Follow Jesus
When we come into the kingdom of God by receiving Jesus into our lives, we are called to much more than a ticket to heaven. The Lord calls us to discipleship. He desires that we become like Him. 2 Corinthians 3:18 states, "But we all, with unveiled face, beholding as in a mirror the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from glory to glory, just as by the Spirit of the Lord."
As we have discussed in previous blogs, we are created in His image. As He has made us in His image, it is His desire that we become "like" Him. 2 Peter 1: 3 and 4, "as His divine power has given to us all things that pertain to life and godliness, through the knowledge of Him who called us by glory and virtue, 4 by which have been given to us exceedingly great and precious promises, that through these you may be partakers ( sharer) of the divine nature (the sum of innate properties and powers by which one person differs from others), having escaped the corruption that is in the world through lust."
By definition, a disciple is a learner, one who follows both the teacher and the teaching. When Jesus called His disciples, He commanded them to follow Him. Matthew 4:19,"Then He said to them, "Follow Me, and I will make you fishers of men." When we look at Matthew 9:9 we read, "As Jesus passed on from there, He saw a man named Matthew sitting at the tax office. And He said to him, "Follow Me." So he arose and followed Him." Jesus shared the following about discipleship in John 8:31 and 32, "Then Jesus said to those Jews who believed Him, "If you abide (not depart, to continue to be present, not to leave) in My word, you are My disciples indeed. 32 "And you shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free."
Let's look at John 14:19-24, ""A little while longer and the world will see Me no more, but you will see Me. Because I live, you will live also. 20 "At that day you will know that I [am] in My Father, and you in Me, and I in you. 21 "He who has My commandments and keeps them, it is he who loves Me. And he who loves Me will be loved by My Father, and I will love him and manifest Myself to him." 22 Judas (not Iscariot) said to Him, "Lord, how is it that You will manifest Yourself to us, and not to the world?" 23 Jesus answered and said to him, "If anyone loves Me, he will keep My word; and My Father will love him, and We will come to him and make Our home with him. 24 "He who does not love Me does not keep My words; and the word which you hear is not Mine but the Father's who sent Me." Those who love Jesus will keep His Word and He will make His abode (dwelling, a staying) in us. That is such good news! So, in order to become like Jesus, it is absolutely essential that we know His Word, for His Word reveals who He is.
Then in Matthew 16:24-27 we read, "Then Jesus said to His disciples, "If anyone desires to come after Me, let him deny (to forget oneself, lose sight of) himself, and take up (to take upon oneself and carry what has been raised/ to bear) his cross (used by those who, on behalf of God's cause, do not hesitate, cheerfully and manfully, to bear persecutions, troubles and distresses, thus recalling the fate of Christ and the spirit in which He encountered it), and follow (to cleave steadfastly to one, to conform wholly to his example, in living and if need be, in dying also) Me. 25 "For whoever desires to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake will find it. 26 "For what profit is it to a man if he gains the whole world, and loses his own soul? Or what will a man give in exchange for his soul?" 27 "For the Son of Man will come in the glory of His Father with His angels, and then He will reward each according to his works." To "deny" ourselves is to put God's kingdom and God's will first and foremost in our lives. To "take up" our cross is to do what He desires us to do...doing His will and not necessarily our own.
God's purpose for the presence of Jesus on this earth was the cross. Just as Jesus came to the planet to fulfill the purpose of God, we also are to fulfill God's purpose for our lives.
Let's see what the Word of God says about it.
John 6:38, Jesus said, "For I have come down from heaven, not to do My own will, but the will of Him who sent Me. "
Philippians 2:5-8, "Let this mind be in you which was also in Christ Jesus, 6 who, being in the form of God, did not consider it robbery to be equal with God, 7 but made Himself of no reputation, taking the form of a bondservant, and coming in the likeness of men. 8 And being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself and became obedient to the point of death, even the death of the cross." A bondservant is a servant by choice of will; it is one who gives himself up to another's will.
2 Timothy 1:9, "who has saved us and called us with a holy calling, not according to our works, but according to His own purpose and grace which was given to us in Christ Jesus before time began"
Ephesians 2:10, "For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them."
