Every biblical Christian is a disciple, but not every disciple is a Christian! "After this many of his disciples turned back and no longer walked with him." John 6:66 "They went out from us, but they were not of us; for if they had been of us, they would have continued with us. But they went out, that it might become plain that they all are not of us." 1 John 2:19
LUKE 9
Take Up Your Cross and Follow Jesus
(compare Matthew 17:24-28; Mark 8:34-38)
And He was saying to them all, "If anyone wishes to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow Me. For whoever wishes to save his life shall lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake, he is the one who will save it. For what is a man profited if he gains the whole world, and loses or forfeits himself? For whoever is ashamed of Me and My words, of him will the Son of Man be ashamed when He comes in His glory, and [the glory] of the Father and of the holy angels. But I say to you truthfully, there are some of those standing here who shall not taste death until they see the kingdom of God."
The Cost of Following Christ
(compare Matthew 8:18-22)
And as they were going along the road, someone said to Him, "I will follow You wherever You go." And Jesus said to him, "The foxes have holes, and the birds of the air have nests, but the Son of Man has nowhere to lay His head." And He said to another, "Follow Me." But he said, "Permit me first to go and bury my father." But He said to him, "Allow the dead to bury their own dead; but as for you, go and proclaim everywhere the kingdom of God." And another also said, "I will follow You, Lord; but first permit me to say good-bye to those at home." But Jesus said to him, "No one, after putting his hand to the plow and looking back, is fit for the kingdom of God."
LUKE 14
The Cost of Discipleship
(compare Matthew 10:34-39)
Now great multitudes were going along with Him; and He turned and said to them, "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.* Whoever does not carry his own cross and come after Me cannot be My disciple.* For which one of you, when he wants to build a tower, does not first sit down and calculate the cost, to see if he has enough to complete it? Otherwise, when he has laid a foundation, and is not able to finish, all who observe it begin to ridicule him, saying, 'This man began to build and was not able to finish.' Or what king, when he sets out to meet another king in battle, will not first sit down and take counsel whether he is strong enough with ten thousand [men] to encounter the one coming against him with twenty thousand? Or else, while the other is still far away, he sends a delegation and asks terms of peace. So therefore, no one of you can be My disciple* who does not give up all his own possessions."
MATTHEW 7
I Never Knew You
(compare Luke 6:46)
"Not everyone who says to Me, 'Lord, Lord,' will enter the kingdom of heaven; but he 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 cast out demons, and in Your name perform many miracles?' And then I will declare to them, 'I never knew you; DEPART FROM ME, YOU WHO PRACTICE LAWLESSNESS.'"
Read Mark 10:17-31. In verse 26 the disciples ask, "Then who can be saved?" In verse 27, following upon what He said in verses 24-25, Jesus answered them saying, "With man it is impossible! But not with God, for all things are possible with God."
Jesus was telling them, "Guys, you’ve got it right. No one can be saved based on the terms I’m giving! It is impossible with men! But not with God." He had told the rich young man to forsake everything he had and to follow Him. The man loved his sin of covetousness, just as we love our sin of something else. We do not want to give up our sins. We want to continue in our sins and are therefore telling Jesus that we do not want Him to save us from our sins, to redeem us from our sins, to deliver us from our sins.
Paul’s writings consistently state that if we are in Christ, if we are a new creation, we are dead to sin. We need to turn from all sin, repent of it. That means to stop committing it willfully and willingly.
"How shall we who are dead to sin live any longer in it?" Romans 6:2
"For he who is dead is freed from sin." Romans 6:7
"Likewise, reckon yourselves to be dead indeed unto sin." Romans 6:11
"Rebuke them that sin before all, that others also may fear." 1 Timothy 5:20
"My little children, these things I write unto you so that you do not sin. And if any man sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous." 1 John 2:1—If we fall into sin against our wills, we need to confess that sin and forsake it. If we sin in accordance with our wills, then we are not Christians.
"Whosoever is born of God does not commit sin; for his seed remains in him: and he cannot sin, because he is born of God." 1 John 3:9
A Christian no longer sins willfully or willingly, but if they sin, they sin against their will. To sin against your will is to fall into sin. To sin willingly is to dive into or jump into sin and swim there or live there. If this is how one’s life is characterized, then they are not a Christian! Period! God’s Word is either true or it is full of lies. You can argue based on your personal opinion and feelings all you want, but you cannot argue with Scripture. ‘Nuff said!
