Discipleship Basics · Chapter 9 of 16
Intentional Discipleship
Investing in lives
An army that spent all of its time enlisting new recruits would not win any important battles. Neither would an army that spent all of its time training its troops without ever enrolling new soldiers. Enlisting new recruits and adequate training both are essential. The point has often been made that to become a Christian is the experience of a moment and to be a Christian is the experience of a lifetime.
Discipleship means investing in lives — not only teaching “material,” but getting to know each other well and living so that others want to “follow us as we follow Christ.”
8 reasons discipleship tends to be more effective than just evangelism
- 1It does not rely on the success or failure of just one individual.
- 2The results are not just converts but disciples and disciplers!
- 3It follows the clear model of Jesus.
- 4Retention is much higher through discipleship.
- 5The influence on the disciples is much stronger.
- 6Discipleship is feasible and less expensive.
- 7Large-scale evangelism will not work without great discipleship — and discipleship is often less successful when it is picked up afterward.
- 8Sometimes “conversion” was emotional, or the disciple is in a dreamlike stage, and the discipler has the added burden of bringing them back to reality.
Adapted from Discipleship by Design, Harvey A. Herman.
Check your understanding
5 questions on this chapter
Question 1 of 5