Daily Verse: John 8:31

To the Jews who had believed him, Jesus said, "If you hold to my teaching, you are really my disciples.”

 

A “Disciple” is a follower, a believer, a supporter. And as the words spoken by Christ above clearly state, if we claim to be followers of him, then we must hold to his teachings. And we must hold to these teachings at ALL times…when it is easy and when it is difficult…when it is convenient and inconvenient…when it is comfortable and uncomfortable. Far too often we allow our selfish desires to intercept and disrupt the discipline that God puts into place to keep us on track. We feel wronged, so we allow anger and rage to take the lead…We want to be funny and well-liked, so we speak slanderous words laced with gossip and destruction…We want to be successful and wealthy, so we cut corners, sacrifice morals, and do whatever it takes to climb to the top of the mountain. If we stop and take inventory of how we are living, we will see that perhaps we are not holding as tight to his teachings as we thought…perhaps we have some renovations and housecleaning that needs to take place to realign our lives. Christ taught us to be loving to one another, to put the needs and desires of another above our own…he taught us to forgive, even when forgiving another seems completely impossible…he taught us to swallow our pride and move on from an argument or confrontation…he taught us to avoid passing judgment on another, leaving the judgment to the Father above. If we walk through the four Gospels in the Bible, we will see numerous examples of how we are to live…teachings around how we are to act, speak, and think…teachings that can and will make our lives better! May we spend time in God’s Word today, soaking in his teachings, and applying them in our lives. So that when the final role is called, we will be deemed followers, believers, and disciples of the true Savior of the world! To God be the glory!