Tag: cost of discipleship

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How to Know The Call of The Apostles And Disciples

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The Voices of the Apostles and Disciples

© 2026 by C. O. Bishop

2nd Corinthians 6:1-13

The Testimony of the Apostles and Disciples:

1 We then, as workers together with him (disciples), beseech you also that ye receive not the grace of God in vain. 2 (For he saith, I have heard thee in a time accepted, and in the day of salvation have I succoured thee: behold, now is the accepted time; behold, now is the day of salvation.) 3 Giving no offence in any thing, that the ministry be not blamed:

4 But in all things approving ourselves as the ministers of God, in much patience, in afflictions, in necessities, in distresses, 5 In stripes, in imprisonments, in tumults, in labours, in watchings, in fastings; 6 By pureness, by knowledge, by long suffering, by kindness, by the Holy Ghost, by love unfeigned, 7 By the word of truth, by the power of God, by the armour of righteousness on the right hand and on the left, 8 By honour and dishonour, by evil report and good report: as deceivers, and yet true; 9 As unknown, and yet well known; as dying, and, behold, we live; as chastened, and not killed; 10 As sorrowful, yet alway rejoicing; as poor, yet making many rich; as having nothing, and yet possessing all things.

11 O ye Corinthians, our mouth is open unto you, our heart is enlarged. 12 Ye are not straitened in us, but ye are straitened in your own bowels. 13 Now for a recompence in the same, (I speak as unto my children,) be ye also enlarged.

Introduction:

Last week we addressed the first four verses. We saw this whole passage as the voice of the Apostles and all true disciples at the time. They all were experiencing the Cost of Discipleship.

The Cost of Discipleship varies by location and time. Prior to 1947, one might not have faced punishment in what is now Pakistan, for preaching Christ publicly. Why?

Centuries of Colonial History

Because for centuries, Britain had ruled all of India as a colonial tributary, and the Church of England was still present, along with the Roman Catholics. So, many people of India had at least nominally embraced “Christendom” in the form of either Romanism or Anglicanism. Whether they actually knew the Lord, or were disciples, is hard to say: Their entire families took on the name of “Christian,” whether it was a genuine relationship with Jesus or just a religious preference.

But, ever since the mid-1800s, Britain had been gradually losing control of India, and after WWII, Britain made the decision to “Partition” India into two sovereign states, the “Dominion of Pakistan,” and the “Union of India.” The result was a bloodbath. Muslims slaughtered millions of Hindus, and many survivors fled the country permanently. But most could not. And those who survived and remained became a persecuted minority within what had been their own country.

The Result for Disciples in Pakistan

But a largely Hindu nation called “India,” and a supposedly entirely Muslim nation called “Pakistan” are the long-run Geopolitical result. And in that nation of Pakistan, even today, it is a dangerous place for followers of Jesus. In many other nations, it is also dangerous to stand for Jesus. It is dangerous to shine a light: Dangerous to sound the alarm of the Gospel! Disciples are in serious danger, there.

We pray for the disciples in Pakistan, who are risking their lives to teach Christian Discipleship. They are faithfully practicing it themselves, and we are deeply aware of the risk, and the potential cost.. Reading these verses in 2nd Corinthians 6:1-13, we have a more “distant” view. But we still have still a real sense of the potential “Cost of Discipleship” in this fallen world.

How Should Such Knowledge Affect Us, As Disciples?

The Hebrew believers knew about the Cost: The danger in being a disciple. The writer of the Epistle to the Hebrews addressed the Cost of Active Faith, in Hebrews 11:35-40.

“35 Women received their dead raised to life again: and others were tortured, not accepting deliverance; that they might obtain a better resurrection: 36 And others had trial of cruel mockings and scourgings, yea, moreover of bonds and imprisonment: 37 They were stoned, they were sawn asunder, were tempted, were slain with the sword: they wandered about in sheepskins and goatskins; being destitute, afflicted, tormented; 38 (Of whom the world was not worthy:) they wandered in deserts, and in mountains, and in dens and caves of the earth. 39 And these all, having obtained a good report through faith, received not the promise: 40 God having provided some better thing for us, that they without us should not be made perfect.”

