Characteristics of a True Disciple

Pastor Mike will be speaking on Characteristics of a True Disciple. He will be in John 6:22-29.

We keep schedules and calendars to make sure we make every appointment, every doctor’s appointment, but if our toe aches on Sunday morning, we have no desire to seek God. We have no desire to open our Bible.

We are quick. Hear me, I’m going to make you mad. We are quick to run to Facebook and social media in the morning, but never open our Bible and read it and study it. Thank you. Hello, this is Pastor Mike Sanders from the Open Door Church, and this is Hopeworth Happing.

We’re delighted that you are with us today. Thank you so much for tuning in, and we’re looking forward to a great day as we study God’s Word. Today, we’re going to be in John 6, verses 22 through 29, and we’re going to be talking about the characteristics of a true disciple, the characteristics of a true disciple.

So, I want you to get your Bible and get a pen and paper, and let’s start studying together in this great passage. If you have your Bibles, I want you to join me in the Gospel of John, chapter 6, verse 22 through 29.

I want to continue our study through the Gospel of John, and this morning I want to talk to you about the characteristics of a true disciple. The characteristics of a true disciple. I read an article not too long ago about Americans and their belief in miracles.

In this article, they took a survey of Americans and what they thought about miracles and its probabilities. Fifty -five percent of Americans are certain that miracles… happen and that is a 20% increase from 1991 since the last time they took this survey.

According to this survey in this article 80% believe that miracles are certainly or probably occur. It also noted that in this article that 42% of Americans with no religious affiliation believe in miracles, which was quite a contrast the fact that 32% believed in miracles 20 years ago.

In other words, the strongest gains in openness to miracles were reported by those who attend services, a church service, infrequently, meaning that they’re not really connected, they’re not really involved, but they are the ones in our culture…

that have seen the strongest gains in believing in miracles. Twenty -three percent of respondents said that they had witnessed a miracle, whether it was a physical healing or some sort. Sixteen percent that said that they had actually received a miracle in their own personal life.

Seventy -five percent of Americans said that they had prayed to God to receive a healing, a miracle from an illness or an injury in their life. And nearly eighty -five percent of those who participated in this survey said that they had prayed for someone else to receive a miracle or a healing in their life.

The author of the article concluded that there is an increasing openness in the American culture of two miracles. And it was something that was interesting because we are in the midst of a cultural shift.

We are constantly hearing that in this postmodern world, that people are less and less affiliated with church, with God, with spiritual things. But this survey gives a striking contrast to those things that we often hear, that there is a profound interest even within the American generation, the American culture, I should say, and the millennial generation in spiritual things.

And that maybe as an American culture, we are not in a uniform march toward secularism. But maybe God has granted us with a new interest in the things of God. And that, yes, there definitely is a fascination.

And certainly people are enamored with this concept of miracles. When we come to the Gospel of John, Chapter 6 in verses 22 through 29, we’re gonna meet a group of people who are fascinated with miracles.

They are fascinated with what Jesus Christ has accomplished through miracles. If you have been with us through this study, you know at the beginning of the chapter that Jesus fed the 5 ,000. Scholars believe that it was actually more than 5 ,000, not counting the women and the children that were there.

So it could have been 10 ,000, 15 ,000, who knows? But the bottom line is for certain He fed over 5 ,000. Jesus Christ took a small boy’s lunch and then He multiplied that lunch and He fed the multitudes.

Jesus not only fed the multitudes, but the Bible tells us that they took up baskets of leftovers. And there was so much left over that there was plenty for the disciples. And then we read of another miracle.

in John chapter 6. We studied it last week, how Jesus sent providentially His disciples across the sea. He asked them to go across this sea and telling them that He would meet them on the other side.

As they went across this sea, a great storm swooped down across the Sea of Galilee and they found themselves in the midst of a horrendous storm. The disciples were fearful. They were struggling with great anxiety, wondering if they were even going to survive this storm that had entered into their life.

