As followers of Jesus, we should be reading our Bible regularly and trying to understand and apply its teaching in our lives. But with 66 books (39 in the Old and 27 in the New Testaments) it can be difficult to see where we should focus our attention. It can also be a challenge to understand how and where the New Testament says things that take precedence over the Old, and what this means practically for disciples.
The answer as to where and what we study will depend partly on how far we have journeyed on our Christian walk (from being a new believer to becoming an experienced and mature Christian brother or sister) and who we are journeying with.
Study Bibles, Concordances, and Commentaries, together with (hopefully) good sound teaching from our Pastors / Ministers should help us become more familiar with God’s and Jesus’ expectations of us as we are led by the Holy Spirit - especially when we read the scriptures.
Bible Study groups (ideally with a good leader) also have an important role to play as they help us understand, and influence, what others think about the Bible’s teaching. In particular looking at its practical impact of the challenges we all face personally, as we live life in community with these believers, and with non-Christians around us — family, neighbours, work colleagues etc.
If you were to think about the main message for Christians to draw out from the New Testament and put into practice what would it be?
Get ‘saved’ and help others to get saved too?
Do good to other people?
Accept Jesus as your personal Saviour and Lord?
Try to live a holy life?
Love God and love your neighbour as yourself?
In a sense all of them are true, but none represents a clear summary of the New Testament’s primary teaching for us.
The New Testament includes many accounts of people’s interactions with Jesus and the apostles, teaching, narrative, commands, parables, prophecies, encouragements, and warnings, and it can be difficult to draw back from the detail to really look at the big picture.
So what might we consider to be the main message for disciples within its pages?
To become more like Jesus.
There are four themes that we can highlight to support this.
1 Jesus’ teaching tells us what we should do — and He is the perfect example of each
Colossians 1:18 tells us that Jesus has first place / pre-eminence in everything. The Greek word used is próteuó and means ‘to have the first place / supremacy’. It says:
And he is the head of the body, the church; he is the beginning and the firstborn from among the dead, so that in everything he might have the supremacy [Note 1].
So we can look at Jesus’ behaviours and actions recorded throughout the New Testament scriptures to see how he excels in all things that he calls on us to do.
In summary Jesus tells us three things: Love God, follow Me (Jesus), and love your neighbour as yourself and we will look briefly at these things here.
1.1 We are to love God (the Father - and the Trinity in the broader sense)
Jesus’ relationship with the Father before, during, and after his life on the earth, surpasses any relationship that we could possibly have with the Father this side of heaven, or Christ’s return.
John 10:30 - “I and the Father are one.”
John 5:19 - Jesus gave them this answer: “Very truly I tell you, the Son can do nothing by himself; he can do only what he sees his Father doing, because whatever the Father does the Son also does.”
Jesus highlighted that the greatest commandment for each of us was to “Love God”.
Mark 12:30 - “Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.”
As part of loving God, there are two things we need to do: listen to Him and talk to Him.
Listen to God
Jesus listened to God in two ways — through His detailed knowledge of what we now call the Old Testament, and through an ongoing dialogue with the Father day by day. In the accounts of His teaching he constantly quotes the Old Testament and takes time to be on his own to pray.
John 6:45 - “It is written in the Prophets: ‘They will all be taught by God.’ Everyone who has heard the Father and learned from him comes to me.”
Matthew 22:29 - Jesus replied, “You are in error because you do not know the Scriptures or the power of God.”
For us today, the primary (some would say the only) way in which we can hear God is through reading the scriptures and letting them speak to us.
Talk to God (in prayer or in worship)
Jesus prayer life was an integral part of his life and ministry and is a model for each of us to try to follow too:
Mark 1:35 - Very early in the morning, while it was still dark, Jesus got up, left the house and went off to a solitary place, where he prayed.
John 11:41-42 - So they took away the stone. Then Jesus lifted His eyes upward and said, “Father, I thank You that You have heard Me. I knew that you always hear me, but I said this for the benefit of the people standing here, that they may believe that you sent me.”
John 15:7 - “If you remain in me and my words remain in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for you.”
1.2 - Jesus repeatedly invites people to “Follow Me” (Him)
There are four things that we need to do to follow Jesus that we can draw out from the scriptures. We should:
Submit to Jesus Lordship
Jesus warns people that there are conditions to entering God’s kingdom - we have to do God’s will and not be deliberately sinful:
Matthew 7:21 - “Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven.”
Matthew 7:23 - Then I will tell them plainly, ‘I never knew you. Away from me, you evildoers!’
Be holy
The scriptures tell us that Jesus was without sin (He was holy) and our aim as his followers should be to die to self and put to death our sinful nature:
Matthew 16:24 - Then Jesus said to his disciples, “Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me."
