B. Verb.

1. matheteuo ^3100^ is used in the active voice, intransitively, in some mss., in <Matt. 27:57>, in the sense of being the "disciple"

of a person; here,

however, the best mss. have the passive voice, lit., "had been made a disciple," as in <Matt. 13:52>, RV, "who hath been made

a disciple." It is used in this transitive sense in the active voice in <28:19> and <Acts 14:21>.#

All places where matheteuo ^3100^ is used

Matt 13:52 And He said to them, "Therefore every scribe who has become a disciple of the kingdom of heaven is like a head of a

household, who brings forth out of his treasure things new and old." (NAS)
Matt 27:57 And when it was evening, there came a rich man from Arimathea, named Joseph, who himself had also become a disciple

of Jesus. (NAS)
Matt 28:19 Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit,

(NAS)
Acts 14:21 And after they had preached the gospel to that city and had made many disciples, they returned to Lystra and to Iconium

and to Antioch, (NAS)

What is discipleship?
Ship (Webster) = showing, exhibiting (something that can be seen/recognized)

What then is a Disciple Maker?
One who makes disciples who show/exhibit things

Some Key verses that describes the relationship between student/teacher and

disciple/disciple maker:
Matt 10:24-25 "A student is not above his teacher, nor a servant above his master. It is enough for the student to be like his teacher,

and the servant like his master. If the head of the house has been called Beelzebub, (NIV) Matt 10:24-25 "A disciple is not above his

teacher, nor a slave above his master. "It is enough for the disciple that he become as his teacher, and the slave as his master.

If they have called the head of the house Beelzebul, how much more the members of his household! (NAS)

Observations from above:
“be like”, “become as” and “be as” all point to doing things (actions) like someone else. So, a disciple should be doing things like

his disciple maker does them. In simplistic terms, a disciple then is a “copy cat”. He copies what his teacher (disciple maker) does.

Therefore, to be a disciple maker, one must have "some things" to copy. Jesus went from place to place showing his disciples what

his habits looked like in various situations. His example was something to copy. Paul said “follow me as I follow Christ”. A disciple

maker then must display good habits to his disciple. This makes the disciple maker responsible for having many good habits and as

few as possible bad habits. For example, a daily quiet time, a weekly bible study and a scripture memory plan are all good habits that

a disciple maker may want to impart to his disciple. Based on definitions above, the disciple maker’s habits must be seen by his disciple.

This means the disciple must be present when the disciple maker displays his habits. This leads us to a picture of what “Christian

Discipleship” looks like. One-on-one time together to do Bible study, to review scripture memory verses and to serve could be

components of a good ”plan for discipleship”. As Jesus said, no student is above his master. This means a disciple maker should not

expect his disciple to have better habits than the disciple maker himself has.

This can cause the following questions to come before those wanting to be disciple makers:

1. What good habits do I want my disciple to pass on to his disciple?
2. What do I need to impart to my disciple so that he becomes an effective disciple maker?

Explanation of Illustration
The ring of circles can be considered stages of a disciple maker’s development. He starts out as a "new believer" and progresses through the diagram in a clockwise direction. Recommended habits for each stage are printed inside the circles. The habits can also be considered as objectives of the disciple maker as he seeks to develop his disciple’s abilities and maturity.
The arrows can be considered "expected abilities". For example, a NEW BELIEVER and a GROWING CHRISTIAN have no arrows coming out of them because they are not expected to be able to reach out and help others. The DISCIPLE is expected to be able to lead people to Christ and help them to grow so that they reach the GROWING CHRISTIAN stage. Going through the NEW BELIEVER and GROWING CHRISTIAN stages has taught the DISCIPLE much of what he needs to know. The Laborer will help him know more and put this knowledge into action. The LABORER is expected to be able to help someone become a DISCIPLE. He can do this because the LABORER has been through all three previous stages and he has the council of the Leader to guide him. Finally the LEADER develops. He is able to do everything a LABORER can do because the LEADER has been through all previous stages and his LEADER has taught him additional things he needs to know.

The Circle Illustration illustrates:
1. The possible stages a person might go through in a disciple making ministry,
2. Possible abilities gained by a person in a disciple making ministry and
3. The need for Love throughout the disciplType your paragraph here.

The circle illustration is a plan from the heart of a man seeking to make disciples and fulfill the great commission. It has helped this man set personal goals for himself and propose personal goals for others. The reader should realize that the key to success is not in the plan but in seeking the Lord’s direction every step of the way. The author believes a good reference for coming up with a disciple making plan can be found in the book: "The lost Art of Disciple Making” by Leroy Eims.

Defining Some Terms

What is a Disciple?

Disciple (Wikipedia) =The term "disciple" is derived from the Koine Greek word mathetes,[1] which means a pupil (of a teacher) or

an apprentice (to a master craftsman), coming to English by way of the Latin discipulus meaning a learner while the more common

English word is student. A disciple is different from an apostle, which instead means a messenger.[2][3] While a disciple is one who

learns from a teacher, an apostle is one sent to deliver those teachings or a message

"Disciple" in Vine's Expository Dictionary of Biblical Words

A. Nouns.
1. mathetes ^3101^, lit., "a learner" (from manthano, "to learn," from a root math--, indicating thought accompanied by endeavor),

in contrast to didaskalos, "a teacher"; hence it denotes "one who follows one's teaching," as the "disciples" of John, <Matt. 9:14>;

of the Pharisees, <Matt. 22:16>; of Moses, <John 9:28>; it is used of the "disciples" of Jesus (a) in a wide sense, of Jews who became

His adherents, <John 6:66; Luke 6:17>, some being secretly so, <John 19:38>; (b) especially of the twelve apostles, <Matt. 10:1;

Luke 22:11>, e. g.; (c) of all who manifest that they are His "disciples" by abiding in His Word, <John 8:31>, cf. <13:35; 15:8>;

(d) in the Acts, of those who believed upon Him and confessed Him, <6:1-2,7; 14:20,22,28; 15:10; 19:1>, etc. A "disciple" was not

only a pupil, but an adherent; hence they are spoken of as imitators of their teacher; cf. <John 8:31; 15:8>.

2. mathetria ^3102^, "a female disciple," is said of Tabitha, <Acts 9:36>.#

3. summathetes ^4827^ means "a fellow disciple" (sun, with, and No. 1), <John 11:16>.#

Note: In <Acts 1:15>, the RV translates the mss. which have adelphon, "brethren"; in <20:7>, RV, "we," for KJV, "disciples."

Last Revision of this site was Jan 11, 2024......by Wayne

​The Purpose of Love

The Purpose of Love