Top Ten Priorities in Discipleship
1. Treasuring God: that God would be the center and focal point in all they do
2. Gospel Relevance: that they would live out the application of the gospel for their daily life
- Hearing the Music of the Gospel Article– Keith Johnson provides a wonderful picture of spiritual transformation where we are carried along by the rhythm of God’s Spirit through his Word, in contrast to the mechanical dance steps of behavioral change.
- Heart Idol Study– An article, worksheet, and questions to discuss the idols we worship over Jesus.
- All of Life is Repentance– Author Tim Keller shows how the life of Christ is produced and seen in us through a lifestyle of repentance and humility.
3. Spirit-filled Life/Dependence: that they would understand and live out daily dependence on the Spirit
- Walking in the Spirit Article – While we are filled with the Holy Spirit the moment we trust Christ, learning to walk in the Spirit (fully empowered, reliant, yielded to God’s will) is a lifestyle requiring our active participation.
- My Chance Meeting with the Holy Spirit Story– An allegory on what it means to live the Spirit Filled Life
4. The Word: that they would learn how to study the Word and to allow it to change them
- Perspective: We are formed by our inputs
- Perspective: Why the word matters
- Skill: Basic devotional reading
- Skill: How to spend time with God
- A Daily Time With the Lord Article– Nothing is more important to Christian growth than a daily time of prayer and study of the Scripture. This article explains how and why to have a daily Quiet Time.
- Devotions Aren’t Magic Study– We can be tempted to think that if we just figure out the secret formula we will experience euphoric moments of rapturous communion with the Lord. Jon Bloom goes through 5 points and passages to fight this misconception.
- How Sharp is Your Sword Worksheet– Test your knowledge of the word and where to find verses that explain what we believe.
- Go To Verses Worksheet– Spend time finding your favorite Go to Verses on various topics.
- Christ in All of Scripture Article– To grow in our understanding of the Scripture we need to understand that, from Genesis to Revelation, the Bible is all about Jesus. This article sets the foundation for seeing Christ in all of Scripture.
5. Prayer: that they would learn why and how to pray and grow in their practice of prayer
- How the Gospel Affects Our Prayer Life Article– Tim Keller addresses how to apply the gospel to your prayer life.
- Seven Reasons to Pray Article– Few people have studied the effects of prayer more than Dan Hayes, and here he provides seven compelling reasons why prayer must come first, preceding anything and everything we might venture to do for Christ
6. Eternal Perspective: that they would be living for the eternal
- A Biblical Portrait of Heaven & Hell Article– The Bible has a lot to say about both Heaven and Hell. Author Byron Strider gathers all of the biblical data and relates his findings in a very readable way.
- Eternal Perspective– Living with an eternal perspective is about living for those things that will last forever. Viewed from heaven, what will we wish we had done during our time here? Roger Hershey explains this eternal mindset that is essential to living for Christ today.
7. Evangelism: that they would know how to share their faith, and consistently step out in faith to do so
- Why we Share our Faith Article– Four reasons from Scripture for why we share our faith.
- 3 Modes of Evangelism Worksheet– Discuss the 3 modes that evangelism can happen through (Answers)
- Your Story Training– Complete training on how to prepare and share their testimony
- One Verse Evangelism– Be prepared to naturally share your faith through just one verse.
8. Love: that love would increasingly be the marker of how they relate to God, people, and the world
- One Another’s Study– The following New Testament passages shed important light on the nature of our relationships as believers. They help us see how the gospel transforms the way we relate to “one another” in Christ.
9. Multiplication: that they would learn how to multiply their kingdom impact through discipleship
- The Challenge to Spiritual Multiplication– Study 2 Timothy 2:2-10 together to see how to multiply your faith into other people.
10. Being sent/ World View-:
- How to Fulfill the Great Commission– Bill Bright, Cru’s Founder, writes about the greatest challenge ever given to man by the greatest person who has ever lived.
- God is a Missional God Study– Look at 2 key verses to see this theme that runs throughout the Bible.
- Let the Nations Be Glad
- One and Only Great Commission
There are obviously more than 10 issues to discuss… these are some other issues we considered including:
- What is God’s Will for my Life? – David Platt discusses how God’s will for our lives is easily found in the Bible.
- Stewardship of Money– This article is about faithful stewardship of the financial resources God has entrusted to us.
- Purity Discipleship Study– Look at 2 verses and discuss God’s heart for purity while also getting to some of the harder questions to ask.
- Adam Bomb– Article for women from the Fantasy book regarding modesty for women and how to honor God in relationships with men.
- The Growth Model– The growth model for our ministry is a description of four “developmental tasks” that every person has to go through on the road to a healthy adulthood.
- Time Management– Read an article and fill out a Time Management worksheet to see how they are best using their time.
- Spiritual Self Assessment– Get to know your disciple as they assess where they need to grow.
- Discipleship Goal and Planning Sheet– Help your disciple evaluate their time and what they are trusting God for.
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Cru at the University of Illinois 