Mentor Like Jesus: Exploring How He Made DisciplesSample

A Mutual Commitment

Being a mentee of Jesus was a huge commitment. The disciples had to leave their businesses, their families, their homes . . . all to follow and learn from Jesus.

Have you ever thought about why the commitment level was so high? Jesus’ mission was important, and He wanted the disciples’ full attention and devotion so that when He was gone, they would be able to take it forward.

“For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also” said Jesus (Matthew 6:21).

Our freedom, our time, our money . . . whatever we treasure . . . when we give it up for something, our hearts will follow. When our involvement is optional . . . when we can go or not go, take it or leave it, then our hearts won’t be in it.

Mentoring isn’t about breadth; it’s about depth. It’s not about how many we can mentor; it’s about taking the ones we can mentor deep into the faith. And that requires a high level of commitment from both the mentor and the mentee.

If you want to mentor effectively, you have to do what Jesus did . . . set the expectations. It doesn’t get more straightforward than “Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me.”

The disciples weren’t perfect in keeping this expectation . . . they failed and even ran away, but Jesus never gave up on them. And ultimately, they never gave up on Him, giving their lives not for His memory or His teachings but for His Kingdom.

The expectations we set for our mentees will obviously be a little different than Jesus’, but our goal is the same . . . help them become all-in followers of Christ. We can’t get there without commitment. But the growth that can come when a mentor and his mentees make a commitment and keep it is incredible. God will honor that commitment and show up. Every time.

Challenge: A lot of people joke about the lack of motivation and focus in the younger generation, especially millennials. But the reality is they want someone to call to them a higher standard. They want to find meaning and purpose. They want to be mentored by people they respect. Many are just waiting for the opportunity.