Review.

Why we need to go back to discipleship

Best model of discipleship, just do whatever works
Tonight, What does it mean to be a discipler and how to disciple

We are doing this because we need to continue in discipleship, to realign ourselves the very
core of our ministry, the very heart of our calling.
After all, Jesus did not call a bunch of fishermen by saying, “Follow me and I’ll help you grow
spiritually.” He called them to something greater than personal growth… i.e that they becme
fishers of men. And I want you to give your all to this, katulad ng sinabi ni Paul sa disciple nya
na si Timothy.
“So, my son, throw yourself into this work for Christ. Pass on what you heard from
me . . . to reliable leaders who are competent to teach others” (2 Tim. 2:1-2, THE
MESSAGE).
First, Paul tells Timothy to “throw” himself into “this work for Christ.”
What work? Disciplemaking—Paul instructs Timothy to take what he has heard from Paul and
pass it along to reliable people who are capable of teaching others. I don’t know about you, but I
count five levels of disciples in that passage:
(1) Paul (a protégé of Barnabas),
(2) Timothy,
(3) reliable leaders,
(4) other competent teachers and
(5) those who would learn from these teachers.

I’ll share with you very shortly, Barnabas the Discipler and How to do we actually make
disciples.
Become a Barnabas
A good example for Timothy and the rest of us to follow would be that of Barnabas and
Paul. We first meet Barnabas in Jerusalem where he donated some real estate profits to the
poverty-stricken church. Later, we find him trusting Paul when the Jerusalem elders did not.
After that he recruits Paul as a leader in the Antioch Church (another trust issue). Then he
leads Paul out on their first missionary journey—Barnabas’s name is always mentioned
first in those verses, suggesting that he was the leader. Finally, he gives way to Paul as
the leader since Paul apparently grows to become the stronger leader in their
relationship as his name is written first whenever the two are mentioned in later
passages.
This must have blessed Barnabas. To have your disciple surpass you is the greatest gift
you can receive as a disciplemaker. Unfortunately, Barnabas and Paul’s relationship
didn’t end well (some of yours won’t either) when they got mad at each other and parted
company at the beginning of a second missionary trip for each of them. This separating of the
ways was over the presence of John Mark on their ministry team. Paul wouldn’t forgive
Mark for deserting them on their first trip, while Barnabas, the encourager, continued to
bet on John Mark just as he had bet on Paul. Paul had surpassed Barnabas as a
preacher, but he simply had not yet matured in the area of giving grace.

Paul withheld from John Mark the grace Barnabas had shown Paul and would continue to show
Mark. After the breakup, Paul moved on to disciple Silas and Timothy while Barnabas
went off with the wayward disciple, John Mark.
Paul wrote two-thirds of the books in the New Testament, and Mark wrote the first gospel
—the one that stimulated Matthew, Luke and John to write theirs. You have to think that
if it had not been for Barnabas’s disciplemaking efforts, you might not be reading the
book you hold in your hands.
I’d say Barnabas was a world-class disciplemaker
By the way, after many years and many bruises, Paul would call for Mark to join him:
“Get Mark and bring him with you, for he is useful to me for ministry” (2 Tim 4:11-12,
NKJV). I think this is humorous, and it shows courage for Paul to have written those
words after his earlier fallout with Barnabas over Mark. He swallowed some pride when
he asked for Mark. Paul really had learned to manifest the grace he so majestically writes
about in Romans and Galatians.

BUT HOW DO YOU MAKE DISCIPLES?

This part is pretty simple. You hang out with other people, intentionally bringing Jesus
into your conversations. Your goal is to approximate your relationship with God in the
life of the person you are discipling. It’s all about spending time together with intent.

Time, Intention, Jesus