~ Normal Christian Progress ~
Enemy
(opposed to their Creator) ~ “[Spiritual] Adulterers
and adulteresses! Do you
not know that friendship with the world is enmity with God? Whoever therefore wants to be a friend of the
world makes himself an enemy of God”
(James 4:4).
Follower
(interest in the Messiah) ~ “And Jesus, walking by the
Sea of Galilee, saw two brothers, Simon called Peter, and Andrew his brother,
casting a net into the sea; for they were fishermen. Then He said to them, ‘Follow Me, and I will make you fishers of men.’ They immediately left their nets and followed Him” (Matthew
4:18-20). “Then another of His disciples said to Him, ‘Lord,
let me first go and bury my father.’ But
Jesus said to him, ‘Follow Me, and let
the dead bury their own dead’” (Matthew 8:21-22). “As Jesus passed on from
there, He saw a man named Matthew sitting at the tax office. And He said to him, ‘Follow Me.’ So he arose and followed Him” (Matthew 9:9).
Disciple
(learner of Truth) ~ Jesus said, “Come to Me, all you who labor and are heavy laden,
and I will give you rest. Take My yoke
upon you and learn from Me, for I am
gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For My yoke is easy and My burden is light” (Matthew
11:28-30). “Great crowds were
following him. He turned around and
addressed them as follows: ‘Anyone who wants to be My follower must love Me far
more than he does his own father, mother, wife, children, brothers, or
sisters-yes, more than his own life-otherwise he cannot be My disciple. And no one can
be My disciple who does not carry his
own cross and follow Me” (Luke 14:25-27, TLB).
Servant
(coworker with Christ) ~ “But Jesus called them to
Himself and said, ‘You know that the rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them,
and those who are great exercise authority over them. Yet it shall not be so among you; but whoever
desires to become great among you, let
him be your servant. And whoever
desires to be first among you, let him be your slave — just as the Son of Man did not come to be served,
but to serve, and to give His life a ransom for many’” (Matthew
20:25-28).
note
~ Jesus said, “A disciple is not above his teacher, nor a servant above his master. It
is enough for a disciple that he be
like his teacher, and a servant like
his master” (Matthew 10:24-25a).
Friend
(intimacy with their Lord) ~ Jesus
said, “You
are My friends if you do whatever I
command you. No longer do I call you servants, for a servant does not know what
his master is doing; but I have called
you friends, for all things that I heard from My Father I have made known
to you” (John 15:14-15).
the bottom-line ~
Every individual is given the opportunity to move from an enemy of God to a friend of God!
~ Robert Lloyd Russell, ABUNDANT LIFE NOW
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