Which group of people do you belong to today – the disciples or the multitude?

ByPastor Rufus Ajiboye Reading Time: 4 minutes

Greetings, my dear friends! I thank God for you and believe that this day will bring you many blessings as you meditate on the word God has given us today.

We are still talking about the importance and necessity of changes in the life of a believer. It is not enough just to go to church to be changed, so can we really blame the church when we do not see any changes in our lives? Many of those that go to church have this kind of thinking: «I guess this church is not of God, otherwise I would have changed a long time ago, because I have been a believer for many years». No, dear, you cannot blame church for the lack of positive changes in your life and circumstances. Jesus said about the Church:

 

«I will build My church, and the gates of Hades shall not prevail against it» (Mathew, 16:18b).

 

Church is being built by Jesus Who said: «Follow Me, and I will make you». It means that until you start following Jesus there are not guarantees that your life will change. Changes do not result from religious activities; they are a result of following Jesus.

The lives of many believers stay the same for years, even though they attend church regularly and read their Bible. Either a person does not understand what it means to follow Jesus, or he is not ready to pay the price of following Jesus and living the life He has called us to live. All those that follow Jesus have testimonies of how Jesus changes and transforms their lives!

If I attend a church and do not experience any changes, I do not differ from the crowds of religious people that claim to believe God in their hearts and observe different religious rites as a proof of their piety. But the crowd and the disciples are on different levels in their commitment to God, and they lives differ as well.

When we read our Bibles, we see that there were different categories of people among the followers of Jesus. Part of those followers was the multitude. Wherever Jesus went, they followed Him. These people attended all of Jesus’ meetings, were witnesses of God’s miracles, and listened to His teaching and parables. It seemed like they were following Him. Jesus said that He would change the ones that had made a decision to follow Him. Nevertheless, He could not change the multitude because these people refused to pay the price of following Jesus. The crowd only wants to see miracles and experience improvements in their lives and not the character changes.

Let’s read the 6th chapter of the Gospel of Luke to get a clearer picture.

 

«And He came down with them and stood on a level place with a crowd of His disciples and a great multitude of people from all Judea and Jerusalem, and from the seacoast of Tyre and Sidon, who came to hear Him and be healed of their diseases, as well as those who were tormented with unclean spirits. And they were healed» (Luke, 6:17-18).

 

In this passage we see two categories of people that followed Jesus: the disciples and the multitude of people. We can see the same picture nowadays. Among the followers of Jesus Christ, there are true disciples and the multitude. All the believers cannot be considered to be disciples of Jesus, because there is a difference in the level of dedication and commitment between those two groups.

Only disciples are changed through their following Jesus, but the multitude stays the same – selfish, fleshly and hypocritical. The exception is those people out of the multitude that make a firm decision to become a true disciple of Jesus and follow Him. The multitude looks for Jesus, attends His services and listens to His sermons for one reason only: they want to improve their lives and make them easier. The multitude is not interested in personal repentance, character changes and the understanding God’s plan for one’s life.

So, which group of people do you belong to today – the disciples or the multitude? The things that God has prepared for His followers who submit to His will and become His disciples are so much bigger than the price they need to pay.

 

God bless you today!

Pastor Rufus Ajiboye

Similar Posts

  • Sacrifice as a measure of love! II

    AutorsPastor Rufus Ajiboye Reading Time: 4 minutes
    Love is not feelings, it is self-sacrifice, but self-sacrifice – it is decision.Of course, there are feelings in love. But, if we love God, our mutual relationships with God do not consist of feelings alone.The Bible talks about people whom God calls His friends. Why were these people special? All of them proved their love for God with self-sacrifice. They did not afford themselves do many things only because they loved God and longed for friendship with Him.

    Love is not feelings, it is self-sacrifice, but self-sacrifice - it is decision. Of course, there are feelings in...

  • Do not waste your time, but rather invest in what will outlive your time on earth

    AutorsPastor Rufus Ajiboye Reading Time: 3 minutes
    Send your treasures to heaven by investing in those who are going there. Many are rich with goods and treasures of this world, but they are poor toward God. The Bible call such people fools:20″But God said to him, “You fool! This very night your life will be demanded from you. Then who will get what you have prepared for yourself?” 21This is how it will be with anyone who stores up things for himself but is not rich toward God.” (Luke 12: 20-21)

    Send your treasures to heaven by investing in those who are going there. Many are rich with goods and treasures...

  • God’s purpose for the earth and the role of people in it

    AutorsPastor Rufus Ajiboye Reading Time: 3 minutes
    It says in the Bible that God rules and reigns over everything — in heaven and in earth. When we read Genesis, we see that God created men and also we read about God’s intentions for men. God created us to rule and reign on earth as God’s ambassadors. So God’s original plan was for people to be a ruler and care-taker for God. We can read about that in Genesis (1:26-28).

    It says in the Bible that God rules and reigns over everything - in heaven and in earth. When we read Genesis, we...

  • We must prepare the way so that the Lord could come in glory and fullness!

    AutorsPastor Rufus Ajiboye Reading Time: 5 minutes
    God has a way. He does not force Himself on people; He is the God of order. Until there will be a way prepared for God, He won’t come. Many of us would like for God to come, but He does not come without proper preparation. God goes where people are ready for His visitation. And when God comes, then all barriers are cast aside, the desert starts blooming, the mountains and hills are brought down, the valleys will be filled, the crooked places are made straight and the rough places are made smooth. God can show us the great picture of what He wants to do among us and through us as His people or the Church. But it will take a serious preparation and it will require of us to be very responsible.

    God has a way. He does not force Himself on people; He is the God of order. Until there will be a way prepared...

  • The Importance of God’s will

    AutorsPastor Rufus Ajiboye Reading Time: 5 minutes
    Today I would like to start talking about „The Importance of God’s will”. The Holy Scripture says: “Not everyone who says to Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ shall enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father in heaven” (Mathew, 7: 21). The Bible calls every one of us to have sound mind, especially in learning the will of God for his or her life.«Therefore do not be unwise, but understand what the will of the Lord is» (Ephesians, 5:18).Why is it so important to allocate some time for seeking out the will of God? Why is understanding of God’s will so necessary for a person? It is because the understanding of God’s will determine both our happiness here, on earth, and our status in the future, in eternity.

    Today I would like to start talking about „The Importance of God’s will”. The Holy Scripture says: “Not everyone...

  • The Kingdom of God III

    AutorsPastor Rufus Ajiboye Reading Time: 5 minutes
    Jesus brought God’s Kingdom to this earth and He wants us to be involved in the process of expanding His Kingdom here, on the earth. God wants His Kingdom to triumph over the earth. And there is no need to discuss whether it is going to happen or not, – this matter is already resolved; it will surely happen. What you need to decide is whether this spreading out will happen with your involvement or without it.I am sure that every believer that sincerely loves God desires to be part of this process, desires to have the Kingdom of God not only within him, but also to spread it all around.

    Jesus brought God’s Kingdom to this earth and He wants us to be involved in the process of expanding His Kingdom...