Four Major Characteristics of a Biblical Disciple: Part 2 (Sacrifice)

“Follow me” (Matthew 4:19, English Standard Version). Perhaps one of the boldest statements ever uttered. The self-assurance required for such a demand could only abound from one of two heart conditions—arrogant hubris or accurate humility. These two simple words of Jesus would set the course for worldwide change while impacting individual lives in intricate and intimate ways. For two millennia, Jesus’s command to “follow” has been carried throughout the corridors of history on the backs of animals, in the bags of messenger boys, rolled up in newspapers, from the pens of scholars, from the lips of peasants, and through the lifestyles of countless believers. This continuous following of Jesus century after century is a marvelous and miraculous reality. Why has this happened? Because those who have been commanded and called to “follow” have done so. They have become followers. 

In Matthew 28:18b-20, Jesus expanded this call and command to a missional statement for His followers. He presented them with the Great Commission: “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. 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, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age” (ESV). This Great Commission would act as the catalyst for turning followers into follower-makers—disciples into disciple-makers. From this point forward, a called-out group of people in the world would be known as Christians, and those Christians would be marked by lifestyle traits that proved they were disciples. Four of those characteristics would be servitude, sacrifice, steadfastness, and studiousness. These four major Christian characteristics identify a true, believing disciple of Jesus Christ to the Church, their families, and the world.

Sacrifice – Disciples are Loving

Interestingly, humility is not the only attribute of Christ that took Him to the gruesome death of the cross. Coupled right alongside a heart of humility is the underlying motivation of love. Love in the Bible carries with it a stronger connotation than the love that is flippantly thought of in modern times. Scripture specifically uses different variations for the word love throughout its pages. Obviously, from the Old Testament to the New Testament, there are differences, but when dealing with the New Testament unfolding in the era that it did, Jesus chose the word agape to describe Christian love. In John 3:16, Jesus defines God’s love using this word. In Ephesians 5, Paul intertwines this love with sacrifice while calling on Christians to show that same love in their own lives: “Therefore be imitators of God, as beloved children. And walk in love, as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us, a fragrant sacrifice to God” (5:1-2. ESV). Here, disciples are called upon to imitate God—be a copy of God. A true disciple will walk in the same love that God displays to the world and to His followers.            

In the verse above, Paul is sure to give an example of exactly what this love looks like. He explains that Biblical love will manifest itself through sacrifice as it did in Christ. Michael J. Gorman, in his work on Cruciformity, stated, “Love…is at the core of Paul’s understanding of the experience of individuals and communities in Christ.”^[1] Paul thoroughly understood that love was the core of all that a disciple was. The rest of the proceeding chapter unfolds how a person should apply this love in various relationship forms. One of the primary ways that a person shows this love is through their relationship with their family. A marital relationship is a premier example of how love can be practically seen in the life of a disciple. Dr. Emerson Eggerichs said in his work Love & Respect, “When you love or respect unconditionally, you are following God and His will for you.”^[2] It is a disciple’s duty and reasonable desire to walk in love just as much as they are to clothe themselves with humility.

Until we write again,

Hunter V.S. See

---

^[1] Michael J. Gorman, Cruciformity: Paul’s Narrative Spirituality of the Cross. (Grand Rapids, MI: Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Co, 2001), 156.

^[2] Dr. Emerson Eggerichs, Love & Respect: The Love She Most Desires, The Respect He Desperately Needs. (Nashville, TN:W Publishing Group), 271.