Trip to truth…
The Discipleship Question
Steve Coerper
"Whoever of you does not forsake all that he has cannot be My disciple." - Luke 14:33
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There are people who have come to the question of discipleship and have said "no," though I'm inclined to think the options may not have been clearly presented. Jesus invites us to become His disciples, but discipleship is always on His terms. This is offered as a life-changing, binary choice. There is no "Discipleship-Lite" for people who want some of the benefits of Christianity, but are not interested in the rigors of a total commitment.
Despite what you may have heard, you cannot substitute church membership or rituals for discipleship. Starkly, if you say "no" to becoming Jesus' disciple, it is because you have some other god. It then becomes an idolatry issue. Something or Someone must have your primary allegiance. For a Christian, that Someone is Jesus. For Christians-in-name-only (and you may know some), Jesus may get Wednesday nights and weekends, but the job, or the family, or the football team or some other thing has first place.
There are no good reasons for refusing to become His disciple. There are only excuses:
"My spouse would not like it."
"What if I lose my job?"
"I'll do everything except . Is that good enough?"
No, it isn't.
I can't over-emphasize how critically important this is. Your eternity hangs in the balance. He knows those who are His; the rest are lost. Don't believe the lie that those who become committed disciples are the "super-Christians" and may get the best places, but there's room for "average Christians" too. There are no "average Christians" or "mostly-committed Christians" or anything of the sort.
The "formula" for becoming a disciple is found in Matthew 28:19-20. It's really quite simple: 1) baptism, and 2) obeying the commands of Christ.
I urge you to count the cost. Jesus deserves your total commitment. If you are not convinced of that, then please search the scriptures. He is willing to take responsibility for all your sins and deliver you from the eternal hellfire we all richly deserve.
ADDITIONAL RESOURCES:
Nine Disqualifications of Discipleship — These have practically nothing to do with Bible knowledge and everything to do with priorities, commitment, and obedience.
Not a Fan — It wasn't the size of the crowd Jesus cared about; it was their level of commitment.
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