We read of these disciples who lived horrible lives and died horrible deaths. And it troubles us to know the reality. They did not have some sort of “happy ending” appear. to “let them out of the trial.” They endured the trial, and they died in it!

But tin Chapter 12, He tells us how we ought to respond to this knowledge: The challenge to be Disciples.

How Should We Respond As Disciples? (Hebrews 12:1-4)

“1 Wherefore seeing we also are compassed about with so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which doth so easily beset us, and let us run with patience the race that is set before us, 2 Looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of our faith; who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is set down at the right hand of the throne of God. 3 For consider him that endured such contradiction of sinners against himself, lest ye be wearied and faint in your minds. 4 Ye have not yet resisted unto blood, striving against sin.”

The witnesses are not “watching you.” They are testifying TO you: Bearing witness TO you, just as Paul testified to the Corinthian believers, and just as the disciples in Kenya and in Pakistan are testifying to all of us, today. They are witnesses to the Glory and Power of God, and they testify to us week by week, showing us the result of God’s Word in that hostile environment.

Consider: How Do Weeds Respond?

Oddly enough, if I consider how weeds respond to their environment, I can see that (because we don’t irrigate) the weed seeds in our hard-packed, crushed-rock driveway get exactly the same amount of rain as the weeds out in the grass we keep calling a “lawn.”

But, the weeds in the driveway have a great deal harder time growing, as they can only get a few roots down through the rock into the soil below. The roots have to go very deep to find reliable water and nutrients. So, the stunted plants mature at only 2-3 inches in height. Their stunted leaves are very small, along with that short little flower stem. But that stem bears a blossom, and that blossom goes to seed, and the wind scatters those seeds, to start new plants…exactly the same as the taller weeds do, in our neglected lawn.

The weeds in the lawn grow to 18-24 inches in height, and some of their flower stems branch out and bear more than one flower: The flowers themselves are larger and bear more seeds. And the wind also scatters their seeds. And their seeds go further, because they launched from a higher elevation.

But, Why the Differences?

Why do they grow taller? Because they have better soil, and an easy life. Why do they have multiple blooms on their stems? For the same reason: They are blessed with an easier life! Why do they bear more seeds, and thus, more fruit? It is for the same reason again!

But in the Body of Christ, at large, we see that the persecuted churches, growing in the most difficult and the most dangerous environments often display the deepest faith (think “deeper roots”) and they spread rapidly, in spite of the difficulty and danger.

We have a relatively easy, safe life with far more resources, and very little real opposition. Does it not follow that, as disciples, we should bear more “fruit,” and that our “seed” ought to be scattering and finding root everywhere? Give that some thought! Why is it that weeds will follow the correct pattern, while we, as believers, tend to just “coast?”

Consider the Salmon!

We see the same pattern in salmon: The ones who are willing to focus their lives on swimming upstream will overcome all obstacles, or die trying. They risk their lives to get to the specific gravel beds they seek. Those who succeed will spawn, and produce hundreds of baby salmon just like them. Any fish choosing to do otherwise removes itself from the gene pool by that choice. (To my knowledge, no salmon ever chooses to take the easy way.)

But! You may protest that: “Salmon do not have a completely free will: They only do what their instinct demands that they do!”

Aha! And therein lies the problem! You and I DO have a free will! God called us to Himself, and we responded by our own will, though originally, our only motive may have been “to flee from the wrath to come.” Since then, we have read and believed His Word: Again, by choice.

And, according to Romans 12:1 He calls us, daily, to serve Him as our reasonable service of Worship. He calls us to voluntarily offer our bodies as a living sacrifice, to serve at HIS will, not ours. But He always leaves us the option to say, “No, I would rather serve myself!” And, when we do so, the consequences of that choice are that we have no fellowship with Him. (Fellowship implies Partnership.) And, it means we do not join Him as “workers together with Him.”

