John Wesley's 3-Strand Discipleship Process

“Perhaps the greatest single weakness of the contemporary Christian Church is that millions of supposed
members are not really involved at all and, what is worse, do not think it strange that they are not. As
soon as we recognize Christ’s intention to make His Church a militant company we understand at once
that the conventional arrangement cannot suffice. There is no real chance of victory in a campaign if
ninety per cent of the soldiers are untrained and uninvolved, but that is exactly where we stand now.” -
Elton Trueblood

Founded on Jesus’ blueprint for discipleship, John Wesley developed a simple plan for maturing and
equipping the saints. Wesley said, “The Church changes the world not by making converts but by making
disciples.” Jesus commanded us to: “go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of
the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have
commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age." (Matthew 28:19,20)

Biblical Discipleship: “Whoever claims to live in him must walk as Jesus did.” (1 John 2:6)

Growing Authentic Disciples of Jesus

Discipleship is a common term in churches, but how well are we developing Christ-like people? With
millions of born again Christians suffering from biblical illiteracy and culture-accommodating lifestyles, we
must reassess how we train people to be true followers of our Lord Jesus.

How Jesus Taught:

Jesus ministered to the multitudes at least 17 times according to the Bible. However, there are
approximately 46 mentions in the Bible where He spent His time in private with His disciples. In those
smaller group settings He trained His committed followers for their own ministries. He ministered one-on-
one, one-on-two, and one-on-three. At other times His ministry was conducted one-on-twelve. He also
provided on-the-job training with the 70; and spent some apprenticeship time with the 120 as well as
placing some emphasis with the 500 in Galilee.

“Go And Make Disciples...Teaching Them To Obey” (Show, Tell, Release, Supervise):
The great commission has two parts. The first is for us to go and make disciples. The second is of no less
significance, but most often set aside to secondary importance if used at all. It is to teach them
(apprentice disciples) to obey. In fact, there cannot be a disciple without this training. And there cannot be
training without accountability.

The primary objective of the Church today as outlined by Jesus is for disciples of Jesus to develop other
men and women into disciples. Discipleship should be at the forefront of our efforts. Everything we do,
say and teach should be considered as we ask, “How will this help us make disciples?”

The most effective manner to train and equip people for any skill is by providing effective models and
opportunities to practice the skill itself. Jesus used a show, tell, release, and supervise model of training.
After calling the disciples, He took them along with Him, teaching and healing the sick as He went. Then,
after He thought the disciples had seen and learned enough to try for themselves, He commissioned,
empowered, instructed, and sent them out to do the same things. This model of training should be no
different for those desiring to bring others into a complete understanding and walk in Christ-likeness.

Wesley’s Four Basic Convictions for Discipleship:

1. The Necessity of Discipleship:
John Wesley wrote, “I am more and more convinced that the devil himself desires nothing more than this,
that the people of any place should be half-awakened and then left to themselves to fall asleep again.”

2. The Necessity of Small Groups for Discipleship:

In 1743 John Wesley organized a society. “Such a society is no other than a company of men having the
form and seeking the power of godliness, united in order to pray together, to receive the word of
exhortation, and to watch over one another in love, that they may help each other to work out their own
salvation.” Discipline was the key to this level of holy living. Wesley created 3 strands of discipleship:
Societies, Classes, and Bands.

Society: Strand 1 - The Crowd (these were the multitudes)

Purpose: To Bring About A Change in Knowledge
This meeting included those in a geographical area, much like a typical, congregational meeting in today’s
church. These large groups of people met once a week to pray, sing, study scripture, and to watch over
one another in love. There was little or no provision made at this level for personal response or feedback.
John described a society as "a company of people having the Form, and seeking the Power of
Godliness."

Class: Strand 2 - The Cell (these were Jesus’ 12)

Purpose: To Bring About Behavioral Change
A class was the most basic group structure of the society. The class was composed of 12-20 members,
both sexes, mixed by age, social standing and spiritual readiness, under the direction of a trained leader.
It was not a gathering for academic learning. They met weekly in the evening for mutual confession of sin
and accountability for growing in holiness. This group provided the structure to more closely inspect the
condition of the flock, to help them through trials and temptations, and to bring further understanding in
practical terms to the messages they had heard preached in the public society meeting. Membership in a
class meeting was non-negotiable. If you wanted to continue in the society you had to be in a class. In
1742 in one society in London there were 426 members, divided into 65 classes. Eighteen months later
that same society had 2200 members, all of whom were in classes. Every week each class member was
expected to speak openly and honestly on the true state of his or her soul.

Band: Strand 3 - The CORE (these were Jesus’ inner circle made up of Peter, James, and John)
Purpose: To Bring About A Change of Direction, Heart and Position
Composed of 4 members, all the same sex, age, and marital status. They were voluntary cells of people
who professed clear Christian commitment, who desired to grow in love, holiness, and purity of motive.
The environment was one of ruthless honesty and frank openness. There were specific rules about
punctuality and order within the meeting. He introduced accountability questions which everyone
answered openly and honestly in the meeting each week: 1) What known sins have you committed since
our last meeting? 2) What temptations have you met with? 3) How were you delivered? 4) What have you
thought, said, or done, of which you doubt whether it be sin or not? 5) Have you nothing you desire to
keep secret? You can see from these questions that there was no place to hide in a Band. Bands became
the training ground for future leaders. This group held to extreme confidentiality in a “safe place”, mutual
submission where matters of indifference were yielded to the released leader, and godly stewardship.
This was the group that could intensively pursue goals and vision together.

