Developing a Disciple’s Heart – Part 1

This Preaching in Shorts sermon series is called “Developing a Disciples Heart”.

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Jesus was asked what the most important commandment was. He could have come up with a very complex detailed answer, but He didn’t. His answer was simple and perfect. Love God and love your neighbor as yourself. This was Jesus answer to being asked the big question, “what is the most important thing in life?” Love God and love your neighbor as yourself.

If that is the most important thing then it just makes sense for us to make it a priority. Loving God and loving others is what comes out of a disciple’s heart. So, developing a disciple’s heart is where our journey must take us.

What does that look like in a practical way? For me, it looks like this. I remember to love God by being thankful for at least five things every day. Then, I try and encourage at least two people every day. This is how I love my neighbor. And as far as loving myself goes, I try to live each day by doing the next right thing. These three things really help me to stay focused and experience and enjoy Jesus moments each and every day. But life being what it is, it is very easy to get distracted and then get off course. As we said last week, the Spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak.

My deepest desire is to be with Jesus. To be His disciple, to follow and serve Him. But sometimes, my flesh, my selfishness, my issues get in the way.

So, in developing a disciple’s heart there is a need to get even more practical. Being thankful, encouraging and doing the next right thing are what I am shooting at in being a disciple, but I need something to help me stay on track, to stay focused.

That is where the Disciple’s Heart Primer comes in. We need to prime the pump.

This includes:
Get Focused – Hebrews 10:19-25
Get Thankful – Philippians 4:4-8
Get Connected – Matthew 6:9-13
Get Dressed – Ephesians 6:12-18
Get Encouraging – 1 Corinthians 13-4-8a
Git r done – Matthew 6:33 and Matthew 7:12
Git r done? (End of Day review) – Hebrews 12:1-3

Today, we are going to start looking at getting focused.

Scripture Reading

Hebrews 10:12-17 (MSG)
12 As a priest, Christ made a single sacrifice for sins, and that was it! Then he sat down right beside God 13 and waited for his enemies to cave in. 14 It was a perfect sacrifice by a perfect person to perfect some very imperfect people. By that single offering, he did everything that needed to be done for everyone who takes part in the purifying process. 15 The Holy Spirit confirms this: 16 This new plan I’m making with Israel isn’t going to be written on paper, isn’t going to be chiseled in stone; This time “I’m writing out the plan in them, carving it on the lining of their hearts.” 17 He concludes, I’ll forever wipe the slate clean of their sins.

We are going to dig a little deeper into the first of our getting focused verses:

Hebrews 10:19 (NIV)
19 Therefore, brothers, since we have confidence to enter the Most Holy Place by the blood of Jesus,

Let’s start by talking about the therefore

1. Therefore

When you read “therefore” in a passage of scripture, you need to figure out what it is there for. In this case it’s referring back to the verses of our scripture reading. Because of Jesus perfect sacrifice for our sins, God no longer remembers our sins.

Hebrews 10:17 (NIV)
17 Then he adds: “Their sins and lawless acts I will remember no more.”

This idea is one that you must take deep into your disciple’s heart. What Jesus did at the cross was a “perfect sacrifice by a perfect person to perfect some very imperfect people”. Because of what Jesus has done, not because of anything that we have done, we can enter into the Most Holy Place. We learn about the Most Holy Place in the book of Exodus. The Most Holy place was where the literal presence of God was. Because of Jesus, we can now be in the literal presence of God. In His presence we can get a

2. Throne Room Perspective

Ephesians 1:18-20 (NIV)
18 I pray also that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened in order that you may know the hope to which he has called you, the riches of his glorious inheritance in the saints, 19 and his incomparably great power for us who believe. That power is like the working of his mighty strength, 20 which he exerted in Christ when he raised him from the dead and seated him at his right hand in the heavenly realms,

The eyes of our disciple’s heart can be opened so that we can know the Hope to which he has called us to. We can know the riches of His glorious inheritance. We can know the power that at is work in those of us who believe. It is the same power that was at work when Jesus was raised from the dead and seated in the heavenly realms at the right hand of the Father. He has us covered for eternity.

When you get a throne room perspective for the day, then you have a completely different way of looking at things that happen throughout the day. Problems become opportunities for God to move, worry and fear can be moved into faith and peace, we can have Hope in situations knowing that He is with us and for us. And we need to understand that our

3. Confidence is in Christ

Ephesians 2:4-6 (NIV)
4 But because of his great love for us, God, who is rich in mercy, 5 made us alive with Christ even when we were dead in transgressions–it is by grace you have been saved. 6 And God raised us up with Christ and seated us with him in the heavenly realms in Christ Jesus,

In Christ, we too have been seated with Him in the heavenly realms!

In Christ. God sees and relates to us in Christ. Our confidence to be in the Most Holy Place is not in our own works or performance, it is in Christ.

See, in Christ, by His blood, we have the amazing blessing available to us that we can enjoy the presence of God 24/7. But how much time do we actually spend in His presence? That is a big question that as His disciples you need to ask yourself. Are you spending time with Him?

What keeps us from taking advantage of the amazing opportunity we have to hang out with Him? Maybe we struggle like Isaiah does in chapter 6:1-7. When he enters into the presence of God he is overwhelmed by his own unworthiness.

Perhaps, the reality of the presence of God and His holiness causes us to be overwhelmed by the reality of our brokenness. It is like a mirror that puts our sin and brokenness right in our face, and yet if we can just understand that our confidence in being in His presence is in Christ, then we can begin the process of being healed of the mess. Our guilt and shame stop becoming such easy fodder for the evil one to try keep us from the life we have been called to as Jesus disciples.

We are not worthy to be in His presence in our own right, but in Christ we can be there in confidence. I want to encourage you to start everyday by hanging out with God in the Most Holy Place in confidence because of what Jesus has done for you. There is nothing to be afraid of, or ashamed of. God is holy, but in His holiness there is love and acceptance and the power to transform and heal us.

Related posts:

1. Developing a Disciple’s Heart – Part 5
2. Developing a Disciple’s Heart – Part 9
3. Developing a Disciple’s Heart – Part 3
4. Developing a Disciple’s Heart – Part 6
5. Developing a Disciple’s Heart – Introduction

Tags: disciple, disciples heart, featured, Jesus moment, ministry of encouragement, Preaching in Shorts

Category: Preaching in Shorts