At this early stage in the life of The Redemption Movement, we are meeting in living rooms. This practice is widely known throughout the church world as “home groups,” or “small groups.” Some churches operate exclusively in this manner and call themselves “home churches.” Other churches offer traditional church services in conjunction with small groups in members homes.
We will use both models; our main gatherings will be in homes until we grow to the point where we can add Friday evening gatherings, and eventually Sunday morning church services. We also plan to continue to meet in homes for small groups with the addition of these two gatherings.
Church services and small groups each have their own strengths and weaknesses when compared to each other. Neither model is perfect, and this is the logic behind our future Friday night gatherings as we attempt to marry the two models of ministry—more on this another time. For now, I want to compare small groups and church services.
Fellowship: Strength—Small Groups.
Meeting in a home, sitting on a couch, sharing a meal. A persons house fosters strong relationships as opening up a home to a stranger is symbolic of making available one's own life. Church services on the other hand give off a more corporate feel (unless the church is super intentional to make their services otherwise), and with this impersonal feel comes the possibility to be just a part of a crowd, duck in late and leave early, and even avoid people (which some people like). It is near impossible to avoid people when you are part of a small group sitting in somebody's living room.
Inviting People: Strength—Church Services
Culturally speaking, church services are the norm, they are what people expect out of church. Even though home groups are how the New Testament church was founded, and have been practiced all throughout church history, they are still perceived as something of an oddity to those outside the church. And it is for this reason it is easier to invite somebody to a church service, where they will know what to expect, as opposed to inviting somebody to a small group in a home and trying to convince them it is real and legitimate church.
Teaching: Strength—Small Groups
With the greater relational intimacy small groups provide, comes a higher level of trust for one to engage in the teachings. This means more questions, group discussion, and greater participation in the lesson. This style of learning is more natural, and engages the student in ways that sitting through a sermon cannot. Although, preaching a sermon is still valuable and is prescribed by the Bible and therefore cannot be cast aside, preaching therefore is a strength of the church service.
Worship: Strength—Church Services
Most homes do not have a stage and sound system, nor can they accommodate large crowds. And it is for this reason church services provide better worship settings. Using the metaphor as the church as the body of Christ, the bigger the body, the bigger the worship bang, and with the American culture entrenched with a performance-concert mindset, most people prefer the worship music of church services. Although, small groups can provide very intimate and simple worship that can also be attractive on it's own merits.
All the other aspects of church, like prayer and communion for example, work nicely in both small groups and church services. Overall, neither model is better than the other, but the strengths and weaknesses do cater to different purposes.
And so it is with this distinction that I announce that we are meeting for small groups every Sunday night at 6pm in the second story apartment. We start with a meal or snacks, followed by Bible teaching with group discussion, and sing a song or two with a guitar. It is a simple time of strong fellowship, very casual, and provides a great opportunity to make new friends. Laura and I both welcome you into our home and into our lives.
