Following Jesus

Following Jesus

How would you describe a person who is going to heaven?  What word or words would you use? My guess is the most common answer would be a “Christian”.  Such a response would be a correct and biblical answer, for the word Christian is found in the Bible.  However, you may be surprised to learn that it is only used three times in the entire Bible, and two of those uses could be taken as being derogatory.

A more common biblical word that is used to describe a saved person is “disciple”.  It is used 233 times in the Gospels, most frequently to describe a person who had believed in Jesus.  In the book of Acts, twenty-seven out of twenty-eight times the word is used with clear reference to someone we would call a Christian.

Now I am not suggesting that we stop calling ourselves Christians.  This is a valuable way to describe those who have been transformed by Jesus Christ. But perhaps by overemphasizing the word “Christian” we have minimized a major part of what salvation entails.

Jesus Christ came not only to save you from your sins, but also to make you His disciple.  Discipleship is so important to Jesus that He chose to speak about it with some of His last words on earth.  In Mt. 28:19, He commanded His disciples to “Go and make disciples of all nations.”

To be a disciple means to be a follower of Christ.  That is why believers in the book of Acts were known as “Followers of the Way.”  One of the conditions of salvation is to bow to Jesus as Lord (Ro. 10:9), and once someone is saved they immediately enter into Christ’s discipleship program.  He becomes their Savior and Lord.  This begins the life-long journey of following in Christ’s ways and becoming like Him in character.

In order to be a faithful disciple we must be committed students of Christ. Jesus continued in Matt. 28:20, by saying that His disciples must be taught to obey everything He has commanded.  We must be so thoroughly familiar with the teachings of our Master that they affect the way we live.

Discipleship is also a costly endeavor, and Jesus never concealed the high costs.  For example, in Luke 14:25-34, Jesus teaches that we must be loyal to Him before and above everyone else, that we reject a life that is based on self-interest and self fulfillment, and we detach ourselves from all other allegiances and attach our total allegiance to Him.

In case following Christ seems like an impossible task, let me fill you in on some wonderful news. Jesus is a gracious Master. On one occasion, Jesus made this attractive offer of discipleship. Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, because I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For My yoke is easy and My burden is light” (Matt 11:29-30 HCSB). Jesus joins us as we follow Him, enabling us to fulfill His demands of discipleship, making them easy and light.  In other words, the grace of Jesus abounds as we choose to follow Him daily.

So how is your discipleship going?  Could you be considered a great Christian but a horrible follower of Christ?  If so, change your perspective. View yourself as a “Follower of the Way”, and live for Him each day. After all, “He died for all so that those who live should no longer live for themselves, but for the One who died for them and was raised” (2 Cor 5:15 HCSB).