The Lost Art of Disciple Making

by LeRoy Eims

"Every believer in Jesus Christ deserves the opportunity of personal nurture and development." says LeRoy Eims. But all too often the opportunity isn't there. We neglect the young Christian in our whirl of programs, church services, and fellowship groups. And we neglect to raise up workers and leaders who can disciple young believers into mature and fruitful Christians. In simple, practical, and biblical terms, LeRoy Eims revives the lost art of disciple making. He explains: - How the early church discipled new Christians - How to meet the basic needs of a growing Christian - How to spot and train potential workers - How to develop mature, godly leaders "True growth takes time and tears and love and patience," Eims states. There is no instant maturity. This book examines the growth process in the life of a Christian and considers what nurture and guidance it takes to develop spiritually qualified workers in the church.

Genres: Discipleship, Christian, Christian Living, Christianity, Nonfiction, Leadership, Religion

192 pages, Kindle Edition

First published January 1, 1978

About the author

LeRoy Eims served with The Navigators for over 50 years in a variety of ministries, including Director of U.S. Ministries, International Ministry Representative, and Director of Evangelism Worldwide. He broadened his ministry through the writing of 14 books, including the best-selling The Lost Art of Disciplemaking. His personal ministry continues on through the lives of his family, and through countless scores of people in harvest fields around the world who bear witness to his faithful labors with them.

Reviews

[Casey · Rating 4 out of 5]

Wow, I found this so incredibly helpful for my own discipleship journey and for those I’m discipling. It outlined much of what is required for someone to go from a convert to a disciple to a worker to a leader, so that there is a model to multiply.

It’s short but packs a punch with how to steps, things to look for, scripture and examples from disciples, etc. This is an absolute must read for anyone that is discipling or is being discipled. It is powerful, so incredibly practical, and so impacting. I read this, and it called me up to action for the Kingdom.

[John Gardner · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is sort of a “classic” in the church ministry genre, but was a first-time read for me. There’s nothing earth-shattering now, but I imagine it was fairly revolutionary when it was published in 1978. It isn’t that today’s churches have mastered discipleship — we certainly haven’t — there are just a lot more materials available today. The Trellis and the Vine, for instance, covers many of the same topics, but is more practical and relevant to the 21st-century.

Still, there is something encouraging to be reminded that there are no “new” ideas in church ministry (at least, none that are based on Scripture). In every generation, faithful scholars, preachers, and theologians remind us that God never changes, and His design and purpose for His Church remains the same. He desires that every Christian would be growing into spiritual maturity, while simultaneously making disciples of others.

This book will make a good addition to any Christian’s library, and is a quick easy read.

[Madeline Hill · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really loved this book. It is very practical and has a lot of step by step guidelines and principles that are backed up by scripture on how to disciple others in the church. The foundation is one on one engagement and instruction with the person helping them to grow from convert to disciple to harvest worker. It also has many antecdotes and examples, as well as resources for specific training objectives. I recommend this book to anyone who wants to learn how to disciple people.

"To have people become involved with you, you must first become involved with them. This is following God's pattern, for he took the initiative with us, "He has come and redeemed his people" (Luke 1:69)" (88)

[Micah Natal · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great book. From picking the right people, to walking with them toward maturity, this book gives you a step-by-step game plan for reproducible disciple-making. It’s clear, practical, and still relevant. Less hype, more how-to. Would recommend it to anyone wanting to make disciple making disciples.

[Isa Gueno · Rating 5 out of 5]

Thank you Leroy. Where has this been all of my life?

[Patrick · Rating 4 out of 5]

The purpose of The Lost Art of Disciple Making, in the words of Eims himself, is to teach others "how to train spiritually qualified workers for Christ" (12). Central to Eims' approach is his useful, Biblically-based, model of making disciples, which presents the believer as existing somewhere on a four-stage continuum of maturity: convert -> disciple -> worker -> leader. The book is full of practical advice on how to train and help people at the various stages. Eims gleans principles from the ministry of Jesus and the apostles and shares a plethora of stories from his own personal ministry experience. The book is a very useful read for anyone serious about participating in the Christian call to make disciples.