Romans 8:13 - For if you live according to the flesh, you will die; but if by the Spirit you put to death the misdeeds of the body, you will live.
Jesus also challenges us to try to reach His ‘standard'
Matthew 5:48 - “Be perfect, therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect.”
Matthew 5:20 - “For I tell you that unless your righteousness surpasses that of the Pharisees and the teachers of the law, you will certainly not enter the kingdom of heaven.”
Live out kingdom values
As part of living a sinless life, Jesus tells us that he came to fulfil the law and reinforces the need to obey (or exceed - Matthew 5:20 above) the commandments:
Matthew 5:17-19 - “Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I have not come to abolish them but to fulfil them. For truly I tell you, until heaven and earth disappear, not the smallest letter, not the least stroke of a pen, will by any means disappear from the Law until everything is accomplished. Therefore anyone who sets aside one of the least of these commands and teaches others accordingly will be called least in the kingdom of heaven, but whoever practices and teaches these commands will be called great in the kingdom of heaven.”
Matthew 19:18-19 - “Which ones?” he inquired. Jesus replied, “ ‘You shall not murder, you shall not commit adultery, you shall not steal, you shall not give false testimony, honour your father and mother,’ and ‘love your neighbour as yourself.’ “
Exercise discernment
Jesus is recorded as having interactions with satan, and cleansing many people from demons during his early ministry. He also taught about spiritual warfare, the need to test what the religious leaders were teaching, and not to blaspheme the Holy Spirit.
Matthew 8:16 - When evening came, many who were demon-possessed were brought to him, and he drove out the spirits with a word and healed all the sick.
Matthew 16:11-12 - “How is it you don’t understand that I was not talking to you about bread? But be on your guard against the yeast of the Pharisees and Sadducees.” Then they understood that he was not telling them to guard against the yeast used in bread, but against the teaching of the Pharisees and Sadducees.
Mark 3:28-30 - “Truly I tell you, people can be forgiven all their sins and every slander they utter, but whoever blasphemes against the Holy Spirit will never be forgiven; they are guilty of an eternal sin.” He said this because they were saying, “He has an impure spirit.”
Similarly, we need to discern the source of the things around us (whether they are from God or elsewhere) and to consider what our pastors, ministers, or online teachers tell us, - just like the Bereans did (Acts 17:11).
1.3 We are to love our neighbours as ourselves
Jesus’ teaching and commands within the New Testament about loving our neighbours show how Jesus was the best example of these themes which, in turn, become requirements on us:
Make disciples
Jesus spent much of his earthly ministry drawing others to himself. In particular He appointed apostles, made disciples, and developed them:
John 15:14-16 - “You are my friends if you do what I command. I no longer call you servants, because a servant does not know his master’s business. Instead, I have called you friends, for everything that I learned from my Father I have made known to you. You did not choose me, but I chose you and appointed you so that you might go and bear fruit—fruit that will last—and so that whatever you ask in my name the Father will give you.”
Matthew 28:18-20 - Then Jesus came to them and said, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptising them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.”
Forgive (don't judge) others
Examples of Jesus’ forgiveness include when he was being nailed to the cross and in some places he indicates that he has not come to judge:
Luke 23:34 - Jesus said, “Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they are doing.” And they divided up his clothes by casting lots.
John 12:47-48 - “If anyone hears my words but does not keep them, I do not judge that person. For I did not come to judge the world, but to save the world. There is a judge for the one who rejects me and does not accept my words; the very words I have spoken will condemn them at the last day.”
Jesus tells us that in order to be forgiven we have to forgive and that we must not judge others.
Matthew 6:15 - “But if you do not forgive others their sins, your Father will not forgive your sins.”
Matthew 7:1-2 - “Do not judge, or you too will be judged. For in the same way you judge others, you will be judged, and with the measure you use, it will be measured to you.”
Undertake acts of service and generosity
We are told in Philippians that Christ made himself nothing, becoming a servant and ultimately giving himself for the sins of all mankind (the ultimate act of generosity):
Philippians 2:5-8 - In your relationships with one another, have the same mindset as Christ Jesus: Who, being in very nature God, did not consider equality with God something to be used to his own advantage; rather, he made himself nothing by taking the very nature of a servant, being made in human likeness. And being found in appearance as a man, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to death— even death on a cross!
Jesus teaches that it is in serving that we become true leaders and that we should give to the needy who we will always have with us (John 12:8):
Mark 10:43-45 - “Not so with you. Instead, whoever wants to become great among you must be your servant, and whoever wants to be first must be slave of all. For even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.””
Matthew 6:2-4 - “So when you give to the needy, do not announce it with trumpets, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and on the streets, to be honoured by others. Truly I tell you, they have received their reward in full. But when you give to the needy, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing, so that your giving may be in secret. Then your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you.
