John 6:66 From that time many of his disciples went back, and walked no more with him.

2 Thessalonians 2:3 Let no man deceive you by any means: for that day shall not come, except there come a falling away first, and that man of sin be revealed, the son of perdition;

Do you see the irony here? Jesus was not revealed to be the Son of Glory until after a falling away of disciples. The son of perdition will not be revealed without there first being another falling away. I also see a great irony in the use of 666. For me it seems to be a great piece of irony.

Hidden within these two texts is another irony, not so compelling perhaps but probably even more important than what I have point out thus far. It is hidden behind “let no man deceive you by any means”. I will be the first to tell you that irony can hide important issues. It will keep you focused on the glitter like fireworks on the fourth of July, but like that celebration, there is a deeper truth behind it all.

In both cases we are talking about who and what we call disciples and discipleship. I cannot deny that these were called disciples for the word called them disciples. So a disciple is a disciple even if after a short time or a life time they should stop following Jesus? We are called to make disciples. We are called to exhort and encourage, to teach and love one another for this is discipleship. But if after all that, whether it be for a short time or for a long time, they stop following Jesus, were they ever disciples?

2 Timothy 2:13 If we believe not, yet he (Jesus) abideth faithful: he cannot deny himself.

To paraphrase what Jesus told Peter about John, “Don’t worry about what I tell him, I say to you, follow me.”

I am only answerable for my own actions.