Our model is based on the original call of discipleship to follow Yeshua, spend much time with him in prayer and the Word, and from there to be sent forth. And all this as a brotherhood of men.
He said to them, "Follow me, and I will make you fishers of men." (Matthew 4:19)
He went up on the mountain and called to him those whom he desired, and they came to him. And he appointed twelve (whom he also named apostles) so that they might be with him and he might send them out to preach and have authority to cast out demons. (Mark 3:13-15)
When they saw the courage of Peter and John and realized that they were unschooled, ordinary men, they were astonished and they took note that these men had been with Jesus. (Acts 4:13)
Mary sat at the Master's feet listening to his word..."There's only one thing you need. Mary has chosen the best, and it will not be taken from her." (Luke 10:38-42)
"But we will devote ourselves to prayer and to the ministry of the Word." (Acts 6:4)
A disciple is not above his teacher, but everyone when he is fully trained will be like his teacher. (Luke 6:40)
"Just as the Father has sent me, so I am sending you." When he had said this, he breathed on them and told them, "Receive the Holy Spirit." (John 20:21-22)
"All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, immersing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you." (Matthew 28:18-20)
While they were worshiping the Lord and fasting, the Holy Spirit said, "Set apart for me Barnabas and Saul for the work to which I have called them." Then after fasting and praying they laid their hands on them and sent them off. (Acts 13:2-3)
What does an average week at the Messianic School of Discipleship look like?
Every day you'll read your Bible, pray, and grow. Weekdays you'll do a class and some reading, and weekends you'll do some outreach and lead a group gathering.
You'll also have a short daily all-school meeting, and a monthly one-on-one with the director to review your study plan and progress.
You may also do some volunteer work with one of our ministries.
Based on the above model, our classes and assignments are divided into five required subjects: Bible, Prayer, Growth, Discipling, and Leadership.
Students can watch video classes and do assignments individually, with a partner, or as a group. Students are also welcome to move at a faster pace through both weekly and second year classes.
We intentionally keep the requirements light to leave room for individualized studies and expect our students to pursue additional topics as the Holy Spirit calls.
Much of our curriculum is based on the ministries led by our Director: Holy Language Institute at holylanguage.com for Bible and Prayer, the Mussar Center at mussar.center for Growth, and Yeshua Groups at yeshuagroups.com for Discipling.
This is a quick overview; see details below.
Daily Bible, Prayer, and Growth: For Bible, read/listen in Hebrew/English to Scripture and maybe commentaries. For Worship, pray spontaneously and from the Siddur and sing two hymns, one new and one familiar. For Growth, do your private Mussar practices and a commandment from the Mussar Bible.
Weekly classes, 1st year: 1. Hebrew Quest, 2. E-Sword Tutorials / Bible Reviews, 3. Mishnah Snapshots, 4. Biblical Mussar, 5. Messianic History.
Weekly classes, 2nd year: 1. Grammar Quest, 2. Mishnah Snapshots, 3. Chanting Torah/Haftarah, 4. Game of Life / Hero's Journey, 5. Messianic History.
Weekly reading: 1. Jewish prayer, 2. Mussar, 3. Disciple-Making, 4. History, 5. Leadership.
Weekly assignments: 1. Outreach, 2. Start and lead group.
Optional: Hebrew Verses, Messianic Messages.
Daily assignment: Bible Study. Spend time daily in Scripture, both the Old and New Testaments: either reading or audio listening, in original languages or translations including those from the Bible Reviews. This could could also include Hebraic Christian commentaries like Dr. John Gill, Jewish commentaries like Mishnah and Midrash, and other sources from the Resources page.
Weekly classes, 1st Year: Bible Classes. Your three weekly classes will be Hebrew Quest, E-Sword Tutorials and then Bible Reviews, and Mishnah Snapshots.
Weekly classes, 2nd Year: Bible Classes. Your three weekly classes will be Grammar Quest, Mishnah Snapshots, and learning to chant the Torah and Prophets.
Optional classes: Hebrew Verses and Messianic Messages.
Daily assignment: Prayer. This could include praying the Lord's Prayer and the Shema; spending time with God in quiet waiting, thanksgiving and praise; pouring out your heart and presenting requests; spontaneously praying and singing with your mind and also in the Spirit, if so gifted.
