In a telling scene from the new movie THE FORGE, a mom is trying to explain to her teenage son what discipleship is.

“It’s like when one person … it’s kind of like … you need to come to church with me!”

Discipleship is definitely one of those aspects of the Christian faith we’ve all heard of … but not many of us fully understand. And that makes it a challenge to become what Jesus has called us to be: disciple-makers.

“Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age” (Matthew 28:19-20, NIV).

THE FORGE

The latest film from the Kendrick Brothers—the creators of beloved movies like FIREPROOF, COURAGEOUS, WAR ROOM, and OVERCOMER, and others. It is a film that every dad—and every father figure—needs to see.

“If you saw WAR ROOM, you know mentorship over prayer was modeled with Miss Clara and Elizabeth,” says Stephen Kendrick, producer and co-writer. “You’re going to see it go to the next level with The Forge.”

In this story, Isaiah is a young man who has some growing up to do. A year out of high school with no plans for his future, Isaiah is challenged by his mom, Cynthia, and a successful businessman to start charting a better course for his life. Through the biblical discipleship from his new mentor, and the prayers of his mother and a prayer warrior named Miss Clara, Isaiah begins to discover God’s purpose for his life is so much more than he could hope for or imagine.

“We’re excited to be focusing on discipleship with The Forge,” says Alex Kendrick, director and co-writer of the movie. “You’ll see an older, wiser Christian gentleman discipling a younger man. It’s something we need to see more of in the church and our culture. We hope people will see this as an avenue to introduce discipleship to other people.”

Bible teacher Priscilla Shirer plays both Cynthia and Elizabeth, her character from WAR ROOM who returns in The Forge. As someone who has been discipled and disciples others, Priscilla—unlike her character—has a practical definition of discipleship:

“It’s when someone opens their life up to another person and says, ‘come walk with me. Let me show you what Christ is teaching me,’” Priscilla says. “‘Let me show you how I’m growing, the mistakes that I’ve made that I can be honest and vulnerable about. Let’s walk together in that process of spiritual growth.”

In The Forge, Joshua Moore (played by Cameron Arnett from OVERCOMER) is a successful business owner who sees something in his newest employee, Isaiah (played by Aspen Kennedy), that the young man doesn’t see in himself. By building into Isaiah, Joshua helps him find direction and purpose in life.

In addition to one-on-one discipleship, Joshua also invites Isaiah to become part of a gathering of men that Joshua leads, called “the Forge.” This is a group of Godly men building into the next generation of believers.

“When we see ‘the Forge’ meetings, this group of men are following Christ and investing in the next generation, each of them with a young man they’re discipling,” Alex Kendrick said. “The men of ‘the Forge’ pray together, keep each other accountable, and invest in the younger generation.”

The real-life men of The Forge

  • T.C. Stallings (who was in WAR ROOM and COURAGEOUS)
  • Super Bowl champion Benjamin Watson
  • Pastor Ken Bevel (who was in COURGEOUS and FIREPROOF)
  • Pastor Tommy Woodard of the Skit Guys
  • Pastor and former pro-football player Jonathan Evans
  • Business executive Jerry Shirer

“These men were not chosen at random,” Alex Kendrick says. “These men were chosen because they love the Lord and are walking with Him.”

On the big screen and in real life, these are men committed to discipling others. As the movie’s tagline reminds (and challenges) us, “whoever wants the next generation the most will get them.”

“We’re not going to be able to reach the world through addition,” Stephen Kendrick says. “But we can through multiplication if we focus back in on the Great Commission, investing in others in discipling relationships. Let’s get back to being focused on Jesus and making disciples of all the nations.”

THE FORGE opens in theaters everywhere on August 23, 2024.

It’s a great movie to take your family to, and it’s a great movie for your whole church to experience together. You may even find yourself starting up your own Forge group.

“We think it’s critical for the body of Christ to get back to the priority of discipleship,” Alex Kendrick says. “It’s what Jesus demonstrated in Scripture and it’s something we have as devoted followers of Christ.”

You can find out more about THE FORGE here.