Making Disciples – Apprenticeship

Be imitators of me, as I am of Christ. 1 Cor 11:1

In our little series on discipleship, we’ve seen how instruction and modeling are integral to the disciple-making process. This article will focus on apprenticeship. The US Department of Labor defines apprenticeship as “a combination of on-the-job training and related instruction in which workers learn the practical and theoretical aspects of a highly skilled occupation.” During an apprenticeship, the person being trained is expected to practice tasks under the watchful, guiding presence of their instructor(s)—tasks which they previously had explained to them and then demonstrated (or modeled).

The biblical version of apprenticeship is similar to the secular version. In disciple-making, apprenticeship involves a disciple putting Christian principles into practice as a teacher observes and—where necessary—offers constructive feedback. The disciple also assists their teacher as they minister. It is not enough to listen and watch; we are called to actually perform (Jam 1:22). We see examples of such apprenticeship in Christ’s life. His disciples not only listened to His instructions and watched Him as He ministered, but they also assisted Him and carried out tasks under His supervision. Examples include the disciples performing baptisms under Jesus’ direction (John 4:1-3), casting out demons (and receiving constructive feedback from Jesus, Luke 10:17-20), and helping Jesus feed the 5,000 (Matt 14:19-21).

We also see an apprenticeship with Paul as the teacher and Timothy as the apprentice. Timothy went with Paul on missionary journeys and had extensive time to listen, watch, and assist. Eventually, Paul sent Timothy to Corinth (1 Cor 4:17) and then Ephesus (1 Tim 1:3-4) to be his personal representative to the church at each location.

One key difference from secular apprenticeship is that Christian disciples ultimately are not being conformed to their teacher, but to Christ (Rom 8:29). This can’t be over-emphasized. As disciples, we may imitate our godly leaders and teachers, but we ultimately should be in the process of transforming into Christlikeness (2 Cor 3:17-18). This transformation is the goal of discipleship!

So, what would apprenticeship look like in today’s church? There are numerous examples. Some might include: assisting a Sunday School teacher in a children’s class, serving meals at a homeless shelter, praying at a prayer meeting/circle, going as a team member on a short-term mission, assisting in an outreach project, etc. All of these would likely involve some verbal instruction and possibly behavior modeling by an instructor prior to (or along with) the apprenticeship work.

Before ending, let me caution: ministry and mission work are not discipleship. Discipleship must be intentionally planned as part of a ministry or mission; otherwise, it is just a nice project or cool thing to do, and it may not even be done correctly (i.e., in a biblical manner). Disciples need discipling, even (or especially) during a ministry or mission.

Now, as Jesus said, “Go and make disciples!”