Quote Summary: The Complete Book of Discipleship
Caleb Swails
CHMN 447
April 27, 2025
The Complete Book of Discipleship by
Bill Hull
Chapter 1
1. “The truth is that only disciples who are passionate for Christ will be able to sustain any
effort to reach others around them. – (pg. 37)
2. “However, when we strip down discipleship to just completing a curriculum, it becomes
much less than God intended.” – (pg. 40)
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3. “Discipleship describes the process of following Jesus; it’s the centerpiece of of the
Christian experience...” – (pg. 47)
Summary: This chapter really helped me to better understand the weight and significance of
discipleship. It really describes how intentional making disciples should be in the lives of every
person.
Chapter 2
1. “While politics can be a noble career, Jesus saw ‘changing the world’ as an internal issue
that required inner transformation.” – (pg. 61)
2. “The teacher-disciple relationship creates a powerful bond that’s at least as important
and often more crucial than a father-son relationship.” – (pg. 63)
3. “The genius of submission in a discipleship relationship is that it’s a two-way street. No
one is master. Both are servants of Jesus and both benefit greatly from the relationship.
–
(pg. 70)
Summary: Through reading this, I learned what discipleship is and how it has looked with
different people of different ages. This has encouraged me to look for different indicators and
styles of modern discipleship.
Chapter 3
1. “Ignatius saw daily submission to practical authority as critical to spiritual development.”
– (pg. 78)
2. “After his martyrdom, he was best remembered for his encouragement of self-control,
prayer, and fasting as means of not falling into temptation.” – (pg. 79)
3. “Discipleship is more difficult when disciples can’t have their hands on the Scriptures.” –
(pg. 99)
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Summary: This chapter really breaks down the commitment someone makes when they want
to grow closer with Christ. It is crucial for disciples to be able to have the Word in their hands so
they can study, but also begin to model their lives after what Jesus has called them to.
Chapter 4
1. “One of Satan’s greatest lies is that spiritual greatness belongs to the few.” – (pg. 120)
2. “By accepting non-discipleship Christianity, many people don’t have a mission. So they
sit in a pew and wait.” – (pg. 125)
3. “Because Jesus loves His disciples, both then and now, He also calls them to love much.
He calls us to embrace our limitations and let God be strong in loving through us.” – (pg.
141)
Summary: This chapter helps to show what the marks of a disciple should look like. Much
emphasis is placed on the life of Jesus and how He loved others.
Chapter 5
1. “Relationships of trust provide the foundation for transformational discipleship.” – (pg.
156)
2. “Just as humility is Jesus’ primary character trait, it should be the foundation we build
on as we seek to follow Him and be conformed to His image.” – (pg. 158)
3. “Affirmation is powerful. It creates an environment that gives people permission to drop
their defenses and allow deep change to take place.” – (pg. 161)
Summary: This chapter helped point to some characteristics and things to practice to
encourage spiritual growth. These things can greatly affect the power in the life of a disciple.
Chapter 6
1. “When we think more deeply about the process, we realize that it is basically both
sequential and segmented.” – (pg. 169)
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2. “Jesus took the disciples self-image as fisherman and enlarged it into world-changing
revolutionaries.” – (pg. 177)
3. “He (Jesus) carefully nurtured and challenged his followers. Then He released them to
carry on His work.” – (pg. 185)
Summary: This chapter highlights the importance of phases and steps in discipleship. Jesus
model discipleship quite well during His life, and many others after Him have created process
that highlight certain aspects of it.
Chapter 7
1. “In a similar way, spiritual disciplines condition our spiritual lives so we can better use
our God-given spiritual gifts.” – (pg. 195)
2. “The road to godliness is a road of discipline” – (pg. 197)
3. “When it comes to spiritual exercise, it’s absolutely essential to attach ourselves to at
least one other person.” – (pg. 199)
Summary: This chapter discusses the effects that spiritual disciplines can have on the life of a
person. These can truly define who is actually a Biblical disciple who cares to prosper the
Kingdom of God.
Chapter 8
1. “A godly mentor can help us emerge from the limits of self-fulfillment and narcissim to
discover the joy of living for others.” – (pg. 214)
2. “Mentoring is closer to the core meaning of discipleship, because discipleship is about
one person following another and becoming like that person.” – (pg. 216)
3. “I see the primary distinctive of spiritual direction as one person helping another person
work out his spiritual walk in very specific applications unique to that person.” – (pg.
221)
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Summary: This chapter realizes the necessity for another person in the discipleship process.
Whether mentoring, spiritual direction, or another avenue, other people are critical to where
and how a disciple grows.
Chapter 9
1. “The long range goal of Christians gathering in small groups should be discipleship
rather than evangelism.” – (pg. 233)
2. “No amount of expertise can compensate for a person who isn’t faithful or who doesn’t
have time to do what he promised.” – (pg. 242)
3. “Discipline is a community trait as well as a person one; community discipline builds
personal discipline.” – (pg. 246)
Summary: Small groups are the main focus of this chapter. They have such an impact on the
personal development of a disciple that they have become vital to the long term development
of them.
Chapter 10
1. “The idea that the reality of the church will match the ideal of the church is a hope we
won’t realize on earth.” – (pg. 252)
2. “The best chance people with besetting sins have to overcome their ‘below the line’
issues is living in a safe and affirming community of disciples.” – (pg. 259)
3. “Our wounds and weaknesses are real; our inabilities are exposed for others to see.
When we lead with our weakness and our wounds, we gain a powerful way to touch
others around us.” – (pg. 269)
Summary: The church is an important influence of the life of a disciple. The body of believers is
the driving force behind the growth of a disciple.
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Chapter 11
1. “He (God) created the discipleship process with us involved, so we shouldn’t be proud
of mere survival.” – (pg. 280)
2. “Leaders want people who are teachable, who don’t make excuses, and who have a
passion for work. That’s how you develop faithfulness.” – (pg. 284)
3. “The Christian leader’s calling is to guard the gospel, then to entrust it to disciples and
to promote reproduction and multiplication of the gospel through faithful and qualified
men and women.” – (pg. 286)
Summary: This chapter on spiritual generations describes how this is achieved. This is such an
overlooked area of discipleship that I hope to focus and improve on in the future.
Chapter 12
1. “These churches have adopted faith as agreement, and they employ the doctrinal test
for salvation rather than Jesus’ behavioral one.” – (pg. 290)
2. “...In the Jesus way, Jesus becomes more. In the consumer way, the human becomes
more.” – (pg. 293)
3. “The shape of discipleship in the future will determine the strength and ability of the
church to be the church and to live for others instead of for itself” – (pg. 300) Summary:
The chapter perfectly encapsulates the goal of this book. Discipleship is necessary, but
only when it comes in the form that Jesus intended for it to be.
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Bibliography
Hull, Bill. The Complete Book of Discipleship. Colorado Springs, CO: NavPress, 2006).
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