Biblical Discipling

In the

Local Church


Caring out God’s will in building the new convert

• Building reproducers

• Why should the local church have such a ministry?

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Written by Dr. Edward Watke Jr.
1992

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Contents:
The Biblical Definition of New Testament Follow-Up, pg. 1

The Biblical Necessity of New Testament Follow-Up, pg. 6

Multiplication In the Church Through a Follow-Up Ministry, pg. 13

Integrating Follow-Up In the Local Church Ministry, pg. 17

Major Essentials In the Process of Follow-Up, pg. 23

The Characteristics of the Discipler, pg. 29

Testimonies and Examples of Discipling, pg. 33


CHAPTER ONE


The Biblical Definition Of New
Testament Follow-up


The word "follow-up" does not appear in the Bible, but we have firm, Biblical grounds to use the term, since the basic idea and concept is found throughout the New Testament. Follow-up is the process of training the new convert and bringing him into maturity in Christ and into the service of the local church. It is the ministry of helping the new Christian into maturity and a great usableness and fruitfulness for Christ.

As Christians, we have been assigned the biggest job in the world--winning souls to Jesus Christ and helping to develop them into the image of their Savior. If we are going to succeed in this task God has given to all of us, it will demand not only winning the lost but also developing the newly-saved into "reproducers."

It is self-evident that the large majority of our church members are spiritually immature. Most are not fruitful in any meaningful service, and most do not witness with any regularity. This is probably true because we have not helped them when they were first saved. Many had a poor beginning because of the lack of a "follow-up" course which would have grounded them in the Lord.

"Follow-up" is the conservation, maturation, and multiplication of the fruit of evangelism. Winning and building are inseparably linked in the Scriptures.

There will never be any ongoing effective New Testament evangelism without follow-up. These two aspects make up the "two- edged sword" for reaching men and making them effective disciples for Christ.

There is a certain missionary group that has as its goal "systematic evangelism and synchronized follow-up." These two go together like the two rails of a train track. Just like the cultivating, sowing, watering, and reaping of evangelism must go together. It is a process that necessitates vision and effort.

Follow-up is not a one-time effort but a process of labor with another person until he or she has come to the place of growth, maturity, and development of the new life in Christ. Few subjects are more fully taught and illustrated in the New Testament than personal, consistent, church-integrated follow-up. We will see this in future chapters of this book.

Most of the epistles of Peter, Paul, and John were follow-up letters to those new in the faith. Paul exclaimed, "Whom we preach, warning every man, and teaching every man in all wisdom; that we may present every man perfect in Christ Jesus: Whereunto I also labour, striving according to his working, which worketh in me mightily" (Colossians 1:28, 29). Through "warning" every man the evangelistic message was proclaimed, and it was through "teaching" those who were won that they were able to bring the converts into the fullness of their new life in Christ.

Much of what was taking place in the early church in their door-to-door ministry of "teaching and preaching" was the study with and teaching effort toward the new converts. Neighbors were won to Christ in that effort as well (Acts 5:42).


How did the early church turn the known world "upside down?" It must have been that they were conserving their efforts from the evangelistic labors by bringing the newly saved to maturity. It was a natural thing for multiplication to take place as they had tremendous impact on their world.



Follow-up: What it is not!

1. It is not giving a new Christian a pep talk on Bible reading or emphasizing the imperative of stewardship, as important as these things may be.

2. It is not handing the new Christian a lot of tracts and pamphlets and encouraging him to read them.

3. It is not trying to get the person to services and to enroll him in a Sunday School class, for it is more than repeated efforts to enlist him in the activities of the church.

4. It is not just encouraging him to tell someone else about Jesus, as important as that is.

5. It is not making contact with the person a few times after he has accepted Christ and taking him to church a few times. It is much more than that!

6. It is not just telling him that there are things he should not continue to practice, and that he must now read the Bible, pray, go to church, and tell others.

7. It is more than just giving him a few verses on assurance.

Follow-up will include many of the things listed above, but these aspects are not sufficient. Many people have not realized that follow-up is a long, continuous process by which the newly saved is taken step by step in Biblical truths and is helped to mature in Christ, to be sound in doctrine, and to grow into Christlikeness. The end goal is that the person has led others to Christ and also helped those they win through the same process of follow-up and discipleship (II Timothy 2:2).


Follow-up: What is it?

"Follow-up is providing every opportunity possible to help the person grow in the essential areas of the Christian life to the point where he can walk on his own and can help some one else get started in that new life."
Let's analyze this definition:

"Providing Every Opportunity." The new convert needs opportunity to grow. He needs opportunity to tell someone else that he has accepted Christ. But he needs more than that, for he needs someone who will spend time with him and take opportune moments to point out things that are related to what God says in His Word. He needs someone who will help him study the Word of God, teach him doctrine, how to walk with the Lord, how to witness, how to pray, etc. He needs to be challenged in his new walk in Christ. It will necessitate someone taking the time to go through a course of study that will build the life.

"To Help the Person Grow." The newly saved needs help to grow. He does not know how to do so on his own. We would not take a newborn child to the refrigerator and, pointing to it, say, "Now when you are hungry, just look in there and get something to eat." That child could not do a thing for himself. Often the newly saved in Christ are greatly hindered and can do little for themselves.

I have taught some people in a follow-up ministry who did not know one book of the Bible from another, did not even have a Bible, and in other cases had almost never been inside a church.

The Christian life is not something that a person "gets". One must not feel that when the person is saved he has "gotten" what he needs. The initial salvation experience is only the beginning. As in physical birth the convert must have some immediate, tender loving care. The convert does not just "get" the life; he must grow into understanding of many things. If this does not take place right away, he will be lost to sin, and to the world. This will be seen very clearly in the next chapter (I Peter 2:2).

"In the Essential Areas of the Christian Life."
Many have languished over the years after they were saved because no one helped them in their new-found faith. They did not know the basics, and no one helped them concentrate on these. Consequent they had no sense of direction in their salvation. If we help them with the basics, and they see how to apply truth and to walk in the principles of the Word of God, then other aspects of that new life will fit in as they continue on with Christ over the years. They must have direction and the joy of accomplishment in their new faith in Christ.

Some of the essentials will include the following (Colossians 2:6, 7):

1. Assurance of salvation. Our desire is that they will know for certain that Christ is theirs. (We will want them to understand such portions as John 1:12; 3:16; 5:24; John 10:26-28; I John 5:11, 12.)

2. Understanding the LORDship of Christ. This new life has a new master. They need to understand how to yield to HIM as LORD and to serve HIM in obedience (Romans 12:1, 2; 6:13; II Corinthians 5:14, 15).

3. A regular intake of the Word of God. The person needs to see the necessity of taking in the Word. They must know how to build a "quiet time with Christ", to read the Scriptures, to study them, to memorize them, and how to meditate in them (Joshua 1:8, 9; Psalm 1:1-3).

4. A practice of a prayer life. They must grow in ability to pray, know what is included in a prayer life, how to pray, and the need of it (Matthew 7:7, 8; Luke 11; Luke 18; John 15: 7).

5. The ability to witness to others. The newly saved need help to know how to witness, and he must see others doing it (Psalm 126: 5,6; Acts 1:8. (Refer to author's book on Biblical Witnessing.)

6. How to deal with dangers in the life. This would include such things as the old nature, Satan, the world and it's pull, and other areas of a potential fall back into sin and the former life (I Ephesians 6:10-18; I Peter 5:7, 8; I John 2:15-17).

7. Fellowship. He needs to fellowship with other Christians and to understand how to share with others.


"To the Point Where He Can Walk On His Own." The newly saved must have help until he is able to study the Word of God on his own, pray on his own, have an effective quiet time on his own, and can feed himself and meet most of his spiritual needs.




"And Can Help Someone Else Get Started In That New Life."
After the new convert can walk on his own, he needs to reach out to someone else, leading that person to Christ and then ministering to that person in a follow-up course. He must help that newly-saved person to "go and do likewise," to reproduce what has taken place in his life into the life of another person (II Timothy 2:2).

This takes vision and dedication, for it costs time, money, prayers, strength, heartaches, and sometimes criticisms from others who do not understand the need for such follow-up.

A baby born into a family has many needs before he is a full grown adult in his or her own right. There is much to learn, but the parents do not teach all of it at once. They do not feed him beefsteak and cucumbers the first week of his life , nor do they make him walk or dress himself that first week. Likewise, when a person begins a follow-up course with a new child of God he is just beginning a process that will take time to attain the necessary goals.



QUESTIONS FOR CONSIDERATION AND MEDITATION:

1. What is the difference between the spiritually mature and the immature?
( I Corinthians 3:1-4; 18, 21; Hebrews 5:14; I Peter 2: 2).




2. What do the Scriptures state about the early converts and the labor of the early church which must have taken place? (See Acts 2:41, 42; 5:42.)



3. What was Paul's practice? (See Acts 14:21, 22.)



4. What was Paul's concern according to Colossians 1:28, 29?


5. What should follow-up mean to you?










CHAPTER TWO


The Biblical Necessity of New Testament Follow-Up


Let's state it again...."The great task of the churches is not only the salvation of souls, but also the maturation of believers unto Christlike living." "Follow-up is the conservation, maturation, and multiplication of the fruit of the labors of evangelism, for winning and building are inseparably linked together in the Word of God."

The early soul winners were also church-planters. They were not satisfied with merely making converts and seeing how many decisions they could record. Just how Biblical is a follow-up ministry? Is this just the idea of some in more recent years or was it practiced by the early church because of the command of Christ? Do our converts really exist, are they helped?

New Testament follow-up ministry is Biblical.


Far too often we expect babes in Christ to manage for themselves. Yet the babe cannot help himself until he has first been helped by someone else. That is the purpose of follow-up, to help the new Christian help himself. In my personal experience there are few things that are more exciting, more thrilling, and more rewarding than to see the new convert growing, maturing, and walking with the Lord in a fruitful life. It can be as thrilling and precious as the winning of the person in the first place.

