Lesson 11 of 13 on Discipleship

“At Luray Caverns there is an area of water that reflects the Stalactites above. The depth of the water is misleading because it is only a few inches but it looks much deeper than that. Oftentimes modern leadership theories that contradict the teaching, and example, of Christ are like that body of water…they presumably show depth and seem amazing…but they are shallow. The work of the gospel…and leading in that… isn’t for the here and now…it isn’t for the immediate…or for the numbers, the statistics, the reports…the work of the gospel is to carry the good of the here and now…and allow it to grow further…right through into eternity.”—Falvo Fowler

Scriptural Basis: Luke 6:12–16, John 16:7–14, Luke 6:20–49, Jer. 50:31, Isa. 57:15, Acts 1 Key Text: “Now it came to pass in those days that those days that He went out to the mountain to pray, and continued all night in prayer to God. And when it was day, He called His disciples to Himself; and from them He chose twelve whom He also named apostles” (Luke 6:12, 13, NKJV).
1. Name a person in the Bible that was a good leader. In your opinion what makes them a good leader? 2. Think through all the good reasons that you have for your faith. At the same time, what role has experience played? Why do we need both? 3. What did Jesus do to transform his disciples from the uneducated to leaders? 4. Jairus, a centurion, Nicodemus, Zacchaeus, the Samaritan woman, the list goes on. What do all these have in common with the Master teacher? What leadership trait do we learn from this? 5. What important lessons can we learn from Jesus for today’s 24/7 ministerial work week? 6. How did this help in His disciple-making? 7. Luke 6:39: what does Jesus say we need to keep in mind while seeking to make disciples? 8. How can we be sure that we are not like that which Jesus is warning about here? 9. What can a local church do to disciple their spiritual leaders? Paolo Benini from Italy contributed to the questions of this lesson