Jesus called people to follow Him. To believe in Jesus is not simply to believe He existed. To believe in Jesus is not a one-time event. To believe in Jesus is to become a follower of His, for the rest of your life.
This morning our message is entitled “Grow as a Disciple of Jesus.” We’re going to be talking about another biblical term for a follower of Jesus, which is a disciple of Jesus. A disciple is a follower or a student of a teacher or leader. As believers, we are to be students and followers of Jesus our leader and Lord. Therefore believing in Jesus is not a one-time event, as some think. Believing in Jesus is to become a disciple of Jesus for a lifetime.
Another common definition of a disciple is a personal follower of Jesus during his life, especially one of the twelve apostles. One we’ve learned so far today, indicates that this definition is not correct. Although Jesus’ followers during His life were disciples, the term disciples refers to followers of Jesus of all time, including today.
Luke 6:13 (ESV) And when day came, he called his disciples and chose from them twelve, whom he named apostles:
From a larger group of disciples, Jesus chose the twelve apostles. Thus there were disciples in Jesus who were not apostles and the same is true today. Jesus instructs all of His followers in …
Matthew 28:19-20 (ESV) Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.”
As a disciple of Jesus, our purpose in life is to make more disciples or followers of Jesus. A disciple is a believer in Jesus who has been baptized and taught to obey everything Jesus commands His disciples to do. In Jesus’ day, Jewish rabbis had disciples who followed them around, learned from them and looked to one day becoming a rabbi. Jesus, on the other hand, called people to follow Him and become His disciples.
God created every human being with a purpose in life, a reason that they were created. That includes you and me. In order to fulfill your purpose in life, you need to be a disciple of Jesus, a follower of His. Those who are not disciples of Jesus cannot fulfill their life’s purpose. Today we want to learn more about what it means to be a disciple of Jesus.