“Disciple” means something

Discipleship continues to be one of those words people struggle to understand. What exactly is it? Is it for everyone? How do we do it? Isn’t there another word we can use that is more…modern?

This brings up an interesting issue for those in the Church. There are many words we use which are no longer in general use in the world around us. We call these “church words” because they tend to be used exclusively in church contexts. My personal opinion is that when there is a word which means the same as the “church word” but is understood by most people, we should probably start using that word. The problem with this is those general use words often don’t include the meaning that is so important to understanding the Biblical words. (Remember, the Biblical word is either Hebrew or Greek. Any English word we use is a translation of that word and is NOT inspired by the Holy Spirit).

To make this issue clear, let’s talk about the word “disciple”. The word is a translation of the Greek word mathetai, which simply means “student”. So, why don’t we use the word “student”. After all, virtually everyone knows that word!

The reason is that when we say “student” to an English speaker, a certain image comes to mind. It is usually of a person who is in a group of others, being taught by a teacher, in a classroom, focusing on specific learning goals. This might even be what a Greek speaker today would think when s/he hears the word mathetai. But it is absolutely not what anyone would have thought when they heard the word in the New Testament era.

A student in those days was a person who followed a teacher—literally. Often in a group, but sometimes alone, this student would follow their teacher (the Jews called this person a Rabbi) as the teacher walked them around town, the countryside, the marketplace, the seat of government, etc. The teacher would make sure that the student was exposed to different situations so that they would be forced to learn. Then, the teacher would pull the students aside and talk about the situation, asking questions and ensuring that the students learned what was intended. The goal was to produce someone who was as mature and well rounded as the teacher, ready to face life as an adult.

Now, which of these gives us an understanding of the “disciple” as it applies to a follower of Jesus? Obviously, it is the second one. Yet the vast majority of discipleship “programs” focus on the methodology of the first one. So, to understand what it is to be a disciple of Jesus we have to do some actual Bible study to understand what mathetai means (anyone with a high school diploma can easily do this if they decide to). It is also becoming popular to come up with another modern word to use instead of disciple. This is great—if it actually gives the same meaning as the people who first read the New Testament would have had. The problem is, it rarely does. For example, it is becoming popular today to use the word “apprentice”. There are some good points to this. An apprentice watches the teacher, learns from him, tries to do what he does, and so on. He is certainly more than the student sitting in a classroom for an hour a week! However, an apprentice stays with the teacher (master) for a limited period of time, until he gains the skills he needs. He then goes out on his own without the master. He practices his craft, and eventually becomes as good or even better than the master—becoming a master himself.

But we never leave the master. We never surpass Him, or even equal Him. We never even master the basics. So, we are certainly not “apprentices” in any meaning of the word the world uses today.

So, what are we to do? At the risk of offending anyone, I think the answer is simple. We need to study the Bible. When we do, we learn what “disciple” means and we no longer have to come up with another word, or a way to explain it that, in essence, dumbs down scripture. The early Christians were expected to study, and they were hungry to do so. Why is it that we avoid it so much? It doesn’t have to be that way. A disciple learns to study the Bible (It easy to do—see The Essentials of Spiritual Health or the video course on How to Study the Bible on our website). Then s/he practices that study and studies with others to gain their insights as well. No Christian can be mature or healthy spiritually without this!

Know Jesus and Be Faithful!

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