Why Every Christian Needs Intensive Discipleship
- Justin Daugherty
- Jan 19
- 7 min read
When I was a teenager, God saved me out of a world of drug enslavement and sexual sin. The youngest of 4 older brothers, I was discipled by them, their friends, and the world system. When God transferred me from the kingdom of darkness into the kingdom of God's Son, he used the pastor at the church I attended to faithfully walk with me through life. We met weekly before school, which at the time felt (very) early. I still remember those early mornings eating pancakes and talking about the Bible and life at a local diner. God was using this faithful pastor to gently confront my old ways of living and, at the same time, to show me the way I should live according to Scripture. The result was slow (but real) lasting change in my life. I thank God for this pastor.
Do you have someone in your life who can, in an intensive way, disciple you toward Christ-likeness? While seasons vary, and some Christians need intensive discipleship more than others, all Christians desperately need discipleship in an intensive format.
What is Intensive Discipleship?
While the discipleship I experienced at the diner was fruitful, intensive discipleship has more structure because it is typically aimed at a specific problem someone is facing. Simply put, intensive discipleship (also known as biblical counseling) occurs when one Christian is committed to another's sanctification, so they come alongside them in a personal and concentrated manner to, by the power of the Holy Spirit, comfort (Rom. 12:15), encourage, (1 Thess. 5:14), confront (Col. 1:28), teach and instruct (Rom. 15:14, 2 Tim. 3:16-17), and equip them with the resources needed to become conformed into the image of Christ. It is one-another soul care that God has instituted within the church, in which God uses the faithfulness of one Christian to help another look more like Christ. While it might differ from case to case, here is a typical progression of how intensive discipleship might take place (created by Dr. Stuart Scott):
Intensive discipleship typically involves, among other things, meeting for a designated time, instruction and teaching, comforting and consoling, accountability for biblical change, homework, and integration back into a local church. It reminds me of my online master's degree, where I had to go to campus for each class for a week-long intensive. That week was jam-packed with a firehose of information on how to become a better counselor, resulting in a concentrated period of growth. In a similar way, intensive discipleship aims to provide a concentrated time of teaching, encouraging, comforting, confronting, and equipping focused on another individual for the purpose of their being formed into the image of Christ.
Here are three reasons why every Christian needs intensive discipleship:
Every Christian Needs to be Comforted with God's Word
This world is full of sorrow upon sorrow. Loss of loved ones. Betrayal of friends. Difficult life changes. Physical sickness. Mental anguish. In times of discouragement or despair, the presence of someone who is committed to your care can make a world of difference. Woe to the one who has no one to pick them up when they fall! (Eccl. 4:10). An apt answer is a joy, a word spoken in season is good, and a good word makes glad (Prov. 12:25; 15:23; 25:11).
Imagine something devastating has happened to you, and you have no one available except someone who doesn't know you, doesn't speak your language, and doesn't know your situation. You're practically alone at that point. Now imagine that same scenario, but the person who is available knows you, speaks your language, and knows your situation. Christians need to be comforted by people who are walking through life with them, who can minister the hope of God's Word to them. They need friends who speak the same language as them, who share the common hope of salvation, sanctification, and the new creation. This is why Paul, when speaking on the return of Christ, says this:
1 Thessalonians 4:18: Therefore encourage one another with these words.
Every Christian will face the valley of this life to some degree, and every Christian needs the balm of God's Word ministered to them by God's people to encourage and comfort them in that valley. Consider what Scripture says on the role of believers comforting/encouraging/bearing with one another:
Romans 15:1-2: We who are strong have an obligation to bear with the failings of the weak, and not to please ourselves. Let each of us please his neighbor for his good, to build him up.
2 Corinthians 1:3-4: Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies and God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our affliction, so that we may be able to comfort those who are in any affliction, with the comfort with which we ourselves are comforted by God.
2 Corinthians 13:11: Finally, brothers, rejoice. Aim for restoration, comfort one another, agree with one another, live in peace; and the God of love and peace will be with you.
1 Thessalonians 5:11: Therefore encourage one another and build one another up, just as you are doing.
All of these passages assume personal and concentrated help for those who are suffering.
