The path of discipleship.
We move forward undaunted by the trials of life.
“There will be no discrepancy between the kindness we show our enemies and the kindness we show our friends.”
What does it mean to be a disciple of our Lord Jesus Christ? A disciple is one who has been baptized and is willing to take upon him or her the name of the Savior and follow Him. A disciple strives to become as He is by keeping His commandments in mortality, much the same as an apprentice seeks to become like his or her master.
Many people hear the word disciple and think it means only “follower.” But genuine discipleship is a state of being. This suggests more than studying and applying a list of individual attributes. Disciples live so that the characteristics of Christ are woven into the fiber of their beings, as into a spiritual tapestry.
Baptism is the first, easiest, most public invitation given by Christ for those who would believe Him. Nobody can claim to follow His teachings in any meaningful way without baptism. (The closest there can be to an exception is for those who seek baptism but don’t have access to someone with authority to baptize or that have not yet met some requirement for baptism but are seeking to do so.)
In the Savior’s day, there were many who claimed to be righteous in one or another aspect of their lives. They practiced what I have called selective obedience. For example, they kept the commandment to refrain from work on the Sabbath yet criticized the Savior for healing on that holy day. They gave alms to the poor but offered only their excess—what they did not need for themselves. They fasted but only with long faces. They prayed but only to be seen of men. Jesus said, “They draw near to me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me.” Such men and women may focus on mastering a specific attribute or action but do not necessarily become as He is in their hearts.
Peter exhorts us to add “to knowledge temperance; and to temperance patience.” As temperate disciples, we live the gospel in a balanced and steady way. We do not “run faster than [we have] strength.” Day by day we move forward, undeterred by the refining challenges of mortality.
Being temperate in this way, we develop patience and trust in the Lord. We are able to rely on His design for our lives, even though we cannot see it with our own natural eyes. Therefore, we can “be still and know that [He is] God.” When faced with the storms of tribulation, we ask, “What wouldst Thou have me learn from this experience?” With His plan and purposes in our hearts, we move forward not only enduring all things but also enduring them patiently and well.
From temperance to patience and from patience to godliness, our natures change. We gain the brotherly kindness that is a hallmark of all true disciples. Like the Good Samaritan, we cross the road to minister to whoever is in need, even if they are not within the circle of our friends. We bless them that curse us. We do good to those who despitefully use us. Is any attribute more godly or Christlike?
Brothers and sisters, now more than ever, we cannot be a “part-time disciple”! We cannot be a disciple on just one point of doctrine or another. The constellation of characteristics that result from faith in Christ—including the ones we have talked about today—are all necessary to our standing strong in these last days.
As we earnestly strive to be true disciples of Jesus Christ, these characteristics will be interwoven, added upon, and interactively strengthened in us. There will be no disparity between the kindness we show our enemies and the kindness we bestow on our friends. We will be as honest when no one is looking as when others are watching. We will be as devoted to God in the public square as we are in our private closet.
This goes for those who are privately debited but publicly timid as much as those who are publicly devoted but privately shallow.
Leave a Reply