And then all of a sudden, out of nowhere, the disciples in the midst of the storm see Jesus Christ walking on the water. So in just a matter of days, they witness two amazing miracles by Jesus Christ, the feeding of the five thousand, the walking on the water, entering into the boat, calming the sea, and then getting to the other side as He had promised His disciples.

So we pick up in verse 22 of John chapter 6, understanding all that has just taken place in the life of the disciples. John records these words in verse 22, the day following when the people which stood on the other side of the sea saw that there was none other boat there, saved at one wherein to the His disciples were entered, and that Jesus went not with His disciples into the boat, but that His disciples were gone away alone.

How, excuse me, how be there came other boats from Tiberius nigh unto the place where they did eat bread. After that, the Lord had given thanks. When the people therefore saw that Jesus was not there, neither His disciples, they also took shipping and…

came to Capernaum, seeking for Jesus. And when they had found Him on the other side of the sea, they said unto Him, Rabbi, when came as thou hither? Jesus answered them and said, verily, verily, I say unto you, you seek me, not because you saw the miracles, but because you did eat of the loaves and were filled.

Labor not for the meat which perisheth, but for that meat which endureth unto everlasting life, which the Son of Man shall give unto you for Him, hath God the Father sealed. Then said they unto Him, what shall we do?

That we might work the works of God. Jesus answered and said unto them. This is the work of God that you believe on Him whom He has sent. In this conversation that Jesus has with those who had experienced the miracle of the loaves, Jesus Christ manifests to us through His word what are the true characteristics of a disciple of Jesus.

If you’re taking notes this morning, I want you to write the first characteristic down. A characteristic of a true disciple is number one, they seek Christ with the right motivation. Please understand that they seek Christ with the right motivation.

Go back to verse 26, Jesus starts out, He answers them, verily, verily, I say unto you. Now let me just stop there. First thing that I note is Jesus ignores their question. He ignores their question.

They want to know how did Jesus get across that sea? How did He do it so quickly? How did He do that? Because they never saw Him go on a boat. They never saw Him leave. They knew that the disciples entered into a boat, but they never saw Jesus enter that boat.

How did He get across? Jesus did not take time to tell them how He did it. That fascinates me because Jesus could have easily said, let me tell you an amazing story. There was a great storm that came and I walked on the water and I went to the disciples.

Jesus could have easily said, I want to tell you what God has done, but He didn’t do that. He ignored their question. And then Jesus says verily, verily, or some translations would say truly, truly. It’s the idea that this is very important.

What I’m getting to say to you, pay attention. Because what I’m about to say to you has eternal significance in your life It’ll change your life forever if you reject it It will damage your life in rejecting the truth, but if you receive it It will transform you and so Jesus says very very I say unto you you seek me Which is commendable Why did they seek Jesus jump back to verse 15 of chapter 6?

Remember that after they had seen the multiplication of the loaves and they were fed That verse 15 says when Jesus therefore perceived that they would come and take him by force to make him what a King These people wanted to make Jesus a king They were so interested in the political aspects.

They were so interested in the material aspects of Jesus The Bible says Jesus not having any political ambition in his heart. He departed again into a mountain himself alone. Instead of standing on the platform that they wanted to give him as a king, Jesus abandoned the platform for a prayer closet.

He got away because he knew their motivations were wrong. He knew that the timing was not right. We come back to verse 26. You seek me. You seek me. You seek me not because you saw the miracles, but because you did eat of the loaves and were filled.

You see, Jesus knowing the hearts of every person. He knew that even though they were seeking him, it was not for the right reasons. A true disciple of Jesus Christ seeks Christ with the right motivation.

They were more concerned with their hungry stomachs than they were their hungry souls. It is so disturbing to see in these days that you and I are living in that more people are interested in religion.

They might even be interested in miracles. They might be fascinated with rituals, but they do not even recognize that though those things may meet a temporal physical need, they do not answer the need of a hungry heart that needs to be saved.

The truth is, this crowd that sought out Jesus, this crowd that came to Jesus was a superficial crowd. There was no substance in their life. They were enamored with the style. They were enamored with what had taken place in the loaves and they were just interested in the temporal benefit of what Jesus could do for them.

