LIBERTY UNIVERSITY
SCHOOL OF DIVINITY
Submitted to Dr. Dave Early
in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the completion of
DSMN 500-B07
Spheres and Stages of Discipleship Assignment
by
Julia M. Amspacher
February 14, 2021
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Contents
Introduction………………………………………………………………………………………..2
Stages………………………………………………………………………………………….…..2
Spiritually Dead………………………………….………………………………………..2
Infant………………………………………………………………………………………3
Child……………………………………………………………………………………….3
Young Adult……………………………………………………………………………….4
Parent……………………………………………………………………………………...4
Spheres…………………………………………………………………………………………….4
In his relationship to God………………………………………………………………….5
In his relationship with God’s family, the church…………………………………………5
In his home life……………………………………………………………………………5
In his relationship to the world……………………………………………………………5
Application………………………………...……………………………………………………....6
Conclusion………………………………………………………………………………………...6
Bibliography………………………………………………………………………………………8
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Introduction
Discipleship is an essential part in being a follower of Jesus Christ. John 8:31-32 says,
“So Jesus said to the Jews who had believed in him, “If you abide in my word, you are truly my
disciples, and you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.” As believers we are Jesus’
disciples and we must actively choose to pick up our cross every day and follow Him. We must
follow the Great Commission and as disciples, we must go out and make more disciples.
Stages
In order to want to grow in your relationship with God, you must place things in your life
that help point you towards the cross daily. There are five stages of discipleship that the text talks
about. The five areas of spiritual growth are the spiritually dead, infant, child, young adult, and
the parent. Each of these stages has an important process and it is helpful to know that it is a path
of progress and no matter what direction we need to move in, we must move in order to grow.
Spiritually Dead
The people categorized in this section are those who have not accepted Jesus Christ as
their Lord and Savior. They may not even have heard of the Gospel or they may have heard it
and rejected it. “They may reject God, they may be seeking God, they may call themselves
spiritual, they may even claim to know Jesus, but they do not have the Holy Spirit living in
them.”1 The Holy Spirit only resides in a person when they invite Jesus to come into their hearts.
A person in this stage most likely doesn’t know a whole lot about the Bible or God. As a disciple
this is where we can come in and tell them about the Gospel and invite them to follow Jesus. It is
not our job to save them, and they may reject us but this is where we trust God and leave the rest
for the Holy Spirit to take over.
Infant
1 (Putnam, Jim 2013), 61
3
This section is referred to as the infant stage. The people who are put into this category
can either be new Christians who have just accepted the Lord into their hearts, or people who
have accepted Him a long time ago but haven’t moved forward in their faith. “They are not
unintelligent; they are simply uninformed and in need of truth.”2 These people are consumed by
the World and don’t know much about truth to know any better. When we look at an actual
infant, there are many things that we need to teach them, especially practical steps that help them
for the future. This is the same for a Christian in the “infant stage.” As disciples we must help
teach them how to live according to the Word. We must show them that in order to follow Jesus
they need to put away their old selves and put on their new self. We can share with them practical
steps on how to grow their relationship with God which will be beneficial to them for the rest of
their lives.
Child
This section is the child stage. The people in this stage know enough to follow Jesus and
know what it looks like to walk with Him. “They are beginning to apply God’s Word in their
lives and are walking with other growing disciples in their spiritual journey.”3 In this stage, they
can tend to be self-absorbed still. They think about their needs and desires. Just like children we
see every day, they don’t know any better than what suits their interest. This stage points out the
selfish desires that we as humans naturally have. In the child stage, Christians know Jesus and
walk with Him but are very focused on what they are getting out of it. As disciples we can help
them to live a life of maturity and selflessness and show them how to lay down all our desires
and put on God’s.
Young Adult
2 Ibid., 63
3 Ibid., 65
4
The people in the young adult stage are the ones who have decided they want to live for
Jesus with their entire lives and their whole beings. “Spiritual young adults are making a shift
from being self-centered to being God- and other-centered.”4 These Christians are ready to live
out their mission on this earth and want to serve God with all that they are. As disciples, we can
help keep these Christians accountable in their daily walk with Christ. It is not an easy task but
when a group of believers get together to lift one another up, it helps so much.
Parent
The parent stage of discipleship is someone who is spiritually mature and ready to make
new disciples. “It’s important to note that spiritual parents are not perfect. What marks a person,
as a spiritual parent, is that they are intentional about building their own, ongoing relationship
with Jesus, an as a result they are in relationships for the purpose of discipleship.”5 These
Christians are looking for ways to invest in others’ lives for the sole purpose of pointing them
towards the Kingdom. As a disciple we can come alongside of the “parents” and help encourage
them in their walk of selflessness and reaching out to nonbelievers. We can partner with them in
discipleship and both move forward together.
