Over the past three decades, Avery T. Willis Jr.’s seminal Bible study, MasterLife, has become one of the most prominent discipleship resources used in the church. MasterLife is a four-step discipleship process that empowers participants to develop a personal, lifelong, and obedient relationship with Jesus. Since its first printing in 1997, hundreds of thousands of Christians have used MasterLife to establish the foundation of their spiritual lives.
This year, Lifeway is releasing a refreshed edition of MasterLife with Willis’s original Bible study content that has been redesigned for an enhanced participant experience, along with a new integrated group discussion guide.
MasterLife is much more than a standalone Bible study. This course approaches discipleship from every angle, beginning with daily spiritual disciplines and expanding into what it truly means to walk through life with the Master. Through four sequential books, MasterLife helps Christians not only learn how to grow in their faith but also become serious disciples empowered to sustain their faith over a lifetime. Each book allows participants to explore a foundational aspect of Christian life: daily practices for spiritual growth, development of Christian character, freedom from sin, and life on mission to fulfill the Great Commission.
1. The Disciple’s Cross
The first MasterLife book, The Disciple's Cross, introduces six essential disciplines that should mark the lives of every believer: spending time with the Master, living in the Word, praying in faith, fellowshipping with believers, witnessing to the world, and ministering to others. Participants spend a week focused on each of these six disciplines, using daily devotional content, reflective prompts, and relevant Scripture memorization to maximize the impact of their study. During these six weeks, participants develop a deeper, more vibrant relationship with God as they integrate these disciplines into their daily lives.
2. The Disciple’s Personality
The second MasterLife book, The Disciple's Personality, continues in the rhythm of these six disciplines to take believers further in their discipleship journey. Building on their daily practices, participants learn what it means to live in the Spirit and reflect the character of God. They discover how to differentiate between the world's way and the Spirit's way, allowing them to discern and do God's will. Participants also learn to renew their minds, master their emotions, and present their bodies as holy and pleasing to God. By the end of their six weeks in The Disciple's Personality, participants will know the difference between a worldly Christian and a truly spiritual Christian and be able to identify ways in which they need to break away from the world and cling to Christ.
3. The Disciple’s Victory
The third MasterLife book, The Disciple's Victory, presents the reality of spiritual warfare and helps participants receive the victory over the enemy that is already theirs in Christ Jesus. Throughout this study, participants identify any ways in which the enemy might have a foothold in their lives through habitual sins like pride, greed, lust, bitterness, or harmful speech. With a six-week deep dive into the armor of God, participants learn how to overcome the enemy by standing on truth, leaning into their faith, relying on God's Word, and remaining faithful in prayer. The Disciple's Victory includes a special emphasis on prayer and provides specific tools to help participants grow in the practice of prayer.
4. The Disciple’s Mission
The fourth MasterLife book, The Disciple's Mission, exhorts participants to join God's mission of making disciples. This final piece of the study begins with helping participants identify any relationships in their lives where they need healing, forgiveness, or reconciliation. From there, they learn how to witness and disciple relationally, sharing their faith with openness and sincerity. Participants have the opportunity to discover their spiritual gifts and prayerfully discern the role God is calling them to in ministry. When they conclude their study, participants will embrace the call to be co-laborers with Christ and minister to the world, sharing all God has shown them through their journey with MasterLife.
Perhaps the most important aspect of MasterLife is that it is designed to be done in groups. God did not design believers to become disciples on their own; His intention has always been for Christians to grow together in community. The original MasterLife study included a separate, robust leader guide with activities and workshops designed primarily for a church classroom setting. With Lifeway's new refresh, a more accessible group discussion guide has been integrated into each of the twenty-four weeks of study, so leaders of individual small groups can facilitate with ease. These guides include reflections on the previous week of study, questions for group discussion, and prompts to help the group partner together in prayer. The original leader guide will remain available as a free downloadable resource for churches and leaders who want to incorporate activities and workshops into their discipleship process.
The MasterLife series is for all believers at every stage of their spiritual journey. The first book, The Disciple's Cross, is perfectly accessible to the brand-new Christian but will also challenge those who have been following Jesus for years. MasterLife will not only help participants take next steps in their faith but also ground them in essential spiritual practices that will increase their knowledge of God’s Word, develop their character, sustain their spiritual life, deepen their relationship with God throughout their lives, and effectively minister to others.
Who wrote MasterLife?
Avery T. Willis Jr., the author and developer of MasterLife, served as the senior vice president of overseas operations at the International Mission Board of the Southern Baptist Convention until his retirement in 2004. The MasterLife series, originally published in 1980, has been used by more than half a million people in the United States and has been translated into more than fifty languages for use by untold thousands around the world. Willis authored many books, including Indonesian Revival: Why Two Million Came to Christ, The Biblical Basis of Missions, MasterBuilder: Multiplying Leaders, BibleGuide to Discipleship and Doctrine, and several books in Indonesian.
Willis served for ten years as a pastor in Oklahoma and Texas and for fourteen years as a missionary to Indonesia, during which he served for six years as the president of the Indonesian Baptist Theological Seminary. Later, he served as the director of the Adult Department of the Discipleship and Family Development Division, the Sunday School Board (now Lifeway Christian Resources) of the Southern Baptist Convention, where he introduced the Lay Institute for Equipping (LIFE), a series of in-depth discipleship courses. Willis went to be with the Lord in 2010.
The new edition of MasterLife releases April 1, 2026. The Bible study books will be available to purchase individually or as a four-book set.