Chair 3: The Worker

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Matthew 9:36–10:1 ESV
When he saw the crowds, he had compassion for them, because they were harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd. Then he said to his disciples, “The harvest is plentiful, but the laborers are few; therefore pray earnestly to the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into his harvest.” And he called to him his twelve disciples and gave them authority over unclean spirits, to cast them out, and to heal every disease and every affliction.
Slide #1-2
Matthew 9:36–10:1 ESV
When he saw the crowds, he had compassion for them, because they were harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd. Then he said to his disciples, “The harvest is plentiful, but the laborers are few; therefore pray earnestly to the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into his harvest.” And he called to him his twelve disciples and gave them authority over unclean spirits, to cast them out, and to heal every disease and every affliction.

This is God’s Word for God’s People, Hear it and Believe

This is God’s Word for God’s People, Hear it and Believe

Pray
Slide #3
Remember our goal is to progress through the chairs from Chair 1 to Chair 4.
Matthew
Slide #4
To move from chair 1 to chair too takes a transformational change…a changed heart.
To move from Chair 1 to Chair 2 takes a transformational change…a changed heart.
Slide #5
As a person is sitting in Chair 2 they are observing, learning, growing, and the commitment level is minimum. As they begin to understand why their were made and who they are they begin to drift toward Chair 3.
One thing we need understand is that people will move from Chair 2 to Chair 3 at different times. There is no set time frame that we can use to judge if someone is ready.
Slide #6
It was 18 months into His ministry when Jesus made a radical move and challenged four men, James and John, Simon, and Andrew to follow Him and begin deeper training. Jesus would make them “fishers of men.”
It was at this point that these 4 men moved to Chair 3.
The goal for the person in chair 2 is to not get stuck in the chair.
The goal for the person in Chair 2 is to not get stuck in the chair.
When they first sit in Chair 2 they need to follow Paul’s advice in
Slide #7
1 Peter 2:2 ESV
Like newborn infants, long for the pure spiritual milk, that by it you may grow up into salvation—
As they are growing they might find themselves like the church at Corinth in
Slide #8
1 Corinthians 3:2 ESV
I fed you with milk, not solid food, for you were not ready for it. And even now you are not yet ready,
But there comes a point where they can relate to
Slide #9
Hebrews 5:13–14 ESV
for everyone who lives on milk is unskilled in the word of righteousness, since he is a child. But solid food is for the mature, for those who have their powers of discernment trained by constant practice to distinguish good from evil.
Hebrews
A chair 3 person is no longer a spiritual child, but they are also not yet a parent. By now they should not only be able to feed themselves, they should be able to feed others. They are a spiritual teenager. Now that brings up many different images.
Slide #10
They are full of energy, zeal, unbridled passion, and invincibility. Young people are zealous for action and becoming independent. They have mastered some basic skills and may think they can conquer the world on their own.
Teens are willing to step out and try new things. They have a teachable spirit, which makes this stage of life full of new experiences. They long to be given the chance both to fail and to succeed. If they fail, we need to be there to help pick them up. If they succeed, we need to be there to remind them of the source of their success.
Eighteen months into His ministry, Jesus made a radical move. He issued His third challenge to a group of four men—James and John, Simon and Andrew. “Follow me,” He said, “and I will make you fishers of men” (; ESV). Jesus singled out these two sets of brothers for a deepened investment. They were not yet the Twelve, although they all became a part of His Twelve eventually. At this point, they were in Chair 3.
Slide #11
It is at this time that a deeper investment is needed from a spiritual parent. They need direction.
Slide #12
Young men are zealous for action and becoming independent. They have mastered some basic skills and desire to be others-oriented. Whereas a child or infant (Chair 2) is “me” oriented—in a healthy way—a Chair 3 person begins putting others before their own interests. They become aware of the needs of others and begin to experience the joys of serving others and being productive.
A chair 3 person should be others-oriented. A chair 2 person, a spiritual child, is “me” oriented, while a Chair 3 person begins putting others before their own interests. They become aware of the needs of others and begin to experience the joys of serving others and being productive.
Slide #13
Chair 3 people are workers engaged in the work of ministry. They work within the Body of Christ (the church), and they are also laboring in the field (the world). They are concerned about bringing in the harvest.
Slide #14
I call this peer care (within the body) and peer share (within the harvest field). Peer care is caring for younger believers, and peer share is caring for unbelievers. Children’s ministry is a great place for Spiritual Teenagers to begin working within the church.
Workers are engaged in the work of ministry. While working within the Body of Christ (the church), they are also laboring in the field (the world). They are concerned about bringing in the harvest. I call this peer care (within the body) and peer share (within the harvest field). Peer care is caring for younger believers, and peer share is caring for unbelievers.
They are not yet fully trained, but they are moving in that direction. They step out in faith and experience God working through them.

