The primary question that must be answered before any discipleship program can be planned and implemented is, what do we want to accomplish when we have GRADUATED a person from training to leadership? Answering this question will determine methodology.
Sunday School is the only school from which no one ever graduates and where no one is accountable to learn anything! The purpose in any discipleship program is to graduate learners (knowers) into doers. Every disciple must understand that Bible knowledge is merely gaining the necessary tools to enable the disciple to become a "doer of the Word and not hearers only." Three common failures that have proven to be devastating to discipleship:
1. Assuming, because teaching is taking place, that learning is taking place
A. Discuss how to cultivate self-learning; leaders have become disseminators of information rather than quality control inspectors; pitchers never throw the ball until the catcher is prepared to catch it) B. Failure to cultivate the desire to read assigned books and spiritual discernment (Berean mentality)
2. Assuming that spiritual growth manifests itself by knowledge rather than by translating what is learned into the language of living (doing and ministry) 3. There is no accountability for testing to see if what is being taught has been learned (discuss using questions at the end of assigned reading materials for discussion by random requirement for answer sharing in class situation).
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