Discipleship: Pathways

What is the role of goal of this five-member for each person to become conformed to the image of Christ to become like Jesus Christ by rolling in the word and then replicating the officer pathways by Pastor Abbott on job of Clearview church Caroline Clearview.

Our focus is on making Christ visible providing an atmosphere of genuine worship community come check us out at 3485 Oxford Rd., Anderson, or visit us online Clearview BC.org and join us for the rest of this week's message every summer I speak at a camp in Bryson city. This is up in the Smoky Mountains near Cherokee to the western side of the state.

Many of y'all have been there. Our kids have been going to this camp for almost 16 years and the church kids have now begun to go in the been going for 56 years now. It's a wonderful place a beautiful place and while the kids are at camp. They get to do one outing they get to go horseback riding, or Jim, mining, or tubing or hiking several years ago on the guest speaker again this year.

I'm sitting there in my room thinking while not go hiking.

I used to hike back in college is that I can do this and so I decided to go hiking and the place to hike is a lark or false if some of y'all have been. There's a beautiful place. 200 feet tall falls cascading down the side of the mountain and the hike is to the side of the falls in the way they described it was as moderately difficult. Y'all know what that means if you hike I can see some of you hike. You know what it means mark which means this you will get through most of it. But then there will come a time where you wish you were not on the hike so I've started climbing the put me in the back of the group. The counselors are here.

They are the kids and head of me and I stopped halfway point which was easy climbing is walking up this this this dense wooded area, not too bad much to hold onto and then I stopped to get some pictures couple of minutes at the most. Got back on the trail, but I can see anybody. I could hear them but I can see them so I can catch up. So I began to climb, but that's about the PowerPoint where it almost becomes vertical so so I'm like this and I'm climbing and if you know if you hike you know how how that can be and I got stuck and I'm thinking now going back is not an option because what to do is a drop you the foot of the falls and then they moved the van waiting to get out somewhere I can go back there is no cell phone, because he put them all away, so I am pretty much like this I'm saying, Lord, please send someone a couple minutes later. I guess mother counselors realize I was in there. So here she came looking for me as a missed shot you need any help. Like now I'm just resting over here and I'm fine I'm good I'm good buys, but this out of curiosity, how did you get up there with you so well what you do is you put your foot here on this rock and then you hang on to this rule over here. I promise you it seems like is gone, but is not going to come.

We all came to their and that he grabbed his got together as a will. That's one way to do it. You go on ahead, I'll be there in a few minutes once I catch my breath when I was like, oh Lord, please let me remember what you just said.

Long story short, got to the falls got to the top.

It was beautiful. It was well worth the climb. The point is this. Without that young lady coming by and showing me do this do this do this was done I was stuck wanted.

I share this with you because when it comes to discipleship is beautiful. This wonderful to get to the place we begin to look like Christ. We can sense his presence in your life when you begin to walk obediently to the word you will. You are now reproducing disciples. It's a wonderful place to be. But here's the problem. Unless there are people ahead of you who can show you the pathway. This is what you need to do next and keep going.

You will be stuck. You wish you could go back down but going back down is not an option in the Christian life, you need others to show you the pathway.

I guarantee you sitting here this morning. There are people who are stuck on the side of that discipleship mountain you know you need to go further with Christ.

You know you need to go higher with him, but you don't know how you think you know, you think you have the answer but your stock unless you follow the pathway I needed to follow the path back and say oh she's only 17. What can you teach me know. I had to say she's been there. She is there. I got a get there this morning. If you have your Bibles with you.

The message is on discipleship pathways. We have been in this series on discipleship. What is it mean how important it is one of the obstacles this morning with an alarm where you need to go. What's the next step. If you have your Bibles with you turn to second Timothy chapter 2 verse one into you there for my son, be strong in the grace that is in Christ Jesus. Paul had listened. He had invested his life in Timothy. He says keep going keep hiking up the mountain of discipleship don't go back.

Be strong.

But that's not enough, and the things that you have heard from me among many witnesses commit these two faithful men who will be able to teach others also. Timothy I'm showing you the path of discipleship. Keep going but help others who are behind you show them the path that I have shown you and who are these men. The faithful ones, not just anybody.

Everybody the faithful ones this morning is not just for men is also for women.

Do you know the pathway of discipleship.

