Assignement summary work Christian discipleship.pdf

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CHAPTER 1

PROBLEM

Introduction

The broader Christian community is working to discover the meaning of being

and making disciples. In The Great Omission, Dallas Willard says the Church has

focused on making converts instead of disciples (141). A much older fellow minister and

former District Superintendent Ronnie Wills said he believed he and his peers have

focused on making good church members instead of disciples. One of the most common

definitions of a Christian disciple is a “self-initiating, reproducing, fully devoted

followers of Jesus Christ” (Ogden, Transforming Discipleship 1813).

To narrow the focus on being and making disciples, this project is most interested

in the relationships people form that help facilitate this process. Scripture does show

Jesus’ disciples being the crowds that heard him speak. Instead, Jesus’ disciples were the

people who followed him around, who shared life with him.

Early in ministry I pastored a small country church averaging about twenty three

in attendance. The church leaders said they liked their church small because they knew

everyone. In my third year, one of my key leaders lost his job of twenty-seven years

when someone bought out the company for which he had worked for. After several

weeks one of the other church leaders asked me how the man who lost his job was doing

and wanted to know if he might be interested in a potential job opening. The troubling

part of the story is that these two men had both been raised in this church from childhood

were single and in their 50s. They lived a quarter mile apart with one house between

them. They had both been very involved in the church their whole lives and were key

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leaders. If I had to point out Christian men in the congregation, they were at the top of my

list. I was perplexed that the these two individuals had not been talking with each other

right after the one lost his job.

I have witnessed this story in many forms throughout my years in ministry. In

every church with which I have personally been involved, very few people really know

each other. At one church I held home group meetings with six to twelve people, so we

could get to know each other. Everyone was encouraged to answer two questions: How

did you come to faith in Jesus Christ, and, what is one of your most powerful Christian

experiences? A man turned to his wife and said, “Honey, I have never told you this

before,. . .” and then told us all how he had come to faith in Jesus. They had already been

married over thirty-five years.

These stories have made me aware of the problem many people have in our

churches developing relationships in which they feel free to share their life and faith

journey with others. These relationships do exist outside the bounds of most local

churches. Alcoholics Anonymous does a wonderful job of structuring the meeting times

and, more importantly, their sponsor relationships to make openness a key component.

The relationship an addict has with his or her sponsor requires complete openness and

honesty, where all struggles are shared. A church member who worked with people in

recovery lamented not having a place in the church that he thought people could share

openly about their lives or faith struggles.

In the beginning days of the Methodist movement, John Wesley created class

meetings and bands for accountability and the sharing of personal aspects of life to help

the participants go on to perfection. Wesley formed groups of three to five people called

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bands. Most of the bands were all men or all women to help keep people accountable in

their daily walk with Christ. They were supposed to meet weekly and report all their sin

and temptation to each other. In a similar manner, the Walk to Emmaus provides an

outside influence in the life of some of today’s churches. After an Emmaus weekend

people are encouraged to be involved in a reunion group to provide support as they live

out their Christian faith. These groups are usually composed of three to eight participants

and meet regularly to share their Christian life together. One of the focal points of each

group time is sharing where they have been closest to God and where they have been

farthest from the Lord in the last week.

In the current situation of many small to medium-sized United Methodist

churches laity are not rising up to lead discipleship groups. In many of these churches,

lay leadership is only descriptive of those who serve on committees, and most church

committees are only focused on making administrative decisions. The laity need to be

mobilized and equipped for a much greater purpose: to make disciples.

Purpose

The purpose of the study was to train selected small group leaders at Wrens

United Methodist Church (WUMC) to use a discipleship model that incorporates

Scripture reading, fellowship activities, missional projects, and personal reflection to help

the participants grow as disciples of Jesus Christ and closer to each other in the Christian

community. The participants needed to gain an understanding of the relational nature of

discipleship, see the value in discipleship small groups, and gain the skills and knowledge

necessary to be able to start and lead these small groups.

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Research Questions

Three questions guided the study. They are geared around discerning the specifics

involved in being a disciple of Jesus Christ. These questions point to knowledge, attitude,

and behaviors that helped or did not help people grow to a point of being willing to share

their faith with others.

Research Question #1

How did the participants understand their relationship with Jesus and their

commitment to Christian community, and what were their perceptions about their ability

to lead small groups before the study?

Research Question #2

How did the participants understand their relationship with Jesus and their

commitment to Christian community, and what were their perceptions about their ability

to lead small groups after the study?

Research Question #3

What components of the ten-week study were most helpful?

Definition of Terms

Words and phrases find their best definition in context. Words such as disciple,

community, and discipler are often understood differently. The understandings can be

very broad and different or subtly nuanced. The definitions of these three terms as they

are intended to be understood in this project follow.

A disciple is a person who is working to orient his or her life around the life and

teaching of Jesus Christ by spending time seeking God through Christian practices such

as Scripture reading, prayer, fasting, Christian service, and sharing faith with others. A

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disciple is not simply a church member. A church member focuses more on supporting

the institutional church through attendance, giving, and supporting programs or events,

but a disciple focuses on being in relationship with Jesus and the people that make up the

Church. A disciple works on growing into his or her responsibility to mature in Christian

faith and to help others grow in their faith.

By definition a community is a group of people living in the same place together

sharing similar characteristics. All churches fit the definition of community. In this

project building community does not refer to increasing its size but in deepening

community members’ openness with each other. As evident in the introductory stories,

people in churches and homes are living in a community that is often not very open.

Building community refers to helping people grow closer together by sharing their lives

and faith with each other, working towards being more fully known by others.

The last word that needs clarifying in this study is discipler. Disciplers are

disciples who have begun to disciple other people. One key aspect of disciplers is that

they take the initiative to keep in contact with the people they disciple. Another key

aspect is that disciplers always disciples. Sometimes discipleship is done though peer

relationships, and other times disciplers are still working directly with the persons who

have discipled them.

Ministry Project

The project consists of evaluating a training method and discipleship plan to equip

disciplers to lead their own Wesleyan-style discipleship small groups. The discipleship

model was designed to help people in a small group come to know Jesus and each other

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better and to empower and inspire the participants to take responsibility for their own

Christian growth in order to share their faith with others.

At the church twelve disciplers were trained during ten lessons in how to use the

discipleship model, how to conduct healthy small groups, and how to form their own

discipleship small groups. The training sessions lasted 1 ½ hours per week and included

reading Scripture together, praying together, learning skills to facilitate small groups, and

serving and fellowshipping together. During the ten-lesson training period, one service

event was planned for week seven and one fellowship event was planned for week nine.

Context

The broadest context for this study was the South Georgia Annual Conference of

the United Methodist Church. The goal was to help other pastors and laity learn the

method by using the model with them as a group of preachers and sharing with them how

this was implemented and its effectiveness at WUMC.

The secondary context is the local congregation. The goal was to structure this

project in a way that the group participants would be able to become disciplers with their

own group, drawing in more of the congregation. When others see the effectiveness of

the model, they may also want to take part in the small group discipleship model.

The primary context of the study is the twelve people who are involved in the ten

training sessions. As the pastor of WUMC I prayerfully invited all of the participants to

take part in this study.

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Methodology

This study used qualitative methods through weekly journals and a short-answer

questionnaire before and after the ten training sessions. The journals and questionnaires

allowed the participants to express what they believed in their own words.

The pre intervention questionnaire helped determine what skills the group

participants believed were necessary to facilitate a small group as well as their perceived

ability to lead a group. The post intervention questionnaire assessed the participants

progress by using the same questions from the pre intervention questionnaire.

Twelve participants met for ten lessons. Every week a teaching sheet was passed

out to each participant for taking notes and for referring back to the information as the

lessons progressed. After week two the group split because of the participants schedules.

One group met during lunchtime and the other group met in the evening. In week three

the groups decided on a service project for week seven. During week six the groups

decided on a place and time to have the fellowship lesson. The other eight lessons were

conducted in the WUMC fellowship hall.

Participants

All active participants of WUMC were considered to take part in the study. I

prayerfully selected twelve potential disciplers for participation in this study. This study

included members and active nonmembers at WUMC.

Instrumentation

Two instruments were used to measure the effectiveness of this discipleship

model. The first assessment conducted at the beginning and end of the ten training

lessons was the pre- and post intervention questionnaire. The second instrument was a

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weekly journal as an e-mail response to one or more of three specific question sent to the

disciplers to measure their weekly progress.

Variables

Within this study were several variables. The dependent variable is the effect the

model had on the participants. There were three intervening variables: differences in

disciplers’ faith, the interpersonal dynamics of the groups, and the openness of any

particular group participant.

Data Collection

The disciplers filled out the pre- and post intervention questionnaire at their first

and last training session. Setting aside ten minutes during the session assured a 100

percent return rate. Throughout the entire process, the disciplers e-mailed answers to one

or more of the three questions from weekly journals within two days of their group

meeting. E-mail reminders were sent to all participants each week to help encourage the

disciplers to keep up with their journals.

Data Analysis

The questionnaire was studied to see what progress was made in the disciplers’

understanding of making disciples through leading Wesleyan-style discipleship small

groups. The questionnaire was also examined to see what progress was made towards the

participants’ level of commitment to making disciples of Jesus Christ. The journals were

studied for common phrases and for an interpretation of the participants spiritual growth

and sense of empowerment to share their faith and lead discipleship small groups.

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Generalizability

This study is unique to medium-sized United Methodists churches in the

Southeast Jurisdiction. The limitations of this study included the interpersonal dynamics

within a group that helped or hindered sharing. Other limitations of this study were the

small sample size and myself as the only person analyzing the data. The effectiveness of

this discipleship model is significant to other clergy in similar churches who are wanting

to use a discipleship model. This study adds to the growing body of work for clergy in the

South Georgia Annual Conference who are being asked to come up with their own

discipleship plans. Models such as the one I used are helping clergy shift their focus to

how they can more effectively be making disciples in their congregations.

Theological Foundation

The theological discussion for the training of laity to run discipleship groups

begins with a look at history through the ministry of Wesley. Wesley used James 5:16 as

the scriptural foundation for his bands (77-78):

James 5:12-20 (NRSV)

Above all, my beloved, do not swear, either by heaven or by earth or by

any other oath, but let your “Yes” be yes and your “No” be no, so that you

may not fall under condemnation. Are any among you suffering? They

should pray. Are any cheerful? They should sing songs of praise. Are any

among you sick? They should call for the elders of the church and have

them pray over them, anointing them with oil in the name of the Lord. The

prayer of faith will save the sick, and the Lord will raise them up; and

anyone who has committed sins will be forgiven. Therefore confess your

sins to one another, and pray for one another, so that you may be healed.

The prayer of the righteous is powerful and effective. Elijah was a human

being like us, and he prayed fervently that it might not rain, and for three

years and six months it did not rain on the earth. Then he prayed again,

and the heaven gave rain and the earth yielded its harvest. My brothers and

sisters, if anyone among you wanders from the truth and is brought back

by another, you should know that whoever brings back a sinner from

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wandering will save the sinner’s soul from death and will cover a

multitude of sins. (Jas. 5:12-20, NRSV)

This passage lays out a guide for the way disciples can live in community with each other

as they help one another draw nearer to God, refraining from sin and wandering away

from their relationship with Jesus Christ. James illustrates how to live in an authentic

Christian community with others as disciples wrestle with the sin they face, and strive

towards sanctification, becoming holy as God is holy. James tells the Church that the

body of believers is charged with the responsibility of entering into relationship with and

pray for those who are suffering, sick, and sinning so that they might be healed. James

does not claim these responsibilities are only a duty of the clergy but of the whole body

of Christ.

James begins this section by giving the reader instructions for living as

individuals in a community. Disciples should be the kind of people who do not need to

have a signed contract to be held accountable to what they say and do. They should be the

kind of people who say exactly what they mean without mincing words. The way

disciples live with people should be based on how they live as a child of God alone and

not on anything else. The simplicity and honesty of verse 12 greatly aids in understanding

how to be authentic Christians.

In my experience I have met several people who have enough faith in the power

of God to ask for church leaders to gather to pray for their physical healing. Having

people want to gather church leaders to pray for their sickness that they claim is a product

of sin in their life is a different matter all together. What is interesting is that seeking help

for sin is a regular part of the church as seen in Alcoholics Anonymous.

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The use of oil in this passage is one of those mysteries that I cannot fully explain.

The text clearly states that the oil is not what heals the person, nor is it necessary to have

many people praying. God is the one doing the healing, and for some reason God works

through the effective prayers of the righteous. While community and ritual are not

necessary for God to heal or forgive, something is holy about both of their involvement,

and to neglect them is to neglect the full power of the Holy Spirit working in the lives of

God’s people. The whole act makes the community realize that they are necessary for

each other, that they can be the physical body of Christ, one for another. The oil helps

people know that God is doing something mysterious in this process.

Wesley used verse 16 as the biblical reason for having the Methodist bands meet

and for what they should do when they met together. American Protestants have moved

far away from the idea of penance in the Catholic church and accepted individualism as a

Christian doctrine. Regaining the need to sharing struggles and temptations with a small

group is necessary.

Verse 16 was also a text that the Catholic church used to support Penance. The

Sacrament of Penance aided in bridging the divide between people and God since a priest

was the only person who could hear confession and forgive sins. Elders are a body of

godly people whom the church has set aside to provide leadership.

Verse 16 adds to additional understanding of Penance with the idea of mutual

confession of sins. Disciples are called to openly and honestly pray for one another:

It requires enough humility to bow our heads to let another pray for us. It

means honesty and the confession of personal and collective sins, without

fear, with the freedom of love. It means opening ourselves to our brothers

and sisters in the same way that we open ourselves to God in silent prayer.

(Tamez 58)

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The act of sharing life on this level greatly aids in building a sense of community among

believers. It is essential that individuals’ knowledge of each other’s lives should not bring

slander or gossip but truth, love, and correction. If people’s sharing is for any other

reason than building each other up, it can result in dividing a community.

Verse 16 also talks about the prayers of the righteous being powerful. It gives

added emphasis to the call on every person in the community to be counted as a righteous

person. Disciples can all be righteous people just like Elijah, who was only human.

Verses 14-15 address those who have a sickness that is debilitating. The biblical

worldview drew a close relationship between sickness and sin; therefore, this section

holds both physical sickness and spiritual sickness in tension. Appropriate tension is

mindful that spiritual well-being is always more important than physical health. Verse 16

can be seen as setting up a regular practice of mutual confession to keep people from

getting to the point where they are so sick they need to call the elders of the church.

Verses 19-20 seem to sum up this section, sharing the real spiritual dynamic

present. “The epistle encourages the recipients to work to restore holiness and wholeness

in the community rather than division” (Webb and Kloppenborg 106). The community

that James is trying to form is one that will rally in support of the sick and show itself to

be in solidarity instead of isolating those who threaten its possession of health and

security (L. Johnson 222).

First Timothy 5:17 says that some elders were teachers and preachers. During the

period of circuit riders in the Methodist Church, before the ordained clergy began

locating, many laity were preaching and teaching in churches. The laity maintained the

church because itinerant clergy could not always be present.

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In Greg Ogden’s book Transforming Discipleship, he points out that Jesus

focused a lot of energy on training twelve disciples in order to turn the church over to

them. He poses the question, “If we were to follow this model, what would it look like?”

(139). Jesus does not limit the call to making disciples to a few specialists but it is a call

for all people, everywhere (Matt. 28:18-20). Jesus’ model leads disciples to rise up and

share their faith and help others become followers of Jesus Christ. Jesus’ model is not

limited to transmission of information but includes a shared life, helping his disciples

grow as they learn from his habits and from their own practice of ministry. Jesus’ way

focuses heavily on building relationships with the disciples. Training disciples to make

disciples of Jesus Christ involves several components. First disciples must learn the

meaning of being a fully devoted follower of Jesus Christ. Then people need to be

equipped with the relational skills and small group leadership skills they will need to

build relationships and disciple others. Finally, disciplers need someone who is

continuing to disciple them through this process (Comiskey 700).

Overview

The remainder of the dissertation is broken into four chapters. The second chapter

is the review of relevant literature dealing with being a person who makes disciples. The

third chapter examines the structure of the project in greater depth, particularly the

research questions, participants, methodology, data collection, and data analysis. Chapter

4 is an in-depth presentation of the data collected from the instruments. Chapter 5

discusses the findings of the research and examines implications for the application of the

study in developing a model to train laypeople to make disciples.

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CHAPTER 2

LITERATURE

Introduction

Since I began this dissertation, the South Georgia Annual Conference has tried to

make each church create its own discipleship plan. From conversations with fellow

clergy and being a part of larger district conversations, the whole process has been very

challenging for a number of pastors and churches. Many have given up out of frustration

and done nothing, or very little, and other pastors had trouble getting buy-in with their

churches. This push began three years ago, and most clergy are still challenged

implement a discipleship plan. The idea of being a disciple and a church being intentional

about making disciples is not something most of the leadership in these congregations is

willing to do.

The purpose of the intervention was to train selected small group leaders at

WUMC to use a discipleship model that includes Scripture reading, fellowship activities,

missional projects, and personal reflection to help the community grow as disciples of

Jesus Christ and to come closer to each other in the Christian community. My research

sought to discover the meaning of being a disciple of Jesus Christ and to see what the

church has done in the past that has helped make disciples. I particularly focused on

Wesley’s class and band meetings as part of the church’s Wesleyan heritage that can be

reclaimed and shaped to fit the current culture and needs. I am hopeful that through this

project I can begin to create a church culture in which people can grow in their

relationship with God and with others and become people who are making disciples of

Jesus Christ.

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Disciples

A Conversation surrounding the idea of Christians as disciples through books,

magazines, and conferences has been building for the past several years. In this

conversation, some understand discipleship to be only for those who have a greater

commitment to Jesus. This distinction causes a “two-level Christian experience in which

only serious Christians pursue and practice discipleship, while grace and forgiveness is

enough for everyone else” (Hull 124). Many Christians believe all that is necessary to be

a disciple is to say the sinner’s prayer and be baptized, believing Jesus is the Son of God

and saves them from their sin.

Some describe Christians as people who ascribe to certain truths Jesus taught.

However, “believing without discipleship isn’t believing, it’s agreeing to a set of facts

about a religious figure” (Hull 371). Too often, the test of faith comes down to people’s

agreement with a set of doctrinal beliefs instead of the fruit people are bearing in their

lives (376).

Discipleship is not limited to the beginning stages in a new Christians life or to a

particular class taken outside of the worship service. Some believe that discipleship is

about taking part in spiritual tasks such as Richard J. Foster’s Celebration of Discipline

or classes such as the United Methodist study entitled Disciple I, II, III and IV. Still

others are inclined to label those who participate in the disciplines or programs as faithful

disciples, thus also labeling the rest as unfaithful disciples. Often the twelve were not

completely faithful and were still known as disciples (Wilkins Following the Master 30).

Discipleship is not a task for elite Christians; it is the call for all who follow Jesus, who

know Jesus as Savior and Lord. Discipleship is the way Christians follow after Jesus.

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Christian as Disciple—Theology of Making Jesus Lord

The concept of knowing Jesus as Savior is instrumental in Christian’s lives as

they seek forgiveness for their sins and begin a life-long relationship with Jesus. Living

with Jesus as Lord has been a challenging concept for Christians to figure out throughout

the history of the church. The idea of Jesus as Lord means disciples must submit their

entire lives to Jesus’ authority.

Biblical Foundation

Being a disciple is the most basic aspect of the Christian life. Christian disciples

agree to follow Jesus and no other master (Wilkins, Following the Master 23). In

Matthew 4:18-22 Peter, Andrew, James, and John left their work as fishermen and began

to follow Jesus. They reoriented their whole lives around following Jesus. In Luke 14:25-

33 Jesus describes the high cost of discipleship. Disciples must be willing to love him

more than anyone and carry their crosses even to the point of giving up all their

possessions. Jesus challenged the disciples to count the cost before deciding to follow

him.

Jesus had many disciples, but the twelve hold a special importance. In Mark 3:13-

15 (and also Luke 6:12-13), Jesus went up on a mountain and called those he wanted (i.e.

the twelve) and named them apostles. Later, in Luke 9:1-2, Jesus sent out the twelve and

gave them authority to drive out demons, cure diseases, and preach the good news. In this

instance, these callings seem to be a result of their role as apostles. The dual distinction of

the twelve as disciples and apostles clouds the understanding of what the life of a disciple

should look like. This tension is held in balance, however, in Luke 10:1-11 when Jesus

sent out seventy and gave them authority to proclaim the good news and heal the sick.

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The story of the rich young ruler in Matthew 19:16-25, displays the high cost of

discipleship. The man’s question of Jesus is, “Teacher, what good deed must I do to have

eternal life?” (v. 16). He had worked to obey the law yet was unwilling to answer the call

to forsake his possessions. He was not willing to pay the price. The disciples’ question at

the end is, “Then who can be saved?” (v.25). This encounter strengthens the argument

that salvation is not solely tied to assenting to right belief, or even right practice, but a

deeper commitment to follow Jesus at all costs. This thought is vastly different than how

most people are encouraged to come to a relationship with Jesus today. People are often

asked to believe that Jesus died for their sins instead of being convinced that Jesus is

worth following to the point that they would give up everything for him. The rich young

ruler’s encounter with Jesus reinforces the idea that being a disciple is synonymous with

being a Christian.

For Christians, the premier example of a disciple usually focuses on Jesus’ twelve

disciples. Jesus’ initial challenge to his disciples was to “follow me” (Matt. 4:19). The

analogy of following Jesus is echoed in Hebrews 12:1-2; “Throw off everything that

hinders and the sin that so easily entangles, and let us run with perseverance the race

marked out for us. Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith.” A

disciple is regularly letting go of sin and continuing on a journey, following Jesus.