[Reed Schafer · Rating 4 out of 5]

LeRoy does an incredible job of not just explaining the the different tools and stages of disciple making, but he uses God’s Word (primarily the ministries of Jesus and Paul) to confirm everything he is teaching in this book is biblical. This book was extremely helpful, would recommend to all followers of Christ.

“Truly, truly, I say to you, unless a grain of wheat falls into the earth and dies, it remains alone, but if it dies, it bears much fruit.” -John 12:24

Discipleship is costly, but it is worth it for us as Christians to give our lives away so that many more may come to know life (and life abundantly) that is found only in Christ.

[Anna Rogers · Rating 4 out of 5]

Finally finished it! This book deserves all 5 stars because it's been one of the most helpful and beneficial resources for me in the past year. If you are discipling someone or want to disciple someone someday, you have to read this book - it has so many good things in it. Cannot recommend this book enough!!! So fire!!!

[Tyler Burton · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5. Not my favorite discipleship book, but has some helpful principles.

The sections on leadership development are great and worth the read.

[Ben Omer · Rating 3 out of 5]

I’d give it a 3.5. This was probably the most practical book I’ve read since becoming a Christian. He lays out step by step throughout the book the process of growth as a Christian and the job of the spiritual leader to lead people through those stages.

If you have a desire to lead an unbeliever or baby believer into a deeper relationship with Jesus, this is the book for you

[Keith Messer · Rating 5 out of 5]

#5 on the book list that every Christian must read IMO

[Colin Beers · Rating 4 out of 5]

Amazing book, everything in this is great I just simply struggled to enjoy reading it, but it was An amazing book that every person should read!

[Jordan · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is one of the best books I’ve read about how to make disciples. It’s an old book, but there are very few dated references. The principles are biblical and timeless, so it easily stands up 50 years after it was written. This book is stuffed to the rafters with practical, actionable advise on how to take someone from a non-believer, to a convert, to a mature Christian, to a disciple maker, to a leader of disciple makers, I will reference this book time and again from now until the end of my life.

[Elena Forsythe · Rating 3 out of 5]

Decent. Eims walks through the process of discipling others, but the book felt a little fluffy. If you want more on discipling others, multiplying disciples, etc. within church planting movements, look up T4T: A Church Planting Re-Revolution by Steve Smith and Ying Kai.

[Andy Anderson · Rating 5 out of 5]

Best book on how to disciple a new believer. Great suggestions on how to....

[Styford Phiri · Rating 4 out of 5]

The book was very refreshing, and I would recommend it to any bible believing church

[Logan · Rating 3 out of 5]

From what I recall, I enjoyed the appendices more than the actual text.

[Ryne Brewer · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is helpful with defining discipleship, giving practical tools, and creating vision for a life of multiplication. Quick and helpful read.

[Jake · Rating 4 out of 5]

I highly influential book for my understanding of discipleship and its importance.

[Jeffrey · Rating 4 out of 5]

(Jeff notes, not a review) What is a disciple? P.18,22,83,111*, ?154?, 181.
This book deals with how to train spiritually qualified workers for Christ (p.12).
Chapter Subject
1-6 Disciple
7,8 Worker (Disciple Maker)
10-12 Leader
------
p.75 30 Training Objectives: Disciple
(P159-180 Appendix I)
p.76 Testimony
p.79,80 Wheel Illustration
p.81 Hand Illustration
p.110-123 10 Objectives: Worker
p.181 Convert, disciple, worker, leader
p.183 Chart Process, Objectives
p.184 Profiles Convert, Disciple, Worker
Leader
p. 187 general guidelines can be suggested.
• Convert to disciple — 2 years
• Disciple to worker — 2 years
• Worker to leader — 3 years

p.83 “The commission of Jesus was to make disciples (see Matt. 28:19). He went a step further than just admonishing us to become disciples. So if we are to fall in step with the grand design of God, we must help people become disciples.”

