Discipleship: Knowing the Word

Note: This is part of my series on Discipleship and Disciplines. You might want to read from the beginning if you haven't already.

Remember that in John 8:31, Jesus says, "If you continue in My word, then you are truly disciples of Mine." So, then, as I've mentioned before, the first step to discipleship is to know His word. Otherwise, how would it be possible to continue in it?

If you're anything like me, though, "know the word" seems a little bit abstract or poorly defined. What does that look like on a day-to-day basis? How can I have any sort of confidence that I've accomplished this first step?

Here are a few suggestions that I've found helpful in my spiritual walk:

1. Read the Bible. Seriously, read it. The whole thing. Repeatedly. Get to know it like you know an old friend. This certainly doesn't have to happen overnight, but it does have to happen.

So work on it every day. Set an attainable goal and stick to it: Ten verses, a chapter, two chapters, ten chapters -- whatever you can reasonably accomplish every day. Make a habit of it, and don't bite off more than you can chew. If you start losing the meaning amongst all the words, quit for the day. It's not the end of the world if you don't hit your targeted number of verses. Simply taking the time to read is a victory in itself.

When you're reading, go for quality over quantity. Be sure that you understand who's talking, what's happening, why things are going on, and how each piece fits into the bigger picture. If you can only do by reading one verse per day, then only read one verse per day. If you're having trouble understanding, consider investing in a study Bible with commentary footnotes. (Charles Ryrie and John MacArthur have both written pretty solid ones.) There are also a lot of online commentaries and study aids to provide cultural, historical, and doctrinal context.

Bottom line: It's OK not to be a mega awesome superstar Bible-reader; all you need to be is a Bible-reader.

2. Think About the Bible. Grab one or two details from your daily reading and chew on them throughout the day, like a cow chewing her cud. Meditate on what you've read. Think about how -- or even whether -- it applies to your life or the lives of your friends, acquaintances, or loved ones.

As you read through, remember that not everything in the Bible reflects God's attitudes and thoughts about the world. Sometimes the text reflects the viewpoints, assumptions, and actions of other people in the narrative. These won't always align with the way God sees things. Also remember that throughout history, God has dealt in many different ways with nations and people, though His nature and purposes haven't changed.

3. Memorize the Bible. We'll talk more about memorization later, in our discussion of spiritual disciplines, but know that memorizing verses is one of the best ways to let God's word start changing your heart.

Are you struggling with a particular sin? Memorize a whole slough of verses dealing with that sin, and its opposite virtue. Psalm 119:11 says, "Your word I have treasured in my heart, / That I may not sin against You."

Are you feeling discouraged or depressed? Memorize a Psalm that talks about God's faithfulness, salvation, and love.

Basically, you can't go wrong with memorizing Scripture. It takes time, but that time definitely isn't wasted.

4. Ask for Help. First and foremost, ask God to show you what He wants you to see in your daily readings. Ask Him to help you understand it, too. The really good news here is that God already has a mechanism in place to make that happen. Jesus promised his followers that "the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in My name ... will teach you all things, and bring to your remembrance all that I said to you" (John 14:26).

God wants you to be good at reading, understanding, and thinking about the Bible. That's one of the reasons He sent the Holy Spirit. He loves to teach you; ask God to open your mind and heart to His teaching.

In addition to the Holy Spirit, ask other followers of Christ to help you know Christ's word better. Get involved in a structured Bible study, Sunday School class, small group, or all of the above. And it's vital to be part of a local church that believes and teaches the Bible. There's a reason that Paul commands the Ephesians to speak to one another in Psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs (Ephesians 5:19): We are always stronger when we engage in a community of encouragement.

Another great thing to do is seek out a Bible study partner. Talk through your readings one-on-one with them. Memorize passages of Scripture together. Keep them accountable, and expect them to do the same for you.

Discipleship: An Introduction

A disciple is one who follows and learns. The term comes from the Latin word discipulus, meaning student, pupil, or follower. And yet a disciple is more than a mere student. A true disciple must immerse himself in the master's teaching. He must allow it to become a way of life, not just a set of ideas. The deeper he goes, the truer a disciple he becomes.

In John 8:31-32, Jesus tells the Jews who have believed in Him, "If you continue in My word, then you are truly disciples of Mine; and you will know the truth, and the truth will make you free." I think we'd all agree that we'd like to be free. And if we're followers of Christ, we also want to know His truth. So, then, continuing in His word is vital, if we are to attain these goals.

At least three things are required on the path to becoming Christ's true disciples:

1. Know the word. You can't follow a path if you don't know where it is. Similarly, you can't walk in the truth if you don't know what it is. Psalm 119:105 says that God's word is a lamp to our feet and a light to our path. It shows us the way we ought to go.

2. Remove distractions. You won't get far on a journey if you keep taking side-paths that lead away from your goal. I John 2:15 instructs us not to love the world nor the things in the world. This is because the world around us is caught up in worldly, fleshly things. It isn't concerned about spiritual truths, so being too attached to the world will prevent us from setting our affections on things above, where Christ is (Colossians 3:2).

3. Begin following. You'll never get anywhere if you don't start. An old proverb says that the journey of 1,000 miles begins with a single step, and that's true. Before Joshua's death, he urged the Israelites to "choose for yourselves today whom you will serve" (Joshua 24:15). The same choice applies to you and me, every day of our lives. Yes, we have chosen Christ once. But if we want to continue down the path with Him, if we want to grow in Him, we also keep choosing Him, moment by moment and day by day.

My purpose over the next few weeks is to outline how to get from where you are to where you want to be in a relationship with Christ. In other words, I want to help you reach that spot where you can look at your life, evaluate it in light of John 8:31 ("If you continue in My word, then you are truly disciples of Mine"), and say, "Yes! That's me!"

In my next post, I'll introduce some tools that will help us as we journey together toward discipleship.