Sometimes the best things we're looking for are already under our noses. I've thumbed through a plethora of books over the years looking for the best resource to use for one-to-one discipleship. There's plenty of decent ones out there but I couldn't for the life of me find a resource as comprehensive and yet "user-friendly", in my opinion, as the ESV Study Bible. The essays and charts in the back (covering basic biblical doctrine, ethics, how we got the Bible, a brief church history overview, cults, world religions, and stuff on understanding how the New Testament handles the Old Testament) are top notch and ideal not only for reading on your own but for using in one-to-one discipleship. Even J. I. Packer (Christendom's own Gandalf as it were, and the theological editor of the best selling study bible) likened it to "having a catechist right there with you" (I paraphrase), teaching you the basics of Christian doctrine and living.
One night I met up with a buddy of mine who I had been discipling for a while and we decided to go through the Biblical Doctrine Overview section together. It's basically like a super concise version of Wayne Grudem's Systematic Theology.
So we did and we would meet up once a week for about 2 hours, talk about "life stuff" and pray for each other in the first half, and then spend the rest of the time reading and discussing a section from the Biblical Doctrine Overview (which covers the Bible, the Trinity, the Attributes of God, Creation, Providence, Man, Sin, Salvation, Church, Last Things). He would read a paragraph and then I'd read another, we'd talk about it, and so on. Which was similar to how we do membership classes at my church and is a very simple model anyone could follow and replicate.
It ended up going beyond him and I. He eventually moved but ended up doing the same thing with his wife, a few relatives and friends of his. It was such a blessing and a huge encouragement for me to see some fruit come from our times together. It really was. It showed me that discipling doesn't have to be some huge over-the-top and grand project! I think there are too many classes and programs devoted to this endeavor that are helpful but could (and should) be done by all of us. David Platt has said it best, I think, on this issue:
It's not that sitting in lecture-style settings is not beneficial, but what if Christ has actually set us up to be the teachers? Think about it. What would be the most effective way for this new follower of Christ to learn to pray? To sign her up for a one-hour-a-week class on prayer? Or to invite her personally into your quiet time with God to teach her how to pray? Similarly, what would be the most effective way for this new follower of Christ to learn to study the Bible? To register her in the next available course on Bible study? Or to sit down with her and walk her through the steps of how you learned to study the Bible? This raises the bar in our own Christianity. (Radical: Taking Back Your Faith from the American Dream, p. 100)
So here's all you really need:
1. An ESV Study Bible. And if the person you're discipling doesn't own one you could either read through the articles together out of yours or (even better) go out and get them one! It's an investment!
2. People. Anyone who is hungry for more, even if it's not a new Christian (or even a Christian at all! The Spirit may already be well at work if a non-Christian is sincerely willing to do this!)
3. You. If you don't know a lot of this stuff already, forget it and don't do anything... NO! Bring another (preferably more mature Christian) into it, if you need to. But don't let your lack of theological expertise discourage you from doing this. Learn, grow and do life together! Watch what happens.
I'm not guaranteeing instant results and all kinds of excitement here. Discipleship is messy stuff. There's all kinds of sin and flesh junk to deal with, and this is only part of a bigger picture. Discipleship isn't limited to meeting up at Starbucks for an hour once a week, its a way of life for all of life. But we can't afford to leave all the discipling to classes, programs and seminars anymore. It's time for everyone to get in the game, so text that person, set a time and place, grab that ESV Study Bible and go!
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