MISSION 404

WHAT IS A DISCIPLE?
A disciple (of Jesus) is a person who follows and obeys Jesus as Lord, trusts him as Savior, and actively joins in with him on his mission in the world. Simple enough, right? But we mustn’t miss the heart! Discipleship isn’t merely a description of things we do (e.g., follow, obey, trust, join in, etc.) It’s first and foremost about who we are. Discipleship is about our identity in Christ. The three unique and wholly united persons of the triune Godhead (that Jesus referenced in Matt. 28) offer us a helpful perspective from which to better understand our own identity as disciples of Jesus.

FAMILY
As our savior, Jesus dies for our sins on the cross, not merely to save us from the eternal ramifications of being separated from our Creator, but also to save us for the far more glorious and beautiful reality of being adopted into the family of God. Like Jesus, we can now relate to God as our good and faithful Father. With God the Father adopting us as sons and daughters, we also become joined to a new spiritual family known as the church. In any community, it is important to not just have a general group of people you ‘associate’ with, but rather, ideally, a specific group of friends that you share your life with.

SERVANTS
As our Lord, Jesus is King, and we are His royal servants. This begins with our trust and obedience to everything that Jesus has taught and commanded, which consequently extends to the loving and sacrificial service of the people around us.

MISSIONARIES
With the Holy Spirit sending and empowering us for the continued mission of God in the world, we also take on the identity of missionaries. Like Jesus, the Son who was sent by the Father, empowered by the Spirit, we too have been entrusted with the incredible privilege of being partners with God in making disciples – as we declare and demonstrate the gospel to those who haven’t come to know Him yet.

AND HOW DO WE ‘MAKE DISCIPLES’?
Assuming we, ourselves, are growing closer to and becoming more like Jesus, then HOW do we help others to come on that journey with us?

How do we make disciples at GC?

FOUR PILLARS
TRUTH - God’s Word: Hearing and obeying what the Lord has taught us, as adopted sons and daughters, is a non-negotiable of discipleship. (The ancients would simply call this ‘lordship’.)

GRACE - the Holy Spirit’s power and presence: We go nowhere and do nothing apart from God with us and in us. This makes prayer, fasting and other abiding practices essential to our discipleship.

NEW LIFE - transformation: We are welcomed, accepted and belong just the way we are. Because God loves us that much. And… We are expected to grow, change, mature and leave behind old habits and thought patterns. Because God loves us that much. In other words, discipleship is becoming who our loving Father says we are.

IN JESUS - our source, our savior, the center of it all: Ultimately, discipleship isn’t about increasing our knowledge, having more spiritual experiences, or even becoming a better version of ourselves. Discipleship begins and ends with getting to know the person, Jesus, in a deeply personal manner. Because it’s when we encounter and surrender ourselves to Him that real, lasting spiritual formation begins to happen.

And what do we mean by ‘anyone’?

ZERO OBSTACLES
ANYONE - Anyone means not just those who look like me, vote like me, talk like me, smell like me, present themselves like me, or any other iteration of ‘me’ you can think of. Jesus consistently called the most unlikely and unqualified members of society to be his own inner circle of disciples. Jesus called the rabble, the rejects, the far-offs, the unaccepted, and the unlovables to himself everywhere he went, despite the constant appall of the ‘decent folk’ around him. Practically, this means we’re very intentional to look out for and remove any obstacles that would keep people from responding to the gospel, other than the gospel itself.

FOUR PRACTICES
We ENGAGE the lost.
We ESTABLISH new believers.
We EQUIP every believer for the work of ministry.
We EMPOWER disciples to go and make disciples.

At GC, we are disciples, and we make disciples by majoring on the four pillars, removing all man-made obstacles, and practicing the four Es.

WHY?
Because we love God and people.

WHO/WHERE?
Campus and Community

HOW?
• INTERCESSION - Fruitful evangelism always flows out of quality time spent with our Father.
• INVITATION - “come and see”
• DEMONSTRATION - serving, relationships, and beauty
• DECLARATION - share our testimonies, preach the gospel, articulate the Good News

TOOLS, METHODS, AND ENGAGING SPACES?
• WHAT SPACES ARE WE INVITING PEOPLE INTO?
   kitchen tables, ekklesias, Sunday services (Welcome Team), etc.
• WHERE ARE WE DEMONSTRATING/EMBODYING THE GOSPEL?
   ekklesias, Portland Rescue Mission, good works, generosity, etc.
• WHERE IS THE GOSPEL BEING ARTICULATED?
   sharing our stories at ekklesias, evangelizing our neighbors, preaching at a Sunday service, etc.

