"Whoever does not bear his own cross and come after me cannot be my disciple."
I suppose it is reasonable to expect one’s employer to supply some type of job description. Indeed, for any relationship to work well the roles and expectations of the participating parties must be clearly defined. Thankfully, the expectations of Christians’ responsibilities are plainly defined in Scripture. The Bible variously describes Christians as believers, children of God, saints, or disciples. Precisely what it means to be a disciple has been the subject of considerable study (cp. A. B. Bruce, The Training of the Twelve). The importance of being a disciple cannot be denied, as Jesus commanded his own apostles to make disciples in every nation (Matthew 28.19-20; cp. Mark 16.15; Luke 24.49; John 20.21; Acts 1.8). There are numerous references to those who followed Jesus as being his disciples. Exactly how Jesus defines being a disciple is the subject of this brief discourse.
Fundamentally, being a disciple refers anyone who follows Jesus and adheres to His teaching. Jesus modeled a lifestyle for his disciples to emulate. He also instructed them both privately and publicly on their deportment and the content of the gospel (John 13.12-17; Mark 9.2-13; Matthew 5-7). The disciples in their turn followed Jesus’ example for those whom they discipled (2 Timothy 2.2; cp 4.8-9). There is a wonderful example of the success of this in the writings of the church fathers. In an introductory note to Clement of Alexandria we read of how the apostolic instruction to “love one another” was passed on from John the Apostle to Ignatius and Polycarp to Clement (Ante-Nicene Fathers, Vol. II). Jesus’ upper room discourse (John 14-16) contains practical instruction for all believers. Of course, Jesus taught the disciples about holiness, prayer, forgiveness, mercy, suffering, perseverance, evangelism, judgment, pastoral duties and more – the full breadth of which is beyond the scope of this overview. However, as a means of introducing the New Testament theme of discipleship it may be worth reviewing the seven occasions where Jesus makes specific reference to what he means when he says my disciples.
PREEMINENCE OF CHRIST - Luke 14.26: If anyone comes to me and does not hate his own father and mother and wife and children and brothers and sisters, yes, even his own life, he cannot be my disciple.
Jesus calls people to himself, he does not rally them to a cause. Even a cursory grasp of New Testament Christology makes it plain why this must be so. Jesus is God incarnate, the mediator of the new covenant, through whom the wrath of God is propitiated and God’s elect are saved. There can be no eternal delight independent of an exaltation and exultation of the Lord Jesus Christ. God delights in Himself and in His Son (John 17.1-5); no true child of His can do otherwise. Thus, the Son by virtue of his person must take precedent over every other relationship. John Piper writes, “we were created for the contemplation and enjoyment of God! Anything less than this would be idolatry toward him and disappointment for us. God is the most glorious of all beings. Not to love him and delight in him is a great loss to us and insults him” (Piper, The Pleasures of God, p. 38). Consequently, it is not enough to admire, respect or esteem the things Jesus stands for; you must love Him and this you cannot do without the Holy Spirit who sheds the love of God abroad in your heart (Romans 5.5). In his devotional classic, My Utmost for His Highest, Oswald Chambers wrote, “Whenever the Holy Ghost sees a chance of glorifying Jesus, He will take your heart, your nerves, your whole personality, and simply make you blaze and glow with devotion to Jesus Christ.” The love for the Lord Jesus Christ is such that by comparison love for family begins to pale (cp. Matthew 10.34-37; Genesis 29.30).
DEATH TO SELF - Luke 14.27: Whoever does not bear his own cross and come after me cannot be my disciple.
