DISCIPLESHIP TRAINING OVERVIEW

Thoughts on Making Disciples and on Christian Spiritual Growth

Paul J. Bucknell
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What is discipleship?
Five Misconceptions of discipleship
Do we really need discipleship material?
Key questions to ask in discipling others
Concepts of Discipleship
Advanced Discipleship Material (ADT)
Overview of discipleship materials
A Biblical Model of the Disicipleship Process

What is discipleship?

I remember when I was first seriously faced with the question, "What is discipleship?" A young man in a small city in Taiwan called "Phoenix Mountain" (actually, there's no mountain there, like there's no such thing as a phoenix) came to know the Lord. We had only been a few months into starting a new church, and I wanted to train this new Christian brother the right way.

Since there was no established program to guide him, I returned to Christ's command in Matthew 28:18-20 and began to consider the process of making disciples. I asked myself, "How do we do this?" I should have addressed this question long ago when I became a new Christian, and later during my training. But I didn't. Maybe it was because I lacked understanding; I had heard many speak on the command to make disciples, yet I couldn’t remember anyone explaining how to do it. Since then, I have given this question considerable thought.

Actually, I should have faced this question long ago as a new Christian and later during my training. But I didn't. Perhaps it was my lack of interest, but this I know: I heard many speak on the charge to make disciples, but cannot remember one who explained how to do it.

From that time onward, I have given much thought to this question.

Five Misconceptions of Discipleship

• Discipleship takes place when people participate in church programs.
  In fact, much good teaching can take place during church, but it is often too general and not tailored to the specific needs of a new Christian. Discipleship is seen as a course on Christian living.
  
  
• Discipleship just happens.
  In fact, we must challenge the culture and personally and lovingly teach others about the ways of Christ. We need to ask tough questions and get involved in understanding why they do things.
  
  
• Discipleship is only for new Christians.
  In fact, discipleship is a process that should last throughout our entire lives. A disciple consistently follows his master's example.
  
  
• Discipleship is a program.
  Discipleship truly is a way of life. We follow Jesus Christ, and this Christian journey calls us to learn from Him and mirror His example. It will involve significant changes in how we think and live.
  
  
• Discipleship is only for certain parts of our lives.
  In fact, Christ wants to guide us in each aspect of our lives, from parenting to managing finances. This is different from some cults, which actually make your decisions for you!.

Description of Discipleship

True discipleship requires applying all of Christ's teachings into our lives so that we live like Him. We should not be satisfied with just passing on doctrine and tradition, assuming that conviction and belief naturally develop. Instead, we are called to live out our faith visibly, just as Christ did. There is a clear distinction between a modern student and a true disciple.

Do we really need discipleship materials?

Having a strong set of discipleship materials is helpful, but it’s not our main focus. These materials can become a distraction or just another program if we’re not careful. Without vigilance, we might end up teaching our people attitudes and behaviors we didn't mean to. Our main goal is to prepare each new Christian with the proper knowledge, skills, and devotion so that they can naturally train others by what they learn. A good disciple is someone who actively teaches others to become more like Christ.

Materials are crucial for conveying a vision clearly and preventing key truths from being missed. Well-crafted discipleship resources motivate us to ask the essential questions that need answering. Often, we as leaders don’t reflect on what kind of disciples we aspire to develop. Frustration may arise with Christians not behaving as expected, similar to a parent’s dissatisfaction with their child’s behavior. However, have we ever questioned whether we ourselves are responsible for mentoring these new believers? Just as parents often blame external societal influences for their children’s errors, scripture emphasizes the importance of the parents’ role. The same concept applies to discipleship.

Good discipleship materials give us the chance to explore different parts of a believer’s life through God's truth in a personal way. Our goal is to share our lives, convictions, and knowledge with them so that they become more like Christ.

Key questions to ask in discipling another person

We want to think through these stages with you so that you as a parent, discipler, pastor or friend can take an active part in God's great discipling program throughout the world!

