To be a true Disciple is not about being in a particular Church, under a particular head or serving in a particular position or section of the Church. To be true is borne out of your heart, not a programme, a fashion, or the like. "And He was saying to them all, “If anyone wishes to follow Me [as My disciple], he must deny himself [set aside selfish interests], and take up his cross daily [expressing a willingness to endure whatever may come] and follow Me [believing in Me, conforming to My example in living and, if need be, suffering or perhaps dying because of faith in Me]" (Luke 9:23, AMP).
Jesus made the foregoing statement to His disciples. Apart from the 12 He originally chose, many others came to follow Him and to go out to preach the gospel with accompanying signs and wonders. This call to the disciples was to make them decide for themselves: to want to, wish to, desire to, and will to! Despite one's position in society, one must wish or desire to follow the Master.
Sadly, many believe they must be something, be in a certain location, and have certain connections before they can be true disciples. That is not so! The state or position you are in makes you the perfect candidate to be a true Disciple and to "go make disciples". The intention of God for this is: "God has selected [for His purpose] the insignificant (base) things of the world, and the things that are despised and treated with contempt, [even] the things that are nothing so that He might reduce to nothing the things that are" (1 Corinthians 1:28, AMP).
He intends to use you to explode the pretentious lies of people who think they know or must be something to preach the gospel effectively. The world and its systems need connections and the right positioning to carry out their business effectively. For us, all we need is JESUS! "But it is from Him that you are in Christ Jesus, who became to us wisdom from God [revealing His plan of salvation], and righteousness [making us acceptable to God], and sanctification [making us holy and setting us apart for God], and redemption [providing our ransom from the penalty for sin]" (1 Corinthians 1:30, AMP). We are of Him. He is our wisdom, our qualification, our entrance, our certificate! He is the One who qualifies the unqualified!
Beloved, to be a True disciple, everything, including yourself, must fade away! This is important because, since our mandate is to: "Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations [help the people to learn of Me, believe in Me, and obey My words], baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe everything that I have commanded you; and lo, I am with you always [remaining with you perpetually—regardless of circumstance, and on every occasion], even to the end of the age" (Matthew 28: 19-20, AMP).
Finally, if we do not lose ourselves, we will teach ourselves. Instead of producing True Disciples, we will produce cowards (who think the Kingdom of God is eating and drinking) and unbelievers (who twist the Scriptures to suit themselves as they see fit)! Beloved, to be a True Disciple costs you everything, and to not be, costs you much more! Assess yourself in the light of God's Word, and desire to follow Him completely! May the light of God's Word flood your heart with comprehension and understanding so as to remain standing in Him until He returns, in Jesus Christ name, Amen! God bless you!
Amen
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