There is a natural bridge that links the exaltation of Christ with self-abasement. It is impossible to laud the Lord Jesus Christ and at the same time be self-promoting. Jesus described himself as a servant (Mark 10.45; cp. Mark 9.35; John 15.20) and any who would serve Him cannot presume to be greater than he. The Christian lives to serve God (Luke 4.8; Romans 1.9). He is not free to advance his own cause (whatever that might be). He has happily given his life in service to God (Galatians 2.19; Colossians 3.3-6; Philippians 2.3-8). Nonetheless it is not love of duty which obliges one to take up his cross, but love for Jesus which inwardly motivates him (Galatians 2.20; John 14.23). Neither is he loved by Jesus because he takes up his cross. Rather, it is the very love of God that compels him to die to himself (Colossians 3.3; cp. 1 John 3.16). The cross then is not an unbearable hardship (Matthew 11.29; Philippians 4.13; 2 Corinthians 12.9; Colossians 1.11; Isaiah 40.29); quite to the contrary, it is a joyful identity with Christ (Philippians 1.15-30; 1 Peter 4.12-13). The cross is as central to the Christian doctrine of salvation as it is central to the believer’s lifestyle. It is the supreme expression of God’s love for his glory. The atonement for mankind’s sin through the death of His Son vindicates God’s glory (Isaiah 52.13–53.12; Acts 2.23; John 17.1-5). It is Jesus’ love for the Father that motivates him to embrace the cross and in his death the conflict between God’s love for his glory and his love for sinners is resolved (cf. Piper, p. 164). By taking up his cross the believer identifies with the God-glorifying work of Christ (Galatians 6.14).
WORSHIP - Matthew 26.18: He said, “Go into the city to a certain man and say to him, ‘The Teacher says, My time is at hand. I will keep the Passover at your house with my disciples.’”
Worshipping God is the first priority of life: not the great commission, nor seeking legislation to abolish abortion on demand, not eradicating evil in politics, nor eliminating poverty, or attending to the infirmed. These are good, even great things, but they are less important than worship. Worship is the activity spoken of by the psalmist when he commands the reader to delight oneself in the LORD (Psalm 37.4). Worship takes precedence over all other matters because the person one is is reflected in what he does. Said another way: action or service never leads to worship - but real worship always leads to service. The greatest commandment is to love the Lord your God with all your mind heart and soul ... and the second is like the first: to love your neighbor as yourself (Matthew 22.37-38). There is a logical and natural progression to these commandments.
STEWARDSHIP - Luke 14.33: So therefore, any one of you who does not renounce all that he has cannot be my disciple.
In the business world people are advised to diversify their investments as a precaution against a volatile market. In matters of business this makes sense, in matters of faith it is fatal. In matters of faith there is no secondary course of action. Jesus is the only option. Everything you have must be invested in him. Jesus lays claim to your life because he made reparation for your sins by his sacrifice (Romans 3.21-26; Ephesians 1.7). There is no other means whereby a person might be saved (Acts 4.12) and there is no other path to enlightenment (Matthew 7.13-14). A man asked Jesus the question: What must I do to get eternal life? In addition to obeying the commandments, Jesus said, you must sell all you and have give it to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; then come and follow me (Matthew 19.16-21). Though he believed Jesus to be a great rabbi, he was unwilling to exchange his great wealth for life as a disciple of an itinerant teacher with no visible means of support. Regardless of one’s societal status, Jesus’ call presents everyone with essentially the same dilemma: to live by faith in Christ beyond himself. That is, to live with vision, courage and resolution: in short, to do that which cannot be done except by the grace of God. God works in the lives of the meek and humble (Matthew 5.3; James 4.10; I Peter 5.5-6; Philippians 2.3; Proverbs 27.19). If anyone determines to do only what he knows he can do, he will always fall short of his potential in Christ. Read the account of Zacchaeus in Luke 19.10. Zacchaeus and the unnamed man both had great wealth. Each had sought an interview with Jesus. Jesus responded to both men and they were given the opportunity to forsake their wealth and become a disciple, but only Zacchaeus responded: For many are invited, but few are chosen (Matthew 22.14).
AUTHORITY OF CHRIST’S WORD - John 8.31: “If you abide in my word, you are truly my disciples, and you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.”
