involves humility and obedience. You must constantly say no to self and yes to the Lord. You must deliberately bring yourself down to fully obey the Lord. This must be done on a daily basis. Discipleship cannot be exchanged for anything. Your soul is worth dieing for. Matthew 16:26 “For what is a man profited, if he shall gain the whole world, and lose his own soul? or what shall a man give in exchange for his soul?” If you gain everything and lose your soul, you are a big loser. On the other hand, if you lose your soul to gain everything, you are a big winner. May you be a big winner on that last day! TERMS OF DISCIPLESHIP: CROSS-BEARING Mark 8:34-35 “Whosoever will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me. For whosoever will save his life shall lose it; but whosoever shall lose his life for my sake and the gospel's, the same shall save it.” Cross-bearing is the second condition of discipleship. It follows after denial of self. "If any man will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross." Taking up your cross is a deliberate act. You take your cross willingly for the sake of others. Jesus did not take up his cross for himself; he did it for humanity's sake. He went to the cross for our salvation, not his. In the same vein, when we take our cross, it is for the sake of the salvation of others. If we refuse to take our cross, they would die and perish without Christ. Cross-bearing involves prayer, fasting, evangelism, visitation, giving out our resources to assist others and doing everything humanly possible to reach out to them so they embrace the gospel. It is sharing our love and light with others. If we do not labour in prayer, fasting and soul winning, souls would be lost. If we do not generously give of our treasure, time and talents, many would not come to the Lord. This is what bearing your cross means. Cross-bearing is not a once in a while affair; it is a daily practice. Luke 9:23 “And he said to them all, If any man will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow me.” Unless we fully embrace our cross, many who should be saved through us would be lost. There are people only you can reach. We must seek after them and bring them to our loving Saviour. Our Lord fully embraced his cross. Before he went to the cross, he lived under it's weight. He spent long hours of daily prayers, sleepless nights, foodless days, daily preaching the word and ministering to needy crowds. Finally, he was arrested, falsely accused, tried in a kangaroo court, humiliated, beaten and crucified on a Roman cross. Jesus humbled himself unto death. “This is the way the Master went, Should not the servant tread it still?” TERMS OF DISCIPLESHIP: FOLLOWING JESUS Mark 8:34-35 "Whosoever will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me. For whosoever will save his life shall lose it; but whosoever shall lose his life for my sake and the gospel's, the same shall save it." Following Jesus is the third condition of discipleship, after denial of self and cross-bearing. "Let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me." A disciple, just like a soldier, must be willing to lose his life, if possible, in his line of duty. I like the inscription at the entrance of the Ghana Army Training School at Teshie, Accra: "We defend Ghana by land, air and sea to the peril of our lives." A disciple is a Christian soldier who is ready to uphold Christ and defend the cause of the gospel no matter the consequences. It is interesting to note that the apostle Paul used the phrase following Christ several times. 1 Corinthians 11:1 "Be ye followers of me, even as I also am of Christ." Ephesians 5:1 "Be ye therefore followers of God, as dear children." What did Jesus mean to follow him or to be his followers? To be followers is from the Greek 'mimetes', which means to be imitators. To follow Christ means to imitate him in attitude, behaviour, conduct and character. Paul was a diehard follower of Christ and he urged the Corinthians believers to follow suit. Again, he exhorted the Ephesians to be followers of God, as dear children. This is illustrative as children are very good imitators. They can mimic the mannerism of their parents, the way they talk, walk and behave. Disciples of Jesus Christ should imitate their Master in all things. To follow Christ is to think like him. The scripture says, "Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus." (Philippians 2:5). It is to talk like him, in wisdom and tact; to act like him and do things like he did, in simplicity and confidence. It is to learn of him and imitate his conduct, "Learn of me, for I am meek and lowly in heart, and you shall have rest for your soul." Matthew 11:29 May you follow the Lord Jesus Christ all the days of your life! TERMS OF DISCIPLESHIP III FOLLOWING JESUS 2 Mark 8:34-35 “Whosoever will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me. For whosoever will save his life shall lose it; but whosoever shall lose his life for my sake and the gospel's, the same shall save it. The apostle Peter also spoke about following Jesus. 1 Peter 2:21 "For even hereunto were ye called: because Christ also suffered for us, leaving us an example, that ye should follow his steps." Peter calls following Jesus our calling. Christ suffered for us and left us an example to follow in his steps. If we fail to follow his steps, we make his suffering vain, and of no use. Peter goes on to list four ways to follow Christ. They are four things Jesus did not do. 1 Peter 2:22-23 "Who did no sin, neither was guile found in his mouth: Who, when he was reviled, reviled not again; when he suffered, he threatened not; but committed himself to him that judgeth righteously." First, he did not sin. The disciple must not sin. The new birth provides a supernatural way to overcome sin. 1 John 3:9 "Whosoever is born of God doth not commit sin; for his seed remaineth in him: and he cannot sin, because he is born of God." Paul wrote to the Corinthians, 1 Corinthians 15:34 "Awake to righteousness, and sin not; for some have not the knowledge of God: I speak this to your shame." 1 John 2:1 "My little children, these things write I unto you, that ye sin not. And if any man sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous:" We must not live a life of sin. Sin not is a commandment to all. In case you sin, confess your sin quickly and lead your normal life again. Secondly, imitate Jesus by not lying. Guile or lies was not found in the mouth of the Lord, and it should not be found in yours. Thirdly, imitate Jesus by not reviling. To revile is to abuse, insult, attack, run down or demean another. To do this is an attack on his Maker. Fourthly, imitate Jesus by not threatening others. Don't threaten people because of your power, money, influence or connections. Our Lord never did so. Follow Jesus in all these. Don't do what the Master never did. Avoid what he avoided as you follow him.