They were what I call thrill -seeking false disciples. They only come because of what they can get. I have some questions for you this morning. Why are you here? Did you come because you were forced to?

Did you come because your parents made you? Did you come because it’s just a ritual for you? Did you come because your spouse made you? Did you come because you were really seeking Jesus with a sincere heart?

You see, if you come for any other reason than the heart that wants to see Christ and know Christ and grow in Christ, you’re not a true disciple. And I know that sounds harsh, but I’m just echoing the words of Jesus because, think about this, they came to Jesus and He abruptly confronts their motivation.

I mean, let’s be honest, they made great effort to cross over the Red Sea, or not the Red Sea, but the Sea of Galilee to find Jesus. They made a great effort because they wanted to seek Jesus, but the reason that they sought Jesus was not the point that Jesus wanted to make to them in feeding them.

His whole point in feeding the 5 ,000 was to say to them, I can feed your hungry soul. They missed the point. I can save you. I can bring satisfaction to your heart. I can bring relief to your life in a relationship with me, but they were so focused on the bread that they missed the point.

So many times people do that. God speaks into their life and they miss it. They miss the point. In my years as a pastor of over 20 years of serving in the gospel ministry, I have seen many people come and come for the wrong reasons.

Sometimes they come because they want to save their marriage. Sometimes they come because they just lost their job and they’re hoping that by coming to church that somehow God will say, yeah, for coming to church, I’ll give you a new job.

They come because they want to tip their hat to God and they certainly do not want to offend God. They come for all sorts of reasons and we could ponder them. But they do not come with a heart that is authentic, a heart that is genuinely seeking Jesus.

The Apostle Paul closed out his letter to the Ephesians and he said to them, grace be with you all, them that love our Lord Jesus Christ in sincerity. If you love Jesus, why? Do you love Him because you think, man, I can get all this stuff if I follow Jesus?

Or do you love Him because your heart is sincere and you know He is the only answer for the forgiveness of your sins? You see, God is not only interested in our obedience. of our actions, but He is interested in the obedience of our hearts.

And you might remember the story of the little girl who was told to sit down in church, and she sat down, but she told her dad, she said, I’m sitting down on the outside, but on the inside I’m standing up.

It is a reminder to me that there may be many who are going through the motions of church, religion, and even what we might call faith, but on the inside their heart is far from God. If I could give one warning to every parent who is raising children today, I would continue to warn you to make sure that your children’s faith is sincere.

By simply going through the motions of all that the church requests and desires for you, does in no way make your child a true follower of Christ. Let us be careful that we as parents do not raise religious pagans who are worse off, Jesus said, in their religion, and that the traditions of men turned the hearts of our children away from God as opposed to drawing them with sincerity to God in their effort to truly love the Lord Jesus Christ.

I tremble. I tremble for the souls of our congregation, wondering and hoping that your heart is sincere before Jesus, that you are here this morning for the right reasons, that you follow Him every every day of your life for the right reasons, and it’s not about what you can get in relation to physical temporal things of this world, but that you truly do believe in Christ.

The second characteristic of a true disciple, if you’re taking notes, write these words down, hungers for spiritual truth. They hunger for spiritual truth. There is not only a sincerity and genuineness in their motivations of serving God and loving God and worshiping God and being a part of the things that God has called them to do in as they are activating their faith in everyday life, there is also a hunger in their heart.

for spiritual truth. Listen to what Jesus said in verse 27. He told those individuals that were coming to Him, seeking Him, labor not for the meat which perisheth, but for the meat which endureth unto everlasting life, which the Son of man shall give unto you, for Him hath God the Father sealed.

Jesus is saying to them, do not pursue the things of this world. They will perish. Jesus is not impressed that they crossed the Sea of Galilee and labored so diligently and worked so hard to get across that sea to find Him, only to get more of what perishes, only to find what is temporal.

And Jesus tells them not only is their motivation wrong, but the direction of their heart is wrong. The direction of their heart is wrong is because their heart is pursuing not God, but their heart is pursuing the world.