Review of Selected Literature

True discipleship does not exist in degrees. It is the journey all Christians are

called to travel and not a level of spiritual maturity for elite Christians. Discipleship, the

widely accepted term that describes the ongoing life of the disciple, also describes the

broader Christian experience. “Most Christians generally accept discipleship as the

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process of following Jesus” (Hull 286). The word disciple is used at least 230 times in the

Gospels and 28 times in Acts to refer to followers of Jesus in a general sense (Wilkins,

Following the Master 26). Discipleship is a Christian’s whole way of life, and being a

disciple should be synonymous with being a Christian. The Book of Acts points out that

the name Christian was first given to the disciples at Antioch (Acts 11:26). Prior to this

point in Acts the followers of Jesus were referred to as disciples. The great Christian

Philosopher, Dallas Willard, writes about being a disciple::

A disciple is a learner, a student, an apprentice—a practitioner, even if

only a beginner. The New Testament literature, which must be allowed to

define our terms if we are ever to get our bearings in the Way with Christ,

makes this clear. In that context, disciples of Jesus are people who do not

just profess certain views as their own but apply their growing

understanding of life in the Kingdom of the Heavens to every aspect of

their life on earth. (Great Omission 135)

The Bible does not make a distinction between being a Christian and being a disciple.

Willard speaks to the reality that many Christians have only assented to certain views and

have not answered the call to be followers of Jesus Christ.

The twelve disciples began to follow Jesus before they have any real idea who he

was. Being a disciple is not a title Christians receive when they reach spiritual maturity

but the decision to be an active follower of Jesus Christ. The beginning stages of a

disciple’s life of following Jesus is reflected in Wesley’s trial bands. These trial bands

were for people who were interested in learning about the Christian faith. The early days

of Jesus’ disciples and Wesley’s trial bands were opportunities for people to experience

prevenient grace, the grace that draws people to God, as well as time to learn about Jesus.

Because discipleship is a lifelong process and not something achieved like a

Sunday school attendance pin, it is broad enough for people who have not lived up to the

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expectations of being a disciple of Jesus Christ to still be called Christians (Ogden

Transforming Discipleship 474). Paul voiced his frustration with one Christian

community when he said they had still not moved from drinking milk to eating solid food

(1 Cor. 3:1-3). Some disciples were drinking milk, others were eating meat, but they are

all disciples.

People experience internal or external pressure to be perfect, to have life all

figured out, or to have reached the goal faith. Life is a work in progress; faith is a

journey. If a classroom of children is asked who can sing, the majority will raise their

hands. If a group of adults is asked the same question, only a minority will say they do.

People have let the idea of specialists creep into the way they practice their faith.

Christians are not called to be star soloists impressing the world, but instead to proclaim

that the Church is an orchestra of ordinary people trying their best to figure out how to

live in the world (Boren 189). Disciples are not elite Christians, but people who are

willing to follow Jesus even if it means they may make mistakes. The twelve apostles are

great examples of people who followed Jesus and made mistakes.

Disciples’ ability to accept their own imperfections do not give them approval to

be uncommitted to following Jesus. John 6:66 clearly states that Jesus had some disciples

who decided not to follow him anymore after they heard teaching that they thought was

too hard. People can decide to follow Jesus, find the journey too hard, or not to their

liking, and leave, choosing not to follow Jesus anymore. Discipleship is a journey that

Christians are called to stay on no matter how arduous the path.

More than a prayer. In David Lowes Watson’s book Covenant Discipleship,

new light is brought to one of my favorite biblical stories, the Prodigal (Luke 15:11-32).

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Watson says that the next day, after the celebrating was over, the son would have been

expected to get back to work (35). The text does not mention what the youngest son did

the next day because the story focuses on the excessively generous love of the father.

Watson points out what would be the obvious conclusion to the story is that when

someone is a son, he has work to do. This concept is often minimized in the Church’s

evangelistic efforts. The church tries to help open doors for people to leave the pig pens

they are in and return to God who is ready and waiting to receive them back into the

family of God. The church talks a lot about God’s great love for all humanity, God’s

forgiveness, and the excitement of the celebration, but often fail to emphasize the need to

get to work after being restored.

For many evangelicals, this conversation about discipleship has brought

awareness to the idea that the church has been focusing on conversion and eternal

salvation, and not paying enough attention to the life God is calling all Christians to live

right now, right where they are (Robinson 23). United Methodists should understand this

conversation, because the life of discipleship is summed up in the journey through

prevenient, justifying, and sanctifying grace. Prevenient grace is the wooing grace of God

that draws disciples into a relationship with him. Justifying grace is the grace from God

that washes away sin and makes people right in God’s eyes as they come into a

relationship with Jesus. Followers of Jesus Christ receive sanctifying grace for the rest of

their lives as they strive to “be holy as God is holy” (1 Pet. 1:16) going on to perfection in

love.

More than right belief or book knowledge. Being a disciple of John or Jesus

was not simply about learning material. The program-based model of church can too

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easily turn the method of discipleship into a mere eight-week study. The industrial mind-

set of American culture has infiltrated the church and now Christians commonly think

that if people will go to church, pray, read the Bible, and study it, they will magically

become mature disciples. The transfer of information does not equal transformation of

heart and life. The Bible does not claim that being a disciple means Christians should

read their Bible and pray regularly (Willard, Great Omission 2587). Continued learning is

only part of this stage in the life of a disciple.

First Thessalonians 2:8 says, “Not just content to pass on the Message, we wanted

to give you our hearts. And we did.” Discipleship includes sharing life, purpose, and a

way of being. Paul uses fatherly imagery when talking about his process of discipling the

Thessalonians: “We dealt with each of you like a father with his children, urging,...

encouraging,… pleading” (Ogden Transforming Discipleship 1157). The writer of First

Thessalonians emphasizes the need for parents to disciple their children, but the writer

also points out the personal nature of discipleship relationships.

During my years teaching confirmation classes, I often talked with parents about

their confirmation experiences growing up. They were thankful we spent more time

talking about the details of a relationship with Jesus instead of spending the bulk of the

time memorizing creeds, prayers, and key passages of Scripture as they did: “Faithful

Christianity involves more than cognitive understandings of doctrines, creeds, and

statements of faith. It is a way of life that is learned, experienced, and developed in

community” (Csinos 61). The renewed focus on discipleship is bringing the need for a

daily relationship with Jesus back to the foreground of Christian thought.

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Discipleship revolves around the life of a believer following Jesus, actively

listening to the Holy Spirit, and doing what Jesus says. It is not specifically memorizing

the Bible and obeying the law but hearing the Spirit speak through them so disciples

know how to follow Jesus.

Being a follower of Jesus. Wesley promoted the idea of sanctification, which is

an instantaneous gift from God and the process that consumes most of a disciple’s life.

Holiness, as Wesley understood it, consisted of a lifestyle dedicated to Christ. He also

“interpreted holiness in terms of love, and perfection in terms of perfect love” (25). The

fruit of holiness is seen in people’s actions, but the essence of holiness is a heart in love

with God.

At the center of all Christians should be a heart yearning to live for the one who

gave his life for all humanity. As believers grow in their relationship with God, using the

means of grace, people find “a hunger and thirst after living right. It begins with a deep

desperation in your soul that says, ‘Give me Jesus or I die!’ It begins with a relationship

between the Lord and you” (Parrott 21). A disciple’s life is focused on letting Jesus

satisfy their deep hunger and thirst.

The disciple’s life is the long journey of answering Jesus’ call to “Come, follow

me” (Matt 19:21). A disciple is more than a learner; he or she is a follower (Shirley 209).

Discipleship is the process of transformation. It is not simply teaching information or

trying to convince someone to be a moral person. Christian discipleship is the

transforming process that occurs as believers fall in love with Jesus and allows him to

renew their hearts continually. Scott McKnight talks about the differences in the

members, the decided, the discipled (31). Learning about Jesus, asking Jesus to be Lord

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and Savior, is very different from taking up the cross and following Jesus as a disciple. If

a person becomes a disciple a change in behavior, and life patterns will follow (Geiger,

Kelly, and Nation 28). A disciple’s life is continually being transformed into the image of

the Creator. The challenge every disciple faces is to become like the teacher; thus, he or

she is to imitate Jesus, minister in the same way he did, and become like him in the

process (Chan and Beuving 16). In the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus says the ultimate goal

of a disciple is to be like the teacher (Luke 6:40). A disciple’s life brings together faith

and action, word and deed they we follow the master Jesus (Grace 150).

The concept of discipleship practiced in many United Methodist churches focuses

on learning material with the hopes that an internal transformation toward stronger

morality will occur: “Discipleship is not only an internal condition of believers, but also

involves the active manifestation of their relationship with Jesus Christ” (Shirley 211).

Paul uses the imagery of taking off the old nature and putting on the new in Ephesians

4:17-32. The transformation of the old self to a new one should include an outward

change in behavior. Methodists know this process as the doctrine of sanctification and

understand that they are on a lifelong journey of becoming perfect as God is perfect,

focusing on being perfect in love. In many ways, discipleship is the tool or practical side

of the process of sanctification. Steven W. Manskar defines discipleship:

[Discipleship] is looking at Christ, keeping our eyes on him, learning from

him, and doing our best to imitate him. In other words, disciples are

people who do the things Jesus did. They put into practice the things Jesus

taught. They pray, fast and worship the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob.

Disciples identify themselves with the poor, the weak, the strangers, the

dispossessed and the despised ones of the world. (50)

Discipleship is the way a disciple lives following Jesus, living out the relationship with

Jesus.

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Throughout the book of Acts, the disciples fast, pray, and take time to focus on

the needs of the poor in their midst. Acts 6:1-7, describes how the disciples increased in

number and a problem developed with some of the widows being neglected in the

distribution of food. The twelve called together the whole body and decided they needed

to focus their energy on proclaiming and teaching the Word of God instead of tending to

the widows. The people then chose seven disciples who stood before the apostles. The

apostles laid hands on them and authorized and empowered them for this ministry.

Not all of the disciples were called to tend to the word of God, and not all

disciples were called to oversee the distribution of food to the widows. Many different

roles and functions exist in the church providing places where disciples to serve. Disciple

is the general term, like Christian, while apostle is a distinction of a role or function, like

preacher. The goal of being a disciple should be to follow Jesus by listening for his voice

and doing what the Spirit says: “Discipleship from a Christian perspective is concerned

with living an authentic Christian existence” (Frederick 556). For one person, living as a

faithful disciple may mean being a teacher, while for the next it may be tending to the

widows.

Being like Jesus. Jesus’ call on every disciple is unique, but some marks of

discipleship that apply to everyone. John 8:31-32 says disciples must abide by Jesus’

word; John 13:34 says disciples must love others; and, in John 15:8 Jesus said his

followers must bear fruit (Wilkins, Following the Master 120). The Gospel of John also

contains five just as statements that universally apply to all who want to be disciples of

Jesus Christ. John 6:57 says to live because God has given life to all disciples, just as he

lives because God has given him life. John 10:14-15 points out that disciples must know

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Jesus just as Jesus knows God. This does not mean knowing about him, but really

knowing him. The next two just as statements come in John 15:9-10 and go hand in hand.

Jesus said people must abide in his love, the same love he received from God. Part of

abiding in this love means obeying God’s commandments. He did not say, “Since you

love me, please keep my commandments.” Instead he said, “If you keep my

commandments, you will abide in my love, just as I have kept my Father’s

commandments and abide in his love” (John 15:10). Disciples are not going to be sinless

like Jesus, they may not be perfect in that sense, but they are expected to strive toward

becoming holy just as God is holy. The fifth just as statement in John talks about Jesus

indwelling his followers, just as God is in him (17:21). In this same vein, after the

resurrection in John 20:21, Jesus said, “As the father has sent me, so I send you” (Baker

39). The just as statements illustrate the many ways the followers of Jesus are called to

imitate him as he follows God.

Jesus worked to bring about the transformation of the world. His disciples will

naturally work for this transformation to happen in themselves and join Jesus in the

continued work of opening doors for transformation in the world (P. Meadows,

“Mission” 177). If disciples find that they are not willing to reproduce by discipling

others, they need to ask themselves if they are really disciples of Jesus Christ.

The church needs to raise people out of a culture that is afraid to talk about its

faith, empowering followers to be faithful disciples no matter what persecution may

come:

Certainly the obedience Christ demands is great, the trials may be many,

and the sufferings intense, but the true disciple really would not want it

any other way. “To dodge these demands, trials, or sufferings is to leave

the path of Christ and set out on a much more dangerous one. (Grace 153)

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Jesus never promises his followers that discipleship is easy. Discipleship is costly, and

discipleship is demanding.

The details of the discipleship process are taught through the Scriptures. John the

Baptist’s disciples were committed to learning John’s teaching and way of life, as well as

following his practices. In John 3:25, John’s disciples questioned the Jews about

purification, and in Matthew 9:14 they asked Jesus about his disciples’ reason for not

fasting. Questions concerning holy living and not the interpretation of Scripture are the

focal point for disciples in Scripture (Wilkins, Following the Master 74).

The goal of discipleship is not convincing someone of right belief; it is training,

equipping, and sending disciples out to make more disciples of Jesus Christ. Discipleship

is a lifelong process that has several different evolutions but always involves a

relationship. Discipleship relationships are evident throughout the Old Testament: “Most

prominent among them are the relationships between Moses and Joshua, between Elijah

and Elisha, and between Jeremiah and Baruch” (Wilkins, Following the Master 47). The

New Testament highlights relationships like Paul and Timothy, in which Paul is

discipling Timothy. This relationship illumines the need for a person to be discipled by a

more mature Christian. Also present is the example of Paul and Barnabas’s relationship

of mutual discipleship, illustrating the need for brothers and sisters in the faith to journey

together. As disciples grow in their faith, they move back to the Paul and Timothy

relationship, but this time as the one discipling others. Through this process people are

never to make disciples for themselves, or become the disciple of another. Jesus is always

the master (Copan 148). Disciplers should always be making disciples of Jesus Christ,

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while also being Jesus’ disciples. The primary goal in discipleship is to help people learn

how to live with Jesus, hearing God speak and being willing to obey the Holy Spirit.

Patterns of Discipleship—Theology of Disciple-Making

Making disciples is the primary mission of the church, yet it is one of the most

challenging aspects of the Christian life. The church has used many different practices

and approaches to fulfill its mission throughout history. The following section will

explore the patterns of discipleship displayed in the Bible and in the history of the

Church.

Biblical Foundation

Throughout the biblical story, relational discipleship occurs as a prevalent mode

of training people. Elisha lived in relationship with Elijah and took over the ministry

when Elijah was caught up in the whirlwind. Joshua stayed near Moses or in the tent of

meeting, learning from Moses how to lead a difficult people and learning how to live as a

child of God willing to follow and trust the Lord (Hull 478). Paul mentored Timothy, and

Jesus spent three years in close proximity investing in the twelve.

In relational discipleship, spiritual growth happens naturally as people live with

Jesus and each other on a daily basis. Sharing life provides the disciple the ability to grow

in faith along the way, in the real world, learning truth and immediate application

(Coleman, Master Plan of Discipleship 59). In Jesus’ example we different components

of his life with the disciples are evident:

Jesus taught the disciples (Mk 4:10-12), corrected them (Mt 16:5-12),

admonished them (Mt 17:19-20), supported them (Lk 22:31-34),

comforted them (Jn 20:19-22), and restored them (21:15-19). Jesus held

up high standards of discipleship for his followers, but he was right there

with them helping them to accomplish those standards. Since a disciple is

always becoming more fully a disciple, the process of growth that

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occurred in their lives is intended as an example and as an encouragement

to the church. (Wilkins, Following the Master 119)

Jesus is always living in relationship with the his disciples. Relational discipleship finds

more biblical support through texts such as 2 Timothy 2:2, “And what you have heard

from me through many witnesses entrust to faithful people who will be able to teach

others as well,” and Acts 2:46-47 “Day by day, as they spent much time together in the

temple, they broke bread at home and ate their food with glad and generous hearts,

praising God and having the goodwill of all the people.” Disciples are not to live in

isolation. Discipleship is a communal process of disciples training each other.

The innovation of the printing press and the Reformation gave rise to a more

academic method of discipleship without the relational component. The ability for

common people to have their own Bibles, coupled with the theology of the Reformation,

which said a person did not need to go through a priest to talk to God, fueled this

approach to discipleship. Biblical support for academic discipleship is found in passages

such as Romans 12:2, “Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the

renewing of your minds, so that you may discern what is the will of God—what is good

and acceptable and perfect,” and Acts 2:42, “They devoted themselves to the apostles’

teaching and fellowship, to the breaking of bread and the prayers.” The academic

approach to discipleship gave rise to a systematic method that tended to focus more on

right belief than right practice. Studying the Scriptures must lead beyond gaining biblical

knowledge and coming to right belief. An academic study of the Bible coupled with an

emphasis on application while being directed by the Holy Spirit naturally leads towards

right practice, or holy living.

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Review of Selected Literature

This section examines a few historical shifts and developments in the arena of

Christian discipleship. A historic look will bring understanding to the discipleship

practices that work well and those that need refinement. My aim is to discover the

necessary components for empowering the church to make disciples. In all of the

methods that have been utilized through history to make disciples of Jesus Christ, the

foundational component in all of them is a willingness to follow Jesus, learning from God

and striving to grow in relationship with the risen Lord.

Heather Zempel, Pastor of Discipleship at National Community Church in

Washington, DC, breaks down the major methods of discipleship into four categories:

relational discipleship, experiential discipleship, academic discipleship, and personal

discipleship. These four methods of discipleship will provide the beginning framework

for an exploration of discipleship through history, then Wesley’s efforts in discipleship

and his influences will be examined. Wesley created a variety of ways for Methodists to

grow as followers of Jesus Christ. His varied and evolving methods helped to reach

people at all different stages in their spiritual growth. Wesley’s varied discipleship

practices are very helpful today because there is not a right method for discipleship for

everyone. “By suggesting that a style of spirituality is the style for all, people lose sight

of how they are being called by God to follow their own limited lights” (Muto and van

Kaam 53). The challenge is to see how these methods help and balance one another..

Relational discipleship. First-century discipleship in the Jewish faith was

expressed in a servant-master relationship (Matt. 10:24). When a disciple was accepted

by a rabbi he would start as a beginner, who was not allowed to speak, and grow to a

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place of being a full disciple of the rabbi, eventually being recognized as an equal with

the rabbi (Wilkins, Concept 123). Rabbis did not simply teach facts and ideas; they drew

their disciples into a new way of living (Csinos 51). Disciples in this model are bound to

adopt the lifestyle, teachings, and values of the master because of proximity and intimacy

(Wilkins, Following the Master 118). Memorizing the teacher’s words, learning the

teacher’s way of ministry, and imitating the teacher’s life and character are parts of the

overall process of following a teacher (Hull 551).

The goal for disciples in this model is to become like the master. As disciples

grow in their faith, they will naturally learn from the habits, beliefs, and practices of the

person who is discipling them. The challenge as Christians, however, is not to make

disciples of a person, but to make disciples of Jesus. Jesus does not call us to make

disciples of themselves but to make disciples of Jesus Christ. Disciplers are not to take

the role of master; God alone fills that role (Hull 584).

First-century discipleship included the academic model of discipleship with the

time spent memorizing the teacher’s words and Scripture. The larger emphasis in this

model is the amount of time a disciple spent with the rabbi. The Bible does not record

any stories in which Jesus is teaching the disciples to memorize his teachings or

Scripture, but the fact that the Bible contains four Gospels is proof that the disciples spent

time memorizing Jesus’ teachings and the Scriptures.

Through the relational method of discipleship, people grow closer to Christ as

they grow closer to one another (Zempel). This way of discipling people was effective

because learning through oral tradition was a cultural norm. This method is still very

effective and has been an instrumental component of Church Multiplication Associates,

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which have seen the growth of five hundred new churches in a few years because of their

commitment to discipleship. Their discipleship model has centered around Life

Transformation Groups, which consist of “a staple of Bible reading, story telling,

personal accountability and prayer” (Hirsch 105). Discipleship groups can be the key

component for providing community and accountability.

In an interview in Christianity Today, Tom Albin says he understands

“discipleship to involve three interrelated dimensions: knowledge, experience, and a

small group that can support me as I grow in grace and discover my place in the body of

Christ” (Stafford 44). Discipleship small groups seems to be the predominant idea behind

the church’s conversation on discipleship. It is only one component, but it is the weakest

one, and I believe, the reason why Christian discipleship has been suffering. The ever

evolving conversation in the church around small groups is deeply tied to the idea about

being disciples.

Experiential discipleship. Other people groups were able to utilize different

avenues of discipling people because certain innovations were more central to their

culture. Religions like those of the Greeks and Romans utilized architecture, music, art,

icons, and incense (Zempel). The experiential method of discipleship was central to the

Israelites’ faith. Some examples are the use of the Psalms in worship and community life,

the architecture of the Temple with the outer and inner courts and the Holy of Holies, and

the sacrificial system. The temple objects and actions were things God instructed the

people of Israel to make and do because they helped people understand who God was and

how to be children of God.

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When the Christian church became the official church of Rome, the experiential

method of discipleship rose to the foreground. Paintings, sculptures, architecture, icons,

liturgy, and other experiential practices became a prevalent vehicle for the transmission

of the gospel. Stained glass windows were very useful to teach the stories of the Bible in

a predominately illiterate society. During the Middle Ages, three primary influences

affected the intentional discipling of the common person: the Eucharist, community life,

and art (Hull 804).

