The Lost Art of Disciple Making

By: LeRoy Eims

ISBN: 031037281X

READ: June 2000 + more.

RATING: 9/10

Summary: In this is a classic disciple making text, LeRoy Eims lays out a thoroughly practical book. He writes as a practitioner, not a theoretician. I’d highly recommend this book to any disciple maker. It’s one of the few books that’s stood the test of time (originally published in 1978). On the whole the insights are just as relevant today as they were forty years ago. There are a few things I’d not go along with today though. For that reason, it’s a 9, not a 10. Still, if you are making disciples and haven’t read this classic, pick it up. I guarantee you’ll take something useful away!

Chapter titles are: 1. The Need for Multiplying Disciples 2. Biblical Examples of Discipleship Training 3. Making Disciples in the Early Church 4. People Help People 5. The Process of Making Disciples 6. Training Objectives for a Disciple 7. The Workers are Still Few 8. How to Develop Workers 9. Training Objectives for a Worker 10. The Need for Leadership 11. How to Train Leaders 12. Confident and Unashamed Appendix 1. Training Objectives for a Disciple Appendix 2. How to Multiply the Ministry Appendix 3. Profiles of a Convert, Disciple, Worker, and Leader Appendix 4. The Time Elements Involved in the Three Training Processes

Chapter 1: The Need for Multiplying Disciples

“As he [a committed disciple who had been going about ministry by the “book”] sat across the coffee table from me in his home, he told me, ‘LeRoy, I’ve got little to show for my time there. Oh, there is a group of people who meet in our assembly, but I wonder what will happen to them when I leave. They are not disciples. They have been faithful in listening to my sermons, but they do not witness. Few of them know how to lead another person to Christ. They know nothing about discipling others. And now that I am leaving, I can see I’ve all but wasted my time here.’” Pg. 23

“I tried to explain that the thrust of the passage [Eph 4:11-12] was that God had given leaders to the church in order to build up and train the rest of us in the work of the ministry. I said that the ministry of the gospel was to be done by all of us—laymen and clergy alike. All of us together are to be a great witnessing brotherhood, but we need training.” Pg. 24

Chapter 2: Biblical Examples of Discipleship Training

“When you read the prayer [John 17] carefully, you’ll notice that he did not mention miracles or multitudes, but forty times He referred to the men whom God had given him out of the world. These men were his work. His ministry touched thousands, but he trained twelve men. He gave his life on the cross for millions, but during the three and half years of his ministry he gave his life uniquely to twelve men.” Pg. 28

“He did not hastily rush out and grab the first people who showed interest. To him this was a momentous decision that would have far-reaching consequences. How far reaching? Humanly speaking, we can’t even guess, but we do know this. The consequences of that ministry have continued to this day and by the grace of God will continue through our lives into the lives of thousands in the years to come.” Pg. 29

“it is much easier to ask a man to come with you than to ask him to leave if you learn, much to your chagrin and sorrow, that you have chosen the wrong man.” Pg. 29

“Not only were they common men, they were individuals. They were not all alike, twelve photocopies of each other. …For example, Simon the Zealot hated the Romans who occupied Palestine, while Matthew the tax collector worked for them….In our making disciples, we should not select only those who are like us in temperament or personality.” Pg. 29-30

“Every person must count the cost and enter into discipleship training willingly.” Pg. 31

“And it is equally true that to train men a person must be willing to spend time with those men in hours of conversation and association in the normal affairs of life.” Pg. 31

“…it is imperative that you allow those men to get the mind of God on the matter, to know exactly what’s involved , and to realize that you’re getting together is not primarily for your benefit, but for theirs.” Pg. 32

“The effect this ministry of making disciple by association has on the men in training is powerful, dramatic, and life changing.” Pg. 33

“Every pastor has in his congregation men who today are merely spectators in the kingdom of God, but who would pay any price to be involved with him in the real heart of the ministry. But it will cost him. Such men need his sermons and instruction, but he will have to share his life with them. And that costs.” Pg. 33

“He [Jesus] had two things in mind in the training of the Twelve. One, that they would be of help to Him then and there in carrying out his mission. Two, that they would carry on after he was gone.” Pg. 34

“Shallow training and halfhearted commitment would not stand the test.” Pg. 34

“His training was out where the battle raged.” Pg. 35

“In summary three things are a must for the person who would help others become stalwart, loyal, productive disciples in the ministry of Jesus Christ. 1. He must have clearly in mind what he wants them to know and understand of the things of God; he must know what are the basic ingredients in a life of discipleship. 2. He must have a clear picture of what he wants these disciples to become. He must know what bedrock elements of Christian character must be theirs and what kind of people they should be. 3. He must have a vivid vision of what he wants them to learn to do and a workable plan to help them accomplish it.” Pg. 36

Chapter 3: Making Disciple in the Early Church

“If we want to see a certain performance or certain attitude develop in those with whom we are working, we must remember the tremendous power of the personal example.” Pg. 44

“Again, it was what had been shown him and taught him that made him an effective witness.” Pg. 44.

