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Ecclesia Community Group Facilitator Guide - Disciple(s) - Discipleship Pathway 01

Disciple(s)

Opening:

Before getting directly to the spiritual disciplines there are some things that are helpful as preliminary considerations. First let us consider Jesus’ invitation into how he called his first followers, and the implications for who he was calling them to be.

 

Matthew 4:18-22

18 As he walked by the Sea of Galilee, he saw two brothers, Simon, who is called Peter, and Andrew his brother, casting a net into the sea—for they were fishers. 19 And he said to them, “Follow me, and I will make you fishers of people.” 20 Immediately they left their nets and followed him. 21 As he went from there, he saw two other brothers, James son of Zebedee and his brother John, in the boat with their father Zebedee, mending their nets, and he called them. 22 Immediately they left the boat and their father and followed him.

 

“Follow me,” an invitation. “Fishers of people,” a commission. In this invitation and commission there lie powerful statements of who Jesus is calling us to be. In order to further illuminate our understandings, let us turn to seem first century insight. 

A snapshot of the first century world of a Rabbi and disciples

  • Watch video Nooma: Dust (link here)

  • Discussion Questions:

    • As per the video, what are the essential elements that make up the identity of a disciple?

    • Why do you think Jesus didn’t pick the "best of the best" top-tier students to be his disciples?

    • What message does it send about how God views you when you realize Jesus chose regular, flawed people to change history?

    • It is often easy to say we have faith in Jesus, but how does it feel to consider that Jesus has faith in you? 

    • Faith is often a word used for what an individual has towards God. Is “faith” too strong or inappropriate of a word to use for what God might have in us? What other word might or approach might be preferable?

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    • Questions on the usefulness of this first century snapshot:

    • What benefits does this first century picture of a disciple offer for the Christian life?

    • How helpful is it to have this insight into the picture of a disciple?

    • How does this picture inform the way you see your relationship with God?

    • What is something essential to the Christian life that this picture may leave out?

    • Original languages in which the Bible was written and translated serve as significant ongoing points of reference for engaging the Biblical text and discovering its meaning. In addition to the original Biblical languages, does something like the Rabbi-disciple relationship/picture merit the place of a continual reference point? Should we keep coming back to this image and its specifics? What is the extent of its metaphoric potential (or any other) for our relationship with God?

    • Any additional thoughts, questions, impressions not covered in the questions above?

Implications for the commissional aspect of our identity as disciples:

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Matthew 28:16-20

16 Now the eleven disciples went to Galilee, to the mountain to which Jesus had directed them. 17 When they saw him, they worshiped him, but they doubted. 18 And Jesus came and said to them, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. 19 Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit 20 and teaching them to obey everything that I have commanded you. And remember, I am with you always, to the end of the age.”

 

Discussion Questions:

  • Have you ever made a disciple? What does it take to make a disciple?

  • Would you consider yourself a disciple and what does that mean to you?

  • Do you believe you can become like Jesus and do what he did? Does this belief show up in areas of your life? For Christians, what about the specific area of “making disciples?” Do you believe you can make disciples? Does your life reflect the belief that you can make disciples as Jesus did?

  • Given this first century insight of the Rabbi-disciple relationship, what might we learn about what it means to make disciples?

  • Thinking further about Discipleship (optional) : What is the difference between discipleship and education? In what way might a disciple and a Christian be the same or different? Is there such a thing as a Christian who is not a disciple?

 

For the weeks ahead this picture of the Rabbi-disciple relationship will serve as part of a foundation for understanding how we follow Jesus and walk with God. With this picture in place we will now turn our attention to the spiritual disciplines and the help they provide. 

For next week:​

  • Read Chapter 1, The Spiritual Disciplines: Door to Liberation from Celebration of Discipline, by Richard Foster. ("sample")

  • Take notes, and jot down questions in order to discuss as a group at the next community group gathering

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