Christian Discipleship: In the Church

Sunday, November 23, 2025
Pastor Jojo Ma

Sermon Video

Matt 28:18-20 18 And Jesus came and said to them, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. 19 Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20 teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.

If you are a believer in Jesus, you have a responsibility to be joined to a local church to help it be a healthy church.

I.          The “What” of Discipling
II.        The “Where” of Discipling
III.       Our Church and Discipling

I.         The “What” of Discipling
Mark Dever: “Discipling is deliberately doing spiritual good to someone so that he or she will be more like Christ.”

Discipleship is you following Christ; discipling is helping others follow Christ. That distinction can be helpful.

The first step in all this is to make sure you yourself are following Jesus. Do you know Christ personally?

Mk 8:34 If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me.

That is the heart of discipling. You are aiming, because of love, to help others follow Christ, and that is truly loving because that promotes their well-being and the spiritual health of the local church.

2 Tim 2:2 and what you have heard from me in the presence of many witnesses entrust to faithful men, who will be able to teach others also.

Mark Dever: “Discipling is initiating a relationship in which you teach, correct, model, and love.”

2 Cor 4:7 But we have this treasure in jars of clay, to show that the surpassing power belongs to God and not to us.

Jn 6:68 Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life.

Heb 13:7 Remember your leaders, those who spoke to you the word of God. Consider the outcome of their way of life, and imitate their faith.

1 Cor 11:1 Be imitators of me, as I am of Christ.

II.        The “Where” of Discipling
Mark Dever: “The local church is the natural environment for discipling. It is itself the basic discipler of Christians.”

Heb 10:24-25 And let us consider how to stir up one another to love and good works, not neglecting to meet together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another, and all the more as you see the Day drawing near.

Eph 4:11-16 And he gave the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, the shepherds and teachers, to equip the saints for the work of ministry, for building up the body of Christ, until we all attain to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to mature manhood  to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ, so that we may no longer be children, tossed to and fro by the waves and carried about by every wind of doctrine, by human cunning, by craftiness in deceitful schemes. Rather, speaking the truth in love, we are to grow up in every way into him who is the head, into Christ, from whom the whole body, joined and held together by every joint with which it is equipped, when each part is working properly, makes the body grow so that it builds itself up in love.

It is vital to the health of each local church that there is a culture of discipling. We are our brothers’ keepers, one to another. Elders and members should be promoting --- as the primary agenda --- doing spiritual good by helping others follow Jesus.

III.      Our Church and Discipling

  • Who are pods for?

  • What are pods?

  • When and where will pods happen?

  • Why have pods?

  • How will pods be chosen? What content will be studied? How long will the pods go for?