Discipleship Tape Ministries

In John 17, Jesus prays for us. He prayed that while we are in the world, we would not be of the world. This lesson will take a look at the Church’s three-fold calling in the light of this prayer. We have been set apart not just to be holy for the sake of holiness, but for the sake of reaching a degenerate, dying world. Read lesson: 1336A

God’s joy indwells us and overtakes us when the uncertainties of life cause us to crawl up into the “keep” and rest. When we see no earthly deliverance, our joy ought to be multiplied. Why? Because the Father is “keeping” us. He is maintaining our relationship with Him. He is restraining the evil one from taking us out of His Fathers hand. He is conforming us to His nature, and He is “keeping” us...

We now embark upon a look at the second great theme of Jesus’ prayer in John, chapter 17. It is that of unification. It is a dangerous subject, for taken out of context, it can lead to great doctrinal misunderstandings, yet overlooked, it can lead to great strife and contention. Read lesson: 1335A

In this study, we want to address some other “glory” issues Jesus brought up in His prayer to the Father, and we want to look at some ways the Bible specifically says we glorify God. Then, in future studies, we hope to go on and examine the rest of what Jesus prayed in John, chapter 17. Read lesson: 1334B

The glory of God is one of the major themes of Scripture. It is spoken of more than 400 times in God’s word directly, and is referred to on virtually every page. If we were to take a poll and ask a room full of believers to define the glory of God, I doubt if many could define it. The word seems to be used to describe a variety of things; but the truth is that all of them are the same. The Scriptu...

If we were to take a poll and ask how many of you end your prayers, “In Jesus’ Name, Amen.” Probably 90% or more would answer “yes”. So the phrase is not new at all. To those twelve, however, it was not only a new phrase, but a new thought. What did He mean when he said, “He will give you whatever you ask in My Name.” Even more intriguing is the question, What did He mean when He said, “Until now...

Ask yourself some very basic questions. What does it mean to be “led”? What is a “temptation”? How does God “deliver us”? What does this prayer really say? The answers to these questions are in this study.

You were in bondage. It doesn’t matter how much of your sentence you have served. You were in prison, not only for life, but eventually you were to be executed. You were on death row. But God, who is rich in mercy, decided to stay the execution, then rehear the case, and finding you still guilty as charged, He paid the penalty Himself, dying in your place. The result? You have been set free. Not b...

God loves you, beloved. He loves you so much that in eternity past, He lovingly designed life to be lived one day at a time. He designed prayer, accordingly. He taught us to pray for one day’s needs, for the whole world, for today. Tomorrow is a new day. His compassions fail not. They are new every morning. He will renew His love and His commitment to us each day.

When we pray “Thy Kingdom Come” what are we asking God to do? Praying this prayer should be at the center of our lives. What does the Scripture say about the Kingdom? When we know what the Kingdom means, we will never cease praying for it to be at hand again.

Hallowed be thy name. How many times in your life have you prayed that statement? Do you know what it means? When you pray, do you stop and reflect on what it means? We pray that this study may help us all do just that.

God is not confined to the limits our human minds place upon Him. And every time we think of heaven, we ought to marvel at His creative power, at His power over the elements, His ownership of all things, His omnipotence, His omnipresence, His mercy, His sovereignty, His immutability, His coming again, and that every time we mention heaven we are giving out our new address. Heaven is where we are h...

God knows everything. He knows our needs. He knows our hurts. He knows our fears. But even though He knows, we are told to ask. Why? There are at least eight reasons given in Scripture. God knows what we have need of before we ask, but we must ask. Read lesson: 1330A

We have looked at the need to pray and at the essence of prayer. Now we begin to look at HOW we are to pray. If we are to look at how we are to pray, we must begin by looking at Jesus' unusual commands in Matthew, chapter six. It is a look at a trinity of spiritual duties which had a common thread of secrecy that bound them together. They would turn out to be three things Christians often do e...

To pray or not to pray. That is no longer the question . We learned by looking at those sleepy saints in the garden and by searching the New Testament to view the life of Christ and the life of the apostles, that prayer is not an option in the believer's life. It is rather the vehicle through which the Christian enters into the heart of God and thus finds the will of God and is energized with...

In this study, we begin a long look into the positive side of the subject. "Why Must We Pray?" is the title, and it is step one in the pursuit of a set of priorities that place spending time in God's presence in intimate communication as the number one objective in the Christian life. It will take some reevaluating. But reevaluating is what coming to grips with Scriptural truth is al...

The purpose of this study is not simply to gain knowledge, though there is a need for that. We need to know what God says in His word about prayer. But that will only make us more accountable. We need to be willing to apply that knowledge to our own lives and lay ourselves before God in conviction and humility. Read lesson: 1328A

The true test of mentoring is the changing of character over the process of time. Character is the only real yardstick the mentor has to apply to the heart of his disciple. How do we help another grow in the matter of character? The One who holds the key to character transformation is also the One who answers prayer. The key then comes in praying for those we disciple, not so much for circumstance...

Mentoring is a process. It is the pouring of one life into another; the making of one life accountable to another; and the tender, persistent commitment by one person to see that the other person keeps on growing. Perhaps the least utilized tool in our arsenal of mentoring is that of reproof. The true test of mentoring is a changed life. It happens when someone loves someone else enough to help th...

God's Word is alive. In part two of this study we are asked a few more questions about the Word of God. Is the Word of God the source of our faith? Do we read what is written about the Bible or the Bible itself? Does the Word of God produce joy? This is the living Word. It will forever change your perspective and will forever change your life. Read lesson: 1377B

The Word of God. There is nothing like it. The Word of God is the only medicine God has prescribed for spiritual healing. It is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, and for instruction in righteousness. The question becomes, "how do we use the Word Of God?" Do those we mentor stand in awe of God's Word? Do they know that it is 100% true about everything? Do they unde...

If there is a general theme in Paul's writings, it would be encouragement in the midst of trials. A great part of Paul's mentoring became a ministry of the magnificence of seeing the grace of God as it could only be seen through life's storms. How do we, as Paul, encourage others in difficult straits? In one sense, we need to be willing, if need be, to suffer to teach and demonstrate t...

One arena in which Christians often get discouraged is in the area of this world's goods. The greatest keys to discipling in this matter are that of priorities and pressure. There are several principles clearly revealed in Scripture that will help us help others overcome conflicting priorities, as well as the pressures of conformity that create depression and discouragement. Read lesson: 1376A

Why do we get discouraged? Discouragement is universal to the human soul, but the levels of discouragement and what it takes to overcome that discouragement will vary. The sources of discouragement are many, but God has also provided the solutions. In order to begin encouraging, we first need to take time to look for the source of discouragement. Once that is found we are then able to place an ove...

In examining the concept of mentoring by teaching, two main examples stand out - how Jesus taught the disciples and how the Holy Spirit teaches us. Teaching involves correcting, redirecting, and encouraging. Each of these are used by Jesus as a method of teaching that leads to transformation. Transformation is the end product of true mentoring. Learn how to mentor God's way through God's W...