1. Friends and Disciples of Jesus
Chapter 9:
Friends and Disciples of Jesus
©Ave Maria Press

2. The Heart of a True Friend
Because we have human friends, we know generally what friendship is.
Since God calls us his friends, we should explore this concept
more deeply.

3. Real friendship means self-sacrificing love and generosity.
Because he suffered and died for us, Jesus Christ is the very model of true friendship.

4. What It Means to be a Disciple of Jesus
The Holy Spirit gives us the courage, wisdom, understanding, and knowledge to accept Jesus, his way of life, and his mission.
FOLLOW
CHRIST

5. is to learn everything we can from Jesus
The word “disciple” means “learner” or “pupil.” A disciple is one who grasps and intellectually analyzes the teaching of another.
Jesus is called “rabbi” or “teacher” in many New Testament passages. The first step to discipleship
is to learn everything we can from Jesus
as our teacher.

6. The second step to discipleship is making a commitment to follow Jesus.
This step is not an
easy one. It means
changing the way we
live to walk in the
steps of Christ. The
Gospel of Mark tells
of a rich young man,
who was attracted to Jesus’ message, but found it difficult to leave his life behind to go and follow him.

7. By telling the rich young man that he needed to sell his possessions and give to the poor, Jesus was not condemning wealth—but he was pointing out that wealth can be a burden on our journey to God.
In order to help us on our journey to God, the Church gives us rules that help us to become moral people. These are called the Precepts of the Church. One of these precepts is that we help provide for the needs of the Church and its outreach to the poor.

8. Another thing to note is that Jesus did not tell all his disciples that they should give up their wealth. He knows what each person needs, and points us in the direction that will best serve us on our journey to God.
What Jesus understood about the people he taught is that many of them saw wealth as tricking them into thinking that they were not in need of anything. They had developed a false sense of security, and thought that their salvation rested on their possessions.

9. When the rich young man went away sad, it proved that Jesus’ suspicion about him was correct.
Something to consider is that Jesus was testing the commitment of the rich young man by asking something of him that he knew would be difficult to give. A lesson for all of us is that we must not place anything above the love of God and following his will.

10. The third step to discipleship is spreading the message of Jesus.
Like a house built on a foundation of rock, the message of Jesus is solid and true. It is this message that Jesus asks his disciples to pass on to others. For over two thousand years, the Church has passed on the teachings of Christ along with his call to evangelize others.

11. Growing in Friendship with Jesus
Knowing Jesus
leads to loving Jesus.

12. Jesus shared his heart with his friends
Jesus shared his heart with his friends. He was not just a teacher who remained detached from his disciples, but a friend who gave of himself and became close to his followers.
The Gospel of John, especially, tells of the close friendships Jesus formed with his disciples. To his friends, Jesus was loyal, affectionate, understanding, and dependable. Not just the Twelve Apostles, but also people like Martha, Mary, and Lazarus—at whose death Jesus wept.
And after mourning for his friend, Jesus showed his great love for Lazarus by raising him back to life.

13. Even though his own suffering was imminent, at the Last Supper Jesus comforted his Apostles saying, “Do not let your hearts be troubled.”
Showing true friendship, Jesus forgave Peter for denying him and Thomas for doubting his Resurrection.

14. Before he died on the cross, Jesus entrusted the care of his own mother to his close friend and apostle, John.

15. Jesus also extended his friendship to those who were rejected and hated by most other people. He was willing to take the risk of associating with the despised in order to be a good friend.
The Gospels mention many instances in which Jesus draws criticism for socializing with tax collectors, prostitutes, and other sinners.

16. The Greeks distinguished other types
The Greeks identified different kinds of love, and friendship is one of these. The Greek word for friendship is philia. It is brotherly love, or the affection between friends. Jesus, of course, showed philia to his friends.
The Greeks distinguished other types
of love as being different from philia.
Storge is the word they used to describe
the love among family members.
Eros describes sexual love and attraction.
Agape describes self-sacrificing love—the
kind of love that Jesus shows to everyone.

17. Any healthy friendship is marked
by various qualities. It is important for friends to keep confidences,
be loyal, understanding, dependable, and patient.
Four other critical friendship traits are:
Availability
It is important to make time for your friends, and also to be able to emotionally and verbally connect with them.
Openness
Friends should be themselves with each other. They accept each other without having to “play games.” Friends share ideas and feelings honestly.
Common Interests
Having things in common is a basis for sharing, but it is also important for friends to allow each other freedom to develop their own interests as well.
Generosity
Friends give and receive time, affection, and gifts from each other. True friendships are reciprocal; they are a two-way street.

18. We need to make sure we do our part on the
We can apply some of these insights about human friendships to our friendship with Jesus. He, of course, is always available to us, and shows us limitless generosity. He shares in our desire to be with God, and openly offers us his true self.
We need to make sure we do our part on the
two-way street of our friendship with Jesus.
Do we take time for him in prayer?
Do we receive him in the Eucharist?
Jesus said, “You are my friends if you do what I command you.” What are some other aspects of how we should respond to the command of Jesus?

