Week 6 - DISCIPLESHIP
WORSHIP
What can you/we praise or thank God for? (You could sing this or pray this to the Lord.)
What do you/we need to repent of? (This can be a time of silent or public confession.)
Let’s celebrate the Lord’s Supper.
The Meal
Leader:
We give thanks to God the Father that our Savior, Jesus Christ, before He suffered, gave us this memorial of His sacrifice, until He comes again. At His last supper, the Lord Jesus took bread, and when He had given thanks, He broke it and said, “This is My body, which is for you; do this in remembrance of Me.” In the same way, He took the cup after supper and said, “This cup is the new covenant in My blood; do this in remembrance of Me.” For whenever we eat this bread and drink this cup, we proclaim the Lord’s death until He comes (1 Corinthians 11:23-26).
Together, let us declare our faith in the words of the Apostles’ Creed (1).
All:
I believe in God, the Father Almighty,
Creator of heaven and earth.
I believe in Jesus Christ,
His only Son, our Lord,
who was conceived by the Holy Spirit,
born of the virgin Mary,
suffered under Pontius Pilate,
was crucified, died, and was buried.
He descended to the dead.
On the third day He rose again.
He ascended into heaven,
and is seated at the right hand of the Father.
He will come to judge the living and the dead.
I believe in the Holy Spirit
the holy Christian (2) church,
the communion of saints,
the forgiveness of sins,
the resurrection of the body,
and the life everlasting.
Amen.
Leader:
Together, let us pray as Jesus taught us to pray.
All:
Our Father in heaven,
Hallowed be Your name,
Your kingdom come,
Your will be done,
On earth as in heaven.
Give us today our daily bread.
And forgive us our sins
As we forgive those who sin against us.
Lead us not into temptation
But deliver us from the evil one.
For Yours is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever.
Amen.
Leader:
Take, eat, remember, and believe that the body of our Lord Jesus Christ was given for the complete forgiveness of all our sins.
Take, drink, remember, and believe that the blood of our Lord Jesus Christ was shed for the complete forgiveness of all our sins.
(1) This creed is called the Apostles' Creed not because it was formulated by the apostles themselves but because it contains a brief summary of their teachings.
(2) Traditionally, “the holy catholic church”. That is, the true Christian church of all times and all places.
See an additional liturgical form for the Lord’s Supper under MEAL AND THE MEAL.
Review
For four weeks we have experienced the four key relationships and crucial priorities of a follower of Jesus and a church family.
1. WORSHIP - Our Relationship to Jesus
2. DISCOVERY - Our Relationship to the Bible
3. COMMUNITY - Our Relationship to Each Other
4. MISSION - Our Relationship to Others
DISCIPLESHIP
Today, we’re going to consider DISCIPLESHIP.
We have already defined discipleship as the relational, biblical and intentional process of helping someone both become a follower of Jesus Christ and mature as a follower of Jesus Christ. And in our last session on MISSION, we talked about daring others to become followers of Jesus. DISCIPLESHIP, then, builds on this and will help you to not only make disciples but to mature them as well.
Ask God to speak to you as you read His Word.
Colossians 1:28-2:7 (NIV)
28 [Christ] is the one we proclaim, admonishing and teaching everyone with all wisdom, so that we may present everyone fully mature in Christ. 29 To this end I strenuously contend with all the energy Christ so powerfully works in me.
1 I want you to know how hard I am contending for you and for those at Laodicea, and for all who have not met me personally. 2 My goal is that they may be encouraged in heart and united in love, so that they may have the full riches of complete understanding, in order that they may know the mystery of God, namely, Christ, 3 in whom are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge. 4 I tell you this so that no one may deceive you by fine-sounding arguments. 5 For though I am absent from you in body, I am present with you in spirit and delight to see how disciplined you are and how firm your faith in Christ is.
6 So then, just as you received Christ Jesus as Lord, continue to live your lives in him, 7 rooted and built up in him, strengthened in the faith as you were taught, and overflowing with thankfulness.
Have someone retell the passages in their own words.
What stands out to you in these passages?
What does these passages say about God (The Father, His Son Jesus Christ, the Holy Spirit)?
What does these passages say about people, including ourselves?
What does these passages say about the life God invites us to live?
THE WHY
What is the purpose of Paul’s ministry?
What does it mean to be fully mature in Christ? See the four things Paul lists in Colossians 2:2:
My goal is that they may be encouraged in heart and united in love, so that they may have the full riches of complete understanding, in order that they may know the mystery of God, namely, Christ.
What does Paul do to reach this goal? See the three things Paul lists in Colossians 1:28:
[Christ] is the one we proclaim, admonishing and teaching everyone with all wisdom, so that we may present everyone fully mature in Christ.
How hard is Paul working at reaching this goal? Why is he working so hard at reaching this goal?
Where does the energy come from for Paul to work this hard?
How hard are you working at your own maturity in Christ and the maturity of others in Christ? Why?
