The Four E’s of Discipleship in Action

By:  Dale Weckbacher

 

Text:  Acts 19:1-10

 

Acts 1:8

“But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.”

(ESV)

 

In Matthew 28:19-20, Jesus gave the Church a mission of making disciples and baptizing them in the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.  The process of discipleship consists of four E’s, evangelism, equipping, encouraging, and empowering individuals to serve Christ.  The process of discipleship begins when one decides to make Jesus his or her Savior through a public profession of faith in Jesus' death, burial, and resurrection (Romans 10:9-10).  However, for one to fully become a disciple of Christ they must receive equipping, encouragement, and empowerment by the Holy Spirit.  Acts 19:1-10 is a biblical illustration of this discipleship process in action and something the Church should model in its discipleship of others. 

 

After leaving Antioch, Paul comes to Ephesus, the place where Apollos had previously been teaching from his knowledge about the baptism of John (Acts 18:24-25).  Upon arriving in Ephesus, Paul encounters some disciples and asks them if they have received the Holy Spirit when they believed, to which they responded with not even knowing there is a Holy Spirit (Acts 19:1-2).  Paul then asks them into what they had been baptized to which they replied, “the baptism of John (Acts 19:3).”  Paul then explains that John’s baptism was a baptism of repentance and tells them they must believe in the one who came after John and the one John spoke of, Jesus (Acts 19:4; Mark 1:7).  The disciples in Ephesus respond to this new teaching by being baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus and after Paul lays his hands on them, the Holy Spirit comes upon them (Acts 19:6-7). 

 

Paul then did what he normally did when entering a city, he went into the synagogue and began reasoning with those in the synagogue for three months (Acts 19:8).  However, some in the synagogue remained stubborn in their unbelief began speaking evil of the Way or Paul’s belief Jesus was the Messiah (Acts 19:9).  This caused Paul to withdraw from Ephesus and take with him, the disciples he met in Ephesus to Tyrannus where they reasoned daily (Acts 19:9).  The reasoning in Tyrannus continued for two years and led to all the residents of Asia, both Jews and Greeks, hearing the Word of the Lord (Acts 19:10). 

 

In Acts 19:1, we see the apostle Paul returning to Ephesus as promised (Acts 18:21) after his time in Antioch, but instead of going to the Synagogue first as was his custom, he encountered some disciples.  Perhaps aware of the teaching Apollos provided during his time in Antioch, he asks these disciples if they have received the Holy Spirit when they believed.  Their response of being baptized into the baptism of John indicates these 12 men were disciples based upon the teachings of Apollos (Acts 18:24-25).  Paul then equips these disciples by providing more in-depth teaching about Jesus and has these men follow through with baptism into the name of the Lord Jesus (Acts 19:4-5).  Paul then lays hands on these men so they receive the power of the Holy Spirit in their lives (Acts 19:6) and then Paul provides encouragement for these twelve men by having them accompany him to Tyrannus where they are involved in spreading the word of the Lord throughout Asia (Acts 19:9-10).    

 

This passage illustrates the process of discipleship, which involves,

 

1)      Evangelization – Because of Adam and Eve’s sin in the Garden of Eden, all humanity is separated from a relationship with God for all of us have sinned (Romans 3:23).  Fortunately, God has not left humanity in a hopeless situation and has provided a path to salvation and a restored relationship with God through repentance from sin and belief in the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus providing salvation from sin (Romans 10:9-10).  Evangelization is the door through which everyone must pass to become a disciple of Christ, but discipleship requires equipping, empowering, and encouraging people to dedicate their lives to following and serving Christ.

2)      Equipping – Paul observed that the disciples in Ephesus were unequipped to serve as disciples of Christ for they were only equipped with the knowledge of the baptism of repentance taught by John the Baptist (Acts 19:4).  Paul then taught them about Jesus with them committing their lives to Jesus through baptism into the name of the Lord.  This public profession of faith provided freedom from sin, equipping them to fully serve God.  We too must follow through in baptism to be fully equipped disciples of Christ.

3)      Empowerment – Much debate in the Church exists on the need to speak in tongues as a sign of receiving the Holy Spirit.  While the disciples Paul laid his hands on in Ephesus did speak with tongues, the passage does not say this is a requirement to one receiving the Holy Spirit.  Instead of focusing on the sign, speaking in tongues, it is important to understand why Paul laid hands on these disciples, so they received empowerment by Holy Spirit.  Jesus commanded his disciples to wait for the power of the Holy Spirit before going out into ministry (Acts 1:4, 8).  Paul may have also remembered the recent issues he had in Corinth (Acts 18:1-17), not wanting these new disciples to encounter similar challenges without the power of the Holy Spirit in their lives.

4)      Encouragement – Paul then takes these new disciples with him to Tyrannus where they receive encouragement through being part of spreading the Gospel throughout Asia.  There is no greater encouragement than seeing God move and being part of it through service.  As disciples of Christ, it is crucial to find a way to serve using the gifts God has given us so we can receive encouragement at seeing God work. 

 

To effectively conduct its mission of making disciples, the Church must make disciples by evangelizing them, equipping them, empowering them, and encouraging them to fully serve the Lord Jesus Christ.  Jesus told those following him that in this world they would have trouble and also encouraged them by reminding them He overcame the world (John 16:33).  Jesus also told those following him that they must deny themselves and daily take up their cross and follow Him (Luke 9:23).  For revival to occur in our troubled world, the Church must develop more disciples who have made a profession of faith in Jesus Christ as their savior, equipped with knowledge of God’s Word, who are empowered by the Holy Spirit, and who are encouraged knowing Jesus has overcome the world through His resurrection.  I encourage all reading this to dedicate themselves to becoming better disciples of Christ and to prayerfully ask the Lord what He wants them to do to make more disciples for Christ.