1) Few Christians have a clear, measurable definition of “Spiritual Success”
The old adage warns us, “If you don’t know where you’re going, any road will take you there.” It has been assumed that if a church provides consistent events, biblical information, and appealing programs for people and the people consume those offerings, and then the users will grow. Rarely do we stop to figure out in practical terms what God expects from us, to assess how we measure up to those expectations, or to determine what we must do to improve our performance with respect to those desired outcomes.
We often settle for something less than the biblical standard and certainly less than what we are capable of becoming. If success is negotiable, why not include “comfortable and easily achievable growth” among the factors that make us successful.
What “spiritual success” is not specified and we do not feel compelled to work out a definition of such an end point or destination. As a result most believers have embraced a cheap facsimile of spiritual success and in many cases, without the realization that they have “dumbed down” Christianity.
2) We have defined “discipleship” as head knowledge rather than complete transformation
When we think of discipleship strategies we usually think about teaching events and programs such as Sunday school, small groups, Christian education classes, study groups, reading groups, and Vacation Bible School. While these are needed, it is not enough to fill people’s heads with Bible verses and principles. Read the Gospels and look for Jesus’ words to the Pharisees and Sadducees. The religious leaders of Jesus’ time had memorized more Scripture and religious content than most of us can imagine. As Jesus’ models of how not to live, they were all head and no heart.” They knew the data but ignored its application.
Faith that is not wholly integrated and consistently lived out is a charade. Bible knowledge and a righteous lifestyle must support each other.
We need biblical knowledge and we need to apply that knowledge in practical ways. Both the head and the heart need opportunity to grow and to make a difference in our lives and in the world.
3) We have chosen to teach people in random rather than systematic ways.
We provide people with biblical substance but not in a purposeful, systematic manner and as a result, believers are exposed to good information without context and lose that information because they have no way of making sense of it within the bigger picture of faith and life. Believers become well versed in knowing characters, stories, ideas, and verses from the Bible, but they remain clueless as to their importance.
Few churches intentionally guide people through a strategic learning and developmental process that have been customized for the student. We expect everyone to “get it” at the same time and in the same way as they simultaneously develop into mature believers.
4) There is virtually no accountability for what we say, think, do, or believe.
True growth demands accountability. We operate on the basis of feelings, assumptions, and hopes rather than tangible, measurable realities.
We tend to be most focused upon evaluating people’s knowledge; with only limited attempts to hold people accountable to grow beyond information acquisition and retention.
5) When it comes to discipleship, we promote programs rather than people.
Even though churches claim that they are devoted to developing people, the most effective developmental procedures are generally ignored because they are people-intensive processes.
Growing true disciples is not about maintaining tight control. It is about letting go to see what God, through His Holy Spirit, can do in the life of believers who truly want to mature in Christ. Jesus accomplished the maturing of His followers thorough a personal relationship focused on creating a particular kind of person.
6) The primary method on which churches rely for spiritual development – Small Groups – typically fails to provide comprehensive spiritual nurture.
Having small groups of people committed to helping one another grow can be effective but life transformation is not seen through small groups. The substance that is shared in the group settings is often plagued by superficiality, misrepresentation, or the absence of application. We recruit people for groups and fail to prepare people for developing within those groups.
7) Church leaders are not zealous about the spiritual development of people.
While most church leaders give verbal support to the idea of spiritual growth, they often are not personally devoted to strenuously advocating spiritual transformation. This is witnessed in several ways.
First, few congregants describe their church leaders as role models or as zealots for Christ. Most believers have no clue what the spiritual life of their church leaders is like and therefore have little cause to emulate them.
Second, few church leaders make discipleship a top priority. Prioritizing the church’s ministries is a tough juggling act. To some extent the church lacks real disciples because the spiritual leaders have inadequately prioritized that outcome.
Third, when church leaders describe “success” attendance, revenue, programs, and square footage frequently constitute the practical dimensions of success. Few church leaders indicate that success relates to the spiritual quality of the lives of their congregants. Often the quantity of people participating in a group event or activity is sited.
When church leaders downplay discipleship, the message comes though loud and clear: “It’s helpful, but optional.”
8) We invest our resources in adults rather than in children.
People tend to do what is most comfortable and natural for them. If we objectively assess where we will get the greatest return on the church’s money, we would pour our resources into ministries to children. Studies show that once children reach the age of twelve or so, the chances of changing adults are very slim.
This is not to insinuate that God cannot completely reform an adult, nor does it imply thatthe Bible is wrong when it says that believers become regenerated beings after they encounter Christ, it is simple recognition of human reality. People can change no matter how young or old they are, but positive change is much easier when people are young. When we focus our energy on resuscitating adults rather than nurturing children, we have more ground to cover because we have to undo much more that we would in working with children.
9) We divert our best leaders to ministries other than discipleship.
When you have an individual with good skills but little, if any, leadership ability, discipleship fails to get the motivational push it needs.
Without a true leader at the helm of the discipleship function, believers cannot be faulted for missing the point.
Good leaders motivate, mobilize, and direct people to fulfill a vision. Options are presented for personal growth and assumptions are made that the people will quickly embrace the possibilities and benefits. When they don’t, heads are shaken and the people’s lack of commitment is bemoaned – without realizing the people are committed -- to those things that fit within their vision of a meaningful life. Failure to place competent leaders in the disciple-making process enables the believers to completely misunderstand the opportunity presented to them.
Summary of advice from leaders in effective disciple making churches
Recognize that disciple making is a process, not a program.
- The process will not occur without leadership from church leaders.
- The church’s ministry focus must be streamlined to prioritize and support discipleship.
- The process is not likely to succeed unless there is a simple but intelligent plan for growth.
- The process will not generate true disciples unless it has a designated supervisor to facilitate progress, foster creative problem solving, and development, and strive for reasonable outcomes.
- In creating a process that works, adapt lessons learned by other effective disciple-making churches to your own unique ministry context.
- Be prepared for burnout and complacency to set in after two or three years of involvement in an intensive process.
- Carefully balance the competing interests of flexibility and structure.
--From--
Growing True Disciples
George Barna
WaterBrook Press
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