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Radical Discipleship
Sterling UMC
October 9, 2011
Matthew 4:18-22
When Jesus was thirty years old he began his public ministry. The first thing he did was
go gather a group of guys who he could train. They are called his disciples. Many
times in Scripture it tells us that he invited people to become his disciples. In Matthew
9:9 it says this, “As Jesus was going down the road he saw Matthew sitting in his taxcollection
booth, ‘Come be my disciple,’ Jesus said. So Matthew got up and followed
him.”
Today, Jesus Christ makes this exact same offer to you to come be my disciple. The
amazing thing was that these 12 men immediately left everything they had and followed
Jesus. Theirs was a radical discipleship! He’s asking you this today – come be my
disciple.
What is a “disciple?” The word “disciple” comes from the Latin word dicipulus. It means
a student. It means a learner. It means a pupil. A disciple is an apprentice.
The word in the Bible is actually used four different ways.
First, it’s referred to as anybody who’s being trained by anybody else. If you’re in
training, you have a supervisor who’s training you, you are being discipled by that
supervisor. Moses’ disciple was Joshua. Elijah’s disciple was Elisha. David’s disciple
was his son Solomon. Elisha had disciples of his own. John the Baptist had disciples.
Paul had a disciple named Timothy. A disciple is just somebody who’s being mentored
by somebody else.
The second way it’s used in the Bible is to refer to the twelve disciples, physically
the twelve guys that Jesus chose which we also call apostles.
The third way it’s used is in the book of Acts. The word “disciple” is just a
synonym for “Christian.” In the Bible days they weren’t called “Christians.” They were
called “disciples.” In fact it wasn’t until the church had spread completely out of Israel
into Antioch where at that little church they were first called Christians.
But what I want us to look at this morning is Jesus’ use of the term. Jesus
frequently took a very common word like student, pupil, disciple, apprentice and he
adds new meaning to it. He infuses it. He injects new meaning into it.
So I want us to look at Jesus’ definition of what it means to be a disciple. Because
about ten times in Scripture Jesus says “If you do this then you’re my disciple… If you
do this then you can follow me.” So we want to look at Radical Discipleship as we
continue this series Come Dream With Us.
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Not only are we going to look at that, but when you understand what Jesus says it
means to be a disciple, you’re going to understand why we do everything we do at
Sterling UMC. Every class we offer, every sermon that’s delivered, every program we
develop, every event we plan, every tool we făurite is to help people become disciples
of Jesus, to do these six things.
1. To be a disciple I must spend time with Jesus.
I must spend time with Jesus – a lot of time with him. Because like any relationship, the
more time you invest, the more you’re going to get out of it. Friends, you can’t be a
disciple in just a few minutes a day. You’ve got to spend time. You’ve got to be in
constant conversation. It’s a full-time responsibility.
Here’s what Jesus said in John 12 “If you want to be my disciple you must come and
follow me, because my servants must be where I am. And if they follow me, the Father
will honor them.”
This verse is packed with meaning. In fact it teaches us three things about spiritual
growth. As your pastor, one of my goals is to help you grow spiritually, not just this year
but for the rest of your life. I want you to write these three things down that we notice
from this verse.
One, we learn that spiritual growth is a choice.
God’s not going to force you to grow. He leaves it up to you. He says, “If you want to
be my disciple then you must make the choice to grow.” At the end of this year you’re
not going to be more mature unless you choose to be more mature. Spiritual growth is
not automatic. Spiritual growth is intentional. It’s not something that just happens. It’s
not involuntary. It’s not inevitable. You have to choose to grow spiritually. Jesus says
I’m giving you the choice.
Two, growth is a commitment.
Spiritual growth is a commitment. You must commit to grow in order to grow. “In 2011
this is going to be the year I really get it in gear. This is going to be the year I take
action.” First he said you’ve got to want it. Then you’ve got to come and follow. If you
want to grow you can’t just sit there. You’ve got to move it! You’ve got to get it in gear.
You’ve got to take action to grow.
This is true in every area of life. We grow by making commitments. Marriage causes
you to grow up a lot. Have you noticed that? Having kids causes you to grow up.
Anytime you make any kind of commitment it causes you to take a step of growth.
Taking on a new job is a commitment which helps you grow. Anytime you make a
commitment you grow.
