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Love, Follow, Serve

What is discipleship?
A disciple is someone who loves, follows, and serves Jesus. Discipleship is the lifelong process of helping people love, follow, and serve Jesus with all of themselves, in obedience to Jesus’ command to make disciples and teach them to observe all that He has commanded (Matthew 28:18–20). Through discipleship we are shaped by the power of the Holy Spirit to reflect His character, walk in His ways, and live under His lordship.

Discipleship happens in the context of community and includes both personal discipleship (intentional relationships, accountability, one-on-one discipleship, etc.) and corporate discipleship (Sunday gatherings, community groups, classes, ministries, etc.). We grow holistically as disciples when we both receive discipleship and participate in discipling others as members of the body of Christ.

Participating in Discipleship
God is the one who forms us by His Word and through the power of the Holy Spirit. He shapes us as we walk with Jesus and submit our lives to Him. God also uses His people as part of this work, which is why discipleship happens within the life of the church and through intentional discipleship relationships. These relationships do not replace God’s work; they participate in it. In Deuteronomy 6, God calls His people to talk about Him “when you sit in your house, when you walk on the road, when you lie down, and when you rise.” Discipleship is not tied to a specific place or setting, but to a shared pursuit of Jesus where life happens.

Who disciples me?
You are discipled through the corporate life of the church: gatherings, community groups, classes, serving, and shared worship. In addition, every disciple should pursue personal discipleship by intentionally seeking someone who is faithfully walking with Jesus and growing in obedience to Him. Finding a discipler most often begins with initiative. Rather than waiting to be noticed or assigned, ask someone you respect spiritually to walk with you. This does not require finding the “perfect” person or committing to a lifelong arrangement. Discipleship relationships are often seasonal, shaped by where God is currently forming you. Faithfulness, availability, and teachability matter more than age, stage, or expertise so peer-to-peer discipleship is real discipleship.

Who do I disciple?
Discipleship is not only something we receive; it is something we do. You disciple others by intentionally walking with them toward greater faithfulness to Jesus, not simply by being relational or present in their lives. This may include people already within your circle, such as friends, peers, newer believers, or people you intentionally invite into a discipleship relationship.

Discipling others does not require having everything figured out. It requires that you are walking with Jesus yourself and are willing to walk alongside someone else toward greater maturity. Discipleship grows as we open Scripture together, pray together, confess honestly, and encourage one another to live out what Jesus has commanded.

At The Well, we encourage a simple discipleship rhythm often described as “One Up, Two Down,”being intentionally discipled by someone while also walking intentionally with others toward greater faithfulness to Jesus.

Discipleship at a Glance: Discipleship is a lifelong journey of growing in what it looks like to love, follow, and serve Jesus together. God is the primary discipler, using the life of the church and relationships to shape us. Every disciple both receives and participates in discipleship, walking with others toward faithfulness to Jesus.

What to do when you meet?

Discipleship meetings do not require special curriculum or expertise. The three practices that follow are meant to be included each time you meet, serving as a shared framework rather than a rigid script. As disciples grow in maturity, these rhythms may take different forms under the leading of the Holy Spirit, while the essentials keep the purpose in view.

Scripture and Prayer

Discipleship is rooted in a growing, personal relationship with Jesus through His Word and prayer by the power of the Holy Spirit. Most Scripture reading and prayer happens individually with the Lord. When disciples meet, they come together to look to who God is, what He has revealed, and how He has been at work.

• Share how God has been revealing Himself through Scripture and how He has been faithful in prayer.
• Read scripture together, teaching, questioning, and challenging one another in response to God’s Word.
• Pray together with adoration, gratitude, and dependence, for people and situations.

Helpful Questions: What has God been showing you about Himself? How have you seen God’s faithfulness or provision in prayer?

Confess, Remember the Gospel, and Walk in Accountability

Discipleship requires honesty before God and with one another. What is brought into the light is transformed; what is left unaddressed continues to deform. Discipleship creates space to both celebrate where God is at work and lovingly address where growth is still needed. We do this in light of the gospel, responding to His love.

• Celebrate evidence of God’s grace and faithfulness, and confess sin, weakness, or ongoing struggles honestly.
• Remember the gospel together, who Jesus is, what He has done, and what is now true because of Him.
• Walk together in loving accountability as a response to God’s love, marked by repentance and faith.

Helpful Questions: Where have you seen God’s grace or faithfulness? What needs to come into the light? What is true because of Christ? What step of repentance or obedience is God inviting you into?

Live Sent

Living as sent people means recognizing that following Jesus always moves beyond ourselves. We are sent into our everyday lives to help others come to know and follow Jesus, walk with believers toward maturity, and to live in ways that reflect and advance God’s kingdom, depending on God to bring about growth and change. This outward life is not optional or secondary, but a natural expression of life with Jesus.

• Talk together about who you are discipling and how those relationships are growing.
• Share about relationships with those who are spiritually curious, how you are investing, and how you are clearly speaking about Jesus
• Consider together how you are stewarding your time, talents, and resources to make God known locally and globally.

Helpful Questions: Who are you discipling, and what is God doing in that relationship? Who are you investing in and clearly speaking to about Jesus? How are you stewarding what God has entrusted to you locally and globally?

Essentials for Meeting: Look together to God in scripture and prayer—listening for His voice, and reorienting your hearts toward Him. Respond to the gospel by confessing sin, remembering who God is and what He has done in Christ, and walking in repentance, faith, and loving accountability. Live as sent people, helping others know and follow Jesus by stewarding what God has entrusted to us, both locally and globally, in dependence on Him.

Essentials for Meeting: Look together to God in scripture and prayer—listening for His voice, and reorienting your hearts toward Him. Respond to the gospel by confessing sin, remembering who God is and what He has done in Christ, and walking in repentance, faith, and loving accountability. Live as sent people, helping others know and follow Jesus by stewarding what God has entrusted to us, both locally and globally, in dependence on Him.