So WHY do it?

1. It is Scriptural, for it is CHRIST'S command. We are commanded to win them to Christ, see them baptized and then instruct them to observe all things (Matthew 28:19, 20). We are commanded to "make disciples" which demands that we teach those whom we reach. He has promised to be with us, but this promise is contingent upon doing His work and will. We must emulate Christ's own example as He poured His life into the lives of the disciples. As the early church obeyed His command , they did not just win people, but gave themselves to mature the new convert. This took place in many ways and in many places.

2. It is the reason for the existence of leaders. God gave leaders to His church for the purpose of follow-up (Ephesians 4:11-16). The leaders are to train others who become ready to reach and train still others. They are to be established in the faith and in truth so they will not be fooled by false teaching. The new convert should be able to function with the church together in unity as a body. If one does not do follow-up, he is not fulfilling the purpose of God in his own life and for the sake of others.

God's will is that the new convert will "grow up into him in all things, which is the head, even Christ....according to the effectual working in the measure of every part, maketh increase of the body unto the edifying of itself in love" (Ephesians 4: 15, 16).

We will see in more detail that Paul not only spent time with the newly saved, but he also prayed for the converts and wrote to the new believers. He desired to "warn" every man, "teach" every man and so "present" every man (woman, child) perfect or mature in Christ Jesus; whereunto he also labored, striving accordingly. (See Colossians 1:28, 29.)
Paul taught those who became Christians so that they would become Christlike. He said he was doing this teaching according to the Lord's Spirit who was working in him and directing him to do this follow-up ministry. If we do not fulfill this ministry, we will be quenching the Spirit of God who wants to bring the young convert into a victorious life.

The fact that the apostle Paul did such intensive follow-up convinces us that such an effort is Biblical and the lack of it is sin. It is evident that this is one of the basic reasons God gave "pastors, teachers, prophets and evangelists" to the local church.


Paul Practiced a Ministry of Follow-up


Paul Ministered to the Thessalonian Believers.
Paul knew he was "put in trust with the gospel." So he spoke "not as pleasing men, but God, which trieth our hearts" (I Thessalonians 2: 4). One cannot study Paul's efforts without getting involved in the how and the what and the why. If it was important for Paul, it is important for us today. We need to do some detailed study of the Word of God, digging into the Scripture portions. We will recognize Paul's burden for the new converts. We must allow the Word of God to get ahold of our hearts and sense the desire which the Holy Spirit laid upon Paul. This is significant and should be our desire as well. (Cf Galatians 4: 19.) When one has a Spirit-given desire to help others, he will begin to see the Biblical truths. They will "jump off the pages" as it were, and he will see clearly what God desires today as well as in Paul's day.

Paul took his work seriously, spending himself, going to prison if necessary, and was totally committed to the "trust" of the gospel. He gave time to the converts so that trust would not be ineffective.

NOTE---in the book of----I THESSALONIANS
1. He prayed for them (1:2, 3; 3:10).
2. He wrote to them: hence, the two epistles. The letters were follow-up letters to meet various needs.
3. He commended and encouraged them (1:6-9).
4. He was an example to them (1:5, 6; 2:10).
5. He gave them an ultimate goal: to walk worthy of God (2:12; 4:1).
6. He spent himself for them (2:8).
7. He related properly to them, as a father, a nurse, a person burdened for their lives (2:7-13). You need to study this portion.
8. He sent Timothy to minister to them and to establish them (3:1-3).
9. He was aware of the opposition of Satan and made them aware of this enemy (3:4, 5).
10. He made them aware of virtues to attain; love (3:12; 4:9), purity, (4:1-7); honesty ( 4:12).
11. He gave them many specific instructions in Christian living, such as those listed in 5:11-22.
12. He assured them of God's work within them to enable them to obey these commands ( 5:22, 24).

It is obvious that Paul was deeply burdened for his new converts. He wanted them to grow and to respect authority, for without that they would never mature. He dealt with specifics, not generalities; and he took the time to build their lives or sent someone who would do so in proxy for him. Paul was never guilty of "winning them and leaving them," a practice we see so much of today.



Paul wrote to the believers in Philippi.

The epistle itself was sent to meet needs. He prayed for them (1:3-6, 9-11), and sent Timothy to them so he could minister to their needs (2:19-23). He wanted to go to them himself (2:24), and then he pointed to himself as an example for them to follow (3:7; 4:9). It is evident throughout the book that Paul had a heart for their "ongoing" growth in the Lord.

Paul's Burden for Timothy, His Son in the Faith.
Paul's work with Timothy was very intensive. It would take much study to bring about a full, detailed study of Paul's labor for Timothy's growth and well-being.

Timothy was with Paul in many places where churches were established, souls were saved , and the work toward new converts was done. He saw the effort Paul put forth for the sake of the gospel. He saw Paul's sufferings, his convictions, and his burden for the souls of people. Timothy would have noted Paul's manner of life, his purposes, faith, longsuffering, love, patience, etc. ( See Acts 16, 17, 18; II Timothy 3:10,11.) Timothy would never have known of Paul's manner of life and ministry unless Paul had taken time to share his life with him.
A detailed study of I and II Timothy will make one aware of many aspects in Paul's follow-up ministry and burden for his son in the faith. Paul urged him in doctrine, in his service, in his life, and especially in the effort to build the lives of others.

People often want someone to help them in Christian work. It was through Paul's own training program in Timothy's life that God provided Paul with a co-laborer. Paul had someone to send to Macedonia (Acts 19:22), to Corinth (I Corinthians 4:17), and to Philippi (Philippians. 2:19). In all of this Timothy was gaining insight, wisdom, and ability to disciple others. He was commanded and instructed. "And the things that thou hast heard of me among many witnesses, the same commit thou to faithful men, who shall be able to teach others also" (II Timothy 2:2).


New Testament Follow-up Ministry is Needed


There must be "CARE" for the person who is now newly saved.
Follow-up could be called "Spiritual pediatrics," for it is the parental care given new Christians to bring them to spiritual maturity and fruitfulness. It is as greatly needed as the care given to the newborn child.

Follow-up must be intensely personal since it is something that cannot be done well in the group scene. There must be an increasing reemphasis of the personal aspect of follow-up care. We need the parent-heart as seen in Paul's concern for the newly saved. (note Galatians 4:19; I Thessalonians 2:6-13.) It is sad, but few people demonstrate Christlike love for others and few understand the great limitless field of ministry through the individual approach. Not many are willing to give parental care which keeps the new convert from becoming a spiritual orphan, a casualty, lost to the cause of Christ.

Paul considered himself a parent to those he won to Christ .
(I Corinthians 4:15). He spoke of himself as their father, and said that he had begotten them through the gospel. And as a parent in the faith, he felt his responsibility for their care and continued growth. (Note Galatians 4:19;
I Thessalonians 2:11.) As a spiritual parent Paul felt the need and responsibility of loving, feeding, protecting, and training those whom he had won to Christ until they reached maturity. All of us who are saved have this fourfold responsibility to others about us whom we have won to Christ or whom others have won and have neglected.

1. Their need of love (John 13:34, 35; 15:12). Spiritual parents are to love their children as Christ loved them. This is an ingredient that is extremely necessary for the development of a baby born into the home and for the new convert born into God's family. Without unconditional love sensed, spoken, shared, and manifested, the new convert will probably fall by the wayside. A true parent never regrets the time, effort, or sacrifice necessary in bringing spiritual children into maturity and fruitfulness (I John 3:16). If we truly love the new convert, we will give of our lives to meet their needs, for we will lay down our lives for the brethren.

Since knowledge will precede love, time must be spent with the newly saved so they come to know the spiritual parent who is seeking to help them. Love is built by taking time with them each week, sharing Christ's love, demonstrating love by instructing, helping, answering questions, meeting needs, etc., until that person can grow and go on with Christ in their own right. This is done as we go through the course "Growing In Grace" follow-up study for certain weeks with the view of meeting the personal, individual needs of the new converts in Christ, so they will "go on with the Lord."

Love is sensed because we are willing to take the time to pour our lives into their lives and to give ourselves to their future in Christ (John 13:1). All the teaching, instructing, and helping them through the course of study in follow-up studies must be done with Christ's love and with much patience. We must remember from whence we have come and what God has done in our lives over many years (I Corinthians 4:7; 13:1-8).

2. Their need for nourishment (Colossians 2:6,7; I Peter 2:2). The babe in Christ must have regular food just as the baby born into a family must have regular food. We often miss the major emphasis of John 21 when Christ asked Peter three times if he loved Him. The major emphasis was "Feed my sheep...Feed my lambs". Nothing can take the place of the Bible in the daily spiritual diet of every believer. We feed ourselves physically about three times a day (some more) because of need. How about the newly saved?

Pointing out the need for spiritual food, or telling the new Christian he must study the Bible, is not the same as going about teaching him from the Word of God, and helping him come to the place of getting spiritual nourishment from the Word of God for himself. A newborn baby must first have milk, and that very often. Later on he is trained in right eating habits, how to choose good food, where to find it and how to prepare it. A mature person is able to feed himself and others and can teach others how to do the same.

It is maturity in spiritual things that we want to bring about in the life of the newly saved. This will help him to sustain his own life in Christ and to share his abundant life with others (Matthew 4:4; John 10:10). Very few of those we win to Christ have a background of understanding of the Word of God. Some spiritual parents must bring about that knowledge and growth through concerted, regular, consistent study with the new convert.

3. Their need for protection. The new convert is no match for the enemies that he must face and knows nothing about. He must be protected to ensure his spiritual growth. Satan goes about "seeking whom he may
devour"
(I Peter 5:8). This enemy of the soul considers no prey more tempting than the spiritual life of a new believer. He will do all he can to "sift" that person away from the Lord (Luke 22:31, 32).

