The Spheres and Stages of Discipleship
Beth Buster
DSMN 500: Discipleship Ministries
February 5, 2023
Contents
Introduction..................................................................................................................................1
The Five Stages of Discipleship...................................................................................................2
Spiritually Dead...................................................................................................................2
Infant....................................................................................................................................3
Child....................................................................................................................................4
Young Adult.........................................................................................................................4
Parent...................................................................................................................................5
Four Squares of Discipleship.......................................................................................................6
Relationship with God.........................................................................................................6
Relationship with the Church..............................................................................................7
Relationship at Home..........................................................................................................8
Relationship with the World................................................................................................8
Current Personal Stage of Discipleship...............................................................................9
Personal Sphere of Submission.........................................................................................10
Conclusion...................................................................................................................................11
Bibliography...............................................................................................................................13
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Introduction
Discipleship is not a single event that occurs when one becomes a follower of Jesus. As
one digs deeper into the process of becoming a disciple, it’s quickly realized that discipleship is a
lifelong process. These processes must be pursued with intentionality and determination. When
one becomes a believer in Christ, instantaneously the old person is gone, and a new creation is
born (2 Cor 5:7). But this is not the case with discipleship. Rather, it is a lifelong process that is
achieved through purposeful growth and mentoring. But instead of being a straight linear
process, there are stages and spheres to be reached and attained. Through these more organic
processes can one clearly find their circles and purpose to grow to deeper discipleship.
This continuing process of discipleship is at the core of the relationship between man and
God. It requires a deep desire to understand of Christ on a deeper level; without this
understanding, one may miss out on important relationship opportunities. Believers who lack the
spiritual depth to grow in the maturity of Christ, miss the opportunities to become effective
disciples that includes the making of disciples. Without giving oneself over to the true intimacy
of discipleship, a believer will not gain the intended fullness of Christ by making more disciples.1
This is a very difficult journey that requires time, a solid commitment, and submission to the
process. Dietrich Bonhoeffer wrote that “everyone enters discipleship alone, but no one remains
in it alone.”2 Humankind was created for relationship, specifically to glorify God and enjoy Him.
Discipleship should be the natural process that believers are trained to do in order to become
more like Jesus. To accomplish this transformation, this essay will postulate for five stages of
1 Jim Putman and Bobby Harrington, DiscipleShift; Five Steps that Help Your Church to Make Disciples
Who Make Disciples, (Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 2013), 41.
2 Dietrich Bonhoeffer, Discipleship, Minneapolis, MN: Fortress Press, 2003
2
discipleship and the four spheres of discipleship as outlined in Putnam, Harrington, and
Coleman’s DiscipleShift.
Five Stages of Discipleship
The five stage of discipleship being discussed are the stage of the spiritual dead, the
infant stage, a child stage, a young adult stage and the spiritual parent stage. Each of these stages
are unique and each are defined by specific characteristics in order to identify with the stage and
then achieve the transformation a disciple will need to be fully work through the process.
Spiritual Dead
The first stage is known as the spiritual dead. This stage is just as it sounds. People in this
stage are identified as any person who does not have a relationship with Jesus Christ, regardless
of their proclamation. Truly, these persons may have not accepted Christ as Savior. Individuals
here may not desire any type of religious affiliation or contact with God at all. Putman states,
“the key concept here is that a spiritually dead person does not have the life of Jesus within.”3 In
fact, these people are dead in their transgressions and sins (Ephesians 2:1-5). Those in this stage
could range from those who live in unbelief to those who are living in open rebellion to God. The
key concept is that a spiritually dead person does not have the life of Jesus within. This life is not
there because they have no faith in Jesus as Savior and Lord. Therefore, there can be no real
discipleship with those in this stage. Copious amounts of prayer and love are needed here to
present the truth of the Gospel, answer questions about God, and boldly speak of the life God
intends for all to have in relationship with Him. The conversations had with people in this stage
can lead to salvation and moves the person into the next stage.
3 Putman and Harrington, 60-61.
3
Infant
This second stage of discipleship focuses on the newly regenerated individual. This stage
refers to a new convert, one that hears the word of God and is convicted in their heart and
hungers for the transformation that takes place once born again.4 Infancy represents individuals
who are normally, but not always, new to the faith and lack knowledge of Christ, while
continuing to live a self-focused life. Comparable to human infancy, the individual is needy and
dependent on others for care. The Apostle Paul refers to people in a state of infancy in his letter
to the Corinthians when stating, “But I, brothers, could not address you as spiritual people, but as
people of the flesh, as infants in Christ. I fed you with milk, not solid food, for you were not
ready for it.” (1 Cor 3:1-2a). Here one can identify people that are alive in Christ and have
received him as Lord, but no more. They can be new believers or long-time believers that have
chosen not to operate in their faith. All believers start their Christian walk as infants in Christ.
