A Blog for the Church

Over the next four days, we’ll be blogging about what house churches are (and are not), why they are important, how they are different from normal church models, and the unique opportunities afforded to those participating in a healthy house-church.

Today and tomorrow, we’ll be dispelling a popular myth about house churches: House churches are really just glorified home bible studies or small groups.

While I understand how many could come to this conclusion, there are some fundamental differences between a small group and a house church.  Today we’ll outline some of the basic problems inherent to small groups and tomorrow we’ll examine how the house church addresses those same problems.

Small Groups Function as a Supplement to Normal Church

There are two types of cancer running rampant in traditional churches today: individualism and shallowness.  In an attempt to curb these sicknesses, churches launched something called small groups/home bible studies/life groups.  In these groups, participants meet at someone’s home (or maybe even at the church) and typically go through some sort of pre-defined study.  Sometimes, the entire group is based around a particular interest (cars, parenting, a book, etc.).  Not only does the small group facilitate more one-on-one interaction and thus create intimacy, it helps people to explore topics at a deeper level.

As such, these small group interactions operate as a supplement to something that normal church services are not able to address.

The problem with this model is that it creates a step-forward-step-back paradigm.  That is, if individualism and shallow faith are problems, normal church is catering to and reinforcing them as valid while simultaneously condemning them.  I confess that this approach fits with an analogy I’ve used elsewhere: small groups are a band-aid for a gunshot wound.

Small Groups Treat Community As the Means to an End

Isn’t it obvious?  Think back to the small groups you have been a part of.  How many times were they focused around a pre-defined study, book, or common interest?  If you’re like me, the answer is, “Pretty often.”

This creates an environment where community is not actually the point, even though we talk and act like it is.  Rather, the community meets for the purpose of interacting with a product produced for them by someone they likely do not know.  The result is church as normal.  Instead of communities meeting together for the purpose of mutual encouragement, edification, and a place for them to use and cultivate their own gifts for the benefit of the Kingdom, they come together to hear what the product has to say to them.

As you may have guessed, this is the classic “get fed” mentality.

It is not that getting fed is necessarily bad – people need to eat, right?  Rather, the problem is that we misunderstand the how and why of getting fed.  Somewhat paradoxically, one doesn’t get fed (either spiritually or relationally) by consuming products intended to feed them.  Rather, one gets fed not by receiving alone, but by giving as well.  If you want to receive patience, give it to others.  If you want to receive love, give it to others.  If you want to receive grace, give it to others.  This is the way the kingdom works.

But receiving is still not the end goal.  Giving still is.  It is not as if we can give until we’ve received what we want and can then stop.  “Getting fed” is perpetually dependant on “feeding others” and neither exists without the other.

Small Groups Exclude Gifts

Well, what should we expect?  Small groups are seen as a place for shallow individuals to get depth and community.  Naturally, the more up-front, leadership-type gifts are going to become most prominent because they (we think) serve that purpose best.  What we fail to realize is that the Body is best equipped when all the gifts are operating in it and everyone is equally encouraged to share their gifts with the collective whole.

Participate: After reading this post, do you agree or disagree with what’s been written?  Would you feel different if you were/weren’t in a small group or were in a church that didn’t offer them?
Engage: Next time you’re at church/small group, listen carefully to see if they create these types of problems and, if so, write down the words/phrases that stick out to you.
Own: What would happen if you were part of a church that did things differently – if you didn’t need a supplement?  Write down five things that would change for you, whether good or bad, and begin praying about whether you should pursue a church like that.

Have you identified other shortcomings of small groups?

P.S. Tune in tomorrow for information on how a house church avoids the problems presented by a normal church while side-stepping the problems that come with a small group.