Are You a Genuine Disciple of Jesus?
by Pastor Kris Wilder, Children’s and Youth Pastor
“Can you read the numbers on your wristband?”
“58883”
“Yep, that’s a match! Don’t take that off until you leave the hospital.”
Recently, I was reminded that it doesn’t take very long after a baby is born for the staff to begin strapping wristbands on the newborn and his parents.
I didn’t have to ask why they did that.
And they didn’t have to worry about us taking them off.
The simple number on the band is the mark that we are together.
Though someone could claim to a nurse that they are the parent of the child, without the evidence of matching wristbands, their profession would not be taken seriously.
In the same way, there are many people who claim to be followers of Jesus. However, if they are lacking the marks of those who have been united with Christ, their profession is not to be taken seriously either.
So what are the marks of a genuine disciple of Jesus?
Our church family was privileged to have evangelist Jeremy Frazor and the rest of the Frazor Evangelistic Team with us recently, and we were challenged and encouraged by the words of Christ in Luke 14 regarding what He says about genuine discipleship.
A Genuine Disciple Loves Christ Supremely
Luke 14:26
If any man come to me, and hate not his father, and mother, and wife, and children, and brethren, and sisters, yea, and his own life also, he cannot be my disciple.
The greatest commandments involve loving God and loving people.
People are to recognize that we are disciples of Jesus by our love for one another.
Love is the essence of Christianity.
Yet we were reminded that our love for even those in our own family should pale in comparison to the love we have for Christ. Though an impossibility to the natural man, it is the true shared experience of all those who have been transformed by the gospel that reveals to us that we love God because He first loved us.
A Genuine Disciple Surrenders to Christ Fully
Luke 14:27
And whosoever doth not bear his cross, and come after me, cannot be my disciple.
Dietrich Bonhoeffer famously wrote,
“When Christ calls a man, he bids him come and die.”
Yes, the heart beats, the body functions, yet disciples die daily.
And it’s the power of the gospel that transforms genuine believers to be able to actually joy in sharing in the sufferings of Jesus.
As Christ exemplified on the cross, His life in and through true believers gives the ability to bear His cross in 3 ways:
- Cross-bearing is total submission to a higher authority
- Cross-bearing is a public display of humiliation
- Cross-bearing is a willingness to die to self and follow Christ completely
A Genuine Disciple Counts the Cost Carefully
Luke 14:28,33
For which of you, intending to build a tower, sitteth not down first, and counteth the cost, whether he have sufficient to finish it?
So likewise, whosoever he be of you that forsaketh not all that he hath, he cannot be my disciple.
“Emotional decisions for Jesus are shameful.”
This statement by Jeremy Frazor definitely caught the attention of those listening.
He went on to suggest that he could likely get any child to repeat a prayer out of emotional manipulation.
Yet there is a humility and a surrender that accompanies true belief.
Jeremy told the story of a young man he encountered who had decided to get married with no plan for a job, no plan for a car to drive, no plan for a place to live…
This young man’s decision was made without any notion of the seriousness of his commitment.
Just like the illustration given by Jesus in the text, genuine believers count the cost of following Him, understanding that He is Lord of their life and willingly losing their life for the all-surpassing joy of getting Christ.
A Genuine Disciple Makes an Impact Constantly
Luke 14:34
Salt is good: but if the salt have lost his savour, wherewith shall it be seasoned?
Why is salt good?
Because it preserves and it flavors.
Genuine disciples who love Christ supremely, surrender to Christ fully, and count the cost carefully naturally preserve and flavor the world around them.
Because God’s Spirit dwells in gospel believers, they are filled with the fruit of God’s righteous character and preserve society from spiraling into moral decay and destruction. And the fruit of God’s Spirit shines through His people as they lovingly and joyfully add a pleasant flavor wherever they go.
Kids are Called to be Genuine Disciples Too
Matthew 18:3
And said, Verily I say unto you, Except ye be converted, and become as little children, ye shall not enter into the kingdom of heaven.
Matthew 19:14
But Jesus said, Suffer little children, and forbid them not, to come unto me: for of such is the kingdom of heaven.
During our week with the Frazor Evangelistic Team, our kids were also hearing what it means to truly follow Jesus.
In the FCS chapels, Jeremy and JT Frazor pointed the Middle & High School students to what God’s Word says about salvation, assurance, temptation, life’s purpose, and more.
Our Kids (3 years-5th grade) enjoyed the Great Outdoor Adventure where they focused on core Gospel Truths and the character of God.
One of the highlights was singing the theme song, Sovereign One, which encouraged our kids to trust God’s sovereign care.
Sovereign One
You work all things to Your plan
Sovereign One
You hold all things in Your hands
My girls are still filling our home with those simple yet worshipful lyrics.
As we focused on what it meant to be a genuine follower of Jesus, I couldn’t help but be overwhelmed with gratitude for new life in Christ.
None of us can have these heart attitudes apart from the transforming power of the finished work of Jesus.
But praise God that He has called a people to Himself, and through faith in Christ, He has given them eyes to see Him as rightfully worthy of
- supreme love
- full surrender
- and costly suffering.
As I left the hospital, the nurse checked the numbers on my wristband and confirmed that my family did indeed belong together.
And I’m thankful that the Holy Spirit can use these marks of genuine discipleship to both convict counterfeit followers of their need for Christ and assure genuine followers that they have been united with Him.