THE WHAT
Once again, discipleship is the relational, biblical and intentional process of helping someone both become a follower of Jesus Christ and mature as a follower of Jesus Christ. If we boil it down, discipleship is the process of growing in the four key relationships and the four crucial priorities of a disciple. Let’s review those.
1. WORSHIP - Our Relationship to Jesus
A disciple is devoted to praying, praising and prioritizing Jesus in everything
2. DISCOVERY - Our Relationship to the Bible
A disciple is devoted to taking in and living out God’s Word
3. COMMUNITY - Our Relationship to Each Other
A disciple is devoted to loving a family of brothers and sisters in Christ
4. MISSION - Our Relationship to Others
A disciple is devoted to making disciples by living a Prayer > Care > Share > Dare lifestyle
Why is each relationship and priority important to being a disciple of Jesus?
THE HOW
Once again, it may be helpful to think of a disciple in terms of today’s apprentice (or intern, trainee, mentee, medical resident). What’s the purpose and what’s the process of an apprenticeship?
Let’s get a bit more personal and practical.
How have you been discipled? In light of our discoveries so far, what was the quality of your discipleship?
How have you discipled others? What’s the quality of this discipleship?
On a scale of 1-10, how ready are you to disciple someone else (10 being extremely ready and 0 being not ready at all)?
What if you were discipled first and could use the same process and materials to disciple others? Would that give you greater confidence in being a disciple yourself and discipling others?
1. Initial Discipleship
Follow The Way is a discovery discipleship curriculum for groups of 3 or 4. It’s based on a discipleship process that is relational, biblical and intentional. Not only will it help you make disciples, it will help you mature those disciples.
Here’s the journey:
Follow - 1-week introduction to following Jesus and Follow The Way
Faith - 11-week guided tour of the main events, characters and storyline of the Bible
Fruit - 9-weeks on how to join Jesus in mission by living a Prayer > Care > Share > Dare lifestyle
Filling - 8-weeks on how to be filled with the Spirit and live an everyday supernatural life
Foundations - 8-weeks on the basic building blocks of your identity and maturity in Christ
Freedom - 10-weeks on how to personally and practically embrace your freedom in Christ
2. Ongoing Discipleship
Ongoing discipleship can take place in your MicroChurch family. As your spiritual family gathers for worship, discovery, community and mission, people will continue to grow as followers of Jesus.
So invite newcomers to your MicroChurch where they’ll experience discipleship through your gatherings AND get them involved in a Follow The Way Discovery Discipleship Group to give them personal discipleship attention.
BE ONE / DISCIPLE SOME
In the Gospel of Matthew, Jesus’ first words to His original disciples are Come, follow me (Matthew 4:19). And Jesus’ last words to His disciples are, Go make disciples (followers) of me. Taking these two together, we can simply say the mission of each believer is …
To be a disciple of Jesus, and
To make disciples of Jesus
Everyone Discipled / Everyone Discipling
NEXT STEPS
Option 1
Divide up into Discovery Discipleship Groups of 3 and 4 (usually gender-based, though two married couples would work) and start working through Follow The Way.
Continue to meet as a MicroChurch using the Gathering Guide for your gatherings. This guide will help you practice Worship, Discovery, Community and Mission in your gatherings. Here’s the PDF Bookmark File.
Prayerfully consider who else could join you as you start your Discovery Discipleship Groups and your MicroChurch. Invite them along.
Option 2
If you have a smaller MicroChurch (6 of less people) and you can have consistent attendance for the next 9 weeks, your MicroChurch could work through Follow The Way - FRUIT. This would help your MicroChurch take a deeper dive into the mission of the church.
Once again, prayerfully consider who else could join you as you start. Invite them along.
After that, continue to meet as a MicroChurch using the Gathering Guide and form new Discovery Discipleship Groups with new people starting at the beginning with Follow The Way - FOLLOW.
LEADERSHIP FORMATION
2 Timothy 2:1-2 (NLT)
1 Timothy, my dear son, be strong through the grace that God gives you in Christ Jesus. 2 You have heard me teach things that have been confirmed by many reliable witnesses. Now teach these truths to other trustworthy people who will be able to pass them on to others.
For those who are interested in exploring the leadership of a MicroChurch, see Lead The Way. Take a deeper dive into critical leadership values and skills.
DISCOVERY & COMMUNITY
For the sake of time, or more importantly, to encourage deeper sharing, you could divide up into groups of 2 to answer the following questions.
Ask these pairs to connect with each other midweek to see how their “I will …” statements and sharing goals are coming along and how they can continue to support and pray for each other.
What truth have you discovered from today’s Bible passage(s) and conversation?
What would stop you from believing and obeying this truth?
How will you live out this truth this coming week? Finish this statement: “I will ….”
Who else needs to hear this truth? How could you share it with them?
How can we pray for each other?
When will we meet again?
Who will facilitate that gathering? (See FOR THE FACILITATOR for help in leading a gathering.)
You’re encouraged to share a meal together.
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