Lesson 2 of 4 Embrace the Title of Disciple Scope and Sequence Objective Doctrine: Discipleship Students will see that the highest call of every believer is discipleship and encourage them to be a disciple and disciple others. Memory Verse Matthew 28:19-20 What does Jesus command of his followers? Worth Repeating: Make disciple your greatest title. HOOK: Discipleship We are going to talk about the highest and greatest calling of every believer in the church: discipleship. To better understand discipleship, let s look at one story that illustrates it very well. It is the story of Shaquille O Neal and his college coach Dale Brown. LESSON CONTENT: The title of Disciple I. The Call of Discipleship (Matthew 28:19-20) II. Examples of Discipleship III. The Components of Discipleship (2 Timothy 3:16-17) CONNECTION: Make disciple your greatest title. The reason throughout this lesson we ve been saying to make disciple your greatest title is because God s greatest desire for you is that you would grow in your spiritual walk. And the greatest method for God to accomplish that is through someone discipling YOU! DECISION: Be the best disciple you can! First, will you be the best disciple you can be? This is a tough one. It will require you to decide on someone to be your discipler and it will require that you ask them to disciple you. Secondly, whom will you disciple? Find someone who needs you and begin pouring into their lives. Page 353
Definitions Discipleship: The process of mentoring persons to help them grow spiritually. The Great Commission: The charge Jesus gave His followers to go and make disciples by presenting the Gospel, baptizing those who believe and receive Christ as Savior, and teaching them to observe His commandments. Creative Discipleship: Word of Life s discipleship process for encouraging growth in your walk with Christ. Checklist Name tags Markers/writing utensils for name tags A PowerPoint presentation is available for this lesson. If using the optional student report recommended, assign a student or two for reporting (selected several days before lesson). Resources The New American Commentary Matthew. Blomberg, C. (1992). (Vol. 22, p. 431). Nashville: Broadman & Holman Publishers. Shaq and Dale Full Documentary: https://teachersource.wol.org/videos/sbs17/40-1/ Additional Teacher Resources RightNow Media: On their sight, a series called Downline Discipleship provides excellent video clips that deal with the call and purpose and methods of discipleship. : this is a fee-based resource requiring an account. http://www.rightnowmedia.org/ Hook: Discipleship Have name tags distributed prior to the lesson and have each student write down a title they would like to have on their name tags. It could be any title they would like: manager, president, MVP, etc. We are going to talk about the highest and greatest calling of every believer in the church: discipleship. To better understand discipleship, let s look at one story that illustrates it very well. It is the story of Shaquille O Neal and his college coach Dale Brown. Coach Brown, the coach of LSU college basketball team, met Shaq when he was only thirteen years old, and when he was already 6 9!! Though he was tall, Shaq couldn t dunk, so he asked Coach for some advice. Coach Brown saw that Shaq was sincere and wanted to improve, and so he sent him an exercise regimen. This began a relationship between the two that impacted both of their lives in a big way. Coach Brown saw that there was a passion in Shaq, that he had a quest for learning, and a desire to be the best, and he wanted that harnessed. It wasn t long before Shaq was the number one high school player in the country and he was on his way to LSU to play basketball for Coach Brown. Coach Brown kept pushing him, coaching him, and believing in him. One time during his college career Shaq skipped his classes after a late night of work. The next morning, he woke up with Coach Brown s hand on his chest dragging him out of bed. Shaq then spent four hours doing wind sprints until Coach Brown was convinced he had learned the lesson. Page 354
For his part, Shaq listened to his coach, got better, and went on to be one of the NBA s most dominant centers in history. He won four championships, was the MVP, and broke several records. This relationship is an amazing illustration of discipleship. Coach Brown came alongside Shaq and helped him become the best basketball player. He was there for him, encouraged him, and taught him. Shaq did his part too. He learned from Coach Brown, listened to him, followed his rules and advice, and always looked to him for help. This is a great story of mentoring that led Shaq to be better than he could have been on his own. As Coach Brown built into Shaq a deeper understanding and application of basketball, so too in our Christian walk we need to help others grow in Christ. For us to become more and more like Jesus Christ we need a godly disciple in our life. As we study God s Word we will see we are called to Make disciple your greatest title. Lesson