HOW WILL WE MEASURE OUR FRUITFULNESS?
# of baptisms (Acts 2:41)
# of people at Sundays
# of people at ekklesias

ACTIONS?
• PRAY for opportunities (and courage!) to engage friends, neighbors, classmates, co-workers, etc. with the gospel.
• INVITE unsaved and/or unchurched friends over for a meal.
• JOIN an ekklesia (or some small group equivalent).
• SHARE your story of how you became a follower of Jesus with someone (anyone!)

WE ESTABLISH NEW BELIEVERS
BY LAYING STRONG FOUNDATIONS OF FAITH, WORD, PRAYER AND BELONGING

WHY?
Because following Jesus is a life-long journey filled many storms and temptations. Laying a strong foundation is like building your house on the rock. (Matt. 7:24-27)

WHO?
‘New believers’ are the those who are beginning to take steps of faith and obedience in their relationship with the Lord. This may be someone who hasn’t yet even made an official decision to surrender their life to Jesus, or this may be someone who, although they’ve professed faith in Jesus for many years, are only now just beginning to make real strides towards truly surrendering their life to Him. (Sometimes a ‘new believer’ is actually an old believer, who’s simply stalled out in their discipleship journey.)

HOW?
We establish new believers by intentionally helping them to take steps from merely pondering the truth to actually abiding in Christ and obeying what He taught us to do. (John 8:31-32)
More specifically, we help new believers get established in:

• FAITH – a Spirit-filled life; one marked by repentance, the presence of God, and a resolute joy in obeying Him always.
• WORD – a rich and regular habit of meditating on God’s Word, as well as receiving instruction in sound doctrine.
• PRAYER – a lifestyle of consistently listening, speaking, and communing with the Lord through prayer.
• BELONGING – a life rooted in intimate relationships within the family of God. To belong is to be known and loved.

TOOLS, METHODS, AND ESTABLISH SPACES?
• IN WHAT SPACES ARE PEOPLE BEING ‘FILLED WITH THE SPIRIT’?
   Transformations Course, ekklesias, one-to-one meet-ups, etc.
• IN WHAT SPACES ARE PEOPLE LEARNING TO CULTIVATE A REGULAR HABIT OF BIBLE READING (AND ORTHODOX INTERPRETATION)?
   We Believe Course, Purple Book, Bible Reading Sessions, Woman’s Bible study, Sunday services, ekklesias, etc.
• IN WHAT SPACES CAN PEOPLE LEARN TO CULTIVATE A LIFESTYLE OF PRAYER?
   Tuesday morning prayer, 38 Hours of Prayer, annual Week of Prayer, Fasting and Consecration, ekklesias, etc.
• IN WHAT SPACES DO PEOPLE HAVE OPPORTUNITIES TO CULTIVATE INTIMATE AND LASTING RELATIONSHIPS WITHIN THE CHURCH FAMILY?
   Sunday serving teams, various courses, fellowship events, ekklesias, etc.

HOW WILL WE MEASURE OUR FRUITFULNESS?
# of people who’ve completed various establish courses (e.g., We Believe, Transformations, etc.)
% of ekklesia leaders (and other various team leaders) who’ve completed establish courses.

ACTIONS?
• Take advantage of opportunities and offerings from Grace City to be established (e.g., sign up for courses when offered).
• Utilize opportunities to connect with others at Grace City when there are group activities or serving opportunities scheduled.

BY MODELING PRACTICAL MINISTRY SKILLS AND CREATING OPPORTUNITIES FOR PARTICIPATION

WHY?
Because every disciple is a member of the royal priesthood and qualified to do the ‘Jesus stuff’. (John 14:12)

WHO?
Everyone.

HOW?
By seeing good ministry modelled by others, and being given a chance to get personally involved.

So Christ himself gave the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, the pastors and teachers, to equip his people for works of service (or ministry), so that the body of Christ may be built up until we all reach unity in the faith and in the knowledge of the Son of God and become mature, attaining to the whole measure of the fullness of Christ. - Eph. 4:11-13

One of the greatest myths of ministry is that it’s only really effective when done by the extra-mature professionals. But according to Ephesians 4:13, maturity isn’t the prerequisite for effective ministry – rather, it’s the purpose of it. Of course, it’s the job of the apostles, prophets, evangelists, shepherds and teachers, to equip believers to do ministry work. And of course, it’s fair to assume that those leaders are more knowledgeable, or at least more experienced than those whom they’re equipping. But it would be a false assumption (and misreading of the text) to think that it’s only after a believer has become fully mature that they’re ready for action. On the contrary, again, maturity isn’t the prerequisite for effective ministry – rather, it’s the purpose of it. Therefore...

