Disciples Making Disciples

“Therefore, as you received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk in Him.” — Colossians 2:6 (LSB)

Why Your Struggle Doesn’t Mean You’re Stuck

One of the most honest questions a Christian can ask is this: If Christ has made me new, why do I still struggle to live like it?

That question captures the tension many believers feel. We know we belong to Jesus, yet we often feel caught between who we were and who we’re becoming. But here’s the good news—God never saves a person and then leaves them where they are. When Jesus gives you new life, He also gives you a new walk. He doesn’t just forgive you… He begins forming you.

The Christian life is not a self-improvement project or a constant cycle of trying harder. It is a walk—a daily, steady movement with the One who has already changed your heart. And the more we walk with Christ, the more every part of life—our decisions, relationships, attitudes, and desires—begins to reflect His transforming work.

Think of it this way:

You are no longer a slave to sin—but like Israel leaving Egypt, you are still learning how to live as a free person (Romans 6:6–7; Galatians 5:1). God brought His people out of bondage in a moment, but it took a lifetime to teach them how to walk in the freedom He had given (Exodus 13:17–18; Deuteronomy 8:2–5). Your struggle doesn’t mean you aren’t saved; it means God is actively training and shaping you (Hebrews 12:10–11). A patient and purposeful Father is faithfully completing the good work He began in you (Philippians 1:6).

Scripture is honest about this tension. Paul himself—an apostle!—confessed the same battle in Romans 7: “I do what I do not want.” Yet he immediately lifts his eyes and declares, “Thanks be to God through Jesus Christ our Lord” (Rom. 7:25). His hope wasn’t in his performance but in Christ’s ongoing work in him.

So if you find yourself asking, “Why is it still hard?” consider the following encouragement below:

• You struggle because you belong to Christ. The battle is evidence of new life (Gal. 5:17–18).
• God is not frustrated with you. He is forming you and is patient with your progress (Phil. 1:6; Ps. 103:8).
• Sanctification is lifelong. You are saved instantly, but you grow gradually (2 Cor. 3:18; 2 Pet. 3:18).
• You are not fighting alone. The Spirit empowers you to want and to do what pleases God (Phil. 2:13).
• Your Father delights in every step you take toward Him, even the small ones (Ps. 37:23; Ps. 103:13).

You are new.
And you are becoming new.
Both are gloriously true.

Christ has begun a good work in you—and He Himself promises to finish it (Phil. 1:6).

This is the journey of the disciple’s walk. Let’s explore what that walk looks like—and how we can take the next faithful step.

A New Life Means a New Walk

One of the most hopeful truths in Scripture is this: As I stated earlier, God never saves a person and then leaves them unchanged. Paul tells us in Colossians 2:6–7 that the same faith that brought us to Jesus is the same faith that carries us forward. We don’t graduate from grace—we grow deeper into it. And the more our roots sink into Christ, the more stable, strengthened, and grateful our lives become.

Second Corinthians 5:17 reminds us that we don’t simply receive a second chance—we receive a new identity. “If anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation.” Your past no longer defines you. Your old sins no longer own you. God didn’t polish up the old you; He made you new. Discipleship is the process of learning to live out the new life God has already placed within you.

A New Life Means Putting Off, Renewing, and Putting On

But being made new doesn’t mean the old life disappears overnight. Every believer feels the tug of old patterns and familiar temptations. That’s why Paul describes the Christian walk as a daily rhythm of putting off, being renewed, and putting on (Ephesians 4:17–24).

• We put off what belonged to our former way of life.
• We let God reshape our thinking through His Word.
• We put on the character and conduct of Christ in the choices we make.

Galatians 5 shows the stark contrast: life in the flesh leads to frustration and emptiness, but life in the Spirit produces the beauty of Christ’s character—love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. None of this appears through willpower alone. It grows as we learn to turn to the Lord moment by moment and say, “Lead me here. Change me here.” Walking in the Spirit means letting God’s presence reshape us from the inside out.

A Spirit-Filled Walk That Touches Every Relationship

Walking with Jesus will always overflow into the way we treat others. Paul writes in Ephesians 5:15–21 that wisdom, gratitude, gentleness, and humility mark a Spirit-filled life. And he applies this transformation to the most ordinary, familiar spaces: marriages, homes, workplaces, friendships.

A walk with Christ:

• softens a husband’s tone,
• strengthens a wife’s encouragement,
• deepens a parent’s patience,
• shapes a child’s obedience,
• and transforms the way we work when no one is watching.

When we walk in the Spirit, the people around us get to taste the grace God is working within us.

A New Life Means Keeping in Step With the Spirit

Galatians 5:24–26 tells us that those who belong to Christ have crucified the flesh. The old power of sin is broken. Temptation remains, but it no longer rules us. Why? Because the Spirit of God now lives within us, enabling, guiding, convicting, and empowering.

Romans 12:1–2 describes this walk as a daily surrender—offering ourselves to God, refusing to be shaped by the world, and letting our minds be renewed by His truth. Step by step, the Spirit conforms us to the image of Christ.

If you wonder what this looks like in everyday life, here are three simple checkpoints to help you keep in step with the Spirit:

• Morning: “Lord, lead me by Your Spirit today.”
• Midday: “Lord, help me reflect Christ right now.”
• Evening: “Lord, show me where You were working in me today.”

Small prayers, but powerful steps of surrender.

A New Life Does Not Mean Perfection

Here is good news for the weary: discipleship is not about perfection—it’s about direction. Growth is slow. Some days feel like progress. Others feel like setbacks. But every believer walks the same road of grace, and none of us walk it alone.

New life in Christ means new desires, new power, and a new purpose. And as you walk with the Spirit—day by day, step by step—your life becomes a living testimony to the grace of God.

So take heart. The God who saved you is the God who walks with you. And He is shaping every step.

A Practical Step for This Week

Choose just one of these to practice:

• Start each morning by praying through the fruit of the Spirit (Gal. 5:22–23).
• Memorize Ephesians 4:22–24 or Romans 12:1–2.
• Identify one strained relationship and ask God how to walk in love, humility, or forgiveness.
• Identify a sin, put it off, let the Spirit renew your mind, and then put on Christ in that area (Ephesians 4.22-24).
• End each day by journaling one simple question: “Where did I see the Spirit at work in my life today?”

God honors small, sincere steps. And in His hands, those steps become a transformed life.

What’s Next: The Disciple’s Warfare

In the next post, we’ll look at the spiritual battle every follower of Jesus faces—what it is, why it matters, and how God equips His disciples with the armor and strength needed to stand firm with confidence and faith.