Transformational Discipleship - A Short Review

In this follow-up book to Transformational Church, the three authors propose a framework for discipleship that leads to life transformation. This framework is shown in a sort of Venn diagram in which there are three circles: Truth, Posture, and Leaders. Life-transforming discipleship is said to occur at the conjunction of these elements.

Truth includes: Gospel, Identity, and Disciplines. Each of these is a screen or lens through which we see the world. The Gospel, the good news of Jesus Christ, must become part of the way we see and understand everything in life. Our true identity in Jesus Christ must be maintained, as we are constantly tempted to assume a false identity. Disciplines are usually what discipleship efforts are made up of. Here, they are another important lens for understanding the truths of life. They aren’t the end of discipleship, as if getting a person to daily read the Bible and pray are the goals. No, the goal is to use those disciplines to move someone closer to the God all of this is really about.

Posture refers to the sort of attitude a person must adopt to be in position for life transformation. We see this with the Rich Young Ruler – religious pride and material independence do not lend themselves to the humility and dependence we need to be molded by God. The book calls for a recognition of our weakness and rejection of a sort of John Wayne-ish bootstrap way forward in our own strength. It calls for interdependence within the body of believers seeking to be discipled. It also calls for an outward focus, on the mission of God and on the needs of others, instead of the inward, selfish focus our sinful hearts adopt naturally.

Healthy leaders are those who can help other disciples find the truth and adopt the posture that will lead to life transformation.

In the end, if God is real and the Bible is true, we should be seeing awesome changes within the hearts, minds, and actions of every believer in Jesus Christ. This is the goal of all ministry. I do believe that this book has hit upon an important framework for getting into position for transformation. Just like a sailing ship had to set the sails and wait on the wind, this framework helps us to be in a position to cooperate with the Holy Spirit in His time to make the change He desires in His people.