Being a disciple of Jesus Christ means more than merely holding to a particular view of who the man from Nazareth was. To be a disciple is to follow Him, to be an adherent of Him and His ways, to learn from Him and to carry out His commands. Being a disciple means to become part of Jesus' team, a proposition that will bring new challenges and demands that will require change and growth from you. It means intelligently structuring your life so that you can develop your skills and abilities so that you can be most effective in "Kingdom objectives". Being a disciple is to take the responsibility for your spiritual walk seriously. It means making choices which can sometimes be difficult or uncomfortable in order to accomplish a greater goal than to live for mere temporal pleasures.

The priorities for the serious disciple are:  

             (1.) to know God more intimately; and,

             (2.) to discern and accomplish His will.

Oftentimes our day-to-day life patterns make it difficult to focus in on these priorities. There are so many distractions, confusing and competing ideas, opportunities, and expectations that continually bombard us with demands upon our time and resources. Discipline is a strategy we employ to help us sort through all the hurry and scurry of life, so that we can focus efficiently on our goals. A disciple embraces discipline as a welcome tool to use in the pursuit of a hearing-heart and a listening-ear with which to know God, or as a way to keep on target in the accomplishment of something that the Master has made us aware of.

Discipleship is helping another follower of Jesus in their pursuit of intimacy and obedience. This is a strategy, or discipline, where we put ourselves in relationship with another like-minded disciple to support and encourage one another, to help each other discern areas of strength and weakness, to pray for one another, to counsel and instruct one another, and to hold each other accountable in our growth process.

To be a disciple is the call or responsibility of every believer. Making disciples is the responsibility of every community of believers, and of every believer, in the Body of Christ.  Is that not what the Great Commission is all about, "...Make disciples of all nations..."? Did not the Lord give us spiritual gifts which are for the common good, the edification and maturation of us all? Are not some of these gifts specifically given to equip all of us to serve each other in the Body to the end that we might be fully grown in Christ?