We, who have been saved for some time are acutely aware of the pull of the "old nature," the enticements of the world about us, and the cunning skill of Satan to use his wiles and methods to defeat us. We may be aware of the enemy within, the enemy around us, and the enemy without, but the newly saved have no idea of what they face nor of the need for protection. There must be protection from the devouring of Satan (I Peter 5:8, 9), the sifting of Satan (Luke 22:31, 32), and the strongholds Satan would seek to build into the life (II Corinthians 10:3-5).

The devil wants to use the "lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life" to defeat the newly saved (I John 2:16). These are major areas of temptation in which Satan attempts to ensnare the believer and could be summed up in "sex, security, and success." Satan first aims to separate the newly saved from the Word of God, to starve him into weakness, and to keep him from availing himself of Christ's protection or to even know about that protection. One of the major duties of the spiritual parent who studies with and works with the new convert in a follow-up ministry is to help him meet the temptations that he will face in life.

The spiritual parent teaches 1) by his own example, 2) by association with the new convert that he might know of the victory we have in Christ , and 3) by protecting through instruction and warning given before he has to meet a situation of possible danger. The new convert needs to be disciplined and even rebuked in love to help build obedience.

It is imperative that rapport has been built so the discipler can kindly but firmly instruct the newly saved. Children who are uncared for, undisciplined, and unprotected become useless members of society. The lack of protection has ruined many thousands of Christians lives, hindered the spread of the gospel , and made stumbling blocks out of many who were won to Christ. Parental protection by instruction, example, rebuke, and discipline prepares the new convert for a victorious, useful, fruitful Christian life (John 15:1-8).

4. Then, they also need training ( Psalm. 32:8). To instruct them or train them in the "way they should go" is vital. They must know the will of God, the plan of God for their lives, and how to grow through progressive sanctification. All growth and victory over Satan and sin requires training.

Parental care always involves training the baby, beginning when he is very young and intensifying as he grows up. We must build upon Christ
(I Corinthians 3:11) and bring about growth through the addition of vital spiritual characteristics (II Peter 1:3-12) . Many of these basics for training are covered in the "follow-up" course of study, and the new convert through this means can see how to continue to add these things to his or her life over the years after that period of training.

It would be well for you to study and memorize much of the foregoing points.

The new convert must realize that he is building a life and should be concerned about what kind of materials he is using (I Corinthians 3:10-15). The spiritual parent will want to use building materials that will withstand trials and temptations and will be of eternal substance. This demands the thorough study of basic doctrines and how to apply them to the daily life and how to teach them to others. The test of successful training is the convert's stability under pressure (I Thessalonians 3:5). Paul was assured of the believer's ability to live in victory over sin. This was because Paul had completed the work with them which was so vital. If they did not have victory, he would have felt that his work with them was in vain (Philippians 2:15-16).


There must be "effort" to conserve the fruits of evangelism.


One of the greatest problems facing churches today is the conserving and enlisting of the people we win to Christ. Many pastors decry this unhappy situation because some make professions but so few follow through to become disciples for Christ.

All follow-up is directed toward the need of the individual. While the preaching, teaching, and training services in the church are so vital, yet the principles of follow-up cannot always take place in the context of the group or the crowd. The individual needs cannot be addressed in the crowd like they can on the person to person basis.

The personal aspect of follow-up is our point of greatest weakness in our churches and should become our greatest concern. Many churches are growing increasingly concerned, for there is a great discrepancy between the number on their church rolls and their average attendance. It has been said that 40 percent of those joining the church each year are lost to the program and influence of the church within seven years. How sad, but how very true.

Have you seen these figures about Christians?
* 20 percent never pray.
* 25 percent never read their Bible.
* 30 percent never attend church.
* 40 percent never give to any cause.
* 50 percent never go to Sunday School.
* 60 percent never attend evening services.
* 70 percent never give to missions.
* 80 percent never go to prayer meeting.
* 90 percent never have (or seldom have) family worship.
* 95 percent never win a soul to Christ, and
* 99 percent never spend time following up souls that have been won to Christ.

Few become faithful in our churches and few proved to be consistent soul winners and soul-builders. Could it be because we have neglected to conserve and mature those we do win to Christ? We won't see them all go on for Christ, but far more will IF they are helped in those early days.

The Effort To Bring Maturity in the life of the new convert.

Time is so vital in the maturing of the life of the newly saved. Some follow-up should begin within twenty-four hours after a person's decision for Christ. The new believer is an entirely different person from the enlisted, well-indoctrinated Christian. He is a baby with the same characteristics of a physical baby--helplessness and dependence.

A father and mother in the home must constantly impart new truth to the child. If we are to expect the new convert to mature in Christ, then he must become interested in the Word of God and in prayer. He must "fall in love" with the things of Christ. But this cannot take place without the vision of the worker, the discipler, who needs to thoroughly follow up the new convert.

Paul worked with people as a "nurse" would care for those in need and as a "father" who would "charge, remind strongly, stimulate, exhort and help"
(I Thessalonians 2:6-11). As a pastor exhorts, comforts, and charges his audience according to the guidance of the Spirit and the needs of the moment, so the worker must seek to mature those with whom he works in a follow-up ministry.

The very purpose of the materials to be studied with the new convert is to bring him (or her) to a place of maturity in Christ, and this should be the constant aim of the discipler.


QUESTIONS FOR CONSIDERATION AND MEDITATION:

1. How long should a babe in Christ remain a babe? What are you doing to change this problem of "still-birth's"?




2. What have you personally done to help someone grow up for the Lord? Is this for all of us? Is it an imperative for the local church?








3. Do we see the new converts who have been saved over the years reproducing themselves in the lives of others. If not why not? What can be done about it?






4. What are the four basic things which the new convert must have as soon as possible? How could you help to meet that need? Name these four and think through why you OUGHT to be involved in a follow-up ministry.






CHAPTER THREE


Multiplication in the Church Through a
Follow-up Ministry


The Scriptures repeatedly urged the Israelites to teach their children and their children's children (Deuteronomy 4: 9, 10; 5:29; 6:5-7; 11:18-20). God's promises to Israel were predicated upon their obedience to His command to teach their children's children. God gave them the warning..."Keep all his statutes and his commandments, which I command thee, thou, and thy son, and thy son's son, all the days of thy life." (See Deuteronomy 6:2; 31:11-13.)
We may not think of such a command as direction toward "follow-up," but that is expressly what it is. They were to labor with their children that they would reproduce themselves in the next generation.-- reproduce a love for God and a determination to obey His commands. By so doing they would multiply truth from one generation unto the next.

The Word of God provides for a third and fourth generation of believers through spiritual parents as well as through physical parents, as noted in the lives of the Israelites. To receive the blessing of God, the Israelites were to teach their children and their grandchildren all of God's precepts.

In fact the same command "to reproduce, to replenish the earth" in the physical sense is what is needed in the spiritual sense. God expects those who are saved to reproduce their spiritual lives in the lives of others. The second command to Adam and Eve was to "produce" or have children, and the first command to Noah after the flood was to "replenish the earth" or to have children. God has also commanded us to reproduce spiritually, and that is the primary meaning of Matthew 28:18-20.

Follow-up is the best way to bring the Scriptural principle of multiplication back into the church. It is interesting how many times the book of Acts speaks of multiplication taking place as souls were being saved. Each new generation must face the command of Christ to take the gospel into all the world.

The Biblical Principle of Multiplication.


We are glad if we add some to the church from time to time. Often, pastors urge their people to pray that God will move in some families who will help in the work. We are busy exchanging members from one church to another as people move from place to place and are often content to "add" some from time to time. As a few are saved (maybe primarily children of the families of the church), we have a few more we can add to the church's attendance. How sad a picture but also how apparent. This seems to be the norm as I have viewed it during the past twelve years of traveling and holding over 350 meetings in churches across the United States.

Christ prepared the disciples for the ministry of multiplication. They were to fulfill the command of Matthew 28:19, 20. They were to be the "first generation" who would be used to make the thrust toward world evangelization.

Andrew, though seemingly obscure, was used to reach into the fourth generation. Andrew found his brother, Simon, later called Peter, and brought him to Jesus. A Spirit-filled Peter preached at Pentecost , and three thousand were converted. These converts, trained and nurtured in Jerusalem, were scattered abroad and went out preaching the Word of God (Acts 2:42-44; 8:4). Traveling to Antioch (Acts 11:19-22), these witnesses won many to Christ. Later Paul and Barnabas followed up these new converts at Antioch and a strong church was established there. Andrew won Peter, and through Peter 3,000 were won on the day of Pentecost. Later the many who were saved at Antioch made four generations of discipled converts (Acts 8:4).
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Paul wrote to Timothy (who was the second generation), "And the things which thou hast heard of me among many witnesses, the same commit thou to faithful men {third generation} who shall be able to teach others also {fourth generation}." (See II Timothy 2:2.) Far too often the thrust to see people saved ends at the second generation. What we do for that second generation makes all the difference toward the task of multiplication. Paul was a part of four generations as seen in his salvation--he had a ministry to Aquila and Priscilla--who had a special ministry to Apollos--who then in turn convinced many Jews about Christ (Acts 18: 26, 28).

We must be living in the Word before we can multiply our witness. We must have a vision to be so used of God and have an eye toward the future generations while discipling men in a follow-up ministry. Paul wrote to Timothy, "the same commit thou." The word "commit" is a strong imperative. We have no choice as to whether we follow up and multiply; we must be obedient "to the heavenly vision" as was Paul (Acts 26:19). God has given unto us the "ministry of reconciliation (II Cor. 5:15-21), and we have the gospel as a "deposit of a sacred trust." What we have learned we are to commit to "faithful men" who will teach others also. Each must respond to the truth of the gospel by building up those they have won (or others who have been won to Christ) with the view of reaching future generations. We are in debt to the future generations. We must be a soul-builder so that the person we win to Christ can reproduce himself spiritually into the life of yet another person, and that person can reproduce themselves in the life of another.

