D-Group Leader Guide Making Disciples Who Make Disciples addmultiply.org
Discover Your Impact + x addmultiply.org/calculator
MISSION Jesus concern was not with programs to reach the multitudes but with men whom the multitudes would follow Men were to be His method of winning the world to God. -Robert Coleman Discipleship was clearly a vital part of Jesus ministry. In fact, disciple-making was the first and last topic that Jesus discussed in His ministry. In Matthew 4:19, Jesus invites some ordinary men into His life so that He may teach them to be fishers of men. Then in Matthew 28:18-20, just before Jesus ascends into heaven to be with the Father, He commands His disciples to go therefore and make disciples of all nations". In essence, Jesus was asking the men He invested in to go and replicate the process. Based on these two passages alone, we can take away three truths that should drive us to make disciples: 1. Jesus cares about disciple-making. As mentioned earlier, Jesus began and ended His ministry talking about disciple-making. Throughout the gospel narratives, we see that Jesus spent the majority of His time with His disciples. Jesus ate with His disciples, taught them, taught with them, journeyed with them, suffered with them, and served with them. Jesus relationship with His disciples involved a lot of patience, correcting, rebuking, and exhorting. He walked them through tough conversations and experiences and maintained an attitude of grace, truth, and love as their leader. Jesus had a goal in mind. He knew that these men were the ones who would carry His truth to others long after He was gone from them. 2. The goal of discipleship is life on mission. Come follow Me and I will make you fishers of men. In this short invitation to His disciples, Jesus reveals His heart for discipleship. The goal was never just to have a group of men to hang out with and talk about life. Jesus was much more intentional. His goal was to invest with a purpose and that purpose was for His disciples to learn how to live life on mission. 3. Discipleship is God s design to reach the world. Jesus has all authority in heaven and on earth. He could have chosen to reach the nations with the gospel in supernatural ways beyond us, and yet He chose to use us. He chose to reach multitudes around the world through disciples who make disciples. So what are we going to do about it? How are you personally doing at making disciples who make disciples? It is not too late to begin doing what Jesus has called us to do.
In his book, The Great Evangelical Recession, John Dickerson gives some alarming statistics about the church: Of the 318 million people in America, only about 22 million claim to be Evangelical Christians (meaning they believe and proclaim the death and resurrection of Jesus as the one and only way to God in heaven). Of the 22 million Evangelical Christians in America, only 3.7 million of them are between the ages of 18-29. Of the 3.7 million 18-29 year olds who claim to be Evangelicals, 2.6 million of them will leave the faith before their 29th birthday. That is 260,000 per year and 712 each and every day. Somewhere along the way, the church has gotten further disconnected from people who don t know Jesus. For way too long the church has trusted in programs, latest music and fads, and clever sermon deliveries to reach people in the local communities around the country. We have built entire strategies in our churches around inviting more people, creating more programs, and getting more tithers. This has cost us greatly because it is not how Jesus designed it to be. We ve created churches that have many mature believers, but not many multiplying believers. So then we must get back to the mission. We must make disciples. We can no longer gauge our ministry on how many people are in seats but instead begin celebrating how many disciples are making disciples. The Apostle Paul put it this way when he wrote to Timothy, You then, my child, be strengthened by the grace that is in Christ Jesus, and what you have heard from me in the presence of many witnesses entrust to faithful men who will be able to teach others also (2 Timothy 2:2). What if our calling is the same as when Jesus called His first disciples? What if we are called to follow Jesus and become fishers of men though disciple making? That is exactly what Paul was talking about to Timothy. That is life on mission!
