What Is the Spiritual Discipline of Discipleship?
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Discipleship. Spiritual formation. Depending upon the Christian denomination, many churches discuss and plan how to teach and grow believers in ways that reflect Jesus. If you’ve been in any church long enough, the pastors or leadership will invariably have a sermon on the topic and invite you into their form of discipleship.
Just like there are many denominations and traditions within the broader Christian religion, the principles and practices of discipleship might vary even more widely. From simple Sunday School to Bible study and more formal lesson series, discipleship will appear different in local fellowships.
Individual practices and cultural expressions of discipleship can be valid. At the same time, we must understand the biblical basis and necessity of discipleship as a universal call to every believer.
What Is the Call of Discipleship?
From the beginning, God calls his people to receive truth from him and pass it on. Even before the Fall, God instituted marriage and family, having children and multiplication of the image of God to bring about God’s purposes. The Lord designed Adam and Eve to have kids and to pass on the mission of God.
God never gives up on this idea of passing on the covenant and mission of God to the next generation. He commands Israel to love him and to diligently teach his commands to their children, speaking them at home and on the road, morning and night (Deuteronomy 6:4-9). The psalmist echoes this responsibility to tell the next generation about God’s works so they will set their hope on the Lord (Psalm 78:5-7).
Jesus — God in the flesh — continues this pattern and deepens it. He calls people to follow him directly, promising to make them “fishers of men” (Matthew 4:19). Part of his “last words” to his disciples is to go make more of themselves. “Go and make disciples of all nations … teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you” (Matthew 28:18-20).
Discipleship isn’t just passing on information. We teach people to obey Christ, through the Spirit and the Word. Jesus also takes the idea of discipline beyond the family or physical, widening it to a global, cross-cultural movement (Acts 1:8).
The New Testament writers continue this call, making it spiritual. God writes his law on hearts and gives his Spirit so believers can obey (Jeremiah 31:31-34, Ezekiel 36:26-27). The church becomes a “royal priesthood” (1 Peter 2:9). Leaders have a role to equip the church for the work of ministry so that everyone can grow to maturity (Ephesians 4:11-16). At no point does the New Testament separate conversion from active discipleship.
What Is the Goal of Discipleship?
The ultimate goal of discipleship is Christlikeness, being conformed to his character, heart, and mind. God sent his Son for more than a new academic religion. He transforms people with the Spirit to look like his Son (Romans 8:29). In order to do this, leaders teach believers to rely fully upon God, not on any human pastor. Jesus did what he saw the Father do, and he said what his Father said. In the same way, he taught his disciples, “Abide in me … apart from me you can do nothing” (John 15:5). Healthy leaders work themselves out of a job by empowering saints to hear God and obey him. Like John the Baptist, pastors decrease so Christ increases (John 3:30).
John the apostle gives a great picture of simple, profound maturity. He addresses “children,” “young men,” and “fathers,” as separate levels of growth. Twice, he says the fathers simply “know him who is from the beginning” (1 John 2:12-14). Spiritual adulthood is just walking moment by moment with God. John’s aim is for the church to believe the Son, keep his commandments, and love one another (1 John 3:23). This returns us to the simplicity and purity of devotion to Christ (2 Corinthians 11:3).
Paul models this, too. He counted every gain as loss so he could “know Christ,” pressing on toward Jesus as the prize (Philippians 3:8-14). His ministry worked to “present everyone mature in Christ” (Colossians 1:28-29) and to see Christ formed in the believer (Galatians 4:19). Paul refused to gather people to himself. He married the church to “one husband, to present you as a pure virgin to Christ” (2 Corinthians 11:2).
This formation has a further purpose, to join in God’s mission on earth with intention. Jesus willingly and actively sought out the broken to heal them, the lost to bring them light. Jesus preached the Kingdom and invited people to enter and live within it now and later. Maturity in Christ will find the same results, a mission-minded people who love and speak truth for the good of others. Our goal is not self-actualization for itself, but God desires partners to participate with him in his redemptive story, bringing heaven to earth.
Discipleship grows us into Christ’s character because we will rule and reign with him forever in the new heaven and earth. Through the disciplines (prayer, Bible reading, community, praise, service, generosity, and others), he’s training us for our roles as children in eternity.
Who Is Qualified to Disciple Others?
First, every follower of Jesus has the call to make disciples. Jesus gives the Great Commission, and every follower has a part in it. In the new covenant, only the Holy Spirit and God’s grace can empower anyone to do anything. The Spirit empowers every work, including discipleship. He gives gifts to every believer for the common good (1 Corinthians 12:7) and sends every one of his people as witnesses (Acts 1:8). All Christians should be discipled, and all Christians participate in discipleship at some level.
The problem happens when we believe discipleship is a lesson series or a program. From the Old to the New Testament, passing on the covenant is a culture, a community living a way of life together in fellowship and mutual love (the reason for the spiritual gifts). Therefore, every Christian is immediately qualified to participate in a culture of discipleship. If we believe spiritual formation only happens in a church program with a leader, then we dismiss the biblical model.