Chair 3 Insights

Spader, Dann. 4 Chair Discipling: Growing a Movement of Disciple-Makers (p. 80). Moody Publishers. Kindle Edition.
Matthew 9:36–38 ESV
When he saw the crowds, he had compassion for them, because they were harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd. Then he said to his disciples, “The harvest is plentiful, but the laborers are few; therefore pray earnestly to the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into his harvest.”
Matthew 9:36–10:1 ESV
When he saw the crowds, he had compassion for them, because they were harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd. Then he said to his disciples, “The harvest is plentiful, but the laborers are few; therefore pray earnestly to the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into his harvest.” And he called to him his twelve disciples and gave them authority over unclean spirits, to cast them out, and to heal every disease and every affliction.
Matthew 10:1 ESV
And he called to him his twelve disciples and gave them authority over unclean spirits, to cast them out, and to heal every disease and every affliction.
Matthew 9:39
A worker is not yet fully trained, but he is moving in that direction (). He is stepping out in faith and experiencing God working through him.
Slide #15
Luke 6:40 ESV
A disciple is not above his teacher, but everyone when he is fully trained will be like his teacher.
Chair 3 Insights
Teens are willing to step out and try new things. They have a teachable spirit, which makes this stage of life full of new experiences. They long to be given the chance both to fail and to succeed. If they fail, we need to be there to help pick them up. If they succeed, we need to be there to remind them of the source of their success.
Teens are willing to step out and try new things. They have a teachable spirit, which makes this stage of life full of new experiences. They long to be given the chance both to fail and to succeed. If they fail, we need to be there to help pick them up. If they succeed, we need to be there to remind them of the source of their success.
Luke 4:42–44 ESV
And when it was day, he departed and went into a desolate place. And the people sought him and came to him, and would have kept him from leaving them, but he said to them, “I must preach the good news of the kingdom of God to the other towns as well; for I was sent for this purpose.” And he was preaching in the synagogues of Judea.
Chair 3 Insights
Chair 3 Insights

First and foremost, the disciples were available

Slide #16-17
Luke 5:1–3 ESV
On one occasion, while the crowd was pressing in on him to hear the word of God, he was standing by the lake of Gennesaret, and he saw two boats by the lake, but the fishermen had gone out of them and were washing their nets. Getting into one of the boats, which was Simon’s, he asked him to put out a little from the land. And he sat down and taught the people from the boat.
Chair 3 people are willing to respond to ministry
Slide #18
they were willing to respond.

Second, they were faithful as they responded to Jesus’s difficult request.

Slide #19
Second, they were faithful as they responded to Jesus’s difficult request.
Luke 5:4–5 ESV
And when he had finished speaking, he said to Simon, “Put out into the deep and let down your nets for a catch.” And Simon answered, “Master, we toiled all night and took nothing! But at your word I will let down the nets.”
Luke 5:
Slide #20

Third, they were teachable, willing to do what the Master requested

They had worked hard all night and caught nothing. Against all practical wisdom, they were willing to learn any new lessons that only obedience could bring them.
Slide #21-22
Luke 5:6–8 ESV
And when they had done this, they enclosed a large number of fish, and their nets were breaking. They signaled to their partners in the other boat to come and help them. And they came and filled both the boats, so that they began to sink. But when Simon Peter saw it, he fell down at Jesus’ knees, saying, “Depart from me, for I am a sinful man, O Lord.”
Slide #23

Fourth, they were enthusiastic

When they saw what Jesus did, Peter was quick to call in his partners. I can imagine the excitement as both boats almost sank due to the large catch of fish.
Slide #24