MAP And he (Jesus) went up on the mountain and called to him those whom he desired, and they came to him. And he appointed twelve (whom he also named apostles) so that they might be with him and he might send them out to preach and have authority to cast out demons. -Mark 3:13-15 1. Seek: (called to Him those whom He desired) Jesus was very intentional in disciple making. The term those in Mark 3:13 refers to many who followed Him, but Jesus knew that to be most effective he could not intentionally disciple all of them. Jesus brought all of these followers up on the mountain as a part of His process of seeking His few. This is why He only picked twelve. We have a tendency to see discipleship groups as Bible studies that we hope to grow in number. We have a hard time turning people away. But, to follow Jesus example, we must seek a few individuals with whom we can experience life and pour all we have into. The goal of discipleship groups is much more than addition. It s about multiplication. Discipleship is seeking out a few people who are open (Luke 10:1-12) and willing to learn from you with the intention of replicating the process. How did Jesus seek His discipleship group? Jesus reached them. The followers that Jesus took with Him up on the mountain did not just randomly begin following Him one day. They followed Jesus because He was living missionally. Jesus was actively sharing the truth of the gospel and serving the communities around Him. These followers heard Jesus teaching. They saw Him minister amongst them. They followed Jesus because He went after them with the gospel. Jesus prayed earnestly. In Luke s account of the event mentioned above from Mark 3 (Luke 6:12-16), we see that Jesus prayed through the night. Before His followers were invited onto the mountain with Him, Jesus was deep in prayer for them. Our discipleship groups cannot be something we throw together quickly. We must pray earnestly for God to lead us to our few. Who does God desire that we pour into? Who is God leading us to approach that would be committed to the group? 2. Start: (He appointed twelve) After much prayer Jesus chose His few. I can picture Jesus saying, This is my crew. These are my guys. We are going to change the world together. The Scripture does not mention it, but I am certain there were some on that mountain that asked, Why not me? That s our human nature. Once again, though, Jesus was not trying to have an all
inclusive discipleship group. That wasn t the goal. The goal was much bigger than that. Jesus wanted to start a movement that would reach all nations with the gospel. From this point forward in the gospel accounts, we find Jesus meeting with and living life intentionally with this group of twelve. After we seek, we must prayerfully pick our few and start the group. This group will be the people you spend the majority of your time with. They will be the ones you pour into with intentions of multiplication. What are the rules for starting a group? Small. Jesus picked only twelve and we are not Jesus. For Woodstock Collegiate, we feel like three to five per group is a good size. If your group is reaching people and you can t maintain just five, it is time to think about multiplying. Gender-specific. In following Jesus example as well as other teachings in Scripture, men should disciple men, and women should disciple women. Closed. Jesus was around great crowds of people often, but His twelve never changed. Even after teaching to large crowds, He would pull His twelve aside after and teach them further. It is critical that these groups remain closed. Once established, you don t add members unless one leaves (i.e. Matthias replacing Judas). What is better, to add members to your group and meet as long as possible, or invest in a few for a short time and then watch them multiply out? Seasonal. Discipleship groups are not meant to last forever. Jesus group lasted three years. We want our groups to last no longer than one year. Be clear up front that the goal of the group is not to be together throughout college. The goal is multiplication. Diverse. The men Jesus picked for His group were all different. They certainly weren t like Him, and they weren t all like one another. Jesus had some who were mature and others who were immature. Some who were bold, others who were cowardly. Some who believed whole-heartedly, and others who carried doubt. He had highly educated men, as well as completely uneducated, ordinary men (Acts 4:13). Jesus discipled those who were married, unmarried, some who were fishermen, and one who was a tax collector. He even recruited one who would turn against Him. Diverse groups create amazing experiences and conversations together. It allows each person in the group to be challenged. 