BT Staff / Tuesday, June 18, 2024

Dr. Ronnie Johnson Article On Discipleship Published

Dr. Ronnie Johnson, professor of Christian Education at the BMA Theological Seminary, recently had an article published in the Christian Education Journal: Research on Educational Ministry (CEJ). The CEJ is a leading evangelical journal in the field of Christian education. This is the fourth time Dr. Johnson has been published in this peer-reviewed journal.

The article titled, “Comparison of Discipleship Attitudes and Practices among Members of the Baptist Missionary Association of America between 2010 and 2023,” reported the results of a survey Dr. Johnson designed to assess attitudes and practices of discipleship in the BMAA and compare results to a survey published in 2010 by Rainer Research. The survey closely replicated the methodology used by Rainer Research in 2010.

The 2023 research project sought to assess whether or not there was a difference in discipleship practices from the 2010 survey. Results suggest that the development and promotion of the DiscipleWay curriculum/methodology made significantly positive changes.

Rainer Research conducted the original survey in 2010 and reported that “the BMAA knows what discipleship is; they’re just not doing it.” In 2010, 43% of respondents either stated that their local churches did not have a formal discipleship process, were unsure if there was a formal process or did not answer the question. In 2023, the percentage (32%) was 11 points smaller. A smaller percentage implies that more respondents (78%) are aware of their church’s discipleship process. Another significant difference indicating positive change is the fact that 62% of 2023 respondents indicated that they were currently discipling at least one other believer, a 15-point increase from 2010!

Acknowledging that other variables could have contributed to the results of the current study, it appears that the DiscipleWay venture helped the BMAA address the issue of moving from “knowing” what discipleship is to “doing” discipleship. Yet there is still room for improvement in this area. It is also important to recognize that the BMA knows what discipleship is - because many denominations or associations do not practice biblical discipleship. Of course, knowing but not doing may be as bad as not knowing.

The 2010 study also stated that “most people in the BMA agree on the importance of the seven disciplines (prayer, witnessing, leading, giving, serving, worship and Bible study), but churches are not equipping congregants in these areas.” Results of the 2023 survey indicate that equipping in six of the disciplines was perceived as higher than in 2010. Of highest importance, responses showing intentional equipping, discipling and leading were significantly higher in 2023. Although unsolicited, 10% of respondents mentioned DiscipleWay by name and another 34% described the biblical method of making disciple makers, an important component of DiscipleWay. The 2023 survey included six references to II Tim. 2:2, a key verse in DiscipleWay philosophy. A distinctive characteristic of DiscipleWay is the deliberate focus on making disciple makers.

Rainer concluded in 2010 that “The BMA is sticky but not magnetic. The association is sticky (keeping existing people), but it is not magnetic (attracting new people).” Since improvement in this area was not indicated by the 2023 data, the BMAA needs to continue to address how to attract new members.

So what does this mean for the BMAA? What does this mean to you? Answer these “so what” questions prompted by the research study results:

• Is your church following the biblical mandate (II Tim. 2:1-2) to make disciple makers? Are you currently discipling or being discipled by another believer?

• Do you know the DiscipleWay curriculum is available to purchase from the Baptist Publishing House? Church leaders should continue to take advantage of tools such as DiscipleWay curriculum, to teach disciples how to make disciples and the Baptist Expositor to teach inductive Bible study methodology.

• Do you know that the BMA Theological Seminary continues to use DiscipleWay materials in degree plans and offers a Certificate of Disciple Making as well as a Master of Arts in Disciple Making?

• Are you aware of other BMA training and programs promoting discipleship, such as “Healthy Church Solutions” sponsored by BMA Global, “Follow,” by Lifeword, Bible lessons taught at Daniel Springs Camp and BMA auxiliaries for men, women, girls, and boys?

• How can the BMA stay “sticky” while becoming “magnetic?”

— Ronnie J. Johnson, Ph.D. serves as a professor of Christian Education at BMA Theological Seminary in Jacksonville, Texas. You can contact him at (903) 721-9684 or Ronnie.Johnson@bmats.edu. The entire article can be read at tiny.cc/BMAAdiscipleship.