SEVEN CHARACTERISTICS OF A DISCIPLE
1. Come to the lord Messiah Jesus, and follow
him to God- Yehovah
The first thing the lord Messiah Jesus- Yeshua said to
these four men that he called by the Lake of Galilee was: “Follow me,
and I will make you fishers of people.” (Matthew 4:19) Imagine yourself hearing
the voice of the lord Messiah Jesus saying, “Follow me, and I will make you fishers of people.” The first step in discipleship is to follow the Lord Jesus Messiah and
become a fisher of people. You cannot be a fisher of men/women and stand on the sidelines.
Jesus says, “Follow me! I have entered into a
battle for the salvation of the world – a fight to the death. I’m going to be
crucified, becoming a sin-offering sacrifice. I’m going to lay down my life. Follow me!” And you say, “Jesus, you
go ahead! You die for the sins of the world. Just leave me on the sidelines.
I’ll cheer for you.” The one word we dread is “Follow.” The lord Messiah Jesus
says, “Follow me, take up your cross [die to self].” Do you say, “What if I take my hiking
boots? I don’t mind taking them. What about my umbrella as well, in case it
rains?” No, the lord Messiah Jesus said, “Take up your cross – die to self and follow
me.”
If you don’t want to come, you can be a 'believer' till the end of this age, but that’s not going to save you. The lord Messiah Jesus said: “Come
behind me.” This is the word. He uses exactly the same Greek imperative in
Matthew 11:28: “Come unto me all you that labor and are heavy laden,
and I will give you rest.” “Come!” Do you want rest? Do you want to be freed
from the bondage of sin? Don’t stand there in the distance and say, “I believe
in God.” You are not going to get rest, to be freed from your bondage to sin,
that way. “Come, and I will give you rest.” The lord Messiah Jesus doesn’t
throw his rest to you like a baseball, saying, “Catch it!” No. Do you want
deliverance from sin? Do you want rest? Come! Coming behind him means going to
where the lord Messiah Jesus is to follow God- Yehovah.
“Learn of me for I am meek and lowly of heart
and you shall find rest to your soul [inner being].” How can you learn if you
don’t come? How can you get the rest? We like to be Christians at a distance.
But this word “come” is the first word that Jesus speaks to any disciple.
Matthew 11:28 is not addressed to the twelve, but to everyone. He addresses
everyone with the same word that he addressed these four disciples: “Come
behind me.” That is the first thing we must understand about being a disciple.
You must be involved. You must follow the lord Messiah Jesus, wherever he leads you.
Salvation is not to be obtained at a distance by remote faith: Stand in the distance and believe. Let me emphasize this point very, very clearly to you based on God’s Word. If anyone tells you anything differently, that is not Jesus’ teaching. Otherwise, your hope for salvation is based on sand that will be washed away. And let no man or woman, no brother or sister who sit here today, stand before the lord Messiah Jesus on that Day of Judgment and say, “I didn’t know I had to come, but I believed in you.” And he will say, “Depart from me! I don’t know who you are!” The only way Jesus can know who you are is if you come to him and follow him wherever he leads. He doesn’t know people who look at him through a telescope. You either come to him, or you are not going to be saved.
2. Be yoked with the lord Messiah Jesus to obey God- Yehovah unconditionally
“Come behind me” involves the second thing:
Take the lord Messiah Jesus’ yoke on yourself in order to follow him, as in
Matthew 11:29, “Take my yoke upon you.” A yoke on the lord Messiah Jesus’ neck
is put on your neck, and in that way, you come under God’s – Yehovah’s Kingship
through the lord Messiah Jesus. He also said in verse 30, “My yoke is easy, my
burden is light.” Although a yoke is a burden, it is much lighter than the
burden of sin, being in bondage to sin.
The lord Messiah Jesus isn’t like the evangelist
who dishes out sweets and says, “Come to God, and everything will be fine. You
will pass all your exams! Your business will succeed! You’re going to have a
wonderful time when you come to God!” The lord Messiah Jesus says, “Come and
take my yoke upon you, then you will know peace. But without this yoke, I
promise you no peace whatsoever.” You must learn to live under the lord Messiah
Jesus’ kingship just as the lord Messiah Jesus lives under God’s-Yehovah’s Kingship.
In other words, “yoke” means obedience. Who is in charge of the yoke? The yoke
is placed on the necks of the two oxen in front of the plough. When the
ploughman pulls the yoke in one direction, the oxen turn around. When he pulls
the yoke in the opposite direction, the oxen turn that way. In other words, you
are going to live a life under the sovereignty and control of God- Yehovah
together with the lord Messiah Jesus.
