Disciple Making and Measuring What Really Matters!

By Dr. Tom Cheyney

“Let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds” Hebrews 10:24.

In this month’s Resource e-magazine I want to pose this question, “How Do

You Gauge If Your Church Members are Getting Stronger Spiritually?” As we discuss

the importance of disciple making and disciple making groups, it is vital that we

measure what really matters. There is a raising gap between what Americans say

they believe and what they do. Within the local church the same can be said of

believers. Our beliefs do not always transform into actions. Spiritual maturity is

often seen in four areas: one’s beliefs, one’s practices, one’s attitudes, and one’s

lifestyle. These small indicators tell whether an individual has a growing integrated

faith, which is transforming each day into closeness with Jesus Christ. Anything less

is merely a statement of faith, but not action. As a believer goes deeper from mere

belief to consistent lifestyle, the more obvious these four areas will be in one’s life.

There are many things that churches can do, but I believe that discipling people is

the greatest investment a church can undertake. Although missions, evangelism,

prayer etc. are all elements within a disciple’s life, they are all used in discipling a

person in the way of Jesus.

Eric Geiger, co-author of the book Transformational Groups: Creating a New

Scorecard for Groups, declares:

Groups are absolutely essential to the health and mission of a church. They are likely the starting point for community, discipleship, and service in your church. In fact, recent research shows that people involved in groups are healthier spiritually than those who aren’t. People in groups read the Bible more, pray more, give more, and serve more. Simply stated: your groups matter.

Ed Stetzer, the other author of Transformational Groups: Creating a New Scorecard

for Groups, asserts:

Our research shows that people in a group read the Bible and pray more regularly, confess sins more frequently, share the Gospel more freely, give more generously, and serve more often than those not in a group.

Pastors, we are the most essential and influential person to launching and

continually starting small groups and keeping the small group ministry alive in our

churches. What I have learned is this: The bar I set is the bar my church members

will shoot for. Therefore I must set the bar high when it comes to the making of

disciples and small groups. We need to create an attitude of multiplication within

our churches and a group is a great way to expand one’s ministry. As a pastor, I have

understood that if I desired to make disciples, I not only needed to preach about

disciple making, but I was also responsible for moving church members from point

A to point B to point C and keep them maturing as committed disciples. Have you

considered that one new disciple-making group begun in your church will connect

ten new people with the church? The concept of the disciple in the New Testament

is simple. I am someone’s disciple if I am with him learning to be like him and his

reflection for Jesus. There is the idea of an apprentice that is seen from Jesus as He

walked with his disciples. When a church preaches or demonstrates that someone

can become a church member without even considering the need for becoming a

growing disciple it undervalues the ultimate goal of a growing believer. Our

preaching must stress that to be a growing believer one must strive to grow as a

disciple. Being a disciple and making of disciples is for everyone. We are all to

become and continue to be disciple makers. Each and every one of us has, as true

believers an unusual power, to make an incredible difference in somebody’s life by

being their discipleship coach. The work of disciple making is a function of the

church as community- relating to one another in ways to pursue growth which

flames bright and testifies to the world of Jesus. Discipleship is not something one

can talk about, but getting people to take steps forward is another level of

commitment. Transformation is the greater goal. Coaching them through the

process. Bruce Raley, from LifeWay Christian Resource’s states, “discipleships is

best accomplished in a context of relationship, and relationship occurs in smaller

groups.” Bill Hull in his work, The Disciple Making Pastor, declares:

Christ commanded the church to make disciples, to produce people who love and obey God, bear fruit, and live with joy. The crisis at the heart of the church is that we often pay lip service to making disciples, but we seldom put much effort behind doing it. For the pastor who is ready to put words into action, The Disciple Making Pastor offers the inspiration and practical know how to do so.

Bill Hull shows pastors the obstacles they will face, what disciples really look like,

the pastor's role in producing them, and the practices that lead to positive change.

He also offers a six step coaching process to help new disciples grow in commitment

and obedience and practical ideas to integrate disciple making into the fabric of the

church.