Who is it who is helping you right now.

You cannot be a disciple all alone. Someone has to guide you and if you know the path are you helping someone else are you disciple, you know, unless you receive Christ as your Savior.

You're not a disciple that begins her discipleship. He is the way the truth and the life he means to get on the path you have come to Christ. As you know we have been studying discipleship the importance of discipleship. The goal of discipleship no way to get the idea of discipleship from Jesus himself in what is known as the great commission in Matthew 28 Jesus said, go therefore and make disciples.

It is a go therefore and make Christians say go therefore and make Baptist and Methodist and Presbyterians, and Pentecostals.

He said go make disciples of all the nations and we came up with this acronym water to represent the goal of discipleship. Five things in this AAUW is witnesses a disciple should be a witness to Christ is accountability key is togetherness. E is established in the word and are is reproducing disciples. This is the goal of discipleship when all these work together. Now you and you and I look like Jesus Christ. But there obstacles you can just get up here there obstacles in last weekend we looked at those obstacles in the disciplines we need to overcome the obstacles five disciplines we looked at very quickly disciplines evangelism confession church attendance daily Bible intake and discipling means. A disciple should on a consistent basis. Disciple someone else. The next question in this series is what are the pathways. How do you get to that place what needs to happen next is go back to this acronym water. The first one, W there's not a whole lot I can tell you on how to get there. If you have a testimony start sharing it shared with the neighbor share with your friends share with your coworkers shared with people in the grocery store. Find a way to tell people about Jesus Christ as a whole lot I can tell you other than that T is together which is very simple come to church be around other believers hear the word of God on a consistent basis. Once you come to the church keep going to the Sunday school class. Not a whole lot I can tell you there just goes_trazodone just jet out here. Go there go to Bible study was not Bible study in church or go somewhere else whether Bob stays going on but is important to be together so not much there but the rest of the three that are still on the screen a accountability he established in the word and are reproducing discipleship.

You need someone to show you the pathway you need to know how do I do this how does this work out this morning on a focus on ANR which is accountability and reproducing disciples because the kind of go hand-in-hand. So let me take you back to that image that I showed you in the first message on how Jesus made disciples. He began with the crowd. All the people around him who didn't care.

They were there, that's about it.

And then he moved people into the congregation, which was the multitudes know who are the multitudes.

The multitudes of people who heard his teachings. They fed upon the food he gave and they even saw the miracles that he did. They were the multitudes who are the most used today.

The people who come every weekend.

They are the multitudes the coming to hear the word of God to see the things of God that say multitudes, but that's not enough. Jesus moved from the multitude to the community, who is the community. These are the 12 disciples that Jesus picked. He poured his life into them. He explained the parables to them. He taught them how to pray. This is the community where is the community Sunday school. That's the Bible study group. This is where community begins to happen. You begin to know each other's lives. Many of us who are here Sunday morning you wonderful people, but you have no community you come you hear me preach it's a one-way communication. No one knows what's happening in your life community is where that happens. But did Jesus did not stop there. He went on to the third ring which is a circle or I would like to call it the inner circle who was in Jesus's Inner Cir., Peter James and John. These were the three that Jesus really took under his wing. They went with him to the Mount of Transfiguration there went with him when he did miracles that no one believed them.

They were there with him in the garden of Gethsemane when Jesus said, watch and pray my soul is extremely weary today were part of Jesus's inner circle member talking about the inner circle were talking about this kind of group. Robbie Gulati, from whom I learned a lot. He calls this the D group. We call it inner circle of Clearview and inner circle is a 3 to 5 member gender specific group which means this is only men always only women 3 to 5 member gender specific clause group which means this once the group begins. You don't keep adding people to it all. I have a friend also. And so she is in the word or he loves the Lord know it's close which means maybe the next season they can join in. But right now it's a close group a lesson that exists by invitation only. Sunday morning. Anybody can call and I hope a lot a lot of people come Sunday school lost people can go Bible study lost people can go. But this group right here. It exists by invitation only to believers. I cannot make you disciple. If you do not know Jesus Christ as your Savior. A man you got have him in your life you got have the Holy Spirit. If that is not there, no matter how much I try to make you a disciple. It is in vain.