One of the shortcomings of the Reformation is that Protestants often devalued

many of the ancient practices such as the Eucharist, holy days, icons, and art. Protestants

decreased the number of sacraments from seven to two, aiding to the diminished

importance of some of the spiritual practices and completely stopping others (Hull 149).

The Catholic and Anglican churches partake of the Eucharist weekly, and it is the central

focus of the worship service. For many Protestant denominations, the sermon, or

message, has now become the central focus their worship services. Many Methodist

churches only celebrate communion monthly, and many Baptist or Pentecostal churches

only celebrate the Eucharist quarterly.

Western and Eastern churches differ in some areas when it comes to experiential

discipleship. Western settings often value lectures, small group Bible studies, and

mentoring. Eastern Churches often connect better with symbols, ceremonies, and rituals

(Song 260). Regardless of the method of discipleship, the believer becoming more like

Christ is the intended fruit. God requires complete and total obedience, which is

ultimately a call to holiness: “Be holy because I am holy”(1 Pet 1:16). Sanctification

always requires disciples to walk with God in new ways. “If our encounter with God does

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not require something of us, we have to ask whether it was really God we encountered”

(Hirsch and Hirsch 77). Disciples should not leave encounters with God being exactly the

same as when they entered them.

Academic discipleship. New innovations inevitably bring about other changes:

The linear arrangement of pews in churches did not exist before the

printing press. The medieval church did not have pews—just a wide-open

space for standing. “After the printing press, church seating started to

mirror the page of a book. (Hipps 46)

The innovation of factories in the industrial revolution also shifted the approach to

discipleship to mirror the production line.

Degree programs in academia and prepackaged Bible studies in churches,

highlight the idea present in Churches, that if people go through a series of studies or

classes, learn as set of information, then effective Christians or pastors will be produced.

The academic focus at its worst divorces itself from application. When the goal in

studying Scripture is to understand the original context, or who the author was, or some

other good academic endeavor, it can leave people with a void, needing to hear a Word

from God for their lives today (Maddix and Thompson 80).

The result of an academic approach that neglects the others is that the very heart

of Scripture is taken away: “Scripture loses its functional authority when persons

appropriate it for information alone rather than engaging it in potentially formative and

transformative ways” (Maddix and Thompson 82). Academic discipleship is necessary,

but it needs to include components that lead to application.

Personal discipleship. Personal discipleship has been a long-practiced method. It

often begins with focusing on academic discipleship but moves past study for the sake of

knowledge into personal application. This was the approach to spiritual formation used

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by the Desert Fathers (Zempel). Monastic communities did well balancing the different

methods of discipleship but always focused on personal discipleship. Bill Hull pulls out

some of the basic monastic qualities or principles that are applicable today.

They chose a definite pattern of life—a life of humility, sacrifice,

submission, and service. They saw the road to godliness as one of

discipline. They saw value in living by a rule, sharing an agreed-upon life.

They desperately needed each other to remain faithful. They practiced the

disciplines that Jesus modeled—disciplines that freed them from slavery

to their own body’s appetites and that connected them to God and

reformed them spiritually. They applied themselves to serving others. The

monastics committed themselves to restoring the way of Jesus to the

church. (742)

The idea of personal application is not limited to monastic life. This same focus is evident

from Jesus in Matthew 16:15 when he asked Peter, “Who do you say that I am?”

This method of discipleship was instrumental in the spiritual formation of Wesley.

The core of Wesley’s early formation was shaped in large part by his mother, Susanna.

At one point in her children’s lives, she would spend one hour a week with each of her

children, focusing on their spiritual formation and education. She tailored her instruction

for each child according to his or her need (Henderson 38). Susanna’s approach was a

driving force behind the forming of the Holy Club at Oxford.

I believe a rise in personal discipleship is happening today as a reaction to such a

strong focus on academic discipleship. This method is prevalent with studies such as

Experiencing God by Henry Blackaby, and The Purpose Driven Life, by Bill Hybels,

which add personal application to reading the Bible. The modern expressions are still

industrial in nature and lack some of the best personal aspects of having studies tailored

for the person that were seen in Susanna Wesley’s practice. The ability to tailor lessons to

the individual was possible because Susanna knew her children well. Components of

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relational discipleship were also a vital part of Susanna’s method. Each of these method’s

are distinct but rarely exist in isolation. The process of making disciples should

incorporate aspects of all these methods as the church works to make disciples of Jesus

Christ.

A framework of three streams. Hull outlines three streams of discipleship

involved in the new monasticism: classical, spiritual formation, and environmental (Hull

163). According to Hull the “characteristics of the classic discipleship stream include

one-on-one mentoring, a disciplined program of Bible study, Scripture memorization, and

training in witnessing and speaking” (142). Today this stream is usually seen in the form

of programs. These programs often emphasize academic and sometimes personal

discipleship. People are becoming increasingly weary of practicing their faith by

completing programs. Often, when people are done with a program they discover it did

not produce a lasting change in the life. For many people, growth only occurs while they

are completing the course, and when the course is done, their growth stops (Hull 145).

The spiritual formation stream has focused on recapturing ancient practices that

were utilized by Jesus and his disciples, and the monastics communities. In Matthew 6

Jesus talked about aspects of this stream when he addressed the practices of prayer,

fasting, and almsgiving. These are some of the spiritual disciplines that were emphasized

by the Jewish community to help people focus on God.

The Desert Fathers, an early monastic movement, came into being as a response

to the perceived spiritual slackness of the church in their time. Their desire was to get

away and seek God in solitude (Hull 733). They focused on cultivating a life of humility,

sacrifice, submission, and service. According to the Desert Fathers, the way to follow

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Jesus involved discipline that was practiced by living by a common rule with the support

and accountability of the community. The practice of the disciplines that Jesus modeled

were central to their desire to be free from the desires of the flesh, thus helping them to

be more intimately connected to God. Some of the early monastic communities focused

on remaining completely separate while others also incorporated the practices of serving

others both inside and outside of their monastic community (745).

In Exodus 20 God spoke in ways perceived as a great storm. That imagery is

countered in 1 Kings 19:11-13 with Elijah standing on the mountain. God did not speak

through the strong wind, earthquake, or fire but through the sound of sheer silence. The

current fast-paced society often only slows down to hear God if he is speaking in

attention grabbing ways. “One of the spiritual formation stream’s greatest strengths is

that it causes us to slow down twenty-first-century life long enough to ponder what’s

going on in us and around us” (Hull 156). The practice of the spiritual disciplines helps to

quiet the desires of the flesh and open peoples hearts to listen to the Spirit of God.

At the forefront of the spiritual formation stream is Renovaré, a group founded by

Foster. In the late 1970s, Foster’s book, Celebration of Discipline brought the idea of

practicing spiritual disciplines back to the forefront for many in mainline American

churches. Foster discusses twelve disciplines that are divided into three categories. The

Inward Disciplines are meditation, prayer, fasting and study. The Outward Disciplines are

simplicity, solitude, submission and service. The Corporate Disciplines are confession,

worship, guidance and celebration (v). Most of these disciplines are still lacking in the

lives of many members of United Methodist churches in North America.

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James Bryan Smith, part of the Renovaré group, wrote a workbook designed to

help form small groups. These groups have continued to build on the foundation that was

played by the Moravians’ and the Wesleyans in their bands. The workbook is designed to

help a spiritual formation group begin with eight specific sessions, including a balanced

vision of faith and practice, the prayer-filled life, the virtuous life, the Spirit-empowered

life, the compassionate life, the Word-centered life, and the sacramental life (7-8). The

final session is aimed at helping spiritual formation groups find a method for continuing

to gather together each week. As good as the resources are, the church still fights the

tendency to treat them as yet another program to complete rather than working to

reincorporate these principles or disciplines into everyday life.

The third stream is the environmental stream. This can be seen as psychological

discipleship or relational discipleship. The idea of community is essential to the heart of

the environmental stream:

In essence, this movement encompasses the ways people get along. One of

the least-developed concepts in discipleship has been how the

environment of a group determines what grows or dies within that

environment. The most important issues in spiritual transformation are the

presence of acceptance, integrity of relationships, and trust. (Hull 158)

Discipleship always involves relationships and the dynamics of those relationships are a

critical factor in people’s spiritual growth.

Hull introduces the idea of a new monasticism. He believes these three streams

are coming together to create a well-rounded discipleship that has “the potential to

transform the church in the next twenty-five years” (164). Hull’s three streams carry

many of the same emphases as the four methods of discipleship that began this

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discussion. Moving forward the desire is to find a balanced approach to making disciples

of Jesus Christ.

Jesus as teacher. One of the main avenues of learning from Jesus as the teacher

is through the Bible. The Bible has become less utilized for discipleship and spiritual

formation and “increasingly relegated to the realm of Christian Doctrine” (Maddix and

Thompson 80). When the Bible is treated as a rule book or map for a Christian lifestyle

its power is minimized, voiding the relationship with Jesus that the Holy Spirit brings as

the text to enters into God’s people. If the Bible is indeed the living Word of God, and

Jesus is the teacher through it, then the questions is how are God’s disciples going to

respond to it (Grass 67).

The United Methodist Church in the United States. I want to focus in on the

state of the United Methodist Church in the United States. Generally churches have

ceased becoming places of making disciples for Jesus Christ. The church is viewed by

many people as a place that exists to meet their individual spiritual needs, according to

their preferences for music, preaching, and ways the church can serve their families

(Hirsch and Hirsch 139). A large contributor to this mentality has been the rise of

consumerism in American culture.

To meet this unquenchable thirst, the church has turned to the experiential method

of discipleship. Worship services, and many age based ministries are focused on

entertainment. This drive is partially due to the reality that the church is now competing

for people’s attention in the world. Some churches go as far as talking about providing a

Sunday morning experience instead of a worship service. The reality is that most people I

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have encountered as a pastor in traditional services are treating their services as an

experience, too.

The form of worship may be evolving, but a lot of energy is still being invested in

providing a vehicle for people to experience God in a large group setting. In most

Christian venues, the church is focusing its energy on playing music that appeals to their

audience and having a preacher deliver a sermon in style and in content that will make

people want to come back and hear the music and preacher again. The church’s focus has

shifted to appealing to peoples’ consumer interests instead of working to make disciples

of Jesus Christ (Hirsch 106).

The church has become a company trying to create brand loyalty and attract

people that will come and support their church, their worship service, and their staff.

Churches seemingly try and convince people to join so they can exist and draw more

people in. Jesus knew that the crowds that were attracted to his charismatic presence were

going to be the first to fall away when the demands of discipleship became difficult

(Ogden, Transforming Discipleship 643). The same problem occurs when the church is

centered the around the personality of the pastor, with the focus on how they can get

more people to come hear the pastor. The end goal in mind is to have more and more

people coming in. What is lacking is the understanding that once people have a

relationship with Jesus they need to focus more on going out than coming in: “A church

that is turned in on itself will surely die. But a church that is intentional about its primary

mission, a church that is spun out in loving service into the world, rediscovers itself day

by day” (Chilcote 95). Disciples are called to be working to fulfill the mission of God,

reaching out to the world.

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Attendance at Wesley’s class meetings was required if members wanted to go to

the society meetings. After three absences, members would not be issued a ticket granting

them entrance to the larger society meeting. This same model of Sunday school classes

feeding larger worship services continued to exist for years in the Methodist Church. The

class meetings have lost their potency and no longer exist as Wesley intended. Churches

are now trying to persuade people who come to worship services to join Sunday school

classes or other small groups.

Wesley’s class meetings were also highly structured to provide community and

accountability for its members. A frequent occurrence today is for Sunday school classes

to be mini-worship services, complete with singing and someone delivering a lecture-

based lesson. Sadly, the current system is long overdue for revitalization:

In 1870, the Sunday school committee reported that the “whole system of

Sunday school instruction may be greatly improved. Practically, we are

without a system, and it is hardly an exaggeration to say that each one of

our Sunday schools is a law unto itself.”(McDonald 189)

The Sunday school structure is no longer accomplishing the goals that Wesley intended

for the class meetings. The current approach to Sunday school has become part of the

inward focus of the church.

Christians are called to go out into the world, but the church’s structure and

emphasis is on getting people to come in and support what happens inside the walls of the

church. The goal is for the worship service to grow the inner life and lived out faith of

Christians: “The result is that we have multitudes of professing Christians who well may

be ready to die but obviously are not ready to live, and can hardly get along with

themselves, much less with others” (Willard, Great Omission 1103). One potential reason

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for the failure to make disciples is that the method and emphasis does not match the

message.

For many Christians the sermon on Sunday is their only time of academic

discipleship. Preachers often work to make their sermons applicable to life, thus

attempting to incorporate a personal component into the congregants’ life with Jesus.

Most worship services do not incorporate the relational aspect of discipleship. In my

perception, the belief that participating in the Sunday morning service adequately meets

these three discipleship methods in a person’s life is wrong. Clergy, as the leaders God

has established in the church, have let themselves become little more than vendors of

religious goods and services (Hirsch 110). Greg Ogden comments about the general

perception he has of many worship attenders:

Worshipers see it as the responsibility of those on stage to provide an

engaging, meaningful and entertaining show, while it is the worshipers’

job to give an instant review of the worship service as they pass through

the receiving line after worship. Doesn’t it seem odd for people to make

evaluative comments like “Good sermon, Pastor,” or “I enjoyed the

service this morning” about the worship of the living God? (Ogden

Transforming Discipleship 207-10)

When worshipers evaluate the worship service they are taking on the role of a consumer

judging the quality of goods or services received. At the root of the consumer mind-set is

how people have allowed their senses to be dulled to materialism in the church. The

desire for things diminishes the desire for God, both for the things of God and for doing

the work of God. This mind-set causes churches to think that becoming bigger and

providing more elaborate programs and services means they must be doing well. Building

size and numerical growth have become a primary goal in many churches (Hull 766). The

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church expects programs to make disciples of Jesus Christ, but only people can make

disciples of Jesus Christ.

Programs are often a safe venture for people who do not want to pay the price of

personally investing in the lives of others to help them grow closer to Christ (Ogden,

Transforming Discipleship 657). The program-based approach believes if a person goes

through a program, or learns a set of material, they are then a disciple. The problem is

that being a disciple is not about learning a set of information, or changing particular

behaviors. Being a disciple is something that transforms a believer’s heart, mind, and

soul, which in turn changes their behavior (Geiger, Kelley, and Nation 18). One negative

factor in all programs is that most churches do not have a system of how they plan on

making disciples or a clear process to help people mature in their faith (Ogden,

Transforming Discipleship 514).

As leaders of the church, pastors are now often relegated to “program developers,

administrators and caregivers” (Ogden, Transforming Discipleship 376). Consumer-

driven churches stand in judgement on pastors as to how well they are entertaining the

congregation and how frequently they are visiting the elderly and sick (624). Laity are

not solely to blame for this problem. Often clergy have accepted this role and promoted it

themselves. Pastors face the challenge of how to begin training, equipping, and

empowering their congregations for the work of ministry. Ogden contends that if pastors

are going to lead the church, they need to move from seeing their primary role as teachers

and caregivers to disciple makers that equip the laity to do the ministry of the church

(Ogden, Unfinished Business 126). By living into their current role, many pastors have

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made the church dependent on them instead of training and releasing disciples who are

dependent only on Jesus.

Most of the leadership positions for the laity in United Methodist churches are for

the roles that are more decision making and policy setting than servant oriented. Often

the most influential leaders are the most vocal decision makers. When these leaders are

not making the mission of the church, making disciples, their primary personal objective,

it is easy to understand why the church is undiscipled (Ogden, Transforming Discipleship

397). Most of the opportunities offered to people are institutionally focused and do little

to work towards the mission of making disciples. M. Scott Boren talks about the inward

focus the institutional church encourages for its participants:

All of their volunteer time is spent working in committees, singing in the

choir, leading youth events for kids in the church, teaching in Sunday

school, and attending up to three services per week. Sometimes it seems

like the more committed to God a person becomes, the less he or she is

involved with the neighborhood. This seems to be especially true of those

who are paid employees of local churches. (1482)

The church has focused on sustaining the institution of the church instead of seeing the

structure as a tool to fulfill the mission.

Missional has become a key word in broader conversations in the church:

“Missional churches see their primary function as one of actively moving into a

community to embody and enflesh the word, deed, and life of Jesus into every nook and

cranny” (Brisco). In order to help the church shift into a missional mode of operating,

church leadership needs to be encouraged to ask how they can be authentic Christians,

both as individuals and as a body within their community (Kraus 12). This change can be

a challenging shift because the church must reorient itself and decide that the congregants

do not exist to keep the church structures going; rather, their church exists to be a light

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for Jesus in their community. This kind of transformation can take place if the church is

empowering the laity for the work of the church in its community. The biggest and most

lasting impact is likely to happen if the pastoral leadership can act as a catalyst to create a

culture where the laity decide they want to change and where they are empowered to

discover ways to work and learn together to share Jesus in their communities (Sims and

Lopes 63).

A conversation about the concept of a missional church must include talking

about missional Christians. The institutional church starting to think missionally is good,

but this transition will happen naturally if the followers of God become missional in the

way they live out their faith. Missional spirituality happens when people share the love of

God with their neighbors. Missional spirituality calls the body of Christ to love God and

love their neighbors as they invite them to come to God (Helland and Hjarlmarson 284).

This way of being is not broadly taught or accepted by most people in South Georgia

Methodism.

The Sunday morning service is the main place most congregations receive any

discipleship training. The lacking component in the Sunday morning experience is

relational discipleship. Through a look at the historical movements of discipleship, the

relational method has been the hardest one to keep in balance. Relational discipleship is

happening in pockets of the church through cell groups, one-on-one discipleship models,

home groups, house churches, a variety of other small group models and even in some

Sunday school classes. Relational discipleship is a key component of the Walk to

Emmaus’ reunion groups. These groups are encouraged to be small, to meet weekly, and

to share their close moments with God as well as the moments they have denied Christ.

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Many of these groups are involved in service activities and focus on corporate and

personal study of the Bible, even though service in the groups is not part of the Emmaus

model.

Wesley believed that small groups were essential for the growth of the person.

One of the keys to Wesley’s success was that he called people to a high level of

commitment. The lack of commitment has aided the decline as churches have moved

away from their original missional ethos and passion for evangelism and making

disciples. Much of people’s faith has “degenerated into mere religious legalism

maintained by institutions, rule books, and professional clergy” (Hirsch 103). The church

needs to rediscover its God-given mission and the power of Christ to be disciples in the

world.

Wesley’s fear for the people called Methodists was that they would have the form

of religion without the power. The power of religion comes only from the living Christ.

“Christianity without the living Christ is inevitably Christianity without discipleship, and

Christianity without discipleship is always Christianity without Christ” (Bonhoeffer 59).

Discipleship small groups are not the only way for people to live as disciples, but they are

a neglected and needed component in the plan to make disciples for the transformation of

the world. My fear is that the church today will ultimately respond as did the church in

Wesley’s day with a relatively small number of participants in these types of groups.

Ogden references Cal Thomas in discussing the negative results of an undiscipled church:

Cal Thomas, a Christian syndicated columnist and social commentator,

calls Christians to look at the quality of our discipleship instead of

directing our indignation at the moral decay. He writes, “The problem in

our culture ... isn’t the abortionists. It isn’t the pornographers or drug

dealers or criminals. It is the undisciplined, undiscipled, disobedient, and

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Biblically ignorant Church of Jesus Christ.” (Transforming Discipleship

189-91)

One of the largest problems in the church is that Christians do not take on the

responsibility for passing on their faith. This happens in part because they are

undisciplined, undiscipled, disobedient and biblically ignorant. Another factor is that

many people in South Georgia Methodist churches assume the job of passing on the faith

is only the job of the pastor, youth pastor or Sunday school teachers. Many churches

focus on evangelism, teaching, fellowship, and worship, but neglect a focus on making

disciples. If the focus is not on making disciples, the rest of what the church does will be

hollow and lifeless (Shirley 212). The same is true of the attempts at embracing the

current technology in worship or modes of communicating information to people through

the Web. The church can use all the current means and methods, but if it is not focusing

on people discipling people, ultimately it will not matter (P. Meadows, “Mission” 176).

The priesthood of believers must rise up and take on the role of making disciples to

which they have been called. People are not generally brought to know Jesus through the

structure of the institutional church. They are brought into a relationship with Jesus Christ

by other disciples who love God and love their neighbor as themselves (P. Meadows,

“Wesleyan Wisdom” 1). Church programs can be useful, but programs can never be a

substitute for relationships. “The gospel is not just a message we bring, but a life we live.

‘The medium is the message’; and, for Wesley, God’s chosen medium is the witness of

ordinary people whose lives are made extraordinary by the holy love of God and

neighbour” (Meadows 2). The current program-driven, attractional model of church does

not fit the relational, missional model of discipleship that Jesus lived out with the twelve

apostles. The current model does not fit the laity empowering, relational discipleship that

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Wesley advocated. The church would be well served to examine the structure Wesley

created and the heart behind it to help reclaim the meaning of being Jesus’ disciples.

Watching Over One Another in Love—Wesleyan Theology of Accountability

John Wesley worked to develop a structure for Methodists to help them grow in

their relationship with God. Wesley knew people must become a part of a smaller group

to remain accountable for their spiritual growth. The system of societies, classes and

bands provide the foundation for the early Methodist movement.

