Small-group evangelism

Listen carefully to what three formerly unchurched people have to say about the effect on their lives, through the Holy Spirit, of small Bible study groups. "When my wife suggested that I attend her Bible study group, I was not interested. But I went because I had seen an incredible change in her. I'm glad I did, for I found something that was missing in my life. I have accepted Jesus Christ as my Saviour and Lord, and am preparing for baptism."

Another says, "What appealed to me at the Bible study group was the realization that here were people who were experiencing a real relationship with Jesus Christ. God was working in their lives; that is why they accepted me when I was so unlovable."

And another, "I was impressed with the way members of the group helped one another. It was obvious that these people were filled with genuine love. You don't see much of that anymore, and I wanted that love in my life. I have discovered that it is very satisfying and rewarding."

On January 3, 1900, Ellen White wrote to a Brother and Sister Sisley. "Let small companies assemble together in the evening or early morning to study the Bible for themselves. Let them have a season of prayer that they may be strengthened and enlightened and sanctified by the Holy Spirit. ... Let little companies meet together to study the Scriptures. You will lose nothing by this, but will gain much. Angels of God will be in your gathering, and as you feed upon the Bread of Life, you will receive spiritual sinew and muscle. You will be feeding, as it were, upon the leaves of the tree of life."—This Day With God, p. 11. Likewise, the activities of the early church in the New Testament seemed to center on intimate fellowship in studying, sharing, praying, and eating together (see Acts 2:42, 46).

The Western world is experiencing a fragmented society that increasingly dis proves the view that "No man is an island." Fewer single people are planning on marriage. Sociologists predict that half the children born today will live in a single-parent home at some time during their life. According to recent surveys, many parents are becoming more concerned about themselves than about their children. The emphasis in society is becoming directed more toward the individual person, whether married or unmarried. Crime, politics, labor difficulties, and economics all seem to be separating people and isolating them.

The political and sociological milieu of eighteenth-century England, which was influenced by the intellectual deists, in many ways parallels conditions in this century. In fact, churchmen and historians agree that England would likely have experienced a revolution like the one in France in 1789 except that there appeared in England two spiritual leaders who organized the working classes into small groups and gave them a vision of a better world to come. John Wesley and Charles Whitefield created thousands of "class meetings" all over Great Britain with the purpose of bringing spiritual renewal to the static Anglican Church. The class meeting produced a spiritual awakening that cut across cultural and political barriers and developed substitute families in an other wise atomistic society. W. H. Fitchett wrote: "In Wesley's societies... anew and far-stretching brotherhood came into existence. It spread like a living net over England. It linked men and women, parted from each other by the widest differences of education and social position, of wealth and poverty, into a common household. . . . The classes were a brotherhood . . . woven of spiritual ties, and so made indestructible.—Wesley and His Century (New York: Abingdon, 1917), p. 219. According to Albert Wollen, every major revival has been influenced by a ready access to the Bible and the gathering of believers in small, intimate groups (Miracles Happen in Group Bible Study, Zondervan, p. 32).

As in England, so in our society the small group becomes a substitute family. It brings identity and intimate fellowship to the lonely. The stranger is accepted regardless of his cultural, ethical, or religious background. Regardless of his sin or his skin, he is loved, and that makes life very important!

Initiate church revival

If Wesley's class meetings affected the life of Great Britain so profoundly, what could it do for the twentieth-century church? An increasing number of pastors and church leaders are finding that small groups are one of the key elements in spiritual renewal.

It is significant that Jesus, after much prayer, formed a small group, namely, twelve disciples with whom He spent the greater part of His public ministry. As a dynamic speaker, conveying compassion for the unfortunate and exuding charisma, He could have reveled in the attention of large audiences. However, His concern was for the future of His church, and the focus of His ministry was upon the small group. He knew that when He returned to His Father, He should leave behind a strong, well-trained leadership. Over the months the disciples changed into dynamic leaders filled with the Holy Spirit.

