Quotes from Bill Hull

Discipleship isn't a program or an event; it's a way of life. It's not for a limited time, but for our whole life. Discipleship isn't for beginners alone; it's for all believers for every day of their life. Discipleship isn't just one of the things the church does; it is what the church does.

Does the gospel we preach produce disciples or does it produce consumers of religious goods and services?

The Six-Fold Definition of Being Conformed to Christ's Image 130 1. Transformed Mind: Believe What Jesus Believed 130 2. Transformed Character: Live the Way Jesus Lived 135 3. Transformed Relationships: Love as Jesus Loved 139 4. Transformed Habits: Train as Jesus Trained 142 5. Transformed Service: Minister as Jesus Ministered 144 6. Transformed Influence: Lead the Way Jesus Led

Rather discipleship occurs when a transformed person radiates Christ to those around her. It happens when people so deeply experience God's love that they can do nothing other than affect those around them.

Evangelicals are too easily duped by the latest way to reach people, whether it be the Internet, nifty brochures, or musical extravaganzas. The entire approach puts more responsibility on the leadership to be creative and raise funds than it does on the members of the church to effectively penetrate their worlds for Christ.

When discipleship takes a place alongside leadership, evangelism, preaching, worship, counseling, support groups, and other programs, it ceases to be what it was meant to be: the heart of what it means to be a Christian.

When we begin to live for others, we will begin to have the same effect on others as Jesus did.

We are too easily satisfied with conventional success: bodies, bucks, and buildings. The average Christian resides in the comfort zone of "I pay the pastor to preach, administrate, and counsel. I pay him, he ministers to me. . . . I am the consumer, he is the retailer. . . . I have the needs, he meets them. . . . That's what I pay for.

Look at the bestselling Christian books, listen to the television evangelist, talk to the average parishioner; the common thread is a preoccupation with felt needs. If the church is going to obey Christ, this must stop.

Jesus described a disciple as one who abides in Him, is obedient, bears fruit, glorifies God, has joy, and loves (see John 15:7–17).

The evidence of salvation is living a life of transformation.

It takes five years to establish a discipleship flow and have it bear fruit within the church. Many pastors and parishioners simply don't possess the spiritual stomach for such a journey.

When certain characteristics of growing churches become the "holy grail," simply because they work, not because they are biblically sound, then pragmatism has become an idol.

The uneducated Christian waits until he feels the prompting of the Spirit before he takes action. The Word-filled believer takes action based upon the facts of God's commands, regardless of how he feels about it.

The church best glorifies God by making disciples, simply because fruit-bearing believers glorify God.

So why don't we automatically place discipleship at the center of every ministry? Perhaps certain words put people off: influence, vision, submission, accountability, vulnerability, confession, study, sacrifice, and discipline.

I often pray, "Lord, I'm your servant. I'll follow you even if it's into apparent failure, because I have no rights to success as I define it, or as the church defines it, or as my culture defines it. I'm only interested in pleasing you and being successful as you define it.

The local-church thinker says, "We are building a great church." The kingdom thinker says, "We are taking the rule of Christ to the world.

Before you start making disciples in the church, count the cost; don't start unless you plan to finish.

The reason the church has not changed the world is not just because of warfare with the world, the flesh, and the devil. Blame goes to the good guys as well, for the evangelical church has failed to produce a healthy product.

When you start following Jesus, you begin to prove you believe what he says.

The lack of good lay leadership—people from the marketplace who are fruit-bearing believers, leaders who are disciples and disciple makers, men and women who model and reproduce themselves in the eager growers within their spheres of influence—debilitates the local church.

Discipleship-the effort both to be a disciple and to make other disciples-is about the immense value of God at work in one individual's life and the resulting impact on other lives.

When Jesus delivered the Great Commission, he revealed God's plan for his church as well as for individual disciples. He charged the church to go to the world, because the world has no reason to go to church. Whether God blesses you with large numbers or small, if you're making disciples, you're leading as Christ led and instructed. So set worthy goals, lead by example, and leave the results up to God.