If you find that unacceptable, then don’t think about salvation. I am being straightforward as the lord Messiah Jesus is. There are no cheap, easy bargains. Salvation comes at a great cost! It cost the lord Messiah Jesus his life when he gave himself up to his God and his Father, Yehovah, as a sin-offering sacrifice, so that you could be reconciled [brought back] to God. If you think that your self-centeredness is worth more than your salvation, keep it. You will have the chance to keep it all the way into being thrown into the Lake of Fire on the Day of Judgement. It won’t do you any good there. That sounds harsh, but believe me, those words are spoken in love. The truth is hard to receive, but it is the truth. The lord Messiah Jesus- Yeshua said, “Take my yoke upon you and follow me as I follow God. Live a life in obedience to God- Yehovah, just as I do.”
Here is a quote from a New Testament authority, the three-volume Dictionary of New Testament Theology. Read a passage under the article of “Discipleship:
“Following Jesus as a disciple means the unconditional sacrifice of the disciple’s whole life for the whole of his life.”
Being a disciple means being bound to the lord Messiah Jesus, similar to the yoke, and doing God’s will. It is, as the Dictionary of New Testament Theology says, “unconditional sacrifice of a disciple’s whole life.” Notice the word “unconditional. Is it any wonder ministers dare not use the term “disciple” in their churches today? How many dare to say that their life is unconditionally under God’s control?
Satan can possess a “believer”
Let me also say to you that if you only want to
be 'a believer' and not a disciple, you are going to run into spiritual
trouble that you will wish you were never a believer at all, because
God’s protection and care are not guaranteed for you; Satan will bring you down to failure.
I state unequivocally that a disciple will
never be possessed by any evil spirit as long as he walks with God- Yehovah.
There is absolutely no possibility of a disciple being demon-possessed. However, if
you are a so-called “believer,” or even a 'believer' who sincerely believes in
Jesus as the Messiah, the Son of God, I cannot guarantee your safety, because
Satan will bring you down one way or another. We have seen 90% or more of the
people who come to God at Billy Graham’s meetings fall away within the first
year. This is a well-known statistic. Satan takes them down. I dare not be a 'believer.' I only dare be a disciple by the grace of God- Yehovah, because
to be a 'believer' means that Satan will turn his power upon me.
You need to understand why the lord Messiah Jesus
said: “Take my yoke upon you.” Powerful spiritual forces are at play,
surpassing the strength of both you and me, as we engage in this battle. If you
leave even a small gap in your life, Satan will come in like a flood. I’m not
suggesting he will possess you; he works in various ways with different
people. He can sow doubts in your mind and push you to the brink of despair.
Some of you have already tasted how Satan can drive you into
depression, discouragement, and joylessness until you say, “What’s the point of
being a Christian? I give up!”
That is why, out of all these people who make
so-called “decisions” at winter and summer conferences, and at evangelistic
campaigns, 90% will fall away within the first year. Only that small number who
have taken the yoke of Jesus- Yeshua, and who, like the lord Messiah Jesus-
Yeshua, have said, “O God, you are my King in every part of my life; I will go forward according to your will,” these will not
fall.
Examine your life before God- Yehovah to make sure that
every part of your life is under His lordship and the lordship of the lord Messiah Jesus- Yeshua.
We are referring to spiritual forces at work.
As Paul said in Ephesians 6:12: For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood,
but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over
this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly
places. [Referring to Satan and the fallen angels]
I say to you with love, “Please, either
fully commit as a disciple or refrain from claiming to be a 'believer;' otherwise,
Satan will bring you down to failure.” And God won’t do anything for you because you have
not obeyed the lord Messiah Jesus’ teaching, the words that his God and his
Father, Yehovah, gave to him to give to the world. The message of salvation
contained in the gospel – good news about the coming Kingdom of God.
3. Become like the lord Messiah Jesus by
imitating him, so it will be true, as it says in 1 John 4:17:
First, come to lord Messiah Jesus- Yeshua to follow him.
Secondly, take his yoke upon you, that is, unconditionally obey God as the lord Messiah Jesus does.
Thirdly, the lord Messiah Jesus- Yeshua says, “Learn of me” (Matthew 11:29).
