Kids' discipleship is a big conversation right now in children's ministry.
How do you disciple kids? How do you measure spiritual growth in kids? What do kids need to know about Jesus and His Word? How can you help kids grow spiritually? These are all questions that need to be discussed and strategized.
But in the discipleship conversation I believe it is crucial that we understand that discipling kids starts with sharing the Gospel with kids.
You can't disciple children who are not yet believers. Let's make it clear - children have to be saved before they can become a disciple.
According to Scripture, salvation is a free gift of God’s grace through faith in Jesus Christ, not earned by works (Ephesians 2:8–9). It is the moment you repent of your sins and trust in Christ for your forgiveness.
Discipleship, by contrast, is the process of growing in Christ’s likeness, obeying His commands, and serving others (Matthew 28:19–20). It is a lifelong journey that follows your decision to be saved
Look what the late M.R. Dehaan said about this.
“There is a vast difference between coming to Jesus for salvation and coming after Jesus for service. Coming to Christ makes one a believer, while coming after Christ makes one a disciple. To become a believer one accepts the invitation of the Gospel, to be a disciple one obeys the challenge to a life of dedicated service and separation. Salvation comes through the sacrifice of Christ; discipleship comes only by sacrifice of self and surrender to His call for devoted service. Salvation is free, but discipleship involves paying the price of a separated walk. Salvation can’t be lost because it depends upon God’s faithfulness, but discipleship can be lost because it depends upon our faithfulness.”
The first step is a must and that is this.
Kids must clearly understand the Gospel and make a personal decision to follow Jesus. After they enter a relationship with Jesus, then they can be discipled because the Holy Spirit lives within them.
Again...Biblically...children must be saved before they can be discipled — salvation is the foundation, and discipleship is the ongoing process of growth in faith after you believe.
The process is clearly laid out in Scripture.
Hear the Gospel – children are taught about Jesus’ death and resurrection.Believe and Repent – Children accept Christ for forgiveness.
Be Discipled – Children are taught to obey Jesus’ commands and grow in faith.
I'm afraid that in the midst of the larger discipleship conversation, that this gets muddled.
We must keep sharing the Gospel with children at the forefront of everything we do.
Here are some vital questions to ask yourself about your children's ministry.
Are we consistently sharing the Gospel with kids?
Does the curriculum we are using point kids first and foremost to Jesus for salvation?
Are we regularly seeing kids come to Jesus as their Savior?
We know that the vast majority of people who come to Jesus do as children. We have a short window of time to reach them with the Gospel. We must make sure the Gospel is the preeminent thing we teach about during this window of time.
The only hope for the next generation is the Gospel.
Do you have a strategy for sharing the Gospel with kids? I created the Starting Point curriculum to help kids and families understand clearly what it means to come to Jesus and follow Him. You can get more information about Starting Point at this link.
What are your thoughts in the discipleship conversation? Feel free to share in the comment section below.
