LIBERTY UNIVERSITY SCHOOL OF DIVINITY
Disciple Making Plan
Submitted to Dr. Paul Jacobs,
in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the completion of
DSM 500 – D09
Discipleship Ministries
by
Nikimi Hamilton
May 12, 2017
Contents
Introduction.....................................................................................................................................1
Vision...............................................................................................................................................1
Values..............................................................................................................................................2
Views...............................................................................................................................................4
Definitions.......................................................................................................................................6
Disciple/ Discipleship..................................................................................................................6
Coaching/Mentoring....................................................................................................................7
Leader/Leadership.......................................................................................................................8
Vehicles............................................................................................................................................9
Verifiers.........................................................................................................................................10
Conclusion.....................................................................................................................................11
Bibliography..................................................................................................................................12
Appendixes....................................................................................................................................14
ii
Introduction
The Great Commission commands that all believers are to Go and Make Disciples of all
nations, (as evidenced by) baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the
Holy Spirit (Matthew 28:16-20, NIV).1 Dave Early and Rod Dempsey start their book, Disciple
Making Is…How to Live the Great Commission with Passion and Confidence, with the following
quote from Bill Hull from his book, The Disciple-Making Pastor, “The Great Commission has
been worshipped, but not obeyed. The church has tried to get world evangelization without
disciple making.”2 The concept of making disciples is not something we have to do it is
something we get to do. The local church serves as the body of Christ, and it is through the
Church that disciples should be cultivated, but often the church has forgotten this. “It is apparent,
even to the casual observer that the interpretation of what the church should be doing is not as
clear as one would like to think.”3 It is important to look at how disciples are made, and what
roles all the members of the church have in making disciples. Christians are meant to live in
community with each other, and that community is the local Church. The Church is made up of
local congregations which are important for the growth of a disciple for it is within a local
congregation that pastors and other saints can utilize their spiritual gifts in order to build up the
body of Christ. In the process of Going and Making disciples the church is the body of Jesus and
must be the extension of His hands to the world, meeting spirituals and physical needs in the
community with the goal of being a consistent reproducers of disciple makers. The Church of
1 The Holy Bible: New International Version (Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan, 2005). (Source for all
Biblical References.)
2 Dave Earley and Rod Dempsey, Disciple Making Is… How to Live the Great Commission with Passion
and Confidence, (Nashville: B&H Academic, 2013), Electronic.
3 Ibid.
Jesus should move away from complex corporate models of organization toward a biblical model
of discipleship… (and) should occur in the context of relationships”.4
Vision
Vision is the first of the five V’s it is important to define what they are. The word of God
tells us “Then the Lord replied: “Write down the revelation and make it plain on tablets so that a
herald may run with it” (Habakkuk 2:2 NIV). Jim Putman and Bobby Harrington agrees with
this in writing that a biblical vision begins with “bringing together the leaders God has you, to
look to his Word in order to develop his big picture for the church in your area.”5 The vision of
the ministry is the blueprint for what the ministry will focus on developing into, and Dempsey
stresses the importance of a tight disciple-making focus that knows what to emphasize and what
to deemphasize.6 While the vision can have adjustment if the focus of the ministry shifts,
however this should not be often and only slightly, more importantly is that the vision remains
the outline for the ministries that follow it. My vision for Ministry is to minister to the world
concerning the Love of God and His Son Jesus Christ, who is the author and finisher of our faith;
utilizing the healthy church to be an extension of the hands and heart of God to the world with
the desire that we be effective reproducers for the Kingdom of God.
Through this ministry I believe the captives will be set free from the bondages of Satan
and his demonic forces in the earth and we will see the expansion of the kingdom of God as
evidenced through by the increased developing of disciples that become reproducers.. I desire
4 Earley and Dempsey, electronic.
5 Jim Putman and Bobby Harrington, Discipleshift: Five Steps that Help your Church to Make Disciples
Who Make Disciples, (Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 2013), 216.
