Quotes from Greg Ogden

The Scriptures picture the church as an essential, chosen organism in whom Christ dwells; the reality is that people view the church as an optional institution, unnecessary for discipleship.

A. B. Bruce summarizes this point: "The careful, painstaking education of the disciples secured that the Teacher's influence on the world should be permanent, that His Kingdom should be founded on deep and indestructible convictions in the minds of a few, not on the shifting sands of superficial impressions on the minds of many."1

To be a follower of Christ is to understand that there is no such thing as solo discipleship.

Intimate, accountable relationship with other believers is the foundation for growing in discipleship.

Heading the list is the definitive quality that shines through Jesus and is to mark his followers. Jesus said, "By this all men will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another" (John 13:35). To love your enemies and forgive those who intend your destruction is a love that comes from above.

If I were to choose one word to summarize the state of discipleship today, that word would be superficial.

Leaders get rewarded for the three Bs: budgets, buildings and butts in the seats.

The problem in our culture . . . isn't the abortionists. It isn't the pornographers or drug dealers or criminals. It is the undisciplined, undiscipled, disobedient, and Biblically ignorant Church of Jesus Christ."[7]

For the better part of two decades, I have observed an approximate 75 percent reproduction rate through the triad model of disciple making.

Can you imagine the kingdom impact if every believer had the opportunity to be involved in an intensive, year-long relationship with at least two others whose expressed purpose was to grow to become a reproducing disciple of Jesus? Church life would shift from the ministry of professionals to a mobilized body of multipliers.

Without question, the setting where I have experienced the most accelerated transformation in the lives of believers has been in triads, or small reproducible discipleship groups.

As the alternative to the one-on-one model, I propose a threesome that I call a triad as the ideal size for a disciple-making group.

Leroy Eims a generation ago asked, "What then is the problem today? Why don't we see more of this [disciple making] going one? Why are fruitful, dedicated mature disciples so rare? The biggest reason is that all too often we have relied on programs or materials or some other thing to do the job. The ministry is carried on by people, not programs.

Jesus went about his ministry with a relaxed urgency.

Robert Coleman's challenge: "One must decide where he wants his ministry to count—in the momentary applause of popular recognition or in the reproduction of his life in a few chosen ones who will carry on his work after he has gone? Really, it is a question of which generation we are living for.

John Kotter in Leading Change says that a primary reason why change does not occur is that there is no sense of urgency.

Leadership is about instilling urgency.

Instead of equipping the saints to do the work of ministry, those in pastoral leadership do it themselves.

The scriptural model for growing disciples is through relationships. Jesus called the Twelve to "be with him" (Mark 3:14), for their lives would be transformed through personal association.

Every Christian must see themselves as the link to the next generation," writes William Barclay.

We have transformed the gospel into the benefits we receive from Jesus rather than the call to be conformed to the life of Jesus. We want abundance without obedience.

Eugene Peterson puts this truth cleverly: "Jesus, it must be remembered, restricted nine-tenths of His ministry to twelve Jews, because it was the only way to reach all Americans."2

Jesus had enough vision to think small. Focusing did not limit his influence — it expanded it. When Jesus ascended to the Father, he knew that there were at least eleven who could minister under the authority of his name, an elevenfold multiplication of his ministry. Robert Coleman captures the heart of Jesus' methodology when he writes, "[Jesus'] concern was not with programs to reach the multitudes but with men the multitudes would follow.