BECOMING A DISCIPLE,

   BECOMING A DISCIPLE

INDEX:
- GOD'S TRAINING AND DISCIPLINE
- BUILD YOURSELVES UP IN THE MOST HOLY FAITH
-THE KEYS OF GROWING IN THE LORD: ZEAL
                                                                      TEACHABLE
                                                                      CORRECTABLE
                                                                      BROKENESS
- CONCLUSION
 

“Servants, obey in all things your masters according to the flesh; not with eye service as men pleasers, but in singleness of heart, fearing God: and whatsoever you do, do it heartily, as to the Lord, and not unto men.” Colossians 3:22-23

 - GOD’S TRAINING AND DISCIPLINE

(I tackled the discipleship first in preparation to the topic of the Businessperson)

 Typically as Christians we are to reflect the character of Jesus Christ in all that we say and do. Not only does our Heavenly Father expect it from us, but so does the world around us. Most are keenly aware of the Godly and righteous example Jesus left for us as Christians to follow. As we grow in our confession of faith the world will expect our behavior to follow, and rightly so. Remember, Jesus gave us His Holy Spirit so that we are able to live the way He calls us to. Unfortunately we cannot put our life on hold to be retrained in the Christ-like behavior. Instead He uses our life’s settings as living opportunities to put us on display as His workmanship, and that includes our place of employment.

 Without trying to furnish any excuses, we are still in the flesh, and as the Scriptures teach, “For the sinful nature desires what is contrary to the Spirit, and the Spirit what is contrary to the sinful nature. They are in conflict with each other, so that you do not do what you want. But if you are led by the Spirit, you are not under the law.” Galatians 5:17-18 NIV

 Consequently in life we wage an endless battle on two fronts. The first is within ourselves, our flesh resisting His Spirit.  The second are the allurements, pressures, and temptations of the world and the devil. We have great news though, “...greater is He that is in you than He that is in the world.” 1 John 4:4 “…I can do all things through Christ which strengthens me.” Philippians 4:13

  Although victory depends on His grace, we have a responsibility to choose, (and that ability He also furnishes Philippians 2:13). Which side do we yield to, and to whom do we submit?  Thankfully, if we fail, which we sometimes do, we can completely depend on the grace of God to pick us up and the blood of Jesus to cleanse us.

 This not only is the battle we must fight, but a battle we must, can, and will win! Jesus said, “In the world you shall have tribulation: but be of good cheer, I have overcome the world.” John 16:33

BUILD YOURSELVES UP IN YOUR MOST HOLY FAITH –

 Moses was forty years tending sheep in Midian, and although he had been previously trained in all the wisdom of Egypt “mighty in word and deed” Acts 7:22, he had to be broken and retrained in Christ. It is the same with us, and that is a lifelong process. We can be assured that even with all our training and disciplines, our flesh, the world, and the devil, will always be fierce adversaries, and you can be certain that by God's standards, all your worldly wisdom, natural skills and abilities, are next to useless against these adversaries, which is one reason why Jesus had to come in the first place. “These are matters which give, to be sure, the appearance of wisdom in self-made religion and self-abasement, and severe treatment of the body, but are of no value against fleshly indulgence.” Colossians 2:23 NAS

 The keys of growing in the Lord are:
- learning from the Scriptures of the Bible so we can conform our thinking to the Lord’s
 - and to bring all our actions and behaviour in subjection to His Holy Spirit = becoming more Christ-like. Following godly examples of people you know is also a Biblical and practical asset. You may as well get ready for a life-long journey and an amazing and sometimes hard adventure. “And be not conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect will of God.” Romans 12:2, “For if you live after the flesh, you shall die: but if you through the Spirit do mortify (put to death) the deeds of the body, you shall live.” Romans 8:13

 Before we get into the ingredients of discipline and learning in Christ, you may wonder what that has to do with our job or work – well everything: dishonesty vs integrity, lying and stealing, laziness, apathy, selfishness, entitlement vs duty, submission and authority, and the list goes on. The character and nature of the Lord Jesus Christ will challenge and affect all these and more, and needs to shine through us as we carry out our day to day activities.