6 Earley and Dempsey, electronic, Loc 4005.
that the healthy church will become the example of a Christ centered church, with Jesus as the
head, and the Body of the church with members working efficiently to fulfill the great
commission through love, sharing of the faith, and service. The ministry will effectively educate
men, women, and children in local communities and abroad on the Word of God for the
perfecting of the saints that they may know God, Grow in God, and ultimately develop into
reproducers for the faith. The importance being that we are a healthy developed church so that
the vision is not just something that is talked about but lived out daily. If no one displays an
example of this lifestyle then who can we expect to accept and hold fast to it? Therefore the
vision of the Ministry has to be not only heard and read but lived daily by the body of Christ.
Putnam and Harrington says “A vision statement is not just something you throw on your wall
and leave there. Your vision statement is something you pursue fervently over the long haul.”7 A
key aspect of creating a vision is that it does not change course very often. The vision is
something that is cast and despite the various struggles or leadership changes is the one thing that
remains constant. New ideas will come and go but even the new ideas that get implemented must
be a part of the vision, otherwise the idea is just that, a thought.
Values
In developing a ministry not only is the vision important but also the values will be the
guiding heartbeat of the ministry must be constructed with the same biblical foundation as the
vision.. Aubrey Malphur states that “A church’s primary values are defined as its constant,
passionate, biblical core beliefs that drive its ministry.”8 Further Malphur states that the core
7 Putnam and Harrington, 218.
8 Aubrey Malphurs, "Enrichment Journal - Enriching and Equipping Spirit-filled Ministers," How To
Discover And Develop Core Values, , accessed May 10, 2017,
http://enrichmentjournal.ag.org/200004/018_discover_core_values.cfm.
values of a ministry should have 5 key elements: be constant; be passionate; are biblical; relay
the core beliefs of the ministry; are the drivers of the ministry.9 In looking at what I believe to be
the core of my Ministry I have outlined six key core values that will shape the framework for my
ministry plan:
The Lordship of Jesus Christ
Affirming the Lordship of Jesus Christ and His leadership as the head of our church
(Ephesians 1:22; 5:23), corporately and individually we must submit with total obedience to His
will. God placed all things under His feet thereby affirming his dominion, and we the church do
acknowledge Christ as Lord. We the Body of Christ, professing a love for him, are provoked to
passionately pursue the commands he gave. Jesus Christ, having authority in heaven and earth,
through his own obedience to God reconciled us to him and is the example for the obedience of
the believer.
Bible-Centered Teaching
Affirming the centrality of the Bible as the written word of God, we utilize God's Word in
teaching all that Christ commanded; the Bible is the ranking authority and has life breath into it
by God to correct, train, and rebuke that we will be equipped for every good work (II Timothy
3:16) in our church, our communities, and our homes. The Word of God, in existence before
there was a beginning and with God and being God (John 1:1) it is sovereign in our church, our
homes, and our lives. We are devoted to preparing people through Biblical education that speaks
of the prospects and trials that occur in daily life. We vehemently calls on people to follow Jesus
Christ in every province of their life.
9 Aubrey Malphurs, "Enrichment Journal - Enriching and Equipping Spirit-filled Ministers," How To
Discover And Develop Core Values, , accessed May 10, 2017,
http://enrichmentjournal.ag.org/200004/018_discover_core_values.cfm.
Prayer and Necessity on the Spirit of God
Affirming we are governed by the Spirit of God for our path (John 16:13; Romans 8:14)
as a church and fully accept God’s measure of spiritual gifts to fulfill our calling. We have faith
in private and corporate prayer for discernment of God's will (James 1:5) in the origin,
development, and execution of all of the ministries and activities of our church. We will fully
utilize the gift of the Spirit given by God in our church. Spiritual gifts are special (divine)
abilities given to every Christian, by the grace of God, through the Holy Spirit to be used to serve
and strengthen one another, and to glorify God.10 Spiritual gifts are the added tools God gives
Christians to do the work of the ministry, which fulfills the Great Commission.
Outreach to the Lost
Affirming our Commitment to the Great Commission, we are committed to the
fulfillment of the Great Commission (Matthew 28:18-20) of Jesus Christ to go and make
disciples of all nations. We value people, and we desire for all people to have a dynamic,
growing relationship with God through Jesus Christ. We know lost people matter to God (John
3:16), because he gave his only son for the lost, therefore the least of these and the lost are a
priority of our church. We seek to motivate the unchurched into a reconciled relationship with
Jesus Christ and into our community of faith. We will be a financially accountable and actively
supportive church to the missions being carried out abroad and locally
Spiritual Growth in the Life of Every Christian
10 The Power of Spiritual Gifts in the Life of the Church, November 12, 2006, The Christian Church
(Disciples of Christ), Https://cciwdisciples.org/wp-content/uploads/2013/06/2GiftsBook.pdf,
Bloomington. 14.
