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Part 1, Preparation and Vision Lesson 1: Multiplying Trainers

Scriptures to read to prepare for the story: Acts 4:36-37 Acts 8:1-3 Acts 9:1-30 Acts 16:1-5 2 Tim 2:2 (memory verse) Introduction to Story: Listen to the following story and try to find out how many generations of believers you can find. Story: One of the first followers of Jesus after he rose from the dead was a man named Barnabas. We dont know how he first believed. Most likely he heard the gospel from Jesus or from one of Jesus 12 followers and was eventually trained by them. He was called by them The Encourager because he encouraged many people. While Barnabas and the other Christians were growing in their faith a great persecution broke out against the believers. Many Christians had to flee from Jerusalem. However, wherever they went they shared the gospel with others. One of the fiercest persecutors against the church was a man named Paul. One day as he was traveling on a road to persecute some Christians, Jesus appeared to him in a vision. Paul began to follow Jesus and was very excited about his new faith. But other Christians were afraid of him. However, Barnabas found Paul and encouraged him. He believed God could change his life. He trained Paul to become a great apostle in the church. Several years later, Paul was preaching the gospel in another country. He found a young man named Timothy who believed in Jesus. Paul believed that Timothy could be useful servant in Gods kingdom even though he was a young Christian. Paul took Timothy with him in his travels and trained him to be a strong disciple and follow his example of sharing the gospel. Later, Paul left Timothy in a city called Ephesus where the gospel was spreading rapidly. Timothy began to look around and draw to himself faithful men who were newer believers than himself. He trained them to lead other people into Gods kingdom. Paul wrote to Timothy and told him that he should train these faithful men to find other younger Christians to train. In this way the gospel spreads rapidly! [Dont forget to have 2-3 people re-tell the story.] Questions: 1. What is this story saying, what do you understand? 2. What should you obey, put into practice? 3. With whom will you share this story, tell? At this point, you will want to explain what training of trainers is (even if no one asks). The book of Acts is an exciting story. It shows how the gospel spread rapidly throughout the ancient world. Many thousands of people believed. They were not won to Christ through just a
Part 1, Preparation and Vision Lesson 1: Multiplying Trainers

2 few people. Rather, most believed in Jesus through the witness of ordinary Christians. This is the way the Kingdom spreads. Human methods of evangelism ask this question: How many people can I win to Jesus? This is not bad, but its just not enough. Gods method of evangelism asks this question: How can I train the people I have led to faith to lead others to faith who will lead others to faith? In this way, every Christian should become a witness and trainer of others. He trains them to become a witness and a trainer of others. The method we share applies Gods method. (You will improve your skills) You will learn to share your faith and help people follow Jesus. (We will also look at) You will also learn how to disciple so that they grow in their faith. But if you do not encourage these new disciples to repeat the process, you will only be using human methods, not Gods method. The key is that each new Christian shares that lesson with several other friends. As they accept the Lord, he must help them do the same thing. The same is true for each church. Every church must start new churches and expect them to do the same thing. E.g. Rabbit (or Chicken) and Elephant churches Elephant: reproduction in 20 years 3 Elephants Rabbit: reproduction in 5 years Thousands This is the power of Kingdom multiplication. Like a rice seed that bears more seeds that bear more seeds. Memory Verse: The things which you have heard from me in the presence of many witnesses, entrust these to faithful men who will be able to teach others also. 2 Timothy 2:2 Exercise: There are 5000 people in your little market town. Only two of you are Christians, but you want to help everyone believe. You have two choices on how to do this: 1. You and your friend try lead 50 people to faith each year. How long will it take to reach the whole town? [Answer: takes 100 years] 2. You and your friend can win two people to faith in the next six months and train them. In the next six months the four of you can win four and train them. In the next six months those eight can become sixteen. And so on. How long will it take to reach the whole town? [Answer: 5 years!] Which way will reach your market town faster? You can probably help more than two people believe each year, but no matter if they are 2 or 20 People, the importance is that you help each new Christian to be a witness and trainer for others. Any Christian can be a trainer of others! This is how the Bible teaches us! Case study: Yanyin Province China. In the first year 6 new churches, second year another 17 churches. After 6 years from 3 to 200 churches. After the 7th year there were 550 churches and more than 55.000 believers.
Part 1, Preparation and Vision Lesson 1: Multiplying Trainers

3 Trainer Testimony: Share a testimony of how you have seen this happen before. How maybe someone you led to faith led others to faith. How to Obey/Apply: What does it mean for us? That is what God wants to do in Pulau Pinang as well. That obedient disciples train new believers who will be able to train others. (2Tim 2:2) We are not only speaking about winning people, but gather them to a church and through them new churches will be planted that follow the same method. (Rabbit churches) Following what we learned today from the word of God. How should we obey it? We as a team would like to help you to see this happen here. How would that look like?: - meet every 2 weeks on Wednesday and train 1 new lesson. The training lessons are based on 5 aspects: a) Participation b) Obedience and accountability c) Unpaid workers Questions ? Commit yourself to be a sharer and trainer for others Pray and make a list of all the people you can share 2-3 names (believers) Decide who you will share with this week already (focus on believers) Help each believer you lead to be an obedient Christian

d) Cell multiplication e) House churches

Pray: Pray right now and commit yourself to these things.

We can only go to the next step of the training when we see the obedience and accountability is taken seriously. The lessons that are trained are based on the goal to plant new multiplying churches.

Talk with each other for about 5 minutes - Who is ready to take the CPM training in order to start planting Cell Churches? Make small groups of 3-5 people. Discuss this question. - Answer in Plenum back to the whole group. - Ask any questions that came up during training.

Part 1, Preparation and Vision Lesson 1: Multiplying Trainers