19. Invite Jesus into your life.
Love deeply.
“Love one another. As I have loved you, so you also should love one another. This is how all will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another.”
Invite Jesus into your life.
“Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will enter his house and dine with him, and he with me.”
Believe in Jesus.
“ I am the Resurrection and the life; whoever believes in me, even if he dies, will live, and everyone who lives and believes in me will never die.”
Love God and others.
“You shall love the Lord, your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind … You shall love your neighbor as yourself.”
Make Jesus your best friend.
“Whoever loves father or mother more than me is not worthy of me, and whoever loves son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me.”
Forgive one another.
Peter asked him, “Lord, if my brother sins against me, how often must I forgive him? As many as seven times?” Jesus answered, “I say to you not seven times, but seventy-seven times.”
Serve one another.
“If I therefore, the master and teacher, have washed your feet, you ought to wash one another’s feet.”
Witness Jesus to others without fear.
“I tell you, everyone who acknowledges me before others the Son of Man will acknowledge before the angels of God.”
Jesus said, “You are my friends if you do what I command you.” What are some other aspects of how we should respond to the command of Jesus?

20. Committed Disciples Help to Spread the Gospel
In the first steps toward discipleship, we give our minds and hearts to Jesus.
Later, we must put our faith into action.

21. In Jesus’ Great
Commission at
the end of
Matthew’s Gospel,
he told the
Apostles, “Go
therefore, and
make disciples of
all nations.
Baptize them in
the name of the
Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Teach them to carry out everything I have commanded you.”

22. The Apostles took Jesus’ commission to them very seriously
The Apostles took Jesus’ commission to them very seriously. They began to spread the Good News of Jesus Christ to all the world.
They focused on the basic teachings Jesus had handed on to them; and urged others to:
►repent of their sins,
►believe in Jesus Christ,
►forgive others,
►love God and others,
►serve other people, and
►proclaim the Good News.

23. Bears wrongs patiently.
“Love God above all things, and love your neighbor as you love yourself.”
To help us practice the selfless love for our neighbor that Jesus demands, the Church offers us the works of mercy.
The Spiritual
Works of Mercy
Admonish the sinner.
Instruct the ignorant.
Counsel the doubtful.
Comfort the sorrowful.
Bears wrongs patiently.
Forgive all injuries.
Pray for the living
and the dead.
The Corporal
Works of Mercy
Feed the hungry.
Give drink to
the thirsty.
Clothe the naked.
Shelter the homeless.
Visit the sick.
Visit the imprisoned.
Bury the dead.
These are charitable acts that remind us how to come to the spiritual and material aid of our neighbors in need.

24. In his parable of the goats and sheep, Jesus reminds us that we will be judged based on our response to his command to love our neighbor.
What we did (or did not do), especially for our “least brothers and sisters” will be the basis for whether we will inherit the Kingdom of Heaven.

25. Jesus cautioned his disciples to understand that following him will be no easy matter. It takes discipline and courage.
When Jesus told them to “enter through the narrow gate,” he was talking about how doing what is easy has little benefit, but meeting the challenges that come before one of his disciples will lead to eternal life.

26. and Dedicated Disciple
St. Paul: Apostle
and Dedicated Disciple
St. Paul is one of the greatest teachers and missionaries of the Christian faith. He is also a worthy model of Christian discipleship for us
to emulate.

27. St. Paul’s original name was Saul
St. Paul’s original name was Saul. He was a zealous Jew from Tarsus, and earned his living as a tent maker.
Before his conversion to Christianity, Saul joined in the persecution against early Christians. He participated in the stoning of the first martyr, St. Stephen; and took a commission from the Sanhedrin to arrest Christians and bring them to Jerusalem for trial.

28. Saul was on his way to Damascus to persecute and arrest Christians when Christ appeared to him in a blinding vision.
In the vision, Jesus asked, “Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting me?” By his persecution of Christ’s body, the Church, Saul was persecuting Christ himself.

29. the Gentiles. He chose to go by the Latin form
Immediately after this life changing experience, Saul became a disciple of Jesus, and prepared to spread the Gospel.
Saul was baptized by Ananias, and resolved to embark on missionary journeys in the Roman Empire to take the message of Christ to
the Gentiles. He chose to go by the Latin form
of his name: Paul.

30. As a Roman citizen, Paul could travel throughout the empire
As a Roman citizen, Paul could travel throughout the empire. He wrote letters, or epistles to communicate with the people to whom he had brought the Good News. Many of the letters in the New Testament were written or influenced by St. Paul.
St. Paul’s letters address problems that the various congregations were having, including theological questions about Jesus and how to deal with heresies. St. Paul also shared advice about how to be a good disciple of the Lord.

31. St. Paul was one of the greatest thinkers and theologians in Christian history. Because he was so instrumental in spreading the faith to the Roman world, he is called the “Apostle to the Gentiles.”
After a courageous career of traveling throughout the Roman Empire and standing as a champion of the Gospel, St. Paul was finally martyred by beheading in Rome during one of Nero’s persecutions in AD 64 or 67.