The Four Quadrants of Discipleship
His Words, Our Life . Practical Christian Living Teaching Series
Discipleship comes from the root word “Disciple” which means follower, believer, supporter, devotee, partisan, adherent, student, pupil, scholar, or learner.
“Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.” (Matthew 28:19-20)
Are you now a Disciple of Jesus Christ?
Search Key Tags : discipleship, cost of discipleship, four quadrants of discipleship, excellence in discipleship, character in discipleship, conviction in discipleship, perspective in discipleship, conviction, excellence, character, perspective
The Great Commission is not an evangelistic commission. It is rather a command to all of us to make Disciples. Converts must be turned into a Disciple. But before discipleship happens, there got to be conversion first.
Do not rebuke a mocker or he will hate you; rebuke a wise man and he will love you. 9 Instruct a wise man and he will be wiser still; teach a righteous man and he will add to his learning. (Proverbs 9:8-9)
A very good indication that an individual is a disciple is that, the person is a learner, has an open mind, and willing to admit mistakes. A disciple therefore is a wise man.
In the contrary, a fool is somebody who thinks he knows everything, not listening to counsel, and accepts advises into deaf ears. But a wise man knows how much he doesn’t know because he knew that there is so much to know.
What we know is so little. What we do not know is so immense.
All of us are enrolled in the School of Wisdom. Therefore, we are all learners. And learners are open to rebuke because we can’t be a disciple if we resist correction especially if it comes from our superiors.
A learner is open and teachable. Why? We came from different brand of upbringing and environment, therefore, we’ve got to bring ourselves into a common discipline – the teachings of the bible.
Let’s now try to dissect the very meat of our discussion or shall I say article for today. Why Quadrants of Discipleship? This is not a theology, it is just a coincidence that in discipleship, there are always four subject matters involved. And it so happened that the cross has four pies. In fact the foundation of discipleship was in the cross 2000 years ago when the Lord Jesus Christ died but rose again on the third day.
1st Quadrant : Grow in Character
In other words, our innermost self must be of high quality because character also speaks of our nature, temperament, disposition, and moral fiber. Character is the source of what we do unconsciously. In that sense, who you are in the outside is just a reflection of what you are in the inside.
“By this all men will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another.” (John 13:35)
Character identifies a disciple. People will know that we are a disciple of Christ through our character.
Truths about Character
• Character is more than just being civilized.
• Character is more than just being ethical
• A person of Character is someone who is not just to act accordingly, but rather, somebody who act from the heart.
It’s good to civilized but it’s best to have a good character. What’s best is that, we do something not because it’s our obligation but it comes from our heart.
And we, who with unveiled faces all reflect the Lord’s glory, are being transformed into his likeness with ever-increasing glory, which comes from the Lord, who is the Spirit. (2 Corinthians 3:18)
We only develop our Character: We do not only SHOW kindness but HAVE kindness; not only to SHOW Politeness but HAVE politeness. Kindness and Politeness are part of Christian nature.
2nd Quadrant : Grow in Conviction
By faith Moses, when he had grown up, refused to be known as the son of Pharaoh’s daughter. 25 He chose to be mistreated along with the people of God rather than to enjoy the pleasures of sin for a short time. (Hebrews 11:24-25)
Conviction is a very expensive commodity. Pay now enjoy later.
A disciple does things not out of compulsion but out of conviction. We do things out of conviction not because it’s our obligation but because
A person with conviction is EXCELLENT. You do not need to check his activity or work because he is doing it out of conviction. He is a worker with less supervision but the work is finished on time without sacrificing the quality of the work.
Let’s begin to do things from the inside.
Obedience is good but you’ve g0t to obey and act out of conviction.
It is a sad reality that sometimes many act like an actors / actresses as if they work for a “Show”. Don’t forget that you are a disciple, not an artist in God’s eyes. And if only all children of God are convicted and grounded enough, problems in the church, family, community would be minimal.
3rd Quadrant : Grow in Perspective
A person with a correct perspective can see the probable end – not only the beginning – of a thought, an action, or a situation.
A disciple person with perspective sees everything.
A disciple has the right perspective therefore has the ability to see the effect of every action before doing it. If you are a worker, you got to see the effect of your action.
A person sees every angle of his action.
Philippians 2:3-4 Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit, but in humility consider others better than yourselves. 4 Each of you should look not only to your own interests, but also to the interests of others.
A disciple is considerate enough to see the bigger picture. If you are a worker of a church, start to consider the probable thoughts or reaction of the attendees before going to beach on Sunday. Or try to consider the probable reaction of your fellow worker before deciding not to attend the worker’s meeting and seminars on Saturday because it’s a shopping day. Your inability to see the bigger picture is not just a strong indication of selfishness but an indication that you are not yet a full pledge follower of the Lord.
Know the effect of your action. While It’s true that you are not men’s pleaser, isn’t it also true that a disciple is responsible enough with his actions, minding the effect it brings to your co-workers, seatmate in the church, co-employees who watch you more than you think? Disciples are called to be the “lights” of this world.
4th Quadrant : Grow in Excellence
People were overwhelmed with amazement. “He has done everything well,” they said. “He even makes the deaf hear and the mute speak.” (Mark 7:37)
I’ve been to many product endorsements in the corporate world. The brand of the product plays a vital role of its salability. And more often that not, consumers look for brands that are known to be of high quality. If a brand is just new in the market, an endorsement is necessary to help push the product. The endorsement needed does not necessarily come from a person of influence like popular artist or prominent person in the society known as endorsers. An organization which specializes in branding, standardizations, and reviews will do. If the new product carries their logo like “Superbrands” then the product will suddenly become attractive in the eyes of the consumers. Or if the name company carries ISO9000 or something to that effect, the same impact shall happen to the products the company carry.
The brand of the work of the Lord is EXCELLENCE. God doesn’t want His people to stay mediocre. And if we live in poverty, God will be the first to feel sad with our predicaments and pain. And if we stay in mediocrity for long or even for life, it’s our decision not His. He already did the major part of being freed in poverty 2000 years ago. In fact, God gave us the ability to create wealth.
But remember the LORD your God, for it is he who gives you the ability to produce wealth, and so confirms his covenant, which he swore to your forefathers, as it is today. (Deuteronomy 8:18)
Let’s now ask ourselves with the following question:
- How’s my work the whole day? Did it reflect the excellent brand of the Lord? Is it of high quality or excellence? Did I do it with all my heart, soul, and strength?
- How’s my attitude today? Did it reflect God’s kind of attitude?
- If you are a worker-musician, how’s your readiness spiritually? Is it an excellent worship?
- If you are a preacher, how’s your pulpit ministry? Is it an excellent preaching?
- If you are Christian Engineer, Teacher, Nurse, Doctor, Accountant, etc., how’s profession? Are you growing and becoming more competitive in your area of expertise?
Our outward look is a reflection of what we are in the inside.
I did my best, but I guess my best wasn’t good enough. I gave my all, but I think my all may have been too much.
If you know that song, it’s a reflection of how limited we are. We may do everything in the world to succeed and to be excellent, but if we do it with the wrong motive and reason, we’ll end up short causing us to feel unfulfilled again. Our best would only be good enough only if we have the guidance of God’s Spirit because He is the one who knows what is well pleasing in the eyes of the Holy God and King.
Conclusion
Conversion is just the first step to Christian life. It must be our goal to become a disciple of the Lord – growing in Character, growing in Conviction, growing in Perspective, and growing in Excellence.
