Discipleship is not just about attending church or trying to be a better person—it’s a lifelong journey of transformation into the image of Jesus. Below are eight practical commitments to help you walk as a growing disciple of Christ in everyday life. Each one is rooted in Scripture and designed to shape the way you live, love, and grow.
A disciple is someone who learns to be with Jesus before doing for Jesus. Your relationship with God must be the center of your life. Develop rhythms of prayer, worship, and time in the Word that draw you close to Him. Let His presence form your identity, decisions, and desires.
“Abide in me, and I in you... apart from me you can do nothing.” — John 15:4–5
“The Sovereign Lord has given me his words of wisdom... Morning by morning he wakens me and opens my understanding to his will.” — Isaiah 50:4
Discipleship involves both healing and holiness. God is interested in restoring the broken areas of your heart and forming Christlike character in you. This means letting God into your thoughts, emotions, patterns, and past wounds so He can heal and transform you from the inside out.
“He heals the brokenhearted and binds up their wounds.” — Psalm 147:3
“Just as he who called you is holy, so be holy in all you do.” — 1 Peter 1:15
“Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind.” — Romans 12:2
A disciple learns to embrace their identity in Christ and to view others with that same lens of grace and potential. Don’t let your past, your failures, or others’ opinions define you. Instead, let God’s Word shape how you see yourself—and treat others as people being formed in the image of Christ, too.
“If anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation.” — 2 Corinthians 5:17
“Man looks at the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart.” — 1 Samuel 16:7
“So from now on we regard no one from a worldly point of view.” — 2 Corinthians 5:16
Discipleship isn’t meant to happen in isolation. Growth flourishes in relationships marked by love, truth, trust, and accountability. When tensions or disagreements arise, we won’t walk away—we will work through them in grace and humility. God uses these relationships to shape and mature us.
“Confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed.” — James 5:16
“As iron sharpens iron, so one person sharpens another.” — Proverbs 27:17
“Speak the truth in love, growing in every way more and more like Christ.” — Ephesians 4:15
A disciple of Jesus learns to love others as Christ loved us—with patience, humility, and truth. We seek to communicate in ways that build up, not tear down. When conflict arises, we move toward reconciliation, not avoidance. We seek God’s wisdom to love well in every kind of relationship.
“Be quick to listen, slow to speak and slow to become angry.” — James 1:19
“Let your conversation be always full of grace.” — Colossians 4:6
“If it is possible, as far as it depends on you, live at peace with everyone.” — Romans 12:18
Following Jesus means daily surrender—laying down our will to take up His. A growing disciple remains teachable and willing to change. We respond to correction with humility and to God’s Word with obedience, trusting that His ways lead to life and maturity.
“Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross daily and follow me.” — Luke 9:23
“Humble yourselves under God’s mighty hand, that he may lift you up in due time.” — 1 Peter 5:6
“Teach me your way, Lord, that I may rely on your faithfulness.” — Psalm 86:11
Disciples of Christ live with a clear view of eternity. Our decisions, values, and relationships should be shaped by the reality that we are part of God’s eternal family. One day, we will stand before Jesus. Let’s live now in a way that reflects our future hope and honors the One we follow.
“Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things.” — Colossians 3:2
“We make it our goal to please Him... for we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ.” — 2 Corinthians 5:9–10
“Let us throw off everything that hinders... and fix our eyes on Jesus.” — Hebrews 12:1–2
Discipleship is not a self-help journey—it is a Spirit-empowered transformation. We cannot grow in Christlikeness without the help of the Holy Spirit. As disciples, we must daily depend on God to guide, empower, and sustain us. This posture of reliance keeps us humble, prayerful, and ready to obey.
“So I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the flesh.” — Galatians 5:16
“Not by might nor by power, but by my Spirit,” says the Lord Almighty. — Zechariah 4:6
“When the Spirit of truth comes, he will guide you into all truth.” — John 16:13