By Godwin Sathianathan
I owe a
significant debt to four men and three churches who, over the years, became my
spiritual fathers and families. These wonderful people walked alongside me
through troubling and joyful times. They prayed with me, mentored me, and
laughed with me. They celebrated my victories and wept with me when my dad
unexpectedly died. They counseled me when I began to explore pastoral ministry
and spoke the Word to me when I became discouraged. They reminded me not to
take myself too seriously, and they lovingly pointed out sin in my life. God
only knows where I'd be and who I'd be without his grace working through them.
Today I am a pastor and long for my church to grow in this kind
of intentional disciple-making. Discipleship at its core is the process of
growing as a disciple of Jesus Christ. That sounds simple. But what does it
actually look like? And how do pastors lead their churches in discipleship? A
good place to begin is Jesus' last words to his disciples: "go . . . make
disciples . . . baptizing them . . . and teaching them" (Matt 28:19-20).
Three contours of discipleship culture emerge from this passage.
Clarifying
the Contours of Discipleship
1. Disciple-making is
an intentional process of evangelizing non-believers, establishing believers in
the faith, and equipping leaders.
"Make disciples" implies intentionality and process.
Disciple-making doesn't just happen because a church exists and people show up.
It is a deliberate process. Considering the modifying participles of
"going . . . baptizing . . . teaching" help us recognize this
process. It must include evangelizing (going to new people and new places),
establishing (baptizing new believers and teaching obedience), and equipping
(teaching believers to also make disciples). How does your church evangelize,
establish, and equip?
2. Disciple-making
happens in the context of a local church.
It's a community project, not just a personal pursuit. And that
community must be the local church, because Jesus has given her unique
authority to preach the gospel, baptize believers into faith and church
membership, and teach obedience to Jesus. Disciple-making doesn't just happen
in coffee shops and living rooms. It also happens in the sanctuary where the
Word is sung, prayed, read, preached, and displayed through communion and
baptism. Jesus didn't have in mind maverick disciple-makers; he had in mind a
community of believers who, together and under the authority of the local
church, seek to transfer the faith to the next generation. Does your church
view disciple-making within the context of the church, or only as a solo
endeavor?
3. Disciple-making is
Word-centered, people-to-people ministry.
When Jesus said "make disciples" we cannot help but
remember how he made disciples: three years of teaching twelve men on the dusty
road. Disciple-making, then, is the Word of God shaping men and women within
life-on-life relationships. It's demonstrated in Paul's relationship with the
Thessalonian church: "being so affectionately desirous of you, we were
ready to share with you not only the gospel of God but also our own selves,
because you had become very dear to us" (1 Thess 2:8). This
is gospel-driven, Word-saturated, intentional one-anothering. It is men and
women regularly teaching one another to obey what Jesus commanded. And it goes
well beyond watching football and having inside jokes with Christian friends.
How would you evaluate your church's Word-centered people-to-people ministry?
Creating
a Culture of Discipleship
If
these three contours are essential ingredients for a discipleship culture, how
do pastors lead their churches in growing that culture? Here are seven ways:
1. Preach
disciple-making sermons.
Pastors are not called to preach convert-making sermons or
scholar-making sermons. They are called to preach disciple-making sermons. This
means that they must craft sermons that will evangelize, establish, and equip.
This means that they are teachers, pleaders, and coaches from behind the
pulpit. Sermons also disciple through modeling careful exegesis, keen
application, and prayerful responses to the passage. After we preach,
congregants should understand and feel the text at such a level that they long
to be more obedient disciples.
2. Shape
disciple-making worship services.
Every church has a liturgy, whether you call it that or not, and
every liturgy leads the people somewhere or disciples the people toward
something. The question is where. The non-sermon elements of a worship
service—songs, prayers, scripture reading, testimonies, and tone—contribute to
the formative discipling of your congregation. Does your worship service lead
people in thanksgiving for God's gifts and goodness? Does it disciple people in
confession and repentance? Is there an element in your worship service that
offers assurance of salvation? Does your service lead people in celebrating our
future hope? Thinking through these components with your worship director will
strengthen your disciple-making services.
3. Invest in a few
disciple-makers.
We've heard it before, but let me say it again: Jesus and Paul
ask their disciples to invest in a few who will in turn invest in others (Matt. 28:18-19; 2 Tim 2:2).
Pastors, choose a few men you can pour your life into and intentionally
disciple for a period of time. Create a simple but effective format to
accomplish this task. For example, meet with a few men twice a month to discuss
sections of Wayne Grudem's Systematic Theology,
confess sin, and pray for one another. Keep it relational. At the end of your
time together, ask each man to choose a few men with whom he can do the same.
The benefits are manifold. You are obeying Jesus' disciple-making command, you
are cultivating a disciple-making culture through strategic multiplication, and
you are investing in those who may become your future elders.
4. Make small group
Bible studies central to your disciple-making strategy.
Many churches offer small groups like a side item at the buffet,
but few offer it as a main course. While Sunday school and other teaching
venues certainly disciple people, small group Bible studies are unique in that
they achieve multiple discipleship goals. After your corporate worship
gathering, consider making small groups ministry your next priority. This means
identifying and training mature leaders to shepherd and disciple their members.
It also means providing a clear vision for your small groups ministry. For
example, our church asks our groups to commit to three disciple-making values:
Bible, community, and mission.
5. Raise the bar of
church membership.
Unfortunately many Christians don't realize that joining a
church is a vital step of discipleship. When you join a church, you are not
joining a social club; you are publicly declaring your faith in Jesus and
joining yourself to a group of Christians in life and mission. In view of this,
pastors should view membership as discipleship and accordingly bolster their
membership process and expectations. Instead of making it easy to join your
church, make the process more involved. Get your elders teaching multiple
sessions on the gospel, central doctrines, the importance of church membership,
and your church's operating convictions (baptism, for example). Broach tough
subjects such as divorce and past church history during membership interviews.
Finally, ensure membership actually means something for members. What unique
privileges, roles, and responsibilities do members have in your church? Are
your members actually joined together in Word-centered people-to-people
ministry, as they promised when they became members?
6. Confront sin and
practice church discipline.
Like church membership, discipline is neglected by some
churches. Much like encouragement and
affirmation are key components of disciple-making, so too are
exhortation, confrontation, and if necessary more elevated measures of
corrective discipline. God uses all of the above to make disciples and protect
disciples within local churches.
7. Read
disciple-making books with your leadership.
Let me recommend four books for your disciple-making
arsenal. The Trellis and the Vine by Tony
Payne and Colin Marshall outlines a practical vision for disciple-making. One-to-One Bible Reading by
David Helm will equip you with the motivation and tools to read the Bible
regularly with others. Church Membership by
Jonathan Leeman is the best lay-level book on the subject I've read and will
help you understand how membership rightly practiced is discipleship. And The Shepherd Leader by
Timothy Witmer calls elders to lead the way in disciple-making.
Growing
a disciple-making culture at your church might sound daunting. It's hard enough
to make disciples within a small group Bible study, but a church with all its
complexities, systems, and baggage? Yikes. Here's a piece of advice: start
small, keep it simple, and focus on areas where a little investment will go a
long way. For example, you may want to invest in a few who will do the same
with others. Start with your elders. Or perhaps you want to focus on ramping up
your small groups ministry. Start by training your current and new leaders
around key biblical values that encapsulate discipleship.
Whatever
you decide to do, may you find tremendous energy and courage to make disciples
from the bookends of the Great Commission: "All authority in heaven and on
earth has been given to me . . . and behold, I am with you always, to the end
of the age."
From the Gospel Coalition Blog
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