The Importance of Multiplication:

Consider when there is multiplication, the two become four, the four eight, the eight become sixteen, the sixteen become thirty two, and so forth. Once a convert has been "brought up" in the follow-up ministry and helped until he has won his first soul, the principle is at work. Then effort is put into his life as he disciples that third generation, and so forth. If we put this to work, in one generation we would reach the whole world. The problem is that it all breaks down with the second generation, for we do not disciple them to the end they might reproduce themselves spiritually in yet another generation, and on and on from one generation to another.

It is obvious that addition can never reach the world for Christ. At the end of the first century since Christ, we had reached the first billion in the world. It is predicted there will be six billion by the end of the second century (or the year 2000). If Christ tarries, we will soon have six billion people in our world. Spiritually, additions will never keep pace with the growing population.

To multiply is a command, it is imperative! Multiplication is God's plan to populate the world, both spiritually and physically. His first command given to man was to "be fruitful and multiply" (Genesis 1:28). Starting with two people, the earth now is bulging with over five billion and has doubled in the past fifty years or so. As mankind has multiplied physically, the Christian is to multiply spiritually.

The problem is that less than five percent of those who profess to be saved have ever won a soul to Christ, or even "added" someone to the ranks of the saved. But the potential of multiplication through the church is phenomenal. To win and teach one man to reproduce every six months to a year is not an unrealistic personal goal. Many Christian workers could win and train someone each year, helping that person to also reproduce in yet another.

Scriptural evangelism and follow-up are God's means for keeping, developing, and multiplying the church membership. "The true test of evangelism" wrote R. A. Anderson, "is not how many come into the church to worship, but how many go out from the church to serve." Lives on fire for Christ are the only statistics we dare offer to God. Only through church-integrated follow-up will we begin to deal realistically with the unchurched, the unenlisted, the unfruitful, and non-multiplying believers.

Evangelism is not evangelism at all unless it wins the whole life. But a study of statistics for the past twenty years reveals that nearly forty percent of our evangelistic recruits are lost to the church within seven years. The church must give to the newly-won convert a balanced program for growth. The goal of soul-winning is a life captured for Christ.

Every organization in the church should be an avenue for building the believer, or its place in the church is useless. Every aspect of the church's ministry must contribute to the winning of souls and the building of their lives unto multiplication, or it does not merit existence or continuation.


Why the Weakness in Multiplication Efforts in the
Local Church?


1
. Few converts ever reproduce and the multiplication chain is broken after the second generation. (In sales the insurance salesman desires many suggested names to whom he may go. Then from selling some of those contacts he receives further names and this is repeated so he never runs out of good contacts.) In similar fashion we must add contacts through discipling so evangelism continues. We must then disciple those who are won to Christ, so they also reproduce themselves in others. We could have an explosion of effort and a growth that will be fantastic.

2. We do not give the new convert the follow-up care, and thus he lacks the maturity for building others. The first “generation's” lack of vision for multiplication is the most serious hindrance to the chain of four "generations". Without vision for the fourth generation we will not do right by the second generation. We will be thrilled with winning them to the Lord and it will all end there.

3. We lack a church-wide concern for a follow-up ministry. It is looked upon as some special thing that a few might consider important, but most do not.

Where are the people in our churches who are going on for Christ and who are still winning others? If we are burdened for a follow-up ministry as we ought to be, we will also be burdened about winning souls. Unless people are won to Christ, there won't be anyone to follow up and to mature for Christ.

It seems that our churches are too busy ministering to our own through youth ministries, children's ministries, Christian schools, parties, etc. We are so "ingrown" that we do not have a vision for the real task of the local church. In some churches over 90% of the efforts are spent (along with money) to meet the supposed needs of our own who already make up the church. We are so thrilled with all our classy, fantastic programs that we are content with things as they are.

Each new generation must face the command to take the gospel into all the world. Every generation is responsible for evangelizing its contemporaries. The Bible records for us the impact of the gospel upon the pagan world by the early church of the first century. Without modern means of the printing press, radio, automobiles, TV, airplanes, etc., they reached their then known world and literally “turned the world upside down.” How did this ever take place? How could the early church do such a good job of reaching the people with the gospel of Christ? When the multiplication principle is applied, it is easy to see how they did it and what is needed today if we are to reach our known world in one generation.

It is easy to see that two can become four, four can become eight, eight can become sixteen and by the end of five years there are 1,024 if we reproduced ourselves every six months. At the end of fifteen and half years, there would be 2,176,000,000 souls won in persons over three years of age. We could reach our world by multiplication in one generation, IF we are willing to become disciplers who reproduce ourselves in the lives of others.

The potential for multiplication through the church is phenomenal. To win and teach one man to reproduce every six months (or year) is not an unrealistic personal goal. Many Christians workers win more than one soul every six months. It is what happens to that one soul that makes the big difference between addition and multiplication. It is what we do with and for the second generation that makes all the difference.


QUESTIONS FOR CONSIDERATION AND MEDITATION:

1. What does God desire of us according to Isaiah 58:12, and what does God say about such a person?

2. What two qualifications help a man to be a reproducer? (II Timothy 2:2).

3. What were the people of Israel commanded to do in regard to their children? (Deut. 4: 9,10; 6: 2; Psa. 78: 5,6)

4. Why won't additions reach the world? Discuss how we can have multiplication.

5. Where is the weakest link in the chain of multiplication? Why?

6. Unto how many generations is a person responsible in his follow-up ministry?

7. Have you as yet experienced the blessing of seeing someone mature in Christ and reproduce for Him? If not, why?












CHAPTER FOUR


Integrating Follow-up Into the Local Church Ministry


Every organization in the church should be an avenue for the winning of souls and the "soul-building" of the new convert for God's glory, or the organization does not have a good reason for existence. It must directly or indirectly be a positive influence toward the growth of believers.
Many churches have isolated the responsibility for following up new members to only a few segments of the total church program. In fact, it is considered to be of little worth to many. Many churches have not succeeded to integrate new converts into the work of the Lord. Churches have many on their rolls who cannot be found, are unseen, unknown, and unfruitful for Christ. Maybe we need to search out the reason for such failure and recognize the things which must be done to change this problem.

Recognizing the Problems. There are at least four problem areas or "gaps" in the church through which believers are lost to the local church and the work of the Lord. In these gaps their spiritual growth seems to be interrupted. Follow-up through personal contact and labor will bridge these gaps in our churches.

1. The gap between winning the person to Christ and getting him into the fellowship of the church. Many churches find they have less than 40% of the new converts integrated into the church. Usually we work to get the person baptized and into the membership, but if that does not work, we eventually leave him alone.

Would it not be wise to have a follow-up study with the person in the first place? The convert could be first visited by an "ADOPTION COMMITTEE MEMBER", counseled on his problems, given assurance of salvation, and trained in the basics of the course of study in the follow-up program.

It is through care and love that the person is most apt to become a part of the local church. The new member can often be loved into a willingness to join the local fellowship. Church membership then becomes the fruit of a loving, training, caring ministry that will bring many good results in the life. The person is then attached to the church because of a loving, Biblical ministry, not just out of our insistence or desire or out of pressure.

2. The second gap takes place between the person joining the church and being enlisted in the program or ministry of the church. Many have witnessed people being saved, baptized, and uniting with the church, and then in a few brief months you cannot find them, or at least they no longer darken the door of the church. Why does this take place? Some churches have enough members or are large enough that some can be "going out" one door (lost to the church) and we are not even aware of it, while we are trying to get new people saved and into the church.

The majority who attend in most churches have little to do with the building up of the church. A few must carry the burden of the many. Generations without follow-up care have left the church full of Christians still needing to apply the basics of Bible study, prayer and witnessing, and who for the most part are still babes in Christ.

The problem of enlistment is difficult! The needs of enlistment could be met through a good program of finding out people's gifts, and organizing to utilize the abilities of the people for the work of the Kingdom. The many unenlisted must have their needs met through personal visitation. In the home through a good course of study we may well find out why they have not been integrated into the work of the church for Christ's glory.

The visitor could do a simple Bible study such as one from the "Gospel of John series". Many members will respond to such ministry to their needs with a renewed zeal for Christ. If we increase what a man does with Christ, and help build a rekindled love to Christ, we will also increase what he does for Christ.

3. The gap between the person being enlisted and laboring in the church in various areas and becoming a soulwinner. Members wrongly depend upon the pulpit ministry to bring people to Christ, or they depend upon the deacons, or the pastor to fulfill the task. They do not seem to have the compassion, zeal, burden, and vision to be used of the Lord to the winning of souls.

The pastors, deacons, Sunday school teachers, and many other leaders must first be trained to lead others to Christ and to labor at it and then also take others with them in a visitation evangelism. The church must have an ongoing training program in both evangelism and follow-up so that there are always some who are getting the vision of being used of God in outreach for His glory.

4. The gap between winning someone to Christ and helping them become a reproducer. It is taking the soul winner beyond the place of winning someone to Christ. It is helping him to know how to multiply himself in another until he has producer reproducers for the Lord. This means that we have trained the person not only to win others, but to follow up that person, continue to train and work with that person until he has led someone to Christ and has also followed up that person until they are ready to reach others. It is fulfilling the ministry of multiplying. It is fulfilling II Timothy 2:2 in the life of another.
Soul winners can only be multiplied as each is trained to help those he wins to witness to others and to go through the whole process with them. This is the ministry of discipleship which I think Christ expected would take place in and through the local church ministries.