Daily assignment: Hymns. Learn and sing at least one new hymn daily from the God Of Abraham Hymnal along with one you recently learned and/or a favourite. (Watch the videos first.)
Daily assignment: Siddur. Pray from the Siddur in Hebrew and/or English.
Weekly class/reading: Jewish Prayer. Watch First-Century Jewish Prayer and learn about the Jewish prayers using books from the First-Century Siddur website.
Daily assignment: Mussar Practice. Develop your own practice of inner work and growth in Christlikeness. This could include reflection and journaling, repentance and confession, and meditation on the attributes of God. It should also include at least one commandment a day from the forthcoming Mussar Bible, along with the book's suggested questions.
Weekly reading: Mussar Reading. Read Mussar literature or history from the many books listed at the Mussar Center.
Weekly class, 1st Year: Biblical Mussar. We encourage you to do this course with at least one other student and only do one of the four assignments per day.
Weekly class, 2nd Year: Game of Life, then Hero's Journey (forthcoming).
Weekly reading: Disciple-making. Starting with the Yeshua Groups book, read books and watch videos about making disciples from the Yeshua Groups resources.
Weekly assignment: Start a group. Following the instructions in the Yeshua Groups book, start and lead your own discipleship community.
Weekly assignment: Outreach. Talk with and pray for people door-to-door or in public places, build relationships with nonbelievers, invite people to your gatherings.
Weekly class: Messianic History. We include history here because fundamentally a leader is a storyteller, telling people where they came from and where they're going.
Weekly reading: Jewish and Christian history with an emphasis on books from the Messianic History Archive and the Holy Language Publishing House.
Assignment: Organizational Leadership. Volunteer with Holy Language Institute or Yeshua Groups to see how our ministries are organized and run.
Weekly reading: Leadership. This could include books about setting goals, forming daily habits, organizational theory, personality types, communication, relationships, and generational history. Our director can give you specific recommendations.
As noted above, required studies and activities are relatively light. Along with daily Bible study, prayer, and growth, this works out to a class and some reading on weekdays, and then outreach and leading a gathering on the weekends.
Of course, this is the minimal requirement, and we encourage our students to pursue more subjects and engage in more Kingdom work as led.
Additionally, because we give our students the option to study alone or together, when they get all this done is also very flexible and doesn't have to be only weekdays/weekends, etc.
From Sunday to Friday we have a short daily all-school meeting with the students and director, not officially lasting longer than half an hour, and closing with a hymn.
These are an open time to check in, talking and praying about whatever is most pressing: questions, news, celebration, prayer requests, etc.
Our director has an initial meeting with each new student to get better acquainted, learn more about his hopes and plans, and help discern his individual calling and giftings.
After that the student creates a personal document with his goals, study plan, and projected schedule, which he will then update as needed.
From there the director meets monthly with each student to review his study plan and progress, give input, and similar to the daily check-ins, just talk about whatever comes up.
Our school year starts in the fall, on September 1, and goes all year. We encourage students to arrive early to get settled in and oriented. We also encourage students to order required book ahead of time.
Because we give students the option to study alone, they're also welcome to join the school at any point throughout the year and catch up at their own pace.
Students are welcome to travel when necessary and do their daily and weekly coursework on the road. Because we encourage students to start and lead their discipleship group in pairs, arrangements can be made for one to lead the group while the other travels, or the group can meet independently if ready.
You're welcome to study with us for as many years as you're called. While we don't have any 3rd year curriculum listed, we're constantly developing new coursework, some of which 3rd year students could do, along with your own educational and ministry pursuits. And of course you'll also continue with the daily and weekly assignments which apply to both 1st and 2nd year students
We are committed to raising up Kingdom leaders Yeshua's way, as described in the Bible. As such, we don't offer degrees and credits, certificates and diplomas, titles and positions, or anything else that isn't in Scripture.
What we do offer is a relational network of fellow-disciples who have studied, prayed, and grown together; true friends who know each other's strengths and weaknesses; brothers responsible for and accountable to each other; and individuals whose stories have merged to become a greater story together than they ever could apart.
From that place of relationship, we offer simple ordination as described in the word of God: as the Holy Spirit leads, we will lay hands on you and send you forth to do the work you have been called to do. And after that we'll be there to pray for you, give you moral support, and hold you to account.
If that reminds you of the movement inspired by Yeshua of Nazareth in the first century, maybe it should!