Common Misconceptions of Discipleship

There are often various misconceptions of discipleship. Discipleship takes

place when people attend church programs. In fact, much good teaching can take

place during church, but it is often too general and not targeted to the special needs

of a new Christian. Discipleship just happens. In fact, we must go counter culture and

instruct others personally and lovingly about the ways of Christ. We need to ask the

hard questions and get involved in the process of why they do things. Discipleship is

only for new Christians. In fact, discipleship is a process that should be occurring all

through our lives. A disciple always follows his master's life. Once a disciple, always

a disciple. Discipleship is a program. In fact, discipleship is a lifestyle. We are Christ's

disciples and this Christian life calls us to learn and live like Him. This will require

significant changes in the way we think and live. Discipleship is only for certain parts

of our lives. In fact, Christ wants to teach us in each aspect of our lives from our

parenting skills to handling finances. Mentoring is a term that describes the training

of a person in one or more specific areas.

A true disciple takes all of Christ's teaching and implements them into our

lives in such a way that we live like Christ did. We must not be content with only the

passing on of knowledge and tradition and assume the accompanying of conviction

and belief. We are called to live out a godly life before those we instruct, just as

Christ did. There is a great difference between the modern-day student and a godly

disciple.

Building Blocks for Laying a Foundation for Disciple Making.

Believers in the early church “devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching

and the fellowship, to the breaking of bread and the prayers” (Acts 2:42). Christians

were never intended to only gather in the same space and merely associate with one

another. God has designed us for much more—to participate with one another in

Christian community. Jesus clearly charged us to make disciples and His mandate is

all part of any church’s effort towards renewal. A disciple of Jesus is a person who

has heard the call of Jesus and has responded by repenting, believing the gospel, and

following Him. The importance of disciple making as a core activity of a church’s life

is certainly not new, but it does not hurt to ask ourselves whether this clear biblical

mandate has been relegated to a Tuesday morning women’s group, a Wednesday-

night men’s group, or some other type of program. As Dietrich Bonheoffer said:

“Let him who is not in community beware of being alone. Into the community you were called, the call was not meant for you alone; in the community of the called you bear your cross, you struggle, you pray."

Believers must begin and continue to think of themselves as disciples of Jesus.

The concept of being a disciple of Jesus is not fundamental to salvation has

taken root in the minds of many Christians and in many denominations today.

Young theology students have pressed their strategies as an extra step for only

those who desire a deeper commitment. Many church plants have even made this

into a weekly class over the working of individuals with individuals to grow an

individual believer. It has been promoted as an option over a necessity. Disciple

making is often stressed as important but not a requirement in one’s spiritual

journey. Believers must continue the journey towards growth and that means being

a disciple and making of other disciples. Some are less than successful disciples,.

Others are disciples, which are on for a while and off for a while. However, we are

disciples and we must see ourselves as one each and every day.

The Great Commission Does Not Make Our Contemporary Distinction Between

Evangelism and Disciple Making.

Jesus sent his followers to make disciples of all nations. This wonderful

passage of scripture was to make disciples leading people to profess faith and be

baptized, and then into a life of obeying all things Jesus commanded. Many writers

today utilize the double words of Making Disciples or Disciple Making. As a

community of believers we were actually developed as disciples after the moment

we gave our heart to Jesus and repented of our sins. It was something, which the

First Baptist Church of Naples believed in, and my Pastor Dr. Freddie Smith

provided the means for mature disciples to disciple those of us who were new in the

faith. We should ask ourselves what is needed to make our congregations places

where this kind of disciple-making goes on as a normal part of the church’s life. Do

we authentically welcome unbelievers to come among us and take whatever time is

necessary to seek and find Christ? Are we prepared to lead them in a step-by-step

process of disciple making from initial profession of faith into a life of maturity in

Christ? My home church of FBC Naples thought so.

Disciple Making is Not a Distinct Category But a Synonym for Christian Living.

