{"id":31955,"date":"2022-09-10T15:50:36","date_gmt":"2022-09-10T20:50:36","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.biblia.work\/sermons\/5-people-who-might-hijack-your-discipleship-ministry\/"},"modified":"2022-09-10T15:50:36","modified_gmt":"2022-09-10T20:50:36","slug":"5-people-who-might-hijack-your-discipleship-ministry","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.biblia.work\/sermons\/5-people-who-might-hijack-your-discipleship-ministry\/","title":{"rendered":"5 People Who Might Hijack Your Discipleship Ministry"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Jehyun Sung photo – Unsplash<\/div>\n

By Chris James<\/em><\/p>\n

As Christians, we know that we\u2019re told to make disciples. Oftentimes, though, we don\u2019t know exactly what that looks like.<\/p>\n

We call a lot of things disciple-making that aren\u2019t really disciple-making at all. At its simplest, disciple-making is one Christian helping another Christian to know and follow Jesus. The process is simple, but people are complex. As a result, disciple-making can be hijacked easily\u2014and even morph into something else altogether.<\/p>\n

Here are some common disciple-making hijackers we need to avoid becoming or following:<\/p>\n

1. The Therapeutic Discipler<\/strong><\/h3>\n

Christians aren\u2019t immune to emotional pain. And, a number of legitimate reasons exist for counseling, therapy, and even medication. But disciple-making isn\u2019t another form of therapy.<\/p>\n

A disciple could easily expect his or her mentor to be a spiritual therapist\u2014someone who will simply listen to all their struggles. Conversely, a discipler might wrongly assume it\u2019s his or her job to \u201cfix\u201d the other person or his problems. Though it\u2019s completely appropriate to share struggles with those we\u2019re following, disciple-making isn\u2019t therapy\u2014it\u2019s the process of learning to obey Jesus in order to help others obey Jesus.<\/p>\n

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2. The BFF Discipler<\/strong><\/h3>\n

Friendship is great. Many guys I\u2019ve discipled have become some of my dearest brothers and friends. Believe it or not, it\u2019s actually biblical. Jesus called his own disciples \u201cfriends\u201d (John 15:15), and Paul called Timothy his \u201ctrue son in the faith\u201d (1 Timothy 1:2).<\/p>\n

But the goal of discipling is not to simply gain friends\u2014it\u2019s to make disciples and other disciple-makers. Jesus and Paul spent considerable time with a select few, but don\u2019t miss the fact that both of them loved their friends and <\/em>trained them for mission.<\/p>\n

If we\u2019re spending more time \u201cjust hanging out\u201d than we are training and growing, we\u2019ll lose focus. We hijack disciple-making when we love our friendship more than the mission.<\/p>\n

3. The Helicopter Discipler <\/strong><\/h3>\n

Most of us have heard of helicopter parents\u2014the moms and dads who constantly hover over their kids keeping them close, making decisions for them, shielding them from consequences, and even doing assignments for them. Even the best parents are tempted to do these things.<\/p>\n

Disciplers face the same temptation towards those we\u2019re leading. We might conclude \u201cthey\u2019re not ready\u201d or \u201cthey need more time,\u201d but every disciple must experience responsibility, risk, success, and failure in the mission of God. Even the best disciple-makers want to keep their strongest leaders as close as possible for as long as possible.<\/p>\n

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See also  The Group Most Likely to Still Be Missing From Your Church<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
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We hijack the disciple-making process by unnecessarily hovering over those we\u2019re leading.<\/p>\n

4. The Co-dependent Discipler<\/strong><\/h3>\n

Disciple-making is a deeply personal experience\u2014both for the discipler and the disciple. Think about it. You\u2019re studying matters of eternal significance, sharing deeply personal information, praying with one another, and probably meeting together on a regular basis. It was designed this way, and there\u2019s nothing wrong with that.<\/p>\n

Though the biblical process is healthy, the people who go through the process sometimes aren\u2019t. Consequently, we must guard ourselves against unhealthy attachments with those we\u2019re leading or following.<\/p>\n

An inordinate amount of time together or feelings of exclusivity, jealousy, dependency, or attraction are all red flags signifying that the disciple-making relationship has been hijacked and might even be morphing into something else.<\/p>\n

5. The Dead-End Discipler<\/strong><\/h3>\n

We must never forget that the goal of disciple-making is not simply to make disciples\u2014it\u2019s actually to make disciple-makers.<\/p>\n

Scripture teaches us, \u201cwhat you have heard from me in the presence of many witnesses entrust to faithful men, who will be able to teach others also\u201d<\/em>(2 Timothy 2:2). Did you catch that? We\u2019re taught in order to teach. We receive in order to give. Someone invests in us so that we might invest in others.<\/p>\n

The Christian mission is not adding more disciples; it\u2019s multiplying more disciple-makers. When we don\u2019t give that challenge\u2014and give it early in the process\u2014we hijack the disciple-making process and risk erecting a dead-end sign on the missional pathway of our personal ministry.<\/p>\n

Let\u2019s beware the temptation of becoming a disciple-making hijacker. Grow significant relationships but stay healthy. Enjoy the process but keep the mission of Jesus central.<\/p>\n

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Chris James<\/h2>\n

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Chris serves as Boston Collegiate Coordinator for the Baptist Convention of New England and pastor of Mill City Church, a multi-site ministry reaching students at UMASS Lowell.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n