Transforming Discipleship

Many church leaders, yearning for church growth, look to the latest evangelistic strategies or seeker-targeted worship services. But lack of growth might not be due to lack of concern for new people—it may be because we are not effectively discipling the people we already have. Greg Ogden address the need for discipleship in the local church and recovers Jesus' method of accomplishing life change by investing in just a few people at a time. Ogden sets forth his vision for transforming both the individual disciple and discipleship itself, showing how discipleship can become a self-replicating process with ongoing impact from generation to generation. This revised and updated edition includes a new chapter on discipleship and preaching.

A broadly experienced trio of rising church leaders share substantive research on churches and individuals that will help readers foster a culture wherein people intentionally grow in their Christian faith.

We grow in Christ as we seek him together. Jesus' own pattern of disciple-making was to be intimately involved with others and allow life to rub against life. By gathering in twos or threes to study the Bible and encourage one another, we most closely follow Jesus' example with the twelve disciples. This workbook by Greg Ogden is a tool designed to help you follow this pattern Jesus drew for us. Working through it will deepen your knowledge of essential Christian teaching and strengthen your faith. Each week contains the following elements: a core truth presented in a question-and-answer format a memory verse and accompanying study a field-tested inductive Bible study a reading on the theme for the week questions to draw out key principles in the reading This material is designed for groups of three. It has also been used successfully as an individual study program, a one-on-one discipling tool, and small group curriculum. This expanded and completely updated edition includes a new guide for leaders. Jesus had a big enough vision to think small. Focusing on a few did not limit his influence. Rather, it expanded it. Discipleship Essentials is designed to help us influence others as Jesus did—by investing in a few.

This book offers a commentary on the Arusha Call to Discipleship, unpacking the meaning of its 12-part summons. It provides an up-to-date theological and missiological view on a major ecumenical mission document with a personal reflection on the state of the world desperately in need of change and transformation. It intends to be a key resource for discovering what it means to become what Pope Francis described as "missionary disciples". Primarily meant for individuals and study groups in churches, mission agencies and theological institutions, it is a useful tool for anyone interested in the ecumenical mission movement and World Christianity. This small book aims to supply a commentary to assist anyone seeking to understand, and respond to "The Arusha Call to Discipleship" (the Call). The Call is a statement on the meaning of Christian mission in today's context that was issued by the Conference on World Mission and Evangelism held by the World Council of Churches (WCC) in Arusha, Tanzania, in March 2018. The conference was the latest in a sequence of conferences, held roughly every ten years, that have attempted, on an ecumenical basis, to take account of the meaning of the mission to which followers of Jesus Christ are called.1 To mention the word "mission" is immediately to step into contested territory. Long gone is the easy complacency that assumed the superior Western world would send missions to benighted and primitive communities in the non-Western world to shape them in its own image. Far from being regarded as heroic pioneers of civilization and progress, the Western missionaries are now more likely to be derided as fanatics who set out to impose their belief system in situations where it was neither needed nor welcome. At the same time, "mission" is a term that has found new currency in contemporary times. Many organizations will proudly display a mission statement that tells you what they are all about.

IVP Readers' Choice Award What am I committing to when I say I want to follow Jesus? Using the Great Commission to explore the mission to make disciples as well as the core characteristics that identify us as Jesus' followers, this guide lays the foundation for a life in Christ. Following the popular and effective design of his curriculum Discipleship Essentials that sold over 250,000 copies, Greg Ogden has included the following elements in each of the eight sessions: a core truth a Bible study a reading life application Whether you are mentoring one-on-one or in a small group, this essential guide will serve as an ideal on-ramp into the discipleship journey.

The Great Commission is to make disciples. Renowned church planter and pastor Ralph Moore shows leaders why a focus on making disciples is the essential next step once a church is planted. This biblical, practical handbook will guide churches of any size to focus their ministries around Jesus's command to his followers to make disciples of all nations. Making Disciples offers a model of church ministry that sees every member as a minister, and it will become an indispensable resource for equipping a new generation of disciple-makers.

Everyone is being discipled. The question is: what is discipling us? The majority of Christians today are being discipled by popular media, flashy events, and folk theology because churches have neglected their responsibility to make disciples. But the church is not a secondary platform in the mission of God; it is the primary platform God uses to grow people into the image of Jesus. Therefore, as church leaders, it is our primary responsibility to establish environments and relationships where people can be trained, grow, and be sent as disciples. There are three indispensable elements of discipleship: Learning to participate in the biblical story (the Bible) Growing in our confession of who God is and who we are (theology) Regularly participating in private and corporate intentional action (spiritual disciplines) Deep Discipleship equips churches to reclaim the responsibility of discipling people at any point on their journey.

Are you ready to take your faith to the next level? If you yearn for a life that moves beyond believing and practicing your faith, if you want to radically live your faith, if you want a more profound relationship with Jesus Christ, then it is time for you to become an activated disciple. The Foundation of discipleship is imitation. True discipleship requires such a close relationship with God that every area of your life is transformed. It is about opening yourself to God and inviting him to dwell within you, becoming holy as he is holy, loving as he is loving, disciples of Christ become the instruments God employs to transform the world. - Move beyond simply believing and practicing your faith and begin radically living it! - Overcome obstacles that keep you from being the disciple you are made to be.
- Be a positive influence and an instrument of transformation in the Church.