We believe all followers of Jesus Christ are called to develop in their faith and become
more like Him. We are committed to helping people grow to spiritual maturity through an
emphasis on training in discipleship through small groups, the encouragement of supportive
relationships (Ephesians 4:16) with interactions with equipped leaders and other Christians.
Enrichment through these groups will provide opportunities for discovering and exercising one's
spiritual gifts (Ephesians 4:11) under the guidance pastors, teachers, elders, and ministers. We
value small group ministry for the care and support of the body of Christ and seek to love one
another as Christ loves us and to maintain agreement through acceptance and forgiveness. "…
When done correctly they (Small groups) lead to multiplication of leaders and small groups.”11
Through these groups we can more quickly identify the spiritual gifts of the body and develop
these gifts through focused intentional educational plans.
Views
The most important ministry perspective for my ministry is that all ministry is important
and should be done with a goal of excellence. Having the title ambassador, or representative for
Christ it is important that all ministry efforts be well developed with due diligence in planning
with the constant reminder that this is a work for the Lord. Whatever we do in life and ministry
should bring glory to the Lord (1 Corinthians 10:31) thereby prompting us to conduct ministry
with excellence. Having an understanding of common language and terms and their application n
the ministry aides in ensuring that the vision retains momentum through consistent views.
11 Bill Easum, "Missional Small Groups," Effective Church Group, August 5, 2016, , accessed May 9,
2017, http://effectivechurch.com/missional-small-groups/.
Putnam and Harrington recommend that the team develops a common language of
defined terms.12 The key terms that I chose to define are in Ministry are Church, Saints, Disciple,
and Pastor.
The Church
The literal term for location for purpose of gathering at a physical building will be the
church building. However the overall summation of the church refers to the spiritual church with
Christ as the head where Jesus is shared, believers are connected in relationship, people are
ministered to, and disciples are reproduced.13 Therefore the church is made up of the believers
who are the biblical fulfillment of church, serving out their role but working together to
accomplish the mission of the church. In the New Testament, we see the Church referred to as a
body who’s head is Jesus Christ. Dietrich Bonhoeffer summation is “Christ is the church.”14
Every believer is a functioning part of the body of Christ, which comprises The Church.
The church is the learning center for formal instruction of disciples. Sathianthan’s asserts
that disciple making happens in the local church states that “… it happens in the sanctuary where
the Word is sung, prayed, read, preached, and displayed through communion and baptism”.15 He
goes on to discuss Christ’s plan for to be the authority through which the community comes
under to transfer the faith to the next generation. Bonhoeffer explains that, “Jesus Christ lives
12 Putnam and Harrington, 222.
13 Putnam and Harrington, 208.
14 Dietrich Bonhoeffer, Discipleship, ed. Geffrey B. Kelly and John D. Godsey, English ed., vol. 4
(Minneapolis, MN: Fortress Press, 2003), Electronic.
15 Godwin Sathianathan, "Grow a Disciple-Making Culture in Your Church," TGC - The Gospel
Coalition, February 25, 2013, accessed April 22, 2017, https://www.thegospelcoalition.org/article/how-to-
grow-a-disciple-making-culture-in-your-church.
here on earth in the form of his body, the church-community.”16 In explaining Ephesians 4: 11–
14, Earley and Dempsey harmonized with Bonhoeffer in affirming, “… the church is the same
thing as the body of Christ. They are synonymous. In addition, Paul delineates that the body of
Christ is to be built up through “the proper working of each individual part.”17 Putman,
Harrington and Coleman offered that the local church has a specific role that involves a
methodologies of sharing, connecting, train to minister, and disciplining.18
The Saints
Those responsible for the teaching, saint cultivation, and growth of the Church; but this is the
role of all affiliates, including ministers, leaders, and laypersons. Every believer is a saint and
thus should be involved in spreading the message of Christ. It is essential that every saint
realizes the instructions given to saints are applicable to all without exception and should involve
community efforts. Believers, being relational in nature, ‘our interactions with one another is
how the relational need is met. Relationships in the body of Christ are where we learn from
others what a mature Christian life looks like.’19 Hebrews 10:24-25 where we are told to
“consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds, not giving up meeting
together, as some are in the habit of doing, but encouraging one another...” Believers are to
regularly and consistently meet together with one of their goals being to encourage one another.
