What makes a healthy disciple? This list is simple and uncomplicated.
Let’s begin without a long introduction this time.
Disciple means someone who is already saved or born again. He is experiencing the love and grace of God. So this article assumes that the reader is a disciple already.
I quote the NIV. If you would like to see other translations, please click on biblegateway.com.
(1) Prayer and intimacy. Maintaining your prayer life in your walk (daily living) with him is so important.
This is one verse among many about Jesus praying.
12 One of those days Jesus went out to a mountainside to pray, and spent the night praying to God. (Luke 6:12)
Bible Basics about Praise and Worship
If he prayed regularly, so should we.
(2) Spirit baptism. Get baptized in the Spirit.
The Spirit came upon Jesus when he was water baptized:
[…] Jesus was baptized too. And as he was praying, heaven was opened 22 and the Holy Spirit descended on him in bodily form like a dove. And a voice came from heaven: “You are my Son, whom I love; with you I am well pleased.” (Luke 3:21-22)
Here the 120 disciples were filled with the Spirit. You may or may not get a Spirit-inspired prayer language, but these 120 did.
When the day of Pentecost came, they were all together in one place. 2 Suddenly a sound like the blowing of a violent wind came from heaven and filled the whole house where they were sitting. 3 They saw what seemed to be tongues of fire that separated and came to rest on each of them. 4 All of them were filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues[a] as the Spirit enabled them. (Acts 2:1-4)
Baptized, Filled, and Full of the Spirit: What Does It All Mean?
Did 12 or 120 Speak in ‘Spirit-Inspired Languages’ (‘Tongues’) at Pentecost?
Please note: some churches teach that the baptism and infilling of the Spirit happens at conversion or new birth (born again). I do not wish to quarrel about it here. All I can say is that Jesus did not need conversion or new birth, yet he got filled with the Spirit to empower him for ministry.
Questions and Answers about Spirit-Inspired Languages
(3) Water baptism. Get water baptized. This should have been done soon after your new birth, but sometimes delays happen.
Jesus got baptized:
16 As soon as Jesus was baptized, he went up out of the water. At that moment heaven was opened, and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and alighting on him. 17 And a voice from heaven said, “This is my Son, whom I love; with him I am well pleased.”(Matt. 3:16-17)
If he got baptized, how much more should we?
(4) Scripture. You need to get into Scripture to saturate your mind. Study it strategically—who God is, who Christ is, who the Spirit is. Who humankind is (people are sinful.) Get in a Bible reading plan. Read a chapter a day. Or if you’re a total newbie, read a few verses from Proverbs and Psalms. Or read verses each day from the Gospel of John. Over time, everyone should read through the New Testament.
The church was into the word of God:
24 But the word of God continued to spread and flourish. (Acts 12:24)
The town of Berea welcomed Paul and Silas. But the people there examined the Scriptures to find out whether their message was true. Note the result, Many of them, even the ones with high status, believed.
[…] they received the message with great eagerness and examined the Scriptures every day to see if what Paul said was true. 12 As a result, many of them believed, as did also a number of prominent Greek women and many Greek men. (Acts 17:11-12)
The Scriptures have this effect on open-hearted and open-minded hearers.
The Power of Scripture and Doctrine in the Church
The earliest church considered the apostles’ teaching to be authoritative: “They [the earliest church] devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching” […] (Acts 2:42a). For the earliest church, apostolic teaching became Scripture through which they interpreted the Old Testament.
(5) Fellowship. You must fellowship with other believers at a Spirit-filled, Bible-teaching and Jesus-following church.
In the next verse, the Sanhedrin and chief priests and elders, the highest court and council in Judaism at the time, threatened the apostles. Then the apostles left the council and reported back to their own community or church.
23 On their release, Peter and John went back to their own people and reported all that the chief priests and the elders had said to them.(Acts 4:23)
We must have fellowship with each others, particularly during tough times.
These verses come from the epistle to the Hebrews and encourage us to do something. What? Verse 25 is the key verse.:
24 And let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds, 25 not giving up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but encouraging one another—and all the more as you see the Day approaching. (Heb. 10:24-25)
We need each other.
This passage, though long, spells out how the earliest church depended on each other.
