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I just finished a good book called The Equipping Church by Sue Mallory. It’s about serving together to transform lives. The church by definition is the greatest gathering of potential servants in the world, but she is the most notorious vehicle for disappointing, discouraging, and even destroying them.
A careful look at the life of a megachurch will usually quickly reveal a major emphasis on connecting people in a way that makes them feel part of something small and intimate ( as well as feeling part of something large.)
Eph 4:4 says…”There is one body and one Spirit, just as you were called in one hope of your calling; one Lord, one faith, one baptism; one God and Father of all, who is above all, and through all, and in you all. But to each one of us grace was given according to the measure of Christ's gift.”
Then a few sentences later in Eph 4:11, Apostle Paul writes “And He Himself gave some to be apostles, some prophets, some evangelists, and some pastors and teachers, for the equipping of the saints for the work of ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ, till we all come to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to a perfect man, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ."
What is a pastor, and what are their rolls? Isn't that what Paul was writing about... Well, that's not our topic here... but more importantly, If we are called to be equipped as saints by the pastors then we have a responsibility to help the pastor create one body. Small groups provide the personal touch and accountability required for healthy connection to the body of Christ. That’s where we as Home Group Leaders and Assistants come in.
Stickiness… This is what all businesses desire from their customers. What all group leaders want from their members.
We only remain the body of Christ when we stay together (Stickiness). People leave the church when they don’t connect. When visitors, members and leaders within Christ’s church drift from local church to local church without commitment, long-term spiritual health for individuals, as well as the churches suffer and serious setbacks in growth rise ( a lack of stickiness) .
Organisms rarely survive when disconnected. Bodies don’t function with breakaway members. Same with plants, trees, any form of life (except worms and jellyfish…) We must gather together to survive. Take care of each other and their needs.
This is the un-unique role of a home group. And it is lead by the home group leaders “work of ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ” so as Eph 4:15 says, “speaking the truth in love, may grow up in all things into Him who is the head; Christ, from whom the whole body, joined and knit together by what every joint supplies, according to the effective working by which every part does its share, causes growth of the body for the edifying of itself in love.”
An equipping church measures success by the number of members who understand God’s call in their lives and finding ways to live out that call inside the church and out in the world. Pastor Rob spoke this weekend about having real faith and belief in God’s Word.
The only way we’ll accomplish this stickiness is to have people stay around long enough to grow. With that said we must lead and teach in a biblical way that promotes care and love. Do you remember The Beatles song “Do you want to know a secret? ?”
You'll never know how much I really care. Listen, (do I do)Do you want to know a secret? (do I do)Do you promise not to tell?, Ooh oh, oh. Closer,Let me whisper in your ear,Say the words you long to hear,I'm in love with you. (ooh ooh ooh, ooh ooh)
It’s the same with the members of a church body. We need to feel the love, hear the love, be touched by His love thru us as a body. It’s not a secret, God has given us many clues is His Word. Let em’ know they are loved and your group will have that stickiness need to hear God’ “I love you” in their lives.