A disciple is a student of Jesus- Yeshua. When the lord Messiah Jesus talks
about learning, he isn’t referring to cramming a lot of information into your
brain. The New Testament does not associate learning with pursuing a
theological education to gain knowledge in areas such as church history and
systematic theology. We train people in seminaries today who are incapable of
spiritual warfare because all they have is book knowledge in their heads.
You cannot prepare a generation of spiritual
soldiers by studying church history, systematic theology, and hermeneutics.
WHAT WE NEED IS SPIRITUAL POWER, THE POWER OF GOD'S INDWELLING PRESENCE! You don’t come to know God- Yehovah through a
theological seminary. Rather, you come to know God by walking with him according to His will, day by
day, just as the lord Messiah Jesus did. Therefore, by imitating Jesus’
behavior and lifestyle (1Corinthians 11:1), you will develop a deep relationship
with God- Yehovah and be gradually transformed into his likeness. The apostle
Paul uses the word “imitate,” as learning involves a process of imitation.
A disciple learns to walk with the lord Messiah Jesus- Yeshua- to imitate him. The lord Messiah Jesus- Yeshua says, “Learn of me for I am meek and lowly of heart” (Matthew 11:29). It is learning a lifestyle, becoming a kind of person, not cramming knowledge into your brain to write an exam and get a Bachelor of Theology. “Learn of me” means to become like the lord Messiah Jesus- Yeshua.
4. Follow Jesus immediately
This takes us to the fourth point. In order to become like the lord Messiah Jesus- Yeshua, we must follow and obey him. That’s very costly. The lord Messiah Jesus said, “Follow me,” and what do these disciples do? What do you read in Matthew 4:20, 22?
Immediately they left their nets and followed him.
Immediately they left the boat and their father and followed him.
Immediately they left their boats, nets, and
father. Certainly, they loved their father! They loved their boats and nets –
their profession as fishermen. But when the lord Messiah Jesus said, “Come behind me,” they
left their father whom they loved; they left their boats and home immediately.
The Greek word for “immediately” is euthos, which signifies acting
promptly and without hesitation or doubt, and it appears twice in this passage.
The first four disciples of the lord Messiah Jesus immediately left their nets.
When the Spirit of God- Yehovah moves in a person, he/she either responds, “Yes, Lord!” or “No.” Any person who feels the powerful moving of God’s- Yehovah's Spirit in his heart goes through a struggle. But if anyone hesitates between two opinions: “I will follow, I will not follow,” he should not follow. When Jesus called his disciples, and if they had hesitated, he would have said, “Forget it.” Do you remember the person who said, “I will follow you, lord; but let me first say farewell to those at my home” (cf. Luke 9:61-62)? And Jesus said: But Jesus said unto him, No man, having put his hand to the plow, and looking back, is fit for the kingdom of God.
The first four disciples who immediately left
their nets are the kind of people that the lord Messiah Jesus- Yeshua calls out. They
didn’t go back to their house and say: “Wait a minute lord, I’m coming.” Or “I
have to get my favorite baseball glove at home.” Or “I’ve got to arrange for
somebody to look after my canary.” You either follow, or you don’t. That’s how
it is with the lord Messiah Jesus- Yeshua. He is very demanding of high standards because
the battle ahead is so tough. Therefore, those who follow must not hesitate. He
says, “No one, having put his hand to the plough, and looks back is fit for the
kingdom of God” (Luke 9:62). The lord Messiah Jesus tells us that God- Yehovah
doesn’t want soldiers who, when faced with a challenging battle, question their
position and express reluctance, saying, “Am I really meant to be here? This
battle is becoming too intense! I should retreat, give up!” Those who follow must
resolve clearly and without hesitation, even though they are weak.
5. Serve to bring people into the kingdom of
God
Let us press on to the fifth point. A disciple is not only one who learns and follows, but also one who serves: “I will make you to be fishers of men.” Notice: “I will make you.” It is not we who make ourselves fishers of men/women, but the lord Messiah Jesus, speaking what God, his Father, shows him (John 12:50: I know that his commandment is eternal life. What I say, therefore, I say as the Father has told me.), Jesus declares that God- Yehovah will make us fishers of men/women. That’s wonderful! I have hope! I am willing to learn, and God will make me a fisher of men/women. God- Yehovah can transform every person who is willing to learn and follow the lord Messiah Jesus- Yeshua.
The lord Messiah Jesus- Yeshua calls us, as he called
the first of the four disciples, Peter, Andrew, James, and John, to himself. He
said to them in Matthew 4:19, “Come behind me, and I will make you fishers of
men.” They were fishers of fish so far, and now Jesus told them that God was
going to make them fishers of men/women. The lord Messiah Jesus- Yeshua is saying to us
now: “God- Yehovah will change you and make you fishers of people when you
follow me.”