Small-group dynamics bring renewal. Lawrence O. Richards, in his book A New Face for the Church (Zondervan), speaks of the influence of small groups on renewal in the church: "To learn to trust, and to become trustworthy—to learn to love, and to become loving—we must become deeply involved in the lives of others to whom we commit ourselves in Christ. . . . And thus a church is forced to move to a small group structure."—Pages 152, 153.

A natural for evangelism

Evangelicals in the Philippines have set an objective of planting fifty thousand new churches by the year 2000. Their research has led them to discover that most churches develop naturally from home Bible studies conducted largely by laymen. Furthermore, they have discovered that rapid growth today can be traced to active laymen who are conducting evangelistic Bible studies, (see James H. Montgomery and Donald A. McGavran, The Discipling of a Nation; p. 61.)

One of the fastest growing churches in the Philippines is the Seventh-day Adventist Church, the largest Protestant church on the islands. Montgomery and McGavran list several reasons for its rapid growth. They report that few denominations have been as "successful as Adventists in mobilizing and training their laity for personal work, house-to-house visitation and Bible-marking classes" (ibid, p. 112).

The counsel Ellen White gave to the church in 1902 is evidently still apropos: "The formation of small companies as a basis of Christian effort is a plan that has been presented before me by One who cannot err. If there is a large number in the church, let the members be formed into small companies, to work not only for the church members but for unbelievers also."—Evangelism, p. 115. "Why do not believers feel a deeper, more earnest concern for those who are out of Christ? Why do not two or three meet together and plead with God for the salvation of some special one, and then for still another? In our churches let companies be formed for service."—Testimonies, vol. 7, p. 21.

Dr. Paul Yonggi Cho believes that the small group is the best method of evangelism. "Each cell group becomes a nucleus of revival in its neighborhood, because the cell group is where real life is to be found in that neighborhood."—Successful Home Cell Groups (Logos, 1981), pp. 58, 59. He trains his leaders to be sensitive to the needs of others so that they can minister to those needs and then invite those individuals to the cell group where they may encounter Jesus Christ. Some of his members living in apartment complexes cannot go door to door among their neighbors, but they minister to people and their needs while riding the elevators. Thus they become friends and are soon involved in a small Bible study group.

Necessary for nurture

Montgomery and McGavran believe that the Seventh-day Adventist Church in the Philippines could grow even faster if it would continue its Bible study groups beyond the evangelistic meetings. (See The Discipling of a Nation, p. 113.) Not only would the group teach and train the new people to become responsible church members, but the small groups would continue to be evangelistic as the new members brought their friends and relatives to the small groups.

Sam Shoemaker, the pastor who developed small groups in his New York City church and on many college and university campuses in America, believes that a newborn child of God needs as much care as a physically newborn child. He needs warmth, food, love, and attention. He needs the association of other Christians on a regular basis so that he can talk over his problems and find support with those who will pray for him.

Russell Burrill, pastor of the Spokane Valley Seventh-day Adventist church, where accessions have been one of the highest for the Upper Columbia Conference, did thorough research to discover the spiritual health of recent converts. He was surprised to discover that not one person who had been involved in a small group had left the church.

How to begin a group

In every American church where successful small groups are functioning the key figure is the pastor. The people in the small groups are to develop their own objectives, but they must be in harmony with the objectives of the body of Christ. It is the pastor who can convey the objectives of the church and his philosophy of ministry to his leaders. Furthermore, most people need a workable model for conducting a small group.

In the selection of his leaders, the pastor will prayerfully choose people whom he knows have qualifications of leadership, spiritual maturity, and an experience with Jesus Christ. They should live their religion, and should be held in high regard by the congregation. Leaders of small groups need to be sensitive to the needs of others and perceptive to a member's needs. They will be attentive listeners. They will be humble and teachable.

The leader is not a resource person. He is not the teacher, nor is he the authority figure in the group. He is a facilitator, on an equal basis with the other members, an enabler for dialogue among all members of the group.

