Dr U. Obed

Apostolic Discipleship Movement (ADM)

22-23 Jan 2010

Greetings & IntroductionGreetings & Introduction

1.

The Challenge of Transformational Discipleship in Today’s Church

2.

The Leader as a Disciple

3.

Raising Disciples from Membership

• Transformation is expressed in two  words –

change, and transfiguration. 

• Transformation stands for ‘the  occurrence of successive changes 

required for a thing to attain its final  state or predicted form.’

What Is Transformation?

Col 3:16a

Acts 20:32

Transformation => Metamorphosis   

• In 2 Cor

3:18, “transformation”

derives from  the Greek word metamorphoo, which is 

translated in English as metamorphosis.

• In Mk 9:2‐3 and Lk

9:28‐32 the word  ‘transfigured’

is the same as ‘transformed.’

(We conclude that in transformation, there is a positive spiritual change and a revelation of divine glory about whatever or whomever is being transformed / transfigured)

Bible Concept of Transformation

What is DISCIPLESHIP ?

Discipleship is the process of: 1.

making a disciple; or  

2.

facilitating the believer’s spiritual growth3.

a believer’s continuous development of the 

full life‐capacity of our Lord Jesus Christ           (Eph 4:13).

New BirthDiscipleship

Full life capacityof Christ

(Eph 4:13)(Jn

3:3‐5)

Why Discipleship of Believers?

God always has the finished creation in mind.

Why Discipleship of Believers?

1.Gen 1:26‐28; 6:5‐9;   (Ps 119:89) – God has  not aborted His original idea for creating man. 

He wants man to be restored to His own  image just as He intended it in the beginning.

2.Man lost God’s glorious ideal through sin (Gen  3:4‐8; Rom 3:23)

3.But God seeks the restoration of man to His  original creation mandate through His Son 

Jesus Christ (Rom 6:23; Jn

1:12)

4. As many as receive Jesus, are to conform 

to His image (Rom 8:29; Heb 1:3)

5.It is the word of God that the Holy Spirit uses  to transform believers (2 Cor

3:18; Acts 20:32; 

1 Pet 2:2)

6.It is the responsibility of church leaders to  present the word of God in such ways as 

would transform their members (Eph 4:11‐13)

7.The standard for all transformation is fixed  (Mt 5:48; 1 Jn

3:1‐3; Rev 19:7‐8) 

Follow‐upBelievers’ class

Church membership classReading through the bible

Sunday SchoolMentoringEtc

It is important to note that each of the above have their merits.  But none by itself can be regarded as potent enough  to produce  long term transformation toward more Christ‐likeness in 

believers.

Discipleship is not just anything done in that name,like some churches would commonly assume, e.g.: 

Possible Limitations of Current Church  Discipleship Practices

a)

Focus on new converts &

new comers;b)

Church program oriented;

c)

Tends to be doctrinally inclined;d)

Tends towards membership conservation;

e)

Assumes spiritual growth to occur somehow;f)

No conscious planning and pursuit of spiritual 

maturity of believers as a deliberate goal;g)

Poor or absence of transformational potential;

h)

Etc.

Conceptualizing Discipleship

Acts 26:18

A sinneraccepts Christ

Growth to maturity in ChristNew Birth

UltimateMaturity

Who is a Leader?

• A Leader is one who has a legitimate  right to exert beneficial influence over a 

group of people, to enhance their  achievement of some specified goal(s)

DISCIPLEis

A person who has a steadfast dispositionto acquire knowledge and skills (learn)

by being taughttill he attains the level of his teacher

or of a model in focus

Greek mathetes

=>  learner; pupil

Defining the word:

DISCIPLE

A DISCIPLE of Christis

a believer in Himwho has a steadfast disposition

to acquire knowledge of Him and His teachings,as well as of His lifestyle and skills,

by being taught, till heprogressively attains the life capacity of Christ, i.e. the

measure of the stature of His fullness.

Who is a Disciple of Christ ?(cp

Mk 1:17; Rom 8:29)

Points to Note

1.

Some churches pass through stages of  transformation. This affects the quality of 

leaders at different stages of the transformation2.

Not all leaders in a church are born again

3.

Not all leaders in a church are disciples of Christ  (but can be disciples of the church and of higher leaders)

4.

It is a contradiction for a leader in any church of  God not to be born again or be a disciple of 

Christ (Mt 15:7‐14)5.

Nicodemus was sincere and humble (Jn

3:1‐8). 

He sought for a change in his spiritual status.