Also, although God has “laid the foundation of Christ” in our lives, (By Grace, through Faith) the layers we add to that foundation during the time when we are “off, doing our own thing,” are “wood, hay, and stubble.” Human works without God’s blessing have no eternal value!

So, How Can We Change?

Like the weed-seeds, we may find ourselves in a rocky place. We may bemoan how we got there, and we may suffer remorse for all the bad decisions that brought us to this point. But, regardless of how we arrived here, we now have the same choice as the weed-seeds: Take root and grow where God has planted you, or don’t. In the plant’s experience, it means “Grow here or die!”

In our case, it may only mean, “Blossom and bear fruit where you are, or continue to waste the opportunities God offers you!” You may look around and feel that “But the land is so barren around me: There is no hope!”

Remember, after Nebuchadnezzar destroyed Jerusalem, God told Israel, “Stay put, and obey Me, and that I will bless you!” They rebelled and ran off to Egypt, in Jeremiah 42:19-43:7. And they suffered the consequences of disobedience: No blessing, no sustenance, and no safety!

But, What Are the Consequences of Commitment?

Most of you would agree that when you began to try to seriously walk with Jesus, your life got harder, not easier. You entered into the spiritual warfare of the Christian Life, and discovered that the Enemy was actually YOUR enemy!

Could the apostles and early disciples have decided against suffering the Consequences of Commitment? Sure! And some did! Demas began as a co-worker with Paul. He was valuable in the work. (See Colossians 4:14, and Philemon 24. Paul included him as part of his team!)

But later, Demas decided it was costing him more than he was willing to give, to serve as an Ambassador of Christ. So, the last thing we hear of him, is in 2nd Timothy 4:10. “Demas hath forsaken me, having loved this present world, and is departed unto Thessalonica.”

What a sad epitaph for one who began strong, but who ultimately “sold out cheap.” He wanted what the World offered, and he finally took the bait! Balaam did the same thing: He was a genuine prophet of God, but he sold out and, today, he is only remembered for his failure.

Don’t sell out! Make your walk with Jesus the core value in your life, and offer yourself to Him to be used as He chooses. That is the kind of choice God will honor and bless.

Lord Jesus, clear our minds, and let us see clearly the choices before us. Help us to make decisions that honor You and which draw us into a deeper relationship with You.

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The Zeal of Thine House

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The Zeal of Thine House

© 2021 C. O. Bishop

John 2:13-22; Psalm 69:8, 9; Ezekiel 34:17-22; 1st Timothy 6:10; Colossians 3:5

Introduction:

Last week we finished studying what happened at the Marriage feast at Cana: We saw the purpose of miracles, and what God says about marriage: why it is so important and Holy to Him.

Finally, we saw that, if we are willing to listen to Jesus and do what He says, then he will turn the Water of our “daily grind” in life to the Wine of His Joy and supply an Eternal perspective on life itself.  We saw that this was exactly what happened in the lives of the servants who obeyed by faith, hauling a half-ton of water, or more, not knowing why they had been commanded to do so. Their reward was that they were the only ones (along with Jesus, Mary, and His disciples) who saw the miracle of the literal, plain well-water being changed to a high-quality wine.

But the next passage is an equally famous passage, with an entirely different picture: we see the Holiness of God demonstrated in the Person of Christ.

