Resources
Thank you for coming to the resources page of the Time to Disciple America website. We are so glad you are here. The purpose of this page is to provide you with the information, resources, and materials you need to become a reproducing disciple of Jesus Christ wherever you live and in whatever life situation you are in. Check back here often, because we hope to continually post new content. There will be blog content posted here, along with videos, suggested readings, scripture tracks, courses, and simple church formats to follow. Hopefully, everything you need will be located on this page, so that you can learn everything you need to learn, and become everything that Jesus Christ wants you to become. This isn’t a new idea–this is Jesus’ original idea. This isn’t some new program–this is the original blueprint of the church. The trick is to actually apply what we learn to our lives so that we aren’t just accumulating knowledge.
Jesus never told anyone to go make Christians. He never told anyone to make Christian church members. He never said, “I came to start Christianity.” Jesus came to save the world from sin, and He came to establish Himself as the King of his eternal Kingdom–basically to launch that Kingdom, and He is inviting you to be a productive citizen of that Kingdom. He wants you to be a good citizen of His Kingdom, and to become the disciple that you were meant to become. Part of being a disciple of Jesus is to obey everything that He commanded. Jesus commanded over 400 commands in the four Gospels. Do you know what they are, and are you willing to obey them?
You see, the difference between a passive spectator, Christian church member and a true, genuine, obedient, reproducing disciple of Jesus couldn’t be greater! Passive spectator Christian church members are usually expected to do just 3 things. Which are to attend the meetings, to give money, and volunteer in the various programs. But none of those three things are found among the commands of Jesus Christ. If you read through the 400+ commands Jesus gave in the four Gospels, you won’t find any commands to make sure you go to church on Sunday morning. You won’t find a command to make sure you put money in an offering basket on Sunday morning or that you volunteer in the programs of the local church. The reason for this is that the local church did not exist yet when Jesus gave those 400 commands, and when He gave the Great Commission. The sad truth is, if you do those three things, you can be a member in good-standing in just about every Christian church in the world–even if you never obey any of the commands of Christ.
Just think about the commands Jesus gave that you do know. Jesus commanded things like, “When someone strikes you on the right cheek, turn to them the other also.” He said, “Do not resist an evil person.” He said, “Give to everyone who asks of you, and if anyone takes what is yours do not demand it back” and “when you are persecuted in one city, flee to another.” And His final COMMAND is to go into all the world, preach the Good News to everybody in the world, to make disciples of everybody on Earth, by baptizing the people who believe and teach them to obey every other command he had given to His disciples. Jesus commanded His disciples to lay their hands on the sick and expect them to be healed. Think about that for a minute. He commanded all those things, (and many more) but a person can be a Christian church member in just about every single church on Earth and never obey any of the commands of the Ruler of the Universe they claim to serve.
In actual fact, if this is what your experience has been of church, you are following a religion. Religion wants you to come to meetings, give some money, and volunteer in programs. And that is what is expected of religious people all over the world, no matter what the religion is. Even Hindus, Buddhists, Muslims, Animists, and all other religions expect the same thing from their members. The same is true for traditional Christianity today. A person is typically expected to do those three things–come to meetings, give some money, and volunteer in the programs of the church, regardless of whether or not they ever obey the commands of Jesus Christ. This is a tragedy and a travesty and it breaks the heart of God because most christian church members never reach their full potential in Christ!
GoMultiply conducted a training in Northwest Kenya in 2023 and there was a very active Christian church member who came to the training. She was extremely challenged and motivated by what she learned in the training. She shared with her friends what she had learned. Then she and her friends went out and began implementing Jesus’ training program to disciples the nations. In a matter of just 6 months, she and her friends started more than 500 simple New Testament churches all over Northwest Kenya.
Now you might hear that story as an American Christian church member and think, “Oh that’s impossible!” You might think I’m inflating the numbers or exaggerating just for effect, but the truth is, that the way the people in the New Testament church operated and multiplied is different from the way we typically operate and multiply in our building-based churches today.
You see, the way Jesus trained his followers to disciple the world is that He focused on existing social networks. Then, when they found people who were looking for the Messiah, He or His followers led them and their entire social network to Christ! Then they left them right where they found them because this work of discipling the nations is about expanding the Kingdom of Jesus. For example, when Jesus found Peter’s family, He healed Peter’s mother-in-law, and the whole town came to Him. He healed many and cast out many demons basically winning the whole town to Christ! But then He left and and went to take more territory for His Kingdom leaving the people where they were.
When Jesus found the woman at the well in John 4, He led the whole town to follow Him, but then He left and left them where He found them. In this way He took that town for His Kingdom. Again, when He found Zacchaeus up in the tree, He went to Zacchaeus’ home, led all in his household to follow Him, and then He left and left Zacchaeus and his family right where He found them. Remember, our job is not to fill buildings with religious people. Our job is to expand the Kingdom of God into every corner of the globe.
This is why the majority of Paul’s books are titled with the names of cities! It’s because He was taking those cities for the Kingdom of God! As you become a disciple who makes disciples, you will begin to see the same thing! Welcome to the movement!