Matchless One
John 4:4-30 – Jesus encountered a woman with inaccurate beliefs and immoral behavior, He sought to help her find peace in both areas. Jesus is not afraid to address the critical areas until His role in our lives is unmatched.
Discipleship
Programs, Personalities, or Parents
Take full responsibility for the spiritual development of your children. God’s initial plan for the discipleship of the next generation was the home, and He has not changed His mind on the matter.
Identifiable Progression
If we are to obey the message of Jesus, complete discipleship of the whole person is our mandate. By identifying any needed areas and establishing a specific plan, you can make continual and substantial progress in the things that matter most.
Strategic Formation
No more happenstance growth, we must be intentional to experience strategic formation in our discipleship. Let your spiritually frustrated fatigue launch you out of complacency and into maturity.
Intentional Imitation
One of the most glaringly apparent omissions in our discipleship is the person doing the discipling. Our commitment to fleshing out our personal walks with Christ overlooks our need to learn from one another.
Subtle Restraints
As you attempt to follow Jesus, your motives and intentions may be exactly what they need to be, but they will be challenged by common yet successful opposition. Many disciples find themselves struggling due to these recurring issues.
Discipleship Reorientation
Most Christians can easily communicate the importance of making disciples, but few can articulate how they are personally engaging in the process. For all our numerous ministry activities, we must reorient to the task of personal discipleship.
Dull Spirituality
Matthew 13:1-23 – As Jesus often spoke in parables, it divided those who understood the truth and those who rejected it. When people’s hearts become dull, they cannot receive the blessings of God’s truth.
Your Kids Need an Intentional Home & Church
If I consider all the homes that have created a spiritually-flourishing environment, there are common characteristics. With the challenges of our society, I believe a partnered effort between the home and the church is essential for success.
Unrestricted Access
We often compartmentalize our lives. We have a section for faith. We have another area reserved for our family. We sort our hobbies over here and our entertainment over there. But what if our lives are not meant to be made up of isolated components?
Singular Ambition
If we are going to follow Jesus truly through the 2nd mile and beyond, we must ensure that we don’t wander off onto other paths. Making our pursuit of Jesus to be our singular ambition clarifies all other decisions during our lives.
Biblical Expectation
The Great Commission was never “Plan B” according to God’s agenda. From the very beginning, God desired to create a community of people helping one another to follow Him.
God Hasn’t Given Up on You
1 Thessalonians 5:23-24 – While we haven’t arrived at God’s destination for our lives, we should watch for signs to determine if we are getting there. God hasn’t given up on us, and He will continue to work on us until He finishes what He started.
Sermon Series Cannot Fix All Discipleship Problems
When we often see dangerous trends within our churches, we plan a sermon series to address them hoping that a six-week emphasis will do the trick. But what if people actually need more than that?
Discipleship [Entrust Institute]
Discipleship and disciple-making are a vital part of the believer’s sanctification. Once an individual has repented of their sin and trusted Christ for salvation, the process of growing and becoming more like Jesus is paramount.
What Has to Change in Your Church to Make Disciples?
We often wait for a perfect scenario within a church to make disciples. Programs don’t make disciples – people do.
Keep Making Progress
1 Thessalonians 3:11-13 – The Christian life is more of a journey than a destination. For all the progress you have made, keep going forward as you follow after Jesus and make adjustments to your life.
Maybe They Don’t Make Disciples Because They’ve Never Been Discipled
Don’t expect people to start doing something that has never been done to them. If you want your church to start making disciples, then start making disciples yourself.
We All Need Somebody
1 Thessalonians 3:6-10 – Within the Body of Christ, we experience the gift of mutual encouragement. Through the challenges of this life, we need to support each other and seek to support each other.
Make Disciples – Not Converts
Jesus commanded us to do more than just make converts; He commanded us to make disciples. Our work is incomplete until every other disciple is complete.
The Missing Component in Discipleship
One of the most glaringly obvious omissions in our discipleship is the person doing the discipling. Our commitment to fleshing out our personal walks with Christ overlooks our need to learn from one another.
Everyone Discipling Someone
1 Thessalonians 2:7-12 – If we genuinely care for others, we will prioritize their spiritual development. It is hard to fathom the impact we could see if everyone took the responsibility to disciple at least one other person.
4 Values for a Disciple-Making Church
Many churches claim that they value making disciples but rarely do we find members who can communicate what that means. What are some helpful values to direct this emphasis?
The Church That Won’t Stay Inside
1 Thessalonians 1:8-10 – If God is doing work inside a church, those who are outside should truly feel the effects of it. As we wait for the return of Christ, we should be the type of disciples unwilling to keep Kingdom activity within the walls of a church building.
You Will Figure Out What You Want to Figure Out
Following Jesus is full of numerous challenging endeavors that leave many people armed with fragile excuses. You will figure out what you want to figure out, so do you want to figure out how to follow Jesus or not?
Distinctive Discipleship
If every Christian is in a unique place surrounded by specific challenges, why do we think that a widespread approach will work for every single one of us? Let me help you design a personal plan for spiritual maturity.
52-Week Bible Reading Plan
The 52-Week Bible Reading Plan is developed by Michael Coley and has a unique structure. For those who struggle reading through some of the more challenging sections of Scripture, this plan guides you through a different genre every day.
Sequential Steps
One of the things I think we do poorly in ministry contexts is motivating people to change without giving them clear steps to improve. When it comes to discipleship, people need more than abstract concepts; they need sequential steps.
Missing Mentors
For all the resources at our disposal, the one thing we are missing is intentional mentors discipling us. The best content in the world can never replace a person walking alongside us.
One Size Fits None
One size doesn’t fit all; one size fits one. Jesus knew that. He practiced it. He was developing the entire ragtag group of disciples, but he was employing distinctive approaches with each one.
Patient Progress
As we minister to people, we quickly realize that growth rarely happens overnight. If we are in the work of discipleship, we must be committed to exhibiting patient progress.
How to Evaluate Your Spiritual Progress
An honest review over the last few years would reveal how much progress you have actually made. Sure, you will have moments of failures along the way, but are you trending towards more holiness or complacently settled into further unholiness?
Justification, Sanctification, & Glorification (And What It Actually Means for You)
I want to teach you three terms that will help you understand where you are spiritually and what that means for your personal discipleship. Justification is the declaration of holiness, sanctification is the process of holiness, and glorification is the completion of holiness.
The Narrow Road & the Two Ditches
Upon the road of Christianity, there are two dangers – one on each side. If not careful, you could fall into either one of these ditches and get yourself into serious spiritual trouble.
Multiplication Mindset
A church that is built on the strength of a few personalities or skills will crumble once those isolated components are gone. To fulfill the Great Commission, a church must prioritize a multiplication mindset.
Don’t Drop Your Kids off at Church
God expects parents to be the primary disciple-makers of their children. Your home will never produce growing disciples without the intentional investment of one generation into another.
Why Assembly Lines Don’t Work in Church
Discipleship will never be entirely effective if we use generalized approaches on people with particular needs. Our lives are too complicated for a conveyor belt – we require intentional mechanics who discover what we specifically need to get going again and work relentlessly until that becomes a reality.
5 Reasons We Neglect Discipleship
If discipleship is so simple in theory, why aren’t we doing it? Here are 5 reasons we neglect discipleship.
Why Many Christians Aren’t Growing
Christian maturity should be the ambition for every single one of us, but none of us are lingering in a precisely similar situation as another in our spiritual development.
Avoiding Half-Hearted Christianity
God didn’t call us to trust Him with some of our hearts because He knows we need total commitment. Discover God’s design for a life entirely entrusted to Him.