This book is a great guide to small groups, why we have them and what they should look like. It dives into the nuts and bolts of leadership of the group, apprentices, conflict resolution, community etc. It's the best resource I've read in Biblical small groups with practical and useful information and a strong argument that small groups are the primary discipleship tool of a church when those small groups are done correctly.
The common argument I get against small groups is, "we have Sunday School we don't need small groups." I'm going to quickly outline the difference between healthy small groups and Sunday School. I grew up in churches that practiced Sunday school and when we attended a church that had effective small groups a bell went off in my head, "this is what we've been missing in the church, how does every church not have a small group program?"
Seven thoughts about small groups vs. Sunday school...
1. Sunday school tends to primarily be teaching driven and not discipleship driven. I know churches can vary but I've been to numerous churches as a visitor, attended Sunday School seminars and training sessions and have had enough experience to know that the majority of Sunday school programs are about a teacher talking about the material asking questions and attempting to engage discussion. While none of this is bad (it's actually a part of small group format) the bad part is that's where it usually ends. 30 minutes of teaching, 15 minutes of fellowship and maybe (if lucky) 10 minutes of prayer. Effective small groups take this a step further into discipleship teaching. What's the difference? Read on...
2. Discipleship teaching does not primarily occur in Sunday School. Discipleship teaching is knowing the men and women you are teaching and meeting their needs through the curriculum. For example, have a group that are going through a lot of trails? Forget the pre-packaged SS material, a small group leader can have the freedom to go through a series that relates to their place in life like When Life Is Hard. They are teaching and training to the people at their needs vs. to a pre-set agenda. Some may argue that a good Sunday School teacher picks up on things like that and will adjust the class. That may be true but often Sunday School classes are 20-50 people. There is no way the teacher can minister effectively as a small group leader that has 8-14 (recommended size).
3. Sunday School teachers do not intimately know their students as well as small group leaders know their members. A few reasons for this, size of the group, not as much personal interaction time as with small groups, less "living life together" (more on this later) and almost no personal accountability (more on this later as well).
4. Teaching in Sunday school class tends to be driven by the material in front of the teacher. I've heard teachers over the years say things like, "well that's a good topic for discussion but we need to get through the lesson so we're moving on." Seriously? I understand sometimes rabbit trails can be destructive for the class but if the group is engaged in a theological issue or question, why not explore it further?
5. Jesus modeled the small group method. Avid Sunday School advocates frown when they hear this argument. How did Jesus disciple? Yes he taught to large crowds (that's why we have a pastor preaching the message in church), but he picked 12 men to invest in intimately. They knew him, he knew them. Jesus allowed these men inside his life, beyond the veil, he lived life with them. That's a way that people cannot know each other by attending a Sunday school class, I know, I've been there! Genuine deep discipleship does not happen in a Sunday School format. It's more about facts and learning than spiritual growth for the attendee.
A pastor of a church of 300 cannot meet regularly with all 300 members. However, he can pick out 20 leaders, people who are teachable, humble, love God and seek Him foremost in their lives and can have those 20 lead small groups where they can train, encourage, and minister to the rest of the flock. It's discipleship that works, growing together.
6. There is very little to no accountability in Sunday School. Sometimes the question will be asked, "who here read their Bible this week" and some will raise their hand. That's a joke of accountability. How about this - men and women meeting together, getting to know each other, their strengths and weaknesses, tastes and preferences, likes and dislikes and pushing each other to godliness. Holding each other accountable to being in God's word. Holding each other accountable to loving our spouses. Pushing each other to holiness but not just calling them out, but praying for them and with them. If you're not familiar with this you might think this makes people uncomfortable. You're right, sometimes it does. Just like making a basketball player run laps in a gym is very uncomfortable but it's training and it makes the player stronger. If we're to grow in our faith let's get beyond superficial appearances and let's dig into our weaknesses and build each other up to righteousness!
7. Come back later for the final point and more on small groups...
