Stage 1 – Training Content – Part 2

After the Book of John, Ephesians is my favorite book in the New Testament. Paul spells out specifically the primary function or work of the local church (your church-my church) in Ephesians 4:11-13

11 And he gave the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, the shepherds and teachers, 12 to equip the saints for the work of ministry,for building up the body of Christ, 13 until we all attain to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to mature manhood, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ.

Many have been led astray by verse 11 into thinking these are another listing of important spiritual gifts. I strongly disagree. These are individuals that have been given a special calling for a specific ministry and the spiritual gifts that match the calling for that ministry. Operating with others in the church they represent what I call an E4 Team (Ephesians 4).

What does an E4 Team do?

They are to equip the saints (me-us) for the work of the ministry and this requires discipling as Jesus commands in Matthew 28:19-20. The “Church” is an instrument used by Jesus to prepared people for their role in the future/present Kingdom of God. The “Church’s” basic role is to be a “disciple training center” to equip the saints for the work of the ministry which is to help propagate the Gospel to the ends of the earth. We must be helped to grow from baby disciples into mature disciples (vs.13 – “to mature manhood”) to function as part of an E4 Team in our local church. An example of this type of church in the New Testament would be the church in Antioch. (More about an E4 Team in a later post.) Elders and deacons are responsible for equipping the saints today as an E4 Team. Paul indicates to Timothy and Titus to appoint elders and deacons in local churches that are representatives of an E4 Team.

From Post # 5 we saw that authentic discipleship is to disciple a person in the basics with the formation of everyday life habits that will allow the Holy Spirit to guide a person in their personal lives oriented toward relationships. In Post # 2 and # 5 we developed the “basic” religious training of Jesus Apostles (I call this Stage 1 of their discipleship training) before they even met Jesus. From Post # 3 we outline the eight basic elements of Stage 1 which are: 

Stage 1 Content

1. Quiet time that includes: prayer, Bible study and keeping of a spiritual log-book/note book
2. Scripture memory
3. Scripture meditation
4. Prayer 
5. Basic theology 
6. Fasting
7. Personal Testimony and Gospel presentation 
8. Church attendance and service

Screening Questions

My wife and I have discipled people for over 42 years in developing the Stage 1 basics in people. The Holy Spirit has help us to focus on several key items during these past 40 years as shown in the following.

1. You must pray and ask the Holy Spirit to move those who have a desire to be discipled. You pray and wait and He will act (100% guarantee). Sometimes our prayer was answered quickly and in other times it was months. 
2. Do not let others choose for you and don’t be hasty in you choosing people to disciple. (Don’t let your ego motivate you.)   We wasted a lot of time with people who were half-hearted. We learned to ask good questions of those that were interested to determine their commitment. We explained very carefully the cost involved (Luke 9:23). This included signing a covenant, scripture memory, having a daily quiet time and weekly meetings. 
3. We met with the small group leaders and asked them to suggest those in their group that they considered to be candidates for discipling. We met with these candidates and asked for the Holy Spirit’s guidance. Many chose not to go forward after considering the personal cost.  Many did not want to sign a covenant and nor memorize scripture.
4. The Holy Spirit is the entity that convicts per Jesus in John 16:7-11. It is not you or me in our own human efforts. Our role has been (is) to facilitate and pray for those the Holy Spirit has brought to us and hold them accountable.
5. Key habit – is to help people have a consistent quiet time of prayer, Bible reading, and keeping a spiritual log book (journal). You are forming a new habit that is replacing old habits. This takes from 6 to 10 weeks or more. Remember it is the Holy Spirit that convicts. We have seen radical changes in people as they consistently do this. Scripture memory – this always brings conviction by the Holy Spirit. Our role is to hold people accountable.
6. Discipling is best done in a small group of not more than six. Small groups are a key tool used by Jesus. Jesus discipled in a “large small group” of twelve. Remember he has (had) supernatural abilities we mortals do not have.
7. My wife and I discipled with the vision/goal of those we trained to be disciple-makers. This was guidance given us by Dr, Howard Hendricks at a conference we attended in 1983. We repeated this vision/goal at each session.

Content for Stage 1 – What Material do You Use?

