Disciple, pt 1

For the next two days, we are going to look at the same passage of scripture,
Matthew 28:18-20. These are the last directions Jesus gave to the church before He went to heaven.  Read through them.

Now we’ve discussed it before (on Friday of our first week together to be
precise) but you may still be wondering, “What’s a disciple?” Well, the answer
is a disciple is a learner or a follower. It was common for teachers in ancient
Israel to have disciples devoted to their teachings. By asking Christ into your
life, you have identified yourself as a disciple or follower of Jesus.

What should a disciple look like? Well, a disciple studies the teachings of
the teacher. That’s what you do every day when you read the Bible and one of
these studies. You are reviewing what Jesus told us to do with our lives. A
disciple also does what the teacher says to do. You act a little more like your
teacher every day. As you learn more about Jesus, in church, in Bible study,
talking with Christian friends, you are building into your life what Jesus told
you to do.

Finally, a disciple wants to see the teachings of the teacher spread to
others. In other words, you begin to share what you are learning with other
people who do not know. The more you know Jesus, and the more He changes your
life, the more you desire to see other people transformed by meeting Jesus.

Stop and think about this for a minute. Aren’t you glad someone told you
about Jesus? That someone had been discipled by Jesus and he or she was putting
what they learned into practice by telling you about Jesus. Don’t you want to be
that person for someone else? They need to hear from someone, why not you?

Take a few minutes and thank God for what you have already learned.
Ask God to teach you daily to be more like Jesus. (Remember Luke 9:23, it’s not easy
to follow Jesus)  Ask God to lead you to people who can help you to be more like
Jesus and to bring people into your life who need to know Jesus.