One Shall Tell Another ...

One of the important aspects of the Discovery Bible approach that we are using is to methodically include an encouragement & challenge to tell others in each session. This is usually towards the end of the session with a question like 'who do you think you might tell?' or 'how / when might we tell this to others?'.

This question is used even in the earliest stages, before the participants have received Christ for themselves. The fact that they have not made any kind of decision for Jesus doesn't mean that they can't start telling others of what they have discovered so far, or of their steps of exploration.

This is important because it builds in the principle that we can share our faith right from the start. The Great Commission is not some add-on for the few keenies, but fundamental to following Jesus - to discipleship itself. To talk of 'missionary disciples' is counter-productive because true discipleship should be intrinsically missional by definition - it doesn't need the adjective!

At the start of the next session in amongst the natural 'how are you?' questions, each person is asked how they have got on with telling others. Of course this is not an interrogation, and we don't do shame, but we do model loving accountability from the outset - which is another key component of the approach.

Of course it may be that someone has not identified any opportunity to tell, or not seized it when it presented. But with the Spirit at work pleasant surprises can arise: in one session someone fed back that they had not just told the one person they identified the week before, but in fact had told the whole group that they were mutually part of. It is this one-to-many occurrence that gives rise to the possibility of gospel multiplication and further spread of the Good News.

Decisions for Jesus

When someone decides to follow Jesus, there is alot going on. We should never understand it as merely an intellectual response - but one that includes the emotion and the will of the person. Above all it is a spiritual response.

The reality is that for many people their response is actually a series of responses. Rather than one simple before/after decision, they are making a number of steps along the way. I suspect that this reality applied in the gospels and Acts too: although the accounts may suggest to us simple decisions, dig deeper and it is more messy. For example it took a while for the closest disciples to really get what Jesus was telling them, and Cornelius was already seeking & calling on God before Peter arrived. Others had had "John's baptism" but not the baptism of Jesus and His Spirit, and so on.

When working with enquirers, I have found it is helpful for us to find a language for these multiple steps. It enables us to talk with people about where they are at, recognise & encourage progress, and point towards the total surrender to the Lordship of Jesus that He calls us to. Sticking to a simple (binary) mantra I have found to be unhelpful.

I am indebted to Mark Greenwood's book 'Big Yes Little Yes Healthy Maybe' for giving a good language to use with people. Greenwood argues the same - that most make several steps, and sets out helpful thinking on how we therefore journey with people as they come to Christ response by response.

He characterises those who are basically open to finding out more as giving a 'Healthy Maybe' response. They are not saying 'no' to the gospel, but they are not able to say 'yes' either. Being open might mean that they would be willing to sit down and explore together - that is a healthy response, hence the 'Healthy Maybe'.

As people explore for themselves, they reach points where things start to make sense - but they are not ready to jump all in. There are bits they believe, others they do not (yet), and many things that seem fuzzy. Mark calls these 'Little Yes' responses. The point here is that a person may make many 'Little Yes' responses, as they journey onwards. It is not for us to define the number or the exact points - they are like spiritual response stepping stones.

Eventually something clicks. The person realises that for them there is no real alternative but to follow Jesus with all their mind, soul and strength. This is the 'Big Yes' response, from which we hope there will be no turning back. Baptism and God's filling with the Holy Spirit are the Biblical follow-ons for a person making this response. If you want to talk in terms of crossing the line, then this is it.

Field Number Three - Discipleship in Small Settings

An important mission distinction that is now being realised by Western Christian leaders is between making disciples rather than counting decisions. Many churches have concentrated on the latter and neglected the former. The Great Commission of Matthew 28 is very clear: Make Disciples.

As we meander fields 1 & 2 in the Four Fields model of working amongst new people, we are praying and hoping by God's grace to see people to say a 'Big Yes' to Jesus and embark on a life of discipleship. But the discipling process starts straight away in Field 2 - Gospel Sharing - as we discover who is spiritually open and willing to journey with us in some form of Discovery Bible Study. In those discovery sessions we typically look at the gospel stories of Jesus, to help the enquirer discover Jesus for themselves. As we do that we share and model good discipleship habits, chiefly asking each time: 'Based on this discovery, what do you think Jesus would have you do?'. In simple terms this means modelling obedience to Jesus.

For example an enquirer was doing these kind of sessions with me, looking through episodes in Mark's gospel. Previously we had covered the man lowered through the roof, the man with the withered hand, healings and demons commanded to be quiet in the crowds, calming the storm, and the legion demoniac. This had enabled my new friend to begin to appreciate Jesus as one who can forgive, heal, command the demons, and command the storm. For each aspect we compared what this was saying about Jesus to the gods of his own religious background, and his understanding of those god's capabilities. Through these sessions modelling discipleship included looking to Jesus for healing, accepting that He has the plain & simple authority, and being still with Jesus even in the storms. Story by story the penny started to drop - and we used prayers that I would characterise as 'Little Yes' responses to Jesus.

Then we came to the story of Jesus bringing back Jairus' daughter from her death. This proved to be a key discovery. There was no equivalent story in their own religious background - it is only Jesus who has the power over life and death! His immediate 'Big Yes' to Jesus response takes us into Field 3 - Discipleship in Small Settings. We will continue with the same tools of Discovery Bible Study, but with the shift of context from 'Is Jesus worth following?' to 'What does following Jesus mean for us today?'. The shift is a natural one because remember we were already modelling discipleship from the very first session! Sessions can be done one-to-one or in a group - either way it is a small setting, making it deeply relational and personal for those involved.

Note that we are not so concerned with 'church' yet! That will come ... if the small setting involves more than one (plus the leader), or the enquirer(s) are able to share and start sessions with their own contacts, then you have the first signs of church forming on a micro-scale anyway.