Sowing the seeds of the gospel for generations to come

Nothing is more important than taking the gospel and passing it on to the next generation (2 Tim 2:2). What is the best way for you to have the maximum impact for Jesus in your life? Should you:

• Step out and start evangelizing?
• Go to Bible college and learn to understand and teach the Bible better?
• Plant a new church so you can reach a whole new group of people?

Here is a different idea. Spend two years studying under an experienced ministry trainer. Learn to love evangelism. Develop your knowledge of the Bible and how to teach people from it. Understand what it looks like to do ministry in a full-time context. Then you will be in a better position to know what to do next, how to use every fibre of your being in the service of the King.

MTS (Ministry Training Strategy) is an organization committed to obeying the words of Jesus Christ in the great commission—to make disciples of all nations (Matt 28:18-20). 

If we want to reach people with the life-saving gospel of Jesus Christ, it’s not enough to maintaining the existing structures and staff numbers. We will need to recruit and train new people who are willing and able to entrust the gospel to others.

Jesus, Paul and the other apostles spoke about this, did this, and encouraged us to pray that God would raise up workers for the harvest (Matt 9:37, 38; Titus 1:5-9). Far from being too busy to do an “optional extra”, this is the job that God gives us to be busy with.

MTS advocates apprenticeships because considering and ‘tasting’ the ministry of the Word – even well before enrolling in theological college – is a worthy and important thing to do. We think that the apprenticeship approach makes good sense. Not only is it grounded on important biblical principles but also on active participation in evangelism and Bible teaching, all under the leadership of a trainer… an experienced gospel worker.

Ministry is conducted in relationship. A two-year apprenticeship enables real learning, real experience and real relationships to develop, the value of which could never be captured/ or repeated in a classroom context. An apprenticeship can also be adapted to any ministry context and can be tailored by trainers to their apprentices.

You can find out more about apprenticeships in the book Passing the Baton by Colin Marshall, available from Matthias Media, where the theological basis, philosophy and strategy of MTS is explained in detail.

Are you interested in a ministry apprenticeship? Is there someone at your church who might be? We have some good news. People undertaking a scholarship apprenticeship in a church (or other training centre) that hasn’t trained an apprentice before, you can apply for seed funding to get that apprenticeship up and running.