The Three Loves of a Disciple

Specific Objectives

At the end of the session, the participants are expected to:

1. Realize our calling to be disciples of Christ

2. Lean what this calling entails for us

3. Come up with practical actions as a respond to this calling

Expanded Outline

I. Introduction

Before Jesus ascended to heaven, He commanded His disciples to "Go, therefore, and make disciples of all nations." A disciple is a learner, a follower, an adherent. Jesus wants us to learn from Him.

We are not just called to make people "fans" of Jesus - but to convert their minds and hearts to the mind of Christ. A disciple directs his/her life to the One he/she follows. This manifest on the things that we love, value and cherish.

What are we to love? How can swe best manifest our love?

II. The Three (3) Loves of A Disciple

For this very reason, make every effort to supplement your faith with virtue, virtue with knowledge, knowledge with self-control, self-control with endurance, endurance with devotion, devotion with mutual affection, mutual affection with love. If these are yours and increase in abundance, they will keep you from being idle or unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. (2 Peter 1:5-8)

Paul, Christ's disciple loves faith, virtue, knowledge, etc. From being a Pharisee, a persecutor of Christians, he became a lover of Jesus and the teachings of Christ. We should hold on to the same. Our being disciple is determine on who or what we love.

A. Loves the Lord

He said to him, You shall love the Lord, your God, with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind. (Matthew 22:37)

Jesus taught us, as His disciples that above all, we should love God. This is the greatest of ALL commandments .God should be the first and a foremost love of a disciple because all other loves, flows from this reality. When we love God, we will learn how to love others aspect of our lives on how God wants us to love them.

B. Loves Brethren

I give you a new commandment: love one another. As I have loved you, so you also should love one another. (John 13:34)

In the Last Supper, Jesus commanded His disciples to love one another. He emphasized that this is the way that people will know that they are HIS disciples - if they love one another. Jesus demonstrated this by washing the feet of His disciples and asking them to do the same to one another. If we are truly a disciple, we should follow our master who "took the lowest place" and served other people to the point of giving up His life.

C. Loves the Lost

For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, so that everyone who believes in him might not perish but might have eternal life. (John 3:16)

God loves the lost. They are the very reason why He sent His Son to save humanity from sin. Jesus, the Son, demonstrated more of this love during His public ministry. He spent time with the sinners (tax collectors, adulterers, gentiles, etc.) and healed those who are sick and suffering. He felt pity as they were "sheep without a shepherd." As disciples, we should also have this same burden to seek out the lost and bring them back to the fold.

Disciples also love their families, even their enemies, but such can be included in either the category of brethren or the lost. Knowing who we are to love, how can we manifest such love?

III. Three Loves Demonstrated

How do we show these loves? How do we express them?

A. Through Worship

But the hour is coming, and is now here, when true worshipers will worship the Father in Spirit and truth; and indeed the Father seeks such people to worship him. God is Spirit, and those who worship him must worship in Spirit and truth. (John 4:23-24)

Worship is the first and foremost expression of our love for God. But what is worship? Real worship should not be reduced to singing songs, raising of hands and clapping, but it should be a way of life. Real worship includes not only the body, but the spirit - it is a total unconditional giving of self to God.

Worshipping God also entails obeying His commandments. Jesus reminded His disciples that "if we love Him, we will KEEP His commandments." This is the calling of the disciple - to obey His master at all cost. Unfortunately, for us Catholics, most of us choose what commandments of Jesus we like to follow. It should not be the case.

How do we worship God? There are 2 ways. First, through public assemblies (Heb. 10:24-25). This is where fellow Christians gather to publicly profess their love for God through various means of adoration and worship. For us Catholics, this is manifested when we participate in the celebration of the Holy Mass. Second, through private devotions (Mt. 6:6). This is what we call the more personal and intimate relationship with God. For us Catholics, part of our private devotion is praying the rosary or reciting the novena.

B. Through Fellowship (and Service)

We must consider how to rouse one another to love and good works. We should not stay away from our assembly, as is the custom of some, but encourage one another, and this all the more as you see the day drawing near. (Hebrews 10:24-25)

Fellowship are the best demonstrations of our love for the brethren. Through fellowship, we encourage one another, give counsel and have the opportunity to rouse one another to love and good works (service).

Fellowship is important in one's Christian walk as a disciple. When we journey with our fellow disciple, the path becomes easier because we are with people who share the same value as ours. When these values are exercised, we strengthen the disciplines that we need to face other people who do not share the same belief as ours. Most of the time, we learn more with our interaction with fellow Christians.

C. Through Evangelization

Jesus went around to all the towns and villages, teaching in their synagogues, proclaiming the gospel of the kingdom, and curing every disease and illness. At the sight of the crowds, his heart was moved with pity for them because they were troubled and abandoned, like sheep without a shepherd. (Matthew 9:35-36)

There is no better way to show love for the lost but through evangelization. Evangelization simply means proclaiming the "good message" of salvation so that sinners may repent and return to the Lord. This is the very reason why Jesus became man - to save us from our sins and offer us eternal life with the Father.

We can manifest evangelization through the following:

1. By teaching the lost (Mt. 9:35-36)

A lot of people are into sin because they are not aware of it. They are not aware because they have not been taught. They are ignorant of the command of Christ.

2. By calling for prayer in behalf of the lost (Mt. 9:37-38)

We can also help in evangelization through our prayers. Remember that evangelization is a "battle of hearts and minds." God is the only one who can change a person through our prayers.

3. By developing and sending forth laborers (Mt. 10:1,5-7)

Doing mission is at the core of evangelization. it is going out there to the peripheries to be with the people, interacting with them. Sometimes, our mere presence is a strong and powerful message of the gospel that we carry. They concretely feel the love of God when we journey with them.

If we cannot personally go on mission, we can still help by providing support (financial) to the missionaries.

IV. Conclusion

Saying we are disciples of Christ is not only a title that we carry. It comes with a change in us - to refocus ourselves as directed by our Master. We need to change our values, priorities and what we love for we no longer live for ourselves but it is Christ who lives in us (Gal. 2:20).

Discussion Questions

For discussion, answer the following questions:

1. Do you believe that God is calling you to be a disciple? What other things that you love more God, brethren and for the lost that is/are stopping you to become a disciple of Christ?

2. How is God uniquely calling you to bring other people to discipleship? What can you offer in our mission of evangelization?