Discipleship

tests of, Matt. 10:32–39; Luke 14:26, 27, 33; John 21:15–19.

DISCIPLE, a name given to the followers of any teacher. Of John the Baptist, Matt. 9:14. Of Jesus, Matt. 10:1; 20:17; Acts 9:26; 14:20; 21:4. The seventy sent forth, Luke 10:1. First called Christians at Antioch, Acts 11:26

DISCIPLE, DISCIPLESHIP

A disciple is a “learner,” “follower,” or “adherent” of a particular leader such as Jesus (Mt 27:57) or even a particular teaching (e.g., Mt 13:52, “a disciple of the kingdom of heaven”). Such prominent Greek philosophers as Aristotle and Socrates had their disciples, as did Moses (Jn 9:28). The idea of a disciple as one who is taught is used of Jesus twice in OT messianic prophecy (Is 50:4) and once of disciples in general (Is 8:16). The term Disciple(s) is applied to different groups in the NT with different senses. There were pretentious “disciples” who followed Jesus only temporarily and evidently were unbelievers (Jn 6:60–66; cf. 8:31–32). “Disciples” is also used to designate all men and women who are true believers in Christ, i.e., “Christians” (Ac 11:26; cf. 1:15). The twelve disciples selected by Christ were also called apostles and had a particular commission from Him (Mt 28:19–20; Ac 1:8) with special credentials (Ac 1:22; 2 Co 12:12). Judas lost his position, and “the eleven apostles” (Ac 1:26) chose Matthias to replace him (Jn 6:70–71; Ac 1:16–26) (see also APOSTLE). “Disciple” sometimes occurs in a restricted, ideal sense of those willing to forsake all and follow Christ with total commitment (Lu 14:26, 27, 33). While the specific terminology “disciple(s)” or its other forms is found only in Matthew–Acts in the NT, the concept of discipleship is found elsewhere in the NT (e.g., 1 Co 11:1; Eph 4:20–21; Php 3:17; 1 Th 1:6–7; 2 Ti 2:2; 1 Pe 2:21; 1 Jo 2:6).

♦ of Moses: Jn 9:28 ♦ of John the Baptist: Mt 9:14; Mk 2:18; Lu 5:33; 7:18; 11:1; Jn 3:25; Ac 19:1–4

of Christ

the apostles ♦ general references: Mt 5:1; 8:23; 9:10, 11, 37; 10:1; 11:1, 2; 12:1, 2; 13:10, 36; 14:12, 15, 26; 15:2, 32, 33, 36; 16:5, 13, 20, 21, 24; 17:6, 10, 13, 16, 19; 18:1; 19:10, 13, 23, 25; 21:20; 23:1; 24:1, 3; 26:1, 8, 17, 18, 19, 20, 26, 35, 36, 40, 45, 56; 27:64; 28:7, 8, 13, 16; Mk 2:15, 16, 18, 23; 3:7, 9; 4:34; 5:31; 6:1, 29, 35, 41, 45; 7:2, 5, 17; 8:1, 4, 6, 10, 27, 33, 34; 9:14, 18, 28, 31; 10:10, 13, 23, 24, 46; 11:14; 12:43; 13:1; 14:12, 14, 16, 32; 16:7; Lu 5:30; 6:1, 13, 17, 20; 7:11; 8:9, 22; 9:14, 16, 18, 40, 43; 10:23; 12:1, 22; 16:1; 17:1, 22; 18:15; 20:45; 22:11, 39, 45; Jn 2:2, 11, 12, 17, 22; 3:22; 4:2, 8, 27, 31, 33; 6:3, 12, 16, 22, 24; 9:2; 11:7, 8, 12, 16, 54; 12:16; 13:5, 22, 35; 15:8; 16:17, 29; 18:1, 2, 17, 19, 25; 20:10, 18, 19, 20, 25, 26, 30; 21:1, 4, 8, 12, 14 ♦ two of the twelve disciples: Mt 21:1, 6; Mk 11:1; 14:13; Lu 7:19; 19:29; Jn 1:35, 37; 21:1 (cf. Lu 9:54) ♦ one of the twelve disciples: Lu 11:1; Jn 6:8; 12:4; 13:23; 18:15, 16; 19:26, 27; 20:2, 3, 4, 8; 21:2, 7, 20, 23, 24 ♦ disciples in general: Mt 8:21; 27:57; 28:19; Lu 19:37, 39; Jn 4:1; 7:3; 9:27, 28; 19:28 (cf. Is 8:16) ♦ genuine disciples: Lu 14:26–27, 33; Jn 8:31; Ac 6:1, 2; 6:7; 9:1, 10, 19, 25, 26, 36, 38; 11:26, 29; 13:52; 14:20, 21, 22, 28; 15:10; 16:1; 18:23, 27; 19:9, 30; 20:1, 30; 21:4, 16 ♦ pretentious disciples: Jn 6:60, 61, 66

requirements of: Is 50:4; Mt 10:24, 42; 16:24–25; 19:27; 28:19–20; Lu 6:40; 12:8; 14:26–27, 33; Jn 8:31; 12:26; 13:34–35; 14:15–21, 23; 15:8

reward of: Mt 10:25, 42; 19:27–29; Lu 6:40; 10:20; 12:8; Jn 8:31–32; 12:26; 14:21, 23

