How to be a Disciple…
Hey Yall!
I’m excited to tackle this subject of becoming a disciple of Jesus Christ simply because it was the command of Christ when he ascended. He told the disciples in Matthew 28, “Therefore go and make disciples of all nations”. This command is the focus of today’s blog.
So, I was studying Matthew 10 and Jesus has a lot of dialog in this chapter about how we are to conduct ourselves in ministry. He's training the disciples on what to do, how to do, where to go, where not to go, and how to act when they do go in their quest to spread the gospel. Matthew 10 was the training given to Christ’s disciples in order for them to later fulfill the command given in the aforementioned Matthew 28. God is so good! He gives them (and us) a step-by-step guide of what it means to follow Him and be His disciple.
Since God is always in the training business let’s dig into this chapter and pull out these instructions…
Matthew 10:5 says, 'These twelve Jesus sent forth, and commanded them, saying, Go not into the way of the Gentiles, and into any city of the Samaritans enter ye not: but go rather to the lost sheep of the house of Israel. And as ye go, preach, saying, The kingdom of heaven is at hand.”
This is particularly important to me because they had a similar message as John the Baptist proclaimed. He stood in the wilderness commanding the people to “Repent, for the Kingdom of God is at hand!”- Matthew 3:2. I’ve noticed that there are seasons when God will have similar messages being delivered from several different vessels. We each have a unique voice, cadence, tone, and style that is designed to speak to specific individuals. There are people called specifically to you and the way you deliver information… Because John the Baptist was baptized with the Holy Spirit in his mother’s womb (Luke 1:41), he knew the will of God for this generation. We must be in tune with the Holy Spirit in order to know the will of God concerning what he wants to share with His people!
Our first task as disciples of Christ is to spread the word about Jesus and his coming Kingdom. If you ever find yourself spreading the good news of who Jesus is and His pending return, you’re preaching a great message in line with the Word and will of God. This aforementioned message is always an on-time word!
'Heal the sick, cleanse the lepers, raise the dead, cast out devils: freely ye have received, freely give. '
Next, we see Jesus telling us, that when we go and proclaim the Word, we must also, heal the sick, cleanse the lepers, raise the dead, cast out devils: freely ye have received, freely give. The same Power that operated in Jesus and the disciples back then, is still operating right now in 2024. God does not change, neither does His word and what He says we can do! We are commanded to heal the sick! Isaiah 53:5 says, “He was wounded for our transgressions, He was bruised for our iniquities; The chastisement for our peace was upon Him, And by His stripes we are healed. We are healed through Jesus. He commands us to heal and that we can be healed! Those of us in ministry must increase our faith to know that we can heal the sick, raise the dead (because Jesus is the resurrection!) cast out devils, (it is the children’s bread, we are entitled to deliverance!). I love this last part, “freely ye have received, freely give”. Peter remembered this teaching even after Jesus’ ascension. In Acts 2, Peter is met with a lame man asking for money, he replied Silver and gold have I none; but such as I have give I thee: In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth rise up and walk.” He gave healing to that man freely! We must remember the teachings of Jesus. He doesn’t speak to us one time to never be used again. His instructions can and should be used over and over again.
'Provide neither gold, nor silver, nor brass in your purses, 'nor scrip for your journey, neither two coats, neither shoes, nor yet staves: for the workman is worthy of his meat.
In Matthew 10:9-10 Jesus tells us that we shall be provided for while doing His will in ministry. A workman is worthy of his meat… This scripture tells us that while we are out and about doing what we are instructed to do; We will be provided for! This is an important declaration to hold on to. Things can sometimes look bleak and destitute and if we are not holding onto the Word of God we can easily waiver! God will provide on our journey to spread the gospel!
'And whosoever shall not receive you, nor hear your words, when ye depart out of that house or city, shake off the dust of your feet. '
Matthew 10:14 goes on to tell us that not everyone will receive us or the gospel. We are not to hold onto any feelings of defeat or negativity; we shake it off and keep it moving! We can get in our heads about being effective in ministry based on how others view us and take our counsel. If we’re not careful, the enemy can use this as a great distraction to hinder us from moving forward with the full power and authority Jesus intended for us. Not everyone will receive you… It’s ok if they don’t. Everyone didn’t receive Jesus in his day or even now for that matter…
Behold, I send you forth as sheep in the midst of wolves: be ye therefore wise as serpents, and gentle as doves.
We are literally foreigners living in a hostile land with predators all around us. Because we are constantly a target for the enemy’s schemes, we must use wisdom in how we move! James 1:5-8 (KJV) If any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God, that giveth to all men liberally, and upbraideth not; and it shall be given him. We can simply ask for wisdom and God will give it to us without fail! He’ll give us all the wisdom we need to effectively live this life! Because of the hostility we face as believers, it’s important to know that God has given us provision and protection, we are not defenseless in this world! Jesus also calls for us to be gentle. Gentleness is a characteristic of the Holy Spirit so when we deny our flesh and allow the Holy Spirit residing in us to reign in our lives, it’s easy to be gentle because we are displaying God’s character. This world will attempt to harden us, we must always cast our cares on God and allow Him to carry our burdens so we can continue to operate with God’s characteristics, not fleshly ones.
'The disciple is not above his master, nor the servant above his lord. It is enough for the disciple that he be as his master, and the servant as his lord. If they have called the master of the house Beelzebub, how much more shall they call them of his household? '
Furthermore, Matthew 10:24-25 tells us that we must never forget how Jesus was treated by this world. We will be persecuted for Jesus’ sake. Its happening all over the world and will happen here in America. This world has an expected end and so do we! Its important that we keep our eyes on the scriptures. We must continue to remind ourselves that we have some dark days ahead but we win in the end! To be a disciple of Christ is to be submitted to the Lordship of Jesus. Our life is not our own. We live to spread the good news of the Savior to the world; we will be persecuted for this cause but we will also be blessed beyond measure because there is no greater feeling than the tanigle love of God!
Yall be blessed and be a blessing to others!
~Janese