Implementing the Methods: We need an "adoption plan" whereby we meet the need of the new converts. "To adopt" says Webster, "is to take by choice into some relationship." Many members in a church need to be trained to adopt a new convert and take them through a personalized program of Bible study, (or follow-up course) and prayer with the intent to labor with that person until there is maturity and fruitfulness.

1. Such a procedure could be called a "sponsor" or "adoption" plan. This is not the same as regular church visitation, but it means using the a core of specially instructed or trained workers who call in those homes for a specified number of weeks in a personalized study to take the new convert through a series of studies designed to build that person. This Adoption Plan is best carried out through a trained committee or group of discipled church workers who have also received training and are dedicated to the task. They are the projection of the pastor's heart, working to develop future lay leadership in the church.


Such an adoption plan must cover many various areas of needs within the church family. There can be those who adopt others who are 1) new converts, still others who are interested in carrying out a course of study with 2) those who join the church, transferring from some other church, and still others who 3) are interested in helping people in the marriage or home problems. Workers in all these areas would help immensely to build the people of the church, bring about maturity, blessings, victories, and eventual fruitfulness that would not otherwise be true. So many members are lost to the work of the Lord because of the failures already in their lives at the time of their uniting with the church.

The committee members who make up the "Adoption Committee" seek to visit personally and teach each new convert, new member or new family joining the church. The needs vary, and it is impossible to meet those various needs without the personal contact and personal study in the home. Church members who come from other places to join also need the encouragement of personal follow-up and to find out where they are spiritually. Often they have strongholds of sin and potential failure (II Corinthians 10:3-5), areas where the devil has "sifted" them into disobedience and failure (Luke 22:31, 32) and areas where Satan has "devoured" their potential walk with the Lord (I Peter 5:8, 9). New members who are mature soul winners and soul-builders could be put to work within the frame work of this plan to help with follow-up and discipleship work.

When there is a continued work of follow-up of all three groups mentioned above, there can be a uniformity of teaching within the church. It is a thrill to know that basic needs are being met and that people will not be lost to the work of the Lord or to the local church with the exception of their own unwillingness to be helped.

I have read of a Florida man who with a vision for souls took to heart the ideas we have put in this book. With the encouragement of his pastor, he trained over one hundred members of the church individually or in a class. These one hundred have won many to Christ and are working with 177 others, who soon were reaching out to many, many more. Such is the result of the adoption plan.

2. The Scriptures are very clear about the Biblical practice of the adoption plan to build others.
Moses adopted and discipled Joshua. It was through Moses's personal training that Joshua was prepared for the responsibility to lead the children of Israel into the promised land. Without the personal work on his part, Joshua would not have felt ready to fulfill God's will. Elijah took Elisha and gave him training that was needed as he went from place to place. He was taken from among the band of men he was training in the school of the prophets. Christ chose the Twelve out of many dozens who followed Him in the early days of His ministry. He gave them consistent, personal, effective training to prepare them for the ministry for which He would later send them. (See John 20:21; Matthew 28:18-20; Acts 1:8) This kind of ministry is for us today.

When Paul adopted Timothy, he simple was adopting the method and principle of personal leadership development that was practiced among the Jews for many centuries. One man sharing with another what God had taught him became the Scriptural blueprint in the structure of the early church and should be our method today. We cannot improve on what Christ did and what Paul taught and also commanded (II Timothy 2:2). As they traveled together, Timothy absorbed Paul's single-minded vision, purpose, and love for Christ (Acts 24:19; II Corinthians 5:14, 15). Then Timothy was to share with, and to train others so they would have the same vision, purpose, and love for Christ.

In large churches it is impossible for the pastor to get to all those who need him, to give this "one-on-one" help and training. There must be a core of members who make up this "adoption committee" who are ready to work with people right where they are. This work of building new members in the areas that we have outlined is a specialty and needs to be done by specially trained workers. This cannot be done in some New Members' class and actually and fully meet the varying needs of those who come into the church.

3. There must be the organization of the adoption committee Consider some general concepts and plans.

First, there must be a committee chairman, who could be the pastor, or assistant pastor, or some outstanding soulwinner in the church. Much prayer ought to go into such a choice. It could be a deacon, but the person must have gone through such a discipleship program and have a vision for the work. His job will require spiritual discernment and maturity. He must be a good visitor himself, and able to devote a considerable amount of time to develop this plan in the church. He must know his committee members well enough to match them properly with the new convert, or newer members who unite with the church or the family who will be aided in marriage, and home problems. He may need two co-chairmen to help him in the task.

Second each member of the adoption committee should be either a graduate of this follow-up course of study. (and /or New Members class of the past) or a layman discipled by the pastor. It could a person trained by one the staff members who has taken the course and knows the materials well. The person must have a burden to help others grow in grace.

1. These should be carefully selected to take responsibility in this tremendously important ministry of building the lives of the newly saved.

2. These members need to be soul winners and church boosters. They represent their Lord, their church, and its program to the very impressionable new convert and others with whom they will labor.

3). The committee member must be a pace setter and faithful in a personal walk with the Lord. He must be faithful in the study of the Word, faithful in a prayer life, and in witnessing. We can only teach that which is real and precious to our own lives. We teach to help others to experience that which blesses our own lives. Only a soulwinner can lead someone else to be a soulwinner. Only a person who is consistent in personal devotions will have success when trying to urge someone else in their "quiet time" with the Lord.

4. Those who labor in this work must be open to correction themselves. Only those who want to grow spiritually will be able to take admonition. The ability to receive correction graciously and to learn from it is a distinct mark of spiritual maturity.

5. A good committee member will be one "who is able to teach others also" (II Timothy. 2:2). There must be the willingness to become a good teacher, and to prepare themselves; therefore, it should be a natural thing that Sunday School teachers, Deacons, Christian School teachers, and others with special gifts to teach ought to be part of the adoption committee and get under the burden to be a soul-builder.


Third, there must be a good procedure for the adopting process.
1. When the person is reached for Christ, (or possibly a whole family) whether in the home or at the church that person should immediately be assigned to someone who will begin the follow-up studies with them in the home. The contact should be made the very first week. The adoption committee director should have two copies of the decision card, and is the person who should make the assignment of who will be working with the new convert.

2. At the time the person makes the decision at the church or some other ministry of the church, the director should receive two duplicates of the information card--one for himself and one to give his assistant director for assigning the follow-up ministry.

3. The chairman, director, or ass't director will desire to match this new convert (or new member if the follow-up is with some person or family who just united with the church) with a committee member of like sex, age, interests, and background as much as possible. Children can be followed up by mature women or men who are accustomed to working with them. Sunday School teachers should be used as much as possible. Those who work with teens would be the natural leaders to help in matching the worker with the convert or newer Christian. Deacons are expected to be involved.

4. There must be a point by point system of carrying out the follow-up ministry with the individual. To assist the worker we want to note the following things involved to carry out the labor of follow-up.

1. To assist the "adoption committee" member in follow-up, a "Contact Report" card has been developed. (See end of chapter.) These are to be filled in after each meeting with the person who is being followed-up. This gives the director and assistant director a means of oversight in the follow-up ministry. Other materials will also be prepared to help both the discipler and those in record keeping of the total ministry.

2. The discipler must remember that the "Growing in Grace" book is merely a guide, for many times the needs of the convert (or person being helped) may be of such a nature that you will need to deal with other things than what is outlined. They have widely different needs and problems. The discipler must be led by the Holy Spirit and very sensitive to the varied needs of the person with whom they are working.

3. An appointment should be made to visit the person assigned during the first week following his decision.

4. Plan the exact material(s) for your first visit, prayerfully review your beginning contact report sheet and the first study that you will present on that first call. You must know the materials well.
5. Above all else go prayerfully, praying daily for the person with whom you will be working. Keep a prayerful attitude as you work with them. (Matthew 20:27, 28)

6. Do not hesitate to refer immediately to the pastor or chairman any problem or question you found difficult to handle during the visit, or any particular problem the person has that needs to be addressed by someone else. (Give a report of any special needs so someone can begin to help them in that specific area.)


Suggestions for the Discipler in the Teaching Ministry in the
Follow-up Program:


Try to be be alone with the person if it is a "one-on-one" type ministry. If it is with the whole family, then work with them to make it an effective teaching situation. You will need to be flexible and diplomatic.

Get acquainted with the person (s). Be observant of the home if that is where you are meeting. Note the things he or she is interested in such as hobbies, books, etc. A broad base of common interests will make follow-up easier and more personal; you must be interested in the total person, not just their spiritual welfare. (You may be meeting in a restaurant, etc.;still take the time to get to know the person as much as possible.)

Ask questions about the spiritual background. Explain why you are meeting with him (them), the importance of his spiritual growth, and the church's desire for that growth also. Show how this is gained through personal Bible study, fellowship in the church, daily prayer, witnessing, etc. You must "sell" them on the importance of this time together, comparing your time of discipling with the way parents care for a newly born baby in the family.

Use the Bible to answer questions and address problems that may be in the life. Use the time you spend with him to create a relationship based on what God says in the Word. The church you represent preaches and teaches the Bible and that must be the one standard by which he evaluates life. He must see that it has the answer for all of life's needs.

Be sympathetic and encouraging as you talk with him. Be open to share your personal answers to prayer and to mention difficulties in which God fulfilled His Word for you. Share personal testimonies along the way as you think they would apply to his life.

