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Examples of Small Groups in the New Testament
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Paul Jang
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2008-03-24 15:22:19, hit : 2,994 |
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Examples of Small Groups in the New Testament
As in the Old Testament so the New Testament shows the same thing about small group minstry (Nicholas et al. 1982, 28). Of course, If not the majority, much of the New Testament deals with the attitudes and actions God would have characterize the members of His household, the community of believers as a small group (McBride 1993, 20). In the gospels, Jesus Christ chose and called twelve disciples in order to organize a small group for the purpose of ministering his people (Matt. 4:17-25; Mark 1:14-20; Luke 5:27-32).
He spent much time with this small group of his disciples teaching, preaching and evangelizing the Gospel of God, expecting that its members would change the world (Icennogle 1994, 199). He chose the twelve, a small group and promised that their love for one another would make an impact, causing others to believe in him in his prayer for them to his Father It says:
My prayer is not for them alone. I pray also for those who will believe in me through their message, that all of them may be one, Father, just as you are in me and I am in you. May they also be in us so that the world may believe that you have sent me. I have given them the glory that you gave me, that may be one as we are one: I in them and you in me. May they be brought to complete unity to let the world know that you sent me and have loved me (John 17:20-23).
In Acts of the New Testament, the earliest churches would have meetings for the small groups consisted of the saints in homes, for examples, the group of the believers in Jerusalem who were together and broke bread in their homes daily (Acts 2:41-47), the group of the believers gathered for prayer at the house of Marry, the mother of John Mark (Acts 12:12), the group meeting of the members of Lydia's household, a dealer in purple cloth in the City of Thyatira, Philippi (Acts 16:15, 40), of Jason's house in Thessalonica (Acts 17:4-9), of the Stenphana's household in Achaia, Corinth (1 Cor. 16:15), and in Ephesus, Troas, Rome and so forth. Regardless of any places wherever the Christian movement risen, small groups of the believers came into existence.
As the result of sudden population explosion of the convert in the early church, the division of the Christian groups could be put in force because the members of the churches could no longer effectively continue to have their meeting for worship, prayer, praise and fellowship only in large groups. Nicholas asserted, therefore that God led the early church to meet in smaller units as follows:
As God had directed Moses during the Exodus to divide his people into small units of tens and fifties, God led the early church to meet in smaller units. In Acts 2:46 we see that as an aftermath of Peter's speech, the Jerusalem church was divided into two mutually supportive meetings--a large group meeting ("meeting together in the temple courts") and small group meetings ("breaking of bread in homes") (Nicholas et al. 1982, 28).
Such small group systems, in a sense, have to be understood as the New Testament mandate, and operated for the growth of church. This fact is still true for the modern churches today as well as the early Christian churches. First of all, this system has been absolutely guaranteed and supported by Jesus Christ. It is very important for Jesus Christ to have said to His disciples that for where two or three have gathered together in His name, there He is in their midst (Matt. 18:20). This emphasizes the vertical relationship between God and His people, and their horizontal one. In other sense this group system is represented as a triangular relationship (Icennogle 1994, 12).
In this point, the group system must be formed of the triangular system consisted of man to man and men to God (Icenogle 1994, 12). In the Christian concept, therefore a group could not be existed without God even if a secular group would be formed of only men or women. So Jesus says, "For where two or three have gathered together in My name, there I am in their midst" (Matt. 18:20). This system does not require a large one, but rather a small one. It may come to the conclusion that church is not limited to the customary large meetings, but also can be a legimated function of small groups (McBride 1993, 21). At any rate, the small group system has been virtually mandated by the Lord of Jesus Christ.
In Hebrews 10:24-25 the insight of the mandate of the small groups has been clearly showed:
And let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds. Let us not give up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but let us encourage one another--and all the more as you see the Day approaching (Heb. 10:24-25).
This mandate of the assembling together must be not only for the Sunday regular worship service which would be held in the sanctuary of the church but also for the small groups to stimulate one another to love and good deeds and to encourage one another. This mandate is not limited to an internal focus rather opened to the membership of the churches of God when He commands them to make disciples of all the nations (Matt. 28:19). This mandate of small groups had been applied even to the gentile through Peter by God, for instance the group of Cornelius's household (Acts 10:32-33).
Paul had tried personal evangelism and teaching the small group of the disciples in private home for the purpose of achieving his mass evangelism because some of the masses in the synagogue became obstinate and refused to believe and publicly maligned the Way (Acts 19:9).
It can be concluded that the biblical foundations (the Old Testament and the New Testament) on small groups is overwhelming as mentioned above. From the beginning of the Old Testament (even the creation account) to the New Testament, small group activities are running through in the Christian lives. First of all, it must be certainly recognized that the Lord Jesus Christ ministered his people in the context of a small group (McBride 1993, 16). Following the Lord Jesus Christ, it is absolutely necessary for pastor to care of the congregations in the local church. This will guarentee a successful ministry.
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Introduction
Ch Growth 