Jesus Model of Discipleship

 

    Jesus started His ministry when he heard that John the Baptist had been arrested and it all started with the preaching of repentance for the kingdom of God was at hand. This was in Capernaum near the Sea of Galilee where he saw two brothers Peter and Andrew who were fishermen. The invitation to the transforming life in Christ comes to them in a simple but complex analogy when he said to them, “follow me and I will make you fishers of men.”[1] They did leave their nets and followed him so did two other brothers James and John who were fishermen as well and eventually, we know of the twelve men who today we call them apostles (Luke 6:13; ) the calling of these men could be likened to the calling that is given to the world, “come to me all who are weary and heavy-laden and I will give you rest” that invites men to respond to Christ in faith and give them a new birth). This is the foundation on which discipleship is built; a process that builds a relationship between the believer and God. What follows is a daily and personal touch Jesus has on the men who followed him building a relationship and transforming how they responded to the daily issues. The aim is for the follower to become like the master, and in this case to be “Christ-like”.

    J.DwightPentecost in his book, Design for Discipleship, states, “there is a vast difference between being saved and being a disciple. Not all men who are saved are disciples although all who are disciples are saved. In discussing the question of discipleship we are not dealing with a man’s salvation. We are dealing with a man’s relationship to Jesus Christ as his Teacher, Master, and his Lord.”[2]In the use of the word disciple, the emphasis is laid on the aspect that the relationship of Jesus with the disciples has the aspect of a learner, a pupil, and an apprentice. In the gospels, multitudes could come to him as he was teaching but it is only when they had left that his disciples would again ask for understanding for what he had been teaching the multitude. This supports the concept by Dwight that not all that heard become disciples but all that become disciples did learn from the master.

    Therefore the first point on the Jesus model of discipleship is built on the reality that to become a disciple of Christ one has to be born of God. This starts a spiritual transformation that affects not only the spiritual man but must also affect the physical in their service to God. Salvation, therefore, is an issue of faith; “faith comes by hearing and hearing by the word of God” (Ro. 10:17), and trust. Only that person who has decided to follow Christ then gets to build a relationship with him, growing in that relationship to become a “fisher of men”. This is what it means to become a disciple of Christ. No one becomes a disciple just by hearing, scripture in John 8:31notes that “Then Jesus said to those Jews which believed on him, if you continue in my word then you are my disciples indeed.”  Note here that discipleship is determined by continuing in the words of Christ, Meaning that these are those who go a step further to respond to the truth they had received, putting it to use and so become eligible to be called disciples. Today disciples seem stuck at salvation at the faith level and do not move on to following and obedience to the word of Christ who now lives in the believer through the Holy Spirit. They seem to have an intellectual curiosity as to what Christ is saying and teaching, through many listening to his word, numerous bible studies, and seminars and elaborate memorization of scriptures yet lack obedience on the very truth of his word which hinders them from becoming Christ’s disciples. The foundation of discipleship is salvation, but disciple-making focuses on building the relationship between man and Christ.

    A good example of the personal nature of discipleship is found in Luke 9:18-27 when Jesus asks his disciples who people say he is. They chorus many answers that were said, John the Baptist, Elijah, and a prophet from old that had arisen. He follows this with a personal relational question, “But who do you say that I am?”Peter gives his personal view of who he thinks he is, “The Christ of God.” This is an answer informed by Peter’s personal experience of the person of Christ as revealed to him by the Holy Spirit. This following Jesus has a price that is stated in verse 23, “if anyone would come after me let him deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me.” It is also echoed in Luke 14:27when Christ says, “Whoever does not bear his own cross and come after me cannot be my disciple.” Even though they were called of God, being His disciple entails more than just believing in the person of Christ. Being a disciple involves in part denying oneself as a response to the truth that is revealed through Christ’s life and teachings. Dwight sums it up saying, “Discipleship involves commitment. It involves identification with Christ in His shameful death. Discipleship involves the renunciation of oneself; it involves setting aside one’s own aims, goals, ambitions, and desires in life. It involves sacrifice for the sake of the Lord Jesus Christ. It involves setting aside one’s own will and one’s own right to his life and acknowledging Christ has the right to be obeyed, the right to rule.”[3]

