What is a disciple?

Now the eleven disciples went to Galilee, to the mountain to which Jesus had directed them. ¹⁷ And when they saw him they worshiped him, but some doubted. ¹⁸ And Jesus came and said to them, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. ¹⁹ Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, ²⁰ teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.”

Matthew 28:16-20

The term “discipleship” has become a trendy buzzword in Evangelical circles in recent years. Unfortunately, there is no commonly accepted definition of discipleship or disciple. A lack of definition leaves room for a great deal of confusion when discussing discipleship or disciple-making.

Our text, Matthew 28:16-20, commonly referred to as The Great Commission explicitly commands us to “make disciples.” If we don’t know what a disciple is, how can we fulfill the commission Jesus gave before his ascension to heaven? Does the Bible give us any help in defining the term?

Love Jesus more than anything

Now great crowds accompanied him, and he turned and said to them, ²⁶ “If anyone comes to me and does not hate his own father and mother and wife and children and brothers and sisters, yes, and even his own life, he cannot be my disciple. ²⁷ Whoever does not bear his own cross and come after me cannot be my disciple. ²⁸ For which of you, desiring to build a tower, does not first sit down and count the cost, whether he has enough to complete it? ²⁹ Otherwise, when he has laid a foundation and is not able to finish, all who see it begin to mock him, ³⁰ saying, ‘This man began to build and was not able to finish.’ ³¹ Or what king, going out to encounter another king in war, will not sit down first and deliberate whether he is able with ten thousand to meet him who comes against him with twenty thousand? ³² And if not, while the other is yet a great way off, he sends a delegation and asks for terms of peace. ³³ So therefore, any one of you who does not renounce all that he has cannot be my disciple.

Luke 14:25-33

On occasion, Jesus used hyperbole when he taught. This is one of those hyperbolic teachings. It would be inconsistent with other Scripture to say that Jesus meant that we are to hate our family literally. The first commandment with promise is to honor our father and mother. That is hardly consistent with hating them. So, we understand from this that Jesus is speaking in hyperbole, a greatly overstated proposition. What he is saying here is that our love for him is to be so all-encompassing that in comparison, our love for our families appears to be hate. Jesus is calling for a radical love for the triune God that overwhelms all other considerations. All of life is to be lived under the controlling force of love for God, the greatest commandment. The second commandment is like it in that we are to love our neighbors as ourselves. Jesus was not saying that we should hate people.

Bearing our cross appeals to the idea that we are to die to our own selfish interests. Being a disciple of Jesus is a costly way of living. So much so that Jesus goes on to emphasize the wisdom of counting the cost of following him. Following Jesus not only has great reward, but it also has a great cost. Be sure you are prepared to pay the cost to follow Jesus. If we do not renounce all we have, we cannot be his disciple.

Be prepared to suffer

“A disciple is not above his teacher, nor a servant above his master. ²⁵ It is enough for the disciple to be like his teacher, and the servant like his master. If they have called the master of the house Beelzebul, how much more will they malign those of his household.

Matthew 10:24-25

Ultimately, Jesus is our discipler. He is the one who is training us to walk in fellowship with the Father. So, he says we will not be treated or received in a more desirable fashion than he was. In this context, Jesus has just spoken about how his disciples can expect to be treated. He is sending us out as sheep among wolves, the vulnerable among the vicious. We need to be prepared to be mistreated by governmental authorities and even be betrayed by family members. To follow Jesus means to be prepared to be hated by all for his name’s sake.

Then Jesus speaks paradoxically with, “So have no fear of them.” That doesn’t seem to fit the warning he has just given his disciples. He then tells them that everything will be revealed, and those who have done wickedly will receive their just reward. We are not to fear those who can kill our bodies, but the one who can kill both body and soul, i.e., fear God alone. God is fully cognizant of all the suffering that we may experience because we follow Jesus. Still, because we have acknowledged him before men, he will acknowledge us before the Father. God is just, and his justice will appear in full array. A disciple must have a view of life beyond this temporal material existence and look into the New Heaven and New Earth.

Learn from God

A disciple is not above his teacher, but everyone when he is fully trained will be like his teacher.

Luke 6:40

It is written in the Prophets, ‘And they will all be taught by God.’ Everyone who has heard and learned from the Father comes to me— 

John 6:45

Our teacher, or trainer, is God himself. I am impressed by what Jesus said here about how people come to him. Everyone who has heard and learned from the Father comes to me. We are to hear from the Father and learn from the Father. When people hear and learn from the Father, the inevitable result is that they come to Jesus.

The point is that God is our teacher, and when we are fully trained, we will be like our teacher. We will be like God. That doesn’t mean we will take on his divine attributes like omnipresence (present everywhere) or omnipotence (all-powerful), but it does mean that we will take on his character. We will not become gods. But we are God’s children by adoption.

As disciples, we will never be above God or better than God, but we will be like him. Everyone who follows Jesus should anticipate being more and more like Jesus the longer they follow Jesus. Following Jesus entails obedience to all he has commanded us.

Be a disciple-maker

This passage has a secondary but important application. We are called to make disciples. We are to be disciple-trainers. Those whom we disciple will become like us as secondary examples of what it is to follow Jesus. Are we living our lives in a way that we would like to see others duplicate? Like it or not, how you live your life as a Jesus-follower is how you will impact others who follow Jesus. Be sure you are a disciple worth multiplying.

Above I quoted Jesus saying, “So, therefore, any one of you who does not renounce all that he has cannot be my disciple.” Does that mean that to follow Jesus, I have to get rid of all my possessions and live in poverty? No. It does mean that your stuff cannot hold your heart. You are to have an undivided heart. (Psalm 86:11)

After these things Joseph of Arimathea, who was a disciple of Jesus, but secretly for fear of the Jews, asked Pilate that he might take away the body of Jesus, and Pilate gave him permission. So he came and took away his body.

John 19:38

Joseph of Arimathea is here identified as a disciple of Jesus. Joseph was a wealthy man. Jesus was laid to rest in Joseph’s tomb, a tomb he has prepared for himself. I share this to give Biblical proof that being a disciple does not mean you must live in poverty. It does mean that your stuff cannot hold your heart. Only Jesus can have your heart. We are to have no other gods before our triune God.

Can we distill a definition of “disciple” from these passages in which Jesus lays out the criteria?

A disciple of Jesus is someone who loves Jesus more than anything, has counted the cost, and is prepared to suffer and, if need be, die for following Jesus. A disciple will also be a disciple-maker who is willing to go to all nations if called to do so to extend the kingdom of God.

I believe this is what it means to be a disciple of Jesus.