The ordinary path of Christian growth is learning what it means to be Jesus’

disciples and understanding the resources God provides to help us grow. Within this

broader understanding of discipleship, it is certainly appropriate to have special

study seasons or specific programs designed to help people in their walk with

Christ. However, along with specific ministries that might be labeled “discipleship,”

there needs to be a general consciousness that everything in the church should be

viewed through the lens of making disciples.

The Life of a Disciple of Jesus Begins with the Call of Jesus.

In the story of the earliest call to becoming a disciple, Mark tells us that Jesus

took up His public ministry by preaching repentance and faith in the good news. He

then called four fishermen to follow Him, which they did immediately (Mark 1:14-

20). In the next chapter He called Levi to leave behind his tax-collecting business

and follow Him, which Levi did. Later that day Jesus spoke of what He was doing in

terms of the call: “I have not come to call the righteous but sinners” (Mark 2:13-17).

Based on these passages, and consistent with other Scripture, I define a disciple of

Jesus this way: A disciple of Jesus is a person who has heard the call of Jesus and has

responded by repenting, believing the gospel, and following Him.

The Apostle Paul Believed that Biblical Doctrine was Important to the Disciple

Making of New Believers.

Most discipleship programs are works related as in something you must do

for you to have the Christian life. These may include personal spiritual disciplines

such as prayer, Bible study, fasting, etc., or more active disciplines such as

community service and missionary work. These are worthy things that we need to

be doing, but is this the place to start? Paul approached this important question of

living as disciples in another way. He taught again and again that the basis for

“doing” must be “knowing” (Colossians 1:9-10). If you think of doctrine as separate

from discipleship, you need to reexamine your views. The “doing” of Christian living

is built on a solid foundation of “knowing.” We also want to be certain that our

biblical and theological teaching really does contribute to the hearers’ walk with

Christ. The “teach” of the Great Commission is not the teaching of information, but

very specifically, “teach them to obey all things I have commanded you.”

There Is No Disciple Making Without Community.

God’s appointed arena for making disciples is the church. The modern

discipleship movement was birthed by para-church organizations that stressed

particular discipleship methods. Usually these methods revolved around a

multiplication philosophy that focused on small groups or one-to-one training. No

doubt there is a great deal that has been of benefit to Christians, but this has also

contributed to a highly individualistic understanding of discipleship. However, once

we understand discipleship in the broader sense of helping one another live out our

Christian lives, then the absolute necessity of the church community comes to the

foreground.

Discipleship begins with the next generation.

The first consideration in a church’s mission to make disciples should be the

discipleship of its own children. Pastors and other church leaders should feel the

weight of Jesus’ rebuke to His disciples when they thought He was too busy or too

important to give serious attention to children who were brought to Him (Matthew

19:13-15).

If We Are Following Jesus We Must Follow His Mission To The Entire World.

From the very first words of His call, Jesus made it clear that to follow Him as

a disciple had a purpose — a mission. Earlier I mentioned the challenge of

convincing believers that they are disciples; now the challenge becomes to convince

these disciples that they are actually missionaries. Of course, the word “missionary”

can bring various reactions, but in its most basic sense, a missionary is someone on

a mission — and a disciple of Jesus is a person with a mission. We are to be disciples

making disciples. That means we are people still learning what it means to follow

Jesus as His disciples ourselves, and an important part of that discipleship is helping

those who may be a few steps behind us. Jesus told those first disciples that He

would make them fishers of men. Jesus does this work as church leaders become

Christ’s instruments to “equip the saints for the work of ministry” (Ephesians 4:12).

Robby Gallaty, Pastor of Brainerd Baptist Church in Chattanooga, Tennessee

says there are five reasons it is better to disciple in groups. The gospels record Jesus

ministering in 5 group sizes: the crowd (multitudes), the committed (the 72 in Luke

10), the cell (the twelve disciples), the core (Peter, James, and John), and the close-

up encounters (one-on-one). Making disciples cannot be restricted to a particular

group meeting; however, a regular gathering time is practically necessary for

accountability. While the Bible never prescribes a particular model for discipling

others, Jesus invested in groups of varying sizes. Larger groups learned from his

teachings and miracles, while his closest followers benefited from personal

discipleship and specific instruction. While one-on-one discipling is valid and has it

purposes, he wants us to consider five reasons to meet in a group of three to five

instead of privately with one. Here are his ideas:

1. Avoid the Ping-Pong Match

First, a group of two can be like a Ping-Pong match: you, the leader, are responsible to keep the ball in play. “Mark how was your day?” “Good,” responds Mark. The leader probes deeper by asking, “Any insights from your Scripture reading this week?” “I enjoyed it,” Mark briefly replies. The conversation progresses only as the mentor engages the mentee. The pressure to lead is lessened when others in the group join in on the spiritual journey.

2. One-on-One can be Challenging to Reproduce

Second, a one-on-one model can be challenging to reproduce because the person in whom you are investing has a tendency to look at you in the same manner that Timothy looked at the Apostle Paul. Mentees, after a year or two

in a discipling relationship, have said to me, “I could never do with another person what you did with me.” Yet a group takes a journey together. It is worth noting that group members usually don’t feel ready to begin their own groups. Neither did the disciples. But Jesus left them with no choice. Remember, the discipling relationship is not complete until the mentee becomes a mentor, the player becomes a coach.

3. Groups of Two Tend to Become a Counseling Session

Third, a group of two tends to become a counseling session, where you spend the majority of your time solving personal problems. Biblical wisdom for personal issues is certainly a part of the discipling relationship, but therapeutic advice every week must not define the group.

4. Jesus Discipled in Groups

Fourth, as mentioned earlier, Jesus utilized the group model. While he spent time investing in a group of twelve, he used teachable moments to shape three—Peter, James, and John—in a unique way. With the exception of Judas, all twelve faithfully followed the Lord, even to the point of death. But these three were the key leaders in the early years of the church.

Solomon, a financial genius and the Warren Buffett of his day, advocated the

diversification of assets twenty-five hundred years before Wall Street existed (Eccl.

11:1-2). Wise people invest in a variety of stocks, bonds, and commodities. Jesus,

too, believed in diversified investing and modeled it in his discipleship example. Joel

Rosenberg and T.E. Koshy pose a thought-provoking question:

What if for three years Jesus had discipled only Judas? Despite his best efforts, Jesus would have wound up with no one to carry on his legacy and his message when he returned to the Father. Jesus didn’t invest in just one man. He invested in a group of men from a wide range of backgrounds, including fishermen, a tax collector, and a Zealot (a political revolutionary).1

1 Joel C. Rosenberg and T. E. Koshy, The Invested Life (Carol Stream, IL: Tyndale House Publishers, 2012), 87-88.

Jesus poured himself into twelve men, and taught us the importance of the

group in disciple making. Yes, there are times when a one-on-one mentoring

relationship is beneficial, but in the New Testament, particularly the Gospels,

it is not the norm.

Paul, in similar fashion, used his missionary journeys to train others. He

rarely if ever traveled alone, always including Barnabas, Silas, John Mark, Timothy,

and others as gospel co-workers. When Paul charged Timothy in his final letter, he

stated, “You then, my child, be strengthened by the grace that is in Christ Jesus, and

what you have heard from me in the presence of many witnesses entrust to faithful

men who will be able to teach others also” (2 Tim. 2:1-2). Notice that Paul says,

“Entrust to faithful men”—plural—“who will teach others.” Throughout his ministry,

Paul modeled this practice.

5. Built-in Accountability

Finally, a group of three to five provides a built-in accountability system, as well as encouragement from others. In my first D-Group, two of the three men involved came prepared with a Bible-reading journal I had asked them to complete, but one, a skeptic of the system’s value, failed to make any entry. Prior to joining the D-Group, his excuse for not reading the Bible was, “It’s difficult to understand.” Using the other two men to motivate him, I countered, “Can you just try journaling for the next five days? Right now, you have no evidence to prove that it doesn’t work. By trying it, you will know if it works for you or not.” The next week, he arrived with a smile on his face, saying, “Let me share what I heard from God through his Word this week.” Watching the excitement of the others challenged him to contribute to the group, and to his own spiritual development.