    The dependence on Jesus in discipleship is exemplified by the “I am” statements that Jesus makes. He first says, “I am the way the truth and the life.” What does this mean? The crowds had been following Jesus for very many different reasons, among which were curios, hope for a meal, to which he says, “Do not work for the food that perishes, but for the food that endures to eternal life.” This introduces the main thrust of Christ which is the spirituality of the inner man who must be transformed into the image of Christ. What the disciples must eat is the true bread that comes from heaven (John 6:32), and it is he who comes down from heaven and gives life to the world (John 6:33). Then Jesus declares, “I am the bread of life, whoever comes to me will not hunger and whoever believes in me will never thirst.” Eating and drinking is very personal and no one can eat for the other; following Jesus too is personal in nature. In verse 53 says “Truly truly I say to you unless you eat the flesh of the son of man and drink his blood you have no life in you.” This made many to walk away from him mainly because they did not understand what he was saying. They took the spiritual for the physical and therefore saw the impossibility and repulsiveness of what he said prompting him to ask the twelve if they wanted to leave too. Peter responds, “Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life and we have believed and have come to know that you are the holy one of God.”They had already left everything they had and there was nothing to turn back to; they had given themselves to his cause that their lives were now entwined in his. As long as Christ can reveal his will to me and I choose to debate and decide whether or not I will do it I am not a disciple yet. I may have the convictions but I am not committed to Him, and even more not willing to let go of my life in pursuit of Christ. Then being a disciple of Christ becomes more of head knowledge than a transformation that points the believer to eternity.

    The model of Christ is designed to lead everyone to discipleship. Ultimately, the disciple-maker is Christ through the Spirit whom he had promised his disciples that he would send them a helper, the Spirit of truth who would guide them in all truth (John 16:13-15). In Matthew 11:28-30 Jesus' invitation, “come to me all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me for I am gentle and lowly in heart and you will find rest for your soul. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.” This was addressed to a people who had spent their lives under the Mosaic Law and held a strong following to the teachings of the Pharisees. This involved a system where they had 365 prohibition and 250 commandments. A system that depended much on what man could do to make himself acceptable with God rather than what God did to liberate a man.  When the law was imposed on man it did not bring liberty it brought bondage, oppression, and guilt which bring condemnation.  The Law brings knowledge of sin but not liberation from it (Ro.  ). Jesus on the other hand has a different model where everything starts and ends with the Spirit, for it is the Spirit who grants the New Life and it is the Spirit who sustains the New Life. The ox under the weight of the yoke is the scenario we walk in as Disciples of Christ. Normally the yoke is borne by two oxen; which signifies companionship, not just with Christ through the Spirit but also with fellow men as we take this journey of faith. Jesus never promised to take away the yoke but instead, he calls his disciples to take his yoke which gives us an opportunity to learn from him. He is gentle and lowly of heart something that was the opposite of what the law had offered. His yoke is easy and his burden is light.

    It seems contradictory that the disciple is offered rest while he is still carrying the yoke. Yet this is exactly what Jesus offers those who come after him; for it is no longer the believer who lives but Christ who lives in them through his Spirit. It is no longer about observing what the law commanded and refraining from all its prohibitions, but more of a friendship where surrender and obedience thrive. Surrender and obedience can only happen in a relationship that operates from the principle of love. Christian life is the life of a disciple full of activity because Christ is at work in life and we see the fruit of that work when the disciple is able to bring that Christ's influence to bear on another life. Christ is inviting us to first go to him, learn from him, and allow Him to direct our activities. He consistently tells his disciples that unless they abide in him, they cannot bear fruit for him (John 15:4-9). The greatest hindrance to effective discipleship has been the religious systems that have shifted discipleship from a relationship into programs, rules, and regulations. Once the systems have taken root, Unlearning them becomes the hardest task that one has to bear because many assume what we know is the truth.

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[1] Matthew 4:19

[2] J. Dwight Pentecost, Design for Discipleship

[3]J.Dwight Pentecost, Design for Discipleship