However, if they remain on the milk of God’s Word, they can still be categorized as infants many
years after their conversion (Hebrews 5:12-14). These disciples are being worked with by the
Holy Spirit, but they are biblically uninformed and often have intertwined biblical truths with
worldly philosophical mind sets. Infantile disciples are primarily self-centered and seek spiritual
nourishment from the pastor, and their expectation is that the church will meet their needs. They
question the authority of the Bible over every facet of their lives and are shocked when “human
nature” presents itself and begin to question their conversion.5
Child
Children need a parent not only to meet their physical needs, but that will also be an
example that will show them the way to live life. Paul reminds believers they should deal with
4 Ibid., 60-61.
5 Bonhoffer,
4
one another as a father deals with his children by encouraging, comforting, and living a life
worth of God. (1 Thes. 2:10-12). Paul, as well, referred to himself as a spiritual father to the
saints at Corinth by way of the Gospel (1 Cor. 4:15). This childlike stage of discipleship
demonstrates faith that is growing and the disciple’s understanding of the teachings of Jesus
Christ is becoming more sustained. Followers at this stage are learning the language of
Christianity and starting to connect with other believers. With that in mind, much of their
spiritual thought process is still self-centered. Believers in this stage can be dogmatic, seeing the
world in rigid, black-and-white terms, even concerning things that are not supposed to be black-
and-white. A child can be overconfident, prideful, and full of himself, but they also can be
insecure, timid, shy, and full of self-loathing or defeat.6 It is possible that an individual Christian
with years of church attendance can still be in this stage of discipleship; spiritual maturity does
not come with years after conversion. rather “spiritual maturity is determined by if the disciple
has grown from the time of conversion to their current state.”7
The Young Adult
The young adult stage in the disciple’s development process is defined as the young adult
stage. Accountability becomes a key component and becomes a determining factor for the young
adult in Christ. The mind set of being an infant or babe in Christ is no longer prevalent as this
individual is growing in wisdom in the Lord. This convert is presented with new horizons that
are safe and secure, they now become aware of their spiritual gifts and talents. At this stage,
spiritual young adults are making a spiritual transitional shift from being self-centered to God-
centered and others-centered.8 Spiritual young adults have caught the vision of the centrality of
6 Putnam and Harrington, 65-67.
7 Putnam and Harrington, 65-67.
8 Ibid., 61-68
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Christ in their lives and are demonstrating obedience by fellowshipping with other believers.
They now comprehend the importance of the Great Commission as they begin to serve others
within the community of Christ.9 At this stage of growth, a believer requires spiritual mentors
who will assist them in identifying where to serve and when and how to establish boundaries in
their lives as they begin to develop in their ministries.10
Parent
Stage five, the final step in this discipleship process is the parent. The believer has gone
from being spiritually dead to being God focused and independent within their thinking process
concerning how to live out their faith. They have grown enough to be able to teach others how to
as effectively live out what the Word of God teaches. They are certainly not faultless people, but
they are walking with Christ in a very intentional manner. They know that God is the one and
only spiritual parent; but there are those whom are identified as such due to their ability to birth
and reproduce disciples effectively and efficiently.11 Spiritual parents are disciples who are fully
immersed in producing more disciples. They are obedient to his call to “Come, follow me,” and
can name their spiritual children (Matt 4:19). Spiritual parents live lives that demonstrate the
centrality of Christ; they are intentional about establishing their own relationship with Jesus
Christ by feeding on the meat of the Word. These individuals look forward to carrying out the
command of Christ. Spiritual parents, like physical parents, understand life’s difficulties,
hardships, obstacles and challenges of mentoring spiritually immature believers. Their
9 Ibid., 61-68
10 Ibid., 69.
11 Ibid., 69.
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willingness to put the needs of the spiritual infant, child, and young adult before them is what set
them apart.12
Spheres of Discipleship
Not only are there five stages of discipleship, there are also four spheres in which
disciples need to exhibit growth. The disciple governed by the centrality of Christ and is obedient
to His will must be intentional in their relationship with God, with the family of God, in their
home life, and in their relationships to the world. These four spheres are key to growth.