The implicit goal of leadership is not in keeping people happy, but helping

them become holy. Help people to explore the faith, discover God’s love, and keep

growing at living out and applying their faith. Strategic leadership directs people to

get involved in systematic theological growth, personal disciplines, strong

Christology, and biblical priorities. Continually adapt structures to best serve these

purposes and to maximize their effectiveness on the members and surrounding

communities. Avoid squeezing people into structures, but rather wrap structures

around the energies, vision and gifting of its participants. Direct them to align their

ways of working and relating to express and demonstrate the gospel they proclaim.

Perhaps the most fundamental and basic reason for making disciples is that it

is a clear directive from Jesus Himself! Before leaving the planet, Jesus

commissioned His disciples to go and make disciples, teaching others the very

things they learned over the last few years of travel with Jesus. This command was

not for Jesus’ earthly followers alone, but for us also. We are to be disciple-makers in

simple obedience. Disciples are obedient…that’s what makes them disciples.

Discipleship is also vitally important because it’s the way that people learn

the will and ways of God. Sadly our culture has done a poor job of maintaining

apprenticeships and passing on the baton to future leaders in many vocations. In

church life, we cannot afford to fail in this way. We must undertake discipleship

much more seriously, lest this generation grows up not knowing God.

Making disciples is also important because it teaches both involved in the

discipleship relationship. Regardless of who may be older or wiser, in a discipleship

setting each person learns and grows in faith, maturity, and knowledge. A true

discipleship relationship is not simply about one person teaching another as much

as it is about sharing life together and learning from each other. Such a relationship

is mutually beneficial.

Making disciples is crucial because when we don’t make disciples we fail to

engage in the full expression of Christ. Through disciple making, all the body of

Christ is able to come together and exercise their varying gifts within the context of

loving relationships. People are also able to share their burdens, struggles and pain

within those same bonds. Discipleship is not only the way we mentor, coach and

teach the way of Jesus, it is the way we live like Jesus. Jesus chose disciples, people

who not only learned from Him but people with whom He shared life. He cried with

them, laughed with them and shared intimate moments of love and life that not

everyone else was privy. Jesus’ disciples ultimately became His family.

Making disciples is important because it is the Lord’s chosen method of

spreading the Good News of salvation through Jesus Christ. During His public

ministry, Jesus spent more than three years making disciples—teaching and training

His chosen twelve. He gave them many convincing proofs that He was the Son of

God, the promised Messiah; they believed in Him, though imperfectly. He spoke to

the crowds, but often He drew the disciples aside privately to teach them the

meaning of His parables and miracles. He sent them out on ministry assignments. He

also taught them that soon He would be returning to His Father following His death

and resurrection (Matthew 16:21; John 12:23-36, 14:2-4). Though they could not

comprehend it, He made the disciples this astonishing promise: “I tell you the truth,

anyone who has faith in Me will do what I have been doing. He will do even greater

things than these, because I am going to the Father” (John 14:12). Jesus also

promised to send His Spirit to be with them forever (John 14:16-17).

As promised, on the Day of Pentecost, the Holy Spirit came with power on the

believers, who then were emboldened to speak the Good News to everyone. The

remainder of the Book of Acts gives the exciting account of all that was

accomplished through them. In one city the opposition said, “These who have

turned the world upside down are come hither also” (Acts 17:6 KJV). Multitudes

placed their faith in Jesus Christ, and they also became disciples. When strong

persecution came from the false religious leaders, they dispersed to other areas and

continued to obey Christ’s command. Churches were established throughout the

Roman Empire, and eventually in other nations.

Later, because of disciples such as Martin Luther and others, Europe was

opened to the Gospel of Jesus Christ through the Reformation. Eventually, Christians

immigrated to the New World to make Christ known. Though the world still is not

completely evangelized, the challenge is as viable now as ever before. The command

of our Lord remains – “Go and make disciples, baptizing them, and teaching them to

obey everything I have commanded you.” The characteristics of a disciple may be

simply stated as:

• one who is assured of his salvation (John 3:16) and is activated by the indwelling Holy Spirit (John 14:26-27);

• one who is growing in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior (2 Peter 3:18); and

• one who shares Christ’s burden for the lost souls of men and women. Jesus said, “The harvest is plentiful but the workers are few. Ask the Lord of the harvest, therefore, to send out workers into His harvest field” (Matthew 9:37-38).