John 2:13-22

“13 And the Jews’ passover was at hand, and Jesus went up to Jerusalem. 14 And found in the temple those that sold oxen and sheep and doves, and the changers of money sitting: 15 And when he had made a scourge of small cords, he drove them all out of the temple, and the sheep, and the oxen; and poured out the changers’ money, and overthrew the tables; 16 And said unto them that sold doves, Take these things hence; make not my Father’s house an house of merchandise. 17 And his disciples remembered that it was written, The zeal of thine house hath eaten me up. 18 Then answered the Jews and said unto him, What sign shewest thou unto us, seeing that thou doest these things? 19 Jesus answered and said unto them, Destroy this temple, and in three days I will raise it up. 20 Then said the Jews, Forty and six years was this temple in building, and wilt thou rear it up in three days? 21 But he spake of the temple of his body. 22 When therefore he was risen from the dead, his disciples remembered that he had said this unto them; and they believed the scripture, and the word which Jesus had said.”

The Zeal of Thine House

The Passover feast came up, and Jesus went up to Jerusalem. Remember how important the original Passover was: it was literally a matter of life or death: making a choice between trusting God’s Word or trusting in Human philosophy, science, wisdom, whatever. God had given ample warning, through all the nine preceding plagues upon Egypt, but the time had come to make a decision! Either trust in the Blood of the Covenant that God was offering, that day, or reject it and suffer the consequences along with Egypt. There comes a time in everyone’s life when we are called upon to choose: Either stand with God and suffer the rejection of the World or stand with the World and miss out on the promise of God.

Jesus attended the Passover gathering right along with everyone else. But there was a difference: They all saw what was happening in the Temple: perhaps some were grieved by it but felt they could do nothing to change it. Perhaps others simply accepted it as being “Just the way things are.” Perhaps others fully approved of it, as a very practical way to “gain revenue for the Temple!” (I get e-mails several times per year, offering ways for our church to “make money.” That is not what we are here about! There is a reason we don’t do “fund-raisers!”)

But Jesus stood alone in this matter: He chose to do something about what He saw.

So, what was He seeing? The area in question was inside the temple court walls, where women and non-Jews could come: It was specifically in the area reserved for non-Jews: the “Court of the Gentiles.” This was the only place where Gentiles could approach the God of Israel and Worship Him. They were not allowed to come closer. And the moneychangers and sellers of sacrificial animals had set up their booths there, rendering it a marketplace; more like a county fair than a place of worship. There was no reverence, no quiet, no sense of the Holiness and Majesty of God. They had defiled the holiness of the only place of worship for the whole rest of the World!

That particular issue had been addressed by God in Ezekiel 34:17-22, where he condemns the behavior of the strong members of his flock for fouling the way for the weaker ones…muddying the waters of God’s Word, so that they could not come and drink; trampling down and contaminating the food, so that others could not come and feed on the Goodness of God. What an incredibly selfish and thoughtless thing to do! But, what could be done about it? The Temple authorities never should have permitted it in the first place: they were the Guardians of the Faith, and, of all people, they should have taken a stand for righteousness. But they were making money and maintaining power, and that was all that mattered to them by that time.

God condemned those leaders, as well, in Ezekiel 34:1-10, calling out their malfeasance and nonfeasance of duty and declaring that because of their behavior, He Himself was going to take over the job of shepherding His flock, and they were going to be out of work. (Less than forty years after the confrontation we read about, here, the Temple in Jerusalem was completely destroyed, and the priesthood was permanently out of work…all those who actually survived.)

Zeal in Action

There may have been others who “felt” the same way Jesus did, and who were grieved at the desecration of the Temple. But Jesus took action: It says that He made a scourge out of small cords and drove them out. Notice that it does not say that He actually struck any of them. Probably the fear of what was a common tool of judgment and punishment in that day, and the ugly, whistling sound of it whipping through the air, was enough to get them moving, just as it is for livestock.

The only ones against whom it says that He took physical action were the moneychangers: He tipped over their tables and dumped their money on the floor! (I’ll bet that ruined their day!) Their greed and love of money was the root of the entire problem! Does that sound familiar? “The Love of money is the root of all sorts of evil…” Do you recall hearing that before? (It comes from 1st Timothy 6:10)

The New Testament word “covetousness” is most frequently translated from the Greek word “philargurion.”  It literally means the “love of silver.” And Colossians 3:5 clearly states that covetousness IS idolatry. So, the Jews in Jerusalem, by their greed and their love of money, had brought idolatry right into the temple of God!

