THE FOUR STAGES IN THE TRAINING OF DISCIPLES

STAGE APPROACH MATTHE FRAMES LUKE JUAN

INITIAL DISCOVERY
Yo OF WHO THE KING
4:12 - 17 1:14-15 4:14-44 1:35-5:47
IS AND WHAT THE
KINGDOM OF GOD IS
Phase A: Evangelization
COME AND and conversion of the 1:35 - 2:11
SEE first disciples
Phase B: Initial follow-
up of the first 2:12 - 4:45
disciples
Phase C: Recovery
Period bending, 4:12 - 17 1:14 - 15 4:14 - 44 4:45 - 5:47
evaluation, and
II COME TRAINING FOR
AFTER ME LIVE THE LIFE OF
AND I WILL... THE KINGDOM OF 4:18 - 25 1:16 - 3:12 5:1 - 6:11
GOD
TRAINING TO
III SHARE THE LIFE OF 5:1 - 25:46 3:13 - 13:37 6:12 - 21:38 6:1 - 12:50
THE KINGDOM OF
GOD
Phase A: Appointment as
collaborators 5:1 3:13 - 19 6:12 - 16
COME AND Phase B: Additional
STAY training to serve 5:2 - 9:38 3:20 - 6:6 6:17 - 8:56
WITH ME Phase C: Practical work
10:1 - 11:30 6:7 - 30 9:1 - 10
Phase D: Sifting of the
disciples John 6:60-66

Phase E: Multiplication
of workers 10:1 - 24

Phase F: Training and

advanced education 12:1 - 25:46 6:31 - 13:57 10:25 - 21:38

SENT TO SERVE IN
THE KINGDOM OF 26:1 - 28:20 14:1 - 16:20 22:1 - 24:53 13:1 - 21:25
IV GOD
Phase A: Keys to success
GO AND (26:1 - 46) (14:1 - 31) (22:1 - 38) 13:1 - 17:26
in the work.
MAKE Phase B: The crucifixion
DISCIPLES 26:47 - 28:15 14:32 - 16:13 22:39 - 24:43 18:1 - 20:31
and resurrection.
Phase C: Confirmation
of the call to 21:1 - 25
ministry.
Phase D: Sent to serve in (15:16, 27;
28:16 - 20 16:14 - 20 24:44 - 53
the kingdom. 17:18)
WHAT DO THE FOUR STAGES REVEAL ABOUT THE STRATEGY OF
JESUS TO MAKE DISCIPLES?
1. Jesus' strategy for making disciples makes it clear that he sought nothing less than trans
formation of lives . It means that the good news of the gospel goes far beyond forgiveness of sins
and regeneration. Jesus' intention is to lead the believer to long-term growth where they mature,
serve, worship from the heart, and reproduce spiritually. When one believes (in phase "A" of Stage
I), that is not the end, but just the beginning of a process designed to develop a whole new life. Any
other way of understanding the gospel, or of living the Christian life, distorts and diminishes the
fullness of the gospel and hinders the purposes of God. The danger is that we believe and share
only half of the gospel, that is, that of the forgiveness of sins and the new birth, such that the new
believer is born without any expectation of seeing his life transformed. By doing that, we program
him and condemn him to mediocrity.

When one responds with faith to the gospel, the Great Commission is not yet fulfilled in his life.
Ape nas is the first step to starting a new life. It can be compared, for example, to the conception,
pregnancy and the birth of a baby. The nine months of pregnancy are very important important, but
they are only one percent of the nine hundred months that a person who dies at age seventy-five
will live. They only serve to launch him into life and, if the baby does not grow after birth, it is
because something went wrong in the first phase of his life while he was forming. maba. It was
never God's intention that man should spend his entire life in a cradle, but as we consider the
condition of some churches, we see that they are little more than "spiritual cradles." There we
realize that the challenge facing us is not so much learning how to conceive and give birth to new
"babies in Christ", but how to implement a process that enables them to create cer well.
Evangelizing and baptizing many people does not mean that we are fulfilling the Great
Commission well. Nor is it Christ's goal to have churches full of spiritual babies who cannot be
cared for, fed, or reproduced. On the contrary, Christ longs to fill his Church with mature believers
(Eph. 4:13). Otherwise, the Great Commission becomes the Great Omission.

2. Jesus' strategy for making disciples also makes it clear that we must learn to be leaders of
him before we can be leaders of others . He did not give leadership responsibilities to rookies
without giving them proper training first. Jesus knew that several key things would have to happen
in the early stages for the disciple to be prepared to serve as a leader in the work. Such changes
were necessary to produce leaders worthy of the trust of other believers and who were good models
of the gospel. Such a thing does not happen quickly because, since this is not just about carrying
out activities, but about molding the person into the image of Jesus, adequate time is required to
achieve profound changes.

