Individuals and Institutions Jesus model One day as Jesus was walking along the shore of the Sea of Galilee, he saw Simon and his brother Andrew throwing a net into the water, for they fished for a living. Jesus called out to them, “Come, follow me, and I will show you how to fish for people!” And they left their nets at once and followed him. A little farther up the shore Jesus saw Zebedee’s sons, James and John, in a boat repairing their nets. Mark 1:16-19 NLT Jesus went into the synagogue again and noticed a man with a deformed hand. Since it was the Sabbath, Jesus’ enemies watched him closely. If he healed the man’s hand, they planned to accuse him of working on the Sabbath. Mark 2:1-2 NLT Pauls model I am writing to Timothy, my true son in the faith. May God the Father and Christ Jesus our Lord give you grace, mercy, and peace. 1 Timothy 1:2 NLT I hear reports about churches with thousands of members and wonder how people are discipled in them. I am sure that creative pastors have found a way to do it and would love to know how. Jesus did it--he had the people sit on a mountain side and then taught them for hours. However, his chief discipling method was to pour himself into the lives of a few (12 and 70) so they could pour into others. He did teach in the synagogue, irritating synagogue leaders much of the time. Paul also mentored one-on-one and in small house churches. His synagogue work also had some negative results for him, stoning for one. I am convinced that people grow best having a personal relationship with a discipler which eventually enables the discipled one to go on to mentor others. There has to be something in addition to a Sunday sermon. So, the question remains: how do mega-churches manage it? In many cases they dont. The emphasis there is not on personal growth; it is on personal experience. Big churches can disciple effectively it if there is a fierce intentionality about it. Intentionality is also necessary in small groups. Deanna, you know how easy it is to miss the quiet ones in a group of twenty. I have not called you to preach to mountainsides of people. I called you way back in the late 70s to disciple women individually and in small groups. Connect with me to get your directions.
Posted on: Sat, 15 Nov 2014 20:36:03 +0000
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