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Christian vs. Disciple: Understanding the Difference
I once wrote an article titled “Are You a Christian or a Disciple?” In it, I argued that being a Christian and being a disciple are not necessarily the same thing. Some people identify as Christian because they live in America, while others call themselves Christian because they believe in the Judeo-Christian God rather than the god of Islam or Hinduism. Still others believe they are Christians because they have been baptized and joined a Protestant church. None of these things makes you a Christian, let alone a disciple.
What makes you a Christian is placing your faith in the work and Person of Jesus Christ as your only hope of salvation. Salvation is God’s gift to us, paid for by His Son’s death on the cross. Ephesians 2:8-10 tells us that we “are saved by grace through faith (in God’s Son) and not of works… it is the gift of God….” Once you have placed your faith in Christ, God sends His Spirit to live within you and change you from the inside out. He does this through the Word, which we imbibe—through sermons, quiet time, and personal study.
When a person identifies as a “Christian,” they may go to church, pray, and give, but that is the extent of their commitment. Hell is full of people who called themselves Christians but were surprised not to see Jesus’s face at death. As Jesus said, “Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. Many will say to me on that day, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name and in your name drive out demons and in your name perform many miracles?’ Then I will tell them plainly, ‘I never knew you. Away from me, you evildoers!’”[1]
What is a Disciple?
When a person is a disciple, their level of commitment goes well beyond that. The Biblical definition of a disciple is a student who patterns their life after their teacher. In the Bible, a disciple walked with their teacher, learned from them, and observed them as they modeled their life and philosophy. The teacher taught and modeled, then let them practice what they had learned.
This is what Jesus did. He taught them the truth and modeled holy living and His divine power before them. Then He sent them out two by two as a practicum. They returned excited that the demons were under their control. Jesus warned them that subjugating demons is less important than the fact that their names are written in Heaven.[1]
Further, Jesus told the crowd in Luke 9, “If anyone desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow Me.”[2] If any of us desires to follow Jesus as a disciple, this is what we must do. We must deny ourselves. We must make our desires secondary to the demands of the Kingdom. Second, we must take up our cross daily. We must be willing to face the trials or persecution that come with Kingdom living. Finally, we follow Him. We follow His teachings and become imitators of Him in holy living.
Why Discipleship is Important
Jesus taught a famous parable about discipleship. It is called the Parable of the Sower. In this parable, Jesus said that a Sower sowed seed on the hard ground, the rocky soil, among the thorns, and on the good ground. The seed that fell on the hard ground represents one who hears the Word but rejects it immediately. The seed that fell on the rocky soil and among the thorns represents converts who hear the Word but do not produce any fruit and die out for one reason or another. The seed that fell on the good ground represents the one who hears the Word, receives it, and produces fruit from it.
Fruit (or deeds) do not earn your salvation, but they give evidence that you are saved. Fruit comes only from watering the seed (studying the Word), pulling the weeds (cutting out ungodly activities), and pruning the plant (living holy intentionally). Godly fruit is the result of discipleship which produces holy living. In Matthew 7, Jesus said we will know whether a person is genuine by the fruit they produce.[1]
[1] Matthew 7:20
What Discipleship Looks Like Today
Jesus did not call us to be Christians. He called us to be disciples. The first people to be called Christians were the Antiochians because they were “followers of Christ”. Before that, they were merely known as disciples[1]. They were disciples who spent a year being taught the Word by Paul and Barnabas. Like them, we must, if we want to be real Christians, become students of the Word. We become disciples when we get into the Word, allow the Word to get into us, and submit ourselves to what we learn from it.
