Luke 14:26
"If any man come to me, and hate not his father, and mother, and wife, and children, and brethren, and sisters, yea, and his own life also, he cannot be my disciple."
Nearly every week of my life I board a plane to fly to a meeting. As you drive to the airport, there are many different airlines that provide services to travel. When you look at their aircraft, you can tell which one belongs to which airline because of the identifying marks on the plane. Each airline has its own identifying marks so you know who it belongs to.
God wants every saved person to be His disciple. A disciple is simply a follower of Jesus Christ. Just because a person is saved does not mean that they are a disciple of Jesus Christ. In Luke 14, Jesus tells us what the identifying marks of His disciples. In other words, when you see these identifying marks in a saved person, they will be known as a disciple of Jesus Christ. Let me show you these identifying marks.
First, a disciple of Jesus Christ has one loyalty. The verse above says that a disciple is willing to leave family, friends and even willing to give up their own life for the cause of Christ. A disciple of Jesus Christ is only loyal to Him. If a disciple is forced to choose between family and Christ, they will always choose Christ. If a disciple is forced to choose between institutions and friends or Christ, they will always choose Christ. The disciple is loyal to One, and that loyalty is only to Jesus Christ.
Second, a disciple of Jesus Christ has an inner strength to bear their cross. A disciple is not one who whines and complains about how hard the Christian life is, but they simply realize that is their cross that they must bear. When trials come, the disciple of Christ bears their trial and keeps serving God. Christ's disciples will bear a cross admirably.
Third, a disciple of Jesus Christ finishes what they start. In verses 28-30, Jesus talks about the importance of considering the cost of building something from start to finish. Disciples of Christ are finishers. They never start something that they cannot finish. If they choose to start serving God, then they will live the rest of their lives serving Him. If they start a project, then they will finish that project. Disciples of Christ are finishers because Jesus is a finisher.
Fourth, a disciple of Jesus Christ is willing to fight for truth. Verse 31 discusses a king going to war. Jesus shows us that His disciples are not afraid to fight for truth. They will always try to make peace, but they will not compromise truth to have peace. A true disciple of Christ has the fortitude to fight for truth.
Fifth, a disciple of Jesus Christ has no strings holding them back from serving Him. The disciple is willing to give up anything for the sake of Christ. Let me illustrate by asking a question. Is there anything that you are not willing to give up if God were to ask you to do so? A true disciple will say that God can have anything they have, for they have no strings attached to anything they own.
Sixth, a disciple of Jesus Christ lives to help others. Verse 34 talks about being salt that keeps its savor. Salt seasons life. It makes things more palatable to eat. A true disciple of Christ will live to help others so that life is easier to the one being helped. This will only happen if the Christian lives a righteous life, for sin takes the savor of salt away.
Let me ask you, do you have the identifying marks of a disciple? Could someone look at you and say that you are Christ's disciple because you have these identifying marks? Work on those areas in which you may be lacking. You will never truly enjoy your salvation until you become a disciple of Christ. Stop being a follower of the world or personalities and follow Christ. When you follow Him, you will find your life will be marked with these identifiers.