Discipleship begins at home

Discipleship begins at home

Pr Annie Wong

12 Feb 2017

Deuteronomy 6:4-9

4 Hear, O Israel: The LORD our God, the LORD is one. 5 Love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength. 6 These commandments that I give you today are to be upon your hearts. 7 Impress them on your children. Talk about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up. 8 Tie them as symbols on your hands and bind them on your foreheads. 9 Write them on the door-frames of your houses and on your gates

- Understand discipleship
Discipleship is the process of bringing people into right relationship with God, and developing them to full maturity in Christ through intentional growth strategies, that they might multiply the entire process in others also.

1) Misconception of discipleship

It does not happen on its own.

It does not happen only at church.

- Misconception of discipleship

One myth is that discipleship is automatic. On the contrary, it is not automatic. It is counter-intuitive. A new believer, just like a baby, needs to be fed. Discipleship needs to be intentional. Another myth is that discipleship happens in Church. People spent most of the time: Work 28.5%, Sleep 33.3%, Church Activity 6.5%, Family/Your own 32.7%. These statistics show that people spend most of their time at home. Therefore the home is the most strategic and ideal place for discipleship to begin. Parents should disciple each other and their children. Parenting is about making disciples. We must first learn to be disciples ourselves before we disciple others. Parents have been given the responsibility to be the primary disciplers of their children.

2) Discipleship at home is Christ-centered home

To know Him

To live in Him

(a) To know Him

As parents, we are empowered to make sure our children follow Jesus as His disciples. The first thing is for them to know and cultivate a relationship with Jesus. Deuteronomy 6:4-6 --- "These commandments that I give you today are to be upon your hearts. Impress them on your children. Talk about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up." Romans 1:16 --- "I am not ashamed of the gospel, because it is the power of God for the salvation of everyone who believes: first for the Jew, then for the Gentile." Pr. Annie shared her faith journey in her younger days. As parents, we should take ownership of our children's faith journey, making sure that they truly know Jesus.

(b) To live in Him

Galatians 2:20 --- "I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The life I live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me."
One of the greatest treasures you can give your children is that Jesus lives in the home. If you are a parent, you are a reflection of God. They see God in you. You are a God proxy to your children. Children see, children do. They learn by example. The next generation will be in danger if parents are not good models to their children. What one generation neglects, the next generation rejects. We are the life examples to our children that they can see. Video clip was shown of a mother convicted to change her ways in order to be a good example to her child which resulted in a happy home. Children can help mothers to grow and change. As parents, we can learn from our children and vice versa.
Deuteronomy 6:7 --- Do our children see us praying and reading the Bible at home? We need to be authentic role models to our children. Our children can minister to us and vice versa. Discipleship at home can expose our weaknesses and vulnerability. 2 Corinthians 12:9 --- "My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness." Children may find it difficult to obey their parents, who are not perfect. Ephesians 6:1-3 -- "Children, obey your parents in the Lord, for this is right. Honour your father and mother that it may go well with you and that you may enjoy long life on the earth." It is not parents but God who gives this commandment.

3) Discipleship at home builds up the church

Strong families will contribute to building up a strong church.

A strong church will contribute to building up storing families.

Strong families are made up of strong individuals.

The home plays the primary role in family discipleship while the Church plays a secondary role only because discipleship begins at home.

Strong Families will contribute to building up a Strong Church.
A Strong Church will contribute to building up Strong Families.
Strong Families are made up of Strong Individuals.

We need a paradigm shift of discipleship from the institutional view to the biblical view.
From church-centred & home-supported (institutional view) to home-centred & church-supported (biblical view).

A Christian home is a Christ-centred home. God uses individual families to touch the Big Family of God which is the Church.
Discipleship is about modelling. Let's be good models to our children, not only at home but wherever we are. Let's model our love to one another.

Questions :-

1) How did you come to know Christ personally ? Recall your testimony.

2) Talking about Discipleship which begins at home - share how you as member is growing in your walk with Christ.

3) Share how you as a disciple of Christ are being a model to your family members / household. 

How are you to minister to one another ? 

How and why should you overcome challenges as a disciple of Christ at home ?