This does not mean that you have to wait for years to get it done before you can start. zar to witness
and minister to others. The example of the Samaritan woman is enough to correct that idea. But it
does mean that Jesus was in no hurry to burden anyone with responsibilities beyond their maturity
and capacity, when he knew well the damage that a novice could do to the work, and the work to
him. Because discipleship is a process where each advance towards the goal is built on the previous
ones, what is done halfway, what is neglected, and what is skipped, harms what follows and limits
stability, potential, and future growth of the believer.

3. The Four Stages chart also shows us that the small group is Jesus' chosen context to form
his disciples. He used this structure as the basis of his work with the disciples from the beginning of
his ministry. It is assumed that it had been the ideal and indispensable tool to achieve their
purposes, because it offered unlimited opportunities. ted to give them the necessary attention. It
created an intimate context to teach, correct, confront talk, answer, encourage, and do other things
that cannot be done in person from the pulpit. And the small group offered the ideal place to foster
the love of disciples. towards Jesus and towards each other. Many Bible teachings focus on
relationships in one aspect or another because the Bible, at its core, is a book of relationships.
Therefore, developing this aspect of the disciples' lives was essential to train them well and to
enable them to give a quality testimony in the future. At the end of his ministry, Jesus emphasized
to the disciples three times at the Last Supper (Jn. 13:34-35; 15:12, 17) that the ability and
disposition The ability to love one another, as he had loved them, would be the characteristic he
sought most in their lives, precisely because of the impact this would have on the world.

Such love was not a feeling that was born spontaneously based on the attractiveness of the beloved.
On the contrary, this love was only developed in practice, and based on the constant choice of the
will. Only by being together as a small group, and in a variety of situations, could the disciples
learn to love each other in both the best and worst of times. Learning to relate and function as a true
team, still capable of overcoming the attacks of the world, was something that only a small group
context offered.

4. The Stages graph also works on the assumption that, for one to understand To move to the
next stage, a greater commitment is required than the one you made when you entered the
previous stage. Each stage is guaranteed to stimulate and stretch the disciple to become more
involved in the lives of others, to obey and train at higher levels, to assume new responsibilities, to
develop new skills, to accept greater character formation, to try things did not believe he was
capable before, to take greater risks, to claim God's promises with more urgency, to depend on Him
with ever greater tenacity, to discover and take advantage of divine resources more and more, and
to live more and more every day. strengthened in the love and truth of God.

God always invites us, and sometimes pushes us, to continue advancing and maturing to conform
us more like Christ. This is only achieved by living by saying "yes" to Jesus' invitations to advance
through the stages. Discipleship is the path to abundant life, fruitful life, joyful life, and victorious
life. It is the path to life where one can make an eternal difference in the lives of others. It is the
path that leads us to find the answers to the important questions of life, such as "Who am I, where
am I going, why am I here, what really matters in life, and how can we achieve something?" lasting
value in life?"

But if the believer does not receive adequate help to grow, he or she often continues to live as close
to the world as possible. He does this in order to have the best of both worlds. But in your desire to
get the best of both, you will never have the best of either. The influence of the world limits your
ability to fully enjoy the kingdom and the influence of the kingdom restricts your ability to fully
enjoy the world. Only following Jesus as a disciple will give you what your heart desires most.
Discipleship is the only path to abundant life.

THE FORMATION OF DISCIPLES IN THE MINISTRY OF JESUS

STAGE
I. To the unsaved, Jesus' invitation is “ COME AND SEE ” (John 1:39).

Jesus' strategy for turning them into motivated disciples is “ I do it--you. They watch me .”

The goals of stage I are: bring them to Christ, integrate them into the church, show them how to live
the kingdom life, and infect them with the desire to become what God has designed them to be.

They are given many opportunities to see and hear what it is like to know Christ and live for him.

They begin as unbelievers — they end as believers (disciples) eager to grow more.

II. To motivated disciples, Jesus' invitation is “ COME AFTER ME… ” (Mark. 1:17).

Jesus' strategy for turning them into mature disciples is “ You do it with me .”

The goal of stage II is: to form them into growing, obedient, and reproductive disciples.

They develop the habits that promote their long-term growth, discover gifts, train themselves, and
position themselves to serve according to their gifts.
 They begin as motivated disciples -- they end as disciples capable of being salt and light.