Paul – A Leader turned Disciple

Acts 26:12‐20

A sinneraccepts Christ

New Birth

UltimateMaturity

Overview of JESUS’

Discipleship 

Perform like

Him

“Be with Him” “Send them out”

“Fishers of men”“Follow Me”

[Mk 1:17]

[Mk 3:14]

Belike Him

Point of Call Mt 11:29

The Apostles Were First Discipled

1.

Jesus called them for a purpose, a life of service

2.

The people called responded (Mk 1:18, 20; Lk

5:11)

3.

Jesus took the first necessary step to disciple them  (Mk 1:17)

4.

The first focus of His discipleship was focused on  the transformation of character (Mt 5‐7; Gen 1:27)

5.

The second dimension was on their acquiring  spiritual skill and competence to serve as kingdom 

change agents (Lk

91‐2; 10:1ff; Gen 1:28) –The Lord wants to equip and use you beyond whatever you are presently doing for Him.

Illustration with Barnabas

NB ALC FAM

Acts 11: 22-26

Some recorded accounts of Barnabas’

life clearly illustrate progression in spiritual growth and maturity. 

ULT.MAT.

1 Jn

3:2

Acts 4:36f

Acts 13:1-3 Acts 6:3-6

Acts 9:26-28

Acts 2:42-47

You too can grow spiritually to become a better and more  effective servant of God, if you will  give yourself to 

effective discipleship

OBSTACLES TO A LEADER’S  SELF‐ASSESSMENT

a)

Fear

– Man fears to know that he is doing  something in a wrong way, or that he is 

failing in achieving a set goal.

b)

Insincerity

– Man has the natural instinct to cover  up his nakedness or weak points (Gen 3:7,  12f). Yet we are all very open before God’s  eyes (Ps139:7).

c)

Pride

– Even when a man knows that he is doing a  thing in the wrong way, he may insist on 

going ahead anyway, to uphold his pride  even to his ruin and that of others. (1 Sam 

15:30; Jer

42:1‐6; 43:1‐7)

Believers

The 12

Multitudes

Disciples

The 3 Lk

8:51; 9:28‐32; 2 Pet 1:16‐18

Mk 3:14; Lk

9:1‐6

Mt 5:1‐2; Jn

6:60‐69;  Lk

11:1

Jn

2:23‐25; 12:42f

Jn

6:2,14f; 26; Lk

6:19; 5:1Need

Faith

Learning

Relationship

Deeper relationship

Levels at which People Seek and Relate with  Christ Jesus

It is church leaders’

responsibility to raise the multitudes to believers, and believers to disciples.

Two Pertinent Questions

1. Who owns the membership of a local 

church congregation? (Acts 2:47; 

2. What is the divine responsibility of 

any local church or denomination?  (Acts 20:28; Col 1:28; 1 Thess

2:19‐20)

The Lord’s Great Commission (Mt 28:18-20)

And Jesus came and spoke to  them, saying, “All authority 

has been given to Me in  heaven and on earth. Go  therefore and make disciples 

of all the nations, baptizing  them in the name of the 

Father and of the Son and of  the Holy Spirit, teaching them 

to observe all things that I  have commanded you; and lo 

I am with you always, even to  the end of the age.”

Components of the Great Commission (Mt 28:18-20)

1. A promise of His “Power”(v18)2. A promise of His abiding ‘Presence’ (v20)3. A defined “Purpose” as church responsibility or

goal

- “MAKE DISCIPLES of all the NATIONS” (v19)

4. Three commands for realizing the goal, which are:- Go… (v19)- Baptizing them… (v19)- Teaching them… (v20)

Analyzing G.C. Concept –

“Make”

Make

Task

(what we must do)

a) 

Consider how a staple food is made (Usually a process)

Note: New converts are the ‘raw materials’

for making “disciples of all the nations”

b)

Mk 1:17 -

suggests a transformational process

c)

Mt 28:19 -

suggests a transformational process

d)

Mt 23:15 -

suggests that a transformational process can be directed to a negative outcome

Gal 4:19

Points to Note

1.

If the Presbyterian church must fulfill her divine  mandate, whatever that may be; 

2.

If the church must fulfill the Great Commission  holistically; 

3.

If the spiritual decline afflicting the global  church must be reduced or checked; 

4.

If the Presbyterian church must raise a reliable  and sustainable spiritual workforce for today 

and for the future; and, 5.

If the Presbyterian church must prepare the 

Bride for our soon coming Lord and King, Jesus  Christ the Son of the Living God, 

Raising Disciples from the Membership

Acts 11:24‐26; 26:18

A sinneraccepts Christ

New Birth

UltimateMaturity

Pro 11:30; Dan 12:3