“Discipleship is not a doctrine. It’s not a checklist. It’s not even a program,” Pastor Floyd Harmon shares. “At its core, discipleship is a relationship.”
And that truth, he says, is something we’ve lost in the modern church.
Floyd serves as a pastor in the Kentucky-Tennessee Conference of Seventh-day Adventists, but he speaks less like a polished presenter and more like a coach in the trenches—someone who’s wrestled with these questions for years. “What we’ve done for decades just isn’t working,” he said bluntly. “If this were a business and we had a 40% net loss over 60 years, we’d be bankrupt.”
He’s not exaggerating. Floyd shared data from a 2022 Seventh-day Adventist Church Annual Council report showing that since 1965, over 17 million people have left the Adventist Church. “And most of them didn’t leave over theology,” he explained. “They left because they went through a crisis or felt unnoticed, uncared for, or unimportant.”
So the question is—what would change if discipleship were the foundation of everything we do?
Start with Jesus’ Method
To answer that, Floyd pointed back to the original blueprint.
“Discipleship was Jesus’ model,” he said. “It’s the commission He gave. Go and make disciples—not church members, not belief-system adherents, but people who are growing in relationship with Him.”
He referenced Ellen White’s well-known line: “Christ’s method alone will give true success in reaching the people.”
She describes Jesus’ approach: mingling with people as one who desired their good, showing sympathy, meeting their needs, winning their confidence—and then inviting them to follow.
“But if we’re honest,” Floyd said, “most churches don’t disciple like that. We evangelize, we teach doctrines—but we don’t come alongside people. We leave them to sink or swim.”
How Jesus Made Disciples
So how do we get back to the model?
Jesus entered their world – “The Word became flesh and dwelt among us,” he quoted from John 1:14. “Jesus didn’t minister only in the synagogue. He was out in the streets with the people the church avoided. If we’re going to make disciples, we can’t stay inside a sanitized Adventist bubble.”
He stayed connected to the Father – “Jesus spent entire nights in prayer,” Floyd said. “And right after that, we see Him walking straight into divine appointments—like with Zacchaeus or the woman at the well.” The point? “Discipleship isn’t just human to human—it’s God working through us.
He noticed people others ignore – “Everyone was walking by the blind beggar shouting, ‘Son of David, have mercy on me!’ and telling him to be quiet,” Floyd recalled. “But Jesus stopped. That guy got His full attention.” In discipleship, he said, that kind of spiritual awareness is essential. “Pray: ‘Lord, show me who You’re already working on. Help me to see with Your eyes.’”
He did life with them – “Jesus didn’t drop in for weekly check-ins,” Floyd said. “He ate with them. He traveled with them. He slept near them. He corrected them. He encouraged them. He lived with them.” Discipleship, he said, is about relationship over time—not just teaching information but helping people walk with Jesus in real life.
He sent them before they were perfect
“Jesus didn’t wait until they had it all together,” Floyd noted. “He sent the disciples out to preach and cast out demons—even though some of them, like Peter, weren’t even fully converted yet. He gave them real opportunities to grow.”
The Cost of Walking with Someone
At one point, Floyd leaned in and said something that stuck with everyone: “Discipleship is incredibly expensive. And I don’t mean financially—I mean emotionally, spiritually, and relationally.”
He compared it to parenting. “Even in the best homes, raising kids is hard,” he said. “Now imagine helping a grown adult grow in Christ when they don’t live with you, aren’t under your authority, and may not have any other support system.”
He smiled and added, “You won’t have room in your life to deeply disciple five or ten people at once. Even Jesus focused on twelve. And among those twelve, He poured even more into three.”
How to Start
So how do you begin? Floyd offered three practical steps:
- Pray for one – “Ask God, ‘Who is the one You’re calling me to walk with right now?’” he said. “Just one. Not five. Just one.”
- Test the waters – “Sometimes it starts with a simple phrase like, ‘I had to hit my knees and pray about that.’ Or ‘Praise the Lord.’ See if they engage. See where it goes.” If they open up, ask deeper questions: Where do you see God in this? How do you feel God sees you right now?
- Do life with them – “Take them to lunch. Invite them over. Go shopping. Worship together. And over time, as the friendship grows, you’ll get permission to speak into their walk with Jesus.”
He added: “It’s not a formula. Every person is different. This isn’t math—it’s chemistry.”
When to Let Go
When asked Floyd how you know when someone is ready to “fly solo,” he thought for a moment.
“I’d say when they start taking initiative away from you,” he answered. “When they don’t just ask questions, but begin answering them—for themselves and others.”
But even then, he said, pray for discernment. “Ask the Holy Spirit, ‘Is it time?’ Because He knows better than you do.”
You Don’t Have to Be Perfect to Disciple Someone
One of the most refreshing things Floyd shared was that God can use you even when you don’t have it all together.
“None of us are perfect disciples,” he said. “We have seasons where we’re stronger, and others where we’re not. But God doesn’t wait for us to be perfect. He uses us in our weakness.”
He referenced Jonah—angry, bitter, uncooperative—and yet God still worked through him. “If God can use that guy, He can use you.”
Discipleship Is the Mission
At the end of the day, Floyd’s message boiled down to this:
“If everything we’re doing in church doesn’t somehow funnel into making disciples, then what are we doing? Jesus didn’t say, ‘Go and make programs.’ He said, ‘Go and make disciples.’”
It won’t always be neat. It won’t always be fast. But it will be real.
“Jesus said, ‘Lo, I am with you always,’” Floyd reminded me. “That promise is connected to the call to make disciples. He walks with you—because this is the mission He gave you.”
And that’s the good news. You’re not doing this alone.
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