DISCIPLESHIP  @  FIRSTSF 

VISION OF DISCIPLESHIP

Here at FirstSF our vision is to lead people to love and live for Jesus. As we are led to live for Jesus and love him—and as we lead others to do so—we often need spaces to grow deeper. Deeper in our understanding of who Jesus is and who we are following. Deeper in our experience of loving and living for him. This growth in depth has often been referred to as discipleship throughout church history. As Jesus calls us to follow him, he calls us to a greater depth of knowledge, lived experience, and love for Him and others. Our discipleship ministries at FirstSF are one of the ways we seek to grow in this area as a church community.

While discipleship will look different for everyone at different points in life, and everyone’s pathway may take different routes, we believe discipleship happens primarily in two spaces: Community and Learning. For this reason, we’ve created dedicated spaces for discipleship in community and discipleship through learning at FirstSF. While Community and Learning can never be fully separated from one another (we best learn when in community, and community often involves aspects of learning), having dedicated spaces for each allows us to focus our time and efforts in each space accordingly. Additionally, living in a city center like San Francisco often means life can get busy. We never want church programming to become a hindrance to living a holistic life, nor an obstacle that prevents certain people from participating in discipleship. Having dedicated spaces for both Community and Learning allows each of our members to discern for themselves where they should invest their time in the various seasons of their lives. 

However, Community and Learning are not the only aspects to discipleship. While disciples are formed by learning in community, disciples are also formed for a purpose. As Jesus declared in Matthew 28, that purpose is to make more disciples. So while we are all called to be discipled into Christlikeness, we are also called to make more disciples for Jesus. Discipleship, therefore, is incomplete until serving and mission are incorporated into our lives. For this reason, we hope every disciple at FirstSF also engages in the task of making disciples—leading others to love and live for Jesus too. 

There are a number of ways we do so at FirstSF, through serving in our various church ministries (Kids, Youth, Worship, FIT, CG Leading, Deacons, LT, etc.), outreach ministries (Joyfriends, Urban Ministry Outreach, Local Partners, etc.), and global mission opportunities (Global trips, partnering with Global Partners, etc.). More than just joining a ministry to serve in, however, a life of service and mission (“making disciples”) can be lived out through our various existing relationships, vocations, and other organic ways right where God has placed us. As you prayerfully consider your own discipleship, we hope this “Discipleship Wheel” will provide clarity as you discern how to allocate your time as you seek to pursue Christ in your life. Below you will find more information on our current Discipleship opportunities at FirstSF for Community and Learning.

COMMUNITY

Throughout the pages of the New Testament, God’s people are called to be a radical community defined by Jesus’ love (John 13:32–34; Acts 2:42–47; 1 John). We believe this type of radical community should happen organically as relationships are developed within the local church. However, we also know that if we do not intentionally aim for this goal, not everyone can so easily cultivate these types of relationships organically. To help us do so, we have three main opportunities for community at FirstSF: Community Groups (CGs), Discipleship Groups (DGs), and periodic Men’s & Women’s ministry events. For more information on CGs and Men’s & Women’s Ministry events, please see the “Community Groups” page and the “Events” page respectively. Below is a description of Discipleship Groups and how you can join one.

Discipleship Groups (DGs)

Throughout the pages of the New Testament, God’s people are called to be a radical community defined by Jesus’ love (John 13:32–34; Acts 2:42–47; 1 John). We believe this type of radical community should happen organically as relationships are developed within the local church. However, we also know that if we do not intentionally aim for this goal, not everyone can so easily cultivate these types of relationships organically. To help us do so, we have three main opportunities for community at FirstSF: Community Groups (CGs), Discipleship Groups (DGs), and periodic Men’s & Women’s ministry events. For more information on CGs and Men’s & Women’s Ministry events, please see the “Community Groups” page and the “Events” page respectively. Below is a description of Discipleship Groups and how you can join one.

Fall ‘26 Round of DGs
For our Fall 2026 round of DGs, we will be going through a curriculum on prayer, titled "Living Like Monks, Praying Like Fools." Prayer is frequently talked of as a central spiritual discipline to the Christian life, yet it is one we often struggle the most with. This 5-week video and workbook curriculum walks through the Lord's Prayer in depth, and will lead us through some practical tools to grow in prayerful devotion.

Since this curriculum is significantly shorter than previous DG rounds, hopefully this will allow your groups more time to spend in prayer together, with some flexibility to meet for dedicated times of sharing and prayer beyond the video series.

The deadline to sign up for the 2026 Round 2 of DGs is Sunday, September 20th.

LEARNING

In his’ call in Matthew 28 to make disciples—known as the Great Commission—Jesus instructs believers that disciples are made when people are baptized (28:19), and taught to obey (28:20). This means that discipleship cannot happen without learning and being taught. However, knowledge alone does not equate to discipleship; Jesus commands the believers to teach others to obey all that Jesus has commanded. Learning as a component of discipleship, therefore, requires the transmission of information in such a way that it leads to transformation. We believe this type of transformative learning happens in the context of relationships and community. Thus, we have two primary opportunities for learning within our community at FirstSF: 9AM Sunday classes, and Equipping Courses/Cohorts (ECs).

9AM Classes

The Sunday 9AM courses happen on the first Sundays of most months at 9AM in the Firehouse. These are developed in such a way that any person at any point in their faith journey can learn the foundational elements of the Christian faith. Past classes can be found on our “9AM Studies” page under the “Media” dropdown. Topics range from theological classes like the doctrine of God, to practical studies like evangelism and prayer, to biblical studies on the story of Scripture. These classes are primarily taught by our pastors, but we often have guest teachers lead us in their topics of expertise.

Equipping Courses/Courses

The primary vehicle for learning at FirstSF is through our Equipping Courses and Cohorts. The Courses and Cohorts are both designed to be spaces of active learning, requiring participants to complete work prior to joining each gathering in order to personally wrestle with key questions and concepts. The Courses and Cohorts differ both in their content and style of learning.

Our Equipping Cohorts are offered each Spring, and meet in smaller groups (cohorts) around the city. Each cohort focuses on a different book to read through and discuss together. Past cohorts have ranged from books on church history, to prayer and fasting, to politics and the gospel.

Equipping Courses are offered in the Fall, and meet at our church building for a classroom-like study to dive deeper into theological and biblical concepts. Course work is typically more involved than our Cohorts, as participants are required to complete pre-class readings and answer a set of questions. Smaller discussion groups are also required to meet in between classes. Past studies have included theological topics such as the church’s missional engagement, and biblical studies through specific books.

Fall ‘26 Equipping Course: Faith + Work
This Fall, we will be covering the important topic of Faith and Work. Work is such a central part of what we do in life, yet it is something we can often view as inferior to our calling to serve and live life within the church. In this course, we will learn what the Bible has to say about the Christian's vocation, and all of work. We're excited to be partnering with the Bay Area Center for Faith, Work & Tech to help us think deeply through this central question to living out our Christian faith!

Classes will be held on Thursday evenings, 7:00–9:00pm from September 24 through November 19, 2026. We will meet for five classes in person in our church Firehouse every 2 weeks (9/24; 10/8; 10/22; 11/5; 11/19) with Zoom cohorts for discussion held in-between each session (10/1; 10/15; 10/29; 11/12). For more information and to register, click the link below.