2. Secret discipleship
John 19:38

3. Joseph of arimathea A prominent member of the Sanhedrin.
A good and just man; waited for the kingdom.
He did not consent to the Lord’s crucifixion.
He kept his discipleship a secret for fear of the Jews (John 19:38).
He found courage and stepped forward to bury Jesus (Mark 15:43).

4. Can we be secret disciples?
We must make a public confession of our faith in order to be a Christian (Matt. 10:32-33; Rom. 10:9-10).
Discipleship is something that is done, not claimed (Matt. 16:24).
We must let our light shine by allowing men to see our good works (Matt. 5:14-16).

5. Why one is a secret disciple
1. Fear
Fear keeps many disciples from doing what they should (Matt. 25:25).
Disciples are not to fear any man (Matt. 10:28).
We are not given a spirit of fear (2 Tim. 1:7).

6. Why one is a secret disciple
2. Being Ashamed
If we are ashamed of Jesus and His words in the midst of this sinful world, He will be ashamed of us (Mark 8:38).
We are not to be ashamed of the gospel, or of our brethren (Rom. 1:16; 2 Tim. 1:8).

7. Why one is a secret disciple
3. Love the World more than God
Whose praise do we covet - God’s or man’s? (John 12:42-43)
We are not to love the world or the things in the world (1 John 2:15).
Friendship with the world is enmity with God (James 4:4).

8. The Lord does not need any Secret Disciples.
“For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind” (2 Tim. 1:7).