3. Shepherd: (so that they might be with Him) Shepherding is the meat of discipleship. This is where we invest in our groups and entrust to them all that God has done and is continuing to do in us. This is truly where we invite our groups into our lives for gospel-centered community together. In order to fully understand this, we must go to the Good Shepherd.
How did Jesus shepherd His disciples? Loved them (John 13:1 - having loved his own who were in the world, he loved them to the end.) Guided them (Mark 1:17 - And Jesus said to them, Follow Me.) Guarded them (John 10:7 - I am the door of the sheep.) Cared for them (John 10:11 - I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep.) Corrected them (Mark 10:38 - Jesus said to them, You do not know what you are asking. ) Protected them (John 10:28 - I give them eternal life, and they will never perish, and no one will snatch them out of my hand.) Prayed for them (John 17:17 - Sanctify them in the truth; your word is truth.) Served them (John 13:4-5 - He laid aside his outer garments, and taking a towel, tied it around his waist. Then he poured water into a basin and began to wash the disciples feet and to wipe them with the towel that was wrapped around him.) Shared with them (Mark 4:34 - to his disciples, he explained everything.) Sacrificed for them (John 15:13 - Greater love has no one than this, that one lay down his life for his friends.) Prepared them for multiplication (John 17:20 - I do not ask for these only, but also for those who will believe in me through their word.) While the disciples were undoubtedly grateful that Jesus did these things FOR them, the greatest blessing was that He did these things WITH them. They got an up close look at His life as He shepherded them, and this equipped them to eventually do the same. To be effective we have to shepherd well. Just as Jesus modeled for us, we aren t just doing things for our groups. Instead, we are doing life with them. How do we know we are shepherding well? The MARCS of a discipleship group. M: Missional - We are shepherding well when our group members are being intentional wherever they go for the sake of the gospel. A: Accountable - We are shepherding well when accountability is taking place. This means holding each other accountable to group commitment, spiritual disciplines, preparation, as well as repentance from sin. Accountability also involves deep prayer for one another. R: Reproducible - We are shepherding well when our group members are reproducing themselves through multiplication. C: Communal - We are shepherding well when active participation happens. Participation is vital for discipleship. If members aren t committed, discipleship will never happen. Your group can experience community by eating together, shopping together, studying together, praying together, serving together, and meeting together. S: Scriptural - We are shepherding well when Scripture is the foundation of the group. We don t meet to discuss a book study. The Bible is our textbook. It must be what we
study, teach, and live by, as it is the word of God profitable for teaching, correcting, and exhorting. (The MARCS are provided by Robby Gallaty, Replicate Ministries) 4. Send: (He might send them out to preach) Jesus started His group not to keep these twelve men to himself, but instead to prepare them to be sent out. Jesus is always sending out His followers. In fact, John 20:21 says, As the Father has sent me, even so I am sending you. To follow Jesus is to be sent by Jesus. But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth. Acts 1:8 From the very beginning until the very end, Jesus intentions were for His disciples to multiply. His goal was to train them to live life on mission and make disciples. As discipleship leaders, our goal must be to send. We aren t trying to keep our groups to ourselves. We should always be investing with an end in mind that we will launch our groups out. We are making disciples who make disciples who make disciples