WHAT IS OUR ROLE?
P.24 “I shared this passage with the conferees: “It was he who gave some to be apostles, some to be prophets, some to be evangelists, and some to be pastors and teachers, to prepare God’s people for works of service, so that the body of Christ may be built up” (Eph. 4:11-12). I tried to explain that the thrust of that passage was that God had given leaders to the church in order to build up and train the rest of us in the work of the ministry. I said that the ministry of the gospel was to be done by all of us—laymen and clergy alike. All of us together are to be a great witnessing brotherhood, but we need training.”

BE PREPARED (1 Peter 3:15 “but in your hearts honor Christ the Lord as holy, always being prepared to make a defense to anyone who asks you for a reason for the hope that is in you; yet do it with gentleness and respect,”)

WHAT IS A DISCIPLE?
(The word ‘disciple’ comes from the Greek word mathētēs, meaning student, learner, pupil, or apprentice. In Jewish culture, a disciple would follow his rabbi closely.)

Eims does not come out and specifically say “a disciple is defined as…”, but these seem to be his references to a definition:
P. 18 “He meant people who knew how to win another person to Christ and then take that person from the time of his conversion and help him become a solid, dedicated, committed, fruitful, mature disciple who could in time repeat that process in the life of another.”
p.22 “When the person you have led to Christ grows and develops into a dedicated, fruitful, mature disciple who then goes on to lead others to Christ and help them in turn as well.
P.83 “Jesus told us to do more than just get converts. He told us to make disciples. So you must stick close to the person whom you’ve led to Christ, and help him grow till he takes his place among those who can vigorously and effectively advance the cause of the Lord. When that happens, he may be considered a mature, committed, fruitful follower of Jesus Christ.”
p.83-84 CHAPTER 7 THE WORKERS ARE STILL FEW, Eims seems to differentiate WORKER from DISCIPLE:
“… convert has become a disciple… if he continues to show a deep interest in helping others to become disciples as well. If that is the case, he is ready to advance to the next stage of usefulness in the kingdom of God; he is ready to become a worker… But there are those who never reach that stage. They are disciples of Jesus Christ in the true sense of the word. They are openly identified with the Lord. They are in fellowship with Him through the Word and prayer. They do manifest the fruit of the Spirit (see Gal. 5:22-23). And they are fulfilling their unique contribution in the body of Christ… But they do not seem to have the gift and calling to become personally and actively involved in a discipleship ministry in the lives of others. To try to push them further in that direction would be a mistake. Disciples—yes! Workers who are actively involved in making disciples—no!... It is clear from Scripture that the cause of Christ includes workers of many kinds. What we are aiming at in this chapter and the next two has to do with workers of a particular kind. When Jesus stated that the workers were few (Matt. 9:37), He was talking about the worker directly involved in the harvest.”
p.111 “…to help him become a mature, dedicated, productive, and multiplying disciple.”

p. 181 APPENDIX 2 “ The first process is evangelizing, in which we witness to Jesus Christ and His work in our lives in obedience to His command: “Go into all the world and preach the good news to all creation” (Mark 16:15). The result of this process is a convert as God blesses our ministry of sharing the gospel.”
“The next process is establishing. “As you therefore have received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk in Him, having been firmly rooted and now being built up in His and established in your faith, just as you were instructed, and overflowing with gratitude” (Col. 2:6-7, NASB). In this step we follow up the new convert, building into his life the characteristics of a disciple’s life contained in your training objectives. The end result is a disciple who is now able to evangelize.”
“The next process is equipping, “And He gave some as apostles, and some as prophets, and some as evangelists, and some as pastors and teachers, for the equipping of the saints for the work of service, to the building up of the body of Christ” (Eph. 4:11-12, NASB). Here you work man-to-man with the disciple, leading him through your training objectives. The result of this process is a worker—a “harvest worker”—who is now able both to evangelize and establish, equipping other workers, which Jesus said are few and remain few to this day.