“When they left the apostles, they were not forgotten. The apostles followed them with their prayers and with their concern.” Pg. 45

“What then is the problem today? Why don’t we see more of this going on? Why are fruitful, dedicated, mature disciples so rare? The biggest reason is that all too often we have relied on programs or materials or some other thing to do the job. The ministry is to be carried on by people, not programs. It is to be carried out by someone and not by some thing. Disciples cannot be mass produced. We cannot drop people into a program and see disciples emerge at the end of the production line. It takes time to make disciples. It takes individual, personal attention. It takes hours of prayer for them. It takes patience and understanding to teach them how to get into the Word of God for themselves, how to feed and nourish their souls, and by the power of the Holy Spirit how to apply the word to their lives. And it takes being an example to them of all of the above.” Pg. 45-46

“He [Paul] worked at it all the time, with all the strength God gave him.” Cf. Col 1:28-29 Pg. 47

“The devil tried his best to stop them [the apostles], but they got the job done. They stuck with it. Their commission had been clear: ‘Therefore go and make disciples’ (Matthew 28:19). And they did. They proved to be steadfast, unmovable, always abounding in the work the Lord had sent them to do.” Pg. 47

Chapter 4: People Help People

“To get people involved in a discipleship ministry and to help them become disciples, three things are necessary initially. They must be motivated to become disciples, they must have regular fellowship with Jesus Christ, and they must witness to Him.” Pg. 51

“The first step in forming a band of people who are eager for discipleship training is motivation. They must be motivated in two directions—inward and outward. Inwardly they must be motivated to have fellowship with Jesus Christ, and outwardly they must become witnesses for Jesus Christ. The whole process should be approached with much prayer and through, perhaps illustrated by the way a new building project is handled.” Pg. 51

“To begin a discipleship training ministry in the church takes the same kind of foresight and planning. The key is to do it slowly and not try to do too much with too many too soon. The spectators are still out there and many of them want to remain that way.” Pg. 52

“To accomplish this [raising up a core team] you much make sure that you people are not dependent for their spiritual food on weekly sermons but are able to feed themselves on a daily basis from the Word.” Pg. 53

“The problem is not that there is no spiritual food. The problem is that many Christians do not know how to get it for themselves. They are like babies in a pantry surrounded by all kinds of canned goods—meats, fruits, vegetables.” Pg. 53

“Our first and foremost responsibility as Christians is to maintain a strong day-by-day abiding fellowship with the Lord Jesus by feeding on His Word. And we need to help others do the same.” Pg. 54

“People will not witness unless they first spend time with Jesus Christ. Two principles must be taught to the people: one God does it, and two, He sues people.” Pg. 54

“Evangelism is what will keep your discipleship program alive.” Pg. 56

“A question I often ask church leaders is this: ‘What would you rather have in your congregation, one hundred people who are 90 percent committed or ten people who are 100 percent committed?’ Your answer to that question will determine your philosophy of the ministry and how much effort you would be willing to put forth in developing a committed band of spiritually qualified workers for Jesus Christ.” Pg. 57

Chapter 5: The Process of Making Disciples

Don’t be satisfied with a convert. The commission is to make disciples not converts, so your goal should be to help the new Christian become a fruitful, mature disciple. Pg. 61

“The first need a convert has is assurance….I have learned the hard way that it is impossible to disciple a person who is spiritually dead.” Pg. 62

“Another need a convert has is acceptance. He needs two things communicated to him: love and acceptance.” Pg. 62

“Besides assurance and acceptance, a growing Christian has four basic needs. He needs protection, fellowship, food, and training.” Pg. 63

“You give the new believer food in two ways. One is to teach him the Word.” Pg. 65

The second is to teach him to memorize and feed himself from the Bible. Unless you teach him to feed himself, he will always be dependent for his spiritual nourishment. Pg. 65

“The growing believer needs to learn how to have a time of morning prayer and Bible reading, how to memorize the Word of God, how to do Bible study, how to share the gospel in a simple and clear manner. These things will take time, but it is your responsibility to teach them to him.” Pg. 66

Chapter 6: Training Objectives for a Disciple

“You want to see him go from takin in spiritual milk to partaking of spiritual meat.” Pg. 73

This chapter covers how to share a testimony, how to share the Wheel illustration, and how to share the hand illustration. Pg. 75-82

Chapter 7: The Workers are Still Few

This chapter opens with a discussion that I vehemently disagree with—that is, that not everyone is called to be a worker. He even says that significant damage can be done to those who are not called to be a worker. Here Eims uses worker synonymously with maker of disciples.

