Discipleship vs. Making Disciples (Part 3 of 3)

Thankfully we have people in Christendom right now that see the dire straits we are in when it comes to making true disciples. Steve Van Diest sent me this recent blog post from Gordon MacDonald. Unfortunately, no one really seems to have an answer to the problem. Here's the kicker...

Those who see the problem and have the authority and platform to speak to it (well-known pastors) can't find an answer because they don't want the answer they need to find. How is that?

In the west we have modeled church after an Old Testament religious structure, the synagogue. We have a high priest (the pastor), a temple (large church building), a rigid structure to enter into worship (Sunday service, and yes, even in contemporary services), and flock of people that look to the high priest for all their instruction.

I feel like I need to say that this system is not all bad. God has used it for centuries to bring millions into a relationship with him. But I think it's time to step into what German church researcher Christian Schwarz calls the third reformation - a reformation of structure, a return to the early church model.

God created us to function at maximum efficiency when we live alongside a group of people that know us inside and out. Sociology will even tell you that. Sociology also tells us that people cannot maintain more than 150 genuine relationships (Dunbar's number). So why do our churches push through the "200 ceiling" in order to continue to grow. Nature show us that nothing grows indefinitely, rather it multiplies. Unfortunately, we have a lot of pastors who want the church to grow and grow and grow and grow until we have a big blog of a whole lot of spiritual bed wetters.

I don't claim to possess the answer to spiritual bed wetting. I wish I could. But I do believe true discipleship happens in community, not in just a one-on-one relationship. It happens when people commit to listening to the Holy Spirit and living in radical obedience to Jesus in community.

What would it look like for churches across the country to form networks of smaller churches that continue to multiply rather than adding a third sanctuary. Keep the big church. Fine. But don't make it the center of everything you do. Make it a resource building for the needs of the church network and the needs of the community/city. Empower people to lead.

Make your church a hybrid model. This doesn't mean that you add more cell groups or make another DVD to help facilitate small groups. This means planting more churches...real, genuine, Jesus-sanctified, fully empowered churches.

The principles apply directly to campus ministries. Just change the word church to movement.

Here in Mexico City, we use a Life Transformation Group model that enables groups of 3 to live in radical obedience to the Great Commandment and the Great Commission. I don't think LTG's are the answer, but they help. We need to create communities where the community holds the power, where believers love and challenge one another. We need elders who serve the community and enable it to function in a healthy way.