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Here’s the problem. You can’t be committed to everything. And you shouldn’t be
committed to everything because not everything is worth being committed to. If you’re
committed to everything you’re committed to nothing. Selection is the name of the
game.
The third thing this verse teaches us is that spiritual growth is a relationship.
Spiritual growth is a relationship. It’s not about rules. It’s not about rituals. It’s not
about a formula. It’s not about a bunch of expectations. It’s about being with Jesus.
His plan in Mark 3 says “The plan was that they would be with him and then he would
send them out to proclaim the word.”
So what does it mean to be a disciple today? Obviously Jesus isn’t here physically.
How do you be with Jesus today?
You talk to him all the time. You have a running conversation with Jesus Christ. Its
called prayer. And the more time you spend with God, the more you talk with the Lord,
the more you’re going to grow. If you only have a little quiet time every day you’re going
to grow a little bit. If you only talk to the Lord on the weekends in church, you’re not
going to grow much at all. But if you learn to talk to the Lord all the time, have a
conversation about whatever is on your mind, you’re going to really start growing
because it’s a relationship. Jesus said I’ve got to spend time with him if I want to be a
disciple.
2. If I want to be a disciple… to be a disciple I must love Jesus supremely.
This is the second definition that Jesus gives. In Luke chapter 14 he says this “If you
want to be my follower you must love me. You must love me more than your own father
and mother, your wife and children, your brothers and sisters – yes, more than your own
life. Otherwise, you cannot be my disciple.”
What’s he saying here? He’s saying that your love for God is to be so puternice that
everything else pales in comparison. That doesn’t mean you don’t love the other
people. Actually the more you love God the more you’re going to love other people.
But he’s saying exclusivity, supremacy, belongs to God. Because you wouldn’t have
your family, you wouldn’t have your kids, you wouldn’t have the people you love, your
friends, without God, so he says you’re to love God more than anything else.
Spiritual growth is measured by love. It’s not measured by how much you know. It’s
not measured by your Bible knowledge. It’s not measured by your skills. It’s not
measured by the words you say. It’s not measured by how much you attend church.
Because you can go to everything the church offers, every time the doors are open, and
still be spiritually immature. It may just mean you don’t have anything to do in your life.
So it has nothing to do with that.
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Your spiritual maturity is measured by how much you love. How much you love God
and how much you love others.
The Bible says in Mark 12, Jesus said “The most important command is this: you must
love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your mind, and
with all your strength.” This is called radical devotion. When you love God with all your
heart and all your soul and all your mind and all your strength, you’re loving God
radically. It means I love God more than anything or anyone else.
3. The third key if I want to be a disciple, if I want to grow spiritually, this is a little bit
harder: I must love every other disciple.
Uh-oh! Now we’re getting a little bit harder. It’s easy to love God because he’s perfect.
But you’re not. And I’m not. Sometimes we’re irritating and sometimes we’re
obnoxious. And sometimes we show our imperfections and our insecurities. Yet Jesus
says, if you’re going to be my disciples you can’t just love me. You have to love
everybody in my family. What is the family of God? It’s the church. It is the people of
God. You have to love every other believer, every other Christian, every other follower
of Jesus. Every other disciple.
People think they can follow Christ but not love the church. They’re wrong. In fact,
here’s what the Bible says in 1 John 4 “If someone says I love God but hates a Christian
brother or sister, that person is a liar. For if we don’t love people we can see, how can
we love God whom we have not seen?”
That’s what it means to be a disciple. Not I love God, but I couldn’t care less about
the church. No. God says if you love me you love my family. This is why being in a
small group is absolutely essential to your spiritual growth. You can’t grow without
it. Because small groups are the laboratory to practice love, where we get to show
love for each other, get to practice being unselfish, get to practice helping each
other out.
So my dream for you in 2012, if you’re not in a small group, get in one. Get in a small
group or a Bible study. Outside this morning is a full display of the variety of ways you
can do that. Check out the tables and find a way to get connected to a group or a Bible
study.
I must spend time with Jesus, I must love him supremely, and I must love every other
disciple. Those are the marks of discipleship.
4. Jesus says if I want to be a disciple I must always do what Jesus tells me.
That’s the mark of a disciple. I must always do what Jesus tells me. It may not make
sense. It may not be popular. It may cost me something. But it’s always the right thing
because God’s not going to steer you in the wrong direction. If God tells you to do
something it’s always the right thing to do. He’s saying that one of the marks of
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discipleship is I must obey him continually. It’s called obedience. John 8,“If you
continue to obey my teaching, you are truly my disciple. Then you will know the truth
and the truth will set you free.”