Luke 11:41 - But now as for what is inside you—be generous to the poor, and everything will be clean for you.
2 Jesus requires people to obey his teaching as an outworking of our love for Him (and in doing so, we become more like Him)
There are a number of words for love in Greek (and their derivatives) of which at least two are relevant in the context of discipleship - agapaó (selfless, unconditional love) and phileó (brotherly love / affection). Example scriptures that describe obedience to Christ as an outworking of our love (using the word agapaó) for Him include:
John 14:15 - “If you love me, keep my commands.”
John 14:21 - “Whoever has my commands and keeps them is the one who loves me. The one who loves me will be loved by my Father, and I too will love them and show myself to them.”
John 14:23 - Jesus replied, “Anyone who loves me will obey my teaching. My Father will love them, and we will come to them and make our home with them.”
[See also John 15:10, 1 John 2:5, 1 John 5:3, 2 John 1:6]
3 The New Testament tells us we are to be conformed to the likeness of Jesus
If we look at the Greek word for ‘image’ (eikón) this can literally be translated as a ‘mirror like representation’ and we see this word used in a number of New Testament references to followers of Jesus becoming like him. For example:
Colossians 3:10 - and have put on the new self, which is being renewed in knowledge in the image of its Creator.
2 Corinthians 3:18 - And we all, who with unveiled faces contemplate the Lord’s glory, are being transformed into his image with ever-increasing glory, which comes from the Lord, who is the Spirit.
[Other references include: Romans 8:29, 1 Corinthians 1:7 and 1 Corinthians 15:49].
The word eikón is also used of Jesus to show that he is the exact image of God:
2 Corinthians 4:4 - The god of this age has blinded the minds of unbelievers, so that they cannot see the light of the gospel that displays the glory of Christ, who is the image of God.
Colossians 1:15 - The Son is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation.
Looking at the word translated as ‘conform' (Greek - summorphos and summorphoó — understood to mean ‘sharing the same inner essence’) there are two further references we can draw out:
Romans 8:29 - For those God foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brothers and sisters.
Philippians 3:10 - I want to know Christ--yes, to know the power of his resurrection and participation in his sufferings, becoming like him in his death,
4 The Apostles urged the readers of the Epistles (and hence us) to follow their example by imitating them (as they imitated Jesus) and the early church
The original texts include the following words about ‘imitating’ (Greek mimétés and mimeomai):
1 Corinthians 11:1 - Follow my example, as I follow the example of Christ.
Ephesians 5:1 - Therefore be imitators of God as dear children (New King James Version) [Note 2].
1 Thessalonians 1:6 - You became imitators of us and of the Lord, for you welcomed the message in the midst of severe suffering with the joy given by the Holy Spirit.
[See also 1 Corinthians 4:16, 1 Thessalonians 2:14, 2 Thessalonians 3:7, 2 Thessalonians 3:9, Hebrews 6:12, Hebrews 13:7]
In addition there is one reference to disciples being ‘fellow imitators’ (Greek - summimétés):
Philippians 3:17 - Join together in following my example, brothers and sisters, and just as you have us as a model, keep your eyes on those who live as we do.
and another two references about ‘following closely’ (Greek - parakoloutheó):
1 Timothy 4:6 - If you point these things out to the brothers and sisters, you will be a good minister of Christ Jesus, nourished on the truths of the faith and of the good teaching that you have followed.
2 Timothy 3:10 - You, however, know all about my teaching, my way of life, my purpose, faith, patience, love, endurance,
Summary
We have seen (briefly) that Jesus in his teaching sets out what He needs His disciples to do as they seek to follow Him. We have also understood that Jesus is the best example of doing what He commanded us. The scriptures also tell us that as an outworking of our faith, we need to be obedient to Jesus’ teaching — responding out of a sense of love for Him and not from a sense of legalism. The Bible also describes that we are predestined to become like Jesus (although the final transformation for us will take place when we reach heaven or when Jesus returns to earth). Lastly we saw that the apostles (particularly Paul) sought to model their live on Christ as an example for the New Testament believers (and for us to copy).
Drawing these ideas together we can see that they combine to demonstrate that our objective, as Jesus’ followers, is to become more like Him.
Notes:
[1] - Unless otherwise stated, all scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV®. Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.TM Used by permission of Zondervan. All rights reserved worldwide. www.zondervan.com. The “NIV” and “New International Version” are trademarks registered in the United States Patent and Trademark Office by Biblica, Inc.TM.
The Bible references presented are illustrative rather than aiming to be ‘proof texts’. They are examples only as there are many more we could look at.
Please note that when looking at any Bible verse references, you should ideally consider more than one translation / respected version of the Bible to get a more rounded view, and also look at the wider context for each verse too.
[2] - We are also imitators of Jesus as he is the exact image (eikón) of God.