The scripture says He drove the cattle and sheep out of the temple, along with those who sold them, but to those who were selling doves (also for sacrifices, but selling primarily to the poor) he simply told them, “Take these things out of here! Don’t make My Father’s House a house of merchandise!” Incidentally, Jesus cleared the temple again, two years later, but that time He quoted Isaiah 56:6, 7, saying that His Father’s House was designed to be a House of Prayer (and Isaiah includes the fact of the Gentiles worshipping there: it says “… a house of prayer to all people!”) but Jesus said that they had made it a “den of thieves!”

Take these things Hence!

Unfortunately, the World today often accuses the Church of the same thing, saying “All they want is your money!” So, it is doubly important that we truly grasp and take to heart the lesson offered here: In 1st Corinthians 3:16, 17, God declares the Body of Christ (the Church, at large) collectively, to be the “Temple of God.” We must not introduce idolatry into the Body of Christ, nor allow our reputation and testimony to be ruined by the idea that we “exist to gain wealth.” (Again, there is a reason we don’t do “fund-raisers,” and choose to remain debt-free.)

Also, 1st Corinthians 6:19 says that each of our physical bodies has been made the “Temple of the Holy Spirit.” So, we can see that even in our so-called “private” lives, we must avoid “bringing idolatry into the temple.” God knows our thoughts and our true motives. There is no such thing as a “privacy” that excludes God’s Omniscience! He sees right through our plans and desires: if they are motivated by the Love of Money, though we plaster “piety” all over the outside, saying “Well, the Lord led me…” He condemns such plans and desires at the source.

The Cost of Discipleship and Zeal:

Yes, Jesus took a stand! And the disciples remembered Psalm 69, where it says, “The zeal of thine house hath eaten me up.” I don’t know whether they remembered what came before and after that passage, where it said “8 I am become a stranger unto my brethren, and an alien unto my mother’s children. 9 For the zeal of thine house hath eaten me up; and the reproaches of them that reproached thee are fallen upon me.

There is a cost involved with taking a stand for God: Even your own family may count you a stranger. And those who hate Jesus will hate you too! If you take a stand for the righteousness of God, don’t expect that others will love you for it unless they have also seen the desecration of God’s Word, or the division being caused by false teaching, and appreciate your correcting the matter. We also have to humbly recognize our own weakness and our own capacity for wrong. We do not have the omniscience of God. We need to be gentle with those around us, not condemning them, though we may reject the things in which they have involved themselves.

Jesus took physical action by clearing the Temple, but the only ones against which He exercised physical judgment were the moneychangers: they were the thieves, offering a badly skewed “exchange rate” for so-called “temple money,” against whatever people had brought with which to buy the sacrificial animals to offer the Holy God of Israel. So, He dumped out their money.

Galatians 6:1 says to approach one another gently, in humility, with an eye to restoration: Is there a time to simply stand up and walk out? Yes, there is: if deliberate heresy is being taught, with a clear motive to deny the Cross, or some other cardinal doctrine, then I think we do not have the option to “hedge,” or say, “Well, now, let’s discuss this.” Be aware, though: when you stand and say something like, “You are denying the Blood of Jesus!” You will instantly set some people against you, though others may agree. You will very likely cause division. Be wise.

In general, when someone has taught things that I thought were grossly unbiblical, I have first approached them privately, to see if possibly they just made a mistake, or were simply confused about what the Bible actually teaches. If their motives are pure, but their understanding is just confused, I don’t want to discourage them, but rather to strengthen their service to God. But if it turns out that they are absolutely committed to false doctrine, I have no option but to either warn the flock, through the elders, or simply leave, if I am not in a position to sound a warning.