Spheres
The text breaks down discipleship into four spheres. These spheres are “in his relationship to
God”, “In his relationship with God’s family, the church”, “in his home life”, and “in his
relationship to the world.” “This means that in each sphere, a disciple understands God’s
commands and submits to his authority, is transformed by Jesus, and joins Jesus on a Kingdom
mission in all of these areas of their lives.”6
In his relationship to God
4 Ibid., 67
5 Ibid., 69
6 Ibid., 78
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This sphere is very important in our Christian walk. In order to love God we must be in
relationship to God. In order to be in relationship to God we must spend time with Him and do
daily practices that help grow our walk and our obedience to Him. In discipleship, I want to ask
questions that are revealing to them how their growing relationship is going and what they are
placing in their lives to help benefit them.
In his relationship with God’s family, the church
This sphere operates out of our relationship with Jesus and translates to how we love and
serve those around us. In discipleship I want to ask this person how their love for God and those
around them is growing and what they are doing to reach out to other people.
In his home life
The third sphere is about the Christian in their home and with their family and what the
certain roles of a family are. Paul emphasizes that the best place to make disciples is in our own
homes. We can be the biggest witness and influence to the family that God gave us. It is
important in discipleship to help the Christian be a model for their home in what it looks like to
follow the Lord.
In his relationship to the world
The last sphere is the grip we have with the world. No matter where we are in life, the
world is watching everything we do. At least one person is seeing how we represent Christ. We
are to not work for the world but to work for Jesus Christ in all that we do. In discipleship we can
help a brother and sister in Christ to live out of the Word and not out of the World.
Application
The stage of discipleship that I believe I am in is the adult stage. Not saying that I am
perfect in this but it is what I strive for right now and believe I am at most days. My intentions
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truly are to serve God and others and not live a life that is self-centered. However, I am not
perfect and have slipped in many areas from time to time. I am actively involved in church, a
ministry team that I am a part of, and a discipleship group. I seek to know and love Jesus more
for the most part. There are seasons of dry wells, but God continues to grow me even when I am
slacking. I am actively in the word and never afraid to share about my love for Jesus. The sphere
that I need to submit to the Lord the most is my relationship to the World. It is so easy to get
wrapped up in what the World is doing and to follow that. Romans 12:12 says, “Do not be
conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you
may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect.” If I want to
follow Jesus I must lay down the part of me that is old and follows the ways of the world and put
on my new self that is bonded to Jesus’ name. “Following Christ means taking certain steps. The
first step, which responds to the call, separates the followers from their previous existence.”7
Conclusion
“This clear call of Jesus to come and follow Him in the Gospels cannot be ignored.”8 To
be a follower of Christ it takes daily action of submitting to his authority every single day. Luke
9:23 says, “And he said to all, “if anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up
his cross daily and follow me.” Jesus used the word daily to show that following Him isn’t a
once and done ordeal. It is a day to day journey, surrendering under His will. The text says, “The
secret of having springs and rivers of living water flowing through our life is daily dependency
on the Holy Spirit.”9 We must know that we are not perfect but we follow a God who is. We will
encounter trials in our life but what we do with those is a testament of our faith. If we allow the
Lord to shape us in hard times then we will grow and become more like Him. A huge part of out
7 (Bonhoeffer, Dietrich 2003), 61
8 (Early and Dempsey, 2014), 22
9 (Early and Dempsey), 25
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growing process with the Lord happens within a community of believers. God does not call us to
live this life alone so He has brought people into our lives to help us be Kingdom minded.
“Discipleship occurs in community, and this community includes the larger world into which the
church is called to join in God’s mission.”10 We are to submit to God if we want to grow
spiritually. God does not make us submit to Him be we have the choice to do so. If we are
obedient in submitting to Him we will bear fruit and He will bless us immensely.
Bibliography
Bonhoeffer, Dietrich. Discipleship: Dietrich Bonhoeffer Works. Fortress Press, 2003.
Dempsey, Rod; Earley, Dave. Spiritual Formation Is...: How to Grow in Jesus with Passion and
Confidence (Kindle Locations 4542-4580). B&H Publishing Group. Kindle Edition.
10 (Powell and Hicks), 28
8
Earley, Dave, and Rod Dempsey. Disciple Making Is . . . How to Live the Great Commission
with Passion and Confidence. B&H Publishing Group, 2014.
Powell, Mark E., Hicks, John Mark, and McKinzie, Greg. 2020. Discipleship in Community : A
Theological Vision for the Future. Chicago: Abilene Christian University Press. Accessed
February 21, 2021. ProQuest Ebook Central.
Putman, Jim, et al. DiscipleShift: Five Steps That Help Your Church to Make Disciples Who
Make Disciples. Zondervan, 2013.
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