The

“4 ShiPS” Of fOllOwiNg ChRiST

fellowshipstewardship

worshipdiscipleship

Dr. Enoch Kwan obtained his D.Min. degree from Fuller Theological Seminary and is an ordained pastor. He came to Canada as an immigrant in the 1970s. He worked in computer and data processing for a decade before entering fulltime ministry in 1993. He and his wife Cynthia have raised two adult children. Enoch is interested in church growth and decline factors. He has experimented with the “4 Ships” concept in local church ministry, conflict resolution, spiritual disciplines, and pastoral leadership. Enoch is also encouraging his local congregation to start missional small groups and to plant autonomous house churches. He lives in Markham, ON, Canada, and can be reached at enkwan@4shipsdc.net. His doctoral thesis on the “4 Ships” can be found at www.4shipsdc.net

Rad Zdero earned his Ph.D. in Mechanical Engineering, specializing in orthopaedic biomechanics. He is currently the director of a hospital-based research lab in Toronto. Rad has been involved in the house church and small group movement since 1985. He is the author of The Global House Church Movement (2004) and the allegorical novel Entopia: Revolution of the Ants (2008). He is also the editor of Nexus: The World House Church Movement Reader (2007) and The Starfish Files house church magazine. He lives just outside Toronto, ON, Canada. He can be reached at rzdero@yahoo.ca and www.housechurch.ca.

By ENOCh KwAN & RAD ZDERO

The big QUeSTiONChristians around the world have been

asking questions for centuries about

priorities, function, and meaning for

themselves and for their churches. In a

time like ours, Christians are even more

eager with these questions, especially

when we learn that there is a net loss of

48 churches closing down permanently

each week in the uSA and that millions of

true, born again, evangelical Christians

are leaving the traditional church each

year in North America.

To address these challenges, some

Christians ask about the practical steps

of how ministry should be done, while

others ask about what the principles

should be for ministry. what do we need

to do or accomplish as a church? how do

we put our ministries as a church into

a spiritual framework that makes sense

and is productive for Christ’s Kingdom?

how can we help our church grow and

effectively mentor up-and-coming

believers and leaders.

But, whether we are involved in a

traditional church, an emerging church,

a mega church, or a house church

network, what it all boils down to is the

big question: how can I follow Christ?

STRATegieS & SCheMeSThere are many church strategies and

schemes today that supposedly provide

answers to the big question of how

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to follow Christ as individual believers

and corporately as the church. For many

decades, North American churches have

searched for ways to turn the tide of church

decline and ineffective discipleship. A focus

has been given to theological orthodoxy,

church planting, mission work, Sunday

school, small groups, seeker friendliness,

facility renewal, worship renewal, music

renewal, post-modern churches, emerging

churches, and even house churches. Books

like the Purpose Driven Church and the

Purpose Driven Life have become popular

in the last decade or so. yet, the old question

remains: how can I follow Christ? I believe

that the Great Commandment and the Great

Commission give us some clear clues.

The gReAT COMMANdMeNT & The gReAT COMMiSSiON Although church strategies are okay in

themselves, they should be based on explicit

God-given decrees, rather than on stories

that biblical writers merely described.

Choosing stories that simply describe

what happened, say, in the early church,

as our model of success may leave room

for interpretation error. Also, we need to

be careful not to base our approach solely

on the many social or cultural trends that

come and go. Instead, we must look to the

explicit God-given decrees of the Great

Commandment and the Great Commission

for direction.

The Great Commandment is rooted in

the Ten Commandments that God gave to

Moses (Exod 20:1-17; Deut 5:1-22). They may

sound negative to modern ears because of

the many prohibitions given. yet, they were

given for people’s own benefit, rather than

to spoil people’s fun. Certainly, as Christians,

we are no longer under the Law and do not

have to be concerned with slavishly obeying

the Ten Commandments in order to impress

God, others, or ourselves (Rom 7:1-8:1). yet,

Jesus told us that the basic acts of loving God

and loving people were a fulfillment (not a

cancellation) of the unchanging covenantal

requirements detailed in the Law and the

Prophets (Matt 22:36-40).

The Great Commission is rooted in the

mandate that Christ gave to the apostles

and the early church to go out into all the

world and make disciples of all nations. he

said it in different ways at different times to

make sure his disciples understood his point

(Matt 28:18-20; Mark 16:15-16; Luke 24:46-

48; John 20:21-23; Acts 1:8). Once they were

empowered from on high, they would be his

true representatives. They were to testify

in word and deed and with supernatural

power to all of creation. They were to tell all

people to turn to God through Christ for the

forgiveness of sins and to gain a transformed

life as brand new followers of Christ.