Biblical Foundation

At the very beginning of Wesley’s Rules for Bands-Societies, he quotes James

5:16, “Therefore confess your sins to one another, and pray for one another, so that you

may be healed.” This verse was the scriptural foundation for Wesley’s small groups. The

structure of the Anglican Church did not provide a way for believers to build

relationships with each other to help hold them accountable. Wesley knew that preaching

alone was not keeping people firmly rooted in a relationship with Jesus in which they

were going on to perfection. Because many people lack long-term self-discipline, they

need others to help hold them accountable (Hull 241). The church has been made for

community to help each other. Galatians 6:2 says, “Bear one another’s burdens, and in

this way you will fulfill the law of Christ.” Discipleship groups were Wesley’s tool for

helping people go on to perfection.

Review of Selected Literature

Wesley’s ministry was about pursuing one goal—spreading scriptural holiness.

He worked towards this end through preaching and the use of bands, classes, and

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societies (Wesley 24). Wesley was a prolific preacher, but he knew that preaching alone

was not bringing about lasting transformation:

I was more convinced than ever that the preaching like an apostle, without

joining together those that are awakened and training them up in the ways

of God, is only begetting children for the murderer. How much preaching

has there been for these twenty years all over Pembrokeshire! But no

regular societies [original emphasis], no discipline, no order or

connection. And the consequence is that nine in ten of the once awakened

are now faster asleep than ever. (Ward, Heitzenrater 21:424)

Wesley’s desire was to have people awakened to God and then to grow in their

relationship with Jesus. Field preaching alone was not accomplishing that goal. Wesley

let his desired end shape the way he structured his ministry. For those who were

Methodist, the desired result was to have “the love of God shed abroad in his heart by the

Holy Ghost given unto him,… [being a people who] loves the Lord his God with all his

heart, and with all his soul, and with all his mind, and with all his strength” (35).

Methodists should be people who have the joy of the Lord in their heart, and a soul that

calls to God, “Whom have I in heaven but thee? and there is none upon earth that I desire

beside thee my God and my all! Thou art the strength of my heart, and my portion for

ever” (35). Wesley molded a structure to support the goal of forming Christians who

would be passionate as the lived out their faith.

Wesley is known for his structure of small groups that were at the bedrock of the

Methodist revival. Wesley knew that preaching alone was not causing long-term change,

and he found a way to help converts continue growing in the faith through God’s

sanctifying grace. The solution to this problem came through weekly small group

meetings where people could help hold each other accountable for their discipleship (D.

Watson Covenant Discipleship 38). Wesley’s bands predated the first class meetings or

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official Methodist society. In his journals, the first Rules for Band-Societies are found on

25 December 1738, and his first instructions for the class meetings are on 15 February

1742.

Accountable living had its roots with his mother Susanna and the principles she

instilled in him. When Wesley went to Oxford, he took these principles and started the

Holy Club. This was his first attempt at a small group that would help the participants

stay accountable to their Christian growth and service:

The Holy Club meetings included prayer, Bible reading, sharing the experiences

of the day, and encouraging one another. Their activities focused on three areas:

the imitation of Christ, evangelism, and doing good to those in need, especially

those in prison. (Hull 955)

The methodical nature of the Holy Club drew the nickname Methodists from outsiders.

Several people and groups influenced Wesley as he worked to reform the Church

of England. One of his influences was French Catholic nobleman, M. de Renty. De Renty

had “little gatherings of devout people who met weekly for prayer, reading devotional

books, distribution of food to the poor, and discussion of personal religious matters”

(Henderson 49). For de Renty, Christian service was the context in which people grew in

personal holiness (Henderson 50).

The County Parson’s Advice to his Parishoners, anonymously written, was also

influential for how Wesley conceived and formulated his ministry. In Wesley’s journals

he records that the book “recommended the practice of mutual help to ‘the good men of

the church’ as the most effectual means of supporting ‘our tottering and sinking church’”

(5). He found hope that if he could get the people of the church to meet together for

mutual help, accountability and study that the Church might turn around.

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On Wesley’s trip to America, he met the German Moravians and was greatly

impressed with their faith, particularly the peace they had in the midst of the storms at sea

during their trip. After he returned home from Georgia, he continued his relationship with

the Moravians and was strongly influenced by their approach to discipleship. Before

looking at the Moravians discipleship groups, their predecessor, Philip Spener is

important to examine.

Spener, known as the Father of Pietism, heavily influenced Count Von Zinzendorf

and the Moravians. Spener encouraged people to read and discuss the Bible in the

collegia pietatis or small groups. He also encouraged members to read the Scripture

privately and to read books of the Bible from start to finish so they could be understood

the way they were written. He wanted small groups to run according to 1 Corinthians

14:26-40: “When you come together, each one has a hymn, a lesson, a revelation, a

tongue, or an interpretation. Let all things be done for building up.” Spener’s small

groups also focused on helping the group members live out a life of faith and holiness

and stay committed to God (Hull 917). Spener’s method blends aspects of relational,

experiential, academic, and personal discipleship:

Spener himself soon ascribed more and more importance to the collegia

pietatis, which were given only passing attention in his Pia Desideria. If

the church was to be renewed, he felt, a beginning would have to be made

with the remnant of true Christians in every congregation. These had to be

gathered and edified in private meetings in order that they might become a

leaven to leaven the whole lump. As a matter of fact, such meetings were

soon being held in many places. Contrary to Spener’s intention, they

sometimes became divisive. There was a tendency for the meetings to

develop into little churches within the church. (Spener 307)

Spener was one of the godfathers of Count Zinzendorf who formed the Moravian

community in Herrnhut, a small village in Germany, into bands or small groups. These

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bands were geared to encourage interaction in the community rather than to provide

personal spiritual formation (Henderson 59). Personal formation was an obvious by-

product, but it was not the focus of the groups or the reason for their formation. In the

Moravian bands, no teaching was allowed. They were limited to “intimate sharing,

confessions and personal reporting of spiritual experiences” (60). The foundation of the

Moravian bands was a great beginning point for Wesley’s small groups.

Wesley was impressed with the Moravian bands and first used them during his

mission work in America:

Both at Savannah and Frederica a religious society was first formed, and

then the most serious members of the society were divided into smaller

groups “for a more intimate union with each other”, and the groups met

three times weekly. (Davies 9:9)

Upon his return to England the bands became instrumental to his own work in reforming

the Church of England.

The Fetter Lane Society and The Foundry. In May 1738 Wesley formed a new

religious society that eventually became the Fetter Lane Society. They met weekly for

preaching, either from Wesley or a Moravian leader, Peter Bohler. The goal of the

Society was described simply. Societies were groups of people:

“having the form, and seeking the power of godliness”, united in order to

pray together, to receive the word of exhortation, and to watch over one

another in love, that they may help each other to work out their salvation.

(Davies 9:69)

The Fetter Lane Society was distinct from the rest of Wesley’s attempts at classes or

bands in that participants did not have to be members of the Anglican Church to be part

of it. The only requirement was that the participants wanted to grow in love, and holiness.

Although he insisted on members striving for holiness in some rigid ways, he also

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understood holiness in terms of love (Davies 25). The society members had to display a

strong Christian commitment and heart bent to God.

Wesley is broadly known for his use of class meetings, but before the class

meetings were created, he used the model of bands to help people covenant together to be

honest to God and with each other. Initially Wesley’s bands were for people who were

consciously going on to perfection. A band was voluntary and small, to help achieve a

level of intimacy that is difficult in a large groups (Oden 4:28). Bands were not to consist

of fewer than five or more than ten persons.

Wesley’s use of bands in England began simultaneously with the Fetter Lane

Society. Twice a week the members of the Fetter Lane Society would get together in

bands led by a layperson. Their purpose for meeting was to answer prescribed questions

to each other dealing with the state of their souls. The other group members were to

respond with encouragement, suggestions, or support (Henderson 66). Wesley gave very

specific instructions for the Fetter Lane Society on 1 May 1738:

1. That we will meet together once a week to “confess our

faults one to another, and pray one for another, that we may be

healed.”

2. That the persons so meeting be divided into several bands,

or little companies, none of them consisting of fewer than five,

or more than ten persons.

3. That every one in order speak as freely, plainly, and

concisely as he can, the real state of his heart, with his several

temptations and deliverances, since the last time of meeting.

4. That all the bands have a conference at eight every

Wednesday evening, begun and ended with singing and prayer.

5. That any who desire to be admitted into this society be

asked, “What are your reasons for desiring this? Will you be

entirely open; using no kind of reserve? Have you any

objection to any of our orders?” (which may then be read.)

6. That when any new member is proposed, every one present

speak clearly and freely whatever objection he has to him.

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7. That those against whom no reasonable objection appears,

be, in order for their trial, formed into one or more distinct

bands, and some person agreed on to assist them.

8. That after two months’ trial, if no objection then appears,

they may be admitted into the society.

9. That every fourth Saturday be observed as a day of general

intercession.

10. That on the Sunday seven-night following be a general

love-feast, from seven till ten in the evening.

11. That no particular member be allowed to act in any thing

contrary to any order of the society: And that if any persons,

after being thrice admonished, do not conform thereto, they be

not any longer esteemed as members. (Ward, Heitzenrater

18:236-37)

Many of these rules show up again in December of the same year when he created

the Rules for Band Societies. The structure of the groups served as a reminder that the

participants were to “deny themselves and take up their cross and follow [Jesus] (Matt.

16:24). The small groups provided a setting to keep the group members constantly aware

that they should be growing in holiness and not getting comfortable in the world in which

they lived (K.Watson 174).

Shortly afterwards John Wesley made his journey to Herrnhut and formed

many impressions of Moravian life, most of them favorable. On his return

he was more than ever convinced of the value of the bands, and on

December 25, 1738 he drew up the Rules of the Band Societies. (Davies

9:9)

The design of our meeting is to obey that command of God, “[c]onfess your faults

one to another, and pray one for another, that ye may be healed.”

To this end, we intend,—

1. To meet once a week, at the least.

2. To come punctually at the hour appointed, without some extraordinary

reason.

3. To begin (those of us who are present) exactly at the hour, with singing

or prayer.

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4. To speak each of us in order, freely and plainly, the true state of our

souls, with the faults we have committed in thought, word, or deed, and

the temptations we have felt, since our last meeting.

5. To end every meeting with prayer, suited to the state of each person

present.

6. To desire some person among us to speak his own state first, and then to

ask the rest, in order, as many and as searching questions as may be,

concerning their state, sins, and temptations.

Some of the questions proposed to every one before he is admitted among

us may he to this effect:—

1. Have you the forgiveness of your sins?

2. Have you peace with God, through our Lord Jesus Christ?

3. Have you the witness of God’s Spirit with your spirit, that you are a

child of God?

4. Is the love of God shed abroad in your heart?

5. Has no sin, inward or outward, dominion over you?

6. Do you desire to be told of your faults?

7. Do you desire to be told of all your faults, and that plain and home?

8. Do you desire that every one of us should tell you, from time to time,

whatsoever is in his heart concerning you?

9. Consider! Do you desire we should tell you whatsoever we think,

whatsoever we fear, whatsoever we hear, concerning you?

10. Do you desire that, in doing this, we should come as close as possible,

that we should cut to the quick, and search your heart to the bottom?

11. Is it your desire and design to be on this, and all other occasions,

entirely open, so as to speak everything that is in your heart without

exception, without disguise, and without reserve?

Any of the preceding questions may be asked as often as occasion others;

the four following at every meeting:—

1. What known sins have you committed since our last meeting?

2. What temptations have you met with?

3. How were you delivered?

4. What have you thought, said, or done, of which you doubt whether it be

sin or not? (Davies 9:77-78)

Wesley often changed things or edited writings to fit what he thought was best.

The Moravian bands were no different. The bands had the component he needed to gather

people together for mutual accountability: “To meet together in a band was not merely to

exercise self-examination, nor yet to engender a mutual growth in spiritual self-

awareness; it was to occasion the presence of Christ and thus to provide a sure and

efficacious means of grace” (D. Watson Early Methodist Class Meeting 78). Wesley

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knew that sharing faith in community was a powerful way to encounter God’s grace,

especially the part of sanctifying grace that calls disciples to deeper holiness and

righteousness.

He disagreed with part of the focus of the Moravian bands thinking they were too

mystical and did not give enough attention to Scripture (Henderson 62). In Wesley’s

struggle, the need for balancing the different methods of discipleship is evident. The

Moravian bands were doing well in the relational and personal arenas but, according to

Wesley, were lacking in academic focus and were not founded on Scripture.

The groups dealt with motives and heartfelt expression of faith rather than with

behaviors and ideas. Like the Moravian groups, these were not small Bible studies but

groups designed to be personally and communally transformative. Christian fellowship

grew quickly within the bands as the members bore one another’s burdens and cared for

each other. The openness within the bands cultivated a closer sense of community among

the members, which helped the members be more open and able to bear one another’s

burdens and care for each other more fully. These relationships, in turn, cultivated the

members’ own relationships with Christ as they grew in their faith ( D. Watson Early

Methodist Class Meeting 94). While these groups never experienced the popularity he

wished, they really were the foundation of Methodism (Henderson 113).

On 25 December 1744, Wesley rewrote the directions for band members. If

members did not follow these directions they were downgraded from band membership

to society membership (Davies 9:13). The rewritten directions are as follows:

You are supposed to have the faith that “overcometh the world.” To you,

therefore, it is not grievous,—

Carefully to abstain from doing evil; in particular,—

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1. Neither to buy nor sell anything at all on the Lord’s day.

2. To taste no spirituous liquor, no dram of any kind, unless prescribed by

a Physician.

3. To be at a word both in buying and selling.

4. To pawn nothing, no, not to save life.

5. Not to mention the fault of any behind his back, and to stop those short

that do.

6. To wear no needless ornaments, such as rings, earrings, necklaces, lace,

ruffles.

7. To use no needless self-indulgence, such as taking snuff or tobacco,

unless prescribed by a Physician.

II.

Zealously to maintain good works; in particular,—

1. To give alms of such things as you possess, and that to the uttermost of

your power.

2. To reprove all that sin in your sight, and that in love and meekness of

wisdom.

3. To be patterns of diligence and frugality, of self-denial, and taking up

the cross daily.

III.

Constantly to attend on all the ordinances of God; in particular,—

1. To be at church and at the Lord’s table every week, and at every public

meeting of the Bands.

2. To attend the ministry of the word every morning, unless distance,

business, or sickness prevent.

3. To use private prayer everyday; and family prayer, if you are at the head

of a family.

4. To read the Scriptures, and meditate therein, at every vacant; hour. And,

5. To observe, as days of fasting or abstinence, all Fridays in the year. (79)

Wesley ultimately separated from the Moravians because he thought they

confused sanctification with justification and because of the stillness controversy. His

sermon “On Sin in Believers” came out of the problems he found in the Moravians’

belief that believers did not have sin in them. For Wesley, this perspective was true to a

degree, but only through the process of sanctification. The Moravians believed that this

was all a part of justification. The stillness movement in the Fetter Lane Society led the

members to stop going to church, receiving the sacraments, praying, reading Scripture, or

doing any good, and led them to be still and wait for God to find them:

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After less than two years, the Fetter Lane Society came under the powerful

influence of Philip Henry Molther, who taught a particular form of

Moravianism according to which the means of grace are unnecessary for

those who live under grace, and the essential element in the religion of

believers is “stillness.” (Davies 9:7)

Because of the stillness controversy and the issues surrounding justification and

sanctification, Wesley led a group of seventy five people from the Fetter Lane Society on

23 July 1740, (Davies 9:10) and started meeting at the Foundry which became the first

strictly Methodist Society.

The class meetings. On 15 February 1742, Wesley gave instructions for the first

class meetings, involving the penny offering to help retire the debt. The class meetings

quickly grew to become a vital part of Wesley’s efforts to spread scriptural holiness. The

leaders of the classes “were to visit the homes of those absent from the weekly meeting

for fellowship, whatever the reason” (Davies 9:12). People did not exist to support the

class meeting structure, the class meetings were formed to strengthen people. Class

leaders were called to focus on strengthening the people.

As the structure of class meetings grew, the bands seemed to decrease, especially

in later years of Wesley’s ministry: “At the end of his life they were retained only in the

larger societies. But Wesley himself never ceased to urge their establishment and

retention, and they survived into the nineteenth century both in England and in America”

(Davies 9:13). Groups such as Wesley’s bands have been hard to maintain throughout the

life of the church.

The empowerment of the laity was essential for the Methodist movement. It was

growing too fast for Wesley or the other clergy to attend to the spiritual growth of the

people under their umbrella. Wesley structured his movement in such a way as to make

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the class leaders responsible for pastoral oversight for the people in their classes

(Henderson 101). Wesley also discovered that people in “the bands were more likely to

state their true feelings when they knew the leaders were peers not superiors” (67).

Another aid to helping the bonds of groups develop was that he let the bands be self-

selecting (Manskar 91). Most people naturally know with whom they have the potential

to connect well, so letting people choose their own groups helped alleviate potential

group dynamic problems and sped up the processes of growing into a deeper relationship.

Wesley trained the class leaders in how to run their classes and how to be the

pastors for their classes. He prepared them to “expect people to regress in their faith, and

helped them know how to bring people back” (Henderson 103). Wesley also strongly

emphasized the teaching of holiness that he believed Scripture teaches is possible in this

life (Hull 949). “Wesley took great care to see, insofar as possible, that the leader of the

small class was prepared to study Scripture and pray with each participant. They had his

teaching homilies available to them for guidance” (Oden 4:47). Class and band leaders

were instrumental to helping their people grow in faith. The emphasis of the meetings

was answering hard questions about their daily life. This emphasis kept the meetings

focused on Christian discipleship (D. Watson, Covenant Discipleship 49). Wesley’s

groups expected people to be very devoted to living out their faith and meeting together.

The lay assistants were utilized by Wesley to help keep the bands and classes

accountable to their intended purpose. The lay assistants would “meet the Leaders of the

Bands and Classes weekly, and the Stewards, and to overlook their accounts” (Wesley

9:271). Wesley put in place layer upon layer of leadership for his groups to keep them

functioning properly.

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Wesleyan bands. In Wesley’s Rules of the Band-Societies, already clearly stated,

he quotes James 5:16, as the reason for the weekly bands to meet. Among the rules, each

person is to speak “freely and plainly, the true state of our souls, with the faults we have

committed in thought, word, or deed, and the temptations we have felt, since our last

meeting.” To facilitate this conversation, each participant was to answer at least four

questions. “What known sins have you committed since our last meeting? What

temptations have you met with? How were you delivered? What have you thought, said,

or done, of which you doubt whether it be sin or not” (Davies 9:77-78).

Wesley included in his Rules of the Band-Societies a list of questions that could

be asked of people who wanted to join a band. The questions ranged from: “Have you the

forgiveness of your sins” and “Have you the witness of God’s Spirit with your spirit, that

you are a child of God” to questions like, “Has no sin, inward or outward, dominion over

you? Do you desire to be told of your faults,” and “Do you desire that every one of us

should tell you from time to time, whatsoever is in his heart concerning you” (Davies

9:77-78).

Wesley’s bands and class meetings seemed to be trying to reintroduce the church

to the relational and personal method of discipleship. The main method of discipleship in

the Church of England of Wesley’s time appears to be the experiential method, with its

only outlet being proper worship and the art and architecture of the day. The Church of

England was a living example of Wesley’s fear for what Methodism would become: a

church with the form of religion but without the power.

Wesley developed a detailed system of bands for people at all different stages in

their Christian faith. He had trial bands for people who were interested in learning more

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about Jesus (Stafford 42) but who were not sure if they wanted to answer Jesus’ call to

follow him. He had class meetings that helped people grow in the beginning stages of

their Christian life, and band meetings for those who wanted to go on to sanctification

(43).

Wesley also created penitent bands for people who had fallen away from the faith

or from Christian practices and wanted a way to be restored to the faith. People who have

been pulled away through addictions or whose lives have been wrecked because of life

experiences often need a more focused intensive group to help restore them to a

relationship with Christ and to the body of the Church.

Not a program. The industrial mind-set has infiltrated the church and corrupted

the Biblical model of making disciples. This mind-set has led the church to treat a

Christian’s spiritual growth like an assembly-line product. The problem with this

approach is that people are different and live in different cultures. Assembly lines work

when all of the raw materials are the same. People are not raw materials, ready to be

shaped according to a particular mold. “Disciple making is not a program, but a

relationship” (Ogden, Transforming Discipleship 145). Programs tend to be focused on

learning particular information or having a certain experience. The premise is that if a

person has knowledge or a particular experience they will be transformed (408).

Knowledge and experiences can be transformative, but the Holy Spirit brings the

transformation, not the knowledge or experience.

Programs are rarely about people, and Jesus came for people. At its core, being a

disciple of Jesus Christ means that followers are in a relationship with Jesus, and Jesus

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calls them to live in relationship with their neighbors. Discipleship is more about life

together than who came to the weekly meeting (Chan and Beuving 11).

Methodist churches in South Georgia are generally wary of the next program the

conference gives them. Programs may create a lot of energy initially but are usually short

lived. Discipleship is not a program but a lifestyle, a lifelong journey. Programs can also

create a tiered system in churches of people who have been through the program and

people who have not, often resulting in the mind-set that those who have been through it

are better off than those who have not. Another problem with seeing discipleship as a

program is that it can be a category in the church, such as evangelism, missions, worship,

and small groups. Discipleship is not another part of the church, discipleship is at the

heart of being a Christian (Hull 299).

