Being a Disciple: 101
The word “disciple” is rarely used in modern culture outside the church. We know it somewhat implies learning, following, and being like someone else—something along those lines, right?!
But really, we lack a clear reference for what “being a disciple” entails. We don’t encounter “disciples” in our everyday life. No one says, “Oh, didn’t I tell you? I’m now a disciple of my teacher, professor, or coach!” It would sound strange if they did, and we’d immediately ask what that means.
Therefore, telling people to “Go be a disciple of Jesus” often doesn’t make sense because we do no understand what that means!
With that in mind, let’s look at the disciples of Jesus and what He says about being His disciples in the book of Matthew.
Jesus calls Disciples
The first thing we observe about the disciples in the book of Matthew is that they are called by Jesus (Matthew 4:18-19). These men were working as fishermen when Jesus called and personally invited them to follow Him. They were not individuals of great wealth, power, education, or social standing. They were simply fishermen, and Jesus reached out to them.
And they responded! The Bible states, “At once they left their nets and followed Him” (Matthew 4:20).
In the same way, Jesus calls each of us through His Holy Spirit. When we hear the Gospel, our hearts are prompted to respond or ignore it. That is Jesus’s call to our lives today—to follow Him. The first step to being a disciple is to hear the Gospel and respond in faith!
Disciples Sit with Jesus
The second observation about the disciples in the Book of Matthew is that they sit with Jesus. In Matthew 5, Jesus climbs a mountain and sits down. He calls His disciples to Him and begins to teach them through His most famous sermon, the Sermon on the Mount. Three entire chapters of Matthew are dedicated to this great sermon, which reveals God’s desire for humanity’s heart rather than mere religious acts. And the disciples sat through all of it! If this were a modern church service, they would have missed the Sunday lunch rush and the afternoon football game!
In this story, it’s not just the act of sitting that holds significance. The disciples were listening, learning, and eager to be with Jesus. Throughout the first nine chapters of Matthew, they didn’t do much except stay close to Jesus.
This is precisely what we are called to do today as modern-day disciples of Jesus! We are to sit and pray with Him and read His Word. Often, we are inclined to strive to be “good Christians,” but that’s not how it works. It’s about our hearts being connected to His heart! Jesus was once asked what the greatest commandment was, and He replied, “To love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind…” (Matthew 22:37).
To be disciples of Jesus, we need to know Him, seek to know Him more every day, and sit under His teaching. The best way to do all these things is through intentional prayer and daily engagement with His Word. (And to seek out Godly leaders and a church community to guide us in these pursuits).
Disciples Do What Jesus Does
The third insight about the disciples in the book of Matthew is that they do what they’ve seen Jesus do. They saw Jesus go and preach the good news of the kingdom of God. They witnessed Him love people from all different cultures and ethnicities and heal those suffering from all sorts of brokenness, regardless of who they were.
So, what do the disciples do? They do precisely that.
The disciples may not have realized that the more time you spend with someone, the more you become like them.
The same holds for us. The more time we dedicate to Jesus in prayer and His Word, the more we will know Him. The better we know Him, the more we will love Him. The outcome of both learning and loving Jesus is becoming more like Him. The Holy Spirit begins to transform us, making our hearts resemble His a little more each day. He will convict us of our sins, highlighting areas that need to change to reflect Jesus better, then begin to facilitate those changes as we allow Him to.
So, what is a modern-day disciple? It doesn’t look much different from the first disciples! It involves following Jesus, seeking to know Him increasingly daily through His Word and prayer, and allowing the Holy Spirit to convict and change our lives to mirror Jesus more closely every day.
This doesn’t mean striving for perfection or attempting to earn our place but simply seeking to abide with Christ daily.
That’s why He came—so that we might KNOW Him.