Here are some questions to begin to get you thinking:

1. What areas of growth should we prioritize to help a disciple develop?
2. Rate the person's willingness to grow in those areas of need. What has showed you his interest?
3. How have you grown in these areas? What has God taught you? How has He taught you?
4. Where is that person currently in these areas of their life? By God's almighty power and grace, where should that person ideally be in those areas? Where should you be?
5. What steps are needed to bring that person to those goals?
6. Under this last crucial step, we might approach it from a different perspective such as:
      - Truths a person needs to learn
      - Activities needed for fostering growth
      - Areas in which we are praying for discernment

   Click here in order to better understand what happens when a person is being discipled (shaped).
   

Concepts of Discipleship

The BFF website has a great amount of training materials on the concept of discipleship as well as actual training materials. We hope you have time to take a look.

Below is provided a number of materials to look at in order to get better acquainted with the concept of discipleship. Further on various materials will be introduced that exemplify how the process of discipleship actually works.

We must start at change in the heart.

First go to the Key of Discipleship and then look at the concepts of discipleship below.

Concepts for Discipleship has 3 parts:

 > Defining Discipleship (Defining the concept of discipleship)
 > Describing Discipleship (Spiritual disciplines and discipleship)
 > Designing Discipleship (Designing discipleship curriculum)

We must oppose the 'independent' attitude that is so common today, where everyone tries to learn on their own. Christ said that we need to make disciples. Christians are to be instructed by others. Discipleship relationships not only provide instruction but also demonstrate a life lived out before them. A Christian learns attitudes, emphasis, and real-life situations.

As a church, we need to consider where we want our members to be in areas like giving, discipling, evangelizing, family care, and loving neighbors. We can no longer assume people know what is right to do. For example, as a deacon, you might be deeply concerned about taking further steps to protect the congregation from the immoral teachings that are infecting the church. Go to your leaders in prayer with a well-thought-out plan. It’s easy to tell people what not to do, but we must revisit the questions above and focus on where we are leading the people and, by God's grace, how we can accomplish this.

Basic Discipleship Our 3 X E 7-lesson discipleship booklet (PDF format) is designed to guide new Christians through the basic first steps of their faith. It emphasizes the importance of participating in a local church, something many materials overlook. The content aims to counteract the self-centered attitudes that are common in many churches. Christians often focus on what they can get from the Christian life rather than on how God equips them to serve others.

There are both a teacher and a student booklet—print them out. After graduation, give the student a teacher copy and encourage them to mentor someone else! The student copy is just an outline to be filled out with the discipler; their own notes make it more valuable than the teacher copy. However, the teacher's copy contains all the verses, providing confidence that nothing significant has been left out. 3 X E One to One Basic Discipleship Booklet (Free discipleship materials)

A life-changing series that causes us to renew our hope that God wants to meet every one of His children each day specially.

Advanced Discipleship Training (ADT)

Advanced Discipleship Training (ADT) materials have now been developed. Traditional training schools and seminaries, because of their historical and secular limitations, are significantly lacking in their ability to equip the church with the leaders it needs. We must first ask ourselves,

If we were to train a pastor or evangelist, what qualities, skills, vision, and love for the Lord should they possess to serve Him?

Each course pairs a theme based on a key biblical passage with a practical study of a Bible book that can be completed in a week. Mentorship is essential in this learning journey. Find out more by clicking the ADT logo below.

Overview of discipleship materials:

It's easy to get confused about discipleship materials. We hear about various programs and don't realize how they fit together. I guess our own materials might add to this confusion!

But we can help you out here. We have charted the three levels of discipleship along with their purposes: Basic Discipleship, Intermediate Discipleship and Advanced Discipleship. But we can help you out here. We have charted the three levels of discipleship along with their purposes. We have then grouped all the materials we offer. This page enables us to gives a grand overview of the discipleship process and how it is accomplished.

A Biblical Model of the Discipleship Process

The whole process of discipleship in a church (or individual) is a most important concept of discipleship. It is foundational.

Why is it that Jesus can leave us essentially one command, 'to make disciples?' Once this entire scheme is understood, we can begin to examine each set of materials or the existing programs that our church currently uses. We have written quite extensively on this in 'The Flow.'

If you have any questions, suggestions or improvements, please let me know! Contact Paul at info@foundationsforfreedom.net

Click the Library image to see all the BFF discipleship materials that are now available !

 

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Biblical Foundations for Freedom ( BFF )

Rev. Paul J. Bucknell

Follow @PaulJBucknell