One of the challenges for churches in creating a culture of making disciples is that

it needs to be specific enough for people to understand but broad enough that it does not

become a highly organized program. The more specific the model gets, the sooner it will

become obsolete (Houston 134). The goal of discipleship groups is not to create another

program but to create space for people to find relationships where they can grow in their

faith together, being the body of Christ one for another. Tony Dungy knows that

relationships lay at the center of training people:

Relationships are ultimately what matter—our relationships with God and

with other people. The key to becoming a mentor leader is learning how to

put other people first. You see, the question that burns in the heart of the

mentor leader is simply this: What can I do to make other people better, to

make them all that God created them to be? (Dungy 5)

The focus Dungy has for mentor leaders around relationships with God and others is the

same focus both disciplers and disciples are called to have. As soon as disciplers make a

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relationship about principles or steps, they have turned the relationship into something

that is not an encounter with the other person (Boren 763). Programs have no way of

knowing where someone is on his or her journey with Christ, what his or her hangups are,

or about what he or she is passionate. A disciples’ spiritual grown is significantly

impacted when believers join together as they journey with Christ.

The church’s bent towards programs is aparent in a common approaches to the

Bible. Some see it as God’s instruction book, or a Christian’s manual, or basic

instructions before leaving earth. Other times it gets relegated to a history book or a rule

book. For Wesley, the Bible was not just a message book but the method book

(Henderson 46). The message cannot be separated from the method. The greatest method

emphasized over and over in the Bible is people’s relationship with God, often lived out

through the work of the Holy Spirit. The work of the Holy Spirit cannot be programmed.

Instead, disciple makers focus on working to invite people to live out their own

relationship with God through the Holy Spirit as they share life together.

Healthy, lasting growth in the church needs to revolve around individual lives

being transformed by Jesus Christ, both in salvation moments, and as believers take up

their crosses and follow Jesus, continuing to become holy as he is holy, resting in God’s

sanctifying grace. Individual lives need to be transformed but not in isolation. The church

needs to rediscover the heart of discipleship as the community supports one another and

as people “work out [their] salvation with fear and trembling” (Phil. 2:12), learning the

disciplined life, following Jesus (P. Meadows, “Methodist Society” 93).

Discipleship is God’s plan for growing the kingdom of heaven. It is, however, not

intended to be used as a focus for growing a big church. Discipleship calls Christians to

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focus on “the depth of personal character and spiritual passion of each disciple” (Hull

313). The miraculous result of helping each other focus on their communal life as

disciples is that the kingdom of heaven grows. Sometimes this work results in one

particular church growing; however focusing on discipleship in order to grow a particular

church is the wrong motivation. Numbers matter but only because each number

represents a person who is being transformed by Jesus Christ.

Potential problems. A three-year study in the 1990s showed that one problem

with intentional small groups was that they slipped into the “us four and no more”

mentality (Carter 281). Because of the quality of relationships people can develop in their

groups, individuals have the tendency to pull away from others outside the group. The

worst case scenario is the group turning into a cult. People who grow in their faith are

going to notice that they are different from other church members. They can start to see

others as not as good a Christian. When this distinction happens, radical disciples could

potentially separate themselves from the church and form a completely new community

(Kraus 11). To prevent this division groups need to place a strong focus on missional

discipleship. Disciples are always called to be pursuing the mission God has for the

Church to share their faith with those in the world around them. If groups are accountable

to a larger body and keep God’s mission in focus, it is easier for them not to turn inward.

Group members need to stay away from the desire to fix each other or force one

another to act a certain way or share things about their lives. These behaviors hinder the

growth of trust. Groups also should to stay away from having to have the right answer,

such as the fill-in-the-blank Bible study groups. Right and wrong answers to the meaning

of Scripture can lead to a few people dominating the conversation and the outcome of the

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group. Groups must create space for people to wrestle with the meaning of the text for

their own lives. If conversations about the Bible are limited to right answers, people will

be more reluctant to go beyond the surface when sharing about their lives (Boren 1102).

Another potential problem is a leader who does not share, and keeps the

relationships one sided. The leader must work toward all group members becoming

equals. Mutual relationships help to bring about transformation in people’s whole lives

(Wilkins, Following the Master 110). If leaders are going to help others grow as

disciples, they must help them develop in all areas, and this maturity happens best if

leaders are willing to humble themselves to be a part of all areas of a disciples life. This

type of incarnational leading is best seen through Jesus’ own example of leaving heaven

to come and live on earth among humanity, teaching as he lived his day-to-day life.

Good Discipleship Group Components

Discipleship small groups need to have several components for them to be

effective in making disciples. Wesley knew what many of the key components are:

Which of those true Christians had any such fellowship with these? Who

watched over them in love? Who marked their growth in grace? Who

advised and exhorted them from time to time? Who prayed with them and

for them, as they had need? This, and this alone, is Christian fellowship. . .

What Christian connection is there between them? What intercourse in

spiritual things? What watching over each other’s souls? What bearing of

one another’s burdens? What a mere jest is it then, to talk so gravely of

destroying what never was! The real truth is just the reverse of this: We

introduce Christian fellowship where it was utterly destroyed. And the

fruits of it have been peace, joy, love, and zeal for every good word and

work. (Wesley, A Plain Account 1.11.4)

Christian fellowship is essential for forming disciples. Wesley worked to keep Methodists

in fellowship with one another because he knew living in relationship with other

believers was essential to spiritual growth and accountability.

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Life in Common

United Methodism is facing the same challenge Wesley faced. Just as Wesley saw

the poor condition of the life of the average member of the Anglican church in his day,

the members of the body of Christ need to come together in Christian fellowship, bear

one another’s burdens, and watch over one another in love in this day and time.

Wesley used his evangelistic preaching to gather people into societies, classes,

and bands to help them draw closer to God and one another. Every member of a society

had to be a member of a class meeting, usually a group of twelve to twenty people. He

worked to have the class members join a variety of bands, groups of five to ten that met

for intense accountability. The lay-led class and band meetings were Wesley’s tools for

creating a support system for the people called Methodists, so they could help each other

go on to perfection. Wesley emphasized that this kind of growth was only possible within

the framework of the community of believers (Matthaei 28).

The foundation of these groups needs to include components that will empower

members to bear one another’s burdens and watch over one another in love. Gregory

Kaster found that school children responded very well to a system when they were asked

what they needed to be better students and test takers. The students were allowed to shape

some of the rules and methods and, as a result, were more invested in their education, as

well as feeling honored, respected, and heard (70). One way the church does not

empower people is by telling them what to do or what they need. Groups members being

freed to create and continue to alter their own structure can help the group bond together

and each member to gain a sense of responsibility.

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One of the barriers to these types of groups can be the North American value of

individuality. While this value is a rampant ideology today, Christians throughout history

have wrestled with the tension of whether to be engaged with the world or separate from

it. Some endeavor to stay away from the world because of the fear that it endangers their

purity, but if disciples disengage from society then they deny God a vehicle for delivering

the presence of Christ (McGrath 139). Passages such as 1 John 4:19-20 clearly state that

love for God is only true if it is lived out towards others. Discipleship should never result

in continuous introspection, but cause disciples to share their lives and faith with others

(Porter 147).

This tension has been the topic of theological debates throughout history. Soren

Kierkegaard believed that living out the Christian faith meant people would be in conflict

with the world, while Dietrich Bonhoeffer understood discipleship to mean that people

needed to work to be holy while remaining in their community (Law 14). Jesus clearly set

the example in Matthew 9:9-13 when he said that well people do not need a doctor but

the sick do and that he did not come to call the righteous, but the sinners. Jesus’ example

illustrates that disciples cannot live out holiness by being separate from the sinners

(Hirsch and Hirsch 46). Francis Chan and Mark Beuving reiterate this idea and claim that

if Christians are not connecting with other believers, serving together, and helping one

another grow, then they are not functioning as the people God intended them to be (35).

Jesus’ model of discipleship was not a program through which he tried to put

people; he shared his life with them (Wilkins, Following the Master 110). Tim Keller

points out a list of “one another” passages from the Bible to help bring understanding

about how the church today can live in a Holy community:

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We are to honor (Rom 12:10), accept (Rom 15:7), bear with (Eph 4:2; Col

3:13), forgive (Eph 4:32; Col 3:13), pray for, and confess sins to one

another (James 5:16). We are to cheer and challenge (Heb 3:13), admonish

and confront (Rom 15:14; Col 3:16; Gal 6:1-6), warn (1 Thess 5:14), and

teach one another (Col 3:16). We are to stop gossiping and slandering (Gal

5:15) or being fake (Rom 12:9) with each other. We are to bear burdens

(Gal 6:2), share possessions (Acts 4:32), and submit to each other (Eph

5:21). (9128)

The Bible paints a picture of how the church can help each other grow, worship God, and

be rejuvenated as they live as disciples of Jesus Christ in the world. Bonhoeffer believed

this kind of community was essential for Christian discipleship (Grace 153). This kind of

support and accountability system helps believers overcome their cultural tendencies

towards isolation and individualism (Matthaei 97). If disciples refrain from being

authentic with a few other believers, not acknowledging their sin and trials to one

another, they greatly hinder the power of the community to help them grow in Christ

(Latini 39).

Most people are not as self-reflective as they believe. An authentic small group

will help believers learn more effectively than they would by themselves (Horder 76). As

people open their lives up to the members of their group, they are able to lay themselves

in front of Jesus to let the Potter mold the clay of their hearts. As groups live out this

dynamic, members will come to see that they are not only a part of the group for how it

supports them but because they have a responsibility to help the other members of the

group. When group members realize their importance, they have a greater sense of

commitment and responsibility to the group (Leachman and Victor 66).

Participation is essential to any group dynamic. Participation, however, should not

be limited to showing up for the 1-1½ hour weekly meeting. Group projects and

community-building activities help grow the relational bonds and foster trust within a

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group (Leachman and Victor 65). Small groups today could easily incorporate separate

times of fun and fellowship as well as take time intentionally to get together for acts of

service in their community. Serving others together as a group is a powerful tool in

building relationships with other group members. Life in common is an important aspect

of small groups that are helping each other grow closer to Christ. With a general focus on

academic discipleship the transformational learning when group members can be present,

working side by side in all aspects of the group life can be devalued (Csinos 48).

Small Group Leadership

The leader of a group is not always the one who forms it. A controversial but

essential component of highly accountable Wesleyan band-style groups is that they are

self-selecting. Jesus set the example when he chose his disciples (Coleman, Master Plan

of Evangelism 36). He preached to the masses and had a large group of disciples, he

chose twelve with whom to spend more significant time, and even three from that group,

Peter, James, and John, into whom he poured even more of himself. Jesus gave a

wonderful example of discipling in his ministry to the crowds, especially realizing that he

had more than just twelve disciples. He ministered to larger groups of people, the twelve,

and the three.

Ogden proposes a question asking how pastors could begin to model Jesus’

ministry in intentionally discipling a few people, rather than focusing on the whole

congregation (Transforming Discipleship 139). Wesleyan-style discipleship groups are an

essential answer for making this idea a reality. It can be better to give a year to a few

people, helping them to grow closer to Jesus, than to spend years just keeping the church

going (749). Keeping groups small can be a challenge for a leader. The mark of good

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leadership seems to be higher attendance, but the church needs to see the mark of good

leadership as being people’s spiritual growth.

In order to raise up disciples of Jesus Christ, Christians need to become people

who disciple others in the ways Jesus did. Some of the core components of Jesus’

discipleship are that he “taught the disciples (Mk 4:10–12), corrected them (Mt 16:5–12),

admonished them (Mt 17:19–20), supported them (Lk 22:31–34), comforted them (Jn

20:19–22), and restored them (21:15–19)” (Wilkins, Following the Master 119). A

challenging component here for many Christian leaders can be the idea of correcting,

admonishing, supporting, and restoring others as Jesus did. Jesus was not just correcting

the disciples’ faulty information; he was correcting their behavior. In his correction he

was not bringing shame on them. The key component in his correcting and admonishing

is that he was always working to restore them as well. To restore people being discipled

means that it has to be okay for them to make mistakes. One of the great tools available

for restoring people that Jesus did not have, is the ability to be open about personal

mistakes.

The Gospels show how often the disciples missed the mark. Their mistakes do not

point to Jesus being a poor teacher but show the ups and downs of true learning (Csinos

57). Learning about the lives of Jesus’ disciples and nearly all of the other biblical

characters, shows lives of people who continued to sin and fall short of the glory of God,

all while they were trying to live for him and walk with him (Nelson 67). The failure of

students makes the restorative role of the discipler all the more necessary.

Another challenging component to overcome is the leader’s need to accept the

position as a role model. Although American culture prizes originality most people are

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looking for someone to imitate (Katos 30). Most Christians have other Christians whom

they revere and after whom they try to model their faith. They might be larger than life

people such as Billy Graham or more ordinary people such as grandmothers or Sunday

school teachers. The Apostle Paul knew the value of role models, and in verses such as, 1

Thessalonians 1:5–7, 1 Corinthians 4:16, 1 Corinthians 11:1, Philippians 3:17, and

Philippians 4:9 he told people to look at his life and model his ways (Copan 144).

The most essential aspect of disciplers being role models is that they do not call

people to be like themselves but call them to follow Jesus as they are following Jesus.

Paul calls people “to imitate the virtues of humility and discipline ‘that was also in

Christ,’ ‘because of Christ,’ or ‘for the sake of the gospel’” (Copan 151). The discipler is

never to take the place of Jesus who is always to be the one for whom disciples are made.

The goal of the discipler is always to help others follow Jesus (Wilkins, Following the

Master 49).

In the beginning stages of discipleship, the discipler is usually more directive,

setting the focus and tone of the meetings and keeping the group on task and being

intentional in functioning out front as leader (Ogden, Transforming Discipleship 835).

Part of the needed posture of disciplers is to be open and authentic with their own faith,

letting the group members know who they are in Christ, the ways they have grown in

their own discipleship, and how they are still continuing to grow (Campbell 87).

As the members grow in their relationship with Christ and each other, they often

develop more of a peer-discipling relationship. Edward D. Campologno did research

among youth and discovered that the use of peer mentoring was positive for the students,

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helping them to hold each other accountable to standards and goals they set. This peer

mentoring model helped the students feel valued and heard (72).

Peer learning in discipleship relationships is often best done by sharing life

together. In these moments disciplers have the ability to encourage those being discipled

to be involved in ministry in ways they may not normally be. Sometimes this

involvement can be as simple as serving communion together or stepping aside and

having disciples give devotions in the disciplers’ place. Pastors can take church members

with them when they make home visits, seeing something that simple as a potential

teaching moment (Ogden, Transforming Discipleship 928). Training can be much more

involved such as having a disciple teach Lectio divina to a group of pastors in Uganda.

The task of disciplers is to be involved in ministry with those they are training and to

keep their eyes and ears open to the Holy Spirit to see how they can involve those they

are training in ministry.

The act of disciplers sharing life together with those they disciple means that what

they do is going to be evaluated by those they disciple. Some of what they do is going to

be adopted or modified by their disciples. Discipling this way is only possible through

proximity and intimacy (Wilkins, Following the Master 118). It is not enough to teach a

way of life in a classroom setting, disciplers must get outside the walls and teach by

example and teach by getting the disciples’ hands into the world in which they are called

to live and share Christ.

The disposition of disciplers needs to be to see their calling as being a fellow

pilgrim on a journey following Jesus with their disciples (F. Meadows 1893). Amy F.

Davis Abdallah says that women who are leading girls into womanhood are not to see

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themselves as women who have completed the journey. They are just farther along and

inviting “daughters” to come alongside “older Sisters” as they travel together (10). The

relationship that is shared between a discipler and disciple, or teacher and student, can be

the most important ingredient in providing motivation for the disciples desire to learn

(Ogden, Transforming Discipleship 874). The whole process of sharing life in this way

creates space for people to talk about the meaning of being followers of Jesus (Abdallah

10).

The relationship between discipler and disciple is what ultimately leads disciples

on their journey of being made in the image of Christ. As the discipler follows the Spirit

and brings the disciple along for the journey, the disciple learns how to “walk in his

steps” (1 Pet. 2:21; Foster, Streams 3). The discipler lives in a way that they model how

to love, learn, and lead together with their disciples. Being able to model faith this way is

the essential to becoming spiritual leaders (Sims and Lopes 67). Leaders are trying to

help those they disciple live into a whole new way of being and seeing the world. They

are not simply trying to convince or inform people of certain truths (Wringe 244).

Following Jesus’ example leaders are helping to guide those they disciple into a loving

relationship with Jesus and others.

Through the process of discipling others, disciplers must also convey the

necessity of sharing the good news of Jesus Christ with others. Part of disciplers’ own

discipleship was growing into the role of discipling others. Disciplers also model

accountability to a lived-out faith, through study and service, and work to embody and

teach habits that lead to an intimate relationship with Jesus and service to the community

(Ogden, Transforming Discipleship 118).

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The only thing disciplers can control is their own lives and how they live in

relationship with those they disciple. The indicator of a good teacher is not simply what

the teacher does but what the student learns (Hunt 10). What students do with what they

have learned is not always a good indicator of the quality of the teacher. Space must be

allowed for the Judases of the world. Jesus said that some are ever hearing, never

perceiving. He spoke in parables because some people will not understand. Disciplers

need to discern if those they are discipling are learning and then also ask themselves if

they are being faithful to do the things God is calling them to do and to be the people God

is calling them to be.

If disciplers want to make disciples in the same way that Jesus did, they must

focus on the lives of the people they are discipling, coming alongside them as a fellow

traveler, answering the call to follow Jesus. Discipling others is not something that is

simply done by attending meetings, teaching fill-in-the-blank lessons or facilitating a

prepackaged video lesson. Discipling is sharing life together through the glorious,

mundane, and difficult events in life. Being a discipler involves taking time to get to

know the people being discipled, not focusing on changing them but looking for ways to

be Jesus in their life, while being willing to leave the outcome to Christ and Christ alone

(Parrott 43).

Finally, discipleship leaders must themselves be discipled. Being discipled may

take on the form of pastors being in a mutual discipleship group with other clergy, or it

may be people who have been discipled in a small group and are working with others to

start a group of their own:

We reproduce our own kind, our own nature. Nobody goes to the delivery

room of a hospital expecting to bring a dolphin home, because we all

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reproduce according to our own nature. When we are commanded to make

disciples, it is assumed that we are disciples ourselves. We are, therefore,

“begetting” our own kind. (Geiger, Kelly, and Nation 216)

Leaders need to be active disciples of Jesus Christ, and be walking through life with

others. As the group grows and matures the initial leader could ceases being the leader

and become an active participant in the discipleship group.

Discipleship Group Essentials

The goal for the root of motivation for the Christian way of living should be love.

“We love because he first loved us” (1 John 4:19). The life of a disciple should be a

loving response to God’s amazing love. Discipleship groups must be places in which

members experience God’s love and are inspired to live in response to it (Manskar 13).

The biblical use of agape love to describe God’s love helps people to grasp hold of the

true nature of God’s unconditional love. God loves humanity no matter what and is

always working for its redemption and restoration. To be able to see God’s love for

people achieve its full purpose, people must open themselves up to accountable

relationships.

Discipleship groups need to create space for people to be able to bring to light

their doubts, fears, and struggles alongside their great joys and accomplishments.

Wesley’s bands existed to help people grow through the struggles of daily life (Manskar

91). Groups can reach a place of trust if members lower their defenses and listen to the

Holy Spirit as they share with each other (Muto and van Kaam 66). This space comes

about through a growing love for Christ and each other. God is love. Love will never pass

away. Jesus says the disciples will be known by their love for one another. The problem

all leaders have is that love cannot be taught (Geiger, Kelly, and Nation 208).

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Discipleship group leaders need to model Christ’s love, especially when no guarantees

are made it will be respected or reciprocated. Leaders also need to remember the only one

who can grow that love in their members is the Holy Spirit, and so they need to pray

continually, asking God to help their members to have the ability to experience and share

God’s love.

Discipleship groups will be able to experience true community if the members are

willing to live in submission to one another. Community is only brought about through

the Holy Spirit (Hull 253). The continual work of the Holy Spirit is also necessary to

keep the idea of mutual submission in check.

Ogden identifies several ingredients surrounding trust that help group members

become transformed: group members encouraging one another, being with each other in

tough times, being good listeners that help other members hear God, and confessing their

sin to one another so that they might be healed (Transforming Discipleship 1605). The

last of these ingredients comes straight from James 5:16, which is also the same verse

Wesley used as the basis for his bands.

These ingredients to building trust work to help each member grow in faith and

holiness in their walk with God. As group members pay attention to these areas, they are

really practicing the meaning of caring for the body of Christ. To do any of these things

well, members must also be working on their own relationships with Christ. The

reciprocity of people’s discipleship relationships helps them clean up their own lives, as

well as work with their fellow brothers or sisters to become more Holy. This process

helps people to live out 2 Corinthians 3:18:

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And all of us, with unveiled faces, seeing the glory of the Lord as though

reflected in a mirror, are being transformed into the same image from one

degree of glory to another; for this comes from the Lord, the Spirit.

The process of being transformed from one degree of glory to another is where the life of

the disciple exists, a life between where Christians are and the goal of Christlike holiness

for which they strive (Nelson 80). Believers cannot work for this kind of life if they are

focused on obeying rules. The only way to grow into a life of holiness is to surrender and

come and follow Jesus. Discipleship is not something to be understood and believed; it is

to be heard and obeyed. Bonhoeffer says that Christ does not want his disciples to talk

about faith in Jesus as an ideal, but that his followers just need to get on with it (196).

Discipleship groups will miss the mark if they spend more time talking about the

meaning of being a disciple than they do talking about their own discipleship.

The conversation surrounding discipleship is continuing to evolve. The church is

growing through the necessary part of the conversation about people’s own morality,

Christian values, and character. The conversation is now beginning to talk about all

Christians as missionaries. Alan and Debra Hirsch are bold enough to say, “No mission,

no discipleship” (29). Equating mission and discipleship is true in the sense that disciples

must be grown to the point that they are willing to go out. This same line of thinking has

come through Boren and Alan Roxburgh.

