Discipleship - ‘The missing ingredient’
28 February 2008Discipleship is one of those words that you seem to see come up over and over again in most Christian articles. We have started whole movements based around it, and filled countless libraries with books on the subject. But are we any closer to actually doing it, by that I mean actually reproducing disciples?
At a conference I was at recently the over riding theme coming from the front was the desperate need to make true authentic Jesus Following disciples. It seems that even with all the knowledge about what a disciple is we still are missing some vital ingredients to making one.
I hopefully would like to shed a little light on this subject. In fact this is such a vital subject that if we dont get this right then our whole mission and purpose on this earth will not be realized.
A quick look at the great commission should help… Matt 28:19-20…Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptising them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20 and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age." (from The Holy Bible: New International Version. Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, by International Bible Society)
The question then is How do you MAKE a disciple? I guess also another good question is what is a disciple?
Our role as I am constantly repeating is NOT to fill buildings but to fill the EARTH. If filling buildings were the goal then we simply only need to make ATTENDEES. No if we actually need to reproduce to fill the earth then we need to make something all together different.
Our role is to help develop brand new baby Christians into mature interdependent spiritual adults.
Lets have a look at these 3 stages: - Dependent, Independent and interdependent
The DEPENDENT Stage
Dependent: Relying on or requiring the aid of another for support and survival. Someone who is subordinate, someone contingent on another.
This is the ‘baby’ stage. This is where the newborn Christian (especially if they have had no church background) starts off. This person requires constant feeding and nurturing. They need to be told what to read, how to read, what to listen to and how to listen. They will need regular reminding as to how they are to behave. They will be constantly seeking direction from you and looking to you for their confidence and affirmation.
The model of parenting needed for this early stage of discipleship is that of a King, hence the triangle picture above. We need to be strong and clear as to what the values are and where the lines are. We need to provide a place of security for the new disciple to grow in. Our presence in their life must be highly visible and frequent. All too many times new Christians are born, but are left to fend for themselves too soon. When we are involved in planting new churches with lots of new salvation’s it is a very busy time. Ask any parent of a newborn baby and they will tell you it is a mixture of fun and great fatigue. Midnight calls and lengthy talking sessions are normal for new Christians. The way we disciple in this stage is crucial to the future development of the new Christian. Now I don’t want to lessen the role of the Holy Spirit in all of this, as He is the great counsellor, but we have the responsibility to nurture and watch over in tandem with the Holy Spirit. Just a word of caution though: we must be careful not to take the place of the Holy Spirit, but keep pointing the new Christian to what He is saying to them.
The INDEPENDENT Stage
These are the teenage years. Ask any parent and they will roll their eyes upward and sigh. The saying, “Ask an 13-year-old, they know everything.” This is the stage that most pastors dread in growing disciples.
During this stage the growing child learns to take on responsibility and experiences some authority. They are empowered to make choices. This is where they start to question most things that are taught to them. It’s where they start to ask for themselves what things actually mean. They may even question some of the core values that have been taught them from an early age. In church circles this is a very challenging time. These people are often labeled troublemakers and rebellious. Now sometimes they are, but for most I think they are just growing up. Remember that a controlling model produces one of two types of people: Rebels or Robots.
However, if we are building people with the BIG picture in mind, this is a stage to be embraced. We need our people to start to challenge things for themselves for it is only when you have wrestled with things yourself that you truly own it. This stage is crucial for the development of strong spiritual fathers. People challenging our viewpoint should not threaten us. If we cannot bring a reasoned answer then what right do we have to hold such a view? It is not enough to build our lives on our parents’ or church leaders’ faith.
The model of leadership needed for this stage must change. I have drawn a triangle, but notice that this time it is on its side. This style of leadership must be vision casting. This is not the time to draw boundaries or teach right and wrong. This is the time to talk about values and vision; to inspire to greater things. I know, through experience, that this stage is the most difficult of all. Everything in you wants to use the submission word, but this just is not the time for that. Come let us reason together as the Word teaches; this is the time for long walks and lots of talking.
In my experience the best way forward is to give them a project to do in whatever way they wish. Allow them to make mistakes, but obviously watch over them and be careful who you let go with them. It is crucial that you give them the room to develop and learn for themselves. Most of the bigger lessons in life will be learnt at this stage. People need to have the room to try out their ideals; it is only through this that they learn to connect their ideals with reality. So many great potential ministries are killed before they start, because insecure spiritual fathers seek to confine and control rather than release. We need to learn to live with mess. A look at the NT church gives us a picture, not of perfect little churches, but often a lot of mess. God doesn’t seem to be phased by mess, but is very capable of bringing great ministries out of seeming chaos. If we are truly asking God for spiritual families then we need to be willing to live with people in both stages. We need to be able to discern what kind of leadership is required for each person. We can’t just have a ‘one size fits all’ style of leadership—to do that keeps everybody a child.
The INTERDEPENDENT Stage
This is the adulthood stage of life. This is the place where the disciple is able to feed him or herself, and not be dependent upon anyone else for their survival. They have defined their own values and calling. They have a grasp of their destiny and more importantly their abilities and limitations. They have bumped their head a few times, have had to stand down and at times stand up to various leaders. These people are highly reproductive. This was the goal that I believe Jesus had in mind for his disciples. It is the point at which he was able to commission them to go into the world and preach the gospel, make disciples…reproduce themselves. Jesus said to them, “these things and greater you will do.” His intention was not for them to always be under Him, but to be able to do greater than He did. Inter-dependence is the understanding that on my own I can’t fulfill the great commission, but in a team with others I am able to be more fruitful. This is the point at which disciples are able to embrace the true meaning of team: the covenant community we spoke of earlier; the picture of the Trinity. Later, when we talk about networking church families together, this stage will be crucial for the health and development of the growing network.
Again it is vital that we keep the BIG picture in front of us if we are going to build what God had in mind at the beginning. We need to be comfortable with leading people in different ways at different times. We need to be secure when we are challenged and we need to watch for the trap of being needed, which can be a snare that causes us to constantly keep our church in a place of dependency. The goal of a parent is to raise children to ultimately not need us. Remember that the Eph 4 ministry is that of equipping, not constantly doing. Once we have equipped we are no longer needed.
2 Responses to ' Discipleship - ‘The missing ingredient’ '
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on April 9th, 2008 at 10:42 pm
absolutly brilliant mate,im looking into coming to the pioneer training sessions hopefully as we finish school of ministry on the 3rd of may and need my next move hopefully see you soon Dave God Bless Stuart Davis
on July 9th, 2008 at 10:03 pm
Hiya Dave, you know I always have some questions. In your talks you clearly emphasise that we should allow the Holy spirit to do His own work in new christians and you said so again today. However in your material above you state that baby christians need to be told what to read, how to read and how to behave but again you say above be careful not to take the place of the Holy Spirit so please if you have time can you elaborate on how a leader keeps the balance between the two. How much does stucture come into discipling and how much do we leave to the new christians to do work out for them selves.
Thanks and God Bless. Your teaching is fab and well worth embracing.
Val