In taking him from one study to another, tell him why, show him how, get him started and keep him going. Teach him to share the Word with others, because he will learn to do it by doing. As you introduce new Bible studies,
new doctrines, etc., show him how they relate to his own life and the importance of application of truth.
At each visit review the former lesson(s) briefly, check to see if there are ways in which he has seen how these things applied to his life during the past week, and discuss aspects of personal importance to him, and attempt to answer any questions.
Adjust the assignments to his individual pace. When he doesn't fulfill his assignments, find out why, but don't drive him--lead him. Perhaps a phone call during the week with an encouraging word will help him to get the study done for the next visit. Above all, win his friendship and enlist him in the church.
Spend an hour (or whatever time it takes within reason) on each visit, as the situation warrants. After the first visit, move quickly into the lesson. Encourage him to talk about it, ask questions to stimulate his interest. Sometimes a "preview" of the next week's lesson will cause him to be excited and want to move on in the study. Be specific in your assignments and get his promise to have them done when you come for the next visit, for which you make a definite appointment. Make it interesting, practical, life related, and beneficial for his everyday life.

Keep a notebook of his progress, his problems, assignments, etc.

QUESTIONS, SUGGESTIONS, IDEAS FOR CONSIDERATION:

1. Are there gaps in the present ministry in which we are losing people from the Lord's work and from the local church? If so, why, and what can be done about it?


2. Why is it so important that we "adopt" someone and work with that person? Is it Biblical? If so, why should we do it now?


3. To how many generations is a person responsible to work with people in follow-up, as we seek to multiply?


4. Where does the chain of multiplication seem to be weakest? Is there something we could do about it by being a part of an adoption committee?


5. What do you plan to do to secure soul-winners in your church who will produce reproducers? 6. Do you see the practicality of the plan of action that is outlined in the chapter you have just read?


CHAPTER FIVE


Major Essentials In the Process of Follow-up, Integration and Multiplication


As in any work for the Lord, there are some essentials required if the work is to be successful, can be reduplicated in the life of another, and will be fruitful in the lives of those involved.

Let's state again that few converts ever reproduce because we do not give the follow-up needed, and the chain is broken after the second "generation". One reason may be that the new convert is not concerned, but more likely we have failed to bring about maturity in their lives. The first "generation's" lack of vision for multiplication usually is the most serious hindrance to a chain of four "generations". Vision for the fourth "generation" determines what will be done for the second "generation." "Where there is no vision, the people perish" (Proverbs 29:18).

Essentials for Multiplication


There are certain essentials that affect multiplication in a tremendous way.

1. There is the essential of relationship, or our walk with the Savior. We must have a consistent walk in the fullness of the Holy Spirit, (See John 7:37-39; John 14:26; John 15; John 16:7-11; Acts 4:31-33.) keeping in close contact with Him through the Word and through prayer. To be used of God we must have a deep fellowship with Christ or we will lack His burden, vision, and compassion for others.

As we study the life of Christ we note that he had ever-broadening circles of personal contact with those around Him. In the Scriptures are listed the three, the twelve, the seventy, the one hundred and twenty, and the five hundred. Of the twelve there was also the inner circle of the three. These of the inner circle had eventually the greatest revelation of Him. Paul, alone in the desert with the Lord for three years, had the same amount of personal contact with the resurrected Son of God as did the others during His earthly ministry.

We should desire to bring those we disciple into the "inner circle" of fellowship with the Lord. It should be our desire to see a sweet devotion to the Lord. We set the pace for them by example, and see them firmly attached to Christ in a personal spiritual walk. Being fruitful for Christ should be one of our greatest desires for their lives (John 15:1-8).

2. Then there is the essential of commitment. If we are to be used of God in discipling, in follow-up, integrating others into the work, and seeing multiplication take place, it will demand our total commitment to the task. A person must be committed to reaching future generations for Christ; the very course and purpose of life must be dominated by this desire and pursuit.

Along with commitment we must have a walk by faith. No one can remain truly committed unless he walks by faith, expecting God to use him (Hebrews 11:6). Vision without faith will come to naught. Daily claiming the promises of God keeps a man committed to the task to which he has been called. We must believe God with the kind of confidence that David had when he faced the giant. That was total faith, total expectation that God would use him. Our success in reaching future generations is in proportion to our wholehearted commitment to Christ and to His plan.


Hudson Taylor commented, "All of God's giants have been weak men who did great things for God because they reckoned on God being with them." God is not looking for new plans or methods or programs. He is looking for men to carry out His principle of multiplication, resting on His faithfulness and claiming His Word. It will demand committed people who are determined to fulfill God's will and plan for reaching our world in our generation.

3. To fulfill God's will there is the essential of concentration. Few concentrate on any particular goal; most of God's people "aim at nothing, and hit it real well." We must concentrate on the task of follow-up, multiplication, and integration of people into God's work and will. This will also demand concentration on the individual, for while working with the masses there must also be special work with the individual. We so easily neglect the individual; it is easier to work with the group. Christ labored with individuals, sought out people one by one, ministered to the people "one on one", even while the crowds were around Him.

Someone said, "We are getting statistical paralysis, we must get away from numbers; keep the accent on saving sinners, not on numbers.... watch out burning incense at the altar of numbers." It is easy for us to become so number conscious and so concerned about winning people that we have no concern for the growth of the new convert. Many a church can brag about great numbers making professions of faith, but most of these converts you can never find; they just do not exist and are not integrated into God's work. Are they truly saved if there is no fruit?


Without a vision for the individual, no pastor would try to work with one man when the pressure of tradition would make him a pulpiteer. The ministry must be intensive with the "one on one" ministry as well as extensive with the group. Quality begets quantity! It takes vision to disciple a man to reach the masses. Men with a vision for the individual multiply themselves into others and God then gives us bands of discipled soul-winners and soul-builders.

4. For maximum growth of multipliers there must be a warm, spiritual climate in the local church.
This is essential if we are to succeed in getting new converts excited, cared for, growing, fruitful, and thrilled about serving the Lord unto multiplication through their own lives and testimonies.

New converts must have the follow-up care of specially trained church members. When a baby is born, it is immediately taken to a controlled environment, isolated from disease, and trained attendants seek to care for that little one. We cannot afford to carelessly approach the needs of the new ones in Christ.

We must build each new generation of converts (our own children and youth as well) into church members who are captivated by their love for Christ. If they don't fall in love with HIM they will fall in love with something or some one. Who will it be, or what will it be? To bring them into a church where the atmosphere is not strongly evangelistic and of positive spiritual conviction is to impair their opportunities for growth and multiplication through the newly saved. So many Christians are in a state of lukewarmness and are a great deterrent to the new convert. G.Campbell Morgan said, "Lukewarmness is the worst form of blasphemy."

The first contacts with the new convert must be made with the warmest spiritual intensity. For this reason, the "adoption committee" and the leaders of Sunday School classes, New Members classes, etc., must be made up of those who are spiritually fervent, alive for the Lord. Soul winners are easily trained in an atmosphere of fervency. The right kind of church environment determines the speed and depth of multiplication. ( Romans 12:11; Colossians 3:23).

5. There is always the essential of time. It takes time to build a new convert's life so he becomes a reproducer for the Lord. Follow-up is not an act, but a process, and it must become an integral part of the total church program. It must literally become a ministry of the w h o l e church, so it is not relegated to last place, of little importance.

Although a person may be saved in minutes, it takes months to build that life. When God makes something lasting, He usually takes time. Christ took three

years of constant discipling to prepare twelve men for multiplication. Paul was no "ninety day" wonder, either, for he spent three years in the Sinai peninsula learning to know Christ.

God worked with Abraham for over a generation to make him ready for the promised son and heir. Moses spent forty years in the desert unlearning much of his Egyptian background and getting to know God in a new way. He was an eighty year old man when he led the children of Israel out of bondage. David waited over a decade from the time he was anointed king of Israel before God set him on the throne in Jerusalem.

It usually takes from three to five years to see the process of multiplication (integration of new converts into the work of the church) become reality. The vision must become a total church vision. There must be sacrifice of the disciplers time given to the new convert over a long period of time to see the process really begin to produce for the Lord.

The pastor and staff, as well as the deacons, must have this vision of multiplication! By discipling a layman and sticking with him until he wins his first convert to Christ, and has started to disciple that person, you start the chain of multipliers for evangelization of the world and the growth of the local church. This demands dedication to the task.


Essentials in Getting the Process Started


There are numbers of people who compete for the time any pastor, assistant pastor or staff member has: the leaders and potential leaders of a church, the enlisted or members, the unenlisted who are saved but not part of the church, the newly saved, the saved visitor, and the unsaved. How will these all have the necessary help without many being trained to carry on the total ministry of outreach? Such ministry will necessitate a plan of operation. Basically the public ministry of the pastor (and others of the staff) will probably be the chief contact to the first two of the foregoing groups. The care of all the others will depend upon lay leadership trained to carry on the necessary tasks.

1. Each staff member or pastor must adopt someone whom he is going to disciple or build into a reproducer; someone who will be involved in the follow-up ministry. This could be an older Christian leader, or a new convert, or a young layman who is a potential leader. (Often the newer convert is more teachable and more open to suggestions than a person who has been saved many years. Usually those in the 18-40 year old group are considered to be stable, yet flexible and receptive to new ideas.)


2. Those chosen must prove themselves to be faithful and teachable. The person must also desire to prepare himself to teach others also. The person must be responsive, correctable, and available to the discipler. Normally, one would first consider a deacon, Sunday School teacher or other leader to be the prime contact for such an effort.

Much prayer ought to go into such a choice. Our Lord prayed all night before He selected the twelve who would follow Him. We must be led by the Spirit to choose a person who will reproduce this personal training into others' lives. Just as the Lord Jesus Christ and Paul specialized with the few for personal training, so the pastor (and others who would be used) must give himself to this effort. The pastor and others who labor thus can give a general invitation for every person willing to begin a personal Bible study, intercession for the lost, house-to-house visitation, follow-up, etc., to meet him at the church at a specified time. If more than one or two respond, he may use this group as a nucleus (or prototype) for the beginning of training groups for the "adoption plan".