Roxburgh says the Christians need to stop trying to figure out how to be disciples

within the walls of the church and instead get out into their neighborhoods and

communities, sit and eat with their neighbors, and listen to what God is doing (134).

Boren talks through the growth pattern of small groups for the last twenty-five years and

now believes that small groups are growing to the point that the one hour a week meeting

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time is not the most important part of the group’s life. The most important part of the

group’s relationship is how they are sharing life together outside their group time.

Families should know each other, groups should serve together in their neighborhoods,

and reach out to others. Life in common, not a deep one-hour meeting, is the goal of

discipleship group’s life together.

Groups going out and doing acts of service is not enough. Disciples are also

called to make more disciples. Discipleship groups must keep growing members to the

point of maturity until they are willing to go out themselves and make more disciples, just

as they are being transformed into the image of Christ. One of the great ways to think

about this approach is for disciple makers to work towards replacing themselves (Dungy

10). They are working to train disciples to do what they do, make disciples. The call to

make disciples is a call for all people. Making disciples is the most essential element in

the ministry of the laity. In Wesley’s perspective, the “care of souls” is the responsibility

of the whole body of Christ (Oden 3:536). Care of souls is not relegated to tending to the

widows and orphans but growing in relationships with one another, so disciples can talk

with each other about the state of their own souls.

Weekly Meeting Nuts and Bolts

Disciplers are making disciples of Jesus Christ. The foundation of the group is

Jesus himself, most consistently accomplished by using the Bible as the foundation for

the group. Willard explains the foundational nature of Jesus and scripture in terms of

memorizing some of the prominent Bible passages such as the Sermon on the Mount, 1

Corinthians 12, and John 14-17 (Great Omission 1945). The process of memorizing

passages of Scripture theoretically leads to a greater understanding.

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All followers of Jesus Christ need a steady diet of Scripture in their lives.

Scripture can be received through preaching, meditation, and experiencing it in the

sacraments (Chilcote 80). Christians would be well suited to include Bible study groups,

especially those who strongly encourage all believers to participate. In the Reformation,

the Anabaptist’s believed that as believers came together, the Holy Spirit could use

anyone to help them gain an understanding of the Word, not just the experts.

Deemphasizing teaching from an expert helped to emphasize the idea that the Bible was

to be obeyed not simply understood. The goal was to help the participants become

passionate about Jesus, going to to spread the good news and live according to the Bible

(Grass 67).

The Reformation opened the door for these types of groups to be centered around

the Bible. Without the necessity of a Bible scholar, groups can incorporate Scripture

reading along with prayer and learning how to witness to be tools for the Holy Spirit to

bring about transformation in the life of the group members. The early stages of group

dynamics can be focused on familiarity with these things helping to ground the group

members in the faith. As the group grows, emphasis needs to begin to be placed on

applying Scripture by going out and ministering (McCallum 567).

Mark A. Maddix and Richard P. Thompson identify three main methods by which

Scripture enables transformation: “lectio divina, inductive Bible Study, and worship”

(84). Lectio divina is a practice of holy reading that involves slow, prayerful meditation

while reading the Bible. The power of Scripture comes from the Holy Spirit opening the

readers mind to hear the living Word. Wesley believed that the Holy Spirit both inspired

the Bible to be written and that the Spirit continues to inspire the reader to bring forth

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meaning for his or her life, and to be the very voice of God speaking to the reader

(Chilcote 38). Strengthened by the understanding that the Holy Spirit speaks through the

Bible, and that Jesus is the Shepherd, the teacher, and the main discipler, people are well

served by encouraging one another to immerse themselves in the Bible, particularly the

Gospels, so they can learn and apply them to their daily lives (Foster, Streams 130).

An immersion in the Scriptures is more than the typical life application that asks

people to apply biblical principles to their lives. This type of immersion calls for people

to have their beings saturated by the Holy Spirit through the Word so that the Holy Spirit

can bring forth transformation in their souls (Boren 881). A great catalyst for this type of

encounter with the Spirit comes as people center themselves in the presence of the Holy

Spirit and seek God’s direction. Individuals can try and picture themselves in the story

and think about its meaning for their own lives (Chilcote 84), or they can meditate on the

passage, praying to the Holy Spirit for guidance on how to make it a part of their own

beings.

Scripture may be the foundational element in a discipleship group, but its use will

undoubtably look different from the standard Bible study seen in most United Methodist

churches. Most of the current focus on how churches disciple people comes through

lecture-based teaching and small group studies. Discipleship groups help to expand the

learning possibilities to include a much-needed open-ended informal style learning

(Wringe 243). Study of Scripture is the central tool for discipleship groups, but the focus

is not simply learning the Bible. The focus of the group is to pursue the presence of God

in every area of life (Muto and van Kaam 109).

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Wesley knew how essential the class and band meetings were to people’s spiritual

growth. Ogden also believes that the main way people can “grow into self-initiating,

reproducing, fully devoted followers of Jesus Christ is by being involved in highly

accountable, relational, multiplying discipleship units of three or four” (Transforming

Discipleship 533). The component of accountability is also essential to the dynamics of

discipleship groups. Accountability is essential because it strengthens the bonds between

head knowledge and faith in practice (K.Watson 178).

The longer groups are together, the greater chance relationships among group

members will strengthen. The practice of reading Scripture and holding each other

accountable to the ways they live out faith is essential. As noted previously, Wesley

focused on accountability in his band meetings, but many of the questions people were to

answer involved reporting where they had sinned and fallen short of the glory of God.

Confessing sins to one another is essential for healing, but accountability needs to be

more than being held accountable for mistakes. In D. Watson’s model of small groups,

people are encouraged to share with the group how they have been faithful disciples

during their week (Covenant Discipleship 43).

The shift in a psychology of reporting failure to reporting obedience can be a very

healthy practice. People can be challenged in a positive way to think about how they are

joining Jesus in his work in their world, instead of thinking about how they can stay out

of trouble. When discipleship groups help people focus on a relationship with Jesus, the

result is that they also strengthen relationships with other members. When people

strengthen their relationship with Jesus, they have more to share with others (Parrott 21).

The love of Christ must be within Jesus’ disciples in order for them to give it away.

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A disciple’s relationship with Jesus is fostered within the context of community,

but it starts in a quiet place, spending time alone with God: “It begins with a hunger and

thirst after right living. It begins with a deep desperation in your soul that says, ‘Give me

Jesus or I die!’ It begins with a relationship between the Lord and you” (Parrott 21). Too

often Christians put their focus either on working to have a good quiet time alone with

God or seeking a group of believers to be Jesus to them. Both the personal relationship

and the communal relationship are necessary for people to be disciples of Jesus Christ.

The relational function of discipleship groups does not need to be limited to

accountability of faith practices. Theresa F. Latini talks about a men’s group in which

members would regularly call each other in times of crisis, as well as pray for one

another and encourage each other. The group also emphasized honoring their marriages

and taking seriously their family relationships as part of their own Christian discipleship

(36). Often as participants grow closer together they are free to share all manner of

struggles and joys with brothers or sisters who are willing to journey with them. Text and

e-mail have expanded the possibilities to help group members stay connected (Torma

275). One group with which I am familiar is unable to meet regularly because the

members do not live near each other. Their relationship, however, is able to thrive in the

in-between times because of mobile technology.

The more tools a group can use to help members grow closer to Christ and closer

to each other, the more help a group has to foster a sense of trust and a place of safety

that they need as they grow in their faith. A safe group is not just one where what is said

in the meeting remains confidential. A safe group is about becoming safe people for one

another (Boren 1127). This sense of safety is essential in light of people’s propensity

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occasionally to miss the mark of following Jesus. Just like the disciples and most biblical

characters, people are going to make mistakes and need a safe place to find healing and

restoration. People also need a safe place where they can grow at their own pace.

Everyone will not progress at the same speed (Csinos 57). In fact, people are going to

progress differently because the details and path for each person’s life is going to look

and be lived out a little differently. Groups need to be safe enough that everyone is not

expected to do the same exact thing.

Connecting to the Project

According to the Bible being a disciple is the same thing as being a Christian. The

marks of a disciple are to abide in the Word, love one another, and bear fruit. Disciples

are also empowered and sent out to do the work of the church in a variety of fashions.

These ideas build toward the mandate from Jesus to make disciples. “Jesus told us

explicitly what to do. We have a manual, just like the car owner. He told us, as disciples,

to make disciples not converts to Christianity, nor to some particular ‘faith and practice’”

(Willard, Great Omission 143). The mission of the United Methodist Church as stated in

the Book of Discipline is to “make disciples of Jesus Christ for the transformation of the

World” (91). Generally the United Methodist Church does not have a good idea how to

do fulfill this mission and has very little practical structure in place for making disciples.

In conversation with a United Methodist pastor and former district superintendent about

his new focus on making disciples, he said he was trained in a culture to make church

members, not disciples. My perception of the United Methodist Church is that they have

focused on making converts rather than disciples. They have not challenged people to

count the cost of following Jesus, but have only tried to get them to accept the reward of

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eternal life. Invariably people ask if being a disciple is necessary to get into heaven.

Willard comments on this train of thought:

But, someone will say, can I not be “saved”—that is, get into heaven when

I die—without any of this? Perhaps you can. God’s goodness is so great, I

am sure that He will let you in if He can find any basis at all to do so. But

you might wish to think about what your life amounts to before you die,

about what kind of person you are becoming, and about whether you

really would be comfortable for eternity in the presence of One whose

company you have not found especially desirable for the few hours and

days of your earthly existence. And He is, after all, One who says to you

now, “Follow me!” (Great Omission 408)

Following Jesus is much more than assenting to belief in Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior.

Discipleship is an invitation for believers to enter into God’s presence as children of the

King of kings, entering into a whole new life (Bock 138), as they are born again by water

and the Spirit.

Often people are not interested in giving their all but are wanting to know what

the minimum requirements are. One of the key words in the Great Commission is all.

“All authority, all sacrifice, all-out effort, all the time, for all people” (Hull 204). If the

church fails in its calling to be disciples and make disciples, the church has failed in its

primary mission (Hirsch and Hirsch 24).

Another underlying problem with the minimum requirements mode is that people

have lost sight of who is calling them into this new life. The Lord of lords is worthy of

more than church attendance or fandom. Jesus is worthy of complete adoration and full

dedication (Platt 38). In order to help people take their faith seriously, they need to grasp

hold of the things only Jesus can provide for them: salvation, transformation, and a

healing of their souls (Vickers 1765). Jesus can work outside the bounds of the body of

believers, but he has placed the church in position to be the primary tool for doing this

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work. It is not simply the work of the pastor or a few key leaders but the work of the

body as a whole.

In the Great Commission, Jesus also called the disciples to baptize people in the

name of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. John the Baptist said that he was baptizing with

water, but that one would come after him who would baptize with Spirit and with fire

(Matt. 3:11-12). The Greek word for baptize can mean to immerse. To baptize in the

name of the triune God does not mean to immerse people in water and say it is done in

Jesus’ name but that people are immersed in the trinitarian God and into the living body

of Christ, the Church. This perception of baptism helps to support the need for the

relational method of discipleship. Baptism is a calling to immerse people into

community, the body of Christ. As a part of the Church they will be taught to obey the

living God (Willard, Great Omission 731).

The Church must continue living out the calling to fulfill the Great Commission,

making disciples of Jesus Christ, immersing them into the life of the triune God, both in

Spirit and in the physical body of Christ, the Church, and teaching them to obey Jesus.

Making disciples is the mission of the Church. Making disciples is the mission of the

United Methodist Church.

Potential Benefits

People who are a part of small groups often have better worship attendance, give

more time and money, and feel a stronger connection to their churches (Walton 100).

Roger Walton shares statistics on the results group members though they received:

When asked to identify in what ways the group had helped them; 77

percent thought the group had made them more confident in their faith; 76

percent said that belonging to a group has made them more able to connect

their faith and everyday life; 72 percent said it had made them more

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accepting and forgiving of others; 79 percent said it had strengthened their

prayer life; and 68 percent said it had given them more confident in

speaking about their faith to others. The strongest response was that the

group had brought them closer to God. 87 percent of participants believed

this. (109)

People who are growing in their faith will naturally put Jesus as a greater priority or even

make God the priority in their lives. When people make God their priority, they find the

strength from God to endure all manner of trials and persecutions (Grace 140). People

will have a support system from fellow believers for the difficulties of life and will have a

stronger relationship with God that will ultimately help them weather the challenges of

life.

The positive personal spiritual growth and sense of connection to a church body

are some of the most exciting benefits of these types of groups. As individuals change the

culture of the church will changer. As many small changes are made in people’s lives as

they more faithfully follow Jesus, more major change will be seen in the church over time

(Johnson-Miller 42). Discipleship groups need to stay small, and know growing slow is

not bad. Slow growth in churches can lead to a more enduring and effective change than

the typical work for the newest program.

Research Design

The intervention was designed as an exploratory qualitative study. In qualitative

research, the goal of the questions is to learn from participants (Creswell 1254). The goal

of the research was to see the effects of the training on the participants in two areas: their

growth as disciples and their willingness to lead discipleship small groups.

Data was collected using two qualitative research methods. Data was collected “to

learn from the participants in the study” (Creswell 1260). The prestudy questionnaire

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helped me understand where the participants began in relation to their understanding of

discipleship and their perceived skill level for leading discipleship small groups.

Gathering data through the weekly journals, I was able to adapt the journal questions as I

learned how they were responding to the training sessions. The weekly journals were a

narrative not of what happened during the training session but of the participants’

perspectives the sessions in terms of “meaning, relevance and importance” (Sensing 163).

Finally, through leading the training sessions, collecting data, and adapting

questions, I understand that I am being reflexive, bringing my “own biases, values, and

assumptions” (Creswell 1294) as I conduct and analyze my research. Being reflexive in

training is a needed skill for any discipler to be able to disciple others.

Summary

Throughout the history of God working with people, the powerful ways in which

people have grown in their relationship with their Creator is evident. Sometimes

transformation comes through burning bush or blinding light experiences, but more often,

it comes through family or a mentor in the faith, teaching and training up individuals or

groups of people.

A wonderful analogy to consider when thinking about discipleship and the life of

the church is found in the relationships people have with a coach verse a teammate, or

with a trainer verse a workout partner. Coaches and trainers help others to see how do

exercise or make plays, but partners and teammates are the people who are actually doing

all the work alongside each other. People greatly benefit from the strength of others to

reach their goals.

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Discipleship groups can be a great tool to provide the church with a way to

reincorporate the most neglected method—relational discipleship. The pastor cannot be

everyone’s partner or teammate but can work to train up disciples in the church who can

then go and make disciples, who will also then be able to go and make disciples.

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CHAPTER 3

METHODOLOGY

Problem and Purpose

The Christian community is waking up to the understanding that they have not

been making disciples. In The Great Omission, Willard says the church has focused on

making converts instead of disciples (141). The church does well working to get people

to believe in Jesus Christ as Savior but too often fall short in helping people to live in a

community where they can discover the meaning of Jesus as Lord. Learning to make

Jesus Lord every day is at the heart of being a disciple.

This project is interested in equipping the laity to help people have relationships

with others that help them walk with Jesus every day. Churches today often lack the kind

of close community where people share their real struggles in life together. These types

of close, accountable groups exist in many other parts of American culture but are not

prevalent in most churches.

The goal of this project is to equip members of Wrens United Methodist Church

to facilitate small discipleship groups that will help the participants grow closer to Jesus

Christ and each other as they read Scripture, practice spiritual disciplines, and serve their

community together. The purpose of the study was to train selected small group leaders at

WUMC to use a discipleship model that incorporates Scripture reading, fellowship

activities, missional projects, and personal reflection to help the participants grow as

disciples of Jesus Christ and closer to each other in Christian community.

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Guiding Research Questions

The study addressed three main questions. The intent of these questions was to

discover the participants’ understanding of how to be and make disciples. These research

questions will point to practices that helped or did not help people grow to a point that

they are willing to share their faith with others.

Research Question #1

How did the participants understand their relationship with Jesus and their

commitment to Christian community, and what were their perceptions about their ability

to lead small groups before the study?

A short questionnaire at the beginning of the ten-lesson training gathered

information about the skills the disciplers believed were important for leading a small

group. The questionnaire also discovered the participants’ perceived comfort level in

leading a small discipleship group, their perception of their relationship to Christ, and

their level of commitment to the Christian community.

Research Question #2

How did the participants understand their relationship with Jesus and their

commitment to Christian community, and what were their perceptions about their ability

to lead small groups after the study?

A questionnaire at the end of the ten-lesson training gathered information about

the skills the disciplers thought were important for leading a small group. The

questionnaire also discovered the participants’ perceived comfort level in leading a small

discipleship group, their view of their relationship with Christ, and their level of

commitment to the Christian community at the end of the study.

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Research Question #3

What components of the ten-lesson study were most helpful?

The journals provided the space for the participants to reflect on what practices or

learning had been most meaningful to them each week. The journals also allowed them to

share how their understanding of small group life was changing during the course of the

study. Discovering the participants’ thoughts on these two ideas helped shed light on

what they received personally from the study and what in the study makes them more

likely to lead discipleship small groups.

Population and Participants

All active participants of WUMC were considered for participation in the study. I

prayerfully selected twelve disciplers. Church participation, perceived spiritual maturity,

and a desire for community were factors in making the selections. Through the prayerful

selection process, inviting a cross section of the church was also a consideration. The

cross section considered different ages, worship services, and people who participate in

different ministries of the church. This balance was sought for several reasons. First, I

wanted the study to have the potential to impact the church as a whole. Second, I wanted

to keep the project away from the perception that it was only for one group of people.

Finally, people from different services and groups in the church could build relationships

with people they did not know, helping to strengthen the community. The study included

members and active nonmembers at WUMC.

Design of the Study

The study consisted of ten training lessons for the twelve discipleship group

facilitators. Each week the participants focused on different components of the

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discipleship groups and practical tips for leading effective discipleship groups. The

lessons were designed to help the participants understand why these groups can be

helpful, how the small groups are structured, and what they can do to be effective

facilitators. The study was designed to begin with introducing new concepts of

discipleship and move people to being able to lead small groups. The ten lessons included

the following topics (see Appendix D):

Lesson 1—A Framework for Making Disciples

Lesson 2—Modes of Discipleship and Our Wesleyan Heritage

Lesson 3—Beginning Stages

Lesson 4—Format and Scripture Reading

Lesson 5—Prayer

Lesson 6—Spiritual Disciplines

Lesson 7—Service

Lesson 8—Life in Common

Lesson 9—Fellowship

Lesson 10—Group Dynamics and Prayerfully Building Groups.

Central to the design of the research was the prayerful invitation for the

participants to join the study and a call for their faithfulness to participate in it. The

prayerful invitation and challenge for faithful participation had its foundation in Jesus’

approach to calling his disciples. The initial group of twelve also had its foundation in

Jesus’ model of discipleship.

Research was qualitative in nature because the personalities and spiritual lives of

each of the participants were different. The research design includes short-answer

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questions for the pre- and postintervention questionnaires that the participants took before

and after the ten-week study. The design also includes a qualitative weekly journal

focusing on transformational learning from the ten sessions.

Instrumentation

Three instruments were used to measure the effectiveness of this discipleship

training model. The first assessment conducted at the beginning and end of the ten

training sessions for disciplers was the preintervention questionnaire. The first

questionnaire asked demographic information about the participants, including age, race,

gender, and their perceived level of involvement at WUMC. The second instrument was

the questionnaire at the conclusion of the study, which was identical to the first

questionnaire but without the demographic information. The third instrument was a

weekly journal in the form of an e-mail or written response to a specific question sent to

the disciplers from me to measure their weekly progress.

Variables

Two different types of variables were present in the study, including dependent

variables and intervening variables. The dependent variable was the effect the model had

on the Disciplers. Three intervening variables were present: differences in Disciplers, the

interpersonal dynamics of the group, and the openness of any particular group participant.

Data Collection

The intervention consisted of a ten-lesson study and allowed participants one

week after the study to turn in their final journal. Ten minutes were given during the first

and last sessions for the participants to complete the questionnaires, ensuring 100 percent

return rate. The participants were asked to turn in their journal responses within two days

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of each of the ten sessions. An e-mail, text message, or phone call reminder was given the

day after the deadline and every two days afterwards until the journals were submitted.

The method of communicating with the individual participants was part of the

questionnaire during the first class. The participants indicated if they preferred e-mail,

text, or phone reminders for the weekly journals.

All sessions were held in the WUMC fellowship hall. No outside expenses for the

weekly sessions were involved, and the church absorbed the cost of printing the

materials. The twelve participants sat around four round tables with three people per

table. This set-up facilitated times of table discussion during the weekly sessions.

The ten-lesson intervention began the week of 13 September and concluded the

week of 15 November. The dates were selected to fit between Labor Day weekend and

Thanksgiving week, aiming for optimal participation. The first six sessions focused on

teaching the model for small group discipleship. The next three sessions focused on

equipping the disciplers with practical tools for leading a discipleship small group. The

last session was geared towards wrapping up the training session and helping the

disciplers prayerfully consider whom to invite to be a part of a discipleship small group

they would lead at the conclusion of the study.

Each weekly session was scheduled as follows:

7:00-7:10 Sharing and prayer

7:10-7:50 Teaching section

7:50-8:00 Prayer

8:00-8:30 Lectio divina.

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Data Analysis

The data gathered from the weekly journals and the short-answer questionnaires

was qualitative in nature. The journals identified parts of the training that were impactful

for the participants’ spiritual growth and for their growth as potential discipleship group

leaders.