Content: The Title of Disciple As you go throughout your life you will have a lot of titles. What titles did you write down on your name tags? (Allow students to answer. Some titles will be serious; some will just be silly.) Right now, you have titles like student and teenager. Some of you may have the title of brother or sister. In the future, you may have the title of husband, wife, mother, father, or graduate. Someday you may have a job title like manager, strategist, or chief counsel. But in Matthew 28:19-20, Jesus tells us that the most important title we have as Christians is that of a disciple. Make disciple your greatest title. Let s read Matthew 28:19-20 together. Read Matthew 28:19-20 as the students follow along. I. The Call of Discipleship (Matthew 28:19-20) A. The Command of Discipleship Notice the first part of verse 19. It says, Go therefore, and make disciples. Though some translations use the words teach all nations, the Greek verb used originally in the text means make disciples. This verse includes a lot of verbs in it such as, go, baptizing, and teaching, but there is only one command, and that is to make disciples. This is, in effect, our marching orders from our commanding officer. To truly understand this, you have to understand the context of this verse. Jesus had been crucified and His disciples and followers thought He had died and was gone forever. Yet three days later He rose from the dead just as He had said He would! The events in this passage then happen shortly after Jesus resurrection. Jesus gets everyone together for one final teaching before He ascends back into Heaven. What would be your final words to this group of people? Would you say, Don t forget what I ve taught you. Or maybe, work hard. What about something inspirational like, I believe in all of you? Instead Jesus gives what we call the Great Commission. Page 355
Commission is a word meaning someone in authority has given you an official job to do. So, the Great Commission is the charge Jesus gave His followers to go and make disciples by presenting the Gospel, baptizing those who believe and receive Christ as Savior, and teaching them to observe His commandments. Our commission, or our official job given to us by Jesus, is to make disciples. B. The Definition of Discipleship If making disciples is our official job, if it s a command given to us by our commanding officer, then we really need to know the meaning of discipleship. Our definition for discipleship is the process of mentoring persons to help them grow spiritually. Just as Coach Brown mentored Shaq to help him grow in basketball, Jesus commands us to mentor other people to help them grow in their spiritual walk. In effect Jesus is giving you two jobs. He is saying be a disciple yourself, and be a discipler. Those are your two roles in discipleship. C. The Goal of Discipleship The reason we call this the Great Commission is because it is the most important thing that Jesus has called every one of us to do. Not only is it not optional, Jesus wants it to be our first priority. That s why we are challenging you to make disciple your greatest title. When we say greatest, the challenge is to make discipleship the greatest priority in your life. Become a great disciple just like Shaq. He wanted to learn, to be pushed, and to go farther. The more of a disciple you become the greater your discipleship of others will be. Every believer needs to make this their number one job! The best place to start is by making disciple your greatest title. Determine that you will make that your first priority. Let s change our titles. We are going to give you a new name tag. On the new tag, write disciple and put it on, replacing your old title. Distribute new name tags. Have the students write disciple on the new name tags. II. Examples of Discipleship As we continue talking about the necessity of discipleship it s important to see discipleship in action. We ve already talked about the story of Shaq and Coach Brown and how Coach Brown was really discipling Shaq in how to be a great basketball player. But we also want to look at some biblical examples of discipleship to see what it looks like when we are being discipled or discipling others. A. How Jesus Discipled The first example we are going to look at is the example of Jesus. Jesus stayed up all night praying before He chose His disciples. He then selected the Twelve. These twelve lived with Jesus for three years, and He taught them what they would need to know to carry on the work. Then He narrowed it down even further to the three: Peter, James and John. These three were the inner circle whom Jesus allowed to be the closest to Him and learn from Him. Page 356
