7 helpful points to discipleship

7 Helpful points to discipleship


I recently wrote about why discipleship is so important and why we need to be a follower of Jesus before we can disciple others.

Following on from that I have listed out 7 points which will help make us disciples of Jesus;


(1) Understanding Grace – I have put this first because if we do not get this, the

following points will be a tick list of things we ‘have’ to do and if that’s the way you are thinking, then you will have missed the point. Grace means unmerited favour, something we get that we don’t deserve, everything we get is a gift and everything we pass on is a gift. We don’t deserve any of it. For instance, we don’t do good works in order for God to save us, they come out of our desire to follow Him. Our discipleship is based on our desire to follow Him not because we have to out of a sense of duty but because we love Him and want our lives to please Him.


(2) Assurance of salvation –

A disciple of Jesus is secure in the knowledge that they are a child of God and that Jesus lives within them. We can walk in confidence knowing that God has called and chosen us and what He says about our salvation is true. This leads me onto the third point


(3) Knowledge and love for the word of God –

We cannot be a disciple of Jesus without knowing what He teaches in the bible. A disciple will be hungry for God’s word; reading it, meditating on it and even memorising it. It is the bread of life and Jesus himself said “Man shall not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of God.” (Matthew 4 v 4)

7 Helpful points to discipleship(4) Filled with the Holy Spirit –

The difference between being filled with the Holy Spirit and not is so clearly demonstrated by the disciples before and after the day of Pentecost. Before they were filled they were timid and frightened, abandoning Jesus, and after he ascends, cowering in an upper room. When the Holy Spirit fills them they preach boldly and 3000 are added in one day. What a difference! You can know that difference too. Jesus said “But very truly I tell you, it is for your good that I am going away. Unless I go away, the Advocate will not come to you; but if I go, I will send him to you.” (John 16 v 7)


(5) A person of prayer – Jesus spent whole nights in prayer, He was

constantly communing with the Father and wouldn’t do anything without receiving instructions. How much more do we need to pray? I find it one of the hardest Christian disciplines but when I push through one of the most rewarding. The disciples were so impressed with Jesus’ prayer life that they asked Him to teach them. The 'Lords prayer' is a pattern of prayer, never intended to just be recited verbatim. Push through on this and you will reap the rewards.


(6) A worshipper –

Has your heart been captivated by your saviour? Have you grasped how great and wonderful He is? Just a short time reading a bible passage and praying should cause you to worship. It flows out of an understanding of what he has done for us by His grace, enlightened by the Holy Spirit. In other words, if you have started to consider the previous 5 points then worship should come easily!


(7) A witness –

This doesn’t mean you are going to be a great evangelist, but you should at least tell others the good news. Our witness will come out of our very lives but we still need to proclaim it. Being filled with the Holy Spirit will make a big difference. He will fill us with boldness.


This is of course just a start. There are other things I could mention and will do over the coming weeks. In future posts we will examine how we can continue being discipled by Jesus and how we can go about discipling others. If you have any thoughts about this subject why not contact me at www.adrianpursglove.com or add a comment and I will try to cover any queries you have.

Speak soon

http://www.adrianpursglove.com/

7 helpful points to discipleship

Spiritual