Discipleship in the fourth gospel

Abstract

In principle discipleship is the continuation of the mission of Jesus through the imitation (hupodeigma) of Jesus' way of life. This implies that his disciples will live according to the will of God, for Jesus was the personification of the will of God. The disciples of Jesus are therefore the locus of the manifestation of God -- their way of life must indicate the presence of Jesus (and God) in the world in a different mode. Discipleship indicates a personal relationship between Jesus and his disciples which is modelled/based on the Father-Son relationship which is elucidated by the agency model. A Descent-Ascent Schema forms the setting for this concept, with the Johannine dualism as the determining factor for this schema. Thus the 'agency' motif constitutes the structure for discipleship in the Fourth Gospel with a revelatory-salvivic assignment. The revelatory aspect concerns the disciples' relationship towards God and the salvivic aspect their directedness towards the world. The disciples have to live a holy life through which God will be revealed and which will enable them to accomplish their mission in the world so that the world may become saved. This study concentrates on the theological perspective of discipleship with some reference to the characteristics of discipleship.