Believer & Disciple, Are they the Same?

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"What good is it, my brothers, if a man claims to have faith but has no deeds?" -James 2:14, NIV

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That power house of a question comes from James 2:14. James is a punch you in the gut kind of book. It is a powerhouse for Christian living and he did not back down when he was penning this to the "twelve tribes scattered among the nations" (vs 1).

"Is a believer and a disciple the same thing?"

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I believe, they are not. Even demons are believers. "Even the demons believe..." (James 2:19). But they do not follow or obey God. A disciple has faith, grows, and obeys God. Do you see the difference? Works by itself does not save. But now we must ask the question, "Does faith by itself save"?

I do think there is a difference between belief and faith. The "demons believed in God- and shudder". But the demons do not believe He took their sin and paid their sin debt. Partly, because He did not. He paid for the sins of man not fallen angels' sin. But a man can believe God to be real and yet still lack the faith to know He paid for his sin. The man can lack the faith it takes to be moved to good works, to obedience. True faith leads to discipleship. Discipleship is having faith, that moves to growth in knowledge and understanding (that Christ died for your sin, that you read and grow in His Word and His way, etc) and then the last step of discipleship is that you follow, you obey God. You recall what the Word tells you and you live by it, you answer the Spirit's call in your life daily, and you "conduct yourself in a manner worthy of the gospel of Christ" (Phil 1:27) no matter the situation.

For years, I believed... I believed there was a God. I believed that Jesus paid for sins on the cross. But I did not believe that He would want me. It took years for me to accept that. That is when true faith occurred, when I not only accepted His free gift but I realized He was even bigger than my sin. Faith does save.

Faith does save but what does James mean when he says, "faith by itself, if it is not accompanied by action, is dead" (James 2:17)? If it is dead, does it save? No, it won't save anyone but yourself. For when we are moved to discipleship. We we obey Him... we share Him. When we share Him, others come to know Him. When others know Him, they accept Him and this living cycle of faith lives. If you are truly worshiping God in faith than you are also following His call to share Him with our broken world, to carry your cross, to witness, to feed the hungry/cloth the poor... heal the hurting.

So my question for you is... "Are you a mere believer, like the demons, or are you a faith-filled disciple?"

Be the faith-filled disciple. Be moved to action! Be moved to action. Have faith in God to where you are marked by obedience.

By: Mrs. Bobbi McMasters

Jesus is meant to be shared NOT hoarded.