Note: To follow means to repent and be baptised in the name of Jesus-Yeshua. When you are immersed in the waters of baptism, you die to self, are crucified with the lord Messiah Jesus, and rise up out of the water in newness of life. You become a "new creation" in the lord Messiah Jesus- Yeshua. A member of the New Humanity that will be in the coming New Earth and New Heavens God- Yehovah will create after He cleanses the earth after the White Throne Judgement with fire.
It is amazing how God- Yehovah has changed so many
people. Numerous individuals who were medical doctors, specializing in physical
health, were transformed by God to become healers of the inner being of men/women,
spiritual physicians. God has transformed some individuals
who were once civil engineers, in charge of constructing roads and bridges,
into those who help others in constructing humble and repentant hearts.
Similarly, some who were electrical engineers, communicating through electronic
systems, have now learned to convey spiritually through the gospel. The lord
Messiah Jesus- Yeshua declares, “Come behind me, and I will make you into fishers of men/women.”
God’s- Yehovah's power in the lord Messiah Jesus- Yeshua changes the person, whoever they may be,
whatever they may do, to become spiritual engineers, doctors, and lawyers,
leading people to come to know God- Yehovah through his word. This is what discipleship
is about.
The lord Messiah Jesus- Yeshua said: “I will make you become
fishers of men/women” (Mark 1:17). It is so wonderful that God- Yehovah changes
the weak ones of this world, equips them with power, and turns the world upside
down when they respond to his call through the lord Messiah Jesus- Yeshua. So, we, as
disciples, are called to serve, to become fishers of men/women, and just as
fishermen bring the fish out of the sea, so we are to bring people out of the
world into the Kingdom of God.
Note: A follower of the lord Messiah Jesus- Yeshua is in this world, but not of this world, which is filled with people in bondage to sin.
6. Be sent forth
Sixthly, to be a disciple is to be sent forth.
How can you catch fish if you don’t launch out? Once you become a follower of the lord
Messiah Jesus- Yeshua, and God- Yehovah has made you to be fishers of men/women; He sends you
forth. As the lord Messiah Jesus says in John 20:21: “As the Father [Yehovah]
has sent me, even so I am sending you.” Jesus is saying: “Go into the
world and preach the message I preached about the coming kingdom of God.”
7. Become the representatives of God- Yehovah and the
lord Messiah Jesus – Yeshua.
Finally, God’s power in the lord Messiah Jesus
makes us to be the lord Messiah Jesus’ representatives in the world.
How amazing it is to be a disciple!
The lord Messiah Jesus says: “He who receives
you, receives me.” (Matthew 10:40). By the same token, he is saying: “He who
rejects you, rejects me.” Can you say that of the average Christian? No, but
you can say that of a disciple, because he fully represents the lord Messiah Jesus- Yeshua and God- Yehovah. The lord Messiah Jesus empowers his disciples by his indwelling Spirit to represent both him
and God with God-given authority. Anyone who dares to reject a disciple has
rejected the lord Messiah Jesus- Yeshua as well as God- Yehovah. But any man who accepts a
disciple of the lord Messiah Jesus has accepted the lord Messiah Jesus- Yeshua and God.- Yehovah.
This is why the lord Messiah Jesus- Yeshua declared in
John 8:12, “I am the light of the world,” and instructed his disciples in
Matthew 5:14, “You are the light of the world.” Just as he is the light, we
also shine as his representatives in the world. The apostle Paul similarly
affirms in Ephesians 5:8, “You are light.” What a marvelous truth!
This article points out what a disciple is through these seven points. Examine yourself in the light of
these seven points, and ask, “Am I a disciple?” If you are
not a disciple, you are not entitled to be called a follower of the lord
Messiah Jesus in the biblical sense of the word.
Is the lord Messiah Jesus- Yeshua lord of your
life? Do you follow the lord Messiah Jesus- Yeshua as he follows God-
Yehovah? Are you learning to become like the lord Messiah Jesus- Yeshua? Have you taken
his yoke to obey God- Yehovah unconditionally as he does? Is God’s- Yehovah's power in the
lord Messiah Jesus transforming your life to become a fisher of men/women? Do you
live for yourself, or do you serve God- Yehovah and the lord Messiah Jesus- Yeshua, by bringing
others into the kingdom of God? Ponder these things carefully.
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