Our Discipleship Process
Email Us at info@mtsignal.org
Equipping the church to be fully devoted followers of Jesus Christ
Education
Jesus was clear that making disciples includes teaching all that He taught. This component of discipleship happens through sermons and in classroom environments primarily meeting on Sundays and Wednesdays.
Service
Encouragement
Devotion
In order to know and become more like Jesus, a disciple must be devoted to a variety of disciplines. These disciplines, though not all explicitly commanded in Scripture, have been practiced by the church for centuries in order to maintain a life that is unstained by the world.
Missions
The primary command of Jesus to all believers is to love the way He loved. That love is ultimately expressed by taking the message of the gospel to people who have never heard it anywhere they live in the world.
Our Discipleship Process Explained
A disciple is not above his teacher, but everyone when he is fully trained will be like his teacher. -Luke 6:40
When Jesus commanded His followers to “make disciples” He was commanding them first to share the gospel and call people to faith in Him. Then He commanded His disciples to train new followers to be more like Him. This is what we call “discipleship”.
The goal of our Discipleship Process is to “fully train” followers of Jesus so that they, as mature disciples, will be able to “fully train” others.
Our Discipleship Process consists of 5 aspects: Education, Service, Encouragement, Devotion and Missions.
All of the services, events, activities and outreach of Mt Signal Baptist will tie into one or more of these aspects of our Discipleship Process.
Education
We will teach all that Jesus taught and we will teach the entire counsel of God’s word through Sunday morning sermons and through a variety of educational classes offered throughout the year primarily on Sunday mornings (9:30am) and Wednesday nights (6:30pm).
Classes are either 8 or 16 weeks. They are intended to be completed over a 3-year period.
- How to Read / Study the Bible (8 Weeks)
Description: Explore various approaches to Biblical interpretation. - Old Testament Survey I (16 Weeks)
Description: A high level overview of Genesis through the Former Prophets. - Old Testament Survey II (16 Weeks)
Description: A high level overview of the Latter Prophets through The Writings. - New Testament Survey I (16 Weeks)
Description: A high level overview of the Gospels. - New Testament Survey II (16 Weeks)
Description: A high level overview of Acts through Revelation. - Bible Doctrines I (16 Weeks)
Description: A focus on the doctrines of God’s Word, God and humanity. - Bible Doctrines II (16 Weeks)
Description: A focus on the doctrines of Christ, the Holy Spirit, redemption, the church, and the future. - Church History I (16 Weeks)
Description: Explore the development of the church from the days of Jesus to the years prior to the Reformation. - Church History II (16 Weeks)
Description: Explore the development of the church from the days of the Reformation to Present Day. - Evangelism & Missions (8 Weeks)
Description: Develop a theology of evangelism and missions while learning various techniques of engaging the lost in various cultural contexts. - Prayer & Worship (8 Weeks)
Description: Explore the transforming power of prayer and praise in changing our lives and advancing the gospel. - Biblical Counseling (8 Weeks)
Description: Learn to apply biblical theology to counseling and comforting those who are hurting.
Next Generation (Children & Students)
The same classroom structure will be provide for children and students with class options on Sunday mornings (9:30am) and Wednesday nights (6:00pm). Though the classes will be the same in topic, they will be taught at age-appropriate levels and utilize age-appropriate instruction that includes games and object lessons.
Service
We have a variety of Ministry Teams who serve the church and the community. Below are some examples but we encourage every member to join or create a Ministry Team in line with their spiritual gifts and calling.
Worship Team
Hospitality Team
Home Improvement Team
Prayer Team
Women’s Pregnancy Center Team
Building & Grounds Team (this is an appointed team)
Finance Team (this is an appointed team)
Teaching Team
Next Generation (Children & Students)
We will also create Ministry Teams among children and students or involve them with their parents in Ministry Teams. High School students are encouraged to join or create Ministry Teams on their own.
Encouragement
Life Groups gather in small groups throughout the week for encouragement, prayer, confession and to reinforce other aspects of the Discipleship Process.
These groups may meet around any aspect of the Discipleship Process. Some groups meet in conjunction with their Ministry Team. Others meet specifically to address a season of life issue among the members and integrate the Devotion aspect of discipleship into the group (reading a book together, learning to pray together, etc). Others meet specifically to reinforce what they’re learning in the Educational aspect of discipleship.
Group Size: 3-6 people
Group Term: Set by the group but in general 6 months to 1 year
Group Times: Groups should meet at least monthly but preferably weekly and/or communicate weekly.
Group Leadership: Group leaders are the primary initiators and communicators regarding group meetings and direction. Note: Group Leaders will need to attend a one-time Group Leadership Training meeting.
Next Generation (Children & Students)
For children, Life Groups will function within the context of family discipleship, as parents should be the primary teachers of their children. These groups will function similarly to other Encouragement Groups in that parents will lead their children in sharing encouragement and wisdom, confession and prayer. These times are ideal for scripture memory, prayer memory, learning a catechism, or reading a book together.
Older students are encouraged to meet in Life Groups with their peers or other adults in the church.
We provide training for parents on how to facilitate these times together.
Devotion
A disciple’s devotional life includes many aspects as we are devoted to abiding in Christ and obeying Him. Though our devotional lives may include more than what we outline in the Discipleship Process, these are aspects of our devotional lives that we want to have in common for the purposes of training, accountability and celebration.
Together we are devoted to…
- Gathering weekly to worship the Lord together on Sundays
- Scripture Memory (40 passages all members should know)
- Devotional Prayers (a collection of prayers to focus our hearts and minds in all circumstances)
- Daily Bible Reading / Study (Recommended List Here)
- Weekly Rest
- Monthly Celebration
- Yearly Retreat
Next Generation (Children & Students)
An aspect of Children’s Worship on Sunday mornings will be helping children memorize Scripture, learn to pray, learn catechisms (click here to download) and become familiar with the Bible. The primary devotional life of a child will still be overseen by his/her parents and can be reinforced through Family Encourage Group times.
Missions
We define “missions” as the task proclaiming the gospel to every people group that has not yet heard it, in order to establish churches—churches that will carry on the mission and message of the gospel by reaching their culture, teaching others, and sending missionaries out.
As a church, we want each member to engage in this effort to reach the unreached through praying, giving, and going.
Ultimately our goal as a church is to see an unreached or under-reached people-group reached with the gospel.
Praying: As we gather in various contexts as a church, we will pray specifically for unreached people groups and continue to narrow our focus to one or a few people groups as the Lord leads.
Giving: We will give financially and of other resources to assist churches in areas that are currently working among unreached people to advance the gospel.
Going: As the Lord leads, we will go to visit those we are praying for and to those we are giving. Our purpose in going to them will be to further equip and to encourage those churches and their leaders, recognizing that in going our prayers, our giving and our vision for missions will be impacted.