Discipleship
1/08/2017
Pastor/Teacher Roger Redmond
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Who is a disciple of Christ?
A disciple of Jesus is a worshiper, a servant, and a witness." A disciple of Christ is one who follows Him as in a singular commitment. Christ said to Peter "Follow thou me". Since Christ is the teacher, The Son of God, He gave the prerequisite for being a disciple, So likewise, whosoever he be of you that forsaketh not all that he hath, he cannot be my disciple. Luke 14:34.
Being a disciple of Christ is center in the word "forsaketh"
Jesus said, Luk_14:33 So likewise, whosoever he be of you that forsaketh not all that he hath, he cannot be my disciple.
"Forsaketh (?p?t?sseta?). Bids good-bye to. Rev., renounceth"
Vincent, M. R. (1887). Word studies in the New Testament (Vol. 1, p. 383). New York: Charles Scribner's Sons.
"In that forsaketh lies the key to the whole passage" (Trench). "Christian discipleship is founded in self-renunciation."
Vincent, M. R. (1887). Word studies in the New Testament (Vol. 1, p. 383). New York: Charles Scribner's Sons.
Jesus said, "....he cannot be my disciple."
Rejected by Christ because you were disqualified by your Choice
Freedom of Choice is seen in discipleship as well as in salvation. Jesus said, "....he cannot be my disciple" but the rejection is based on their choice. Unless you renounce yourself and take up your cross and follow Him you cannot be His disciple.
Why will a person die without Christ and in the end be at the Great White Throne Judgment (GWT)? Is it because Christ rejected them? The answer is no! A person will die without Christ and in the end stand at the GWT judgment because they rejected Christ (John 1:11-12). Here is the Word of God"
They believe not: "He that believeth on him is not condemned: but he that believeth not is condemned already, because he hath not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God." Joh 3:18
They hear not: Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that heareth my word, and believeth on him that sent me, hath everlasting life, and shall not come into condemnation; but is passed from death unto life. Joh 5:24
God's guarantee of eternal life is in Christ Jesus, the Son of God, And this is the record, that God hath given to us eternal life, and this life is in his Son. 1Jn 5:11
Jesus, the Lamb of God"That taketh away the sin of the world", is the Messiah, The Christ that God sent into the world as the Redeemer, your Saviour. Remember it is God Who gave you Christ! Why is that important to remember? Because that is the only way you can have Christ. He is the gift of God, Romans 6:23. For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord. It is a finished work; you cannot add your faith to it nor anything else. So what am I to believe? Here is the answer: that I am saved in Christ. That is what God said, And this is the record, that God hath given to us eternal life, and this life is in his Son. 1Jn 5:11
Jn 2:25 And this is the promise that he hath promised us, even eternal life.
Consider the testimony of Martha, And whosoever liveth and believeth in me shall never die. Believest thou this? She saith unto him, Yea, Lord: I believe that thou art the Christ, the Son of God, which should come into the world. She is saying, I believe God sent you to be my Saviour. Joh 11:26-27
I am not going to heaven because of my faith but I am going to heaven because Christ died for me and paid my debt of sin and that is what I believe. My faith has as its foundation the Word of God. Will you believe God sent Christ as your Saviour?
If after trusting Christ as your Saviour you do not live as you ought unto Him: you are useless to Him. Luke 14:33-35. "So likewise, whosoever he be of you that forsaketh not all that he hath, he cannot be my disciple. Salt is good: but if the salt have lost his savour, wherewith shall it be seasoned? It is neither fit for the land, nor yet for the dunghill; but men cast it out. He that hath ears to hear, let him hear."
Being a Disciple of Christ requires Sacrifice
In discipleship the expectation is to finish the race and not to quit, For which of you, intending to build a tower, sitteth not down first, and counteth the cost, whether he have sufficient to finish it? Lest haply, after he hath laid the foundation, and is not able to finish it, all that behold it begin to mock him, Saying, This man began to build, and was not able to finish. Luke 14:28-30
Joh_4:34 Jesus saith unto them, My meat is to do the will of him that sent me, and to finish his work.
You lose in starting and stopping. 2Jn 1:8 Look to yourselves, that we lose not those things which we have wrought, but that we receive a full reward. The Body of Christ loses - The work is slowed and in some cases never done.
In discipleship, you look forward and not backward, And Jesus said unto him, No man, having put his hand to the plough, and looking back, is fit for the kingdom of God. Luke 9:62.
"He that is not willing to sacrifice "everything" for the cause of God, is really willing to sacrifice nothing." Copied from Barnes, e-sword
We are to set our affection on things above not on things of the earth, Col. 3:1-3, 2 Cor. 4:18.
- Some look away from Christ because of financial gain, Matt. 8:19-20
Mat 8:19-20 And a certain scribe came, and said unto him, Master, I will follow thee whithersoever thou goest. And Jesus saith unto him, The foxes have holes, and the birds of the air have nests; but the Son of man hath not where to lay his head.
"And a certain scribe came ... - It is not improbable that this man had seen the miracles of Jesus, and had formed an expectation that by following him he would obtain some considerable worldly advantage. Christ, in reply to his professed purpose to follow him, proclaimed his own poverty, and dashed the hopes of the avaricious scribe. The very foxes and birds, says he, have places of repose and shelter, but the Son of man has no home and no pillow. He is a stranger in his own world - a wanderer and an outcast from the homes of people. Compare Joh_1:11." Barnes e-sword
Consider the cost of discipleship versus the cost of not following Him! Paul said, Php 3:7 But what things were gain to me, those I counted loss for Christ. Php 3:8 Yea doubtless, and I count all things but loss for the excellency of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord: for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and do count them but dung, that I may win Christ,
Give Christ the place of pre-importance, Luk 9:59 And he said unto another, Follow me. But he said, Lord, suffer me first to go and bury my father. He was saying after my father dies, I will follow you.
What will it be like when you stand before Him? Selfishness will take away your saltiness.
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