3. The Necessity of Leadership in Discipleship:

A small army was needed to provide the leadership for this 3-Strand Discipleship Model, and, just as is
true today, professional paid staff simply was not available. Wesley trained and mobilized a massive army
of leaders, putting as many as 1 in 10 of his members into leadership roles - barbers, blacksmiths,
bakers, men and women. The job description of those who looked after societies and classes was:
“preach, teach, study, travel, meet with bands, classes, exercise daily and eat sparingly.”
4. Holiness and Service as the Goals of Discipleship:
Wesley’s goals for this entire process were: godliness and goodwill - spirituality and service to others.
This system and process produced a new kind of citizen at a period of history when crime and every form
of public sin were rampant. These men and women reformed both the church and the society in which
they lived.

Applications:
1. Make CORE Discipleship a priority for making disciples.
2. Be constantly involved in training others to do the work of making disciples.
3. Consider some adaptation of the 3-Strand Church Model: Crowd + Cell + CORE = Church.
4. Renew a thrust for evangelism by focusing attention on disciple-making.

Our Lord continue to bless you as you intentionally purpose to make disciples.
Core Discipleship Process
Simple. Biblical. Reproducible. Relational.

Jesus' 3-Strand Discipleship

The most effective manner to train and equip people for any
skill is by providing effective models and opportunities to
practice the skill itself. Jesus used a show, tell, release, and
supervise model of training. Jesus ministered to
the multitudes(crowd), the 12 (cell), and the inner circle of
3 (core). After calling the disciples, He took them along with
Him, teaching and healing the sick as He went. Then, after He
thought the disciples had seen and learned enough to try for
themselves, He commissioned, empowered, instructed, and
sent them out to do the same things. This discipleship process
should be no different for those desiring to bring others into a
complete understanding and walk in Christ-likeness.

John Wesley’s 3-Strand Discipleship

In 1743 John Wesley created a 3-strand discipleship model, a
company of people having the form and seeking the power of
godliness, united in order to pray together, to receive the word
of exhortation, and to watch over one another in love, that they
might help each other to work out their own salvation. The 3
groups were called societies (multitude), classes (cells), and
bands (core).

CORE 3-Strand Discipleship Process

The CORE discipleship process can be integrated using all 3
strands or by launching a CORE Group. It can be used by any
Christian church as a roadmap and adapted to fit any church
expression. In addition to the model, we also
provide resources to assist you in equipping the saints.

Strand 1: Crowd
Size: 50+ people; typically the large gathering of saints for corporate worship
Purpose: To bring about a change in knowledge
Focus: celebration - worship.
Wesley's society or crowd group included those in a geographical area, much like a typical,
congregational meeting in today’s church. These large groups of people met once a week to pray, sing,
study scripture, and to watch over one another in love. However, as is true of today's corporate church
gathering, there was little or no provision made at this level for personal response or feedback.

Strand 2: Cell
Size: 5-16 people
Purpose: To bring about behavioral change; conduct
Focus: community - fellowship.
Wesley's class or cell group was the most basic group structure of the society. The class was composed
of 12-20 members, both sexes, mixed by age, social standing and spiritual readiness, under the direction
of a trained leader. It was not a gathering for academic learning. They met weekly in the evening for
mutual confession of sin and accountability for growing in holiness. This group provided the structure to
more closely inspect the condition of the flock, to help them through trials and temptations, and to bring
further understanding in practical terms to the messages they had heard preached in the public society
meeting. Membership in a class meeting was non-negotiable. If you wanted to continue in the society you
had to be in a class. In 1742 in one society in London there were 426 members, divided into 65 classes.
Eighteen months later that same society had 2200 members, all of whom were in classes. Every week
each class member was expected to speak openly and honestly on the true state of his or her soul. This
strand closely resembles
today's cell group, small
group, life group, etc.

Strand 3: CORE
Size: 3 or 4 people
Purpose: To bring about
a change of direction,
heart and
position;knowledge,
character and conduct
Focus: committment -
discipleship.
Wesley's band or CORE was made up of 4 members, all the same sex, age, and marital status. This was
a voluntary group of people who professed a clear Christian commitment, who desired to grow in love,
holiness, and purity of motive. The environment was one of ruthless honesty and frank openness. There
were specific rules about punctuality and order within the meeting. He introduced accountability questions
which everyone answered openly and honestly in the meeting each week. Bands became the training
ground for future leaders. This group held to extreme confidentiality in a “safe place”, mutual submission
where matters of indifference were yielded to the released leader, and godly stewardship. This was the
group that could intensively pursue goals and vision together. There is a strong case to be made for
churches to review, adapt and integrate a 3-Strand Discipleship Process into their expression. It begins
with the Bible, is supported by sociological evidence, makes sense from an organizational standpoint, and
has been proven successful for thousands of years.
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