Topics for disciples

Subjects every follower of Jesus meets sooner or later. Each topic gives you why it matters for following him, the Scripture to study, ways to live it out and to tell others, and the best classic writing on it for your own reading.

Prayer, fasting and worship

PrayerThe disciples asked Jesus one thing about how he lived: "teach us to pray." Prayer is how a follower talks with the Father through the Son, in the Spirit, so it shapes every other part of discipleship. It also meets the hardest moments of faith (delay, silence, a "no"), and Jesus himself prayed through them in Gethsemane.6 study units · 38 readings
FastingJesus fasted for forty days and said "when you fast", not "if", so fasting is part of his pattern for his followers. Isaiah 58 and Hermas keep it honest: a fast that does not turn toward God and toward the poor is empty. Done humbly, it trains us to depend on the Father, and Acts 13 shows the church fasting and praying before it sent out its first missionaries.5 study units · 8 readings
Praise and worshipJesus said the Father seeks worshippers "in spirit and truth", and Revelation shows the whole creation worshipping the Lamb who was slain. Worship is where followers rehearse who Jesus is and give their lives back to him (Rom 12:1), and Amos and Isaiah warn that songs without mercy and justice do not please God. Singing together also shapes the community that tells others about him.5 study units · 11 readings

The Holy Spirit

The Holy SpiritJesus promised his friends another Helper who would be with them, remind them of what he said, and testify about him. Without the Spirit we cannot know Christ as Lord, grow in his character (the fruit of the Spirit), or find power to be his witnesses, as Acts 1:8 says.4 study units · 21 readings

The church

The churchJesus said "I will build my church", and the New Testament never pictures a disciple alone: we are a body, a family, a flock, a temple built on Christ. The church is where we learn to love, forgive, correct and be corrected, share what we have, and be sent out together. Its divisions also matter, because Jesus prayed that his followers would be one so that the world would know the Father sent him (John 17:20-23).4 study units · 20 readings

Grace

GraceGrace is the centre of the gospel: God gives us Christ, forgiveness and new life as a gift we could never earn, and John says we have all received "grace upon grace" from his fullness. The same grace teaches us to say no to ungodliness and yes to a changed life (Titus 2:11-14), so it is neither a licence nor a wage. Christians have argued hard about how grace and the human will work together, and a disciple should hear each side in its own words.3 study units · 12 readings

Missions

Missions and the Great CommissionThe risen Jesus said "as the Father sent me, I send you", and every disciple is part of that sending, whether next door or across an ocean. The Bible's story is God blessing all the families of the earth through Abraham and ending with people from every tribe and language worshipping the Lamb (Rev 7:9-10). Mission is also the place where the church's mistakes (tangled with colonial power) have to be told honestly, because truthful witness cannot hide them.4 study units · 8 readings

Apologetics

ApologeticsPeter tells believers to be ready to give a reason for the hope they have, "with gentleness and respect", and Paul reasoned with people in synagogues, markets and courts. A disciple will meet honest questions about suffering, science, the reliability of the Gospels and the resurrection, and a loving, humble answer is part of telling others about Jesus.4 study units · 12 readings

Covenants

CovenantsAt the Last Supper Jesus called the cup "the new covenant in my blood", so we cannot understand the Lord's Table, or the cross, without the covenant story that leads to it. The covenants show a God who keeps promises across generations and who blessed Abraham so that all nations would be blessed. How Israel and the church relate within that story is a sensitive question, and a disciple is called to love both neighbours and Jewish friends, so it must be taught with care.4 study units · 6 readings

Want a topic we haven’t covered? Suggest one. Viewpoints from different traditions and profiles of the leading teachers are added to each topic after scholars review them.