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“What is a Disciple? Part 1”
Ok, help me out church . . . “We exist to develop disciples who love God, love the church, and love others.”
We exist to develop disciples. That’s been part of our vision statement for nearly six years.
We’ve spoken several times off and on about what it means to be a disciple over the years. Yet, some of the leaders of our church, including the pastors, feel like some of our church family may not fully know what it means for us to be disciples.
As Jesus prepared to go back into heaven, He left us with these words, which we call the Great Commission.
Jesus said in Matthew 28:19–20, “Go, therefore, and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe everything I have commanded you. And remember, I am with you always, to the end of the age.”
So, we exist to develop disciples. Before Jesus left, He commanded us to make disciples.
Yet, when we recently took a church health survey among our church family, out of the categories of worship, prayer, ministry, fellowship, discipleship, and evangelism. Our second lowest score was in the area of discipleship (show chart) (by the way, the lowest was in evangelism, so you’ll hear more about that as well).
So, we want to be more intentional as a church to focus on what it means to be a disciple.
We’re starting a short sermon series called “What is a Disciple?” Today is part 1.
Join me in prayer as we prepare to dive further into this sermon.
(prayer)
Church: We must be determined to make disciples. That is what Jesus told us to do, and that is why we exist as a church. So, let us be committed to learning about discipleship and about pursuing discipleship.
Ok, we’re going to learn a bit about what a disciple is in general, but we’re more concerned with learning what it looks like to be a disciple at First Baptist Church Bartow. How do we see this process lived out in our church?
So, let us now discover what a disciple looks like at First Baptist Church Bartow.
At First Baptist Church Bartow, . . .
I. A disciple experiences spiritual growth.
Generally speaking, a disciple is a student or follower of someone. So, when we speak of someone who is a disciple in the context of the church, we are talking about someone who is a follower of Jesus.
So, at our church, we believe that as you follow Jesus, you should begin to look more like Jesus. You should grow in your spiritual life as you are filled and led by the Holy Spirit of God.
That process begins by first being changed by the work of Jesus.
On the card that we passed out regarding what it means to be a disciple, you’ll see under the first identifier a little descriptor that says, “A disciple is made new by the saving work of Jesus.”
You can’t grow in your new spiritual life until you are first made new by Jesus.
2 Corinthians 5:17 says, “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has passed away, and see, the new has come!”
To be a disciple, you must first be a new creation. You must be rescued from the bondage of the slavery of sin. You must be spiritually raised from the dead. You must be adopted into the family of God. You must be changed by the work of Jesus and receive the Holy Spirit into your life.
The saving act of Jesus is where it all begins.
Then, as we grow spiritually, a disciple is becoming more like Jesus.
Many of you know that we call this process sanctification. Sanctification is the process of being made holy, or becoming more like Jesus.
This process of being made holy is a journey for us, isn’t it? We’re not perfect, but each day, we’re seeking to become more and more like Jesus.
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Ok, help me out church . . . “We exist to develop disciples who love God, love the church, and love others.”
We exist to develop disciples. That’s been part of our vision statement for nearly six years.
We’ve spoken several times off and on about what it means to be a disciple over the years. Yet, some of the leaders of our church, including the pastors, feel like some of our church family may not fully know what it means for us to be disciples.
As Jesus prepared to go back into heaven, He left us with these words, which we call the Great Commission.
Jesus said in Matthew 28:19–20, “Go, therefore, and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe everything I have commanded you. And remember, I am with you always, to the end of the age.”
So, we exist to develop disciples. Before Jesus left, He commanded us to make disciples.
Yet, when we recently took a church health survey among our church family, out of the categories of worship, prayer, ministry, fellowship, discipleship, and evangelism. Our second lowest score was in the area of discipleship (show chart) (by the way, the lowest was in evangelism, so you’ll hear more about that as well).
So, we want to be more intentional as a church to focus on what it means to be a disciple.
We’re starting a short sermon series called “What is a Disciple?” Today is part 1.
Join me in prayer as we prepare to dive further into this sermon.
(prayer)
Church: We must be determined to make disciples. That is what Jesus told us to do, and that is why we exist as a church. So, let us be committed to learning about discipleship and about pursuing discipleship.
Ok, we’re going to learn a bit about what a disciple is in general, but we’re more concerned with learning what it looks like to be a disciple at First Baptist Church Bartow. How do we see this process lived out in our church?
So, let us now discover what a disciple looks like at First Baptist Church Bartow.
At First Baptist Church Bartow, . . .
I. A disciple experiences spiritual growth.
Generally speaking, a disciple is a student or follower of someone. So, when we speak of someone who is a disciple in the context of the church, we are talking about someone who is a follower of Jesus.
So, at our church, we believe that as you follow Jesus, you should begin to look more like Jesus. You should grow in your spiritual life as you are filled and led by the Holy Spirit of God.
That process begins by first being changed by the work of Jesus.
On the card that we passed out regarding what it means to be a disciple, you’ll see under the first identifier a little descriptor that says, “A disciple is made new by the saving work of Jesus.”
You can’t grow in your new spiritual life until you are first made new by Jesus.
2 Corinthians 5:17 says, “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has passed away, and see, the new has come!”
To be a disciple, you must first be a new creation. You must be rescued from the bondage of the slavery of sin. You must be spiritually raised from the dead. You must be adopted into the family of God. You must be changed by the work of Jesus and receive the Holy Spirit into your life.
The saving act of Jesus is where it all begins.
Then, as we grow spiritually, a disciple is becoming more like Jesus.
Many of you know that we call this process sanctification. Sanctification is the process of being made holy, or becoming more like Jesus.
This process of being made holy is a journey for us, isn’t it? We’re not perfect, but each day, we’re seeking to become more and more like Jesus.