SHEPHERD START SEEK SEND
MODEL Below is a model discipleship group meeting. Your group may or may not look like this depending on who you re leading, but this is a helpful and recommended resource to help you lead. Community: Whether at the beginning or at the end, fellowship is important. Have a meal together, watch a game, and/or just hang out together. Pray: Always begin your group time with prayer. It is the Spirit of God alone who can open our eyes to the truth of Scripture (Ephesians 1:17-18). With that being said, we must go to our Father in heaven and ask that He might illuminate the Scripture through the Spirit. Scripture: With the Bible as the textbook, teach the given passage for the week. Make sure that it is discussion based, not lecture. Here is how to prevent lectures: Read the passage together. Have group members journal throughout the week using the HEAR Journal method (provided at the end of this guide). Have group members share journals as you walk through a passage. Accountability: Make time in your group meeting to share life together. This is a time for confession, repentance, carrying burdens, etc. Scripture Memorization: The Bible teaches that we are to hide God s word in our hearts. Colossians 3:16 says, Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly Pray: End the same way you began. Thank God for your time together. Pray for one another.
F260 Bible Reading Plan Read the 260 most essential passages in Scripture & memorize 52 helpful verses this year. WEEK 1 Genesis 1-2 Genesis 3-4 Genesis 6-7 Genesis 8-9 Job 1-2 Genesis 1:27 Hebrews 11:7 WEEK 2 Job 38-39 Job 40-42 Genesis 11-12 Genesis 15 Genesis 16-17 Hebrews 11:8-10; 11:6 WEEK 3 Genesis 18-19 Genesis 20-21 Genesis 22 Genesis 24 Genesis 25:19-34; 26 Romans 4:20-22 Hebrews 11:17-19 WEEK 4 Genesis 27-28 Genesis 29-30:24 Genesis 31-32 Genesis 33 & 35 Genesis 37 2 Corinthians 10:12 1 John 3:18 WEEK 5 Genesis 39-40 Genesis 41 Genesis 42-43 Genesis 44-45 Genesis 46-47 Ephesians 3:20-21 Romans 8:28-30 WEEK 6 Genesis 48-49 Genesis 50 Exodus 1 Exodus 2-3 Exodus 4-5 Exodus 6-7 Genesis 50:20 Hebrews 11:24-26 WEEK 7 Exodus 8-9 Exodus 10-11 Exodus 12 Exodus 13:17-14 Exodus 16-17 John 1:29 Hebrews 9:22 WEEK 8 Exodus 19-20 Exodus 24-25 Exodus 26-27 Exodus 28-29 Exodus 30-31 10 Commandments WEEK 9 Exodus 32-33 Exodus 34-36:1 Exodus 40 Leviticus 8-9 Leviticus 16-17 Exodus 33:16 Matthew 22:37-39 WEEK 10 Leviticus 23 Leviticus 26 Numbers 11-12 Numbers 13-14 Numbers 16-17 Leviticus 26:13 Deuteronomy 31:7-8 WEEK 11 Numbers 20; 27:12-23 Numbers 34-35 Deuteronomy 1-2 Deuteronomy 3-4 Deuteronomy 6-7 Deuteronomy 4:7; 6: 4-9 WEEK 12 Deuteronomy 8-9 Deuteronomy 30-31 Deuteronomy 32:48-52; 34 Joshua 1-2 Joshua 3-4 Joshua 1:8-9 Psalm 1:1-2 WEEK 13 Joshua 5:10-15; 6 Joshua 7-8 Joshua 23-24 Judges 2-3 Judges 4 Joshua 24:14-15 Judges 2:12 WEEK 14 Judges 6-7 Judges 13-14 Judges 15-16 Ruth 1-2 Ruth 3-4 Galatians 4:4-5 Psalm 19:14 WEEK 15 1 Samuel 1-2 1 Samuel 3; 8 1 Samuel 9-10 1 Samuel 13-14 1 Samuel 15-16 1 Samuel 15:22; 16:7 WEEK 16 1 Samuel 17-18 1 Samuel 19-20 1 Samuel 21-22 Psalm 22; 1 Samuel 24-25:1 1 Samuel 28; 31 1 Samuel 17:46-47 2 Timothy 4:17 WEEK 17 2 Samuel 1; 2:1-7 2 Samuel 3:1; 5; Psalm 23 2 Samuel 6-7 Psalm 18; 2 Samuel 9 2 Samuel 11-12 Psalms 23:1-3; 51:10-13 WEEK 18 Psalm 51 2 Samuel 24; Psalm 24 Psalms 1; 19 Psalms 103; 119:1-48 Psalm 119:49-128 Psalms 1:1-7; 119:7-11 WEEK 19 Psalms 119:129-176; 139 Psalms 148-150 1 Kings 2 1 Kings 3; 6 1 Kings 8; 9:1-9 Psalms 139:1-3; 139:15-16 WEEK 20 Proverbs 1-2 Proverbs 3-4 Proverbs 16-18 Proverbs 31 1 Kings 11-12 Proverbs 1:7; 3:5-6 WEEK 21 1 Kings 16:29-34; 17 1 Kings 18-19 1 Kings 21-22 2 Kings 2 2 Kings 5; 6:1-23 Psalm 63:1; 17:15 WEEK 22 Jonah 1-2 Jonah 3-4 Hosea 1-3 Amos 1:1; 9 Joel 1-3 Psalm 16:11 John 11:25-26 WEEK 23 Isaiah 6; 9 Isaiah 44-45 Isaiah 52-53 Isaiah 65-66 Micah 1; 4:6-13; 5 Isaiah 53:5-6 1 Peter 2:23-24 WEEK 24 2 Kings 17-18 2 Kings 19-21 2 Kings 22-23 Jeremiah 1-3:5 Jeremiah 25; 29 Proverbs 29:18 Jeremiah 1:15 WEEK 25 Jeremiah 31:31-40; 32-33 Jeremiah 52; 2 Kings 24-25 Ezekiel 1:1-3; 36:16-38; 37 Daniel 1-2 Daniel 3 Ezek. 36:26-27 Psalm 51:10 WEEK 26 Daniel 5-6 Daniel 9-10; 12 Ezra 1-2 Ezra 3-4 Ezra 5-6 Daniel 6:26-27; 9:19 WEEK 27 Zechariah 1:1-6; 2; 12 Ezra 7-8 Ezra 9-10 Esther 1-2 Esther 3-4 Zephaniah 3:17 1 Peter 3:15
