22 Apprentice Training

Success without a successor is failure.

The true leader is not someone who can do the work of ten persons but someone who can organize ten persons to do the work of ten persons.

As D.L. Moody said, “I would rather put a thousand men to work, than to do the work of a thousand men.”

The Need

Without grooming others as leaders, any movement is vulnerable if something happens to the founder. Many movements in history have come and gone because of this failure to multiply leadership, passing the vision to the next generation. Without reproduction of leadership, every movement eventually dies.

The life and death of any organization can follow the process of “Man, movement, machine, monument,” where nothing but a statue remains.

Mankind is one generation from extinction, without reproduction. Which is why we say, “success without a successor is failure.” Reproduction and multiplication of leaders is essential.

Joel Comiskey writes, I’ve researched small groups around the world. Here’s what I’ve discovered: Small groups are not the answer. In fact, there is danger in thinking that small groups are the answer. Small groups come and go; they rise and fall over time. Unless small group members are converted into small group leaders, little long-term fruit remains. Churches do not reap the harvest because they have small groups. They reap the harvest because they have harvest workers. Churches that have no plan to develop leaders have, by default, planned to lose the harvest.

Biblical Examples:

Jethro confronted his son-in-law, Moses, for his failure to deploy leaders as we read in Exodus 18.

The first potentially destructive crisis in the New Testament church was averted through the deployment of qualified leaders who cared for the neglected widows.

Jesus made a priority of developing leaders as he spent 70% of his time investing in a few chosen men who would maintain the movement of building the kingdom of God on earth.

Discovering, developing and deploying leaders was so important to Jesus that he spent an entire night discussing it with his Father in Heaven through prayer.

There is no doubt that the church today is experiencing a crisis of leadership because the focus is not on developing leaders, but only teachers. If the goal is to teach, then the Pharisees in Jesus day would have been the gold standard.

Jesus modeled a “relational leadership process” where he shared his life. Jesus knew that leadership involves far more than communicating content, it means learning the skills to lead and shepherd and care for people. Leaders influence lives through modeling, as Paul did when he wrote,

“Follow me as I follow Christ.” 1 Corinthians 11:1

It is true, “Christianity is more caught than taught.” On-the-job equipping and modeling is the best way to raise up God honoring leaders.

Unfortunately, many in authority in the church today are high-control teachers, not empowering leaders, who operate more like the Catholic Church, where the priests do all the work while everyone listens, without asking questions, waiting for permission before taking any action.

We need a second Reformation!

The first Reformation put the Bible into the hands of the people, but we need a second Reformation to put the MINISTRY back into the hands of people.

The problem every church must face, is how to develop and deploy leaders into ministry. The church’s condition is described like a football game where 22 people are on the field badly in need of rest while 40,000 are in the stands badly in need of exercise. Too few are doing too much. I’ve never met a pastor who was complaining about having too many leaders. Oh Lord, give us churches who are leader breeders!

Too many pastors are trying to do it all and it looks like this…One level of leadership…

While mentoring the younger pastor, Timothy, Paul the Apostle instructed him about:

Developing four levels of tiered leadership

(All in one verse)

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.”

• Me: Paul - leading self.
• You: Timothy - the apprentice.
• Reliable men: Timothy’s apprentices
• Others: The apprentices of Timothy’s apprentices

Paul understood that success without a successor is failure.

Mentoring apprentices is a non-negotiable for developing an ever expanding disciplemaking movement in the local church.

The New Testament church grew exponentially as leaders were equipped to be reproducers who multiplied their impact through others.

One becomes two, then four becomes eight, then 16 turns into 32 and then 64 which explodes into 64, the 128 leading to 256 and 512 and then by the 10th generation of leaders one has become 1024.

Most people could never imagine ministering to 1000 people. But by mentoring one leader who then mentors other leaders effectively, the mentor, overtime becomes a leader of thousands. That’s the power of multiplication.

Multiplying, reproducing leaders in God’s church don’t have to be a Bible whizzes, Bible college graduates, sword drill masters or a closet theologians. They don’t even have to enroll in seminary classes online.

The twelve disciples that Jesus chose were un-schooled and ordinary men who turned the world upside right. They would never have qualified to serve under the religious leaders of the day, the Pharisees, but Jesus still chose them. Imagine that!

So what should we look for in an apprentice?

1. Teachable The best apprentices are lifelong learners who are passionate about fulfilling their God given purpose on earth, welcoming direction and correction and pruning as the path to greater fruitfulness.
3. Humble Recognizing the growing needs of the church requires servant leadership for the ever-expanding needs of a growing congregation.
5. Spiritually hungry A deep spiritual appetite to know and obey God’s Word.
7. A multiplyer Understanding that a disciple is to reproduce disciplemakers.
9. Growing in love for God and people. Over time a disciple’s heart for God and heart for people should continue to grow larger as they live in Christian community.

The primary responsibility of a small group leader is not to fill a home with guests, but to raise up another leader who will eventually lead a group. We cannot multiply groups without multiplying leaders. As we multiply groups we are multiplying our ability to care for people and make room to include new believers. Developing more leaders is far more important than developing more followers.

Selecting Your Apprentice

Make a list of people you know who are potential apprentices. Pray over the list. It is amazing who the Lord may bring to your mind as you actually write out your list.

Communicate with your small group pastor or coach before you approach your potential apprentice. Sometimes there might be something going on behind the scenes in the person’s life that the pastor has confidential knowledge that would prevent a person from serving. By clearing the person’s name with those in spiritual authority, you can avoid the embarrassment of asking someone to apprentice, and then having to tell them that they have not been approved.

Making the Ask

Choose the right time and place. Timing and place are both important. Sundays between services is usually not a good time or the right place. Also don’t recruit over the phone. It does not communicate importance. Face to face in a quiet location when you both have time is the best way to try and recruit an apprentice to be on your team.

Lay out the vision before them.

Don’t recruit to a job, recruit to a vision. Cast the vision for impacting lives spiritually. Share with them the purpose, priorities, objectives and vision of the church. We have a big dream, but big dreams require a big team.

Discuss the church’s qualifications for leadership and help the potential apprentice to count the cost of stepping into leadership. This is not a time to sell the person on becoming a leader, but to lead them to prayerfully consider if this is the next step God would have them take. God’s call on the life is what is most important here.

Multiplication

The goal is to build a leadership team of ten people who lead ten people. This is what it means to be a hero-maker, setting other up as tools in God’s life changing process.

Stay in constant touch with your apprentice. Pray with them. Encourage them. Remember, the extent to which you are willing to give of yourself to them, will be the extent that they are willing to give of themselves to others.

Meet With Your Apprentice Before or After Each Meeting

Before the meeting:

Pray together and briefly discuss the plan for the night, asking the apprentice to handle various parts of the agenda.

After the meeting

Discuss the need for follow-up and care for people in your group, those who are hurting and those who are new. Briefly evaluate how you felt the meeting went and plan for what you will do next time. The key to the effectiveness of this time is your willingness to share the ministry with your apprentice.

A good leader will share the ministry, including the teaching, with the apprentice. This helps build confidence in the apprentice to eventually lead a group.

Always extend a helping hand to your apprentice, not a heavy hand. Give lots of encouragement.

The selection, recruitment and equipping of apprentices is a primary objective for every small group leader.

Remember: Success without a successor is…