LUKE 9
Take Up Your Cross and Follow Jesus
(compare Matthew 17:24-28; Mark 8:34-38)
And He was saying to them all, "If anyone wishes to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow Me. For whoever wishes to save his life shall lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake, he is the one who will save it. For what is a man profited if he gains the whole world, and loses or forfeits himself? For whoever is ashamed of Me and My words, of him will the Son of Man be ashamed when He comes in His glory, and [the glory] of the Father and of the holy angels. But I say to you truthfully, there are some of those standing here who shall not taste death until they see the kingdom of God."
The Cost of Following Christ
(compare Matthew 8:18-22)
And as they were going along the road, someone said to Him, "I will follow You wherever You go." And Jesus said to him, "The foxes have holes, and the birds of the air have nests, but the Son of Man has nowhere to lay His head." And He said to another, "Follow Me." But he said, "Permit me first to go and bury my father." But He said to him, "Allow the dead to bury their own dead; but as for you, go and proclaim everywhere the kingdom of God." And another also said, "I will follow You, Lord; but first permit me to say good-bye to those at home." But Jesus said to him, "No one, after putting his hand to the plow and looking back, is fit for the kingdom of God."
LUKE 14
The Cost of Discipleship
(compare Matthew 10:34-39)
Now great multitudes were going along with Him; and He turned and said to them, "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.* Whoever does not carry his own cross and come after Me cannot be My disciple.* For which one of you, when he wants to build a tower, does not first sit down and calculate the cost, to see if he has enough to complete it? Otherwise, when he has laid a foundation, and is not able to finish, all who observe it begin to ridicule him, saying, 'This man began to build and was not able to finish.' Or what king, when he sets out to meet another king in battle, will not first sit down and take counsel whether he is strong enough with ten thousand [men] to encounter the one coming against him with twenty thousand? Or else, while the other is still far away, he sends a delegation and asks terms of peace. So therefore, no one of you can be My disciple* who does not give up all his own possessions."
*cannot be my disciple = cannot be a Christian
MATTHEW 7
I Never Knew You
(compare Luke 6:46)
"Not everyone who says to Me, 'Lord, Lord,' will enter the kingdom of heaven; but he 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 cast out demons, and in Your name perform many miracles?' And then I will declare to them, 'I never knew you; DEPART FROM ME, YOU WHO PRACTICE LAWLESSNESS.'"
Read Mark 10:17-31. In verse 26 the disciples ask, "Then who can be saved?" In verse 27, following upon what He said in verses 24-25, Jesus answered them saying, "With man it is impossible! But not with God, for all things are possible with God."
Jesus was telling them, "Guys, you’ve got it right. No one can be saved based on the terms I’m giving! It is impossible with men! But not with God." He had told the rich young man to forsake everything he had and to follow Him. The man loved his sin of covetousness, just as we love our sin of something else. We do not want to give up our sins. We want to continue in our sins and are therefore telling Jesus that we do not want Him to save us from our sins, to redeem us from our sins, to deliver us from our sins.
Paul’s writings consistently state that if we are in Christ, if we are a new creation, we are dead to sin. We need to turn from all sin, repent of it. That means to stop committing it willfully and willingly.
"How shall we who are dead to sin live any longer in it?" Romans 6:2
"For he who is dead is freed from sin." Romans 6:7
"Likewise, reckon yourselves to be dead indeed unto sin." Romans 6:11
"Rebuke them that sin before all, that others also may fear." 1 Timothy 5:20
"My little children, these things I write unto you so that you do not sin. And if any man sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous." 1 John 2:1—If we fall into sin against our wills, we need to confess that sin and forsake it. If we sin in accordance with our wills, then we are not Christians.
"Whosoever is born of God does not commit sin; for his seed remains in him: and he cannot sin, because he is born of God." 1 John 3:9
A Christian no longer sins willfully or willingly, but if they sin, they sin against their will. To sin against your will is to fall into sin. To sin willingly is to dive into or jump into sin and swim there or live there. If this is how one’s life is characterized, then they are not a Christian! Period! God’s Word is either true or it is full of lies. You can argue based on your personal opinion and feelings all you want, but you cannot argue with Scripture. ‘Nuff said!