WEEK 28 Esther 5-7 Esther 8-10 Nehemiah 1-2 Nehemiah 3-4 Nehemiah 5-6 Deuteronomy 29:29 Psalms 101:3-4 WEEK 29 Nehemiah 7-8 Nehemiah 9 Nehemiah 10 Nehemiah 11 Nehemiah 12 Nehemiah 9:6 Colossians 1:15-16 WEEK 30 Nehemiah 13 Malachi 1 Malachi 2 Malachi 3 Malachi 4 Psalm 51:17 Colossians 1:19-20 WEEK 31 Luke 1 Luke 2 Matthew 1-2 Mark 1 John 1 John 1:1-2; 14 WEEK 32 Matthew 2-4 Matthew 5 Matthew 6 Matthew 7 Matthew 8 Matthew 5:16; 6:33 WEEK 33 Luke 9:10-62 Mark 9-10 Luke 12 John 3-4 Luke 14 Luke 14:26-27; 14:33 WEEK 34 John 6 Matthew 19:16-30 Luke 15-16 Luke 17:11-37; 18 Mark 10 Mark 10:45 John 6:37 WEEK 35 John 11; Matthew 21:1-13 John 13 John 14-15 John 16 Matt 24 John 13:34-35; 15:4-5 WEEK 36 Matthew 24:1-46 John 17 Matthew 26:47-27:31 Matthew 27:32-66; Luke 23:26-56 John 19 Luke 23:34 John 17:3 WEEK 37 Mark 16; Matthew 28 Luke 24 John 20-21 Matthew 28 Acts 1 Matthew 28:18-20 Acts 1:8 WEEK 38 Acts 2-3 Acts 4-5 Acts 6 Acts 7 Acts 8-9 Acts 2:42; 4:31 WEEK 39 Acts 10-11 Acts 12 Acts 13-14 James 1-2 James 3-5 James 1: 2-4; 2:17 WEEK 40 Acts 15-16 Galatians 1-3 Galatians 4-6 Acts 17-18:17 1 Thess. 1-2 Acts 17:11; 17:24-25 WEEK 41 1 Thess. 3-5 2 Thess. 1-3 Acts 18-19 1 Cor. 1-2 1 Cor. 3-4 1 Corinthians 1:18 1 Thes. 5:23-24 WEEK 42 1 Cor. 4-5 1 Cor. 6-7 1 Cor. 8-9 1 Cor. 10-11 1 Cor. 12-14 1 Corinthians 10:13; 13:13 WEEK 43 1 Cor. 15-16 2 Cor. 1-2 2 Cor. 3-4 2 Cor. 5-6 2 Cor. 7-8 Romans 1:16-17 1 Corinthians 15:3-4 WEEK 44 2 Cor. 9-10 2 Cor. 11-13 Romans 1-2; Acts 20:1-3 Romans 3-4 Romans 5-6 Romans 4:20-22; 5:1 WEEK 45 Romans 7-8 Romans 9-10 Romans 11-12 Romans 13-14 Romans 15-16 Romans 8:1; 12:1-2 WEEK 46 Acts 20-21 Acts 22-23 Acts 24-25 Acts 26-27 Acts 28 Acts 20:24 2 Corinthians 4:7-10 WEEK 47 Colossians 1-2 Colossians 3-4 Ephesians 1-2 Ephesians 3-4 Ephesians 5-6 Ephesians 2:8-10 Colossians 2:6-7 WEEK 48 Philippians 1-2 Philippians 3-4 Hebrews 1-2 Hebrews 3-4 Hebrews 5-6 Philippians 3:7-8 Hebrews 4:14-16 WEEK 49 Hebrews 6-7 Hebrews 8-9 Hebrews 10 Hebrew 11 Hebrews 12 Galatians 2:19-20 2 Cor. 5:17 WEEK 50 1 Timothy 1-3 1 Timothy 4-6 2 Timothy 1-2 2 Timothy 3-4 1 Peter 1-2 2 Timothy 2:1-2; 2:15 WEEK 51 1 Peter 3-4 1 Peter 5; 1 John 1 1 John 2-3 1 John 4-5 Revelation 1 1 Peter 2:11 1 John 4:10-11 WEEK 52 Revelation 2 Revelation 3 Revelation 19:6-20 Revelation 21 Revelation 22 Revelation 3:19; 21:3-4 2014 REPLICATE MINISTRIES REPLICATEMINISTRIES.ORG
Weekly HEAR Journal (H) Highlight = What is a word, phrase, verse, or passage within the chapter you are studying that stands out to you? (E) Explain = What does that word, phrase, verse, or passage mean? (Interpret the passage by yourself before going to outside sources) (A) Apply = How does it apply to the original audience? How does it apply to you? (R) Respond = How do you respond in order to look more like Jesus? (SPACE Sins to confess, Promises to claim, Attitudes to change, Commands to obey, and Examples to follow) Sample Highlight: I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me. Philippians 4:13 Explain: Paul was telling the church at Philippi that he has discovered the secret of contentment. No matter the situation in Paul s life, he realized that Christ was all he needed, and Christ was the one who strengthened him to persevere through difficult times. Apply: In my life, I will experience many ups and downs. My contentment is not found in circumstances. Rather, it is based on my relationship with Jesus Christ. Only Jesus gives me the strength I need to be content in every circumstance of life. Respond: Lord Jesus, please help me as I strive to be content in You. Through Your strength, I can make it through any situation I must face.
Sources Robert Coleman, The Master Plan of Evangelism. John Dickerson, The Great Evangelical Recession. Robby Gallaty, Replicate Ministries, replicateministries.org. Dallas White, Add Multiply, addmultiply.org. English Standard Version, The Holy Bible. D-Group Leader Guide was edited by Rusty Roberts, Assistant Professor of Accounting, University of Mobile, Mobile, AL.