What is a Disciple of Jesus?

A disciple of Jesus is someone who believes in Jesus Christ as their Lord and Savior, intentionally learns from Him, and strives to live more like Him. Have you heard the expression “lifelong learner”? This accurately describes disciples of Jesus. Today’s disciples learn from Jesus both as they read and study Scripture about Jesus’ life, death, and resurrection and through the Holy Spirit, who He said would be a teacher and reminder of everything He has said after He ascended into heaven (John 14:26).

Learn more from this online guide about what it means to be a disciple of Jesus from His first disciples. Also, grow as His disciple through free resources and stories of today’s disciplemakers that put this truth into action — demonstrating what being a disciple of Jesus could look like in your daily life.

Disciples in the Bible

We see disciples and discipleship throughout the Bible: Moses and Joshua in the Old Testament and Paul and Timothy in the New Testament. When Jesus began His ministry, He called 12 disciples to follow Him:

“One of those days Jesus went out to a mountainside to pray, and spent the night praying to God. When morning came, he called his disciples to him and chose twelve of them, whom he also designated apostles: Simon (whom he named Peter), his brother Andrew, James, John, Philip, Bartholomew, Matthew, Thomas, James son of Alphaeus, Simon who was called the Zealot, Judas son of James, and Judas Iscariot, who became a traitor” Luke 6:12-16 (NIV).

As Jesus called His first disciples, He would give them a piece of the vision. For these fishermen – Peter, James, Andrew, and John – Jesus said they would be sent out to “fish for people” (Matthew 4:19).

For Nathanael (also known as Bartholomew), Jesus dispelled his doubt by telling him that He saw him sitting under a fig tree before they had met. While Nathanael was astonished, Jesus remarked that he would see greater things than that in this journey” (John 1:47-50).

Ultimately, the disciples’ purpose was first found in Jesus’ invitation: “Follow me,” (Mark 1:17; Mark 2:14; John 1:43). Jesus wanted His disciples to live out their faith in God and relationship with Him as a way of life. And as a part of this way of life, they would invite others so they could follow Jesus together, continuing to reach more people through disciples making disciples. However, Jesus didn’t want them to only invite those from their culture, but from every nation:

“Then Jesus came to them and said, ‘All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age’” Matthew 28:18-20 (NIV).

Characteristics of a Disciple

In Jesus’ time, a disciple was someone who became a student of a teacher and devoted their lives to learn from and become like them. Therefore, disciples of Jesus have characteristics that reflect the One they follow. Use these five traits to assess your spiritual growth and gauge how to invest in those you’re discipling:

1. Jesus Demonstrates a passion to know, love and become like Christ

Disciplemakers know Christ deeply and personally, walking with Him through life.

2. The Word: Knows and lives from the Scriptures.

A disciple of Jesus understands the truth and sufficiency of the Word as a guide for all aspects of life.

3. Community: Pursuing biblical community.

Disciplemakers are intentional to seek, pursue, and create community among believers to encourage and challenge each other.

4. The Lost: Lives among those who do not know or follow Christ.

A disciple of Jesus will be purposeful to love, serve, and help those who don’t follow Christ understand the gospel.

5. Spiritual Generations: Advancing the gospel through spiritual generations.

Disciplemakers help others catch a vision for investing in the spiritual growth of friends, creating a ripple effect of new spiritual generations who follow Jesus.

Learn more about these Five Traits of a Disciplemaker with this free download!

Key Components of a Disciple’s Life: The Wheel Illustration

Another way to examine your life as a disciple of Jesus is to use The Wheel Illustration, which was created by Navigator founder Dawson Trotman in the 1930s. This is a simple and effective way to visually explain the structure of a God-glorifying life. Sharing it can be as easy as drawing it on a napkin or notepad. This illustration challenges us to think deeply about how to be an obedient follower of Christ and each part represents a crucial component of a vibrant Christian life.

Answering Your Discipleship Questions

What is discipleship?

Discipleship is a widely-used word to describe a journey of spiritual growth for a disciple of Jesus. This growth happens as a person comes alongside another to witness to them, pray with them, study the Bible with them, and fellowship with them.

Why is discipleship important?

Jesus told us to go and make disciples because He knew that was how the Good News would be spread to all the nations. And discipleship is how it would be shared from one person to another through relationships.

Discipleship FAQs

These frequently asked questions and more are included on The Basics of Discipleship online guide. Explore the topic of discipleship and discover resources and stories to keep you growing as a disciplemaker.

Go and Make Disciples 

Being a disciple of Jesus is about growing in your faith and relationship with Him, but it doesn’t stop there! Now is your opportunity to take the next small step and follow Jesus’ lead of making disciples wherever He has placed you.

Grow as a confident disciplemaker as you continue exploring more essentials for your spiritual growth and those you’re discipling through our featured resources and online guides below:

For Deeper Understanding

Learn more about the invitation to be a disciple of Jesus for those first 12 disciples. Discover how this applies to your life today as you unpack the truth of Scripture in this Bible study resource: Come Fish With Me: A Discipleship Bible Study.

For Practical Application

How do I disciple someone? You are ready to get started and this is your most pressing question. We’ll walk you through each step — from how to find someone to disciple to tips on asking great questions and inviting someone into Life-to-Life^® discipleship. Learn more through our How to Make Disciples online guide or explore The Navigators Discipleship Training resources.

For Next-Level Discipleship

We see examples of discipleship throughout God’s Word, especially in how Jesus came alongside and guided His disciples. Dig deeper into the foundation of discipleship found throughout Scripture through our Biblical Discipleship online guide. 

If you’re a parent, get answers to common questions about how to disciple your kids and free resources geared to equip you as a disciplemaker in your family through our Family Discipleship online guide.   

For Real-Life Inspiration

What real-life disciplemakers are saying:

“The impact of Fred’s story extends beyond his family. As a now-respected businessman, Fred says he wants to ‘reach others with the gospel of Jesus.’”

“She started sharing with me what was going on with her soul,” Kelli says. “We would spend hours and hours driving around, talking. It was clear she was hungry for knowledge and for growth.”

“Over the years, I’ve seen many students encounter the gospel, but it often takes them a while to respond,” Brendan shares. “But for Keeton, as soon as he heard the gospel, he responded and it changed his life.”

Read these real-life disciplemaking stories and more on The Navigators Blog.