Disciple to Faithਨਮੂਨਾ

Rapid Mobilisation

In most Christians’ circles around the world, we prioritise conversion, then growth, then training, and finally mobilisation – but this wasn’t Jesus’ discipleship process. Jesus rapidly mobilised His disciples, reversing the traditional approach of evangelism first, then discipleship (growth and equipping), and then sending out disciples. He prayerfully invited His disciples into His world, exposed them to truth, and then mobilised them almost immediately. He sent them out to preach, heal, and cast out demons, even though they were still trying to figure out who He was and probably didn’t fully understand His message. He then did in-situation training, and their spiritual growth was a byproduct. Somewhere along the way, they put their faith in Him. This process of rapid mobilisation meant they had skin in the game. They began to operate in God’s power, and it changed their lives.

We see an example of this discipleship process in Matthew 14. Jesus’ disciples were concerned about the welfare of a large, hungry group of at least five thousand people. Jesus takes a little boy’s lunch and multiplies it. In fact, He says to His disciples, ‘You give the crowd something to eat,’ and they carry out the impossible. The miracle actually happened in the distribution of the small amount of bread and fish available – at the point of mobilisation. Just imagine how it must’ve felt to the disciples when they realised the food they were handing out just kept on replenishing itself. Talk about a faith-building exercise! And imagine, too, the debrief conversation they might’ve had with Jesus afterwards. If we’re going to disciple the way Jesus discipled, we need to allow people to get involved in faith-building ministry activities. They need to watch how we do what we do, then have the opportunity to be rapidly mobilised to do the same.

Another time, we see Jesus debriefing with His disciples when they couldn’t cast out the demon from a young boy. When we rapidly mobilise people we’re discipling, we should take every opportunity for in-situation training, making sure they feel confident to circle back to us for coaching or clarification.

Take a couple of minutes to recap all we’ve learned so far about the way Jesus made disciples: led by the Holy Spirit, He lived with His radar up, prayerfully inviting His disciples into His life, exposing them to truth, and inviting them to imitate Him. Then He rapidly mobilised them for mission, equipping them along the way as they grew in faith and confidence. This discipleship process isn’t beyond you. Rapid mobilisation is something anyone, anywhere, anytime can do. God is with you as you go and make disciples, mobilising them to make disciples of others.