As church leaders (lay or “professional”) we are all involved in making disciples. But if you haven’t defined “disciple” how will you know when you’ve done it?
Yes, yes a disciple is “a follower of Christ”. I got that. But what does that look like in your church?
In our ministry, a disciple has the following “qualities” or “accomplishments”:
- Profession of Faith
- Assurance of Salvation
- Baptized by Immersion
- Small Group Involvement
- Worship Service Involvement
- Serving Faithfully
- Giving Regularly
We accomplish these qualities in individuals through a variety of different means including classes, mentoring, small groups, and preaching, to name a few. But the point is that we know what the finish line looks like.
What does a disciple look like in your ministry? Comment below on your “qualities”.
I like the list. I am just more interested in seeing how we make disciples. I have been on a small group who is discussing the need for discipleship in our church. We have come to the hard conclusion that we could do better. I am not personally discipling anyone myself.
We need renewal in our church; we need to strengthen our discipleship programming.
Thank you for letting me be a part of this conversation.
Skipper,
Thanks for the discussion. I do believe that discipleship is THE main thing that churches should be about. The Great Commission, in summary, is discipleship! I think making disciples can be done in a variety of ways, but a church should use multiple ways to enhance the overall effectiveness. Here are some things we use to make disciples:
1 – powerful preaching ministry: in my opinion, the pulpit ministry is as important as any other factor in making disciples.
2 – small groups: using your Sunday School/small groups to make disciples is crucial. The hour that you have to influence people with the Word must not be taken lightly. Everything in that hour should be done to help make the people attending become more like Jesus. Great curriculum and competent teachers are key elements here.
3 – Personal discipleship: making disciples in even smaller groups (1-3 people) is also an important factor. Paul used one-on-one discipleship with Timothy. Jesus disciples 3 men at a time. Whatever your church decides is a critical number, focusing on smaller group discipleship is important.
For personal discipleship, we use several different tools in our ministry. We have a series based on Creation-to-Christ material for new believers. Our ministry also publishes a book called “Basic Bible Beliefs” that is more in-depth and very good. Thirdly, we also use a set of lessons in a 16-week series covering major Biblical doctrine and themes.
I can share some of these resources with you if you need them, but whatever you choose to use, the key is to start!
Hope that helps!
-Marc
Marc – Good post – we have been doing a ton of work on discipleship over the last year and God has really “rattled my chain” in this area. One quality I would add to your list – disciples make disciples. IMO that is the difference in what we see taking place in many “discipleship” ministries today. Disciples making disciples takes the process from a knowledge transfer (which is both important and necessary) to doing what Jesus taught us in the Great Commission.
excellent point. perhaps I should change the wording of the 7 qualities, because for us “serving faithfully” definitely entails discipling new believers. Disciples make disciples – I agree.
Marc wrote: For personal discipleship, we use several different tools in our ministry. We have a series based on Creation-to-Christ material for new believers. Our ministry also publishes a book called “Basic Bible Beliefs” that is more in-depth and very good. Thirdly, we also use a set of lessons in a 16-week series covering major Biblical doctrine and themes.
Yes please! Where can I access those materials? Would LOVE to start the year with some strong disciple-making. Thx – Mike
I will send you an email 🙂