The Great Commandment was given so

God’s chosen people could live in a way that

reflected God’s holiness. Then, these people

would be worthy to carrying out God’s

mission by being “a light to the nations”

(Isa 42:6, 49:6). These two are inseparable,

whether we look at God’s plan in the Old or

the New Testament.

Now, let’s turn to see specifically how

the Great Commandment and the Great

Commission form the basis for following

Christ through the “4 Ships” of worship,

Stewardship, Fellowship, and Discipleship.

ShiP #1. wORShiPAs God’s people, we are to be passionate

about knowing, interacting with, and

submitting our lives to the God who loves

us. In other words, following Christ is to be

characterized by worship.

The first three of the Ten Commandments

that God gave to Moses deal with how God’s

people are to give him undivided devotion,

honour, and respect (Deut 5:7-11). This even

touches on the need to be respectful in

using God’s name and recognizing that he

is above all earthly imagination. God is the

only one worthy of our worship and ultimate

allegiance. Jesus once said that “God is spirit,

and those who worship him must worship

in spirit and truth.” (John 4:24). Paul also

encouraged all of us to “present our bodies

as a living and holy sacrifice, acceptable

to God, which is your spiritual service of

DiscipleshipWorship FellowshipStewardship

worship.” (Rom 12:1).

what does this mean practically for us

today? If we are people of true worship,

therefore, we will seek to be aware of God’s

presence and holiness at all times. we will

try to live prayerfully and continually in the

presence of God. we will see everything we

do and have as an act of worship too, whether

it is our job, studies, relationships, resources,

skills, plans, ambitions, or our very lives.

This is truly being a living sacrifice. we will

rely on God and seek to know his will for us

as we walk with him!

ShiP #2. STewARdShiPAs God’s people, we are to manage the time,

skills, and resources God gives to us so that

his purposes can be fully accomplished in

and through us. In other words, following

Christ is to be characterized by stewardship.

The fourth of the Ten Commandments

that God gave to Moses is an interesting one

because it deals with properly resting our

bodies, emotions, and minds one day a week

(Deut 5:12-15). The six days of diligent work

are as much ordained as, and are not to be

separated from, the seventh day commanded

for rest. A closer look at the passage shows,

first, that the Lord is the one who gives

us our work, and second, that our having

enough does not depend solely on our

own hard work, since the Lord is our true

and ultimate provider. This is why the rest

mentioned is described as being unto the

Lord. But the rest also allowed God’s people

to get refreshed physically, emotionally,

and mentally by taking a break from their

labours. And taking care of themselves was,

in essence, an act of stewardship. Jesus

also took time out to rejuvenate himself by

stepping away from ministry from time to

time, which also allowed him to spend more

focused time with the Father (Matt 14:22-23;

Mark 6:45-46).

what does this mean practically for us

today? As God’s people, stewardship means

that we should know our responsibilities

and do our best to fulfill each of them. we

are to be good managers of our time, money,

gifts, talents, and whatever resources God

entrusts to us. we will not be slaves to work

out of fear of not having enough, because

we know the peace of having God as our

provider. That means taking time out for

rest. understanding this principle releases

us from the worries and burdens of life,

when we know God’s Lordship over what

we do and manage.

ShiP #3. fellOwShiPAs God’s people, we are to learn to love

others. we will look out for the wellbeing

of others and not just ourselves. In

other words, following Christ is to be

characterized by fellowship.

The last six of the Ten Commandments

that God gave to Moses have to do with

interpersonal relationships (Deut 5:16-

21). As Christians today, if we have true

fellowship with others, we will be able to

quite naturally fulfill those commandments

without straining too hard. If we love others,

we will wholeheartedly want to respect and

value others, whether that is our parents

or other people’s marriage relationships,

property, reputation, and physical lives. Paul

the apostle recalls these six Commandments,

but then reminds us that “love therefore is

the fulfillment of the law” (Rom 13:8-10).

what does this mean practically for us

today? If we are people of true fellowship,

therefore, we will be a joy to be with. we

will know how to respect others and be

considerate. we will do to others as we

would like others to do to us. There will be

no hatred in us, except for a hatred of evil

things. we can separate in our minds wrong

doings from the wrongdoers themselves

and, thus, love others who may even do us

wrong. we will be able to forgive, knowing

we ourselves are forgiven sinners. we will

not judge others, but let God be the judge.

we will love others, because God first loved

us. we will be patient with each other,

help each other when problems arise, and

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celebrate each other’s victories. we will go

out of our way to look like Jesus and to give

ourselves to serve others.

