Crossroads Evangelical Covenant Church: The Quest

Jesus Christ asks us to follow Him in a Quest. We see this as a journey or grand quest that lasts for a lifetime. To attain this, we need practical steps for spiritual growth within our reach.

We are excited about discipleship – being equipped for the Quest –spiritually growing into all that Jesus Christ wants for us. Discipleship based ministry includes three major elements of spiritual growth.

A quality worship experience brings the whole family together to worship our great God. To grow we must worship God together in unity. Jesus Himself said, “The greatest commandment is to love the Lord your God with all your heart, soul, strength and mind.”
A Small Discipleship Group provides the context of accountable loving relationships of between 7 to 15 people. To grow we must focus on life transformation.
An Adult Bible Fellowship, offers a mid sized affinity group of up to 70 people for the purpose of teaching the word of God, fellowship and outreach. To grow we must know the mind of Christ, and spend time together learning to love each other as well as the lost world.

It is a great fact of life that Jesus Christ the very savior of the world called all of us to follow Him on a great quest. Deep inside of every person there is a desire to grow into the person that we were created to be. Jesus took time to develop His disciples into world changing people. Christ wants to do the same thing with us today.

At Crossroads Covenant Church we know that God has called us to take the land with the good news of Jesus Christ. Through the four phases: recruiting, training, specializing and making of warriors, we are built up in Jesus Christ – becoming fully armored saints equipped to take the land.

Disciple making and warrior making are the same thing. Both terms describe equipping people to be fully functioning in God’s kingdom.

Warrior Recruit

Recruits are those interested in looking at what it means to be a warrior. They have not yet made up their minds, they may not even be sure what it takes to be a warrior, yet they are drawn none the less. They feel the lure of becoming all they can be and are curious about spiritual things, but they lack information or understanding to pursue growth in their spiritual life. The quest at this point is to determine if what Jesus said about Himself and life in general is true.

Checkpoints for Warrior Recruits

Convicted of sin in their life
Repentance of sin
Believes that Jesus alone is savior
Confesses with mouth that Jesus is Lord
Believes that Jesus rose from the dead
Is baptized
Develops a hunger to be a follower of Jesus
Desires to be with fellow believers

Warrior Trainee

Trainees desire to worship God in spirit and in truth. They are growing to be more and more God focused. Warrior Trainees discover that the challenge of the quest is less daunting and more exhilarating when traveling in a group. Warrior Trainee’s find their faith growing and would rather be on this quest than going back to the way life used to be. They are developing important inner character qualities that will help them as they pursue the quest and look to grow more like their leader, Jesus Christ. They have cultivated core spiritual habits (disciplines). They are daily in the word of God and prayer, weekly attending the worship service of the community and accountable to a Warrior Maker (small discipleship group leader).

Checkpoints for Warrior Trainees

Practicing the discipline of daily personal bible study and prayer
Practicing obedience in stewardship, righteousness and holiness
Beginning to share the good news of Jesus Christ with others
Beginning to be accountable to a disciple maker
Desires to walk in unity with other believers
Beginning to serve in a ministry of the church

Warrior Specialist

Specialists move from wandering along the course to a more specialized, purposeful quest. They live for the Quest. They do all they can to build up their strength. They research all the details.

Their worship of God plays out in every moment of their lives whether at play, work, school, or church. A compassion for other warriors drives the specialist to minister in servant leadership as they seek to model Jesus’ ministry.

Warrior specialists still have day jobs, as it were, but the Quest occupies more and more of their time and energy. Yet, there is life outside the Quest and also a sense of two worlds: Non-Quest and Quest. However, the line between these two worlds is much less distinct than it was when they were warrior trainees.

Checkpoints for Warrior Specialists

Functioning in life and ministry by the power of the Spirit, in the realm of grace. Everything coming from Him, nothing from me.
Growing deeper in his/her walk with the Lord by regularly practicing spiritual disciplines in life and ministry with the help of others in accountable relationships.
Witnessing as a lifestyle.
Committed and involved in ministry and service through the gifts God has given them.
Growing deeper as a disciple by seeking to reproduce themselves while in voluntary submission to a disciple maker.

Warrior Maker

Warrior Makers rise to the challenge to make more disciples. As they pursue the Quest, they gather others to walk with them – teaching and training them to walk the path as well.

Their comfort is secondary to fulfilling God’s purpose for their lives in guiding others to know Him.

Warrior Makers are always pursuing the Quest. There is no separation between preparation and trip; everything is the pursuit of the Quest. All of life’s activities are directed towards God’s purpose for them as disciples of Jesus.

Checkpoints for the Warrior Maker

Living a mature spiritual life evidenced by the fruits of the Spirit, an example and role model for others to follow.
Has a servants heart of submission and accountability that gladly accepts God’s direction for their life of service and sacrifice.
Always prepared and willing to teach others and proclaim the gospel in all situations.

In the end...

We want to help you and your loved ones grow into fully armored saints, built up into the very character and knowledge of Jesus Christ. The pathway has been marked by warriors before you, but the quest is not easy. You must climb dark mountains and cross dangerous rivers. Some parts of the road you must travel at night. Danger spots have been clearly indicated but many have fallen to their deaths.

Do not take this trip lightly. It has the potential of great reward, but it is not for the weak of heart. You may gain new skills and inner strength you once thought impossible; but only if you abandon all confidence in your own ability and place complete trust in Jesus Christ and the guide that He has given you. Please contact Crossroads to begin the “Quest”.

A disciple is an obedient follower of Jesus Christ who loves God and is committed to an intentional pursuit of Christ-likeness, demonstrated by loving others, walking in unity with believers, reaching out, teaching and eventually training up other disciples.