A Disciple (from the Latin discipulus, a pupil) is one who receives instruction from another; a scholar; a learner; especially, a follower who has learned to believe in the truth of the doctrine of his teacher; an adherent in doctrine.[1] (http://machaut.uchicago.edu/cgi-bin/WEBSTER.sh?WORD=disciple) While often used for the followers of Jesus, it can also refer to the followers of any teacher (e.g., the disciples of Plato).

While the twelve apostles are the most well known group of people who were identified as disciples of Jesus, there were others: a much larger group of people were identified as disciples in the opening of the passage of the sermon on the plain (an abbreviated Sermon on the Mount) that begins in Luke 6:17. John the Baptist had followers who were called disciples (John 1:35), as did Isaiah (Isaiah 8:16). The twelve apostles call a gathering of their own disciples in Acts 6:1-7; there, they had a "multitude" of disciples.

From the 12 disciples of Jesus was Barnabas whose controversy Gospel has been recently discovered. Also One of the 12 disciples was Judas the traitor.

"Disciple" should not be confused with "apostle", meaning "one who is sent" or "ambassador". While a disciple is one who learns from a teacher, an apostle is sent on a mission, such as to deliver those teachings to others. Thus, the twelve original disciples became apostles when Jesus sent them to preach and to heal (c.f. Mark 6:7-13). All apostles are disciples, but not all disciples are apostles.

In many versions of Christian theology, discipleship is used to refer to the decision to become a committed follower of the teachings of Jesus. Jesus taught that "as I have loved you, so you must love one another. By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another.” (John 13:34-35, TNIV). In several Christian traditions, the process of becoming a disciple is called the Imitation of Christ , after the famous book of that title by Thomas à Kempis.

There is a modern Christian denomination known as the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ). They use this name in an effort to emphasize discipleship and Christian unity over adherence to a particular creed or sect. In this context, "Disciple" is always capitalized.

This article incorporates text from the public domain 1913 Webster's Dictionary.