This is the blog I really should not need to write. The great Commission commands us to "teach them to obey all that I have commanded you to do", which includes the Great Commission itself. So how well are most Christians being trained to fulfil this task?
It is a question I ask frequently of church-goers, and the answers vary, from the humble Anglicans who claim no training at all, to the enthusiastic Pentecostals who claim that they are "ready to go out with you right now," but when invited to share their testimony usually give a lengthy historical waffle, and a Gospel presentation which is filled with incomprehensible Christian rhetoric.
A good friend of ours says our story should be a tasty piece of bait, otherwise the fish won't be interested. For me that means my story needs to be
- short and precise - aim for a minute!
- current, explaining how Jesus still impacts my life today, not just how He once transformed it
- clear, explaining the difference between my life before and after Jesus
- not just my story, but about how Jesus' story makes all the difference.
For how to do this, look here
Likewise our explanation of the Gospel may be theologically accurate and Biblically sound, but if it simply does not connect with our listeners, or make any sense to them, then we are doomed to failure. We have tried out a number of approaches, and I would suggest you do the same. We currently use the 3-Circles, which we have found to be extremely effective in a Kiwi context. Have a look here
Who do we train? Everybody who is willing to be trained as a disciple-maker. Not just those we think are suitable, but everybody. Some of the most effective evangelists and disciple-makers in the New Testament are people I would not have chosen - the Samaritan woman at the well, the Demoniac, at least half of the twelve disciples, the Apostle Paul, surely the greatest church planter in history!
Much of our training has been focussed on training the capable to function in the church context. Going forward, we absolutely must seek to "equip, train and apprentice every follower of Jesus for the work of ministry as a disciple maker and church planter." (Rick Wood)