Rocky Creek

As the crowds increased around Jesus, He intentionally drew closer to fewer people as He appointed twelve disciples to be His apostles.  As Jesus called the original Twelve to specific tasks, He calls us to follow Him in the same way today.

Religious leaders opposed Jesus while He was doing good on the Sabbath day because it broke their manmade rules.  The follower of Jesus must realize that it’s always the right time to do the right thing.

The religious leaders of the day became increasingly frustrated because Jesus didn’t minister in the way they deemed appropriate.  We must stop trying to fit Jesus into our religious boxes and realize that He came to do something new.

As Jesus gathered disciples, He befriended sinners in home settings.  Acknowledging the needs of those around us, we should open our homes and open our hearts to minister to those in close proximity to us.

When Jesus forgave a man who came looking for healing, He revealed our need and His authority.  As we attempt to bring people to Jesus, we must seek to address their greatest need – their need for forgiveness.

Moved with pity, Jesus touched and cleansed a leper who lived on the fringes of society.  With the needs around us, we must be willing to place ourselves into messy situations in order to see redemption in others.

Jesus prioritized time with His Father early in the morning to prepare for the day’s assignments.  If we are to follow His example, we must carve out intentional time for spiritual growth.

Jesus ministered at religious gatherings and at family gatherings.  If we understand the power of God, we will live in such a way that acknowledges that ministry cannot be hindered by a time, place, or situation.

Jesus Uses Ordinary People [Mark 1:14-20] - Jesus called ordinary men to follow Him into an extraordinary work.  As disciples of Jesus, we must also redefine our purpose to become fishers of men and join Him in His work to reach others.

Make Your Father Proud [Mark 1:9-13] - Jesus pleased His Father in what He did and in what He didn’t do. As followers of Jesus, we should imitate His obedient lifestyle.

Make Room for Jesus [Mark 1:1-8] - John the Baptist prepared the way for Jesus’ arrival. We must make room for Jesus in our own lives to join Him in His Kingdom work.

God blessed the nation of Israel in order to be a blessing to all other nations, but eventually, they refrained from sharing that salvation with others. After the work of Christ, followers are called to go outside the walls of the church to multiply as we make disciples and plant churches.

Paul instructed his disciple, Timothy, to take everything he had learned and entrust it into others who would turn and do the same thing. To multiply disciples, we must be intentional with our relationships for Kingdom purposes.

After Jesus’ resurrection, he commanded his followers to go and make disciples of all nations. Instead of committed disciples obeying the Great Commission, we can revert to becoming consumers who succumb to the great omission.

On Easter Sunday, the disciples eagerly shared the joy of Jesus’ resurrection. If Jesus has truly defeated sin and death, we should fervently run to the world in order to multiply disciples with the news of his salvation.

Man’s attempts to reconcile with God were not only improbable – they were impossible. We reenter the presence of God not because we found a way but because Jesus made a way.

You Can’t Make It On Your Own - In Paul’s concluding remarks to the Colossians, he provides personal comments regarding specific ministry partners. Within these comments, Paul models the type of friends that a disciple will need to continue towards maturity.

Instead of waiting for unbelievers to come to the church, the church is meant to go to the unbelievers out in the world. By making the most of every evangelistic opportunity, disciples engage in Kingdom work by the way they pray, walk, and talk.

Disciples in the Workplace - A disciple can never clock out of Kingdom work. Even in the workplace, Christian bosses and workers must display a different level of intentionality and productivity for the sake of discipleship.

A tangible evidence of a maturing disciple is the loving way he or she treats other disciples. The church should be a display of the unity that God’s presence provides among all believers.

While the place of heaven is our destination, the way of heaven should be our pursuit. As disciples, we are to put to death the deeds of this world and to put on the new self as we seek the things above.

The Apostle Paul saw three dangerous heresies present in the church at Colossae and we experience them today. Biblical discipleship is sufficient and doesn’t need any alteration.

Disciples in the Home - Authentic discipleship moves from the church and should eventually change the home. Disciples obey God’s commands for how families are to treat one another particularly in the relationship between husband and wife and between parent and child.

Disciples Have Deep Roots - Satan will use deceitful doctrine to distract disciples from being established in the faith. Disciples must be rooted in Christ and established in biblical doctrine to persevere.

Disciples Don't Quit Until They Reach Maturity - The goal of the Church is to present every disciple as complete in Christ. Working with the power God provides, we are to disciple one another with the goal of spiritual maturity.