“Jesus went up on a mountainside and called to him those he wanted, and they came to him. He appointed twelve that they might be with him and that he might send them out to preach” Think about the environments in which you’ve learned and grown the most. What were the circumstances? What was the setting? What expectations were placed on the leaders and followers? Sunday’s sermon was about the IN in the Jesus Pattern of UP, IN, and OUT. When we develop a life pattern of IN we will consistently engage with other believers in intentional disciple making relationships. Within the church, we often seek to facilitate these relationships through small groups. There are three prevalent kinds of small groups: 1. Information Groups - content-focused groups which typically focus on a book or topical study. 2. Affinity Groups – groups which form based upon common interest that bring people together. 3. Transformation/Discipleship Groups – groups which are open, honest, and vulnerable regarding life with God and others. At Cornerstone Wesleyan Church, it is our hope that intentional disciple making relationships will be nurtured and discipleship groups will begin to form that both invite us to be with others and challenge us to grow in our faith and character. We are seeking to develop a culture of discipleship. But what does this culture of discipleship look like? In the book Building a Discipling Culture, author Mike Breenuses a four-category matrix to illustrate different types of culturebased on the level of invitation and the level of challenge.Invitation refers to the level at which a disciple is invited into a relationship with a discipleship leader, or the amount of access the disciple has to the one setting the example. In a high-invitation setting, disciples are given access to the leader and are invited to observe and learn from the places in which Jesus is at work in the disciple-maker’s life. In a low-invitation setting, the leader remains private and shares little of his or her life experiences with the disciples and is unwilling to discuss personal lessons, challenges and experiences. The example of Jesus with His disciples would be considered high-invitation as He invited them to live life with Him and learn up close. Challenge refers to the level of responsibility both accepted and placed on the disciple by him or herself and the discipleship leader. For example, in a high-challenge setting, disciples are expected to “live into” his or her identity as a son or daughter of the King, taking great care to follow Christ closely and receive instruction from the disciple-maker. In a low-challenge dynamic, there is little expectation or responsibility placed on the disciples. They are free to receive teaching at a selected level, but are not held accountable to make changes or live out a response. In Breen’s four quadrants of discipleship settings, the top left quadrant is the low-challenge/high-invitation setting and is referred to as the “Cozy Quadrant.” The discipleship leaders do most of the work without holding the disciples to any responsibility. Disciple-makers offer access to their lives but place no expectations on the disciples to follow suit. Again, little life-change takes place here, and this is where church leaders experience enormous burnout. The bottom left quadrant is referred to as the “Boring Quadrant.” It is the low-challenge/low-invitation atmosphere in which neither the disciple nor the leader makes an investment in the process. The disciple-maker offers little access to his or her life and does not expect much from the disciple. Little life-change, if any, is experienced here. The bottom right quadrant is that of a low-invitation and a high-challenge and is considered the “Stressed Quadrant.” The disciple-maker offers little access to the disciples, yet they are expected and asked to make drastic changes in their behavior to follow Christ. Without help and guidance, the disciples become overwhelmed and frustrated. The final quadrant is where we prayerfully want to be as a church. In a high-invitation/high-challenge atmosphere, discipleship leaders offer disciples access to their lives and extend a challenge to them in return—the challenge to own and live in their identity as children of God. There is mutual effort in this setting with both leaders and followers committing to a relationship with Christ and each other. The leaders offer to share their journeys with the disciple, and the disciple grants them permission to speak into his or her life in return. As our example, we follow that of Jesus. He very clearly established a high-invitation/high-challenge journey for His disciples and, as a result, transformed them into world-changers. We believe by maintaining the same environment, we will see the Lord start the same kind of movement with us.
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AuthorThe Pastors of Cornerstone Wesleyan Church Archives
July 2017
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