There are a lot of people who know the Bible but they don’t live it. Spiritual growth is an
ongoing process. It’s measured by obedience.
5. The fifth qualification to be a disciple of Jesus: I must serve others unselfishly.
I’ve got to learn to serve others. Service is a very, very important part of your spiritual
growth, and your spiritual development. God says it’s not all taking in; it’s giving back.
The Bible says if you want to be the most important person you must take the last place
and be the servant to everyone else.
That’s about the most counter culture statement you can figure in America. He says if
you want to be the most important person you’ve got to take the last place, be a servant
to everybody else. God is saying that the kingdom of God values are the exact opposite
of the world’s values. The world’s values say “It’s all about me... Have it your way...
You deserve it… You’ve got to look out for number one.” The world says you are more
important than anybody else.
That’s a way to be miserable in life. God says give your life away. The world’s value
system says get everybody to serve you. And Jesus says, no, leadership is not
dependent upon how many people serve you, but how many people you serve. The
best leaders are those who are helping other people, not using the people to serve
themselves. The world says live for yourself. God says give your life away.
The key to happiness in life is to find significance. Friends significance doesn’t come
from salary. It doesn’t come from success. It doesn’t come from status. The little
symbols on your car or on your shirt. It comes from service. Because God wired the
universe that the only way your life takes on significance is you give it away. Why?
Because God wants you to learn to be like him – unselfish. The most miserable people
in life are self-centered, it’s all about me, I’m living for me, my pleasure, my needs, my
comfort, it’s all about me.
The happiest people in life are those who give their lives away. They’re serving others.
Whether they’ve got money or not doesn’t matter. Their significance gives them their
satisfaction, their meaning, their purpose, their value in life.
There’s one more thing. Jesus said if I’m going to be his disciple I’m going to spend
time with him. I’ve got to love him supremely. I’ve got to love everybody else in the
church. I’ve got to obey him continually. I’ve got to serve others unselfishly.
6. To be a disciple I must pass on the Good News!
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When I hear it I’m supposed to tell somebody else about it. Mathew 4:20 “Jesus called
out, ‘Come! Be my disciple. And I will show you how to fish for people,’ and they left
their nets at once and went with him.”
What’s he mean by that? He’s saying, “ I’ll show you how to change lives. I’ll show you
how to get people into heaven. I’ll show you how to bring people to me. I’ll show you
how to share the good news. You will be a fisher of men.”
The corollary to that is if you’re not fishing, you’re not following.
Is anybody going to be in heaven because of you? If you’re not fishing, you’re not
following. If you’re not telling it to somebody else, you are not being a disciple. God
expects you to pass it on. If I knew the cure for cancer and kept it a secret they should
put me in prison. It would be criminal to know the best news and not share it.
I know something better than that and you do too. How to have your past forgiven,
purpose for living and a home in heaven. God calls us to share it.
Jesus says to be a disciple you must pass it on. Mathew 28 “Therefore [he said] go and
make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son
and the Holy Spirit. And teach these new disciples to obey all the commands I’ve given
you; and be sure of this – I am with you always, even to the end of the age.”
My dream for the coming year is that each one reach one. I want you to pray Lord, help
me to bring one person to Jesus this year. Not two, not ten – one. I want somebody to
be in heaven because of you. If you start praying about your friends who don’t know the
Lord, God will make it so easy. They’ll come to Christ. If you can reach one person for
Jesus, that’s what it means to be a disciple. We pass it on to somebody else.
What happens? If I do these six things that Jesus says to do and I become a disciple
here’s what happens, “Jesus said ‘If you try to keep your life for yourself, you’re going to
lose it. But if you give up your life for my sake, for the sake of the Good News, you will
find true life.’”
Let me close by saying this: you will grow this coming year. You will grow spiritually if –
here’s the big if; two things: If you choose to grow, you’ve got to say, I’m going to quit
being a casual Christian. I’m going to quit being a wimpy immature baby believer. I’m
not going to be a half- hearted casual Christian. I’m going to grow up. I’m going to
become a godly man; I’m going to become a godly woman. You will grow if you make
the choice.
And two, if you take advantage of all the myriad ways of classes, opportunities,
programs, tools, events that this church has planned to help you grow.[/quote][/list]