ShiP #4. diSCiPleShiPAs God’s people, we are meant to live a life

consistent with the Great Commission and

the God who called us. we are meant to

spread, or promote, God’s glory and grace to

those who do not yet know God personally.

In other words, following Christ is to be

characterized by discipleship.

The Great Commission is based on

Christ’s mandate to make disciples of all

nations (Matt 28:18-20; Mark 16:15-16; Luke

24:46-48; John 20:21-23; Acts 1:8). Since God

is a missionary God who seeks and saves

the lost, his people are also meant to be

missionary people. Once we have the holy

Spirit’s presence and power, we will be able

to testify in word and deed to people about

Jesus Christ and their need for him in their

lives.

what does this mean practically for

us today? A follower of Jesus who is

characterized by worship, stewardship, and

fellowship is one of the best advertisements

for God’s household. we are like an

extremely happy person holding a can of

Coca-Cola for a commercial! It becomes easy

for those watching us to buy it! But, we are

more than that. As people of discipleship,

we should know how to pass on to others,

whether they are believers or not, some of

the principles of worship, stewardship, and

fellowship through our words and deeds.

we are also supposed to be people who

are passionate about spreading the Gospel,

seeing new people come to faith, mentoring

new believers, and launching others into

ministry. Only then will we be able to

constantly help expand God’s Kingdom by

quantity and by quality!

liNKiNg The 4 ShiPSwhen we are able to link together into our

lives the “4 Ships” of worship, Stewardship,

Fellowship, and Discipleship, we will be

people who are spiritually whole and vibrant.

There will be no discontinuity between our

church life, our home life, our work life, or

our social life.

we would see ourselves in proper

perspective before a faithful, loving, and

holy God. we would love and respects

others. we would be faithful in all we do and

overflow with joy and

life. we would be an easy

person to live with. we

would be influential and

attractive in many ways.

we would be a breath of

fresh air in any setting.

In many ways, we would

be a very piece of the

living Good News, since

we are a reflection of the

deeper Good News of

Jesus Christ.

Just imagine what

our families, churches,

workplaces, schools, and

neighbourhoods would be like if there were

dozens, hundreds, thousands of these people

present everywhere we went. we know,

however, that the church and society are not

filled with these kinds of people today…not

yet, anyway!

PRACTiCAl APPliCATiON fOR hOUSe ChURCheSTransforming the “4 Ships” as found in

the Great Commandment and the Great

Commission into a set of practical activities

or ministry agendas for a house church

or network of house churches could be

challenging. But, here are some tentative

suggestions.

First, any project or activity that a house

church considers as a group (such as an

outreach event or bringing a teaching to the

meeting) would be prayerfully evaluated by

asking whether it fits into one or several of

the “4 Ships.”

Second, when house church members

meet for any kind of mutual mentoring

and accountability either one-on-one or in

small groups, they could focus on studying,

praying, and talking about one of the “4

Ships.”

Third, a house church could prayerfully

read through this article together. Then,

each week they could look at one of the “4

Ships” and ask God to show them how to

apply it to their lives as a community of

believers. For a longer period of time, they

even may rotate their meetings, so that each

week the focus is on one of the “4 Ships.”

The important thing is to keep everything

balanced, so that the simple, organic, house

church movement will be filled with people

who are worshipping God through their

faithful stewardship, loving fellowship, and

Gospel-spreading discipleship.

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SAVe OUR STARfiSh!The STARFISH FILES magazine needs your stories, poems, photos, practical teachings, book reviews, and artwork. Financial support is also needed to pay for design and printing costs. Please make a cheque out to “Starfish Network” with “Starfish Files” in the memo line. Send to:

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SOS!

RREEVVOOLLUUTTIIOONNAARRYY BBOOOOKKSS bbyy RRAADD ZZDDEERROO

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

RAD ZDERO earned his Ph.D. degree in Mechanical Engineering from Queen’s

University (Kingston, Canada), specializing in bio-mechanics and bio-materials. He is

the director of a hospital-based research lab in Toronto, Canada. Rad has been actively

involved in the house church and small group movement since 1985 and is dedicated to

encouraging the full restoration of original New Testament Christianity in our day.

The Global House

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Rad Zdero gives you

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