Being a disciple of Christ. As a Christian, that should be your driving ambition. Disciple—μαθητής in Greek—appears 269 times in the New Testament. This word always refers to followers of a particular leader, most commonly Christ. First-century disciples were obvious. They sacrificed everything to follow their master and learn his ways. Pharisees had disciples. Trade workers had disciples. Jesus had disciples.
In our modern vernacular, disciples would be similar to interns. They would follow their masters with the intent to eventually become just like them. Jesus’ disciples desired to learn His teachings and His way to become like Him—and ultimately to train others to be like Him.
First-century disciples were easy to identify. But modern-day disciples may not be so easy to spot. Even still, our discipleship goal is the same: Being a disciple of Christ means looking like Christ and teaching others to look like Him.
Defining the marks of a modern-day disciple can be difficult. We fill our schedules with Bible studies, prayer lists, and church attendance. But have we really become better disciples?
This discussion should be lengthy and ongoing for all Christians. But let’s start with the basics. (These apply to kids, teens and adults!)
Being a Disciple of Christ: 3 Key Components
A disciple of Christ is about being, knowing and doing life like Christ.
1. Being
Is your mind Gospel-oriented? Examine your thoughts and motivations. Being like Christ transforms the way you think about friends, family and enemies. You relate to coworkers, neighbors and strangers with an eternal mindset.
Jesus was very intentional about every word and contact. Likewise, His disciples will carefully inspect their intentions as well.
2. Knowing
Christ commanded His disciples to teach others to observe all things He taught them (Matthew 28:20). We should consume His word and commands, which is a lifelong journey. The more we know Jesus, the more we will want to know Him.
Studying the Scriptures through church services, Bible studies, discipleship books, daily devotionals, formal training and other methods can help us know Him better. We should constantly evaluate how well we know Jesus and how we can know Him better.