42 They devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and to fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer. 43 Everyone was filled with awe at the many wonders and signs performed by the apostles. 44 All the believers were together and had everything in common. 45 They sold property and possessions to give to anyone who had need. 46 Every day they continued to meet together in the temple courts. They broke bread in their homes and ate together with glad and sincere hearts, 47 praising God and enjoying the favor of all the people. And the Lord added to their number daily those who were being saved. (Acts 2:42-47)
The Spirit in the Church and Believers
Does Book of Acts Teach Modern Communism or Socialism?
(6) Crucified or surrendered life. You must live the surrendered life before God.
James 4:7: “Submit to God, resist the devil, and he will flee from you.”
We are called to lay down our ambitions and vices and sins and willfulness and our own way. Laying all things down is the same as dying daily. We must crucify the sin nature.
23 Then he said to them all: “Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross daily and follow me. 24 For whoever wants to save their life will lose it, but whoever loses their life for me will save it. (Luke 9:23-24)
(7) Fruit of the Spirit. Living the surrendered or crucified life produces the fruit of the Spirit more powerfully and rapidly. Note v. 24 in this passage:
22 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 23 gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law. 24 Those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires. (Gal. 5:22-24)
1 Fruit of the Spirit: Love (begin a series on the fruit of the Spirit)
(8) Gifts of the Spirit. “Follow the way of love and eagerly desire gifts of the Spirit, especially prophecy” (1 Cor. 14:1). To be a mature disciple, you must experience the gifts of the Spirit which the Spirit himself distributes to you just as he determines (1 Cor. 12:11).
6 We have different gifts, according to the grace given to each of us. If your gift is prophesying, then prophesy in accordance with your faith; 7 if it is serving, then serve; if it is teaching, then teach; 8 if it is to encourage, then give encouragement; if it is giving, then give generously; if it is to lead, do it diligently; if it is to show mercy, do it cheerfully. (Rom. 12:6-8)
Do you teach Sunday school? Do you help people? Lead a home group? Show hospitality? Encourage people? Show mercy cheerfully?
Gifts of the Spirit in 1 Corinthians 12:7-11 and 12:28
Gifts of the Spirit in Romans 12:6-8
(9) Outreach. You reach out to the lost. The gifts of the Spirit can help you here.
These verses are about the Great Commission.
18 Then Jesus came to them and said, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. 19 Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20 and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.” (Matt. 28:18-20)
We have all been commissioned to reach unsaved people. You can start by just being friendly to workers behind the counter at your favorite shop. When the transaction is completed, you can say, “Thank you. God bless you.” Or “Thank you. God loves you.” This simple truth can change a life by the power of the Spirit.
Next, you can be friendly at your job. Eventually they will catch on to your faith. But earn the right to be heard. If you are a lazy employee, then ask God to help you improve your behavior before you share your faith.
Or you can go the extra-mile for someone who is not a believer, like a family member. You can help her move or mow your widowed grandmother’s yard (garden). Or your neighbor’s yard if he or she is in need.
(10) Giving and other good works. You should give regularly to your local church. And you do good works for God, in the safe environment of your local church. You can give your time and money. You can volunteer to help out, for example, in the car park, or teaching Sunday School or in the kids department.
6 Remember this: Whoever sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and whoever sows generously will also reap generously. 7 Each of you should give what you have decided in your heart to give, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver. 8 And God is able to bless you abundantly, so that in all things at all times, having all that you need, you will abound in every good work. (2 Cor. 9:6-8)
The more you give to the poor and high-quality ministries, the more God will supply you with income so you can give some more. No, this is not “give to get rich,” but God does love a cheerful giver.
Be careful, though, for some ministries are off balance and even fraudulent. Give to your local church first, but be sure the pastors do not live the life of luxury and hyper-prosperity, while everyone else lives middle-class or working-class lives.
Next, we are going to be judged by our good or bad words and works (Matt. 12:36; Rom. 2:6-8). Here are verses that talk about your salvation and then your doing good works:
8 For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God— 9 not by works, so that no one can boast. 10 For we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do. (Eph. 2:8-10)
Get the sequence. Salvation first by grace through faith. Then, second, after salvation, you do good works that God has prepared for you to do.
Here’s a simple formula to help you remember the sequence, the arrows meaning “leads to”:
Salvation → Good works
Conclusion
Don’t treat those ten characteristics as The Ten Commandments. They are not. They are things to shoot for. Goals. Yet, a healthy disciple has at least some of those ten truths operating in her life. But don’t be discouraged if you are weak in certain areas. Give God time to work in you. Be as patient with yourself as God is with you! God loves you and wants to work with you and grow you up–grow us all up
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