Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. Matthew 22:37

This word appears more than 250 times in the Bible.  You might think it means the same thing as the word, “Christian.”  But when you call yourself by this name, it means a lot more than simply saying you are from the Christian faith.  What are we talking about?

We’re talking about being a disciple of Jesus.  Being a disciple of Jesus means that we follow His example and dedicate ourselves to learning from the scriptures and from God the Holy Spirit. But disciples aren’t simply slaves to a cause. A disciple of Jesus is in love.

You see, a disciple loves his teacher so much that his love for everything and everyone else is hatred in comparison. “Anyone who loves his father or mother….son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me,” he said (Matthew 10:37). The love of a true disciple sounds intense. Love can be a discipline and a choice. It’s not always a feel-good feeling. Yet following Jesus because we love Him isn’t something we’re forced into. Jesus is worthy of our love, and when we discover His incredible love for us, we love in return.

Disciples are both born and made!  You are born a disciple when you begin to follow Jesus, but you are made one as you live one day at a time, confessing your sin and failure, and striving to live a life like Jesus did.  You don’t have to be perfect to become a disciple of Jesus today!

Resource reading: John 8:31-47