of the kingdom of heaven: Mt 13:52

of the Pharisees: Mt 22:16; Mk 2:18

of Saul (i.e., the Apostle Paul): Ac 9:25

Like the master-apprentice relationship, though in a religious context, the teacher—disciple relation is a socially recognized quasi-contractual institution primarily for the purpose of learning. Although the term scarcely appears in the OT, the concept is implicit in the companies, or schools, of the prophets. Examples include the apprenticeship from early childhood of Samuel to Eli and the service given to Elisha by Gehazi, who on occasion acted for him with delegated powers (1 Sam 2:11; 2 Kings 2:3; 2 Kings 4:29). Isaiah looked to certain assistants to take care of his writings and their transmission, and Jeremiah’s secretary Baruch received a word from the Lord in the manner of his principal (Is 8:16; Jer 45). Earlier, Joshua succeeded Moses after serving a term of apprenticeship “since youth” (Num 11:28 NIV).

Discipleship in the New Testament. The Gospels refer to John the Baptist as having disciples, some of whom transferred to Jesus when he began his ministry (Jn 1:35ff). Discipleship becomes a prominent theme in the life and teaching of Jesus. In Acts, Luke routinely uses the term mathētēs for believers, but it is nowhere used in the Epistles, where words like brothers, church, believers and saints are preferred.

Although the Twelve are named collectively and individually in the Gospels, the designation “disciple” was applied more widely. Luke mentions that the audience for the Sermon on the Plain was “a great crowd of his disciples” and large numbers of others (6:17). He gives 120 as the number of the believers in Jerusalem prior to Pentecost (Acts 1:15), and in Luke 8:2 he also mentions the women within the company of traveling disciples.

To be a disciple was not merely to be a frequent listener to the teaching of Jesus, but to be “with him” as he moved about in itinerant ministry (Mk 3:14). An imperative invitation from Jesus to join his disciples seems to have been typical (e.g., the peremptory “follow me” to Levi [Mk 2:14]), but there are also instances of volunteering (Lk 9:57). John reports Jesus’ assurance that he will not reject those who come to him (6:37). John, who has a distinctive emphasis on belief as the mark of the disciple, seems to allow that it was possible, at least temporarily, to be a “secret” disciple (12:42; 19:38). Jesus called his disciples from a range of social and occupational backgrounds.

Commonly, the disciples would have been a highly visible group behind Jesus, not unlike sheep following a shepherd. The disciples controlled access to the master and had responsibility for logistics (Mk 10:13; 6:37). They provided some of the money the group needed for themselves and to give to the poor (Lk 8:3). Submitted to Jesus’ discipline, they aimed through obedience to resemble him, as indeed he invited them to do: “Everyone who is fully trained will be like his teacher,” Jesus once said (Lk 6:40 NIV).

Jesus’ mobility seems to have been greater than that of John the Baptist and the contemporary Jewish rabbis, and with the numerous healings and other miracles that he did; to follow Jesus was to follow more than a teacher of the law. When he sent the Twelve (called “apostles”) and later seventy-two disciples in pairs to communities he had not yet visited, they were his representatives and endowed with his power to heal, exorcise demons and bring signs of the kingdom. After Jesus’ ascension, “making disciples” in the power of the Holy Spirit among all the peoples of the earth was the “Great Commission” entrusted to the disciples (Mt 28:19–20).

Disciples play a functional part in many of the incidents narrated in the Gospels, and they provide the occasion for much of the teaching. Integral to the gospel plot is the betrayal by Judas, one of the Twelve. In the metaplot of salvation-history, the disciples are to the church and the kingdom of God what the patriarchs were to Israel (Mt 19:28). A common motif is the disciples’ slowness to understand that Jesus would have to suffer and rise from death in order to complete the pattern of his obedience to the Father.

The Meaning of Discipleship. The NT concept of discipleship begins with the literal pictures of the Twelve as presented in the Gospels. The main meanings of the image include following Christ, loyalty to Christ and his work on earth, self-denial, aptness both to learn from Christ and to teach what has been learned, authority as Christ’s spokespersons, and power to perform signs and wonders. An important image of the disciple is given in John 9. A man blind since birth is healed by Jesus (Jn 9:1–12), and the Pharisees investigate the miracle. The man who was healed becomes exasperated at the persistent questioning and asks, “Why do you want to hear it again? Do you want to become his disciples?” (Jn 9:27 NIV). The Pharisees become angry and describe themselves by declaring, “We are disciples of Moses!” (v. 28). Here a disciple is one who aligns with a particular teacher who acts as a spokesperson for God: “We know that God spoke to Moses” (v. 29).

From literal beginnings discipleship acquires metaphorical authority for all believers in Christ. The connotations of relatedness, trust and obligation endure through successive generations. The image is radical, for a changed life is fundamentally assumed; and it is dynamic, for progress and development are of the essence. According to the NT, whether or not one becomes a disciple of Jesus will be of huge importance for every individual at the judgment.

Although the call to discipleship is for “all peoples,” relatively few respond because Jesus demands priority above all social bonds, including those of kin. Discipleship is expressed in an obedience that is righteous and loving, even of enemies, to the point of one’s own death. It thus supplies a new paradigm for the old one of legal righteousness. The term is polysemic and generative, and it takes the serving disciple into the Way that crosses from here and now to the glory of the kingdom: “Whoever serves me must follow me; and where I am, my servant also will be” (Jn 12:26 NIV).