To be clear, there are teachers and overseers, people of tested character, maturity, and sound doctrine (1 Timothy 3:1-7, Titus 1:5-9). Churches should entrust leadership to such biblically grounded leaders with Christlike maturity.
At the same time, the New Testament also expresses that the whole church should speak the truth in love so all grow into Christ (Ephesians 4:15-16). Paul says, “Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly, teaching and admonishing one another” (Colossians 3:16). The author of Hebrews encourages daily connection and mutual inspiration (Hebrews 3:13), stirring each other to love and good works (Hebrews 10:24-25).
God qualifies any who abides in Christ, obeys his Word, and depends upon the Spirit. No seminary degree is needed to read the Bible with someone, pray together, confess, repent and practice obedience. Discipleship means growth; none are perfect. All endeavor to Christ alone.
In a culture of discipleship, leaders empower and teach every member to participate in mutual growth and love.
How Do People in the Bible Demonstrate Good Discipleship?
We must begin with the Master. Jesus discipled with invitation, instruction, imitation, and sending. He called ordinary people with “follow me” and brought them close enough to watch him minister (Matthew 4:19). He taught the Kingdom verbally and then demonstrated it with healing, compassion, miracles, and prayer (Luke 4:40-44). He corrected with love, like with Peter.
Christ trained his disciples for the mission; after his resurrection, he sent them two by two, telling them to rely upon the Holy Spirit, and then he helped them process their experience (Mark 6:7-30). Jesus taught servant leadership through washing feet (John 13:14-15). Then he commissioned them to make disciples as he did.
Within the early church, Barnabas shows us how to disciple a future leader. When the church feared Saul (a former persecutor of Christians), Barnabas received him, welcomed him, told his story, and affirmed Saul’s gift (Acts 11:25-26). Even when he and Paul (formerly Saul) had conflict over John Mark, Barnabas invests in the young man. Later, even Paul called Mark “useful,” aligning with Barnabas’ discipleship (Acts 15, 2 Timothy 4:11).
Paul clearly continued the principles. The apostle Paul leads Timothy to faith and then recruits the young man into ministry. He took Timothy on the road with him (Acts 16:1-3). Later, he sends Timothy to strengthen churches and represent Paul (1 Thessalonians 3:2, Philippians 2:19-22).
Paul summarized how he discipled Timothy into ministry and leadership: “You, however, have followed my teaching, conduct, aim in life, faith, patience, love, steadfastness” (2 Timothy 3:10-11). He did this life-on-life, relationally. Paul greatly desired Timothy to live his Kingdom destiny and encouraged further empowerment. “Fan into flame … guard the good deposit” and “entrust to faithful people who will teach others also” (2 Timothy 1:6-14, 2:2).
In each case, the model includes deep relationship, living life together, leadership that produces Christlike character unto God’s mission, and multiplying others to do the same.
What Does This Mean for Us Today?
Biblical discipleship begins with real relationships. In a world more isolated and consumed with entertainment, this can be difficult, but it remains foundational to the biblical model. It’s less a class to complete and more a life to share. We walk with others so they grow in intimacy with Christ and live out their Kingdom calling, individually and corporately as part of the local church.
The Great Commission sets the right aim, not to make converts at an event, but to make disciples who learn to obey Jesus (Matthew 28:19-20). The scriptural way looks less like a program and more like extended family — presence, imitation, honest confession and discussion, prayer, the Bible, and mission infused into every part of life.
On a practical level, we invite people close enough to see us live the rhythms of God. Read and discuss the Word together, pray corporately, confess sin, and celebrate transformation and obedience. We serve side by side with others, living out faith in ways that show love and compassion. Biblical discipleship teaches and recognizes it will be a life-long process; even leaders grow and learn, even from new believers. We keep the aim pure: every member’s complete reliance upon God, not on us. We rejoice and celebrate different levels of maturity.
Churches create a culture of discipleship by moving from programs segregated by ages to pathways where all learn the principles of the Kingdom together. Leaders equip the saints to do ministry within the four walls of the church and, perhaps more importantly, in their contexts and outside the church. Pastors and teachers empower the Body to love and live the “one anothers” from Scripture through right doctrine, correction, and gentle compassion (Hebrews 10:11-12).
Have simple structures anyone can reproduce in homes or workplaces. Share more meals together. Intentionally share God-stories to inspire each other. Go out to serve generously as a family. Keep it intergenerational so “fathers and mothers” in the faith can pass on wisdom and younger believers can bring zeal and creativity, reimagining new ways to express the ancient gospel. Build a faith “rule of life” around abiding with God, belonging in the church, and blessing the world outside.
A culture of discipleship has different measures of success. Instead of attendance and money raised, measure transformation, participation, dedication to prayer, agape love, and celebrate Christ-like character in every generation. Teach how disciples can make more disciples and plan to send people into their calling.
This is biblical discipleship: intentional, relational, Spirit-empowered formation that grows people into Christ-like character and releases them into participating in God’s redemptive story.
Peace.
Photo credit: ©Getty Images/RyanJLane
