A Topical Sermon
“Discipling – We Disciple Others”
Outline:
(1) We Disciple Others By Imitating Jesus Christ
(2) We Disciple Others By Inviting Others To Imitate Us As We Imitate Christ
(3) We Disciple Others In The Context Of The Local Church
Questions for Further Reflection:
(1) How does your life affect the people who are around you? How do you use your influence? Are there ways that your discontentment (or other sins) – like that of the sheep “Mrs. Gad-about” – affects and tempts others to sin?
(2) How do others have an influence upon you?
(3) Why do so many churches have pictures and sculptures on the wall and use pictures and movie clips during their public worship services? (Consider Exodus 20:3-6) How might your heart be tempted to settle for cheap empty images and movie clips instead of being content with God in His Word, and the “images” of the Lord’s Supper, Baptism, and the difficult work of seeing how others live for Christ? How are you opening up your life to others in our church to be a visual picture of what it looks like to follow Christ?
(4) Do you invite people to see your life?
(5) Do you have any margin to meet with anyone, not because you can get something out of it, but simply so that you can do them spiritual good?
(6) What are some ways that you can grow in humility by opening up your life to others so that they can look in and know more of what it looks like to grow in their love for Christ? Do others know what sin you struggle with? Do you let them see how you fight your sin, and confess and repent of your sin?
(7) Who are the leaders God has put in authority over you in a regular, visible, particular, local church (Hebrews 10:24-25); who’s faith you are to remember and imitate (Hebrews 13:7); and to whom God commands you to submit (Hebrews 13:17)? If you don’t have this kind of relationship with a local church ask God to enable you to repent for the sake of His glory and your good.
(8) Who is it that God has put in your life so that you would imitate their faith?
(9) Who in our church do you have a close relationship with right now?
(10) Who’s life in our church do you know well enough to be able to imitate?
(11) Pray that God would help us to see that discipleship isn’t a program that our leadership needs to organize, but it’s a life-on-life ministry to each other that’s just part of the culture of our church.
(12) How will you pursue to use your influence for the spiritual good of others and the glory of Christ?