Fifth, they were responsive to Jesus and His leadership

Slide #25-26
Luke 5:9–11 ESV
For he and all who were with him were astonished at the catch of fish that they had taken, and so also were James and John, sons of Zebedee, who were partners with Simon. And Jesus said to Simon, “Do not be afraid; from now on you will be catching men.” And when they had brought their boats to land, they left everything and followed him.
Slide #27
They were not perfect, but they were seeking AFTER moreavailable, faithful, teachable, enthused about the things of God, and responsive to leadership. These are all qualities to look for in faithful workers.
Slide #28
The greatest need a Chair 3 person has is to see and experience God using them.
The greatest need they have at this stage is to see and experience God using them.
Perhaps one of the greatest needs believers have at this stage is to see and experience God using them.
The experience is not just religious activity. It is something that instills the sense that God is using me. He is working through me. I am seeing the spiritual happen, lives are being touched and I know it’s not me.
Slide #29
What happens so many times is as people begin to grow they want to be used by God, so they volunteer in the church. They try to reach out to people in their Oikos because that is what they heard should be done. They work really hard at this spiritual endeavor.
One of the most critical lessons to be learned in Chair 3 is the “new way” of living in the Spirit. Ministering in the Spirit. Loving in the Spirit. Serving in the Spirit. Giving in the Spirit. Dying to self through the Spirit. Victory over sin by the Spirit.
One of the most critical lessons to be learned in Chair 3 is the “new way” of living in the Spirit. Ministering in the Spirit. Loving in the Spirit. Serving in the Spirit. Giving in the Spirit. Dying to self through the Spirit. Victory over sin by the Spirit.
What happens so many times is as people begin to grow they want to be used by God, so they volunteer in the church. They try to reach out to people in their Oikos because that is what they heard should be done. They work really hard at this spiritual endeavor.
Slide #29
They give it their best, but after several weeks or months they are worn out and disillusioned. It didn’t quite work out like they hoped. They find themselves slipping back into Chair 2. What happened?
Paul tells us in
Slide #30-31
I’ve seen it happen so many times. People come to Christ, they begin to grow, and they want to be used by God. They volunteer as a Sunday school teacher, a worker in the nursery, an usher, or a counselor after an outreach event. They try to reach out to their neighbors or work associates because they’ve heard this is what they should be doing. In the fear of the moment, the busyness of life, the challenge of a new project, they decide to work really hard at this spiritual endeavor. They give it their best. After several weeks or several months, they find themselves worn out, tired, disillusioned. It didn’t go the way they were hoping. Problems surfaced, conflicts arose, frustration came from within. The joy is gone. What went wrong?
I’ve seen it happen so many times. People come to Christ, they begin to grow, and they want to be used by God. They volunteer as a Sunday school teacher, a worker in the nursery, an usher, or a counselor after an outreach event. They try to reach out to their neighbors or work associates because they’ve heard this is what they should be doing. In the fear of the moment, the busyness of life, the challenge of a new project, they decide to work really hard at this spiritual endeavor. They give it their best. After several weeks or several months, they find themselves worn out, tired, disillusioned. It didn’t go the way they were hoping. Problems surfaced, conflicts arose, frustration came from within. The joy is gone. What went wrong?
Paul tells us in
Romans 7:14–18 ESV
For we know that the law is spiritual, but I am of the flesh, sold under sin. For I do not understand my own actions. For I do not do what I want, but I do the very thing I hate. Now if I do what I do not want, I agree with the law, that it is good. So now it is no longer I who do it, but sin that dwells within me. For I know that nothing good dwells in me, that is, in my flesh. For I have the desire to do what is right, but not the ability to carry it out.
But Paul give us the remedy in Chapter 8
Slide #32-34
Romans 8:1–5 ESV
There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. For the law of the Spirit of life has set you free in Christ Jesus from the law of sin and death. For God has done what the law, weakened by the flesh, could not do. By sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh and for sin, he condemned sin in the flesh, in order that the righteous requirement of the law might be fulfilled in us, who walk not according to the flesh but according to the Spirit. For those who live according to the flesh set their minds on the things of the flesh, but those who live according to the Spirit set their minds on the things of the Spirit.
Slide #35
One of the most critical lessons to be learned in Chair 3 is the “new way” of living in the Spirit. Ministering in the Spirit. Loving in the Spirit. Serving in the Spirit. Giving in the Spirit. Dying to self through the Spirit. Victory over sin by the Spirit.
We cannot be Chair 3 people by our own strength. We must rely upon the Holy Spirit.
Spader, Dann. 4 Chair Discipling: Growing a Movement of Disciple-Makers (p. 87). Moody Publishers. Kindle Edition.
To live by the spirit is a new way of living; it is the only way to live. If those in Chair 3 do not learn this new way of living they will be doomed to frustration, legalism, burnout, a loss of joy, an unproductive lifestyle.
Slide #36
But most of all, they will be unable to move to Chair 4. You can’t get to Chair 4 without going through Chair 4. And the lessons of Chair 3 must be learned. living is essential in this journey.
Slide #37
Moving into Chair 3 in our Christian journey demands learning new skills. Skills such as learning to run with endurance—not just walk. Learning to feed yourself and others—not just depending upon someone to feed you. Learning to defend God’s Story and in a deeper way tell your story. Learning to deal with deep-seated sin and pursue holiness on a deeper level. All of these are skills needed to move to maturity. And this list is obviously not exhaustive.
Slide #38
As we move into Chair 3 and begin to be engaged more aggressively in the battles of life and ministry, we will soon recognize ways in which we are broken vessels and need to be repaired.
In the same way, as we move into Chair 3 and begin to be engaged more aggressively in the battles of life and ministry, we will soon recognize ways in which we are broken vessels and need to be repaired.
Slide #39
Chair 3 disciples must learn endurance.
1) Chair three is not easy, but it is our joy.
Slide #40

Remember

1) Chair three is not easy, but it is our joy.
Slide #41
2) Many believers do not make it through Chair 3.
Slide #42
3) It takes time to mature to parenthood.
Spader, Dann. 4 Chair Discipling: Growing a Movement of Disciple-Makers (p. 87). Moody Publishers. Kindle Edition.
Spader, Dann. 4 Chair Discipling: Growing a Movement of Disciple-Makers (p. 85). Moody Publishers. Kindle Edition.
Slide #43
4) Relax and enjoy the journey.
Communion
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