Time For Discipleship  

“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.”—2 Timothy 2:2 (ESV)

By Danny Saavedra      

All week we’ve talked about how we can best use our time, get the most out of the time we’ve been given, and be generous with our time. Our model, of course, has been Jesus Christ. His example in the Gospels paints a beautiful and clear picture of what being generous with one’s time looks like. Let’s do a quick recap:

· Jesus made time with His Father a priority. He also focused his time on spiritual disciplines like fasting, prayer, and solitude. 

· Jesus gave of His time constantly to invest in people, help people, save people, and heal people.

· Jesus could not be distracted or deterred from His mission and purpose by anything. He didn’t allow Himself to be set off course. 

Today, we’re going to look at another aspect of Jesus’ example: discipleship. We know discipleship is important to Jesus because He spent three very intentional, transformational, life-changing years pouring into His disciples. 

In those three years, He taught them both practical and spiritual lessons. He empowered them, kept them accountable, corrected them when they were in the wrong, prayed for them, ate with them, walked with them, and had fun with them. He even cried with them. Christ showed them what it meant to love God, to abide in Him, and to follow Him. He prepared them to go into the world and make more disciples, even as He had made them disciples. And then, He sent them out to do it!

It didn’t stop there, though, because He didn’t just send them out . . . He also sends us out to make disciples. You see, anyone who calls himself or herself a disciple of Jesus is also called to be a disciple-maker. You see, it’s a two-fold, lifelong process! 

The first part is our journey of discipleship. It’s never over. From the moment we respond to Jesus’ call, until the moment we meet Him face-to-face in heaven, we are disciples who need to be discipled. This means we need people speaking into our lives—mentors, people further along in the journey—who embody what it means to follow Jesus and set examples for us to emulate (1 Corinthians 11:1). We need people we can rely on, who can hold us accountable, encourage us, empower us, spur us on, call us out, cry with us, grow with us, and provide godly wisdom and insight into our lives. 

Consider the relationship in the Bible between young Timothy and his mentor, the apostle Paul. No matter where we are in our spiritual journey, we can all benefit from having a “Paul” in our life. Mentors are instrumental in the development of our faith and walk as a disciple. If you’ve never had a mentor, now is the time to seek one out. Consider asking a trusted pastor, leader, or group leader to mentor you, or ask a church leader to help pair you up with a suitable mentor. 

The second part of discipleship is becoming a disciple-maker. As we grow and become more mature as believers, we are expected to go from being a “Timothy” to serving as a “Paul” in someone else’s life. We are expected to reproduce in others what Christ has poured into us and what mentors, spiritual leaders, and fellow believers have helped us grow in. 

Here are a few things to consider when engaging in the discipleship process:

1. Find a mentor.

2. Commit to being part of a small group.

3. Find an accountability partner.

4. Seek out newer believers you can disciple.

Final thought: One of the most valuable time investments you can make is to be discipled and to disciple. Not only is this an investment that will yield amazing, far-reaching fruit, but it’s also a command from Christ. It’s our responsibility and something that is expected of every believer. And truthfully, when we neglect this mission and commission, we are not living a life of generosity or obedience to the Lord.