III. To mature and available disciples, Jesus' invitation is “ COME AND BE WITH ME ” (Mark 3:14).

Jesus' strategy for turning them into collaborators is " You do it—I watch you ."

The goal of stage III is: to involve them in the work with significant responsibilities where they can
carry out their ministries and contribute in important ways to the work of the Kingdom.

We put them to serve in the ministry to which the Lord has called and gifted them to serve Him with
the support, advanced training, formation, and supervision of the leadership of the church.

They begin as mature disciples -- they end as collaborators and disciplers.

IV. To disciplers, Jesus' command is “ GO AND MAKE DISCIPLES ” (Matthew 28:18-20).

Jesus' strategy for maximizing your potential is " You do it yourself ."

The goal of stage IV is: to release them under the direction of the Holy Spirit to serve in or lead the
ministry to which the Lord sends them, whether inside or outside the church.

With a spiritual integrity already demonstrated, which is based on character, knowledge, nes,
personal relationships, and reproduction, are sent to serve as ministry leaders .

They start as collaborators - they end as makers of disciplers and leaders of leaders.

THE OBJECTIVES OF THE FOUR STAGES OF DISCIPLESHIP

STAGE I

A. Interest the unconverted in Christ and his gospel so that the desire to know him is born.

B. Lead him to believe in Christ and thus, to become his disciple.

C. Give the new believer a follow-up designed to demonstrate the power of the gospel and God's
love to transform lives...so that they do not settle for less in their own life.

D. Make it clear to the new believer that no human being should occupy the place in his life that
corresponds only to Christ.

E. Help the new believer see the eternal harvest around him and hear Christ's invitation to join him
in the work of the kingdom.

F. Help the new believer evaluate his or her life and know how to make the necessary adjustments
to join the purposes of Christ.

STAGE II

A. Encourage the disciple to enter a new stage of development so that he becomes a fisher of men,
and teach him to live depending daily on Christ, receiving from him the rewards. courses
available and necessary for your own growth and to develop your ministry.

B. Integrate the disciple into a group of growth and mutual responsibility.

C. Let the disciple see Christ at work in a variety of situations, needs, and people so that he or she
better understands the implications of his or her identity and the gospel.
D. Help the disciple develop the habits and skills necessary to foster his growth. ment for the rest
of life through prayer, Bible study, fellowship mo, worship, service, and evangelism.

E. Encourage the disciple to identify himself as such in the midst of, and despite, opposition.

F. Keep the disciple in contact with the world so that he knows how to live in it without being part
of it.

G. Help the disciple try various ministries to discover, develop, and put to work his spiritual gifts,
and thus function as a participating member in the body of Christ.

H. Support the disciple as he develops all aspects of life under the lordship of Christ.
STAGE III

A. Invite the faithful, responsible, and maturing disciple to identify the main area where he should

serve the Lord.

B. Put you to work as a collaborator in that area of ministry with the support, advanced training,
and supervision of church leadership.

C. Provide frequent training as necessary for continued development and fruition. growing fication
in his ministry.

D. Continue your active participation in a small group so that you live in mutual responsibility and
continue to grow in conformity with the image of Christ.

E. Increase in appropriate steps your level of responsibility and influence in the ministry.

F. Give you new experiences and challenges to challenge and stretch your faith and abilities, and
to strengthen your intimacy with the Lord and dependence on Him.

G. Maintain your contact with the world so that you continue to improve your ability to be salt
and light.

H. Put you to training others in the areas of your gifts and experience.

I. Help you develop the perspective, life purposes, and values necessary to continue growing,
bearing good fruit, and serving with joy in the long term.

STAGE IV

A. Invite the best disciplers to accept higher levels of responsibility to lead ministries, train
collaborators, be leaders of leaders, and thus multiply

B. Train them to develop new work strategies, form new ministries, resolve see conflicts, train
collaborators, evaluate and improve current ministries, foster an environment of love and
integrity that glorifies God, help the church to maintain Be faithful to the vision that God has
given you, and motivate them to continue training in the long term.

C. Have them train, evaluate, improve ministries, develop people, expand vision, and lead in the
strongest areas of their gifts, knowledge, experiences, and abilities.
c
D. Keep them in a small group of mutual responsibility to promote their perpetual growth into the
image of Christ.

E. Teach them the priority of providing the necessary resources, direction, and support to the
people with whom they collaborate so that they achieve together the greatest degree of success
possible, and of celebrating their successes.

Source: Eric Jonson, “An Introduction to Jesus and His Disciples”