Hebrews 13:20 and 21, "Now may the God of peace who brought up our Lord Jesus from the dead, that great Shepherd of the sheep, through the blood of the everlasting covenant, 21 make you complete in every good work to do His will, working in you what is well pleasing in His sight, through Jesus Christ, to whom be glory forever and ever. Amen."
In John 10, Jesus taught us that He is the shepherd and we are the sheep. Verse 4 of John 10, Jesus says, "And when he brings out his own sheep, he goes before them; and the sheep follow him, for they know his voice." This truth is emphasized again in John 10:27 where Jesus said, " "My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me."
Discipleship demands commitment and sacrifice on the part of the disciple. Luke 14:25-35 describes the seriousness of discipleship... "Now great multitudes went with Him. And He turned and said to them, 26 "If anyone comes to Me and does not hate (to love less, in comparison of their love for Christ) his father and mother, wife and children, brothers and sisters, yes, and his own life also, he cannot be My disciple. 27 "And whoever does not bear his cross and come after Me cannot be My disciple. 28 "For which of you, intending to build a tower, does not sit down first and count the cost, whether he has enough to finish it-- 29 "lest, after he has laid the foundation, and is not able to finish, all who see it begin to mock him, 30 "saying, 'This man began to build and was not able to finish.' 31 "Or what king, going to make war against another king, does not sit down first and consider whether he is able with ten thousand to meet him who comes against him with twenty thousand? 32 "Or else, while the other is still a great way off, he sends a delegation and asks conditions of peace. 33 "So likewise, whoever of you does not forsake all that he has cannot be My disciple. A disciple must subordinate all earthly relationships to loyalty to Christ. Verse 26 does not command one to hate his family. It is expressing that our allegiance to to Him should supercede even our relationship with our family. There are many all over the world, who upon their entering into a relationship with Christ, will not turn away from it, even knowing that their family members will reject them and in some cases, try to kill them if they refuse to renounce Christ as their Savior. These individuals truly understand and have counted the cost of being a disciple of Christ.
Philippians 3:7 and 8, "But what things were gain to me, these I have counted loss for Christ. 8 Yet indeed I also count all things loss for the excellence of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord, for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and count them as rubbish, that I may gain Christ." These verses show us the cost of discipleship for Paul. He gave up all of his earthly wealth and religious prestige to follow Christ!
Even though there is a great price for discipleship, there is also great reward. This is recorded in Mark 10:28-30, "Then Peter began to say to Him, "See, we have left all and followed You." 29 So Jesus answered and said, "Assuredly, I say to you, there is no one who has left house or brothers or sisters or father or mother or wife or children or lands, for My sake and the gospel's, 30 "who shall not receive a hundredfold now in this time--houses and brothers and sisters and mothers and children and lands, with persecutions--and in the age to come, eternal life." Peter pointed out to Jesus that the disciples had left all to follow Jesus. Jesus responded with the promise of great rewards, not only in the age to come but also for "now in this time.
In the following verse, we have another wonderful promise of reward for being a disciple of Christ. John 10:10, ""The thief does not come except to steal, and to kill, and to destroy. I have come that they may have life, and that they may have it more abundantly." The Greek word for "abundantly" is perissos which means: superabundance, excessive, overflowing, surplus, over and above, more than enough, profuse, extraordinary, above the ordinary and more than sufficient. While the enemy comes to destroy, Christ come go give life, beyond measure!
If you are a believer, which means you have accepted Jesus as your Savior, acknowledging that He is the Son of God come in the flesh, and died on the cross for the forgiveness of your sins, but have never chosen to be a "disciple" (a pupil, a learner, one who follows both the teacher and the teaching) of Christ. I encourage you to make that choice today. To honestly be a disciple, you must know His word and live by it.
As we follow Him, He shows us the way of righteousness and the perfect will of God. John 8:12, "Then Jesus spoke to them again, saying, "I am the light of the world. He who follows Me shall not walk in darkness, but have the light of life."
God's will is where we were created to live! Only in His will can we succeed and be happy.
I am so glad you have joined me in this study today. If you have chosen to improve your walk as a disciple of Christ, please let me know. I would appreciate your comments and or thoughts.
The Lord bless you and keep you; The Lord make His face shine upon you, and be gracious to you; The Lord lift up His countenance upon you, and give you peace. Numbers 6:24-26