Discipleship is often thought of in one-on-one or small group settings, but God’s design is for the church to be the primary discipling community (Eph 4:11-16). The church exists not only to disciple its members but also to equip them to become disciple-makers themselves. Only the church, with its structure and spiritual gifts, is fully equipped to carry out this mission through the preaching of the word, corporate prayer, baptism, the Holy Communion, church membership and discipline, and the various gifts God has given to the body.
For instance, through the preaching of the gospel, Christians learn what the gospel is—not just in terms of doctrine, but in how it should shape their lives. They also learn what a biblical Christian life looks like and how to hold one another accountable when they stray from what they profess. In addition, through the practice of church membership and discipline, the church helps believers understand the importance of being part of a community committed to growing together in the faith. The preaching of the word teaches members how to centre their lives on Scripture and equips them to teach one another God’s word. Corporate prayer, too, plays a vital role, as members learn to rely on God and meet each other’s needs, even at personal cost. These corporate practices foster spiritual growth in ways that individual and small group discipleship cannot. This also frees disciple-makers from the burden of trying to be everything for those they disciple, reminding them that both the disciple-maker and the disciple need the church.
Moreover, corporate discipleship serves as the foundation for one-to-one and small group discipleship. This is because the church corporately disciples and equips its members for the task of disciple-making, and in doing so, provides both the context and model for one-to-one and small group discipling relationships.
While there may be “easier” environments for discipleship—smaller pockets where people think like you, act like you, and have no pressing needs—it would be hard to truly display the gospel in such settings. The beauty of the gospel is that God unites natural enemies—both to Himself and to each other—into one family. The church alone offers a community so diverse that when its members love each other despite their differences, the world takes notice and sees that they belong to Jesus. This is the place where, when each member works together, everyone is discipled into the fullness of Christ, the head of the church.