Is Your Group Open or Closed?

There is power in new. The reality is that new groups connect more people

than existing groups. Because everyone in the group is new, a new group makes it

easier for newcomers to connect than existing groups. New groups generate fresh

excitement and more opportunities for connection and growth in your church.

Acceptance in an existing group is often hard as individuals are already well

connected with one another and it is hard to fit in the group. There are open groups

and closed groups in most churches regardless of what we call them. An open group

is one where new people easily fit in and can begin to develop a connection and do

life together. A closed group has been around for some time and there is

connection, but it is focused on those who are already part of the group and new

prospects find it hard to fit into the group. Rick Howerton, small groups specialist

remarks: “most groups become close groups within two years from their

conception.” He further challenges us when he declares, “they can become

missionally stagnant.”

Will You Be a Catalyst?

New groups do not launch themselves. It takes a catalyst to get them up and

running. In every group there are leaders, people personally gifted by Jesus Christ to

serve in this capacity. Paul teaches in Ephesians 4:11–13 that the health of the

church depends on the development and training of believers. Simply put, group

leaders who are trained are more confident and better positioned to pour into the

lives of others. Leaders reproduce who they are, thus equipped leaders reproduce

the commitment to community, discipleship, and mission into the groups they lead.

Just Imagine how the culture in your church would change if it were filled with

trained leaders.

Because groups matter, we must commit to launching new groups. Would

you join with other SBC churches around the world to launch 100,000 new groups,

whether they meet in homes, at the church, on Sundays, or throughout the week?

Research shows that while 95% of churches have groups of some kind, those

churches that have healthy, thriving cultures of participation all do the same three

things: they develop their leaders, launch new groups, and feed their people. By the

power of the Holy Spirit, these three imperatives push a church forward and enable

healthy and growing community. Because groups matter, we must commit to

developing leaders. LifeWay Christian Resources is committed to serving churches by

helping them build a more vibrant group culture. The resources and insights offered

on this site are free and designed to make it simple for your church to get started.

Groups matter too much to the life of a church to treat them casually or haphazardly.

If you really believe that groups make a difference in reaching and growing

people, how many will you commit to start this year? Let us help. Our theme this

year at our Annual Celebration is The Importance of Disciple Making and our keynote

speaker is Dr. Thom Rainer the President of LifeWay! He will be preaching about

the need for groups in growing healthy churches. Would you begin praying about

what goal you and your church will have as we gather together for this evening of

celebration? Now is the time to begin praying and thinking about the goal God

would have for you and your church.

Additional resources you might find helpful:

Would you join with other SBC churches around the world to launch 100,000 new groups? If so check out the groups matter website: www.groupsmatter.com.

Organic Discipleship: Mentoring Others Into Spiritual Maturity and Leadership (Revised Edition)

Two leading disciple makers explain how they mentor disciples in one of the most successful discipleship-based churches in North America. Biblical and practical, this book gets down to the real questions in the disciple making process.

Multiply: Disciples Making Disciples

Designed for use in discipleship relationships and other focused settings, Multiply will equip you to carry out Jesus’s ministry. Each of the twenty-four sessions in the book corresponds with an online video at www.multiplymovement.com, where New York Times bestselling author David Platt joins Francis Chan in guiding you through each part of Multiply.

The Cost of Discipleship

One of the most important theologians of the twentieth century illuminates the relationship between ourselves and the teachings of Jesus. What can the call to discipleship, the adherence to the word of Jesus, mean today to the businessman, the soldier, the laborer, or the aristocrat? What did Jesus mean to say to us? What is his will for us today? Drawing on the Sermon on the Mount, Dietrich Bonheoffer answers these timeless questions by providing a seminal reading of the dichotomy between "cheap grace" and "costly grace." "Cheap grace," Bonheoffer wrote, "is the grace we bestow on ourselves...grace without discipleship....Costly grace is the

gospel which must be sought again and again, the girl which must be asked for, the door at which a man must know....It is costly because it costs a man his life, and it is grace because it gives a man the only true life."

