WE WERE CALLED TO BE DISCIPLES, SO THAT WE IN TURN CAN DISCIPLE OTHERS.

1. How you received your call, how you understood it and how you lived it by practice is what matters most in discipleship.
WRITTEN BY: C.U.EBONG
TOPIC: A CALL TO DISCIPLESHIP
MEMORY VERSE: “Go and Make disciples of all nations.”-Matt.5:14-16
TEXTS: John 8:31-32, John 15:8, Matt.28:19-20, Luke 9:57-58; 14:27, Isa. 6:8, John 15:8
INTRODUCTION
I want to remind you that the Lord gave us a command not to go and make converts, not to just get
people to confess Jesus as their Lord and receive forgiveness of sins, but to make disciples. Although
those first two are vital, and I’m not minimizing that at all, the real purpose has to be to go beyond
being born again and to go on to maturity. The goal of a Christian, who is a disciple, should be to go
and make disciples of other people.
I compare this to a person who loves babies. It would be totally irresponsible to have a baby, be excited
about it, but only like seeing it born. When you have a child, you have to assume responsibility to train
and raise it. We tell people, “The main thing is to get born again, to confess Jesus as your Lord.” When
that happens, we pat them on the back and say, “Now you’re a Christian. Believe God, study the Bible,
and everything will be okay.” That is not the Lord’s emphasis. The whole point is that discipleship is the
method God set down for evangelizing the world. The truth doesn’t make you free until you continue in
the Word (John 8:31-32). It may surprise you to know that Jesus never called anyone to become a
“Christian,” rather His call was for people to become “disciples.
WHAT IS DISCIPLESHIP? The word “discipleship” literary means someone who pledges to be a
“learner”. Moreover, it is someone who follows another’s teaching and obeys it. It is the eagerness to
imitate Christ. It is a call to be set apart, challenged and taught in order to drive the Mission Christ
gave us.
Discipleship is also reciprocal. i.e. when one learns, he/she makes the commitment to train someone else.
That is what Jesus meant by, “I will make you fishers of men”. It is not just catching them and storing
them, it training, and placing, so they too, can catch, train and place others. Discipleship is a gift
because many are called but few are chosen to obtain the gift. Discipleship is seen as an invitation to a
personal relationship with Jesus. The call to discipleship is not only on friendship but to do and bear
fruit and bear witness to them. John 15:8
Discipleship is the primary and earthly goal of the church as a whole, and of the Christian as an
individual. It is our duty, and the one thing Christ directly commands us to do (Matt.28:19-20).
We are never to make disciples in our image-who we are or how we think, feel and act-but in the image
of Christ.
 We are to be discipled
 We are to become his disciple
 We are to disciple others so they can, in turn disciple others
If you are a pastor or church leader, you can’t lead others to know and grow in Christ unless you are
growing in Christ yourself.
THE COST OF DISCIPLESHIP
Following Christ will cost us, requiring effort and consistency (Matt.8:18-22, 10:38; Luke 9:57-58; 14:27).
The original disciples left their families and good jobs (Matt. 10:37, Luke.9:59-62). “Whosoever does not
bear his own cross and follow me cannot be my disciple”-Luke.14:27. Also read Luke.9:23, Matt.8:22. God
does not force us nor plead with us; He merely presents us the option (Isa. 6:8)!

2. How you received your call, how you understood it and how you lived it by practice is what matters most in discipleship.
We must say, as Isaiah said, Here I am, send me! We must allow our spiritual eyes to be opened and our
will to be relinquished to His, for real discipleship to take place. Then, our churches will grow in prayer,
worship, and maturity, and revival may take place!
WHY WERE YOU CALLED AND TO WHAT PURPOSE?
John 21:15-19, Matt.5:14-16. We are called to make disciples and to feed his lambs.
SIGN OF GOOD DISCIPLESHIP
John 15:8, John 13:35. Disciples are meant to bear much fruits
WHY DID THE DISCIPLES FOLLOWED JESUS?
Luke 5:1-11. They saw that Jesus is the Son of God through the miracles he performed.
Note: How you received your call, how you understood it and how you lived it by practice is what
matters most in discipleship.
WHY IS THE CHURCH SO WEAK IN THE WORLD TODAY?
It is because the gospel is not a priority in the lives of its members. If we are disciples of Jesus, our
priority should be the advancement of his kingdom (Matt. 6:33). The early disciples exhibited this
character of taking the gospel as the first assignment in leaving their nets, they were leaving the very
means of their livelihood. They made the spreading of the Gospel a priority in their lives.
WHAT QUALIFIES YOU TO BECOME A DISCIPLE
Now I want you to notice something. These men were totally unqualified for the job to which they were
called. They were fishermen by trade. They were just ordinary people. They were not trained in the
Jewish religion, as the scribes or levites or priests. They were not Rabbis. As a matter of fact, they were
not even Pharisees or Sadducees. They were just common folk, ordinary fishermen, people like you and
me. He called these, it is as if Jesus wanted to make a statement that anyone could be used by him for
his purpose. Jesus wasn’t looking for the professionals, but he was looking for the ordinary people who
will rejoined the twelve (12) tribes of Israel.
GOD BLESS YOU………………….