3. We must plan to give definite, consistent time with the person we are discipling. A time must be mutually agreed upon to meet weekly, going through the materials prepared for follow-up, or for the Christian who has recently united with the church. Such weekly meetings should continue for a period of at least thirteen weeks of intensive, consistent study, meeting needs, sharing burdens, seeking to bring the person to maturity. One of the basic goals is to see the person become a reproducer in his or her own right. So witnessing together should also be a definite goal during that period of discipling. Regular personal contact for time of study, using the format suggested and detailed in the book of directions, must be followed. It will necessitate at least one hour each time, and possibly much more, depending upon the needs of the new convert or new church member.

We must... tell him why (give a proper motivation for the task)... we must... show him how (he needs to learn how to win a soul by watching the discipler do it, before he tries it himself.)... we must... get him started (having a definite study or project for him to do before the next meeting, giving assignments each week that he understands and agrees to complete. We must always expect a good job, keeping the training standards high. We must... keep him going... (never give anyone a new task until checking to see if the previous one was done correctly.) Check up on his progress, encourage him, but guard against false praise.


Essentials For Follow Through

In I Thessalonians 2:11 Paul recalls how he "exhorted, and comforted and charged every one of you, as a father doth his children." These are essentials if we are to follow through with the person we are discipling.


1. To exhort, to comfort, and to charge gives proper balance to our instruction. The word, "exhort" means "to call near," or "to encourage." It has the sense of urging someone to pursue a particular course of conduct. We are to remind our student of what he probably knows already, but is not doing. Then we must point out the truths of God's Word and use them to rebuke and to admonish him, if personal discipline is needed.

To "comfort" is "to cheer" or "to help." The emphasis in this context is on helping or stimulating a person to the energetic accomplishment of a particular job. We accept his burdens and problems as our own, and pray with him about them. He must be encouraged to believe God in the midst of his problems. We must be POWER CONSCIOUS, and not problem conscious. Scriptural "comforting" motivates a person to a maximum life of faith. (See II Corinthians 1:3-5; I Thessalonians 5:24; Philippians 1:6; 4:19.)



To "charge" means "to testify" or "to make known from experience." A father is continually imparting new truth to his child. If the student can be shown that the answer to his problems lies in his spiritual growth, then he will become interested in the Word of God and in prayer. This is the teaching-learning aspect of working with another person. We must choose basic spiritual food consistent with each individual's present needs and interests.

I Thessalonians 2:11 encompasses a threefold responsibility. To remain strong--- to stimulate and help-- and to bear witness or teach doctrine. We must exhort, comfort, and charge according to the guidance of the Holy Spirit and the needs of the moment.

2. Warning and teaching every man in all wisdom is what God desires (Colossians 1:28,29). When we study this Scripture it is obvious that to carry out the ministry to which God has called us will demand "warning". One of the great purposes of follow-up is to prepare the person to stand against sin, to serve the Lord, and to be fruitful for Christ. He will need to understand the enemy of his soul, and to grow to appreciate the victory that we have in Christ. He must be so taught that he will "stand, and having done all, to stand." (See Ephesians 6:10-18.)

Also this ministry of soul-building will necessitate the ministry of "teaching every man in all wisdom." Our purpose is that we might present him "complete" in Christ. Thorough teaching and molding of the life must take place for that person to have the victory in his Christian walk. Paul labored

in this task, he travailed in this task, and gave his all to make this possible (Galatians 4:19). This is necessary for the discipler if he is to succeed.

QUESTIONS TO PONDER, CONSIDER, DISCUSS:

1. Why are these aspects so vital for the ongoing of the labors of multiplication?

2. What did Paul major on according to Colossians 1:28, 29? and why was this his emphasis?


3. Are there things you can do to build you own life so you will know the power of the Holy Spirit? How do you relate to John 7:37-39?


4. Have you considered promises to claim in this process of being a soul-builder and seeing others become reproducers? What promises have you claimed for yourself?

5. What can you do to help make the climate of the church conducive to the growth of the new convert? Do you manifest the friendliness that is so needed, and urge others in this area?

6. Have you considered that "Bible lovers" are produced by those who have "fallen in love with Christ." (See Revelations 2:5)

7. What is the greatest joy a Christian may have in service? (III John 4)

8. What are two standards of good follow-up in a church? (See Philippians 2:15, 16; I Thessalonians 3:5)

9. What aspects of your ministry will give the church mature soul-winners?


10. Would you like to see more soul winners in the church at this time next year than there are now? If so, what are you prepared to do about it? Will you start now?

PREACHERS ARE NOT TO BE SERMON MAKERS, BUT MEN MAKER AND SAINT MAKERS.. AND THIS SHOULD BE TRUE OF EVERY TRUE SERVANT OF THE LORD, IF HE IS DOING WHAT GOD DESIRES.

ADDITIONAL THOUGHTS:

The local church must assume total responsibility for all those reached through its members during the year. Responsibility of the church for nurturing of converts grows out of the fact that they have voluntarily committed their lives to the church for development. They must be able to look to the church as the organization that God has given us to mature the life of the newly saved.

Follow-up logically begins at the time a person responds to an invitation. Those who take information from the new member print the pertinent data clearly on card forms and at least three carbon copies should be made. After the service, one card goes to either the pastor or the assistant pastor, one to the superintendent of the Sunday School, and two copies to the chairman of the Adoption Committee. The person is assigned to an Adoption Committee member and the follow-up ministry begins.

Great effort should be made to "match" the adopter and the adoptee--gender, age, common interests, vocation, etc., as much as possible.











CHAPTER SIX


The Characteristics of the Discipler



What does the Lord require of the person who is going to be used of Him as a soul-builder, a soul winner, and/or one who ministers in the follow-up ministry? To be a part of the "Adoption Committee" is to be used of God in a great way, but what kind of person do we need to be for excellence in this ministry?

Discipling someone is not a listing of steps to follow primarily, for it is not simply the transference of information but rather the imparting of one's life to another. In I Thessalonians 2:18 Paul spoke of his affection for them as he imparted to them the gospel of God and also our own souls. We must impart to the persons our very life, and we must have a life worth imparting. They will learn far more from our example than from our precepts. In the final analysis they will "walk our walk and not our talk." We are all pilgrims on the road of this life and maturing is something that never ends, but we must be growing, progressing Christians who have much to impart to another.

Let's consider some basics:

1. Commitment to Loving the Lord Jesus Christ. One of the primary requirements for being a discipler (one used in follow-up) is to LOVE the Lord Jesus Christ. (John 21, II Corinthians 5:14) Christ asked Peter, "Do you love me?" We note that it was Christ's desire that Peter would serve the flock, that he would "feed my sheep, feed my lambs". The purpose of our growth in love to Christ is to "feed" the flock of God. To love Christ is to be obedient. (See John 14:15, 21, 23.) It is not how many times you have told Christ that you love HIM, but do you obey? Words mean nothing if not backed with action. Love is not proven by how emotional we might be in talking about loving Christ, but by how we obey Him. Have we left that first love? (See Revelation 2: 4- 5.)

If we love Him, we will nurture our love-walk with Him. Nurturing such a walk means spending time with Him, getting to know HIS love, and communication with Him. Such love means having a vital, personal relationship with Him. We cannot be used as a discipler without such a love-walk with Christ, for we need to lead the disciple into such love. A love-walk must be cultivated by study of the Word, memorizing it and meditation on it, and by a vital prayer life.

2. A Willingness to Travail in Prayer (Galatians 4: 19). Paul knew by experience that it was necessary to travail for the salvation of the lost and then travail again until Christ be formed in them. Paul could state that he "travailed" night and day. (See I Thessalonians 2: 9; II Thessalonians 3:8.) Travailing is to give ourselves in prayer like a mother gives herself in travail for the birth of a child. She is not going on a trip, shopping, or visiting. She is not working on some hobby, having a good time in her home reading, etc. NO, she is totally consumed for the birth of the child. She is consumed physically, mentally, and in every aspect of her person. She is giving herself totally for this one event. To pray in this way is to give ourselves totally for the growth of the new converts, travailing until Christ be formed in them.

Prayer should be the foundation of all that we do! There will be times when the new convert (or one we are discipling) will need a change in some specific area of his life. At this point we need to intercede, for only God can bring the change in his behavior. Paul was often exercised in prayer for those to whom he ministered. (Study the following portions, Philippians 1:3-5; I Thessalonians 1:2; 3: 9,10.) And we read of Epaphras that he labored fervently in prayer for the church in Colosse (Colossians 4:12). He must have toiled to the point of exhaustion in his prayers for them. This kind of prayer life is needed for those whom we would build in Christ.

3. Believing God With Total Confidence (I Sam. 17). In this chapter we see David trusting God with total confidence. He fully expected God to use him. He knew the battle was the Lord's and He would give Goliath into their hands. David fully expected God to work! His full confidence was in God alone. If we are to be used of God we must totally expect God to use us in the ministry to the new convert or to the new member. God will honor that kind of trust, that kind of faith. (See Hebrews 11:6 and I Thess. 5:24.)

4. A Willingness to pay the price (Joshua 1). There is always a price that must be paid in order to be used of God. For the Israelites in Joshua's day it was to take the land by faith. But this demanded their willingness to pay the price, for God would not give it to them without struggle, effort, blood, sweat, and possibly tears. "Every place that the soul of your foot shall tread upon, that have I given unto you" (Joshua 1:3). But that demanded their going, warring against those evil tribes and taking that which God has promised. Also, for Joshua, it meant that he must meditate in the Word day and night, and be strong and very courageous. (See vss. 6-9.)

There are always sacrifices to be made in anything worth while! That is true in every area of life--educationally, economically, spiritually, etc. Discipling someone, because of the demands placed on the discipler, will mean times of personal sacrifice. We must be willing to lay aside our so called "rights," yielding them to God. We will have to give up our own desires at times in order to spend the necessary time with the person we are "molding" for Christ.