The late Howard Ingram once demonstrated this principle: He was sitting in church when the (relatively new) pastor stated that there were ways to salvation other than by the Blood of Jesus. Howard heard it clearly, but he raised his hand and offered the option to back up and correct the error: “Wait a minute! Are you saying that there are other ways to salvation than through the Blood of Jesus Christ?”  The young pastor hesitated, but then firmly stated, “Well… Yes!”

Howard replied, “Well, that’s heresy! We are leaving!” and he and his entire family stood up and left the church. The warning had been made, the stand had been taken, and eventually the church woke up as well, and asked the fellow to leave. Sadly, though, the reason he was finally dismissed was not the doctrinal issue: it was a money issue that ended his position there. The doctrinal issue absolutely should have been the primary focus, but it wasn’t.

The Private Cost of Discipleship and Zeal:

How might the cost of discipleship manifest itself when there is no “doctrinal conflict” or church fight? Perhaps a family decides to move to a location where the schools are not actively attacking their faith, so that their children have less confusion as they are growing up…but it means they are separating themselves from all their friends and family in order to do so. Or, taking a job that pays far less, because it does not force you to compromise your faith and your values, where the higher-paying job actually required decisions that were contrary to God’s Word, if you hoped to continue employment.

Does persecution for faith exist in this country? Sure, it does! Just (at least for the time being) not to the same degree as it does elsewhere. But I have known people in this country, who, as soon as their employers discovered that they were Christians, were terminated without other cause. (It happened in an area heavily dominated by a particular cult.)

Mockery is very common, in the workplace of the World, and quiet exclusion is even more common, in every walk of life. Coming to work on a Monday morning and hearing every other person in your work-group chatting about the “great time they had together” at some social event, a party, a boating trip, or other outing… and realizing that you alone had been excluded: That hurts, even when you may not really have wanted to go and do whatever they had done, anyway. It never feels good to be excluded! It is a lonely feeling.

The Only Authorization Offered:

The Jews challenged Jesus, asking for a sign; demanding that He show by what authority He took this stand, and drove out the merchants. But He offered only the sign of His own death and resurrection. He took His stand, knowing that the ultimate result would be His crucifixion.

Jesus’s death and resurrection is the reason we live at all: He is the only reason we can offer as to why we have a standing before God, and why we have a sure confidence of Eternal life. The thief on the cross had no explanation as to why he belonged in Paradise, other than the fact that Jesus had promised that he would be there with Him! That is where our confidence rests as well.

But “joining Jesus” means joining Him in His loneliness: joining Him in His social rejection. (Not that we reject them: They may once have been our dear friends! But we eventually discover that, as they reject the Lord Jesus, they also ultimately reject all who believe in Him and all who seek to follow Him.) That is why Hebrews 13:12, 13 admonishes us to Join Jesus, “outside the camp: bearing His reproach.” If the World altogether approves of you, then very possibly you are not doing what Jesus wants. Jesus warned that, if they hate Him, they will hate us, too. Deal with it! Accept it!

Conclusion:

We are to seek peace with others, as Peacemakers, but we are to do so as Ambassadors of Christ: not as a “career politicians,” whose main goal is to “stay in office.” Our main goal is to walk with Jesus, and to behave in such a way as to honor Him and to draw others to Him: Some people will “smell Jesus” in our actions and be drawn to His fragrance. Others, rejecting God’s Grace, will “smell Jesus” also, but only as the dreaded “stench” of coming judgment. It is the same aroma, in both cases, but an entirely different response.

All we can do is to walk with Him, day-by-day, in faith and obedience, learning and growing in our walk, so as to become more consistent in our behavior and more coherent in what we communicate to others. That is what we are called to do. Let us press on to do just that.

Lord Jesus, draw us along as your disciples, learning from your Word and your example. Convict our hearts to become consumed with a zeal for your person: not for show, but within our own hearts, so that it rules our actions. Make us the men and women of God that You have called us to be.

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