Here is a recent excerpt from an Easter Sermon:

There are churches that try to sound noble, oh we’re not saying that discipling shouldn’t happen, but it’s optional in our church. My bible tells me, it’s not optional, it’s the command of God. It’s the way to win a city to Christ, it’s the way to win the world to Christ. It’s the same thing as if we say, hey you know, tell you what, as far as being pure with your girlfriend, it’s optional. NO IT’S NOT OPTIONAL. The word of God says we must be absolutely pure. The word of God says we MUST make disciples. And so, yes, there will be division between us and other churches. But in the end, what I believe is going to happen, is that the churches that really want to see the world evangelized, the churches that really want to make disciples, who make disciples, make disciples we’re going to link on up. Amen guys? And then I think, some like Paul said in Romans 11, out of jealousy, will join us, cause they don’t want to be left out, amen, not the highest motivation, but it works. But some people are going to be in churches that totally have drifted away because they are autonomous. And if you’re in that kind of a church, where your leaders do not embrace the fundamental truths of God’s word, and call the church to obey it, and to practice it, then you’ve gotta leave your church, and find a church where it’s happening, because it’s your soul that’s on the line. You cannot go up to heaven or judgment and say, well God, the reason I’m not on fire is because I was in a lukewarm church. God says, you could have moved. But you didn’t. You didn’t want to pay the price. My understanding of a true disciple is somebody that’s willing to do anything, go anywhere, and give up everything for Jesus Christ. That has not changed in all these years. Are you with me here church?”

So bottom line guys, it’s a desperate hour and there are going to be divisions between our churches. Don’t be shocked, Don’t be confused. But understand what’s going on is what Paul talked about, because the ones that have God’s approval will eventually join together, be together and we will by faith evangelize the world. Amen?

Here is a quote from the speaker in 1994:

Perhaps also unappreciated by the casual observer was the challenge to meet the needs and keep faithful the unprecedented number of new Christians – over 2,000 in the first six years in Boston! In the ’60s and ’70 s in the denominational world, there had been much discussion and writing on the “body life” of the church and “shepherding” one another. Thus, in the Crossroads movement, one another Christianity was expressed in a buddy system called “prayer partners,” where each person chose their own “buddy.”

With so many new Christians in the Boston church, I felt this approach was not directive enough. Building upon this concept, I came up with “discipleship partners.” In these relationships, the evangelists, elders and women’s counselors, after discussion and prayer, arranged for an older, stronger Christian to give direction to each of the younger, weaker ones. They were to meet weekly, but have daily contact (Hebrews 10:24,25). (Obviously, the younger discipleship partner also gives input and advice to the stronger disciple, as in any healthy relationship.)

Is discipling through discipleship partners a command of God, or was it invented in the 1980s?