discipleSHIFT: from one-man discipling to one-another making disciples

One of the biggest shift is that the next generation can be able to make disciples to their next generation without us! How can this be?

The modern discipleship that we see in today’s church is so weak in that without ‘the pastor’ the church or the work dies. Someone’s got to do it? We have so neglect the work of the Holy Spirit Who can be able to mature the person without human intervention. Inspite of the heavy materials and schedules [you need a ‘shcedule’ in order to answer the ‘materials’] and ‘services’ and ‘programs’ and ‘methods’ of discipling their members, still the work isn’t done, even ‘turning their own city upside down’ it didn’t happen. For more ‘additional’ trainings they even built ‘Bible Schools’ and do ‘seminars’ and ‘conferences’ about it, yet somehow the answer to the question, “Discipling? How long?” can never be answered.

With all the ‘leadership skills’ we put into it, with all the books written about it, ‘strategies’ and ‘methods’ continues to abound with promotions through signboards and posters, have we made any disciples yet? A disciple is one who makes disciples, are they? I have been through all this, my own pastor started ‘discipling’ me, find a sched and answer the book, and we couldn’t even finished it! One pastor I know says, “Sunday Services and other programs are ways of discipling the people.” Yet, for years of sitting down on their favorite pews, still their people couldn’t make one!

The way we tried to fulfill the Great Commission is still a long way to reach out even to this generation alone! We’re still catching up, for how long?

How about the ‘one-man’ show who’s doing all the work? Our seminaries who keeps on ‘producing clergy’s’ will soon become ‘cemeteries’ for ‘sincere’ ‘burn-out’ pastors. If you haven’t seen these facts yourself then you cannot agree with me that one of the reasons why Jesus hasn’t come yet are that very predicaments! Their way of making disciples is very complicated at all. Jesus has having a hard time coming back to His Bride by their ‘sincere ways’ of dong things ‘in His Name.’ Are we doing things ‘for’ Him and ‘about’ Him or ‘from’ Him? I think one of the worst things that as we His children did on this earth is building Him a ‘house,’ this is exactly saying that Jesus will not come back yet. See, though we believe and even preach about “His Coming Soon” we uses millions of money to build Him a house! We have communicated the wrong message here my friend.

One of my spiritual father says, “God wants to save all men, and come to repentance. Making disciples then is not hard!” Well, honestly, it becomes harder because we lose the focus in disciple-making: the lost. We are more focus on the ‘found’ and ‘disciple’ them for a ‘lifetime!’ The intention of the Great Commission to make disciples to all nations was never to the ‘believers’ already but to the ‘unbelievers.’ The ‘yet-to-be-found.’ If the command is to the lost then what are we doing to the found?

How can ‘making disciples’ can be the job of everybody?

This is more than ‘passing the baton’ here, that is waiting for the old generation to be in the state of ‘dying’ and hand down the job to the next batch. Nope, this is about Kingdom works that ALL becomes priest and will rule nations in His coming! Honestly, by the way we have treated the Great Commission for many years -with all it’s methods and media – I don’t believe He is coming soon yet! As I said, it is the main reason that He delayed His coming because of “doing our own ways in His Name.” His ‘last word’ becomes our ‘first job.’ If we start that right then we end up right. If we start it wrong then we end up wrong. Unless there is a Revolution on the things that you ‘continually do week after week,’ that is ‘stop literally’ what you’re doing for a month or two or it may take a year, then start from ‘scratch’ this time. Unless we do this, then life can never become full of ‘surprises,’ as He wants to surpise His children but becomes ‘predictable.’ The only predictable about life is its unpredictability!

Take a look on how we ‘tried’ to disciple someone. By starting doing ‘Bible Study’ Programs or ‘Discipleship Classes’ then there is no telling for how long right? And after he’s done this or that what’s next? No ending. We start it wrong, we can never end it now! Help!

SIMPLE, QUICK AND FAST

Making Disciples should be simple, quick and fast to reach the growing population. Remember, we have the ‘Helper’ His Name is Holy Spirit Who was sent to live in every person who will be born in the ‘Second-birth’ in the Kingdom. This “Helper “is the “Discipler.” Perfect match of Jesus Who owns the disciple. For what purpose do you think that this Helper comes if not for this?

This makes making disciples easy because our job is only to ‘make’ and not ‘to disciple.’ Owning the ‘sheep’ makes you The Shepherd, [John 10]. Owning the sheep makes you ‘draw disciples’ for yourself. Ophs. better be careful as ‘words’ you’re going to use communicates very well. It has definitions and definitions defines relationships. Who’s disciple is he? You? Huh!

MAKE FRIENDS

Jesus makes friends, that’s how He looks for people to be His disciples. Of course, He knows even before He calls them. Like Nathaniel, “I saw you under the fig tree.” Just what do you think Nathaniel did in the fig tree? Meditating. He’s prepared, he’s hungry, he’s ready. So one thing surely Jesus does, He’s friendly.

