I have been privileged to know some of the top leaders in just about every field—the church, business, industry, education, government, sports, the military, science, and entertainment. Some common denominators are found in all who reach the highest levels. One is that they are energetically and enthusiastically devoted to staying on the cutting edge of knowledge in their field. This is almost always because of their love of knowledge and their love of their profession.

         The greatest Christian is the one who loves God the most and thereby will love others the most. How can...

         Last week we began to look at what it means to be a disciple. In biblical times, being the disciple of a noteworthy teacher was one of the highest honors one could receive. Because the quality of the disciples reflected directly upon the teacher, teachers would seek the very best and brightest as disciples, and most would only consider members of the nobility. Therefore, when the Lord commanded His disciples to go and make disciples, this was a truly remarkable commission.

         When one was chosen as a disciple of a notable teacher,...

     After we have been born again, the next step in our progression toward maturity in Christ is to become a disciple. A disciple is a student but it is much more than that. A disciple in biblical times was one whose primary devotion of life was to be like their teacher. They awoke in the morning thinking of their teacher, the day centered on learning from him, and they went to bed at night reviewing what they had learned. A disciple’s whole life revolved around learning from their teacher. And the great teachers would not even consider taking...

       The first step in our race to go for the high calling of God in Christ is to believe in the Lord’s atoning sacrifice for our sins on the cross and to acknowledge Him as our Lord and Savior. When we see Jesus as the Christ sent from God, one of the greatest of all miracles takes place—we are born again.

         Being born again is probably impossible to understand until you have experienced it. It is a transformation so radical that it is like starting a whole new life. Everything in our lives become...

        Last week we laid out the basic steps of progression to full maturity in Christ: 1) Believer, 2) Disciple, 3) Servant, 4) Friend, and 5) Son. These are all addressed in the New Testament, and we will study each one briefly, but enough for it to be clearly seen. This is so we can see where we are in relation to this calling and what our next step is. First, a superficial historical overview can be helpful.

         This progression to maturity in Christ was taught in the first century and by “The Early...