When Jesus gathered His disciples as He began His ministry, He needed principled and devout worshippers to teach and prepare for the work of spreading the gospel.

If our worship of God ends in slavish obedience, so does our salvation! While He wants us to obey, God is not looking for obedient drudges but loyal children.

In Luke 14:25-33, two parables and an exhortation urge us to forsake all that we have as a mandatory condition for becoming Christ's true disciples.

If there is one great principle of Christian living, it is walking in Christ's footsteps. Sounds easy, but putting it into practice is one of the hardest tasks.

How does God identify Himself with His disciples today? No miracle manifests itself when He sends His Spirit, but the Spirit begins producing miraculous changes.

God has called individuals with different temperaments, giving them a variety of spiritual gifts to work interdependently within Christ's Body.

Like the marriage covenant, counting the cost is the most serious part of the baptismal agreement, not something to be taken lightly.

Love is patient and kind. These are the only two characteristics Paul says love is, defining it positively. What follows is what love does not do.

Looking at discipleship from a negative perspective can help reveal errors in ourselves. Jesus shows four main attitudes that make for bad discipleship in Luke 9.

Micah provides a formula for being a Christian: 1.) Doing justly, 2.) Exercising mercy and 3.) Walking humbly. These demand total commitment, not a pretense.

Though the American mindset does not feel inclined to serve, outgoing service to others yields the maximum joy and fulfillment one can possibly attain.

In Christ's vine and branch analogy, Jesus presents Himself as the true or genuine Vine, as contrasted to the unfaithful vine (ancient Israel).

The first and last words of Jesus Christ in the book of John are to 'follow Me,' directed at His disciples then and now.

Mixing the solid foundation of Christ's teachings with the sand of worldly philosophies and traditions ends in calamity. We must build on the Rock.