Section 4: Understanding the Six Discipleship Traits The purpose of the six discipleship traits is to serve as a framework for our spiritual growth. The traits are a measuring stick of sorts. Hopefully, one of the first things you noticed was that the traits a list of things disciples do. see aren’t You won’t covet their neighbors awesome or “Disciples don’t new lawnmower,” “Disciples bully the weird kid in the The six discipleship traits a list don’t lunchroom.” aren’t of actions that we can check off. And not a list of things we conversely, they’re avoid. Which is really important. The six discipleship traits are probably best understood as a list of attitudes or dispositions. Each one of the six traits is subsequently informed by actions, and in some cases habits. Again, the traits are a of what it looks like to be a disciple, biblical “picture” or a follower, of Christ. a definition of sorts, a different kind of It’s but it’s definition in that it provides a look at specific characteristics of Christ-followers. Each trait is unique, and some are a little bit different than you might expect. Below a description of each trait with just a few of the dozens and you’ll find dozens of places in Scripture that speak to where we see the trait emerge in the Bible. The Foundational Statement As people who have been transformed by Christ, we. . . As mentioned, the six discipleship traits start with a foundational statement. Discipleship starts with salvation through work on the cross. Jesus died a Jesus’ sinless death in order to rescue humanity from the death that sin rightly earns for us (2 Corinthians 5:21 and Romans 6:23). When we accept payment on our Jesus’ behalf by grace through faith, we are transformed (2 Corinthians not a 5:17). We’re
Section 4: Understanding the Six Discipleship Traits The purpose of the six discipleship traits is to serve as a framework for our spiritual growth. The traits are a measuring stick of sorts. Hopefully, one of the first things you noticed was that the traits aren’t a list of things disciples do. You won’t see “Disciples don’t covet their neighbors awesome new lawnmower,” or “Disciples don’t bully the weird kid in the lunchroom.” The six discipleship traits aren’t a list of actions that we can check off. And conversely, they’re not a list of things we avoid. Which is really important. The six discipleship traits are probably best understood as a list of attitudes or dispositions. Each one of the six traits is subsequently informed by actions, and in some cases habits. Again, the traits are a biblical “picture” of what it looks like to be a disciple, or a follower, of Christ. It’s a definition of sorts, but it’s a different kind of definition in that it provides a look at specific characteristics of Christ-followers. Each trait is unique, and some are a little bit different than you might expect. Below you’ll find a description of each trait with just a few of the dozens and dozens of places in Scripture that speak to where we see the trait emerge in the Bible. The Foundational Statement As people who have been transformed by Christ, we. . . As mentioned, the six discipleship traits start with a foundational statement. Discipleship starts with salvation through Jesus’ work on the cross. Jesus died a sinless death in order to rescue humanity from the death that sin rightly earns for us (2 Corinthians 5:21 and Romans 6:23). When we accept Jesus’ payment on our behalf by grace through faith, we are transformed (2 Corinthians 5:17). We’re not a