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One of the reasons that many pastors don’t personally disciple anyone is that they don’t know HOW to make disciples. That’s what one of my friends suggested to me in a recent email.

He writes,
One of my concerns is that pastors are not personally and intentionally involved in making disciples.
One reason I believe is because they were never discipled themselves and they just don’t know how to do it.
I have heard some say they are fearful and thus never try. It’s not that they can’t preach a sermon or lead a small group, but they do not know the steps to take with someone who they lead to the Lord (or who is a new believer) and the process to take them through in one on one discipleship encounter.
For example how do they start? What do they do and cover in the first time they meet, the second time etc? what resources to use, what books to recommend for them.

Disciplemaking starts with non-disciples. The process begins in the context of relationship with non-Christians. When a person starts to follow Jesus, a Christian friend should help them learn and understand how to follow Jesus fully and become a disciplemaker. Pastors need to not only be doing this, but helping everyone in their church family to be doing this!

Robert Coleman in
The Master Plan of Evangelism emphasizes this need for a Christian friend to “stay with the new believer as much as possible, studying the Bible and praying together, all the while answering questions, clarifying truth, and seeking together to help others….The only way they can be trained is by giving them a leader to follow.” Pastors need to lead the way by doing this first!

What do you think?

Do you agree that pastors don’t know HOW to make disciples?

What process do you use to make disciples who make disciples?

Today’s Missional Challenge

Consider where you will start in helping a new follower of Jesus to embrace the cross, experience community, and engage the culture with the gospel.

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