No Shortcuts to Discipleship

Defining Discipleship, image from Flickr Creative Commons, © greeblie

The photo above is from a fantastic article defining discipleship on AndyBlanks.com, read it here.

The following article is an excerpt from Preaching Magazine, Discipleship: There Are No Shortcuts; you can read it in its entirety here. 

No Shortcuts to Discipleship

A disciple is simply a learner or a student. We are all called to be disciples, learners or students, of Jesus Christ and to make other disciples.  In the Great Commission, Jesus said, “Go and make disciples of all nations . . . And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age (Matthew 28:19-20).” Jesus asks us to make disciples of everyone and teach them, and He promises He is with us.

Recently I was in a conversation about discipleship. After discussing the investment of time, the level of intentionality and the discipline it takes to grow in our relationships with God, the statement was made, “So, there are no shortcuts.” “Right.” I said, “There are no shortcuts when it comes to being a disciple of Jesus.”

All relationships take time, attention, commitment, intentionality, and discipline. If we desire to grow in any relationship, we must commit to that person and be deliberate about investing time and attention in that relationship. Our connection with Jesus is the same. It requires our devotion, presence, attention and affection. It requires all of us, all of the time.

May we be devoted to our relationship with Christ as His disciples and do whatever is necessary to grow in Him? May we be Christ followers and commit ourselves fully to sitting at Jesus’ feet as His learners and students every day of our lives.