IS TRES DIAS A DISCIPLESHIP MINISTRY OR AN EVANGELICAL MINISTRY?
(Does the answer “BOTH” surprise you?)

Folks who are new to Tres Dias often question why non-Christians are not permitted to attend weekends.  After all, shouldn’t the goal of every Christian be to bring non-Christians to a saving knowledge of Jesus Christ?  And what better way than engaging them in a Christ-centered weekend?

The most direct answer to that question is clearly found in the Essentials Section 2.0.1 where it states “TRES DIAS is a Christian movement. The ultimate objective of the TRES DIAS Movement is to strengthen and extend the Body of Christ.  No TRES DIAS organization shall change the teachings or practices of the TRES DIAS Movement to accommodate the participation of non-Christians…”

But that still doesn’t scratch the itch or answer the question: “Why?”

The short answer is found in the Preamble of the Essentials which states, in part “The founders of the Cursillo movement saw a world of great need around them.  They knew that the answer to the needs of the world had to be Christ and His Grace; but…they saw Christians who did not live for Christ, and they saw a church that was…ineffective and without life.  They developed the Cursillo to meet part of this problem: to provide any part of the church which was ready to undertake the formation of Christian life with all the people it needed — people who would have the deep dedication to Christ and to bringing all peoples to Him — people who would undertake a regular program of formation in Christianity, and who would make their Christian life conscious and vital — people who would understand how to be part of a unified apostolic effort.”

One of the primary goals of Tres Dias is to empower Christians to return to their home churches as servant leaders, and engage with their communities as led by the Spirit (“Make a Friend; Be a Friend; Bring that Friend to Christ!”)  And THAT’S where evangelism fits into the Tres Dias Method!

THE ANSWER:  In other words, the more insightful answer is that Tres Dias is BOTH!  The Pre-Weekend and Weekend Phases are definitely discipleship tools aimed solely at empowering Christians, but the 4^th Day Phase is the evangelical component of the Tres Dias Method.  Follow the logic:

• • A Christian is sponsored for a Tres Dias weekend during the Pre-Weekend Phase.
  • He/she attends the Weekend (ie: Weekend Phase) and is equipped to return home to start their 4^th  Day which, as you know, is the rest of their life.
  • An important component of the 4^th Day, mentioned several times in the Essentials, is to return to their home church inspired to serve in whatever way they can; functioning as Servant Leaders in the life of the church and in the lives of the people.
  • In the course of their 4^th Day, they’ll likely meet many non-Christians that they’re able to comfortably witness to; possibly because of insights received during the Tres Dias weekend and empowerment gained by returning to and actively serving in their church.
    • AND THAT IS THE EVANGELICAL PIECE:  it occurs during the 4^th Day as a result of their weekend encounter with the Living God!
  • As a result of anointed witnessing, that non-Christian accepts Jesus as their Savior and begins to attend church.
  • He/she is then sponsored for a Tres Dias weekend during the Pre-Weekend Phase, and the cycle continues.
  • You get the idea…

I hope that helps to clarify and explain the role of Tres Dias; specifically answering the question of why non-Christians should NOT be invited to attend a Weekend.  If not, or if you’d like to continue the conversation, hop over to our private Facebook page (Tres Dias International – For Pescadores) and join us there.

De Colores!

Jeff Mehl
President
Tres Dias International