The short-answer questionnaires and weekly journals showed the participants’

understanding of being in a discipleship group. These instruments also highlighted the

components to the training and discipleship model that were helpful or impactful and

those that were not as they grew in their understanding of how to be in and lead a

discipleship small group.

Ethical Procedures

The data collected from the questionnaires and journals was seen only by me.

Openness was encouraged as a part of the group training, so none of the instruments was

anonymous. The participants signed a consent form (see Appendix A) for me to use their

comments without their names in Chapter 4 and 5 of the study. After both of the

questionnaires, I digitized their written responses and shredded the paper copies. During

the process all data was kept on my password-protected laptop. After completion of the

dissertation the gathered data was deleted from my computer.

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CHAPTER 4

FINDINGS

Problem and Purpose

Wrens United Methodist Church has a few Sunday school classes, which are

attended by less than half of the active participants of the congregation, and offers regular

Bible studies, which are attended by one-tenth of the active participants of the

congregation. These are the only adult small groups offered at WUMC, and while they

are wonderful groups, they are not geared towards accountability and discipleship. None

of the members at WUMC are involved in a discipleship program or small group to

nurture their faith and help them become and make disciples in the community.

The goal of this project was to use a ten-lesson training program to equip

members of WUMC to facilitate small discipleship groups. The discipleship groups are

focused on helping the participants grow closer to Jesus Christ and each other as they

read Scripture, practice spiritual disciplines, and serve their community together. The

purpose of the study was to train twelve potential small group leaders at WUMC to use a

discipleship model that incorporates Scripture reading, fellowship activities, missional

projects, and personal reflection to help the participants grow as disciples of Jesus Christ

and closer to each other in the Christian community.

The training sessions began 17 September 2015 and met for nine consecutive

weeks on Thursdays, ending on 12 November 2015. An additional session was held on

Saturday 7 November 2015 at the home of two of the group’s participants. After the

second session, many people shared they would not be able to attend every meeting, so

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an identical session was offered each week. The participants could either meet Thursdays

from 12:00-1:30 p.m. or from 7:00-8:30 p.m.

The study used a qualitative methodology consisting of pre- and postintervention

questionnaires and weekly journals. The pre- and postintervention questionnaires were

researcher designed (see Appendix B). The weekly journals gave the participants the

option to answer one or more of three different questions. The same three questions were

asked every week (see Appendix C). The participants were given the option to answer the

journals through e-mail, typed or written text in a sealed envelope, or text message. All

participants chose to answer the journals through e-mail.

Participants

I prayerfully chose twelve people to participate in the discipleship group training

sessions. The group consisted of six females (50 percent) and six males (50 percent). The

participants ages ranged from the 20s to the 60s. The age ranges were broken down into

four groups: 20s (n=2, 17 percent), 40s (n=2, 17 percent), 50s (n=4, 33 percent), and 60s

(n=4, 33 percent). Each of the four categories were 50 percent male and 50 percent

female. Ten of the participants were married (83 percent), one was single (8 percent), and

one was divorced (8 percent). The entire group had obtained a high school or college

education. Two participants had high school degrees (17 percent), and ten participants

had completed bachelor’s degrees (83 percent).

The participants had been Christians from fifteen to sixty or more years. The

ranges were broken down into five groups: fifteen to twenty years (n=1, 8 percent),

twenty to thirty years (n=2, 17 percent), thirty to forty (n=4, 33 percent), forty to fifty

years (n=1, 8 percent), fifty to sixty years (n=3, 25 percent), more than sixty (n=1, 8

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percent). Eleven of the participants became believers as a child or teenager (92 percent),

and one person became a believer as an adult (8 percent).

Research Question #1

Research question one asked, “How did the participants understand their

relationship with Jesus and their commitment to Christian community, and what were

their perceptions about their ability to lead small groups before the study?” The first part

of this question ascertains how they understood their relationship with Jesus. The second

part of the question shows how they describe their commitment to Christian community.

The last part discovers the participants’ perceptions about their ability to lead small

groups.

One person (8 percent) described his relationship with Jesus as “lacking.” Ten

people (83 percent) said they talked with Jesus every day or believed they were best

friends and expressed that the relationship was ongoing. One person said she loved God

but knew God loved her more and thought she did not spend enough time with God. Four

people (33 percent) commented on the idea that their relationship with God was always

growing deeper or to perfection.

The participants’ involvement at WUMC spanned from attending worship

services to Sunday school, Bible study and a wide variety of committees, including

several people who were committee chairs. Ten of the participants attended the

contemporary service (83 percent), and two people attended the traditional service (17

percent). Six people were actively involved in small groups (50 percent). Four people had

served in leadership positions in the church within the last year (33 percent), and two

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people actively serve on ministry staff (17 percent). Two people said they only come to

Sunday morning worship services (17 percent).

The participants also commented on their involvement as Christians outside of

church activities. One person talked about his responsibility as a disciple in terms of

“learning and growing in faith and knowledge of the word and my Lord.” One person

said she wanted to learn “from Jesus and become more like Him.” Another person said

her job as a disciple was to be a follower and believer in Jesus. Nine people (75 percent)

expressed the idea that they were to share God’s light, word, love, or message in the

world around them. One of those nine said as a disciple she was responsible for “loving,

serving, following Jesus and leading others to love, serve and follow Jesus who in turn

will lead others to follow Jesus.” Eleven people (92 percent) said helping others grow

closer to Jesus was very important for them.

The preintervention questionnaire showed that three people (25 percent) did not

believe they had the skills and knowledge to lead a small group. Four people (33 percent)

were unsure or hoped that they did, and five people (42 percent) were confident that they

had the skills and knowledge necessary. The preintervention questionnaire also asked the

participants how effective they thought they would be leading discipleship small groups.

Their responses showed that two people (17 percent) did not think they would be

effective at small groups. Six people (50 percent) said they were not sure, and four people

(25 percent) said they believed they would be effective leading small groups. In the

preintervention questionnaire four people (33 percent) claimed they did not have enough

knowledge to be small group leaders. Many of the participants elaborated on this

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statement in conversation to say they did not think they knew enough about the Bible to

lead small groups.

Research Question #2

The second research question asked, “How did the participants understand their

relationship with Jesus and their commitment to Christian community, and what were

their perceptions about their ability to lead small groups after the study?” This question

was interested in the perceived effects of going through the ten training sessions. The

participants were all more communicative in their responses to the three questions

pertaining to this research question in their postintervention questionnaires. Their

responses in the preintervention questionnaire went from 425 words to 773 words in the

postintervention questionnaire.

The intent of the first part of the question was to discover if people grew in their

relationship with Jesus because of the study. The person who described his relationship

with Jesus as “lacking,” changed to “rocky, slippery, I just need to step up my part.”

Reflecting on taking part in the group lectio divina, this person said, “The past two

classes have been more fulfilling spiritually, bringing back lost connection with Christ

reminding me that it is me turning a blind eye to what his will for me is.” The next week

this individual said, “This week was another growing experience delving into God’s

Word.” Some of the people’s additional comments were:

• “I have come closer to the Lord the last few months, I think due to our time of

Revival and through getting together and talking about groups.”

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• “My relationship [with God] has grown deeper during the last ten lessons. I

have enjoyed the scripture reading and allowing the Holy Spirit to speak to me through

the scriptures.”

• “I am closer to Jesus than ever.”

These comments highlight that study was effective in helping some of the participants

grow closer in their relationship with Jesus.

Eleven people (92 percent) said they believed part of being a disciple meant

sharing their faith with others. The other person described being a disciple as “being a

faithful follower of Jesus.” When asked about the importance of helping others grow

closer to Christ, one person said, “It is becoming very clear to me that helping bring

others to Christ is priority #1.” Another person said, “Outside of our own relationship to

Jesus, it is our next biggest responsibility.” A third person said, “Life Purpose/Goal—

Love and worship God. Life Purpose/Goal 2—Love others and lead them to love and

worship God. It’s #2 on the list!” A fourth person said, “I feel that I have to grow closer

before I can effectively help others. Maybe it would be something that we would do

together.” The responses indicated the participants believed being in community would

enhance their spiritual growth.

The postintervention questionnaires indicated that only one person (8 percent) did

not think he or she had the skills or knowledge needed. This difference represents a shift

of two people (17 percent) moving from “not feeling like they had the skills and

knowledge” to “not being sure.” The person who did believe he had the skills and

knowledge at the end of the training session indicated the same response in the

preintervention questionnaire.

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The postintervention questionnaire also showed that four people (33 percent) had

either the skills or the knowledge, but not both. The percentage was the same as the

preintervention questionnaire, but it represents two people moving up from not being

equipped and two people moving from not being sure to being equipped. Seven people

(58 percent) thought they had the skills and knowledge to lead a discipleship group after

the training session. Five of the seven claimed they were ready but knew they needed to

rely on God. Their responses included the phrases such as:

• “with Christ’s help.”

• “with God’s guidance and wisdom.”

• “if I allow the Holy Spirit to lead.”

• “I’m planning on praying and doing. God will take care of the rest.”

• “He will give me what I need.”

The participants expressed the belief that God was the one who would empower them to

be able to lead discipleship small groups.

The postintervention questionnaire results were similar to the results for the

question on skills and knowledge. One person (8 percent) did not think that he would be

effective leading a small group. This individual is the same person who did not believe

that he had the skills or knowledge he needed to lead a small group. The two people (17

percent) who did not think they would be effective in the preintervention questionnaire

moved up to thinking they might be effective. Five people (42 percent) said they might be

effective leading small groups, representing a decrease of one person (8 percent). One

person (8 percent) moved down to not thinking she would be effective, and two people

(17 percent) moved up to believing they would be effective leading small groups.

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The weekly journals shed light on what helped the participants believe they had

more knowledge or skills, leading to their potential effectiveness. One person who moved

from thinking she might be effective leading small groups to feeling comfortable leading

noted in the journal for week seven that she was comfortable with the idea “mainly

because I really believe in it!” One person thought she would be effective from the

beginning to the end of the study. She noted that the Holy Spirit living within her

empowered her to be a small group leader. This idea was in her first and last journal.

Only one person (8 percent) eluded to the idea that he or she could lead because of

strength from God in the preintervention questionnaires, but six people (50 percent)

referenced God empowering them in the postintervention questionnaire.

One person in her first journal entry displayed hope that she could lead these

small groups. She claimed, “Even ordinary people like me can do extraordinary things

with the help of the Holy Spirit.” In the journal entry for week four she stated, “I am not

sure leading this type of small group is my calling.” In her week seven journal entry she

said she thought she could lead a small group, “mainly because I really believe it.” One

person who said they believed he or she would be effective at leading small groups in the

preintervention questionnaire said in her journal entry for week one, “I learned that I am

not as well prepared to be a group leader as I thought.” In her week six journal she said,

“I feel less qualified to be a small group leader.” In her postintervention questionnaire she

claimed to have the skills and knowledge needed and could be effective. These two

individuals were the only people who shared this idea of getting less comfortable in the

beginning and growing to be more comfortable by the end. Through undocumented

conversations, this process was a common sentiment with other people in the study.

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In the postintervention questionnaire, one person (8 percent) still believed his

knowledge was lacking but claimed he had good skills. One person stated, “After this

training course, yes, I do think I have the knowledge.” Through the journals the things

that helped people feel competent were coming to an understanding of the weekly format,

realizing that the groups could happen in a relaxed setting, and knowing that the focus of

the groups were “sharing life with others and helping to bear one another’s burdens.” One

person summed up the idea of leading small groups by saying, “I’m not freaking out

about starting a small group because I get the concept: Go have Godly friendships—

encourage one another and be encouraged in the Lord … in groups of 3-5.” The

participants gained an increased level of comfort and competence with leading

discipleship small groups when they saw how natural the structure of the groups were.

The weekly journals revealed the skills and knowledge the participants initially

thought were important as well as those they discovered really were. The predominant

perceived skill necessary was biblical knowledge. Being a good listener and

communicator was also listed as initially perceived skills. The skills the participants

discovered were beneficial to being small group leaders included building relationships,

focusing on prayer, listening for the Holy Spirit, being willing to share their lives and

faith, cultivating an atmosphere of openness, being able to devote time to relationships

outside of group time, including others in conversation, and minimizing people from

monopolizing the conversation. All of these skills were taught during the third through

tenth weekly lessons (see Appendix D).

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Biblical Knowledge

Biblical knowledge was a constant theme throughout the journals. Every week the

idea that discipleship and the discipleship small groups are not a program was

emphasized. A sampling of the journals shows that different people reflected on this idea

throughout the ten-lesson study. One individual said she would feel more comfortable

with a preplanned study course outline rather than only reading the Bible. Another person

said in week three, “Small group life is not the same as small group Bible studies.” In the

first journal entry, one person noted, “I thought a small group merely involved discussion

of ‘religious’ stuff.” The same person reflected in week six, “It is much more than

leading a committee.” One person reflected on the discipleship groups in his last journal

entry, “Once people see it’s not so structurally rigid and demanding like a business

meeting, that mindset should change.” Another person wrote after the fourth lesson that

they understood the groups were not to be a Bible study.

One individual said in her week four journal entry, “The purpose of reading

scripture in the small group setting is to hear the Holy Spirit and apply it … not so much

to ‘study’ it & argue its meaning.” This response came after the lesson on lectio divina

where the participants learned about and practiced lectio divina for the first time. Before

that lesson none of the participants had any prior experience with lectio divina. Lectio

divina is latin for reading the Divine, or holy reading (see Appendix D, week four).

Building Relationships

Building relationships was a prevalent skill described in the weekly journals. This

skill became more prevalent after lectio divina was introduced, and people became less

focused on biblical knowledge. Nine people (75 percent) talked about the importance of

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building relationships and their role as leaders in helping that part of the small groups

develop. Two people (17 percent) said that part of the groups’ success would depend on

their willingness to open up and share with others. Facilitators need “to provide an

atmosphere conducive to openness, giving room for God’s guidance.” Three other people

shared the understanding that the groups “should be a safe place for each member to feel

comfortable and confident in speaking/sharing.” The participants believed that openness

and confidentiality were essential to the group dynamics.

The journals reflected the realization that the discipleship small groups are

“basically just Jesus-based friendship(s) —iron sharpening iron.” These small groups

“should be like friends hanging out, with a focus on spiritual growth through Bible study,

prayer, and just talking or counseling each other through life situations.” Eight of the nine

people who talked about the importance of building relationships realized that they

needed to focus on being more intentional in their relationships. One person expounded

on this thought by saying people in groups should be “talking regularly about what God

is doing in our lives; and check on group members regularly about life and the situations

they are praying together about.” One person commented, “I love to pray for others,

which is important in building relationships within my small group.” Phrases such as,

“learning more about each other, sharing in one another’s lives, and bearing burdens with

one another,” were prevalent in eight of the participants’ journals.

Prayer

Prayer was the most mentioned skill in the participants’ journals. Eleven of the

twelve (92 percent) participants mentioned prayer in a variety of aspects. The skill was

not any particular form of prayer but the role of pray in becoming a group leader, asking

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people to join the group, and during the whole life of the group. The participants’

journals showed that the necessity of prayer for the life of small groups began with

discerning whether or not to become a group leader. In the postintervention

questionnaires, six people (50 percent) said they were going to be in prayer about

becoming group leaders. Four of the six felt ready to become leaders but knew they

needed to pray for guidance through the process. Two of the six were unsure if they were

ready to be small group leaders but were going to pray, knowing God could empower

them to lead small groups.

Two people (17 percent) journaled about the necessity to pray about the people to

invite to become members of the discipleship group. Prayer for and with the members of

the group was also stated as a crucial component of building relationships with the

members of the group by three people (25 percent). Focused time of prayer during the

small group meeting was also seen as very important by eight of the participants (66

percent). Some of the participants commented on prayer before and during Scripture

reading. Three people (25 percent) commented on the reality that prayer involved a lot

more listening than they usually practiced. Three people also commented on

rediscovering the need and desire to time set aside time to pray especially for others in

their group.

Research Question #3

The third research question was devised to discover what components of the ten-

lesson study were most helpful. The study focused on Scripture reading, prayer, service,

fellowship, life in common and the spiritual disciplines outlined by Foster in The

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Celebration of Discipline. The most transformative practice was lectio divina (see

Appendix D).

Lectio Divina

Group lectio divina was taught during week four in response to questions about

the use of Scripture in the discipleship small groups. One person commented after the

initial session, “Lectio Divina was a bit intense for me.” Eleven people (92 percent) wrote

in their journals about how powerful the practice was.

The comments people had concerning the group lectio divina ranged from

extremely personal to more eye opening. One person found it to be spiritually fulfilling,

drawing him back to God. Another person wrote about the whole lectio divina process,

describing how the process helps to make Scripture come to life.

Some of the responses involved realizations on how much the Holy Spirit speaks

through the Bible. One person said he liked the process because he was learning another

approach to reading the Bible by “allowing the Holy Spirit to lead me to a word or a

phrase to focus on. This allows me to meditate or reflect as to how this word or phrase

can draw me closer to Christ.” Three participants talked about the breadth of

understanding as people shared different thoughts that came out of reading the Scripture.

For two people, those ideas included hearing the different thoughts others in the group

had and how much God spoke to them as they read the text three times. Finally, one

person summed up the lectio divina process in the simplest way, which was a common

comment from the eleven individuals who loved the process: “This week’s small group

experience was awesome.” Lectio divina was the most impactful practice for spiritual

growth reported in the journals.

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Spiritual Disciplines

Six people (50 percent) said in their journals that the study on the spiritual

disciplines was especially meaningful. One person loved all of the “good concrete

information to consider and incorporate into my daily life.” Two people commented on

the realization that incorporating more than just one or two of the disciplines into their

daily lives would help them grow closer to Christ. One person saw the variety of

disciplines as a way to help create balance in their life. Solitude was specifically talked

about by two people in their journals. Two people described wanting to incorporate

meditation into their spiritual lives. One of those was thankful for the explanation on the

difference in Eastern meditation and Christian meditation: “Eastern attempts to empty the

mind whereas Christian meditation should seek to fill the mind with God and His word.”

Service

Five people (42 percent) wrote about the joy of serving together as a group. The

person who headed up the service project was a staff member, and she journaled about

the blessing of having people serve with different skills and talents. She commented that

it was great to have people not only willing to serve but who were serving

enthusiastically. She noted that it was encouraging as a leader when people were serving

with their whole hearts.

The person who spearheaded the actions of the lesson on service reflected on two

aspects of service that had not before occurred to them. This individual often serves many

people alone and has not always focused on enlisting others to help. Their two thoughts

revolved on the service provided in allowing themselves to be served and the opportunity

that can be provided by allowing others the opportunity to serve. This person said, “I

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need to change my thoughts and consider that I am giving someone the opportunity to be

blessed by serving others when I ask them to join me in doing something.” The person

who led the service lesson learned that many people like to serve, but they need to be

asked and empowered.

Others in the group loved the togetherness the whole group had as they planned,

met, and carried out the time of service. One person commented on how well serving

brought the group together in a unique way, that it made for more bonding and trusting.

Another comment about the service lesson was the reminder not to let “service be ‘self

righteous’ service.” Finally, one person understood that service is another way to worship

God.

Concepts of Discipleship

The first two lessons explained the depth and breadth of discipleship. Five people

(43 percent) commented on the transformative nature of seeing discipleship differently.

Two people (17 percent) talked about the realization that discipleship was more than

witnessing to others; it was a lifelong process of helping others continue to grow in their

relationship with Christ. Two people found the four modes of discipleship especially

helpful in thinking about how they grow in their faith and how they help others grow. In

thinking about these modes, one person commented, “Relationship, relationship,

relationship—not a program.” The other person thought she, and others, only used one or

two modes, and that most of her friends only experience God in worship services. She

said, “There is little relationship with other Christians outside the church building. We

tend to keep our social life separate from our church life.” This quote reiterates the reality

I discovered when participants of the study who were longtime members of the church

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and attended the same service, introduced themselves to each other on the first night of

the study.

Three other people highlighted the relational nature of discipleship by sharing

about the opportunity small groups gave them “to form new friendships through

fellowship and [focus] more on God’s word and to pray, pray, pray.” Two of those three

were particularly thankful for the ability to begin relationships with others who could

help disciple them and that they could help disciple.

Fellowship

The fellowship lesson was the ninth one, held on a Saturday. Only three people

commented on fellowship in their journals due, in part, to people forgetting to turn in

journal entries and then doubling up with the final lesson. One of the participants said she

had not thought about including the participants’ family members in the fellowship time

but realized doing so helped the group get to know each other better.

The small group training sessions yielded a few other comments in the journals

that were worth noting. One person in week six, after the third experience in group lectio

divina, discovered “that it is okay to disagree.” This realization ties in with another

member who wrote that small group “members were not to judge, but listen.” Both of

these comments were in context of personal growth and realizations of how they can

participate in group life. Another person wrote it was helpful to realize that if groups are

intergenerational, broader ideas, perspectives, and life experiences can be shared. Finally

one person wrote about the blessing that relationships in small groups can be.

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Summary of Major Findings

The journals and open-ended questions in the questionnaires allowed the

participants to share their thoughts and feelings as they reflected on their faith and the

weekly sessions. These two tools allowed the participants to express connections between

particular practices and the relationships they were developing through them, both with

God and with others. The tools also provided an avenue for the participants to dialogue

about their feelings of preparedness for leading discipleship small groups in the future.

The major findings of this study include the following:

1. Learning the practice of lectio divina opened the participants’ eyes to hearing

the Spirit speak through the Bible.

2. Reading devotionally in groups can be transformational for people’s

relationship with Jesus and each other.