My wife and I were discipled using the Navigators 2:7 series (5 manuals) written by Ron Oertli. After completing our training, we both understood our calling was to be disciple-makers in obedience to Jesus’ command. We had a vision and passion but no experience. We sought counsel from many people that we thought had experience and we also learned by our own experience. We found there were two groups that had experienced people – Campus Crusades for Christ (now CRU) and the Navigators – remember this is the year 1983. 

At that time our small church (about 80 members) began small group Bible studies and through these small groups the church expanded rapidly. Many young couples came into the church through these groups. The elders asked my wife and me to disciple these young couples and we started. Many had been in church and knew church language but many couples had only recently received Christ as their personal savior and were starting from scratch.

We started with four couples using material on how to strengthen their marriage relationship. It became evident during the study that their need was in the Stage 1 “basics”. With the elders of our church, we considered material from several different sources (again keep in mind this was in 1983). The consensus of the group was to use the Navigator 2:7 series as the elders thought this the proper material to meet the spiritual needs of these young couples. Each person came into the group at different spiritual understanding levels and the elders were correct in assessing their spiritual needs. 

After completing the marriage relations material with the four couples we then proceeded into Stage 1 training using the Navigator 2:7 series material.  Two issues arose as mentioned previously, first having a consistent quiet time and keeping a spiritual log book and second – scripture memory. The couples held each other accountable and encouraged each other. Once they began to have a consistent quiet time the Holy Spirit began to change not only their thinking but their behavior. It brought great joy to my wife and me to see the Holy Spirit mature these young couples. They were a model for others in the church in both their speech and conduct as well as the behavior of their children. 

Why is the 2:7 Series Effective?

The elders in the church decided to start with the assumption that most of the couples were new believers though some were not. The material covered in the first three manuals is very similar to the Stage 1 training that Jesus’ twelve Apostles had before they meet Jesus (Post #3 describes this in detail). We listed eight elements in Post #3 which I repeat.

For us in the USA the elements for Stage 1 training should be at least the eight elements previous stated in Post #3. The elements should include:

1. Quiet time that includes: prayer, Bible study and keeping of a spiritual log-book/note book
2. Scripture memory
3. Scripture meditation
4. Prayer
5. Basic theology about the Trinity
6. Fasting
7. Testimony preparation/Gospel presentation
8. Church membership/attendance/service

The 2:7 series is effective because it trains to these eight elements. These are the basic elements for Stage one discipleship. It is the formation of the basic disciplines resulting in life management. These are the disciplines with which Jesus’ early disciples/followers came — built-in! 

New believers that come into our churches do not come with the same qualifications. They have to be train to exercise these disciplines – otherwise they remain in an infant or at most a young child stage of a disciple (see Post #1). Development of spiritual disciplines must be done intentionally with accountability and in small groups. THIS IS THE FORGOTTEN STAGE IN THE DEVELOPMENT OF DISCIPLES FOR CHRIST!  

Using Other Material

Many churches use other material besides the Navigator 2:7 series material. If this is your approach, I recommend that the eight elements given previously be incorporated and especially the quiet time and scripture memory. Also, a sign-off sheet that holds the leader and individuals accountable. Without this accountability you just have a glorified Bible study that is called discipleship. Intentionality and accountability are required. 

Note: Since about the year 2000 many young people in our groups falter at having a quiet time and scripture memory. I privately met with them regarding their reluctance. Many continue and eventually overcome their reluctance. We have seen many miracles as the Holy Spirit renews their mind. Those that don’t I ask to leave the group in a friendly manner and join another Bible study. The leader must remind people and themselves that there is a cost to maturing as a disciple of Christ (Luke 9:23). My wife and I have learned to question people regarding the cost of following/abiding in Christ before they join our group as given previously.

Summary

Discipling others is hard work requiring the practice of kingdom virtues and the use of Jesus’ TMAA Process. It requires the understanding of Stage 1 training of Jesus’ disciples and the eight elements that apply to us today. It requires being intentional as to the outcome. It requires holding people accountable. It requires screening of people’s motives and their understanding of the cost of developing as a mature disciple of Christ before they begin the process. It requires the discipler using the power of the Holy Spirit to renew and convict people. The discipler is a facilitator and it is always the Holy Spirit that convicts and grows people. 

Questions:

• Does your church have a Stage 1 intentional process for people that want to be discipled?
• Does the process include the eight elements given in this post? 

Next – The engine that propels the Salvation/redemption Process.