From Appendix 3, Eims, LeRoy. The Lost Art of Disciple Making (p. 185). Zondervan.
Profile of a Growing Disciple
1. As a follower of Jesus Christ, he puts Christ first in the major areas of his life and is taking steps to separate from sin (see Luke 9:23; Rom. 12:1-2).
2. He continues in the Word through such means of intake as Bible study and Scripture memory; he is regular in applying the Word to his life with the help of the Holy Spirit (see John 8:31; James 1:22-25; Ps. 119:59).
3. He maintains a consistent devotional life and is growing in faith and intercessory prayer (see Mark 1:35; Heb. 11:6; Col. 4:2-4).
4. He attends church regularly and demonstrates Christ’s love by identifying with and serving other believers (see Ps. 122:1; Heb. 10:25; John 13:34-35; 1 John 4:20-21; Gal. 5:13).
5. He is openly identified with Jesus Christ where he lives and works, manifests a heart for witnessing, gives his testimony clearly, and presents the gospel regularly with increasing effectiveness (see Matt. 5:16; Col. 4:6; 1 Peter 3:15).
6. He is a learner who is open and teachable (see Acts 17:11).
7. He is a visible follower and learner of Jesus Christ, and demonstrates consistency and faithfulness in all of the above areas (see Luke 16:10).


SHOULD DISCIPLESHIP BE MORE INDIVIDUAL, ONE-ON-ONE?
P.26 “What I enjoy so much about the ministry of multiplying disciples is that it is scriptural and it works. It is a scriptural approach to helping fulfill Christ’s Great Commission (Matt. 28:18-20), and helping to do something about training workers (Matt. 9:37-38) who today, as in Christ’s day, are still few.”
“When you start spending individual time with another Christian for the purpose of having a ministry in his or her life—time together in the Word, prayer, fellowship, systematic training—something happens in your own life as well.”

Disciple Maker: (Eims, The Lost Art… p. 84 “…a worker…the gift and calling to become personally and actively involved in a discipleship ministry in the lives of others… Workers who are actively involved in making disciples…harvest workers. These are workers in the kingdom of God who are directly involved in the specific task of reaping souls for Christ and then helping them become reapers also.”)

(Disciple Maker/Worker) Eims, LeRoy. The Lost Art of Disciple Making (p. 36). Zondervan.
In summary, three things are a must for the person who would help others become stalwart, loyal, productive disciples in the ministry of Jesus Christ.
1. He must have clearly in mind what he wants them to know and understand of the things of God; he must know what are the basic ingredients in a life of discipleship.
2. He must have a clear picture of what he wants these disciples to become. He must know what bedrock elements of Christian character must be theirs and what kind of people they should be.
3. He must have a vivid vision of what he wants them to learn to do and a workable plan to help them accomplish it.



APPENDIX 3 (Eims, LeRoy. The Lost Art of Disciple Making (p. 184). Zondervan.)
PROFILES OF A CONVERT, DISCIPLE, WORKER, AND LEADER
This appendix provides profiles of each step of the disciple-making process…As you work man-to-man with a disciple and build your training objectives into his life, start checking to see how close and how fast he is coming to meeting the profile of a worker…

Profile of a Convert
1. He gives evidences of possessing new life (see 2 Cor. 5:17).
2. His attitude toward Jesus Christ is now favorable.
3. His attitude toward sin is now unfavorable.

Profile of a Growing Disciple
1. As a follower of Jesus Christ, he puts Christ first in the major areas of his life and is taking steps to separate from sin (see Luke 9:23; Rom. 12:1-2).
2. He continues in the Word through such means of intake as Bible study and Scripture memory; he is regular in applying the Word to his life with the help of the Holy Spirit (see John 8:31; James 1:22-25; Ps. 119:59).
3. He maintains a consistent devotional life and is growing in faith and intercessory prayer (see Mark 1:35; Heb. 11:6; Col. 4:2-4).
4. He attends church regularly and demonstrates Christ’s love by identifying with and serving other believers (see Ps. 122:1; Heb. 10:25; John 13:34-35; 1 John 4:20-21; Gal. 5:13).
5. He is openly identified with Jesus Christ where he lives and works, manifests a heart for witnessing, gives his testimony clearly, and presents the gospel regularly with increasing effectiveness (see Matt. 5:16; Col. 4:6; 1 Peter 3:15).
6. He is a learner who is open and teachable (see Acts 17:11).
7. He is a visible follower and learner of Jesus Christ, and demonstrates consistency and faithfulness in all of the above areas (see Luke 16:10).