3. People were able to begin thinking about discipleship in terms of their

relationships with others instead of thinking about it as their own conversion and church

involvement.

4. People expanded their thinking and practice of prayer to include listening to

God, praying for group members, and praying for all aspects of their group life.

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CHAPTER 5

DISCUSSION

Problem and Purpose

The United Methodist Church in the South Georgia Annual Conference has been

rediscovering how to help its churches focus on making disciples instead of making

converts or church members. The church too often does not do well being a Christian

community where people share life and faith and help one another on the path of

discipleship. Being a disciple and making disciples should be a natural part of every

Christian’s life in faith.

This project is interested in equipping the laity to lead discipleship small groups.

These small groups can be an essential component of church life, helping believers to be

and make disciples. Discipleship small groups help create a close community where

people share their real struggles in life together. These types of close, accountable groups

exist in many other parts of American culture but are not prevalent in most churches.

The goal of this project was to equip members of Wrens United Methodist Church

to facilitate small discipleship groups that will help the participants grow closer to Jesus

Christ and each other as they read Scripture, practice spiritual disciplines, and serve their

community together. The purpose of the study was to train selected small group leaders at

WUMC to use a discipleship model that incorporates Scripture reading, fellowship

activities, missional projects, and personal reflection to help the participants grow as

disciples of Jesus Christ and closer to each other in Christian community.

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Major Findings

Small groups at WUMC consist of three adult Sunday school classes and short-

term Bible studies that I offer. No regular small groups exist that focus on accountable

discipleship. A little more than one-third of the worshiping congregation take part in

small groups offered. The purpose of this study was to train discipleship small group

leaders who could lead groups of three to five people. The study had three goals. The first

goal was to get the participants to buy into the idea of discipleship small groups by

helping them to understand what they are and how important they can be for a person’s

spiritual life. The second goal was to equip them to be able to lead these small groups.

The third, long-range goal was for these groups to begin to transform the lives of the

members of their church and our community.

The study yielded some expected and unexpected results. I expected to find that

people were not comfortable leading small groups. Many people did not think they had

enough biblical knowledge or were uncomfortable putting themselves in a place of

spiritual leadership over others. The difficulty people have building relationships was

another expected problem that was uncovered. I was also aware that the kind of small

groups I was promoting had not been a part of their Christian life. I anticipated that the

participants’ understanding of discipleship would largely consist of their personal walk

with Jesus being worked out in private, with the outward expression being church

attendance and involvement.

The Practice of Lectio Divina

I was surprised how fast the participants fell in love with the practice of group

lectio divina and how well and fast the groups started growing closer together. Maddix

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and Thompson said it was often hard to get people to begin reading devotionally instead

of searching the Bible for applicable truths to apply to their lives (84). This need to

reorient people’s reading of the Bible took me by surprise. After the first two weeks of

lectio divina, almost the entire group had fallen in love with this type of reading.

The first two lessons were focused on the historical background and the need for

discipleship small groups in the life of the church. The next eight lessons were designed

to focus on training and explaining the different components of the small groups as well

as skills needed to be able to facilitate these groups. In week three I outlined the

suggested structure for group time and briefly discussed the use of Scripture. I referenced

the concept of lectio divina to help the participants understand these groups were not

intended to be a Bible study but a place where people could share what the Holy Spirit

was saying to them through the Scriptures. The original plan was not to spend a lot of

time explaining this type of Bible reading to the group. It was not initially a focus of any

of the ten lessons. At the end of the lesson for week three, the group asked if I could

spend time elaborating on the use of Scripture in the small groups. I then restructured the

remaining lessons so I could focus one lesson on the use of Scripture.

The first half of the lesson the next week focused in detail on the difference

between an academic and a devotional reading of Scripture. I was careful to note that

both were necessary in a person’s spiritual life. My experience with an academic study in

groups is that one or two people become the expert, and others listen. The tendency for

people to argue over what the text means, creating winners and losers, those who are

right and those who are wrong is present in an academic approach. If groups read

devotionally, everyone can be on equal ground, sharing what they believe the Holy Spirit

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is saying to them. I also taught in detail about the process of group lectio divina. During

the second half of the lesson we separated into small groups and practiced lectio divina

together. After the lesson it was obvious that this practice was going to be the catalyst for

people wanting to be a part of discipleship small groups. The most important thing I

needed to do to get people to want to lead small groups was to help them find discover a

desire to be in small group with others. The participants needed to believe that being a

part of discipleship small groups was important for them.

I worked through the rest of my material and restructured all but two of the

remaining six lessons to consist of an hour of training and thirty minutes for group lectio

divina. The only perceptible negative to this restructuring was that at the end of the

training session several of the people loved the relationships they had created and wanted

to continue in small groups with people with whom they had been sharing during the

study instead of going out and creating new groups.

Group lectio divina was used to help the participants begin to read the Bible

differently than they might have in the past. The participants were taught that the Bible is

the Word of God, not simply because God wrote the Bible or inspired its writing but

because the Holy Spirit speaks through it. The Bible is the living Word. I did not want the

groups to treat the Bible like a dead book to be dissected and disputed. People in the

groups needed to be able to read the Bible and hear the Holy Spirit speaking to them

through it.

The nature of this type of group shifts the authority from being top down, from

the pastor to the people, and places the authority in God through the Holy Spirit to be the

teacher, so the group can hear and discern together. The idea of the Holy Spirit as teacher

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was evident in the lectio divina time during the sixth lesson. I shared with the groups the

passage from Matthew 18:20, “For where two or three are gathered in my name, I am

there among them.” After the second reading of the text I believed I heard the Holy Spirit

sharing with me a few ideas about the text. Before I spoke, the person sitting across from

me shared the first half of what I believed I heard the Spirit say, then the person to my

right said the second half! This encounter highlighted the ideas that the Holy Spirit is

present in community, and the Holy Spirit is the teacher.

I believe seeing God as teacher is part of a shift going on in the Church. The

church experienced a great shift during the Reformation as people began to have copies

of the Bible and question the authority of the Catholic Church. The Reformation was

fueled in part due to the invention of the printing press in Germany in 1450. The

reformers were able to share their ideas more widely, and Bibles were being printed,

enabling more than just the priests and monks to have Bibles for themselves. The church

is being forced to deal with how inventions like the Television and the Internet are

changing how people communicate and relate. Suddenly people find themselves in a flat

world. The way Wikipedia works is a great example of where American culture might be

headed. Anyone can add to or correct articles on Wikipedia. People no longer need a

certain level of education to have their voice heard. People no longer need a publisher to

agree to share their ideas or a record label to back them to have their music heard. The

world is moving into a time when all voices can come to the table and be heard. With the

rise of e-mail, cell phones and social media, the culture is finding less need for official

people, enabling grassroots movements to spring up and take off.

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The church has the opportunity to respond to the changing world and return to the

source of life and to envision how it is going to evolve. The first step for the church is to

rediscover the person and Lordship of Jesus (Hirsch 100). In discovering Jesus again, we

need to know him as a personal teacher; not a teacher, but the teacher. If Jesus is not the

teacher, then people cannot be his disciples. People will be a disciple of whoever their

teacher is. In one perspective, the church has lost the meaning of being a disciple of Jesus

Christ because it has lost the practice of having Jesus as the teacher (Willard, Great

Omission 2520).

This approach to rediscovering the lordship of Jesus and encountering the Bible as

a living book is best done within a larger community. Private reading of the Bible and

personal times of communing with the Holy Spirit are essential, but disciples do not need

to keep their relationship with Christ cloistered away. Christians are called to be a part of

the body of Christ, which necessitates living in community. It is not enough for people to

attend church. They must get connected to other disciples so they can be discipled and

disciple others. For too long I have heard the mantra that people do not talk about religion

or money with others. Discipleship by nature is sharing relationships: sharing the

relationship a disciple has with Jesus with others. Relationships are flexible and always

evolving, and discipleship is no different.

Shifting the lessons also modeled for the participants another aspect of leading

small groups—being able to adapt to the needs of the small group as they arise. Scripture

reveals many times when Jesus knew that it was time to move on and he left needs unmet

because he knew what was most important, but other times he seemingly changed his

plans to meet the needs of those around him, using those opportunities as teaching

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moments for his disciples. Jesus’ actions in Matthew 14 are a prime example. After

hearing that John the Baptist had been beheaded, Jesus immediately left, crossing over to

a secluded place on the other side of the sea, but the crowds followed him. Instead of

telling the crowds he wanted to be alone, he spent the rest of the day healing the sick.

When evening comes, instead of sending the people away to find food, he performed one

of the most famous miracles—feeding the five thousand. Finally, Jesus sent the disciples

out in the boat, sent the crowd away, and then went up on the mountain to find his place

of solitude. One of the many things I see Jesus doing is adjusting his plan to meet the

needs of the people and using the circumstances as a teaching moment for his disciples.

I wanted the groups to follow the model I created but expressed over and over that

the model was not a program. Discipleship small groups are a way of creating

relationships with brothers and sisters in Christ who can walk the faith together. As

leaders, they should know the model but also know they are free to follow the Holy Spirit

to tailor the model to meet the group’s needs.

Transforming Relationships with Jesus and Others

One of the church’s biggest challenges is equipping the laity for ministry. I have

found many layers to this widespread problem. In South Georgia Methodism, like other

places, clergy and laity have created a culture where the ministry staff is providing goods

or services for the congregation to consume. Churches rarely see themselves as the body

of Christ in a particular community with the understanding that the whole body of Christ

is to share the gospel of Jesus Christ with those inside and outside the church. United

Methodist churches in the South Georgia Annual Conference are predominantly

attractional and not missional in nature. A major problem my parishioners have is a lack

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of skills or desire to build relationships with new people either in the community or

within the church. During the first group meeting for the study, I had participants

introducing themselves to each other. These were all people who have been going to

WUMC for several years, most attending the same service, which usually averages

seventy to eighty people, and I discovered that some people did not even know each

other’s names.

The most common reservation people expressed to me through conversations

about starting discipleship small groups was the awkwardness in approaching other

people to see if they would like to be in a small group with them. As their pastor I am

hopeful that I can help guide them through the process because the people that

participated in the study know how wonderful the relationships in the groups can be once

they are formed. Overcoming the obstacle of that first awkward step of talking to people

they do not know well, or people they do know well, but with whom they want to move

into a deeper relationship, is a challenge for many people.

One of the benefits of discipleship small groups is that people’s relationships with

the group members and many other people they know will be transformed. I did not

research ways to help people overcome their initial fears about starting these groups.

After completing the study, I discovered the arena of relationship building is a place that

needs an investment of time and energy. I have a strong suspicion that what I saw in

micro form with the participants’ insecurities starting new groups is a major reason the

church at large is not actively involved in the Great Commission, except by giving money

to a select few who have been trained to be missionaries or evangelists.

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The hurdle that was easier to overcome in the study was the idea that they did not

need to be specialists to lead a discipleship small group. They did not need to be Bible

scholars or have any exceptional skills. They only needed to be willing to allow the Holy

Spirit to use them and step out of their comfort zone and guide people in forming a group.

They learned skills through the study, but most were things they already knew. They

simply needed to be empowered to lead with what they knew.

Finally, for some, the time commitment was still a hurdle. An additional weekly

meeting can be challenging to add to a person’s schedule, depending on work and family

constraints. The idea that more is involved than showing up at a weekly meeting, that

discipleship involves sharing life together, can be daunting. I had conversations with a

few of the participants about getting to the heart of these small groups, mining what was

essential and then forming groups or relationships that would accomplish the goal even

though they might look different. The end goal is to have relationships with others where

mutual discipling is occurring, thus also creating a new culture in the church.

Ultimately to help people overcome their fears about starting new groups, more

training is needed. I was on the right track as we practiced everything in community. If

more training sessions were added, we would be able to spend more time in corporate

prayer about specific people to invite to become members of individual small groups. The

whole group would be able to help each other recruit members for their small groups. As

the leader I would stay in regular contact with the new group leaders to see how they

were progressing. One consideration might even be training people to go out in pairs and

find two to three other people to form a small group. This last approach would more

closely model Jesus’ method of never sending the disciples out alone to do the work of

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the church. Even when Jesus sent the disciples out in pairs, he still took time to debrief

with them when they came back. It is important for the people beginning the discipleship

small groups to know that they are not walking this journey alone, that they have support

from the leader and from others who are trying to start small groups as well.

New Concepts of Discipleship

Through my research I was able to see how the broader church’s conversation

around being a disciple and a life of discipleship has been developing. Willard and Boren

were particularly influential for me in this regard. The South Georgia Annual Conference

has been talking about discipleship for the past few years, and I have heard many

conversations with colleagues about discipling people while really only meaning

conversion. Another tendency is to view discipleship as the new program that simply sees

discipleship as the newest church-growth method and a way for people to feel as if they

are moving forward (Hull 209). The conversation on discipleship has matured into a

discussion that includes but is not limited to the Wesleyan idea of sanctification.

Christians would be well served to look back and reclaim the practices of Jesus and the

Wesleyan roots as people rediscover the meaning of being disciples of Jesus Christ.

A few of the participants had been sharing their faith with others on some level. A

retired teacher talked about the opportunities she had to share the love of Christ with her

students. Most of the participants did not have the kind of lived-out faith that expressed

the importance of sharing their faith with others around them. Their discipleship was

focused on their own private walk with the Lord and things such as church attendance

and the committees on which they served. By the end of the study, their concept of

discipleship had shifted towards sharing their lives and faith with others. As their pastor I

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was able to observe how the relationships of the group members with each other had

grown and were continuing to grow after the study was complete. I have also been able to

witness how some of the group members are more expressive with their faith and are

volunteering for more ministry-based ways to serve in WUMC. It is also a great blessing

to see or hear the steps the participants are taking to live out their discipleship with their

spouses, children and grandchildren, differently than they were before the study. I have

been most thankful that the participants understand that discipleship small groups are

helpful tools in their own discipleship and not the goal of their discipleship. They

understand discipleship is life with God and others and not a weekly meeting.

Discipleship small groups give people accountable, Christ-centered relationships

to encourage them as they live as disciples of Jesus Christ. The groups are not the

primary way the participants live out their discipleship, but they are the central hub for

helping people process how to be disciples everywhere they go, as well as providing

support and accountability as they follow Jesus. Discipleship small groups help their

participants understand how different parts of their walk with God make up their life of

discipleship. These groups also help disciples discern areas of their relationship with

Jesus that need to be strengthened.

The study supported the literature in that most people were not focusing on their

own discipleship and especially not on the aspect of their discipleship that was calling

them to make disciples. People’s involvement in church leadership or activities did not

have a direct connection to living as disciples. The participants’ relationships with each

other changed as the study progressed as they were focusing more on their call to make

disciples. Through conversations with the participants, growth happened in their

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relationships with people outside the group, too. Some people focused on being disciples

with their friends, with their children, or in ministry areas within the church. Participants

were living with a renewed sense of purpose in how they lived out their Christian faith.

Expanded Practice of Prayer

One of the surprises of the study was the growth the participants had in the area of

prayer. I found people repeating back my statement in an early week regarding group

formation: “Pray, pray, pray.” They learned to pray about the people they asked to be a

part of the group. They learned to pray for the group members, and not just those who

were sick. They learned to pray before reading Scripture, asking the Spirit to speak. They

learned to pray for discernment during the reading process. They learned to pray at the

end of the session, thanking God for the conversation and for any areas of need that had

arisen through conversation. They learned to be praying for their group members

throughout the week, not necessarily of a specific need but just because all people cab

benefit from others praying for them. The biggest shift for many people was learning to

listen to God instead of always speaking to God.

The focus on prayer, especially learning to listen, is essential for these groups to

operate well. If the groups are going to rely on the Holy Spirit as teacher as they read and

share, they must start by listening to the Spirit. The idea of listening to the Spirit was

emphasized with a new understanding for the group of Matthew 18:20: “For where two

or three are gathered in my name, I am there among them.” The participants learned from

conversation during lectio divina how much the Holy Spirit was present guiding their

conversation. Learning to listen in prayer during group time helped the people in the

study learn to listen more to God when praying outside of the group as well. They

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understood that if they are called to be disciples of Jesus Christ, they are called to be fully

devoted followers of Jesus, and that if they are to follow, they have to be able to hear

Jesus speaking. They grew in understanding of hearing God speak through the Bible, in

their prayer life, through others, and through the world around them.

Implications of the Findings

The training sessions have proved to be an excellent foundation for future work

and training with other churches and individuals who want to incorporate discipleship

small groups into their lives or the life of their churches. Currently I have plans to lead a

retreat for another church that already has small groups going and the pastor wants help

breathe new life and support into them.

The South Georgia Annual Conference leads a one-day conference called

Pathways to Healthy Congregations. I am submitting information to teach three seventy

five-minute classes focusing on methodist history of bands and class meetings, models

for discipleship small groups, and how to train discipleship small group facilitators. I am

hopeful that these classes will become a vehicle to communicate what I have learned with

others in the South Georgia Annual Conference.

Training sessions for discipleship small groups will become a norm for my own

pastoral ministry at least once a year. Creating and nurturing these small groups is one of

the things about which I am most passionate as I follow Jesus Christ. Working through all

of the research and conducting the training sessions has been very empowering for me as

I begin to make discipleship small groups a major part of my own ministry.

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Limitations of the Study

The study had some limitations. One limitation was the small group size of twelve

people who were all Caucasian, with the majority being between 40 to 60 years old. In

addition I selected all of the participants. Another limitation was that the study was

conducted in a rural town in Georgia. The limitation of time was also a problem. The

study had to fit into a small window between Labor Day and Thanksgiving and had only

ten weeks to take place.

I had been pastoring WUMC for a little over a year when the study began. My

ministry style is geared towards relational discipleship, and I have been modeling

different dynamics of these small groups in varying levels in many areas of the church. A

majority of the participants in the study had already bought in to my ministry style, so the

step to form discipleship small groups might have been easier because of my approach to

ministry. Pastors or churches that are not already geared this way may have a more

challenging time getting started.

Another limitation is the years of research and thinking I have invested in the idea

of discipleship, which helped me be able to respond to questions and dynamics as they

arose in the group sessions. The practice of lectio divina was an insignificant part of my

research but proved to be one of the best tools to get people on board with the idea of

discipleship small groups. Every church, and every grouping within a church, and

sometimes even between individuals in a group, will require the facilitator to be focused

on listening to the Holy Spirit to know how to tailor the material to their particular group

to meet its needs.

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At the end of the study, one participant wanted to have a preplanned lesson guide

to follow instead of only using the Bible. As she and I talked about it, I told her that as

her pastor I would be more than willing to help her find a resource that could be good to

use. I would encourage her as the group grew to consider transitioning to using only the

Bible. We talked about the essential focus of the group: creating a relationship with

others focusing on God so the group members could develop solid godly relationships

where they could share life and faith together.

The essential thing for a person trying to develop these small groups in a local

church is to realize that each step is a part of people’s faith journey. Becoming a part of

the perfect discipleship small group is not the end of the journey; but it is just part of it.

Discipleship small groups are not the destination. At best they become a group of other

trained traveling companions that can help you navigate the trail ahead.

Unexpected Observations

I wrote about the surprises that I discovered as they appeared in the major

findings. I was not anticipating people to be so unfamiliar with the concept of reading the

Bible devotionally or listening to the Holy Spirit. The lack of the practice of prayer was

not shocking, but the realization that they should be listening as much, if not more than

they were talking, was surprising. I would probably have not been as surprised if that was

the general congregation’s response, but these were people I believe to be more

spiritually mature than most. I knew one of the problems was going to be people’s

relational fears starting new small groups, but I was surprised to realize the depths of

those fears.

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Recommendations

The most important area of study going forward would be to focus on the fears

people have in creating new friendships or in moving from being acquaintances to close

friends. Currently my only solution to this problem is to teach as Jesus taught simply by

involving others in ministering together until they are comfortable to go out and minister

with others.

Expanding the study to fourteen or fifteen lessons would also be beneficial to help

focus on bridging the gap between the training sessions and the participants actually

starting their own discipleship small groups. In theory future participants could be

encouraged to be starting their small groups around lesson thirteen or fourteen. The last

two to three lessons could meet every other week, giving opportunity for the participants

to start their small groups. The last few training sessions would then fall after the

participants had already created their small groups and would be a time for

troubleshooting, answering questions, and peer learning. They would be able to learn

from each other’s successes or troubles.

Postscript

In many ways Christians live with the idea that they exist to support the church.

Theologically this is true in the sense that the church consists of individual people, but

practically, Church gets translated into describing my church, the buildings, the

programs, and the budget. Disciples need to regain the understanding that the church

exists to fulfill the unchanging promise God gave Abraham:

I will make of you a great nation, and I will bless you, and make your

name great, so that you will be a blessing. I will bless those who bless you,

and the one who curses you I will curse; and in you all the families of the

earth shall be blessed. (Gen. 12:2-3)

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The Great Commission was a reiteration of God’s original mission for his people.

Jesus puts flesh to Abraham’s promise and call through the model he lived out

with his disciples. Jesus took three years pouring life and faith into the twelve disciples

and some others who then become the catalyst for sharing faith with the world around

them. I believe the best way to bless the nations is by being intentional in relationships

with a few people who will, in turn, do likewise.

Discipleship small groups are an excellent tool to help the body of Christ live into

the calling God has for all his children to bless the nations. These groups can provide

support and structure helping God’s children to fulfill the Great Commission in Matthew

28:19-20:

Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name

of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to

obey everything that I have commanded you. And remember, I am with

you always, to the end of the age.

Discipleship small groups, and training the laity to lead them can be an effective tool in

helping the church to fulfill the mission God has given his people.

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