It is futile. So is a 3 to 5 member gender specific clause group that exists by invitation only to believer and meets on a weekly basis. What I'm teaching you this morning is not only biblical but this is being done and a lot of churches knife you grew up in a small church if you grew up in a kind of a dead dying church or that's living on fumes from yesteryears of success. This may be a foreign concept to you, but in churches that are growing is not a foreign concept.

This is why they're growing because the going deep into the word of God, the becoming disciples is on a weekly basis but listen for it determined.

Which means this.

There's an end to it 10 months, 12 months, 18 months it comes to an end.

What is the ultimate grow a goal of this 3 to 5 member group is for each person to become conformed to the image of Christ to become like Jesus Christ by growing in the word and then replicating the process not of some of your thinking. I go to church man has to show your good preacher. I love to hear you preach and getting so much out of it. Listen, this is not accountability. I cannot keep 500 people accountable is impossible I will lose my marriage I will lose my kids if I were to keep up with every single one of you is not possible all my Sunday school group got that right there is not accountability group for my small group, you cannot do that Sunday school groups in small groups and biopsy groups are wonderful when you are coming together when you have a mixed group of men and women. There's only so much that those men will share under the creepy. You want a hero get them out of the group know this is impossible to go any further and if a group has 8 to 10 couples and their coming together right there you have 20 people no longer can you do accountability you need small groups you need those Bible study group there wonderful, but they're not to be an accountability group is not a D group. It's not an inner circle and inner circle is a place where it is small enough for you to connect with one another and help one another. Walk the way of Christ I can do it in the service.

The Sunday school teachers with 4050 students cannot do it. Small groups are wonderful. We call them circles. They can't do those things is the inner circle when it begins to happen and what is it look like is confidential.

It is confrontational which means not that you find with one another but you know there's someone there who holds you accountable. I can guarantee it will bang this book right now their people right now who are messing with sin. There's a hardhearted lives in your heart. There's a disobedience in your life, your marriage is not where it needs to be and you know that's the truth.

Your prayer life is not strong like it used to be. There's a dullness there.

There's a dryness there. You keep doing things because you know if you didn't do it.

People would get alert as a truth, but in an accountability group people get notices a how are things with you what's going on how's life are praying for you. It is also time a confession where you don't get invasive you don't share deep secrets are happening but you do share prayer requests and things begin to happen but you have Robbie Gulati says a quick word of caution, you must wisely discern, to whom you would make yourself accountable, carefully guarding, whom you allowed to speak in your life.

Nothing to give you verse that really helps us with this is Galatians chapter 6 verse one brethren, if a man is overtaken in any trespass, you can save a woman is overtaken in a trespass, you who are spiritual restore such a one in his spirit of gentleness is impossible for me as a pastor to watch each and every one of your lives and to see that you are being overtaken by trespassers and then come try to restore you it's impossible to share my heart there people to walk to a very hurt and discouraged because Pastor Shaw is not there for me to say how many people can I be there for 500 can't my Sunday school teacher didn't call me. My my my small group people didn't care for me. We had this and this happen what they tried their best but how in the world can it coupled to individuals take care of 20 to 30 people, all our care group leader should've done it's impossible they can see general things happening in your life. The only place that this can happen if a person is overtaken in any trespass, you are spiritual restore such a one as it happens when the group is small enough to know things are not right in her life. Things are not right in his life and then how do you make the restoration in a spirit of gentleness is not judge mental spirit but a gentle spirit, considering yourself lest you also be tempted. So the accountability is connected. Bear one another's burdens, and so fulfill the law of Christ. Christ is given is allowed to bear each other's burdens. If you're not doing that right this moment, your wonderful person. Great person. I love you dad. Let's do lunch but you're not fulfilling the law of Christ and the only way you can really do that is when you're close enough to people to know that they have a burden for anyone thinks himself to be something when he is nothing, he deceives himself elite. Let each one examine his own work and you can say examine her own work and then he or she will have rejoicing in himself alone and not another. Listen to this, each one shall bear his own load that Mina seems contradictory. On one hand we are to bear each other's burdens, but on the other hand, each one shall bear his own load. What's the difference difference is this.

When you are an accountability group you're helping each other bear the burdens that we have, but ultimately each person has to make their own choices. That's when it becomes their own load if they make the wrong choices, not on the accountability group it's on them.

