Attention: Discipleship Needed!

Intro –

Matt. 28:19-20 ““Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.””

Need:

We tend to be really good at shepherding our students on Sunday Morning and Wednesday Nights, but we need to cultivate an atmosphere of soul care in our youth group.

HP:

By looking at Christ’s Model of Discipleship and Evangelism and implementing it, we can cultivate the needed atmosphere of soul care.

Preview:

I read a book… The Master Plan of Evangelism… Christ’s Model of Evangelism and Discipleship.

Matt. 28:19-20

Many people point to this passage for evangelism only.

More to it. There is an aftermath. There is a follow up.

Produces an atmosphere of accountability.

What comes next is the full process of living out this passage.

1) Christ Selected Certain People

Scripture:

Luke 6:13 “And when day came, He called His disciples to Him and chose twelve of them, whom He also named as apostles:”

It will take longer in this approach, but the fruits will be well worth it.

Pouring into the few to get to the many is the goal.

Connects to #8.

Questions:

Who do you think are the group that you should pick to pour into?

How can you work alongside your fellow leaders to work with your selected students?

Show Me:

2) Christ Associated Himself With Them

Scripture:

Mark 8:34 “And He summoned the crowd with His disciples, and said to them, “If anyone wishes to come after Me, he must deny himself, and take up his cross and follow Me.”

Matt. 5:1 “When Jesus saw the crowds, He went up on the mountain; and after He sat down, His disciples came to Him.”

They became a part of His everyday life. They watched Him do ministry while He taught them to minister. It is as though their relationship was a constant field trip. This is how we should be pursuing those we are pouring into.

Questions:

What are practical ways to make sure you are pouring into them?

Show Me:

3) Christ Called Them to Obedience

Scripture:

Matt. 11:29 “Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.”

Matt. 5:48 “Therefore you are to be perfect, as your heavenly Father is perfect.”

For us this means we should be pointing them to what the Bible says and help them pursue active obedience to what it says. The relationship needs to be heavily focused on God’s Word.

Questions:

Show Me:

4) Christ Imparted to Them The Holy Spirit

Scripture:

Jn. 20:22 “And when He had said this, He breathed on them and said to them, “Receive the Holy Spirit.”

Jn. 14:26 ““But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in My name, He will teach you all things, and bring to your remembrance all that I said to you.”

We cannot give them The Holy Spirit as that is what Christ does, but we can point them to greater sanctification. In doing this we can push them on to greater results of holiness in their life.

Questions:

Show Me:

5) Christ Demonstrated How They Were To Live

Scripture:

Jn. 13:15 ““For I gave you an example that you also should do as I did to you.”

This means that we should be pursuing godliness in our own lives. In doing that we demonstrate how a godly man or woman ought to live and then come alongside them so that they can pursue it as well.

Questions:

Show Me:

6) Christ Delegated Work to Them

Scripture:

Matt. 4:19 “And He said to them, “Follow Me, and I will make you fishers of men.””

We should put the group of people we picked to work and have them get hands on experience in ministry and with those evangelistic duties. The best way to learn is to do.

Questions:

Show Me:

7) Christ Checked In On Them

Scripture:

Mk. 6:30 “The apostles gathered together with Jesus; and they reported to Him all that they had done and taught.”

He checked in on the tasks He entrusted to them. In doing this, there is accountability and creates more room for teaching opportunities and greater opportunities for growth.

Questions:

How can you practically check in on them? What would this look like?

How often should you check in?

What are ways that you can keep track of their growth?

What will you do once you know where they are at?

Show Me:

8) Christ Expected Them to Repeat the Cycle

Scripture:

Jn. 15:16 ““You did not choose Me but I chose you, and appointed you that you would go and bear fruit, and that your fruit would remain, so that whatever you ask of the Father in My name He may give to you.”

He expected them to do the same as Himself and pick those whom they would pour into. In doing this we have the slow process of growth but at the same time a strong plan for evangelism and discipleship. It is worth it and a process that must be imitated as it is Christ’s example.

Questions:

What does repeating the process look like?

How might our upper class-men repeat the process?

What would this look like for a Jr. Higher?

Show Me:

Five Applications

1) Divide students in your small group amongst your leaders

2) Spend time with them occasionally outside of normal Youth Group hours

3) Live out #3-#7 with them

4) Encourage them to then pick younger students to encourage in The Word to repeat the cycle ( Looks Different for Specific Age Groups)

5) Depending on where God takes you, the goal is to repeat the process

Maybe your students graduate out so you start pouring into the next students God brings in your small group if you re-up with KSM

Maybe you move on to another ministry and start pouring into the group you have in that ministry