One-to-One Discipleship

Definition and Meaning

One-to-one discipleship is a method in which a church member who has already received training in the faith serves as a discipler (yangyukja). The discipler is paired with another church member and meets with that person about once a week to study a prescribed curriculum, usually over a period of several months. The Korean term yangyuk (養育) means to nurture something so that it grows, and "disciple" refers to a follower of Jesus Christ. The person being discipled is called the piyangyukja ("one who is nurtured"), though some churches use the term dongbanja ("companion").

The study covers the basics of the Christian life in sequence, including assurance of salvation, prayer, reading the Bible and quiet time (daily Bible reading and meditation), fellowship, and evangelism. A common goal is "reproduction," in which those who complete the program become disciplers themselves and nurture others in turn.

Biblical and Historical Background

Churches that practice this method point to the relationship between Paul and Timothy as its biblical basis. They frequently cite 2 Timothy 2:2: "And the things that thou hast heard of me among many witnesses, the same commit thou to faithful men, who shall be able to teach others also." They also point to Barnabas introducing the newly converted Paul to the apostles and guiding him (Acts 9:27; 11:25–26), as well as to the command to make disciples in Matthew 28:19–20.

Spiritual mentoring in which one person cares for another was emphasized by twentieth-century evangelical parachurch organizations. The Navigators, an American organization, is often cited as a representative example, and the approach was also introduced in Korea through campus ministry organizations.

Practice in Korean Churches

In Korean churches, the name "one-to-one discipleship" became widely known through the ministry of Onnuri Church and its founder, Pastor Ha Yong-jo. The related curriculum is distributed through Duranno and is used in many churches. The method is an interdenominational program not tied to any particular denomination, and churches of various denominations, including Presbyterian, Methodist, Holiness, Baptist, and Full Gospel churches, have adopted it and adapted it to their own circumstances.

Implementation varies from church to church. Some churches have new believers take it as the next step after completing a newcomers' class, while others use it as a retraining course for existing members. Disciplers are usually laypeople who have completed a training course established by the church. Compared with small-group-centered discipleship training, best represented by SaRang Community Church under Pastor Oak Han-hum, one-to-one discipleship is regarded as placing greater emphasis on the personal relationship and care between two individuals.

At the same time, several difficulties have been noted in church settings. The quality of discipleship can vary greatly depending on the discipler's understanding of Scripture and personal character, and the program may become a mere formality in which completing the prescribed course becomes an end in itself.