Every Christian Needs to be Confronted and Corrected by God's Word
God's Word rightly builds up, but it also rightly cuts down. It confronts the ways people are walking left and sets the standard for what walking straight looks like. In an age where confrontation is seen as disdain or hatred, the ministry practice of confronting brothers or sisters in Christ has largely disappeared. People want to be independent, and they would rather simply go to a different church than deal with confrontation. Yet, we confront and correct in other areas of life and see it as a good thing, don't we?
Friends confront friends if they have gotten off track with their workout plan
Bosses confront employees about job performance and correct them if they are not up to the company's standards
Teammates confront and correct a lack of discipline on the field
Husbands and wives confront and correct one another when they develop patterns of false thinking
All of the above examples are good for people and serve to build structure, foster maturity, and hold one another accountable. For our good, God has laid the responsibility of brothers and sisters in Christ to do just that within the church:
Hebrews 3:13: But exhort one another every day, as long as it is called “today,” that none of you may be hardened by the deceitfulness of sin.
Galatians 6:1-2: Brothers, if anyone is caught in any transgression, you who are spiritual should restore him in a spirit of gentleness. Keep watch on yourself, lest you too be tempted. Bear one another’s burdens, and so fulfill the law of Christ.
1 Thessalonians 2:11-12: 11 For you know how, like a father with his children, 12 we exhorted each one of you and encouraged you and charged you to walk in a manner worthy of God, who calls you into his own kingdom and glory.
1 Thessalonians 5:14: And we urge you, brothers, admonish the idle, encourage the fainthearted, help the weak, be patient with them all.
Acts 20:31: Therefore be alert, remembering that for three years I did not cease night or day to admonish every one with tears.
James 5:19-20: My brothers, if anyone among you wanders from the truth and someone brings him back, let him know that whoever brings back a sinner from his wandering will save his soul from death and will cover a multitude of sins.
All of these verses assume personal and concentrated help for those who need to be confronted and corrected. If the goal of the Christian life is the glory of God and Christ-likeness, then loving confrontation and correction is a means by which that can take place. Intensive discipleship is a setting in which that can happen.
Every Christian Needs to Grow in Practical Life Wisdom
As a high school counselor, I remember one of my students coming into my office to ask me for help. He told me that there wasn't anything overtly wrong, but that he simply wanted to grow as a person. As a biblical counselor, I saw this opportunity as gold.
Intensive discipleship isn't just for what we might call "reactive" issues, but also for proactive means to help people live for the glory of God. Christians need help growing in social skills, planning and prioritization, diligence and hard work, relational wisdom, using their money wisely, taking initiative, navigating God's will for their lives, etc., all of which Scripture addresses either directly or in principle:
Proverbs 6:6-8: Go to the ant, O sluggard; consider her ways, and be wise. Without having any chief, officer, or ruler, she prepares her bread in summer and gathers her food in harvest.
Proverbs 24:27: Prepare your work outside; get everything ready for yourself in the field, and after that build your house.
Proverbs 27:14: Whoever blesses his neighbor with a loud voice, rising early in the morning, will be counted as cursing.
Proverbs 29:20: Do you see a man who is hasty in his words? There is more hope for a fool than for him.
2 Thessalonians 3:10-12: For even when we were with you, we would give you this command: If anyone is not willing to work, let him not eat. For we hear that some among you walk in idleness, not busy at work, but busybodies. Now such persons we command and encourage in the Lord Jesus Christ to do their work quietly and to earn their own living.
1 Corinthians 10:31: So, whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God.
Colossians 4:5-6: Walk in wisdom toward outsiders, making the best use of the time. Let your speech always be gracious, seasoned with salt, so that you may know how you ought to answer each person.
People grow in these areas by learning from someone else, and what better way to learn than in a concentrated manner from another follower of Christ in the local church? All believers need to be comforted, confronted and corrected, and to grow in wisdom regarding practical life issues. Intensive discipleship is a setting in which that can happen.
Where to Start?
So where should you start? Hope Counseling & Discipleship Center is a 501(c)(3) non-profit counseling center that offers free counseling as a ministry of Hope Bible Church. You can request counseling below:
While we are located in Savannah, GA and prefer in-person counseling, we understand that it is not always possible. If there is no in-person biblical counselor in your area, we would be willing to counsel you over Zoom. First, check the map below to see if there are counselors in your area. If there are none, go to our website above to fill out a counseling form. I pray that the LORD would use intensive discipleship in your life, that you might glorify Him and experience the joy of walking in Christ-likeness.
In Christ,
Justin Daugherty
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