27th Sunday of OT (B)
October 6, 2018
Fatima @ Fifty – a historical review
October 6, 2018

School of Discipleship

The School of Discipleship contains several bite-sized modules on a variety of subjects. Each module has five sessions which are held over a duration of five weeks. Meetings are held once a week on a suitable day at a suitable location, usually in a parish setting. We have taken an excerpt from one of the talks.

A learner

Matthew 11:28–30: “Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.” We learn from Christ to take His yoke upon ourselves and walk with Him in tandem, and do what He would do. Jesus practised everything He preached, and the following Scripture verses illustrate some of the things that Jesus did that we need to do as well.

A desire to serve, rather than be served

One day Jesus told His apostles that He was going to die, but rather than being concerned about Him, they were more concerned about themselves. Two of them, James and John went to Jesus with a rather arrogant request. “Grant us to sit, one at your right hand and one at your left, in your glory,” they said.

Hearing this, the other apostles got upset because these were positions of importance that they, themselves, wanted. “And Jesus called them to him and said to them, ‘You know that those who are supposed to rule over the Gentiles lord it over them, and their great men exercise authority over them. But it shall not be so among you; but whoever would be great among you must be your servant, and whoever would be first among you must be slave of all. For the Son of man also came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many’” (Mk 10:42–45).

A knowledge of the Word of God

We need to read Scripture because through it we find out how Jesus lived, and it is through His example that we can learn to live, too. We also need to know it because it is, as Paul wrote in his letter to the Ephesians, the “sword of the Spirit”.

We find Jesus wielding it to great effect in the desert when He was tempted by the devil. Matthew 4:1–11: “Then Jesus was led up by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil. And he fasted forty days and forty nights, and afterward he was hungry. 

And the tempter came and said to him,If you are the Son of God, command these stones to become loaves of bread.’ But he answered, ‘It is written, ‘Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God’.’

Then the devil took him to the holy city, and set him on the pinnacle of the temple, and said to him, ‘If you are the Son of God, throw yourself down; for it is written, ‘He will give his angels charge of you,’ and ‘On their hands they will bear you up, lest you strike your foot against a stone’.’ Jesus said to him, ‘Again it is written, ‘You shall not tempt the Lord your God’.’

Again, the devil took him to a very high mountain, and showed him all the kingdoms of the world and the glory of them; and he said to him, ‘All these I will give you, if you will fall down and worship me.’

Then Jesus said to him, ‘Begone, Satan! for it is written, ‘You shall worship the Lord your God and him only shall you serve’.’  Then the devil left him, and behold, angels came and ministered to him.”

Three times Jesus was tempted. And three times He resisted, quoting the Word of God as contained in the Book of Deuteronomy. (It is interesting—and educational—to note that in the second instance the devil used the Word of God to tempt Jesus!)

The Evangelization Commission conducted two School of Discipleship programmes—one for all Vicariates in 2014 and one for Central and South Vicariates in 2017. For information on the programme contact us at The Evangelization Commission office – 671-0133/4177.