Discipleship is a building block of Christianity that seems to have been forgotten. Discipleship is a necessity if those that are to eventually lead are to be strong future mentors. Discipleship is clearly found in scripture and can be observed from Christ's calling of the future apostles i.e., Peter, Phillip, James and Andrew (John 1:43, Mark 4:18, Mark 1:16 and John 21:19, 22). According to Stott in his book, "The Message of the Sermon on the Mount", it is apparent that one of the many goals of discipleship should be for the disciple to eventually resemble his master in manner of life and attitude. According to Stott this is clearly pointed out in Jesus', Sermon on the Mount, which gives clarity concerning what Jesus wanted His disciples to be and to do. According to Christ the disciple or follower should meet and eventually excel his master (John 14:12).
Discipleship is an involved calling that entails and necessitate a great deal of demands. There must be an attitude and atmosphere that allows the individual to stay on tract and focused. Stott stated that distractions, which are inevitable, may lead to the temptation of "much business" which must be avoided if discipleship is to lead to the ultimate goal of Christ-likeness. Dr. Michael R. Mitchell in his paper, "The Conditions of Discipleship" , states that the disciple must be willing to deny himself (Matt. 10:38, Matt. 16:24, Mark 8:34). This denial springboards to renunciation (Matt. 19:21, Mark 10:21, Mark 10:28) which means pushing away from whatever or whoever that stands in the way or obstructs discipleship. The disciple has to be willing to leave all (Matt. 8:22, Luke 9:59, Luke 9:61) which perhaps is the most difficult (Luke 18:18-25). According to Dr. Mitchell, the disciple must be steadfast (John 8:31, John 12:26), consistent and unswerving in his or her pursuit of Christ. The disciple that does these things, according to Dr. Mitchell, should also expect to produce much fruit (John 13:35, 1Cor. 14:1).
Pastor Ken
