No. |
Salvation |
Discipleship |
1 |
Salvation is free and "without price" (Rom.
6:23; Isa. 55:1), although salvation is certainly
not cheap (1 Pet. 1:18-19; 1 Cor. 6:20). |
Discipleship is costly and the cost must be
counted (Luke 14:25-33). |
2 |
Salvation takes place in an instant of time
(Acts 2:47).
|
Discipleship is a life-long process (John 8:31;
Matthew 28:19-20).
|
3 |
Salvation is believing on Christ (Acts 16:30-
31). |
Discipleship is following Christ (Matt. 4:18-
22) and learning from Him (Matt. 11:29).
|
4 |
Salvation is coming to Christ and finding rest
from the burden of sin (Matthew 11:28). |
Discipleship is taking Christ's yoke and
learning from Him (Matthew 11:29) |
5 |
Salvation involves Christ loving me (Rom.
5:8; Gal. 2:20; John 3:16).
|
Discipleship involves me loving Christ
(Matthew 10:37).
|
6 |
A truly saved person is one who believes the
gospel (Rom. 1:16; 6:17). |
A true disciple is one who continues in
Christ's Word (John 8:31). |
7 |
To be saved a person must fall before the feet
of Christ crucified and claim the mercy of God
(Luke 18:13).
|
To be a disciple a person must sit at the feet
of Christ and hear His Word with a meek and
teachable heart (Luke 10:39).
|
8 |
A saved person is a believer (1 John 5:1). |
A disciple is a learner [the word "disciple"
means "a learner, student, pupil, adherent"].
|
9 |
A saved person confesses Christ (Rom. 10:9-
10). |
A disciple denies self (Luke 9:23).
|
10 |
A saved person possesses Christ (1 John
5:12).
|
A true disciple forsakes possessions (Luke
14:33).
|
11 |
Being saved involves trusting (Eph. 1:13). |
Being a disciple involves training (Matt.
28:19-20). |
12 |
Salvation involves receiving God's gift (John
1:12; Eph. 2:8-9). |
Discipleship involves receiving God's
instruction (Acts 2:42).
|
13 |
Every believer measures up to the full
demands of God's righteousness in Christ (2
Cor. 5:21). |
Believers often do not measure up to the full
demands of discipleship (Luke 14:25-33). |
14 |
Salvation involves one's standing in Christ
(one's perfect position in Him).
|
Discipleship involves one's state (one's actual
practice or condition).
|
15 |
With salvation the emphasis is upon what God
has done (1 Cor. 15:3-4).
|
With discipleship the emphasis is upon what
man must do (Luke 14:25-33). |
16 |
The focus of salvation is upon the work of
Christ (1 Cor. 1:18). |
The focus of discipleship is upon the Word of
Christ, His teaching (John 8:31).
|
17 |
Salvation is God’s commitment to His Word
based on the work of His Son (Rom. 3:24). |
Discipleship is the believer’s commitment to
Christ's Word based on his relationship to
Christ (John 6:68).
|
18 |
The saved person is a saint (1 Cor. 1:2), a
position shared equally by all believers. |
The disciple is a student (Matt. 11:29). Some
believers are better students than others.
|
19 |
The invitation to salvation is “Come unto Me”
(John 6:37; Matthew 11:28). |
The invitation to discipleship is “Come after
Me” (Luke 9:23).
|
20 |
Salvation requires obedience to the command
to believe (1 John 3:23a; John 3:36).
|
Discipleship requires obedience to all of
Christ's commands (Matthew 28:19-20).
|
21 |
Salvation is the sinner hearing His Word and
believing on Him (John 5:24). |
Discipleship is the saint sitting at His feet and
hearing His Word (Luke 10:39).
|
22 |
The sinner must not try to fulfill the demands
of discipleship in order to be saved. This
would be salvation by works. |
The saint seeks to fulfill all the demands of
discipleship because he is saved. This is
being saved "unto good works" (Eph. 2:10).
|
23 |
Salvation involves a faith response to the
message of the cross (1 Cor. 1:18; 15:1-4). |
Discipleship involves bearing one's cross
daily (Luke 9:53).
|
24 |
God's salvation is perfect, lacking nothing
(Col. 2:10; 1 Cor. 1:30).
|
My measuring up to the full demands of
discipleship is less than perfect, but "I follow
after" (Phil. 3:12-13).
|
25 |
To be saved a person must believe on Christ
(John 3:16; Acts 16:31). The requirement for
salvation is simple faith and trust in the all-sufficient Saviour, the Lord Jesus Christ.
|
To be a true disciple a person must continue
in Christ's Word, love Christ supremely, deny
self, forsake all that he possesses, bear his
cross daily, etc. The requirements of
discipleship are many and they are difficult.
|
26 |
Discipleship (and all that it involves) is not a
requirement for salvation. |
Discipleship is the obligation of every saved
person.
|
27 |
Every saved person is saved by faith and faith
alone (not by obedience or by surrender or by
submission or by love for Christ or by giving
up possessions, etc.).
|
Every saved person is a follower of Christ
because Jesus said, "My sheep hear my
voice...and they follow Me" (John 10:27). In
this sense every saved person is a disciple
(follower of Christ), and yet some sheep
follow the Shepherd more closely than others
|
28 |
Salvation relates primarily to justification. |
Discipleship relates primarily to
sanctification.
|
29 |
Salvation puts a person into a right
relationship with Christ the Teacher.
|
Discipleship is an ongoing relationship and
interaction between Teacher and student (a
lifelong process).
|