The church’s mandate is pretty simple; to make disciples, who make disciples, who make disciples, to continue a movement that was started over 2,000 years ago. Our goal as leaders of men is to build an army of men who have the vision and passion to become a multiplying leader. A multiplying leader is one that has a plan and strategy to intentionally develop other disciples, leaders and small groups. In Paul’s second letter to Timothy he sums up this idea perfectly; “The things you have heard me say in the presence of many witnesses, entrust to reliable men who will be able to teach others”(II Timothy 2:2) This passage instructs young Timothy on how to become a multiplying leader.
I. Think Multiplication not Addition
The power of multiplication is in the exponential growth that takes place when we develop disciple makers, not just disciples. The problem is the church is adding while the world is rapidly multiplying. Addition seems faster with immediate results, but in the long run does not do the job.
To have a multiplication mindset is to always be looking for the next leader with the potential to start a new group. Paul gives us a new metric for measuring success, and it is not not how many attend our events, but how many disciple makers we produce each year.
II. Start Small and Go Slow
Greg Ogden in his book, Transforming Discipleship says, ‘we need to have a big enough vision to think small.’ Too often we are enamored with numbers and think that the more we have, the more successful we are. When in actual fact it is not about numbers, but what is being produced. To really launch a movement it will take time to invest in a small group of men, who will be able to do the same for someone else. Jesus was never concerned with numbers. 78% of his time was spent with the disciples, not the multitudes.
To have a significant impact, one must be prepared to take a correlating amount of time to achieve it. This will result in a rapid and exponential increase in disciples and disciple makers over time.
Here are few applications: (The first three are from Vince Miller)
1. Choose 3-5 men you enjoy spending time with.
2. Choose a time that works best for you.
3. Choose the Content – don’t leave it to a vote
4. Push for obedience – move from knowledge based discipleship to obedience based 5. Keep it simple, biblical and reproducible – The more complicated it is, the more likely it is not going to multiply.
III. Relationships are the tracks that a movement runs on
More time spent with fewer people results in greater impact for the Kingdom of God. Another way of saying it is, the closer you get to your men the greater the impact you will have in their lives. Genuine, personal relationships aren’t built on better programs, more events, nicer brochures; they’re built on investing in people as Jesus invested in the twelve.
Building Relationships with your men involves: Walking with them, Listening to Them, Praying for them, Encouraging them, being there for them, loving them where they are. The more time you spend with your men outside of the small group time, the greater the depth of sharing there will be in the group.
Paul describes what relational discipleship looks like in I Thessalonians 2:8, “I loved you so much that I not only shared the gospel with you, but my life as well.” True multiplication occurs when you model faith for others, as people are looking for a demonstration, not an explanation. The principle is simple: You will reproduce in others what you live out before others.
“The greatest gift you can give your men is your personal holiness.” —Robert Murry McCheyne
IV. Train the leaders to launch the movement
Jesus trained the twelve to launch a movement that is still going today. The key to launching a movement is identifying an apprentice early on. Mac Lake says an apprentice is not a co-leader or an assistant leader, but rather an apprentice is someone who is being equipped and trained to become a leader, who will be responsible for leading others. Your apprentice is your next leader.
Here are a few things to keep in mind when training an apprentice:
- The best training happens in the context of a ministry environment. An apprentice learns best when they can watch an experienced leader in action.
-
- Hands-on application is also vital – give them something to do during the meeting and debrief them afterwards
- Train character and competency. These are the twin tracks of development.
-
- Character development involves encouraging the person to become more like Jesus
- Competency development focuses on teaching the skills necessary to start discipling others
- If you are developing an apprentice specifically to lead a small group, make a list of the five key skills needed to lead a group and start there.
- The final step comes when the apprentice is ready to be launched. Here are three ways that can happen:
-
- The apprentice is sent to start their own small group.
- The existing leader starts a new group, leaving the apprentice to lead the original.
- The group is divided between the apprentice and the original leader. This can be difficult for members who want to stay together, but multiplication should be your first priority.