ZEAL – One super handy ingredient for growing in the Lord is zeal. The zeal we are referring to is the zeal of the Lord which the Holy Spirit imparts to us “For the zeal of Thine house has eaten me up…” Psalm 69:9, John 2:17. Because of the demands and energy required for growth, the burst of zeal that He gives, along with a willing heart, makes it so much easier to not only put in the effort, but to endure the associated disciplines and obstacles especially within ourselves. To grow, our thinking and behaviour needs to be challenged and changed. Moses, no doubt, sensing the call of God on His life, thought that by killing the Egyptian who was beating an Israelite would show his people that he was their saviour Acts 7:24-25. Well, like that worked. God had to harness his zeal and retrain his thinking and ways.

 HOW DO YOU KEEP YOU ZEAL ALIVE?

 With time almost everything wears out unless refreshed and refueled. We refresh our spiritual zeal by feeding on the things of God with a WHOLE HEART. Maintaining our prayer life, Bible reading, church and fellowship, are key ingredients, but without doubt, whole hearted love and devotion to Jesus in our daily lives by living for Him and not for ourselves will keep our Zeal burning.

TEACHABLE –

 Having zeal is great, like the apostle Paul told the Galatian Church, as long as it is properly channeled Galatians 4:18. Improperly channeled zeal can be damaging and even dangerous. The zealots of Judah were attempting to overthrow the Roman occupation by violence, which was counterproductive to Jesus’ mission. Was not Barabbas one such zealot?

 A person must be teachable in order to grow and be trained. Being teachable is all about learning to move and function appropriately in unfamiliar or new territory. Even in the secular world, an unteachable person will likely be evaluated as useless for many jobs and responsibilities, if any at all. 
CORRECTABLE - "Whoever loves instruction loves knowledge; but he that hates reproof (correction) is brutish (stupid). Proverbs 12:1Proverbs 1:22- Being teachable also requires being able to accept correction when wrong. Only God is never wrong and does not need to change. If  pride and self righteousness dominates our character, learning and changing (which we all need) will be crippled. If you win and get you way, you lose with God. This was a constant complaint with God concerning His people Israel Amos 4:6-12,  1Proverbs 1:22-33, and often with us.
NOTE - God is always trying our hearts, and He will often send you instruction or correction through someone whom you may totally despise or have no regard for. Watch out! That is the mistake Israel made when Jesus came along. Your very answer to prayer you may have just rejected.
HUMILITY - Humility makes learning and accepting correction easy for both parties. "God resists the proud, but gives grace to the humble." James 4:6

BROKENESS –

 Jesus said, “He that believes on Me, as the Scripture has said, out of his belly shall flow rivers of living water. But He spoke of the Spirit, which they that believe on Him should receive…” John 7:38-39

 As already mentioned, the functioning end product that Jesus is looking for in us is His Holy Spirit working in and through our lives. The apostle Paul said it like this, “I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live, yet not I, but Christ lives in me, and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God, Who loved me, and gave Himself for Me.” Galatians 2:20

 Unless we are broken in spirit (or heart) “…for out of it are the issues of life.” Proverbs 4:23, the Holy Spirit cannot flow through us. If we are self-willed, stubborn, arrogant, or perhaps are closed in heart toward certain people or things because of hurts and fears, we need to open up to Him so He can do the finishing work in order for the Holy Spirit to not only flow through us, but to heal and revive us. We in ourselves cannot produce the brokenness the Lord needs. He provides perfectly designed situations and circumstances that will break us beautifully. We, for our part, need to be willing and obedient, “If you are willing and obedient, you shall eat the good of the land…” Isaiah 1:19 Then watch the river flow.
 (Watchman Nee has written some brilliant work on this topic)

 

CONCLUSION

 Becoming a disciple of the Lord Jesus Christ will take us through the process of instruction, discipline, perseverance, and obedience, as would any rigorous trade, but the rewards are eternal, and the benefits are not just for our self. What a privilege to be called.