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Disciplines of a True Disciple - A People of the Word

Matthew 28:18-20 – “And Jesus came and spoke to them, saying, “All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth. Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.” Amen.”

Jesus commissioned the New Testament Church to “go and make disciples of the all nations.”  A disciple is a follower of Christ.  Dictionary.com defines a disciple as “a pupil or an adherent of the doctrines of another.[i] A disciple will become a lifelong student of God’s Word.  2 Peter 3:8 reads, “But grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. To Him be the glory both now and forever. Amen.”

We must make the Word of God a priority in our lives.  Jesus instructed us to “seek first the kingdom of God” (Matthew 6:33). The true path to becoming a mature believer in Christ is developing the discipline of studying and understanding the Word of God.  Jack W. Hayford is quoted as saying, “Each time a person picks up a Bible, he or she opens the grandest message ever given to earth.  Nothing has ever come to the hands of humankind that even approaches the completeness and clarity or the love and grace presented in God’s Word.”

There are six different purposes of the Scriptures in the life of the believer:

1.    Psalms 119:9, 11 teaches the Word of God is a restrainer to keep us from sin.
2.    Psalms 119:133 teaches the Word of God is a source of joy.
3.    Titus 2:5 reveals the Scriptures provide a standard of conduct.
4.    Hebrews 4:12 reveals the purpose of the Word of God is to discern the thoughts and intents of the heart.
5.    I Peter 4:2 teaches the Scriptures are a source of new life.
6.    Revelation 1:1 teaches the Word of God will show us the things, which must shortly come to pass.

A true disciple will make the Word of God a priority.  The Apostle Peter wrote in 1 Peter 2:2, “As newborn babes, desire the pure milk of the word, that you may grow thereby.”  In Hosea 4:6 we learn we are destroyed because of a lack of knowledge.  The Apostle Paul gave this exhortation to Timothy we must heed as well in 2 Timothy 2:15, “Be diligent to present yourself approved to God, a worker who does not need to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth.”


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