“Those who are called to this ministry of making disciples need further training to equip them for the ministry that Christ has called them to and placed on their hearts. They have seen the vision for multiplication and are eager to be involved in it.” Pg. 85

“When a person has produced a disciple, he has reproduced himself as a disciple. He has become a worker. When a person has raised up a worked, he has both reproduced more disciples and himself as a worker. This spiritual multiplication reproduces both disciples and workers.” Pg. 86

“To have people become involved with you, you must first become involved with them.” Pg. 88

“Jesus’ selection was made on two bases: personal observation and protracted prayer.” Pg. 89

“What do you look for in selecting workers for a discipling team?...The answer is one word: hunger. They must hunger to become makers of disciples, and this hunger may be seen in three areas.” pg. 90

Those three areas are: A hunger to be involved in a disciple making ministry, a hunger for God, and to pay any price. Pg. 90-92

“Convictions are built in two ways” his own study of the Scriptures and answering ‘why’ questions.” Pg. 92

Chapter 8: How to Develop Workers

“Two prime means of developing a worker for the cause of Christ, one who will be a maker of disciples and an effective and productive member of your disciple-making team, are transmission by example and spending ‘man-to-man, personal time with him.” Pg. 98

“Jesus’ message was personalized in the everyday affairs of life. His classrooms were the events of the day. He was what He taught. He transmitted His message by His life. For your life to transmit effectively, two things are required: availability and transparency.” Pg. 100

“Too much transparency too soon in the development of a new worker may cause harm….So open your life to those who can handle what they see. Share your heart with that inner core as Jesus did.” Pg. 101

“It is difficult, if not impossible, to be effective in the life of a potential worker unless you are transparent with him.” Pg. 102

“The willingness to invest time with a few implies an unwillingness to allow yourself to be spread too thin.” Pg. 103

Chapter 9: Training Objectives for a Worker

“You have the responsibility under God to prepare these people for their ministry in the lives of others. You are concerned with their spiritual makeup: their dedication, commitment, maturity, vision, ministry skills, and the deepening of their lives in the Lord.” Pg. 109

You must help the worker develop a heart for people, become addicted to the vision of multiplication, and to develop and deepen a servant spirit. Pg. 110-112

Chapter 10: The Need for Leadership

“The two keys to developing a leader of disciple-making team are time and selection.” Pg. 126

At least five qualities characterize a leader, you must look for them in a potential leader. They are: 1. Fight and drive. 2. Ability to spot and recruit achievers. 3. He has stability. 4. He has organizational ability. 5. He has judgment and creativity. Pg. 127-135

An achiever has eight qualities: 1. He is reliable. 2. He is resourceful. 3. He is adaptable. 4. He is enthusiastic. 5. He knows how to work. 6. He is alert. 7. He has initiative. 8. He is confident. Pg. 128-131

“Time is spent together in the Word discussing doctrine, principles, problems, and blessings. Time should be spent together in prayer and planning. You will want to share your personal battles, your victories and defeats, just as he does with you.” Pg. 136

Chapter 11: How to Train Leaders

You should train leaders in at least four areas: attitudes, stretch his faith, refining ministry skills, and learning discernment.” 143-147

“He needs to be on guard against the swelling of his head, for that can be deadly….A new leader has the tendency to want to throw his weight around, to make sure others know who’s in charge, to shout and demand, and in general do those things that are so obnoxious in the sight of God and men.” Pg. 143

Eleven suggestions from Eims’ experience:

1. “Let him know you believe in him, love him, and thank God for him.

2. Let him know that he is free to discuss with you whatever is on his mind,

3. Let him know that you are always available to him.

4. Let him know that he is important to the ministry.

5. Tell him about your own successes and failures.

6. Set a high standard of performance for him. Otherwise your approval will mean nothing to him.

7. Keep yourself informed about his ministry. It is devastating when men say of their leader, ‘He doesn’t know what is going on around here.’

8. Keep some pressure on. Make sure he is involved in something that extends him a little beyond when he knows he can do. It is urgent that you really know your man. Too much too soon, and he can become frustrated and discouraged; too little too late, and he will be unchallenged and ‘rest on his oars.’

9. If he needs help, counsel him. Let him know you are there to help; it is not; ‘sink or swim.’

10. If he lacks confidence set up a situation and ask him, ‘What would you do?’ He will learn he can make decisions and he will soon be able to assume more responsibility.

11. Review his progress. Be generous and sincere in your praise; be loving and gentle in your correction.” Pg. 145-146

Chapter 12: Confident and Unashamed

“To help a person progress from these first faltering steps after his conversion to a place of leadership requires years of patient care, training, and prayer. And it is costly.” Pg. 151

“One of the key things you can do to help your people is to guide them from being children to young manhood to being fathers. And the way they become overseers is to get the Word of God into their hearts and lives.” Pg. 154

“As soon as we start talking about giving people personal, individual attention, several problems arise. One is the problem of time. Most people today are already too busy. They are doing more than they have time for. What we must realize is that disciple making does not add to the time squeeze but helps resolve it. It the pastor ministers to a core of spiritually qualified men and women, they can begin carrying some of the burden and load. They can carry on some of the ministry.” Pg. 155

“Actual discipling cannot be don’t on a large scale with these large groups, but we must realize that out of these groups able men and women will emerge.” Pg. 156