If you want to ask what toward, it is simply to be more like Christ in their everyday life.
16 Bonhoeffer, Electronic.
17 Earley and Dempsey, Electronic.
18 Jim Putman, Bobby Harrington, and Robert Emerson Coleman, DiscipleShift: Five Steps That Help Your
Church to Make Disciples who make Disciples (Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 2013). 153.
19 Putnam, 140.
Disciple
A Disciple is one who has made a declaration of Christ as their Lord and savior, believing
that he freely gave his live that they may be redeemed from their sins and through him they may
have everlasting life (John 3:16). In making this declaration the disciple is to develop through a
series of stages and spheres with then end result of becoming multiplier for the Kingdom of God.
Disciples are what Dempsey describes as someone who ‘knows Christ, Grows in Christ, and
Goes for Christ’.20 The process of discipleship is not the sole charge of the pastor. It is the duty
of the entire body or community of believers.
Pastor
Pastor is the senior leadership position in the church responsible for the overall health of the
church. The pastor is one who assist in developing multipliers for the kingdom of God and is the
leading authority on releasing and deployment of disciple-makers and disciples. leaders to come
along side and serve together. The pastor is one who will provide council to others and proclaim
the Gospel through thorough preaching and teaching. Pastors drive the effectiveness of the
Church’s Discipleship Ministry. The Pastor’s role is not limited speaking from the pulpit during
Worship and Bible Study. Earley and Dempsey described the pastor’s role and responsibility as
those who are to “train” or “equip” the saints, and the saints are to do the “work of ministry.”
This training is equipping the saints to grow in Christ and mature as believers. This involves
properly connecting the individual inside the body, just as Christ desires.21 Ephesians 4:11-16
20 Earley and Dempsey, Electronic.
21 Earley and Dempsey, Electronic.
tells us that Christ gave the church apostles, prophets, evangelists, pastors, and teachers, to
prepare His people for ministry so that the body of Christ may become mature. The Pastor has a
responsibility to share the gospel, teach, train, equip, connect, and prepare the congregation for
the process of reproducing disciples.22 The Pastor is responsible for the growth and development
of each member in the congregation; ensuring their growth, understanding of what spiritual gifts
are, and their maturing in the faith.23
Vehicle
The church has at its disposal a lot of different ways to “Go and make disciples.” The
church organization as it sits with no changes or additional programs provides an
attractional model for invitation. Simply through inviting people to church is a start in the
disciple making process.
Within the church structure are many other means that is possible. The creation of new
groups or programs aimed at certain demographics is one way. Creating a chemical
dependency class is one outlet of reaching out to a certain group. Creating a small group
aimed at going deeper in one’s faith is another. Various outreach events is one of the easiest
ways to reach out into the community to connect the church with the community.
A new movement that seems to be taking off from an ancient tradition is the organic
church model. The organic church model is one that is limitless with no specific
organizational structure. The organic church can mean a simple gathering of people
meeting for breakfast systematically with no real purpose other than to love on them. An
organic model could mean joining a sports team with the purpose of developing lasting
relationships with the hopes of intentional evangelism. The point being made is there is no
way of classifying the organic church model as anything is possible.
How one provides details and communicates to the community is a vital aspect of the
vehicle in which to share what is happening and how to participate. Using social media is
one of the best mediums to date. Creating social media groups and inviting others to share
the information is as simple as influencing the close circle of influence each person already
has established.
