One of the many things one finds in Mark 6 is Jesus's idea of discipleship. For the previous few chapters he allowed them to follow him around and observe. He taught them and modeled ministry for them. Then he sent them out to copy his ministry. After a time they came back and reported what had happened.
It's a very simple model. It's so simple that I sometimes wonder why the church so often doesn't use it. Some churches view discipleship as more mature Christians hanging out with newer Christians. Some view it as going through a workbook. Some view it as a ministry apprenticeship. None of these are intrinsically bad (I actually think they are generally good, but it might depend on the workbook). My concern is that they are not holistic enough. Each model gets at part of discipleship, but misses other things. I think an important question to ask in any discipleship is how effectively we are equipping new people for ministry. Both for the act of ministry and for the spiritual depth required for effective and proper ministry. If we aren't preparing the next generation, then what are we doing?
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