Denominations are not only different from each other, but every denomination is different from the Christianity about which one can read upon the pages of the New Testament. Ask of one s religious affiliation and his response will most often show of what or of whom he is a disciple. Christian discipleship is not without its cost. The cost of discipleship mandates the investment of effort, labor, money and time in the service of our Lord and Savior. The basis upon which Christian discipleship rests and is built must be an intense familiarity with the Christ and his Word.
Cultic tendencies constitute extremism that has gone beyond divine authority.
On the other hand, the zeal with which first-century Christians practiced their discipleship would be today, if it was not then, considered extreme or fanatical. It is this zeal, though, that the early Christians demonstrated which we must adopt. Probably more of the church in this generation will be lost, not for overt commission of sin, but for omissions in Christian duty and careless discipleship. Appropriate self-examination now will ensure that we do not enter eternity with a deficient or defective discipleship. George Ricker Berry, The Interlinear Literal Translation of The Greek New Testament , p. 62.