Discipleship is one of the main elements of Jesus' ministry. While the Lord spent a lot of time teaching, preaching, healing the sick and casting out demons, Jesus made sure to set aside time to disciple the twelve men whom He had chosen to closely work with Him in His ministry.
The way Jesus trained and built up His disciples was very different from the way leaders of those days would. The culture of Judea during that time was very stern and strict given that the nation was under the martial rule of the Roman empire and the religious legalism of Pharisees. Jesus' model for discipleship was simple, but impactful to many.
Discipleship works and it is one of the best ways to grow a ministry, a family or even a business. There are dozens of discipleship lessons that we can learn from Christ, but here are just five of some of the most important that can really jumpstart your discipleship journey with others today.
Quality not quantity. Jesus had multitudes follow Him, but most of the time He would withdraw with the twelve to teach them and build relationships with them. He would also on occasion pull aside one of each of the twelve to follow them up one by one. Out of those twelve men would become the largest movement the world has ever seen.
Relationship not rules. Many times, other religious leaders would criticise Jesus for not being too keen on religious rules and tradition when teaching His disciples. One time, He was confronted by the Pharisees saying that He was being an irresponsible leader by allowing the disciples to pick up grain on the Sabbath. He answers in Mark 2:27 by saying, "And he said to them, "The Sabbath was made for man, not man for the Sabbath." That's not to say Jesus did not rebuke, but He did so with a strong foundation of relationship.
Influence not coercion. In John 13:1-17, we see a very important picture of Jesus as a discipler as He washes the feet of His disciples, even Judas'! This teaches us that leadership is built best by building influence over people, not by coercion or manipulation.
Sacrifice not position. Matthew 20:28 says, "even as the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many." Only in Jesus do we truly see a leader who disciples with full intention to give up His time, life and resources to raise up godly men and women.
Spirit not skill. Matthew 3:16 says, "And when Jesus was baptized, immediately he went up from the water, and behold, the heavens were opened to him, and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and coming to rest on him." Much of Jesus' ministry and discipleship was spirit-empowered. In the same way, as we build relationships and raise other men and women, we must do so with the leading of the Spirit.