Obedience and submission are the pivotal terms and actions of a disciple as they live out these
spheres. Living within the spheres requires a Christ-centered life focused on bold proclamation
of the Gospel. These spheres help the disciple to understand the head, heart and hands of the
relationship between themselves, God, church, life, family and the world. It can viewed as the
checks and balance of discipleship. Not one sphere being more important than the others, it is
important to work across all four areas to be a strong, effective disciple of Christ.
Relationship with God
The first sphere is the disciple’s relationship with God (Matt 22:37-38), which includes
an understanding and appropriation of the gospel where one’s righteousness does not come from
self, but from Christ (Rom 3:21-22) and the source of the transformation is not from self, but
Christ (John 15:4-5). The centrality of this sphere, the relationship with God, is that the believer
understands that his or her main focus is the relationship to Jesus and that without being
connected to Him offers no ability to disciple others. The believer simply cannot bear good fruit
if not attached to the vine.
12 Ibid., 69-70.
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At this sphere, one focuses the mind on developing a relationship with Jesus through
prayer and bible study. One sets their heart to be indicative of a changed life, or what fruit is
being produced. Lastly are they using their hands, skills, and abilities to further the kingdom of
God. Bonhoeffer goes on to clarify this stage of discipleship. He declared, “Now his call to
discipleship dissolved all ties for the sake of the unique commitment to Jesus Christ.”13 In
another statement from Bonhoeffer, he makes it is clear that absolute submission to the centrality
of Christ is the focus of this sphere. These principles refer to the person who is the disciple and
the discipled.
Relationship with the Church
Relationships within the family of God, the church, are focused on God being the Father
and that other believers are brothers and sisters. Within the church setting, there is an inherent
hierarchy. God is the head. The Pastor is considered the under-shepherd over the flock as Christ
is the true shepherd. Then we have elders, ministers, deacons, mothers, ushers, stewards, trustees,
choirs, laypersons and so forth. Just like Paul demonstrated to young Timothy, his spiritual son,
the church offers loving and committed relationships with their brothers and sisters in Christ to
make the work of building the kingdom easier. The church or community faith is not able to set
themselves apart from the world of non-believers, but are beacons of light to outweigh the
darkness the world has the unbeliever cloaked in. This sphere provides what a true relationship
with others should reflect. During the discipleship process, the new disciple must comprehend
what it means to be a member of the congregation and what The Word of God teaches about that
position. The world will know disciples by their love for each other (John 13:35), therefore
13 Bonhoeffer, Discipleship.
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relationships should be established and interpersonal skills developed. It is through these
relationships that spiritual gifts should be discovered and cultivated.
Relationship at Home
God established the hierarchical structure of the home (Ephesians 5). He also delineated
the roles of parents in how they should raise their children (Deut. 6:7). A heart that is submissive
to the centrality of Christ will not have a problem being submissive at home; however,
submission to Christ takes time. Discipleship making begins at home, and so does submission.
This sphere is important to address because it is possible for people to grasp the concepts of the
gospel but fail to apply them in the home. Paul understood that believers cannot
compartmentalize our relationships, that the Holy Spirit wants to influence every believer’s life,
and that the best place to make disciples is in our families. Following the models of strong family
relations that are evident in the church fosters the same type of relationships at home. Many
believers have difficulties grasping living the Christian life outside of the home because it is easy
to put on the mask of a godly person. However, discipleship should begin in the home, with an
everyday intimacy that teaches all members of the family to live a life focused on God and God
alone.
Relationship with the World
Relationships with the world are vital to the believer. It is here the believer is responsible
for living out his or her life in a way that represents God by shining His light into the darkness. It
is in this sense; our work affects God’s reputation. The best excuse the unbelieving world has for
not embracing Christ is the Christian. Disciples are direct representatives of Christ and are
expected to act, walk, interact and live among the world in a manner that glorifies Christ.
Outside of their salvation, believers are not much different than the rest of the world. They work
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to provide for their families, enjoy past times and relaxation, and have friendships and other
relationships. Believers experience heartaches and headaches like the rest of the world. Yet there
are some Christians who really mix up the expectation of what is meant to interact with the
world. Some Christians become judgmental and act as if they are entitled eternity. Some may
even straddle the fence between godliness and ungodliness to the point of confusion to the
average lay person. It is common to hear the world speak of the hypocrisy of the Church as it has
often earned that reputation. Paul challenges the Church in Ephesians to remember that they not
only work for others, but they first and foremost work for the Lord. Paul teaches disciples to be
ethical and consistent and to live in such a way that even if someone does accuse them of doing
wrong, the unbeliever will see their good deeds and glorify God.14
Current Personal Stage of Discipleship
The author is her own worst critic. It seems almost arrogant to state identifying with the
spiritual parenting stage of discipleship, but by connecting with many of the identifiers, that
would be the stage most compatible. Largely relying on the fact this author has spiritual children,
it was still surprising and humbling to see this as the stage of discipleship. As a mother, she takes
her calling to raise her children in the knowledge and admonishment of the Lord very seriously.
