Building Christian Community Small Group Ministry in Today’s Seventh-Day Adventist Church

Building Christian Community SESSION FIVE THE GOAL OF SMALL GROUPS: HOLINESS AND HARVEST

The Challenge of the New Millennium Growing Christians Making Christians

Disciples Making Disciples “Go, then to all peoples everywhere and make them my disciples…and I will be with you.” Matthew 28:19,20

What’s A Disciple? A Disciple is... –An apprentice –An apprentice- maker

The Two Disciplines of Discipleship 1. EDIFICATION 2. EVANGELISM Growing in holinessGrowing in numbers

1. Edification: Spiritual Body-Building Edification (Oikodomeo) = building up/ strengthening “The church is the body of Christ.” Eph 1:23 “Let all things be done for building up the church.” I Cor 14:27

A. Building Community “He gave gifts… to prepare God’s people for works of service, so that the body of Christ may be built up…” (Eph 4:8,12)

B. Building Believers “Therefore encourage one another and build each other up…” (I Thess 5:11)

Believers Grow: Through personal spiritual disciplines Through ministry of spiritual gifts Through accountable relationships Through mentoring

People Grow Faster in Small Groups “I believe that people grow at least eight times faster when they’re in a small group and attending weekly worship celebration on (Sabbath) than if they just attended the service itself.” Dale Galloway

Through All to All Christ ministers to His body through body members. He ministers TO ME through other body members, and He ministers THROUGH ME to other body members

God Uses People to Build Up Other People “God has so ordained things that we grow in the Spirit only through the frail instrumentality of one another.” Alan Jones

Mentoring building friendships that point to God one person “coming alongside” another person

A Friend to Keep Us On Course “Sin always tends to make us blind to our own faults...We need a friend to stop us from deceiving ourselves that what we are doing is not so bad after all. We need a friend to help us overcome our low self-image, inflated self-importance, selfishness, pride, our deceitful nature, our dangerous fantasies, and so much else.” James Houston

Two Alternatives... a) Mature believer meets with new believer for one- way mentoring b) Two mature believers meet for mutual mentoring

How Does it Work? we agree on plan meet regularly we reflect on what God is doing in our lives we pray for each other

Mentors Offer: encouragement prayer support challenge all that a real friend can be

2. Evangelism:The Growth Potential of Small Groups...Just Suppose: Small church of 50 members involved in small groups Groups grow by 20% per year (e.g. group of 10 grows to 12) Total in groups after 4 years = 100 Total in groups after 10 years = 310 Total in groups after 15 years = 770 Total in groups after 20 years = 2,358

2. Evangelism: Growing in numbers 1.Reaching the unchurched majority 2.Post-modern thinking 3.Bridging cultural differences The challenge of evangelism in western society

Engel: the Process of Spiritual Decision-Making - 8 No awareness of God -7 Awareness of God -6 Some knowledge -5 Understand basics -4 Grasp implications -3 Positive attitude -2 Intention to act -1 Decision to act +1 New Creature

How Far From the Cross? (Engel’s Scale) Where are the unchurched? NowThen

The Friendship Evangelism Process Stage 1: Friendship Stage 2: Christian Friendship Stage 3: Adventist Friendship Combines personal, group and public evangelistic witness

The Power of Friendship in the Church Friends in 1st Year Active Members Dropouts

Introducing Friends to Your Small Group pray that God will guide you to the other Christians or non- Christians He wants in the group take other group members to Bible study contactstake other group members to Bible study contacts offer something of shared interest, e.g. parenting, stress introduce friends socially to group members, e.g. anniversary, concert, birth-day, barbecue, etc. use a course to introduce Christian beliefs like “Alpha” just invite them to the group

Why Small Groups Work Well in Evangelism Small Groups: encourage teamwork

Why Small Groups Work Well in Evangelism Small Groups : encourage teamwork offer a bridge for shy people

Why Small Groups Work Well in Evangelism Small Groups: encourage teamwork offer a bridge for shy people personal and informal

Why Small Groups Work Well in Evangelism Small Groups: encourage teamwork offer a bridge for shy people personal and informal maximum participation

Why Small Groups Work Well in Evangelism Small Groups: encourage teamwork offer a bridge for shy people personal and informal maximum participation flexible

Why Small Groups Work Well in Evangelism Small Groups: encourage teamwork offer a bridge for shy people personal and informal maximum participation flexible low cost, minimum organization A B C

Why Small Groups Work Well in Evangelism Small Groups: encourage teamwork offer a bridge for shy people personal and informal maximum participation flexible minimum organisation localized evangelism

Why Small Groups Work Well in Evangelism Small Groups: encourage teamwork offer a bridge for shy people personal and informal maximum participation flexible minimum organisation localized evangelism natural and spontaneous witness

Four Essentials in Small Group Witness 1. Opportunity for questions to be asked in a “safe” and non- threatening environment 2. Transparent honesty 3. Authentic relationships 4. Relevance

The Equipping Track Each new convert is placed on an equipping track that seeks to mature that person and equip them for ministry in one year.

OHP 9.2 The Equipping Track. 1. Membership 2. Spiritual Disciplines 3. Gifts for Ministry 4. Disciple-Making

…..GROWS THE PROCESS AGAIN Cell Leader Cell Leader...MULTIPLIES Process of Multiplication Cell Leader Apprentice Leader

A Small Group Prayer... “Lord, lead us to those people, or lead those people to us, whom You want to include in this group.”