The things of the world, their heart is pursuing what satisfies them physically. Their heart is pursuing, in this case, more bread. Jesus says, I don’t want you to labor for that. I don’t want you to work hard for that.

I want you to work hard for the meat which endures unto eternal, everlasting life. I want you to work diligently for what will bring eternal life into your heart. Think about that. So many of you rightly so.

You work so hard throughout the week. Many of you put in so many hours. It’s unbelievable. You work so hard and certainly understand your desire to care for your family, to meet the needs of your family, to make sure that the bills are paid, to make sure that you are providing all that your children and your family needs understandable.

But let me ask you, has it become so consuming in your life that you have forgotten to pursue what brings about eternal life? Jesus is teaching us that genuine faith will provoke a genuine hunger for God.

That we will work diligently. I am amazed people will say to me, and I’m gonna make you mad. Is that okay? I just want to tell you up front, okay? What I’m getting ready to say. I’m just gonna make you mad.

Okay? I’m just going to be honest with you, they work so hard to get their kids to school, get up early, get to their job, but to show up for Sunday school, it’s too early in the morning, pastor, and we don’t want to overwhelm our kids.

Wow. Can I make you mad even more? Thank you, thank you, thank you, thank you. You’ll drive your kid all over the state for basketball, baseball, football, softball. You’ll do all these things for your kids to be in a traveling team, to be all these stuff, and let me tell you something, I’m not against it.

I’m not against your kids playing athletics, I don’t misunderstand. I just don’t see the equity of laboring more for those things than for the things of God. But we can’t get you to come to church. You won’t drive across the street to take your kid to a Bible study, to show up to youth group.

And I have to be honest with you, you’re laboring for the wrong things. You are laboring for the wrong things. Can I get make the older people upset? Thank you. I appreciate your permission, it’s just wonderful.

The older people say to me, and I know you’re going to quit saying this to me now, people say, don’t tell the pastor. He’ll use you as an illustration. I know. But it’s too much for us, pastor, to drive to church.

But I see you at Walmart, I see you getting your prescriptions. I see you going to doctorate visits, but we’re shut -in, pastor. Sometimes I go visit the shut -ins and they’re never home. There’s some of the most active people I’ve ever met in my life.

But they can’t make church. They can’t serve. And all I’m trying to say is church, we can be guilty of pursuing the wrong things. And this is the warning I’m sending out to you. Your failure to grasp the need for more of Jesus in your life is only reflecting characteristics of an unbeliever.

And I want to challenge you this morning. to desire the spiritual nourishment, it is eternal, it is effective, and it is something that is transformational in your life more than anything. I’d rather my kid grow up to love Jesus than to be the best baseball player in Franklin County.

I’d rather, I would rather do without some things in this world and know that when I come to the house of God I have the nourishment of the grace of God through the Word of God and the nourishment of the fellowship of God’s people to me than to pursue all the things of this world.

We keep schedules and calendars to make sure we make every appointment, every doctor’s appointment, but if our toe aches on Sunday morning we have no desire to seek God. We have no desire to open our Bible.

We are quick, hear me, I’m going to make you mad. We are quick to run to Facebook and social media in the morning, but never open our Bible and read it and study it. Genuine faith always demonstrates itself in a hunger for God and in this passage Jesus Christ is revealing to us the characteristics of a genuine Christian and how important it is for us to look into this text and see and measure our own lives,

to make sure that we are reflecting the characteristics of a true disciple. We appreciate what’s what this message means to us, even though it is very convicting and it very much challenges each and every one of us, it is a message that you and I need to hear.

And so I hope today that as you’re measuring your life, that you’re like me, that you’re just calling out to God and saying, Lord, help these things to be true in my life, help me to make whatever changes I need to make.

And I am confident that as you pray that way, that God’s grace will work effectively in you and help you to demonstrate the true characteristics of a disciple. Well, we’re delighted that you could be with us today and we encourage you to check out our website, hopeworthhaving .com.

On the website, there are many wonderful opportunities for you to learn more and to study more, take advantage of each and every one of these different resources that are available to you. And I wanna remind you that in Christ, there is hope worth having.

Amen.