B. Elijah and Elisha The second example we ll look at is Elijah. We heard about some of Elijah s exploits last week. He had a prophet-in-training, named Elisha, who followed and learned from him. Elisha was with Elijah when he was carried off to Heaven and took up his mantle to carry on God s work (2 Kings 2). Elisha loved to wear the title of disciple. He didn t run from it; in fact, he wanted to do more than the man who had discipled him. His attitude was that he wanted even more ministry than his mentor. C. Paul and Discipleship (2 Timothy 2:2) Next, let s look at the Apostle Paul and his disciple, Timothy. Paul was an apostle in the early church who was constantly discipling people, including Luke and Titus. One of his disciples stands out: Timothy. Paul wrote two letters to Timothy on how to become the best pastor. Those letters have been included in the New Testament as 1 and 2 Timothy. Let s read 2 Timothy 2:2. Read 2 Timothy 2:2 with the students. Paul s main instruction as he taught Timothy was to disciple others. Notice what he says in this verse. He says, What you have heard from me. Paul is telling Timothy to take the teaching, experience, and knowledge that Paul had given him over the course of their time together and pass it on. Just as Paul had poured into Timothy s life, Timothy was to pour into someone else s life who would also pour into someone else s life. Paul had multiple generations of disciples in mind, from Paul to Timothy, from Timothy to a faithful man, and from that faithful man to another, and so on. That is the ultimate goal of discipleship: to continue to pass on the knowledge and experience. As we have looked at these examples of discipleship have you started to see how important it is for you to be a disciple? You need to be a disciple so you can become a disciple. Every believer is called to be a part of this amazing process. So, make disciple your greatest title. III. The Components of Discipleship (2 Timothy 3:16-17) Let s now spend some time talking about the components of discipleship. Let s look at 2 Timothy 3:16-17. Have a student read 2 Timothy 3:16-17. As we study this passage deeper we are going to study it in reverse. Let s start with verse 17 and see the purpose of discipleship. A. The Purpose of Discipleship Notice verse 17 says, that the man of God may be complete. The purpose of discipleship is to make you a complete, or mature, believer in Jesus. It is the end game of what God desires to accomplish with discipleship. God s desire is that we would grow, and His primary method to accomplish this growth is through the process of discipleship. Page 357
As you think about making disciple your greatest title, commit to take seriously your spiritual growth. It is a way for you to tell God that you want to grow. You need to make discipleship a major priority in your life. B. The Pieces of Discipleship If spiritual growth and maturity is our purpose in discipleship, we next need to understand how that takes place. This verse gives us the four pieces of discipleship. You could assign one or two of the four pieces to a student for a student report several days prior to the lesson and have them give report of their findings at this time. Piece one would be Acts 18:24-26 concerning Aquilla and Priscilla teaching doctrine to Apollos. Piece two would be 2 Timothy 3:10 with Paul giving reproof to Timothy, encouraging accountability in his life. Piece three would be Acts 11 and Galatians 2:11-16 concerning Paul confronting Peter about eating with the Gentiles. Piece four would be John 6:10-13 with Jesus involving the disciples in the distribution of food to the 5,000. Time may not allow for all four student reports to be handed out, so use your discretion. 1. Piece 1: Doctrine First is doctrine. Doctrine means the teaching of God s truth. It refers to learning and understanding who God is and the truth about Him and His character. A major part of discipleship is simply learning more about God through studying His Word. Let s continue with the second piece. 2. Piece 2: Reproof Second is reproof. This one is a bit trickier to understand. The Greek word that is used here is a word used to hold something up to the light. This was written when cups and plates were made of fired clay. Sometimes dishonest merchants would use wax to fix broken pottery. You couldn t tell when you bought it but as soon as you bumped it or tried to use the plate or cup it would completely fall apart. Reproof was used for a common practice that developed where buyers would hold the plate or cup up to the light. In the light of the sun, cracks and imperfections would be clearly seen, and you knew if you were buying something broken and shoddy or genuine. That s what reproof means. It means being willing to let your life be held up to the light. It means you accept accountability and let another person into your life so they can see what is really happening. That is, you don t put up a front but show them the real you. 3. Piece 3: Correction The third piece is correction. Correction refers to those times when you ve blown it and you need someone to come alongside you and tell you. Part of discipleship is confronting sin in our lives. Remember when Shaq skipped classes one day? Coach Brown dragged him out of bed and made him run four hours of sprints. That was correction. He was showing Shaq that it wasn t okay to skip his classes. We all have times in our lives when we need someone to tell us that we are in the wrong and confront us with God s truth so we can be corrected and get back on the right track. Page 358
