Here are resources to use in helping people journey with Jesus on THE DISCIPLESHIP PATHWAY.

BELONG

(embrace unbelievers)

The gospel declares that because of Jesus Christ, all people are loved, forgiven and accepted by God—all belong (Eph. 1:4-6). Sadly, many don’t experience God’s unconditional love and acceptance and the result is sin
and the pain it brings. But the Holy Spirit is actively at work helping people come to know that they belong. He does so by leading disciple-making churches to embrace unbelievers, thus joining with Jesus in his
ministry of evangelism.

Embracing unbelievers involves developing friendships with those who do not know Jesus, then sharing with them God’s love in ways that convey the good news (gospel) about Jesus accurately, clearly and attractively. Here are
resources recommended by GCI for churches to use in their ministries of evangelism:

  • Alpha – a discussion-based curriculum to use in sharing the gospel with unbelievers in a small group setting.
  • Our Gospel Story – a curriculum for teaching believers how to evangelize.
  • The Sacrament of Evangelism – a book on the theology of evangelism with tips on how
    to evangelize.
  • Evangelism in a Skeptical World – a book that applies the latest in storytelling
    and missiology to equip Christians to tell the unbelievable news about Jesus to friends in a skeptical world.

BELIEVE

(nurture believers)

As people understand the gospel and experience the truth that God, through Jesus, by the Spirit, has included them in his love and life, they begin to see God and themselves in a new light—they begin to believe. The
Spirit leads disciple-making churches to nurture believers.

Believers are nurtured in and through the church in multiple ways—a primary one involves teaching new believers the basics of the Christian faith. Here are the recommended resources to use:

In addition to teaching the basics of the Christian faith, disciple-making churches address the following key issues related to nurturing believers (click on the bar to expand that topic):

Believers are nurtured as they gather with the church to worship the Lord. This corporate worship occurs in several ways: the weekly worship service, small group gatherings, youth ministry meetings, etc. Here are recommended resources for churches to use in this aspect of nurturing believers:
Believers are nurtured in connect group gatherings where there is a transformative environment of intimacy and accountability. In these settings believers share worship, mutual edification and the study of Scripture. Here are recommended resources for churches to use in this aspect of nurturing believers:

For believers to be nurtured in God’s truth, those who teach them must develop competency in preaching and teaching. Here are recommended resources to help them do so:
Believers mature as they become faithful stewards of their entire lives, including their time, talent (natural and spiritual gifts) and treasure (financial resources). Disciple-making churches both model and teach whole-life stewardship. Here are recommended resources to help them do so:

BECOME

(equip workers | multiply leaders, ministries & churches)

As believers journey with Jesus, the Spirit transforms them into who they are (and are becoming) in Christ. Growing into that reality includes engaging as workers in ministry with Jesus, with some workers becoming
disciple-making leaders. The Spirit leads churches to equip workers and multiply leaders who then multiply ministries and churches.

Here are some recommended advanced teaching resources that churches can use in equipping ministers (both workers and leaders):

  • 40 Days of Discipleship– a self-paced, advanced curriculum in GCI doctrine and Trinitarian theology.
  • Education – free and low-cost online courses provided by GCI in theology and ministry practice.
  • Ministry growth– tools to help ministers grow spiritually and in disciple-making competency.

Grounded in the foundational teachings addressed by the resources above, workers and leaders need help to develop competency in the following key aspects of disciple-making ministry (click on the bar to expand that topic):

Jesus' disciple-making ministry is all about relating to and developing people. Competent ministry workers and leaders are able to replicate themselves by developing other workers and leaders. Here are recommended resources that address this topic:
Disciple-making workers and leaders are highly motivated and able to motivate others to participate with Jesus in his Great Commission ministry, motivated by his Great Commandment heart. Here are recommended resources that address this topic:
Disciple-making leaders build relationally-based, vision- focused, self-replicating teams. They turn mere task-oriented groups into cohesive teams that are galvanized around shared values, mission, vision and strategies. Here are recommended resources that address this topic:

Competent ministry workers and leaders maximize their effectiveness by managing their time and projects. Here are recommended resources that address this topic:
Ministry workers and leaders need to be able to conduct effective ministry meetings. Here are recommended resources that address this topic:

Active participation in Jesus' disciple-making ministry inevitably brings workers and leaders into the realm of conflict and crisis. Effective ministers deal with these situations with grace and skill. Here are recommended resources that address this topic:

Disciple-making workers and leaders understand the importance of accountability to Jesus, to the church’s disciple-making mission, to their supervisors and co-workers. Here are recommended resources that address this topic:
Disciple-making leaders provide ministry environments characterized by Jesus' own hope and expectancy. They do so by communicating a vivid verbal picture of an expected-preferred future for the ministry---a vision that is faithful to and expressive of the church’s overall disciple-making mission. Here are recommended resources that address this topic:
  • Transformational Church - a book about church renewal by Ed Stetzer and Thom Rainer.
  • Transitioning - a book about leading change in churches by Dan Southerland.
  • Here is a 20-minute video from GCI addressing the paradigm shifts necessary for church leaders to become competent in disciple-making ministry:
Disciple-making leaders mentor and coach emerging leaders, helping them develop Jesus' character and ministry ability (competency). Here are recommended resources that address this topic:

Disciple-making leaders facilitate the multiplication of ministries and churches. Here are recommended resources that address this topic:

Disciple-making leaders are appropriately involved in the lives and ministries of those they are appointed to superintend---providing for growth and accountability in accordance with relevant GCI governance and administrative policies. Here are resources that address this topic:
Disciple-making leaders participate in fundraising and lead others to join in. Here are recommended resources that address this topic:

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