Profile of a Worker
1. He evidences growth in the virtues and skills outlined under Profile of a Growing Disciple (see 1 Peter 3:18).
2. He shows a growing compassion for the lost and demonstrates his ability to lead men to Christ personally (see Matt. 9:36-38; Rom. 1:6).
3. He is being used of God to establish believers who have become disciples, either personally or in a discipling group context (see Col. 1:28-29).
4. He is currently engaged in the task of making disciples (see Matt. 28:19).
5. Regular intake of the Word by all means and the quiet time are now habits in his life (see Phil. 4:9).

Profile of a Leader
1. He is an equipped worker who evidences growth in the virtues and skills listed under Profile of a Worker.
2. He has been used of God to help disciples become workers (see 2 Tim. 2:2).
3. He is banding and leading workers in evangelizing the lost and establishing believers (see Mark 1:38).
4. He displays faithfulness and integrity in his life and ministry (see 2 Tim. 2:19-21).

[Jeffrey Bush · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent book on disciple making! Below are some personal takeaways from the book:


Every baby will grow if you provide the food and care they need, and the same goes with a new Christian.

The pastor does not have to be the only spiritually qualified person in the church; in fact, he should definitely not be the only one.

God has given leaders in the church to help the members build the body of Christ. Everyone can and should be involved in ministry. Ephesians 4:11–12

Multiplying disciples is biblical, and it works.

When you start spending time with another person for the purpose of spiritual growth, something happens in your life, as well as in the life of the other person.

Jesus spent all night in prayer before choosing His disciples. He did not go out hastily, and choose the first volunteers He saw.

To learn to lead one must learn to serve.

Elijah never urged Elisha to go with him or continue with him in the work. Contrariwise, he told him Elisha should leave. Every disciple must count the cost.

Every Pastor has within his congregation men that are merely spectators, but there are some willing to pay the cost to spend time with him and be involved in the ministry.

First John 3:16 teaches that our Lord laid down His life for us, and we should do so for others. It will cost you something to invest in the lives of others.

The training Jesus did with the disciples was on-the-job training.

Three things that are a must if you are going to disciple another person:
You must know what you want them to know.
You must have a clear picture of what you want them to become. What elements of Christian character they need.
You must have a vivid vision of you what you want them to do and plan to help them accomplish it.

Do not overlook the power of personal example. The disciples knew how to act because they saw Jesus. The same could be said with the early Christians watching the apostles.

To get people involved in discipleship, they need three things:
Motivated to become disciples
Regular fellowship with Jesus
Witness to the Lord.

People, not angels, are God’s means to witness to a lost world.

Spiritually mature people that are prepared to make other disciples is a rare thing today.

The basic needs of a growing Christian are
Protection (from false cults, sins, lies of the devil)
Fellowship (other people to befriend and help us)
Food (regular food from the Word - teach them the Word and teach them how to study the Word and feed themselves)
Training (teaching the how-to’s).

Help a growing disciple to have desire and consistency.

To train and develop workers, one needs to teach:
Conviction — the why’s of doing what they do
Perspective — see the world beyond themself
Excellence — all he does needs to be done in the right manner because it’s for the Lord
Depth of character — 1 Cor 4:20.
Continuance of growth — 1 John 3:20


1 Thessalonians 1:5 — they saw the example of Paul, not just heard his teaching.

For your life to transmit effectively to another, two things are required: availability and transparency.

No one can know you unless you open yourself to them.

To see a sermon is more affective than hearing one.

You must concentrate on a few.

[Cole Di Carlo · Rating 4 out of 5]

Simply thinking back on the book, without reviewing the items and concepts I marked, it boils down to one word: intentionality. The author was both direct and succinct in his declaration that we are called to be intentional in making disciples. Of course, the book was written on the experiences he lived and the recommendations gleaned, but as a natural contrarian I sincerely appreciated his constant caveat that each person is different, and will likely need modifications of his suggestions to be most effective. I also enjoyed the fact that he didn’t shy away from the demanding and difficult nature that is disciple making. Personally I find it refreshing, as the truth so often is, and believe that the “everything is good“ outward presentation of Christians historically has been harmful to evangelism, which includes non-and new believers’ expectations that life gets easier once they become a Christian. Romans 6:20 – when I was a slave to sin, I was free from the obligation to do right.