FAITHFUL MEN

How to find ‘faithful men’ in the circle of your friends? Jesus look for people who ‘believe in Him.’ Same way you do, look for people who will ‘believe in you.’ Show your light, don’t do ‘hit and run’ evangelism ministry. “Quit winning souls, start making friends” as Gary Goodell would say. Spend time building relationships. And when they do, make them Jesus disciples. Jesus says, “Follow Me.” You tell him, “I will make you a disciple.” The reason that we have to ‘say it’ is because Jesus ‘said it.’ If you will not tell him he will not know. He’s intentional in everything that He does. His intention is He will make the person His disciples. Your intention is you will ‘make’ people His disciples, not yours. Who’s disciple is he? Jesus. Then who is his Discipler? The Holy Spirit. What did you just do to him? ‘Make’ him one. So there you go, you did it quick, simple and fast!

[For a more detailed on “how to make disciples” search the engine and type the wordings]

So, your job is to ‘make’ disciples, the Holy Spirit’s job is ‘to disciple ‘and Jesus job is to ‘build’ His Church. Many people make things complicated. First they ‘try’ discipling the person and the worst they ‘try’ building Jesus Church. See, He is not pleased not when we do nothing but when we do something that He didn’t told us to do.

LEAD FOR AWHILE

We have people around us who ‘believe in us’ and ‘trust us,’ they see our lives worth ‘following for.’ Let them follow you as they normally look for ‘leaders.’ So lead ‘for awhile’ then. This is where your ‘leadership skills’ is needed the most. But when they become like you, they be spirit-led soon enough after you make them disciples. Like John the Baptist, he only lead his disciples ‘for while.’ The question is either you continue to let them ‘follow you’ or push them to hear Jesus voice and follow Him.’ Yet, you stay close as their ‘father in the Lord,’ that is a ‘lifetime of relationships’ not a ‘lifetime of discipleship.’ Normally the people whom you make disciples, people who believe in you are younger than you. This is why they will become your ‘children in the Lord.’ These are the ‘faithful men.’ easy enough? Make sense?

HOW TO MAKE DISCIPLES

Normally we make disciples from 5 minutes at least to 15 minutes at most. We do it quick so that in turn the one that we make disciples can easily do it quick as well. We don’t worry about ‘theological’ or ‘doctrinal’ stuff. This can be dealth with on ‘relational’ time together. [See, my article “Relational Discipleship]. One time the one that I make disciples named Albert does 3 baptisms in about 30 minutes. He’s not baptizing 3, but only one. And one he baptizes makes disciples to his friend and baptizes him and so on. One who can make disciples is the one baptizing the person. This all happens while they went swimming in a nearby beach at my house. And this all happens while I was in my trip 2 hour flight and 8 hours by bus away from home! I was not there and this was happening. And when I was in my trip, I have made a disciple also in 15 minutes and baptizes him right away! Honestly, it amazes me. This is the Holy Spirit’s work!

One guy named Jomie, 21, whom Albert made into a disciple make Noel a 14 year old into a disciple. After 5 hours, Noel made a disciple to an 18 year old girl named Cherry Mae. And now this time Noel made disciples to his 65 classmates in High School! We didn’t ‘disciple’ Noel, we only saw him three times for the past 5 months since he was made into a disciple, yet this is what happens to him! Wonderful work of the Holy Spirit.

You cannot fully appreciate the Holy Spirit until you have tasted Him fully!

Search my site for all these stories. We blog them in ‘detailed accounts.’ You will surely love it. And by the way, Albert, 18 yr old, just recently baptizes his father. On my blogroll you can visit their ‘own’ sites. Yes, they blog and there is still more disciples will be blogging!

CHANGING THE NEXT GENERATION

I believe that the next breed of Believers shall not be called by their denominational names as these new disciples are ‘unchurch’ – they have never been to a ‘Sunday Church Services.’ They will called by His Name: disciples of Jesus Christ, not ‘church-goers’ but they are the ‘church-going’ community. They are “being church together as family.” They are fathered and mothered by their old generation, us, and raise them up as our own sons and daughters “in the Lord.” This can get rid of birthing spiritual orphans that has been roaming around from church to church. Jesus said, “I shall not leave you as orphans.” “You shall have hundreds of fathers, hundreds of  mothers…” “Children, obey you parents in the Lord.” “My son Timothy…” “You have thousands of teachers but lack fathers and I have become a father unto you.” “My dear children, I write these things to you.” These are ‘fathering cries”  to the ‘fatherless’ generation.

This is how to change churches and in turn change the world turning it ‘upside-down.’

How making disciples can be the job of everybody and not one-man? Make disciples through your friends who believe in you, trust you and loyal to you. You can make them because they are your friends, they have your belief and trust, not with me and surely not with Jesus. Lead them to Christ! As my friend Mike Peters would say, “We are only taking men to Christ for him to be discipled!.” I love it.