The process by which every believer gets equipped for the work of ministry isn’t more instruction, more theology, more podcasts, etc. At GC, equipping happens on the job – when we make space for others to get in on the action, to get shoulder-to-shoulder with their fellow ministers, and be given opportunities to do the Jesus stuff themselves.

What does this look like practically?

TOOLS, METHODS, AND EQUIPPING SPACES?
SUNDAY MINISTRY TEAMS
At GC, Sunday teams aren’t merely volunteer task forces. We’re not recruiting people to sign up for free labor at the church. We’re inviting people to participate in ministering to the people who venture through our doors. Some days you may be one of those people, needing to be ministered to yourself. But as a disciple, you also have the responsibility to serve others. So... Whether you’re learning how to preach a sermon, play an instrument, teach the kids, provide hospitality, or engage in the fine art of following up a first-time guest, all of our Sunday teams are designed to not only create opportunities to serve, but opportunities to excel in your serving as you gain more experience as well.

What does this mean, practically?
• This means that every Sunday team will have their own plan and procedures for training new volunteers, as well upgrading the skills of more veteran members.
• This means that there are no menial, or ‘unspiritual’ tasks on a Sunday morning. Every team and team member adds value to the overall purpose of the Sunday gathering – which is to create an environment where anyone can experience truth grace and new life in Jesus.
• This means that we make space for the uninitiated to cut their teeth. We do value excellence in whatever we’re doing, but we value making room for first-timers, for making mistakes, and for learning from experience even more.
• This also means that our teams will grow, and that new up-and-coming leaders will be required.

EKKLESIAS  
At GC, our ekklesias are the primary space where believers gain experience in ministering to others.
• If you’ve never shared your testimony with another person (effectively), an ekklesia may be the perfect place to practice.
• If you’ve never prayed out loud in front of other people (without getting heart palpitations), an ekklesia may be the safest place you’ll ever have to practice.
• If you’ve never tried leading a discussion around faith or truth or some complex spiritual subject (without it devolving into a defensive argument), an ekklesia may be the best chance you have at practicing truly Spirit-led conversation.
• If you’ve never been a part of a community where you feel loved enough to confess your most vulnerable fears and sins to another human, an ekklesia may be the closest you ever get it – and not only to confess, but to receive the confession of another as well.

Evangelism, prayer, discussion, confession, etc. These are the fundamentals of basic pastoral ministry, but unfortunately, many believers are simply unequipped even when it comes to the basics – and not because they’re lacking info, but for lack of experience. At GC, ekklesias are where we get to practice ministering to each other. They’re where we get to see good ministry modeled by others, and where we're given a chance to get personally involved.

ONE-TO-ONE MENTORSHIP
Most of the equipping Jesus did with his disciples was done in small-group settings, where he would usually model first, then commission his disciples to go and try it out for themselves (typically in pairs). However, occasionally, Jesus would also have one-to-one moments. At GC, we don’t necessarily have a centralized strategy for pairing up people with more experienced believers for the sake of equipping, but it’s an amazing thing when it happens. We encourage everyone to look out for those relationship opportunities. It doesn’t necessarily have to be someone who’s older or more educated. And you don’t have to just wait around hoping for a mentor to just drop out of the sky either. If you’re interested in a one-to-one discipleship relationship, then taking initiative, ask for help, bring it to the Lord in prayer.

HOW WILL WE MEASURE OUR FRUITFULNESS?
• Growing/fully-staffed teams.
• Team members aren’t stagnant, but are continuing to grow in their roles and abilities.
• Ekklesia leaders sharing stories of truth and grace.
• Well attended ekklesia Saturday morning equipping sessions.

ACTIONS?
• Leaders check in with leaders of teams to see how growth and equipping are going.
• Leaders check in with leaders of ekklesias to see how engaged their group members are and how actively they creating opportunities for participation.