The first meeting is one of the critical moments in the life of the small group. It will set the tone for the meetings that follow. In the first meeting a covenant should be developed by a consensus of the group. The covenant should contain the time and place of meeting and the attendance vows. These are important! Since a small group may be as few as four people and should not be more than fifteen, if one or two couples begin to attend less frequently, the group will begin to disintegrate. It will not remain viable with spasmodic attendance. The covenant may contain a consensus of the group on the length of the meeting, the study materials to be used, and how the group will respond to needs. (If there are non-Christians in the group one may choose to ignore a covenant).

There are two methods of Bible study especially helpful for small groups. The groups may choose to take a book of the Bible and study it verse by verse. The leader may use two basic questions: 1. What does the author say in this text? 2. What does God say to me through this text? Through these questions the group learns the truth about God and discovers their relationship to Him and to one another.

The group may choose a second method of study based on a question or problem that has been troubling a member. The group studies this problem from the view point of the Bible, using any resource materials they wish during the week. When they return for the next meeting each will report what he has discovered. This discussion may lead to another question or problem for the following week.

There is an advantage in using only the Bible while the group is in session. Reading from commentaries and other resource materials can take time that should be spent in dialogue. Dialogue is the key to successful small groups. Each person must be allowed time to contribute.

Most small Bible study groups experience three functions—Bible study, prayer, and time for sharing. During the sharing time the members of the group relate what God has done for them and share their concerns. Affirmation can be extended to members during this time. Someone has said that people change only when they hear something good about themselves. If there is to be spiritual change in the members of the group there needs to be honest affirmation.

The sharing builds the need for prayer. Encourage members to mention in prayer the names of other members and their specific requests. Build interest in the small group by varying the prayer life. At times pray two by two. At other times give one request to each member. Show them how to pray in a conversational style so that each person adds to the one before him until all have prayed one prayer. Such prayers are more meaningful and tend to reduce repetition.

The leader needs to learn to be creative and to motivate. One of the best ways to keep the group spiritually growing is to know the available books on small groups. A short bibliography is given at the end of this article that will be helpful to the busy pastor who wants to make small groups live.

Failures In small groups

It is possible for a small group to die. If this appears to be happening, let it die, and then begin again. There are always reasons why failures occur in small groups.

Pastors, by their regular attendance, can contribute to the failure of a small group. A pastor may find one particular group especially appealing to him and concentrate his attention on it. Or the group may be grappling with a particular problem in Biblical interpretation; finally, someone says, "Well, Pastor, what do you think?" If he responds with what he feels is the answer to the problem, he will usually stop the dialogue on that question. A visit to a small group now and then may be healthy, but a pastor will be more effective by meeting with the group leaders regularly. Pastors who have formed a trust relation ship with the leadership-coordinating group will find they share with him how the small groups are functioning.

Certain types of individuals may cause a group to fail. The dominantly verbal person is Enemy No. 1 of small groups; the person who tends to promote his hobby horse; the person who insists that his interpretation is correct; and the person who forces his particular religious view points on the group are all likely causes for group failure. The leader is responsible to make sure that there is a balance of fellowship, study, and prayer according to the consensus of the group as described in the covenant.

Advantages of small groups

People who meet weekly for Bible study and prayer find many advantages in becoming involved in a small group. Small groups give members the freedom to discuss the Bible openly and apply it to their own lives. They have the opportunity to discover their spiritual gifts and exercise them in ministry. In the group they can be authentically human and still be loved and accepted; they can deal with the deep things of life and minister to each other. Small groups help members to evaluate attitudes in the light of the authority of Scripture. Small groups provide support for dedicated Christian living, bring spiritual healing to members, build lasting ties of friendship, and develop confidence in humanity.

Small groups are not a panacea for quantitative or qualitative growth in the church, however. They are only one of the church's avenues of ministry and outreach. But small groups can become an extension of the pastor as they provide ministry to more members of the church and relieve the pastor to perform ministry to the entire congregation.

The great need of the church is for a deepening spiritual renewal that will give each member the vision to understand his gift of ministry and how to exercise it in ministering to others. To give to one's fellows as needs arise and as the Holy Spirit directs involves sacrifice. Small groups can be an effective means of church revival by which it becomes the living organism that Christ envisioned.