Other notes:
- Lived the story about the missionaries and the one who thought his ministry was better because it was bigger, only to find that there were no roots in his.
- The great commission is to make disciples, not simply conversions.
- disciples can feed them selves and are not dependent on weekly sermons.
- “It is easy for a person, when he gets to this stage of his spiritual growth and development, to fall into the trap of being a “fellowshiping" Christian rather than one who is continually engaged in the battle for the souls of men.”

[Randall Darden · Rating 3 out of 5]

This provides a perspective on discipling disciple makers. I appreciate his practical advice in the last half of the book and his training objective in the appendix. I struggled through the first half of the book but he really got going after that. I especially appreciate the heart from which he wrote and would like the opportunity to meet him in person. "Likeminded, trustworthy, competent men are not made on a production line like automobiles in an assembly plant. They are carefully and prayerfully developed under the loving guidance of a wise trainer who spends much time on his knees praying for them." p.105 He also emphasizes the necessity of time spent with people being trained and compares our ministry to Christ's. "...when God grows an oak, He takes years; a toadstool can come up overnight!" p.188

[Samuel Juncu · Rating 4 out of 5]

Modul în care Fiul lui Dumnezeu a trăit a devenit un model pentru toți cei care Îl urmează în asemănare - un principiu explicat în mod clar în porunca de a "face ucenici din
toate neamurile."
Totuși, adevărul trist este că prea puțin creștini înțeleg ce înseamnă acest lucru, cel puțin, în ceea ce privește aplicarea acestui mod de viață în orice context. Ba chiar mai mult de atât, persoanele aflate în poziții de conducere nu au o perspectivă clară asupra modalității de a-i învăța pe alții să păzească poruncile lui Isus.

LeRoy Eims scrie din perspectiva unui practician, nu a unui teoretician. De ani de zile el a fost implicat în mod activ în modelarea vieților oamenilor.
În această carte, el confruntă realitatea facerii de ucenici, nu prin programe vagi, de la care nu se poate vedea niciun rezultat, ci prin principii clare, de direcție, pentru inițierea unui proces personal.

[J Knight · Rating 4 out of 5]

Thoughtful, practical, and helpful.

Rather a classic I think in the discipleship books world. This book deserves that title. This is the kind of work one can easily read and then set aside thinking "that was obvious and only mildly inspiring." But the real grit of this book are the simple methods Eims lists that bring real change to those being discipled. None of those methods are ground-breaking. They are firmly biblical and important for every Christian wishing to participate in God's mission of discipleship.

[Jordan Parker · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great book on what discipleship is and how local churches and individuals can get involved in it. I love Leroy’s experience and the personal tone he wrote with. Great companion book to go along with Robert Coleman’s “Master Plan of Evangelism”. One of the great strengths of this book are the vision Leroy paints for why discipleship is important, he doesn’t just show the reader how but paints a compelling picture for the why.

[Cassidy Purdy · Rating 4 out of 5]

There was nothing too life-altering for me in this one. When it initially came out, I’m sure it was incredible. Some of the content was slightly outdated, but most of it was still relevant.There are many other more helpful resources available now for discipleship, so I would recommend those before this one.

[Bernard Sia · Rating 5 out of 5]

After going through about 5 books prior on the topic of disciples and followership; this is probably the most concise and application based book on the topic. Other authors spend a good 80% to 90% rehashing principles from the bible (the "why") which is really not what I was looking for, as it only leaves a few meager entries on the "how".

[Keith · Rating 4 out of 5]

I'm still ruminating on my reaction to Eims' disciple making process. I have reservations about the prescriptive system being too head-oriented, but I also see the potential benefits of some of the practical advice and resources. My plan is to review the passages I marked and then reach my conclusions.

[Austyn Harris · Rating 4 out of 5]

Disciples are not made over night! Like raising a child it takes a lot of blood sweat and tears. This book lays out this reality clearly but also provides great encouragement that the job can and should be done!