Vision for Discipling Essay -- Religious Education

Where there is no vision, the people perish: but he that keepeth the law, happy is he.( Prov 29v18) Intro Vision builds discipleship. Swimming into the current takes faith. Faith in God and ourselves to prepare men and women to fulfill the teaching and discipling mandates of the gospel commission. The word "discipling" is used to mean much more than making converts. It is used primarily to describe a system of intense training and close personal supervision of the Christians being disciple. Disciples are regarded as being superior to mere Christians. Disciples are said to be Christians who have received special training. This training includes much more than mere teaching. There is an intense one-on-one relationship between the discipler and the Christian being disciple. The discipler gives detailed personal guidance to the Christian being discipled. This guidance may include instructions concerning many personal matters of a totally secular nature. The person being discipled is taught to submit to the discipler. Furthermore, the person being discipled is taught to imitate the discipler. (Flavil R. Yeakley, ], The Discipling Dilemma) Western Christianity has been suffering for a long time, and in various ways, from the relativizing impact of understandings of "tolerance" or of "humility" or "flexibility" which tended to dissolve the very possibility of common commitment in the believing community. This leads to the evident, if superficial, disadvantage that the church as a social organism, both locally and more broadly, is hamstrung by internal indecision. Discipline is not to be held in tension or in balance with grace and forgiveness, it is grace and forgiveness. It is not rigor, regrettably necessary in structure... ...cher's personality, their commitment to serving Christ, the students' motivation, and institutional vagaries. Becoming a better teacher and having a great and sincere vision for discipling require understanding how these factors interact and change over time—and such comprehension seems most likely to be prompted by intentional and reflective evaluation, analysis, and a Christian devotional vocation to God commission (Matthew 28v19) References Bounds, E. M. Power Through Prayer. Grand Rapids: Baker, 1991. E.G. White, Education Hull, Bill. Jesus Christ, Disciple-Maker. Old Tappan, NJ: Revell, 1990. Knapper, C., & Cranton, P. (Eds.). (2001). New directions for teaching and learning: No. 88. Fresh approaches to the evaluation of teaching. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass. Wilhoit, Jim and Leland Ryken. Effective Bible Teaching. Grand Rapids: Baker, 1988.