Monthly Archives: March 2017

Perhaps we’ve somehow made fulfilling the Great Commission too hard? Too complicated? Too institutional? Perhaps we don’t see our individual responsibility as followers of Jesus to make disciples? Perhaps we are not noticing all the people around us who are searching for God but have not found him in the church building on Sunday? Perhaps we have relied too much on a telling approach that appears transactional and prescriptive to many around us? Sent Jesus reminds us in John 17:18, “As you [the Father] sent me into the world, I have sent them [believers] into the world” (emphasis added). We...Read more …

Everyone seems to agree that a disciple is not simply a person who prays the prayer of salvation and then goes to a church service on Sundays, although in actual practice this may be the definition that is most common. Churches may be full of people who have prayed a prayer of salvation, but does that make them disciples? Or is there more to it? How we define a disciple matters. Jesus clearly told His disciples to go out and make more of them, and anyone who desires to share the Gospel needs a starting point. Here is a working...Read more …

Jesus is our model for creating God-honoring, life-changing community. Yes, he spoke to the masses, but Jesus’ primary ministry here on earth came via an invitation to twelve ordinary Jewish men. As you well know, Jesus invited them into community with him to learn and grow together as they followed him. Rather than mass-producing disciples, Jesus chose to invest deeply in a handful of people, developing committed followers. We’ve identified four simple steps–or stages–that will help you start groups for spiritually curious people, stages that mirror what Jesus did in building his first group of disciples. Preparation Jesus spent focused...Read more …

Today, the Western world is increasingly skeptical of institutional Christianity. But an invitation to explore God and the Bible with a few others is a great first step for people who are unlikely to step through the doors of a church. Facilitating these small group communities is an honor and privilege and is also a rich, holistic approach to evangelism that Jesus’ followers of all levels of maturity can participate in. And they have always been part of the church. Small group guru Bill Donahue notes: Small groups were an integral part of the early church structure. They were small enough...Read more …