A Disciple of Jesus Christ does not cuss because Jesus did not cuss and because His Word tells us to “not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful for building others up according to their needs, that it may benefit those who listen”.[2] Jesus did not demean people or put them down.[3] That does not mean He did not tell them who they really were, as when He called the Pharisees a ‘brood of vipers’.[4]
A Disciple does not have sex outside of marriage because Jesus did not do so and because His Word says, “But fornication and all uncleanness or covetousness, let it not even be named among you, as is fitting for saints…”.[5] God ordained that sexual relations be confined to a monogamous relationship.[6] Although many of the patriarchs did not follow this rule, that does not negate God’s Word.
A Disciple does not hang out in nightclubs because Jesus did not party with sinners and because His Word says, “And have no fellowship with the unfruitful works of darkness, but rather expose them”.[7] Though Jesus ate and drank with sinners and tax collectors, His purpose was to tell them about the Kingdom of God.[8] It was not to have a “good time”.
A Disciple studies the Word of God because Jesus was a student of it. He used it to resist the devil’s temptations in Matthew 4 and quoted it in His Sermon on the Mount in Matthew 5. Jesus tells us in John 15, “If you abide in Me, and My words abide in you, you[b] will ask what you desire, and it shall be done for you. By this My Father is glorified, that you bear much fruit; so you will be My disciples.”[9] The Book of Acts shows that the early Church devoted itself to the apostles’ teaching.[10]
A Disciple does not neglect Church membership, attendance, and fellowship. When Jesus was a child, His parents searched for Him and found Him in the Temple, listening to and asking questions of the elders.[11] Jesus regularly attended the synagogue and sometimes taught there.[12] God’s Word tells us that the early Church devoted itself to the Apostles’ teaching and fellowship.[13] The writer of the Epistle to the Hebrews instructs us not to forsake the assembling of ourselves, as has become the custom of some.[14] A disciple cannot mature in a vacuum. He/she needs accountability and encouragement.
A Disciple prays regularly. This is how we keep the lines of communication open with our Heavenly Father. Jesus prayed regularly.[15] Jesus expects us to pray.[16] At His death, the veil of the Temple was torn in two from top to bottom, showing that access to the Mercy Seat was open to all Christ’s disciples. Acts 2:42 says the early church continued steadfastly in prayer. After Peter and John were beaten for preaching in Jesus’s name, they returned to the church and held a prayer meeting.[17]
A Disciple makes disciples. We are called and commissioned to make disciples[18], not converts. Jesus selected twelve to pour His life into. As He prepared to ascend into Heaven, He drew the Eleven out to a mountain and commissioned them (and us) to make disciples as they went. As they went, they were to baptize their disciples and teach them what Christ had taught them. Likewise, we are to find others and teach them what God has taught us. Therefore, it is important that we stay in the Word. We cannot teach what we do not know.
Conclusion
The preceding article demonstrates that being a disciple of Jesus Christ is a high calling. But with it comes responsibility. Being a disciple of Jesus Christ means more than having fire insurance; it means patterning your life after Jesus Christ. It means obeying what He has taught you so that 1) you can let your life shine before men and they see your good works, and 2) you can teach others to obey. You cannot let your light shine when you have no light to shine. You cannot call others to obey when you do not obey. Being a disciple and a disciple-maker is the primary way God has called us to partner with Him in the ministry of reconciliation. Being a disciple is more than identifying with Christ; it is about dying to self and fully following Him.
[1] Acts 11:26
[2] Ephesians 4:29
[3] 1 Peter 2:23
[4] Matthew 12:34
[5] Ephesians 5:3, etal.
[6] Exodus 20:14, Colossians 3:5, Hebrews 13:4
[7] Ephesians 5:11
[8] Matthew 9:9-13
[9] John 15:7-8
[10] Acts 2:42a
[11] Luke 2:46
[12] Luke 4:16-21
[13] Acts 2:42
[14] Hebrews 10:25
[15] Luke 5:16
[16] Matthew 6:5
[17] Acts 4:23-31
[18] Matthew 28:18-20
[1] Luke 10:1-20
[2] Luke 9:23
[1] Matthew 7:21-23
Cyber-Discipleship 