Connection: Make disciple your greatest title. 4. Piece 4: Training in Righteousness The fourth and final piece is training in righteousness. This is where we practice doing what is right. Like Coach Brown had Shaq practice the basics of basketball over and over to succeed, we too need to practice the basics of Christianity to become more like Jesus. We imitate Jesus by spending time in the Word of God, prayer, Bible memorization, serving others, and other spiritual disciplines. Becoming a disciple is being trained in righteousness. Then you will be equipped to train others. C. The Power of Discipleship We ve left out the most important part of discipleship. We ve talked about the purpose, to grow. We ve covered the pieces, doctrine, reproof, correction, and instruction in righteousness. But we need to talk about the power of discipleship. Notice the very first part of 2 Timothy 3:16: The word of God is profitable for The only way we can accomplish all pieces of discipleship and accomplish the purpose of discipleship is to have the power behind discipleship. The power is in the Word of God. We use God s Word to teach, we use it to correct, we use it for accountability, and we use it to understand and empower our lives. The Word of God is the ultimate how behind discipleship. Notice what Jesus said in Matthew 28:19-20, teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you. Jesus directly tied His Great Commission to His commands and teachings. Those commands and teachings are found in God s Word alone. You might be wondering what your role is in discipleship. Maybe you re wondering what it really looks like to make disciple your greatest title. Well there are two ways. Make Disciple Your Greatest Title The reason throughout this lesson we ve been saying to make disciple your greatest title is because God s greatest desire for you is that you would grow in your spiritual walk. And the greatest method for God to accomplish that is through someone discipling YOU! If you become a great disciple, you will be able to disciple others as well. The more you grow, the more you can help others grow. To make disciple your greatest title means to own your role as a disciple. It means following Shaq s example. Shaq wanted to learn basketball. He wanted to get better. He was driven and passionate about being the best player. Do you look at your Christian walk that way? Are you driven and passionate about growing in your walk with God? If you are, your first step will be to seek out a discipler. You will literally beat down the door of godly men or women and say, Teach me! Help me! I want to grow! The more you own the title of disciple the more hardcore you will be about being discipled. Page 359
Decision: Be the best disciple you can! Start Making Disciples There are two roles in discipleship. Let s call them coach and player. Coach Brown discipled Shaq. Jesus is calling every believer no matter their age, ability, gifts, strengths, weaknesses, successes, failures, or knowledge to disciple others. Do you have a Shaq in your life? Do you have someone you are teaching and helping to grow? Maybe you think, I can t do that; I m only 13! or I m not a coach with a ton of experience. What you need to realize is that all of you are ahead of someone! Fourth graders look up to sixth graders. Sixth graders look up to students in Jr. High. Jr High students look up to High School students. There is always someone who needs your help, your knowledge, your encouragement, and your energy. There is someone out there who needs to go through the things that you have gone through and Jesus has commanded you to disciple them. There are no excuses and no rain checks. You need to find a Shaq, a Timothy, or an Elisha. Make Disciple Your Greatest Title So, you have two challenges First, will you be the best disciple you can be? This is a tough one. It will require you to decide on someone to be your discipler and it will require that you ask them to disciple you. Now if you aren t quite ready for that yet let s start with something a little simpler. Choose someone in your church who is a more mature believer, whom you respect and admirer. Guys, go to a man in the church, girls, choose a lady, and this Sunday after church walk right up to them and just have a spiritual discussion with them. If you want to make it even easier, just think of a question you can ask or advice you really need and talk to them about it. Make disciple your greatest title. Secondly, whom will you disciple? Find someone who needs you and begin pouring into their lives. If you want a first step, adopt a younger brother or sister from the children s ministry in our church. Ask one of the teachers in the children s ministry if there is a kid who needs a mentor. Can I tell you how much they would LOVE that? Choose to start mentoring and teaching someone today. Page 360