Transforming Discipleship: Making Disciples a Few at a Time

Many churchgoers complain that their churches lack a coherent plan for discipleship and spiritual growth. In turn, many church leaders lament their lack of resources to build and manage effective programs to help people become fully devoted followers of Christ. In Transforming Discipleship Greg Ogden introduces his vision for discipleship, emphasizing that solutions will not be found in large-scale, finely tuned, resource-heavy programs. Instead, Ogden recovers Jesus' method of accomplishing life change by investing in just a few people at a time. And he shows how discipleship can become a self-replicating process with ongoing impact from generation to generation. Biblical, practical and tremendously effective, Transforming Discipleship provides the insights and philosophy of ministry behind Ogden's earlier work, Discipleship Essentials. Together, these groundbreaking books have the potential to transform how your church transforms the lives of its people.

Transformational Discipleship: How People Really Grow

A Christian’s desire to grow in faith is beautiful and biblical, best illustrated in Jeremiah 17 where Scripture describes “The man who trusts in the LORD” as being “like a tree planted by water . . . It will not worry in a year of drought or cease producing fruit.” But how do people really grow? Transformational Discipleship describes the process that brings to life that kind of person described in the Bible. There’s no magic formula or mantra to recite here, but rather a substantive measure of research with churches and individuals who have wholeheartedly answered the call of Jesus to make disciples. A compilation of their wisdom and stories, it surely guides church leaders and members to practice the intentional efforts needed to foster an entire culture in which people grow in Christian faith. And they will grow, not because of human research, but by the power of the Word and of the Holy Spirit working through the church—the same way disciples have always been made.

When the people of God engage in the mission of God through the Spirit of God, lives are transformed.

Transformational Groups: Creating a New Scorecard for Groups

God declared through the Apostle Paul that the church would be a place of transformation. In 2 Corinthians 5:17 we find, Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away, and look, new things have come. Despite this, the church seems increasingly to be a place where transformation fails to occur. In Transformational Groups, Ed Stetzer and Eric Geiger have created a new scorecard that will provide a map to transformational success for your church’s groups ministry. Using data from the largest survey of pastors and laypersons ever done on the condition of groups in the church, they define a simple process to lead your groups from where they are to where God wants them to be.

The Great Omission: Reclaiming Jesus's Essential Teachings on Discipleship

The last command Jesus gave the church before he ascended to heaven was the Great Commission, the call for Christians to "make disciples of all the nations." But Christians have responded by making "Christians," not "disciples." This, according to brilliant scholar and renowned Christian thinker Dallas Willard, has been the church's Great Omission. "The word disciple occurs 269 times in the New Testament," writes Willard. "Christian is found three times and was first introduced to refer precisely to disciples of Jesus. . . . The New Testament is a book about disciples, by disciples, and for disciples of Jesus Christ. But the point is not merely verbal. What is more important is that the kind of life we see in the earliest church is that of a special type of person. All of the assurances and benefits offered to humankind in the gospel evidently presuppose such a life and do not make realistic sense apart from it. The disciple of Jesus is not the deluxe or heavy-duty model of the Christian -- especially padded, textured, streamlined, and empowered for the fast lane on the straight and narrow way. He or she stands on the pages of the New Testament as the first level of basic transportation in the Kingdom of God." Willard boldly challenges the thought that we can be Christians without being disciples, or call ourselves Christians without applying this understanding of life in the Kingdom

of God to every aspect of life on earth. He calls on believers to restore what should be the heart of Christianity -- being active disciples of Jesus Christ. Willard shows us that in the school of life, we are apprentices of the Teacher whose brilliance encourages us to rise above traditional church understanding and embrace the true meaning of discipleship -- an active, concrete, 24/7 life with Jesus.