In our last visit we focused our attention on 2 Timothy 2:2, “And the things you have heard me say in the presence of many witnesses entrust to reliable men who will also be qualified to teach others.”
I pointed out that a key element in this process of developing leaders is to find reliable or faithful people. How do you find or develop these reliable, faithful people within the church? How are they brought to that point?
As I thought on this I realized there are two aspects of discipleship. First, after getting people saved you need to disciple them to the place where they are reliable and faithful. Then, you disciple these reliable, faithful men to become leaders.
Let’s look at the first category: Developing reliable, faithful Christians. To do this we need to get people who are already believers into situations where they can demonstrate this quality. Encourage them to get into a Bible reading or study program and follow up to find out if they are faithful in it. Ask them to become a prayer partner and check to see if they are praying regularly. Invite them to become a part of a small group and once they attend regularly give them something to do in the group, and see if they are reliable. If the person is married, how are they doing at being a faithful spouse? If they have children, how are they managing their family?
At first they might need to just be with you as you are doing things, as Timothy was with Paul, as they traveled together. Gradually you need to delegate some responsibility to them. Over a period of time you can determine how much they are willing or capable to handle. If they become reliable and faithful, they are ready to be discipled for leadership.
