WHY, WHOM, HOW?: Starting Point for Existing Believers
 Training to know WHY you make disciples, WHO you can share with and WHAT you can say.

WHY?: Why do we make disciples? 1. God’s Name (our motivation): Read Malachi 1:11 and discuss the following: -Discuss basic “child-like” observations of the passage.
 -Discuss what God’s vision is based on this passage. (His name being great)
 -Discuss what that will look like. (raising up worshippers from among the nations)
 -This is going to happen (and is happening) everywhere…including here! Summarize: The first reason we make disciples is God’s Name. According to Malachi 1:11, God is on mission to make His Name great everywhere. This is His motivation, so it must be ours as well. 2. God’s Command (our conviction): 


To cultivate a biblical conviction for making disciples we will examine Matthew 28:1820 (known as Jesus’ “Great Commission”) using the “SOS” study method: The “SOS” (Say, Obey, Share) Bible Study Method: 1. Read the passage (Matthew 28:18-20) aloud together 2. Discuss as a group the following questions: -Say: What does passage say? (summarize) -Obey: What does the passage ask us to obey? -Share: What is something from the passage you could share with someone else? 
 We see that Jesus is not making a suggesting, but a command that He expects us to obey. Included in this Great Commission command from Matthew 28:18-20, Jesus gives us His strategy for making disciples with these 6 key components: 1. “GO”, not come: we must go to them, not wait for others to come to us 2. “Make Disciples”, not attenders: a disciple obeys Jesus (including the great commission to make disciples) 3. “All Nations”, all, not some: share with everyone, don’t profile (gospel = filter) 4. “Baptize”, have a testimony - train disciples to have a testimony to share
 5. “Teach” - train every disciple to pass on to others what you teach/train them 6. “Obey” - teach them to obey Jesus (including great commission), not just know Remember the promise: Jesus is with you always! Summary: Our second motivation for making disciples is that God commands it! He also gives us the strategy for making disciples in the 6 key components of the Great Commission. Practice: Tell a partner WHY we make disciples (His name - Malachi 1:11 & His command – Matthew 28:18-20) including the 6 key components & promise of Jesus’ Great Commission.

 

WHOM?: Who do you tell? Now that they know the why, next you must train your trainers to know who they should share with. There are two types of people: lost (far from God = “ffG”) and saved. You offer to train saved people and share the gospel with ffG people. Remember that God wants to use you and your disciples to reach those He has put in your life. Read the following Bible verses and discuss characteristics of who God used and what the immediate outcome was: John 4:4-42 (Samaritan woman), Luke 19:1-10 (Zacchaeus), Acts 16:11-15, 25-34 (Lydia & Philippian Jailer) These are examples of “persons of peace” whom saved and used to reach those in their family/community. You not only want to find persons of peace, you must realize that you yourself are a person of peace! God wants to use you to reach those in your community. Instruction: Get a piece of paper and take 15 minutes to prayerfully make 2 lists: 1. Lost people in your life who are far from God (share the gospel with) 2. Saved people in your life (you offer to train) Once completed, take time to pray as a group for the people on your lists.

HOW?: How do you share & follow-up? Every Christian has a story of how God has worked in their life, whether your salvation story or a time you saw God work when you were a Christian. This is a simple and effective way to begin sharing the gospel with those you are praying for (we will train you to use an additional gospelsharing tool next time). Your goal is to share your compelling “testimony” with competence & confidence in 2-3 minutes without confusing Christian terms a lost person won’t understand. 1. 3 Sections: Write out or say your story in 3 sections + invitation: a. Life before Christ b. How you came to Christ c. Life in Christ Invitation: “Is there anything that keeps you from receiving this same free gift of Jesus’ forgiveness for all your sins (mistakes) today?” 2. One Word: Write/say one word that describes what your life was like in each of these three sections. 3. 2-4 Sentences: Write/say 2-4 sentences to describe each of those three sections. 4. Practice aloud: Practice telling your story aloud to yourself a few times to be sure it flows well and make any changes that you see necessary. 5. Practice with a partner: Share your compelling story with a partner and have them give you suggestions for improvement to make it smooth and compelling. Make sure the story is under 2-3 minutes and there are not any “Christian” terms that would be unfamiliar to a lost person.   Note: See “Follow Up” Page for training on what to do next with the 4 gospel responses. Note: If you have time, train them in the reproducing evangelism tool your group has chosen (3 circles, Romans 6:23 Bridge, C2C, etc). NEXT STEPS: • Set Goals: Have each person pray and ask the Lord to give them 1-5 names from their list of lost people to share with and saved people to train this week. Have them share with the group and commit to pray daily for each name on their list. • Schedule a time for your next training (begin “green light” commands of Christ) • Pray for the people on your lists and for the Holy Spirit’s power to obey.

 

Follow-Up: What To Do Next with 4 Different Responses to the Gospel When you and your disciples share the gospel (including testimony) and invite people to follow Jesus, there are four different types of responses. We want to make sure you and your disciples are equipped to respond to each of these: Existing Christian: they are already a follower of Jesus Your Response: Cast vision from the Bible (2 Corinthians 5:17-21) and invite them to be trained to effectively make disciples. Start with “Why, Whom, How” then move to “Green Light” Commands of Christ. Red Light: no spiritual interest Your Response: keep searching for spiritually interested Kindly and lovingly continue in your search for the spiritually interested. Let them know that this truth is real of they are ever interested in following Jesus. If a relative or friend, keep praying for them but you do not want to limit your ministry to “red light” people. Keep searching. Yellow Light: spiritual interest, not ready to follow Jesus Your Response: invite to study the Bible using the “yellow light” stories of hope. Set up a time and location (best if you can meet at their home/ location).

Green Light: ready to follow Jesus Your Response: Equip to share the gospel and obey Jesus (see below). Immediate Follow-Up for Green-Light response (brand new disciple): 1) The Call: 2 Corinthians 5:17-21 • Read 2 Corinthians 5:17-21 to them and explain: • v17: What happened? – the old is gone, the new has come • v21: How did this happen? – Jesus exchanged your sin for His righteousness • v18-20: What this means? You are His ambassador, equipped with His ministry & message of reconciliation (the gospel). 3) Who?: “Who in your life needs to hear this message of reconciliation?” After they list off one or more people, you are going to train them in what to say. 4) Train Them: So they are ready to share with the person/people they listed out, have them practice sharing the gospel message & follow-up that you shared with them until they are confident and competent. Take your time until they have it down. 5) Schedule Discipleship: Tell them it is important to meet together so you can show them how to obey Jesus from the Bible. If they have time right then, go through “Green Light” Command of Christ #1 with them. If not, schedule a time/place within the next 48 hours. If possible try to meet in their home or their turf (pressing into their community). Note: Be sure to exchange contact information. 6) Commission: Pray for them as they experience their new life in Christ as an ambassador of His and the people they will share with before your next meeting.