So how do you start our time is limited. Here's a pathway. It begins by praying when Jesus picked his disciples, he didn't just go out there and pick then the Bible says he went away and he prayed, and when he was done praying he went out and he began to look for disciples, he began to find those disciples and he called them apostles prayer is the place you want to start a D group you are starting inner circle. Start by praying God who is it that needs to be with me that can help me and I can help them in this 325 person group number two you have to decide how do you decide who needs to be in these groups well they have to be believers number one, but believers who have a desire if you don't have a desire to be like pulling teeth.

They were meeting this from home and got so much going on. Schmidt I could be that you know I want to be there.

I will be the person really wants to be there.

They'll be there have to be individuals who have a desire to have a determination which means this.

Come rain or shine. Whatever happens if that is the morning on which we meet we meet unless their situations help family, something else comes up that you not aware of. Got to be done.

We understand and number three when it comes to decide to have a demeanor to learn their teachable so you praying for people who are determined to have a desire and they have the right demeanor.

If there's a person who is like the know it all.

They heard their famous big preacher there which are going home and from our home church.

The no matter what you teach them the you like. I remember that 20 years ago, you can teach people like that you have to go now.

Thank you.

Maybe you need to start a group asked go to these individuals prayerfully and asked them in the last time I want to disciple you will run from you as them something very simple.

How about on a weekly basis.

Can we meet for Bible study Bible memorization and prayer will be surprised how many people will say yeah I been praying for that and then you prioritize you yourself have to take this seriously that these people are meeting which means there's no matter what's going on. I will make this a priority unless it goes completely providentially out of my hand, and lastly is this millwright said the deep group so the inner circles are time bound, which means this what happens at the end of those 10 months or 12 or 18 months.

We don't continue this group now is time for the student to become a teacher where each person in that group now goes and spawns another inner circle folks. That's how discipleship happens. That's how we begin to capture again the culture in which we live is easy to get up and pray and talk about God sent a revival and change our nation. It's easy to fuss about the values that we have in our nation, how we have drifted away from God is quite different to say you know all that is wonderful but from this point on going to start making disciples is not microwavable is not something you do one study in this leg of disciples know it's like a crockpot. It takes time.

People come to clear Google has amazing house, great, great, what almost have some rich people here I've given 20 years of my life to this place and I plan on giving the next 4050.

Whatever God allowed is not microwavable and the further we go in this new world in which we live.

Those who are willing to put their lives in the crockpot are the ones who can eat that good meal. So what happens when you meet. How do you start explain to you what happens very quickly when you meet and again I'm getting this information Robbie Gladney. You begin by setting the word.

There's a book in the Bible that you're studying. Their questions are laid out. We can provide that for you. Number two you memorize Scripture's your word I have hidden in my heart that I will not sin against God, the way some of you men. Talk to your wives and you treat them.

Shame on you, but if you knew the Scripture that says Christ loved the church and gave himself for her, you would know better. The way some of you wives treat your husband's.

If you only knew what it means churches to submit to Christ, you know better you folks.

I hope you get it is the word of God that gives us the standard by which to live. So you memorize these truths in the apply them in your life and there's accountability.

We ask those tough questions and you help people not get invasive, but you help people in their daily struggles and finally what you do you break my encouragement to you is start praying God. Who are those 3 to 5 people that I need to be investing in.

Who are those individuals that need me to show them the pathway see what God will do.

Go therefore and make disciples. You cannot make disciples on the Sunday morning I can do all I can but that's not discipleship. You cannot make discipleship in a Sunday school or a Bible study group or a small group is only so much you can do in that interaction. But it's not serious. Discipleship is when the group against too narrow, just like Jesus did with James and John, did you know that each one of them became a leader in the church, powerful leaders in the next couple of messages I will deal with how to study the word. Let me remind you again what Paul said to second Timothy in second Timothy two and verse 220 attention to the screen and the things that you have heard from me among many witnesses commit these two faithful men.

Ladies commit things to faithful women who will be able to teach others also.

This was the early church. This should be our way disciples so much joining this message because yourself and I need each other, stay accountable help us remain focused on God's word must begin the process of discipleship, pray and ask God to bring people in your life can disciple you as well as people you can disciple more information, visit us online.org discernment checkup exercise block but on shop.com