WE EMPOWER DISCIPLES TO GO AND MAKE DISCIPLES
BY CREATING PATHWAYS FOR LEADERSHIP AND A CULTURE OF MISSIONAL RESPONSIBILITY

Remember, a disciple (of Jesus) is a person who follows and obeys Jesus as Lord, trusts him as Savior, and actively joins in with him on his mission in the world. So, by definition, a disciple isn’t just someone who’s learning to live like Jesus, but someone who’s actively helping others to do the same. In other words, disciples make disciples. It’s the original pyramid scheme! (jk)

But seriously, discipleship is how God grows His church. It’s what we call the ‘great commission.’ It’s how the church has not only survived, but spread across the globe – transcending culture, language, persecution, and more. Historically, it’s how the church has gone viral throughout the centuries, not because of one or two charismatic giants (unless you count Jesus), but because disciples make disciples. It’s what happened in Acts 6, when the church community in Jerusalem chose seven people to serve the widows their daily portion. When it was no longer just the apostles doing all the work, but others being empowered to lead and to serve as well, that we’re told for the first time that the ‘number of disciples multiplied greatly.’ (Acts 6:7) When disciples start making disciples, multiplication is the result. This takes leadership and a willingness to take personal responsibility.

WHY?
Because this is what Jesus commissioned his disciples to do. (John 14:12)

WHO?
Everyone who calls themselves a disciple of Jesus.

HOW?
By creating pathways for leadership and a culture of missional responsibility.

OUR PATHWAY FOR LEADERSHIP
• SERVE - Not all serving is leadership, but all leadership is serving. If you desire to lead at GC, focus on serving.
• BUILD TRUST - A wise minister once said that ‘discipleship is relationship.’ That’s fundamentally true. It’s also true – at least in the family of God – that leadership is relationship. If you desire to lead GC, focus on building up trust in your church relationships.
• COMMUNICATE - Desiring to lead is Biblical. In fact, in the NT it’s considered an honorable desire. But sometimes in our culture it can almost feel inappropriate or even self-promoting to make that desire known. Resist those feelings, and let your desire be known anyway. If you desire to lead at GC, tell a leader.
• BE PATIENT - Jesus is the head of His church and truly the One who promotes (and demotes). If you’ve communicated your desire to lead, but it’s not happening quite as quickly, or the way you may have imagined, remember, Jesus is one who promotes the greatest servants to lead in His family.
• SUBMIT TO YOUR LEADERS

A CULTURE OF MISSIONAL RESPONSIBILITY
Our church will only ever be as healthy as we want it to be.
Controversial or just reality?
We know that the Lord is the one who brings the growth, but it is our responsibility to plant and water. (1 Cor. 3:6-9)
• It’s our responsibility to give, serve, invite, pray, and to share with others the many blessings that we ourselves have already entrusted with.
• It’s our responsibility to be faithful when everyone else is flaking out.
• It’s our responsibility to serve others when it feels like everyone else is mostly just consuming.
• It’s our responsibility to build others up when it’s much easier to simply blame the people who have disappointed us.
• It’s our responsibility to model what we’d like our church to be, rather than mostly just complain about what it’s not.  

Becoming a healthy, growing church family isn’t just the mission of certain ‘gifted’ leaders. It’s the responsibility of every family member. Leaders and spiritual shepherds may be held to a higher degree of responsibility, but we’re all still responsible for playing our part in the success of the mission of Grace City. We are all called to be disciples and make disciples.

TOOLS, METHODS, AND EQUIPPING SPACES?
EXAMPLES...
• VOLUNTEER TO LEAD AN EKKLESIA
   Let your ekklesia leader know that you’re interested in starting a new ekklesia at some point in the future.
• VOLUNTEER TO SERVE IN KID CITY
   Consistently showing up in a young person’s life is the groundwork for future years of deep relational discipleship to come.
• MENTOR A YOUTH
    Invite a teenager or two out to lunch after church. Get their parent’s permission first. And when you sit down together, don’t try to impress them, or ‘speak their language.’ Just ask a few questions and listen like you care.
• LEAD A ONE-TO-ONE, OR SMALL GROUP BIBLE STUDY
   There’s nothing quite as simple or powerful than a good ol’ fashion sit-down around the Bible.
• OPEN YOUR HOME
   Don’t wait for permission. Just pick a date and host a get-together – where old friends from church and those who possibly feel stuck on the outside can hopefully make some memories together. Because belonging isn’t a just a perk for the extroverts. It’s a non-negotiable every person in the family of God.

HOW WILL WE MEASURE OUR FRUITFULNESS?
• More ekklesias.
• More ekklesia leaders and hosts.
• More stories of people taking initiative to engage the lost, to help new believers get established, and to invite the 'spectators' to get equipped and get involved.
 
ACTIONS?
Go and make disciples!