Christ promised to be with us, and never forsake us when we are willing to be about His business. (Note Matthew 20:28 and 28:18-20.) Christ was willing to be a servant, and did not come to be ministered to. Likewise if are to be used of God we must pay the price of such a ministry. Christ will strengthen, encourage, and enable us as we do HIS will.

There is the sacrifice of TIME (I Thessalonians 2:6-11). There will be demands of giving time to the person we are visiting and following up for the Lord.

There is the requirement that we have PATIENCE, understanding, and compassion.

There will be the need of PERSEVERANCE, tenacity, determination, and hard work. (See Colossians 1:28,29; I Thessalonians 2:9; I Timothy 2:1-6.)

5. We Must Have a LOVE For People. ( John 13:1; Romans 5:5; II Corinthians 5:14) If we studied every Epistle Paul wrote we would find he had a "heart" for people. He wrote, "For I long to see you, that I may impart unto you some spiritual gift, to the end ye may be established" (Romans 1:11). In the book of Philippians we read "...because I have you in my heart...I long after you all in the bowels of Jesus Christ" (1:7,8). Then continues his prayer in their behalf. He was concerned for their welfare (Philippians 2:20), and longed to see them (Philippians 4:1). It is obvious that Paul had a heart of love for those to whom he ministered the Word of God.

When we love with Christ's love and there is a commitment to serve, the feelings of love will follow. Loving others is something that takes place in the process of serving (Galatians 5:22, 23). The Holy Spirit will shed abroad in our hearts this kind of love as we yield to Him and ask for Christ's love in and through us to others. (See I Corinthians 13: 1- 8.)

6. Christ will only use a Godly life. To be godly does not mean perfection, but it does mean to walk blamelessly. That necessitates-- confession of sin (I John 1:7, 9) -- forsaking of sin (Proverbs 28: 13) -- maintaining fellowship (I John 1:7) -- and complete openness (James 5:16; I John 1:7).

God has always used pure instruments. In fact, our usefulness to God as a discipler is in direct proportion to our purity. God does not primarily use men with great ideas, ability, or intellect, but rather men with great likeness to Jesus Christ. (II Timothy 2:21). He desires that we would be vessels of honor, sanctified, clean and prepared for every good work.

Paul wrote to the believers about his life and that they were witnesses to his devout, upright and blameless life before them (I Thessalonians 2: 10). It is not the absence of sin that makes us an example, but rather a walk with Christ, as we deal with sin, forsake it, and build our lives. (See Isaiah 6:1-8.) Here Isaiah sensed the holiness of God, recognized that he was undone, and experienced cleansing; then he was ready to answer God's call about whom God could send.

7. There must be a total yielding to the Holy Spirit. There must be a thorough understanding of the Holy Spirit's role in the follow-up and discipling of others. The responsibility to bring about Christlikeness, growth, and maturity is really not ours, but HIS. We cannot bring about a spiritual work in the heart and life. It is a comfort to know that He is the divine agent to bring about this growth. It does not ultimately rest upon us, although we are the instrument that He would use to build that person in Christ.

It is very necessary that we understand the ministry of the Spirit. (Study John 14:26; 15:26,27; 16:7-15; 7:37-39; Acts 1:2, 5, 8; Acts 2) The Holy Spirit is mentioned no less than sixty times in the book of Acts. The book is not the "Acts of the Apostles," but the "Acts of the Holy Spirit through the Apostles." He is the Divine Agent to bring about the will of the triune God.

The Holy Spirit is the source, for He must make the truth real to the heart of the disciple. But we must cooperate with Him, for we are the ones He would use to bring the truth to that person. It is imperative that we are a "Spirit-filled" vessel that He can use. (See Ephesians 5: 18.) If we are not sure just what that means, then we must come to the place where we do understand and are fully yielded to His control. There are choice books written by godly people that would aid in the understanding of this truth.


QUESTIONS, THOUGHTS FOR CONSIDERATION:

1. How valuable is any ministry without God's love in and through us? (See I Corinthians 13: 1- 8; Galatians 5: 22.)


2. Do we truly love Christ, or have we left that first love? Do we need to... remember... repent... return and do the first works? (See Revelation 2:4,5.)

3. What do you think would be the characteristics of Christ's love that would be evident to the person we are following up or discipling?

4. How would travail for lost souls and for new converts be exhibited in our lives?


5. What do Isaiah 53: 10, 11 and Galatians 4: 19 mean to you? What was Christ's burden like, according to Hebrews 5: 7, 8?


6. How do we believe God with the "total confidence" we note in David's life? Does this make any difference?


7. Why the challenge of Hebrews 11: 1, 6?


8. The world pays a price for almost anything they really desire; can we expect less in our service for Christ?


9. Make a list of things you are willing to do in paying the price necessary to be a soul-builder and a soul-winner. Will the Lord honor you if you have a willing heart? How do you know?


10. How can we develop a love for people? Think of a list of things you could do that would foster that love.


11. Why did Paul have such a love? (See II Corinthians 5:14.) Note the context.


12. Make a study of Paul's life and note the things he said about his life that would denote holy living. Then note the portions where he was used of the Holy Spirit to challenge us to a holy life. Study these for your own life.


13. Make a study of having a Spirit-filled life. Read some good books about the Holy Spirit's ministry.



CHAPTER SEVEN


Testimonies and Examples of Discipling,
and a Follow-up Ministry



If we make a study of all the Epistles, especially Paul's, we could take particular note of testimonies about results in the lives he touched. Paul wrote often of things he expected and believed God for in the lives of those to whom he ministered. Later we will take note of some of those special blessings that Paul mentioned.

If a man by the name of Edward Kimball could come and share with us, he would tell how he began to make disciples in his Sunday School class in the 1800's. The results of his labors are with us today. In fact, some of us may be the direct result of Kimball's spiritual multiplication. Through his burden and effort D.L. Moody was saved. Kimball was committed to reaching every lost youth in his Sunday School class. He was particularly burdened for this backward fellow who worked in a shoe shop. He persuaded the young man to accept Christ as his personal Savior. Kimball was known for the way he spent time with the people whose lives he touched.

History tells us of the way God used the Spirit-anointed D.L. Moody. Through his life many, many were saved and discipled. Then F.B. Meyer was greatly influence by Moody's life. Through Meyer God touched J. Wilbur Chapman, who later went into an evangelistic ministry. Chapman's own crusade advance man was later a well known man by the name of Billy Sunday. So through all of this we see God's continued work through the life of one little-known man, Mr. Kimball. We should be challenged by Edward Kimball's example to multiply ourselves spiritually through others to help accomplish the Great Commission of reaching the world for Christ.

In 1962 a man with his family arrived in Singapore to begin a ministry of reaching men and discipling them for Christ. He sought for God to use him as he walked from one end of the island to the other, pleading with God to raise up generations of people who would reach out into Asia and beyond. Half of the world's population lives within a three-thousand-mile radius of Singapore.

Through one or two contacts he saw the work begun, and for eight years he and his wife gave themselves to this great open door, meeting with individuals as God gave them opportunity. Several Asians actually moved into his home in order to have a more intensive ministry contact. They set goals, desiring God to raise up thirty "mighty men" (I Chronicles 11:1) and
thirty "godly girls" (Proverbs 31) during the year. To be such, these needed to reproduce unto the third generation on a one-on-one basis. God fulfilled this. Then fifteen years later a newspaper made a survey because of the great effect of their ministry upon the nation. This survey showed that half of the educated people were now Christians where formerly less than 10% had been. Something happened in those two decades. While we might not approve of all their methodology, yet the fact is God uses those who are determined to produce disciples.

A missionary with great sadness told the following story. He had done his missionary work the usual way that most feel is Scriptural. He had won a few and had begun to pastor them, hoping someday to see a good sized church with perhaps someone among the nationals willing to take over the work.

Across town was another missionary whom he could not understand. He seemed to be content to win a man and spent a lot of time with just that one, which seemed a waste of time and foolish to this missionary who was casually touching many lives and winning a number to Christ. The other missionary ploddingly worked with a small handful.

The years quickly went by, and suddenly all the missionaries had to leave the country because of turmoil in the land. The first missionary left behind a small struggling church, with no one capable to lead it , and in just weeks the work was totally dissolved. The second man left behind a number of well trained, dedicated, well-taught, and discipled men. They went on to establish many churches after the missionary left. They had been taught well and could reproduce in others what had been given them. They knew how to carry on the work, and were spiritually prepared to do it. The first missionary, with tears and great weeping, told of the loss of all his effort and the emptiness of the work he left, because the people left behind were all "babes" who had never been personally taught and matured for Christ.

Does the work of follow-up and multiplication through the Biblical method really work? Yes, a thousand times, yes!

Personally, in my experience, we arrived in Wheatland, Wyoming in l956. Soon we were seeing people saved and added to the work. We began to disciple them "one on one", taking them through a course for twelve weeks in their homes. This brought about maturity, preparation to be used of God, and a desire to labor in the local church.

Later in 1961 God moved us to Casper, Wyoming, to take a struggling new church work. Again, as we prayed for God to give us families, some years we had from one to two families a month saved and added to the church. This was a process, for again we labored with them after their salvation decision. This meant taking the time to disciple them through the course of study for thirteen weeks which was taught in their homes. At times we were studying concurrently with as many as eight families. Deacons were trained to help in this endeavor. Some of them stated that they had never done anything that brought as much joy as working with new converts in such a study and seeing them blossom into mature, willing, active Christians.

This developed them into serving Christians. During those years probably about 80% of those who made professions of faith became active, vibrant, serving Christians. From this number came our Sunday School teachers, deacons, and laborers for the Lord. Some of them got a vision to be used in this very same way when the Lord moved them elsewhere.

Yes, it is worth it all to pay the price of discipling the new convert.
















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