The authority of Scripture resides in its Divine authorship. What is true of the Old and New Testaments is also true of the word of Christ. Jesus said, If you abide in my word, you are truly my disciples, and you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free. Regarding Scripture Peter writes: And we have the word of the prophets made more certain, and you will do well to pay attention to it, as a light shining in a dark place, until the day dawns and the morning star arises in your hearts … (2 Peter 1.19-21). The whole counsel of God as it pertains to his glory, man’s salvation, his faith, and his life, is either expressly set down in Scripture, or by good and necessary consequence, may be deduced from it. Many Christians confuse “holding on to Jesus” with obeying his teaching. They believe it is important to have a “deep devotional life” but not necessarily one that is grounded in a rational belief in biblical doctrine. Indeed, Christian bookstores are glutted with devotional material but there is a paucity of theological and doctrinal literature. The Bible, rather than being the lens though which the “pop-Christian” formulates his worldview, becomes a source for religious sound bites to support the latest Christian fad. I am certainly not advocating a mere adherence to Biblical doctrines without an accompanying devotion to Christ. Indeed, one can scarcely be called Christian when one’s only claim to faith is that he or she has not denied the creeds of the church. There is nothing to be said for the person who professes faith in Christ yet fails to be filled with a passion for his glory. The heart of the believer who delights in the Lord has already begun his flight toward heaven.
LOVE FOR THE BRETHERN - John 13.34-35: A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another: just as I have loved you, you also are to love one another. By this all people will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another.
Jesus said that the world would know who his disciples were by the love they had for one another. Of course, there is nothing new about love, but loving as Jesus loved is new. The popular rule had been “do to others as they do to you.” Jesus’ command to love just as he loved is based on a sacrificial and self-denying love for others (cp. Luke 6.27-36; Romans 12.). Paul defines love in 1 Corinthians 13 and then tells his readers to pursue the law of love (1 Corinthians 14.1). It ought to be the goal and practice of every believer to be like Christ in this matter. Love is not meant to be easy; it is often sacrificial, demanding and frequently demonstrated at great person risk.
SPIRITUAL REPRODUCTION - John 15.8: By this my Father is glorified, that you bear much fruit and so prove to be my disciples.
Finally, in John’s discourse on abiding in the vine (John 15.1-16) Jesus characterizes the vitality of the believer’s relationship with the Father as being evidenced by his productivity. The clear teaching of this passage is that all Christians are fruitful in some manner or other, and that this fruitfulness results from abiding in Christ. This fruitfulness is utterly dependent on being in the vine. There is no life outside of that relationship. The branch without the vine has no life of its own. The question often asked is, what is the fruit of the believer’s life? Some argue, based on verse eight, that it is spiritual reproduction; others suggest it is the fruit of the Spirit (Galatians 5.22). But a plain reading of the text leads us to understand that it is Christ who is reproduced in the believer and that is the fruit of which he speaks. It is not one aspect of the Christian life over another. This is accomplished through a life-giving dependence of abiding in him and in turn he abides in the believer. It is not passive. It requires an exercise of the spiritual disciplines. Abiding in Christ results in sharing his joy (John 15.11), his peace (John 14.27), a sacrificial love for the others (John 15.12), and a gospel witness (John 15.16, 27). Whatever else may be a product of abiding in Christ, these things are consistently evident.
It is clear that Jesus wants His disciples to succeed in the task to which He has called them and so assures them that if they remain focused on the fundamentals of their relationship they only need to ask for what they are lacking and it will be given to them (16.24 cp. James 4.2-3). The believer succeeds as a disciple because he delights in bringing glory to the Son and to the Father. He does this by continuing to propagate the gospel that has been entrusted to him. And this is eternal life, that they know you the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom you have sent (John 17.3). Jesus glorified the Father on earth by accomplishing the work that was given to him and we do the same. The work of the disciple is this: that the world may know that the Father sent the Son so that the world may believe in him and have eternal life (cp. John 17.6-23).