Daily discipleship is central to all activities and commitments that the family makes. The Gospel
is central to the family, and the children are being taught to follow God, to serve others around
them, and to lead out in the speaking of the Good News. The author has realized there is no more
important calling than the one she has to parent and disciple more disciples.15 However, just
because the prized stage may have been reached, this does not give the author space to sit back
and believe she has arrived and therefore finished with her work. There is still room for
14 Ibid., 88-90.
15 Newman, Peter, 2016. Christian Discipleship Series. http:// www.christcrucified.
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improvement. As a children and families minister, the author has not been diligent to disciple
other parents to lead their families in discipleship. While teaching children or hosting training
events for parents has been important, there has not been one-on-one mentoring with those
communities. God has given the author a passion for families, but she has not been intentional to
discipling this community as she should. To quote Bonhoeffer, “the calls go out and without any
further ado, the obedient deed of the one called follows.”16 The author purposes to continue to
focus on the discipleship of her family but intends to put more time into mentoring a young
family or two.
Personal Sphere of Submission
Submission to the centrality of Christ as it relates to Bonhoeffer’s Discipleship and the
Cross refers to a believer’s suffering for the cause of the Gospel; in this sense of submission and
all of the spheres of discipleship must be subject to the cross. In relationship to Christ, three
characteristics of a follower of Christ should be to be surrendered, committed, and totally given
to the Lord. Paul stated it as, “I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that you
present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable
service” (Rom. 12:1). This is giving of all we are unto him for his biddings.17 Bonhoeffer made it
clear when he stated, “Those who do not want to take up their cross, who do not want to give
their lives in suffering and being rejected by people, lose their community with Christ.”18 In
general, the worldly definition of submission denotes denial of one’s self and a loss of one’s
identity. However, when a Christian considers submission, they are considering submitting to the
16 Bonhoeffer, Discipleship.
17 Dave Earley and Rod Dempsey, Disciple Making Is… How to Live the Great Commission with Passion
and Confidence, Nashville: B&H Academic, 2013.
18 Bonhoeffer, 86-87
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teachings of Jesus. It means being in submission to the persons whom he has placed in authority
over us, from personal relationships to governing authorities. For there is no authority except
from God, and those that exist have been instituted by God. While Ephesians 5 gives a picture of
how the family structure works, the section of the epistle concludes with the admonition that
believers should submit to one another in love (Eph. 5:25). This is how the body of Christ is to
relate to one another.
Conclusion
Discipleship cannot to dismissed as unimportant or something that just happens. Just as
there are ages and stages in life that help identify the growth and development of a person, so
should there be recognized stages in the spiritual life of a believer. Society meets these
milestones with celebration and applause, yet the Church is ambiguous at best as to what the
milestones of the spiritual life are, much less actually emphasizing the accomplishments of
discipleship. Churches are to be the heart and example of discipleship to the world, yet they
cannot institutionalize discipleship. Discipleship starts with a personal, one-on-one relationship
between believers and the Church is built on those individual partnerships. It is not a meeting
together in pews or classrooms to be told what the Bible teaches or how the believer should act.
Furthermore, Church cannot be where all gospel preaching and teaching takes place. Believers
must change the narrative and make a personal investment in discipling and being discipled.
From connecting to other believers, to inviting the lost into their homes, believers should be
pushing the gospel to the communities around them rather than collecting in church buildings to
be told how to live. From the dead will come the infants, from infants the children, to young
adults, and then parents. Churches should no longer be content to feed milk to infants, but rather
should be leading believers to be identifying themselves and others in the stages of discipleship
12
and learning the different spheres of discipleship and how they apply to the growth of believers.
By these means can the Gospel of Christ be proclaimed to all the corners of the world.
13
Bibliography
Earley, Dave, and Rod Dempsey. Disciple Making Is… How to Live the Great Commission with
Passion and Confidence. Nashville: B&H Academic, 2013.
Putman, Jim and Bobby Harrington. DiscipleShift. Grand Rapids MI: Zondervan, 2013.
Bonhoeffer, Dietrich. Discipleship. Minneapolis, MN: Fortress Press, 2003.
Newman, Peter. Christian Discipleship volume I. www.christcrucified,info. 2016.
