33 They said to him, “John’s disciples often fast and pray, and so do the disciples of the Pharisees, but yours go on eating and drinking.” Luke 5
I read or heard somewhere that a DISCIPLE is ONE UNDER DISCIPLINE, which may not be a very popular concept in western society today.
Webster’s definition of a disciple is “a pupil or follower of any teacher or school.” A true disciple is not just a student or a learner, but a follower: one who applies what he has learned. (Quote by Rev. Stan Smith, Union University)
What is the meaning of disciple in one word?
follower, adherent, disciple, partisan mean one who gives full loyalty and support to another. follower may apply to people who attach themselves either to the person or beliefs of another. (Webster’s dictionary)
There are three groups of Disciples mentioned in the verse above, Luke 5:33, so it must have been a common sight to see rabbis and their followers in Israel during the time of Christ. Three groups of students who had pledged their allegiance to follow the teachings and leadership of various religious schools of thought within Israel. Those whom we admire and follow may and will have a great influence on the course of our lives in this world and beyond!
We’re not told who the ‘They’ were who spoke to Jesus, but the religious teachers of the Law were the ones who complained most to Him. They challenged Jesus that His Disciples were not observing the tradition of fasting. Jesus didn’t contradict them about the validity of fasting, often used to heighten prayer, but simply told them that His Disciples wouldn’t pray while He was with them.
23Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You pay tithes of mint, dill, and cumin. But you have disregarded the weightier matters of the law: justice, mercy, and faithfulness. You should have practiced the latter, without neglecting the former.
24You blind guides! You strain out a gnat but swallow a camel. 25Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You clean the outside of the cup and dish, but inside they are full of greed and self-indulgence.… Matthew 23, Berean Bible
Jesus criticised those who practiced the religious traditions of the day, for majoring on minor outward observances, (RELIGION DOES THIS), BUT FAILING TO SHOW JUSTICE, MERCY AND FAITHFULNESS. As Paul later said of himself, ‘keeping the Law, faultless’, Philippians 3:6, but still ‘persecuting Jesus’, Acts 9:4. Religious people often attack Believers the most.
John came and preached ‘Repentance’ and demanded to see the fruit of it in people’s lives. They had to make a public stand by being baptised together. This must have been a ‘great leveller’ in Jewish society, no one could claim to be better than the other when they were dipped together in the water. But John’s ministry was only a preparation for the coming of Christ and those who would devote their lives to following Him.
17 For the law was given through Moses; grace and truth came through Jesus Christ. 18 No one has ever seen God, but God the one and only, who is at the Father’s side, has made him known. John. 1
The Lord condemned religious observance without any change of heart. The repentance of people and further baptism by John was only a preparation, it didn’t go far enough. The third group of disciples in this verse, those who followed Jesus earnestly, sometimes without all the religious observances, were the ones who truly walked with God and for God and they were just ordinary people.
May the Lord bless and keep you today. Immanuel, God is with us.