22 Earley and Dempsey, Electronic.
23 Early & Dempsey, Electronic.
The vehicle, the fourth V, is the means in which the disciple making process will be
implemented. Defining the various methods being used to be a driving force behind the disciple
making plan is vital to the practicality of implementing the plan. To help develop the methods
one aspect of the how is defined in the church structure and the various systems it will take to
accomplish the vision. As before, with the views, defining the various roles and key terms is
important and now developing the methods of each will be the means in which the ministry will
be propelled forward. The vehicle not only is the catalyst for the ministries but it also helps
provide the structure to accomplish the vision with things like budget, events and curriculum not
just defining the who or what. Another way to say this V, vehicle, is this step is a way to live out
the vision. The vehicle is the implementation phase.24 Structure is the key term in this step.
Developing a structure will help be the guiding force for all ministries to operate despite the
leader. It does not mean putting so many restrictions in place that the leader does not have any
autonomy. Instead, it means that the leader has something to follow instead of creating
something new every time. One of the key aspects in the structure will help with any division.
Every ministry leader is required to be working toward a common goal, the vision. If one leader
does not support or is not working toward that one goal then the structure and integrity is in
question. To have success everyone must be working toward the same common goal.
The last V is verifiers. A verifier is the means in which to track and measure the success
of the disciple making plan. The evaluation of the plan will include various forms of evidence.
Information gathering is not something that is done and then never evaluated. The question
should be asked in regards to what to do with the information once it is gathered, what
information should be gathered and why is it being evaluated? One of the most common forms of
24 Ibid., 225.
measurement is numbers. In generations prior to 2015 the only form of measurement that seemed
to matter is the number of people. Church effectiveness was judged by the number of people who
walked through the door on a Sunday morning. If attendance declined then the effectiveness of
the leaders were called into question. If the attendance was increasing then that would be a clear
sign of the effectiveness of its leaders. Today, number gathering is a lost art. The various forms
of the church model have quickly redefined the scope. The way in which effectiveness should be
understood today is not on the increase or decrease of attendance, though that can be a part of the
process but not the end all be all answer. Instead, the verification of effectiveness should be in
the number of people whose lives have been impacted in some way. The process in which a
ministry evaluates how effective it is should be looking at how many new groups have been
created, are lives being transformed and how many people are now discipline others. What is
done once the evaluation is complete? It is not just reviewing the ministry but it is also making
any changes needed. Change is not always a negative thing. If something is working evaluate
what is working and ask if there is a way to improve upon it. The inverse is also true, if
something is not being effective then there must be a point in time that the process will need to
change.
Verifiers
In the every changing culture in which the world lives today is harder than ever to
provide feedback and verification of effectiveness. No longer is it possible to take attendance
Sunday morning to gauge the complete effectiveness of any ministry. It is true that attendance
should increase as people are being reached and lives are changed but that is not the point.
Today, churches look different than they did five, ten or twenty years ago. Church today can be
the gathering of friends on a Friday night to share a meal, fellowship and enjoy each other’s
company. How do you “count” the number of attenders to provide an accurate attendance count?
The way in which we evaluate and track growth has to change with the shifting of culture. The
numbers can say anything we want them to say. What need to be emphasis are the actual work
being accomplished and the number of lives being impacted. Is it possible to have devout
Christians who never attend church? The answer to the question is not so easy. What does that
actually mean?
A way to track whether or not to continue with any ministry is difficult to assess. A
traditional method of taking attendance is something that will still get done and has value;
however, if that is all we do to verify the effectiveness then we are failing. A non-traditional
ministry that looks so different will pose a challenge to any type of verification. Take for instance
a ministry to local bands looking for a venue to play concerts. If a venue is set-up and bands
bring their fans, play their music and go home was anything accomplished? Some would answer
no. Others would not be certain and a few would only have hope until empirical evidence is seen.
The scenario presented above is one that has been done and after several years had impacted
thousands of people. Many families lives have been reached and now serving God in real and
tangible ways. To use some type of verifier too early in the process would have yielded no
results. In the end not only were band members reached for Christ but so have their families.
Bartel states that “Healthy churches reproduce themselves. Healthy churches produce healthy
Christians. And healthy congregations work hard to make disciples within a context where all of
the biblical purposes find appropriate expression (Ephesians 4:14–16; Colossians 1:10–12).”25
25 Leroy R. Bartel, "Needed: Healthy Churches and Healthy Disciples," Enrichment Journal, , accessed
April 28, 2017, http://enrichmentjournal.ag.org/200203/200203_104_needed.cfm.
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