WHY “DISCIPLESHIP?”
The good news story of what God has done in Jesus is central to our church culture.
We believe that nothing is better than knowing and following Jesus in every one of the 168 hours in our week.
This is why we're committed to engage, equip, and empower people to follow Jesus, not just on Sunday, but every day.
As this happens our dream is that we would see the Holy Spirit transform us into a movement of more and growing followers of Jesus, developing healthy churches, for the glory of God and the flourishing of our city and the world.
The process of growing as followers of Jesus is what we call “discipleship.” Being Christians isn’t about mental assent to a set of religious statements, but surrender to Jesus as our rescuer and ruler. Discipleship then is not an agreement, but an ongoing, lifelong apprenticeship.
There are many tools or practices or disciplines that propel us in the right direction and deepen our maturity as disciples. The point of discipleship is not the practices, but the person they put us in a position to love, know, and become like: Jesus. And as we grow as disciples, we naturally multiply and produce more disciples.
Our team is developing ministry culture, teaching, assessments, and resources around some of the primary discipleship tools that you can use personally and in community to know and follow Jesus better.
We invite you to invest in this process at a more intentional level with us!
STAGES + TOOLS
We are shaping our discipleship strategy around 4 stages of movement and 3 levels of tools.
STAGES
A disciple is someone who is moving towards knowing and following Jesus more.
This is a simple definition to help shape our language and guide our actions.
We are going to look at 168 Discipleship from the perspective that there are 4 potential stages of Christian discipleship.
1 - SEEK / 2 - BELIEVE / 3 - SERVE / 4 - MULTIPLY
TOOLS
We organize our discipleship tools into 3 levels: Green, Blue, Black.
Green Level (1) - introductory, simple. “The basics for beginners.”
The green level is primarily intended to engage, equip, and empower seekers and believers to know and follow Jesus better in all 168 hours a week.
Blue Level (2) - intermediate, expanded. “The fuel for the invested.”
The blue level is primarily intended to engage, equip, and empower servants to know and follow Jesus better in all 168 hours a week building on the foundation set as a beginner .
Black Level (3) - advanced, comprehensive. “The essentials for multipliers.”
The black level is primarily intended to engage, equip, and empower multipliers to know and follow Jesus better in all 168 hours a week and multiply that into others.
WHAT IS YOUR STARTING POINT?
Brief descriptions of each stage to help discover what stage you are in.
Are you a seeker?
If you are exploring what Christianity is, or don’t know the gospel story, this is your starting point. You may or may not believe in God, or even have a worldview you are grounded in. If you wouldn’t say that Jesus has become “Lord” or “Saviour” to you personally yet, you are likely in stage 1.
If you’d like to move on to the next step, click here, for a helpful guide!
Are you a believer?
If you have put your trust in Jesus to rule your life and rescue your life, this is your starting point. You’ve begun a new life, and are starting to discover the basics of what it means to live as a Christian. Many people are in stage 2.
If you’d like to move on to the next step click here, for tools that can help identify what might be next!
Are you a servant?
If you have been following Jesus and have been given the opportunity or taken the responsibility of leading others towards growth in discipleship you are likely in stage 3.
If you’d like to move on to the next step click here, for a tool that can help identify what might be next!
Are you a multiplier?
If you have been following Jesus and are actively apprenticing new leaders you are likely in stage 4.
If you’d like to continue pressing into maturity, click here, for access to a tool that can help identify what might be next!
Our goal is that every person would enter the 4th stage of discipleship and help others to do the same.
MOVE FORWARD.
How can we help you move into what God is calling you to next?
Our strategy takes authentic, long-term investment from you and us. Your journey of discipleship begins right where you are. Understanding the starting point for your discipleship is an important first step in the process of knowing and following Jesus more.
Our strategy is to help you move forward into maturity:
PERSONAL RELATIONSHIP WITH JESUS
1 - explaining how to begin a relationship with Jesus
1.1 - inviting you to believe in Jesus as your personal Lord and Saviour
1.2 - giving you the reason and opportunity to publicly declare your decision to follow Jesus by being baptized
1.3 - guiding and supporting you to reflect on how the Lordship of Jesus impacts how you think and feel
1.4 - releasing and equipping you to share your faith with others
1.5 - helping you identify your gifts and general calling
1.6 - coaching you in living out your individual calling and measuring your growth
1.7 - empowering you to apprentice others in knowing and following Jesus to help begin apprenticing others
PERSONAL CONNECTION TO COMMUNITY
2 - explaining your calling to community and connecting you with 3-12 others to share life with
2.1 - apprenticing you to begin leading 3-12 others in a community group setting
2.2 - shepherding you as you lead 3-12 others in a community group setting
2.3 - empowering you to apprentice new leaders to begin leading 3-12 others in a community group setting
GOSPEL SATURATION
3 - helping you grow your knowledge of the gospel and love for God at an introductory level
3.1 - sharpening your knowledge of the gospel and love for God at an intermediate level
3.2 - learning how to apply the gospel as a model for all of life’s situations
3.3 - maximizing your ability to share the gospel as God’s discipleship manual for life
PRAYER
4 - learning to pray as Jesus taught (the “Lord’s Prayer”)
4.1 - giving you the opportunity to watch and listen to others pray publicly
4.2 - giving you the opportunity to pray with others out loud
4.3 - learning about the different ways to pray
4.4 - apprenticing you to begin serving through prayer opportunities and/or our prayer team
4.5 - developing a passion and methodology for praying for others
4.6 - equipping you to effectively lead prayer meetings
4.7 - empowering you to apprentice others to begin serving others through prayer
THE BIBLE
5 - ensuring you have access to Scripture
5.1 - giving you tools for how to begin reading the Bible
5.2 - equip you with tools for memorizing, interpreting, and applying Scripture
5.3 - developing an understanding of the composition, genres and credibility of Scripture
5.4 - apprenticing you in teaching the Word of God to others
5.5 - shepherd you as you teach the Word of God to others
5.6 - empower you to instruct others how to teach the Word of God
SERVING OTHERS
6 - cast vision in your life for serving for the health of our church, and the flourishing of our city and the world
6.1 - provide opportunities to meet needs in Abbotsford and beyond
6.2 - identify good ministry placements for you based on your calling, gifting, and character (in connection with 1.4-1.6 above)
6.3 - coach you in identifying where God is at work, and giving you a platform to share those stories
6.4 - empower you to identify and activate new initiatives
THE HOLY SPIRIT
7 - explaining the role of the Holy Spirit in your life
7.1 - teaching you how to position yourself to welcome the Holy Spirit’s activity in your life
7.2 - training you to grow in awareness of God’s presence and voice
7.3 - resourcing you with tools to assess and celebrate what the Holy Spirit is producing in your life (gifts + fruit)
7.4 - helping you assist others in identifying and releasing God’s gifting in their life
We say at Central Heights that life together is better than life alone.
So, whatever stage you find yourself in, we desire to engage, equip, and empower you through relationship and connection into our church family!
Below are the access points for our current library of tools.
