Small Groups: Engage in Christ

Why Small Groups?

Why Small Groups?

What we’re going to do today is we’re going to dive into , which, if you’ll remember, if you were here earlier this year, we spent six weeks looking at what it means to make disciples. We have seen, over the last year, that we are designed as His church, God’s church, to impact the world for the glory of His name, and He’s given us a strategy for how that looks. It’s called disciple-making, “make disciples”, and that is a command. It’s not something that some of us are called to and not called to. If we have trusted in Christ, then we are commanded to make disciples of all nations.

What we’re going to do today is we’re going to dive into , which, if you’ll remember, if you were here earlier this year, we spent six weeks looking at what it means to make disciples. We have seen, over the last year, that we are designed as His church, God’s church, to impact the world for the glory of His name, and He’s given us a strategy for how that looks. It’s called disciple-making, “make disciples”, and that is a command. It’s not something that some of us are called to and not called to. If we have trusted in Christ, then we are commanded to make disciples of all nations.

So, what I want us to do this morning is I want us to pick up in the same text that we studied disciple-making in earlier this year, and I want us to see the implications of this text for what this looks like for us as a community of faith called the church. I want us to begin to connect the dots between how my making disciples of all nations, how your making disciples of all nations is intended to happen in the context of a local church.

I want you to read with me starting in . This is a prayer that Jesus is praying. The predominant focus of His praying is for His disciples, whom He’s about to leave. He’s about to go to the cross. When you get to verse 20, there’s a shift, and He begins to pray, not just for the disciples then, but for all disciples of all time, all those who would follow Christ, which includes us today.

The pattern of our Creator…

Look at verse 20, and Jesus prays this,

John 17:20–26 NKJV

20 “I do not pray for these alone, but also for those who will believe in Me through their word; 21 that they all may be one, as You, Father, are in Me, and I in You; that they also may be one in Us, that the world may believe that You sent Me. 22 And the glory which You gave Me I have given them, that they may be one just as We are one: 23 I in them, and You in Me; that they may be made perfect in one, and that the world may know that You have sent Me, and have loved them as You have loved Me. 24 “Father, I desire that they also whom You gave Me may be with Me where I am, that they may behold My glory which You have given Me; for You loved Me before the foundation of the world. 25 O righteous Father! The world has not known You, but I have known You; and these have known that You sent Me. 26 And I have declared to them Your name, and will declare it, that the love with which You loved Me may be in them, and I in them.”

David Platt, “Small Groups: Engage in Christ,” in David Platt Sermon Archive (Birmingham, AL: David Platt, 2007), 852.

Now, we’re going to focus especially on verses 20 to 23, and we’re going to let Jesus’ prayer there give us a picture of really what God had designed for His people all the way back at the beginning of creation. As we begin to think about small groups as a church, I want to show you five reasons why I believe small groups need to be significant in the body of believers called the church, and why they need to be significant at Faith Bible Church. I want to show you those this morning, then we’re going to unpack some of these more specifically in the weeks to come, but five reasons … and you’ve got them there in your notes … why small groups.

Now, we’re going to focus especially on verses 20 to 23, and we’re going to let Jesus’ prayer there give us a picture of really what God had designed for His people all the way back at the beginning of creation. As we begin to think about small groups as a church, I want to show you five reasons why I believe small groups need to be significant in the body of believers called the church, and why they need to be significant at The Church at Brook Hills. I want to show you those this morning, then we’re going to unpack some of these more specifically in the weeks to come, but five reasons … and you’ve got them there in your notes … why small groups.

The pattern of our Creator…

David Platt, “Small Groups: Engage in Christ,” in David Platt Sermon Archive (Birmingham, AL: David Platt, 2007), 853.

The pattern of our Creator…

What’s really interesting when you come to this prayer that Jesus is praying for all those who will believe in Him through the disciples. He says … listen to this, in verse 21, “… that all of them may be one, Father, just as you are in me and I am in you.”

We have been invited to join in the mystery of divine community.

What’s really interesting when you come to this prayer that Jesus is praying for all those who will believe in Him through the disciples. He says … listen to this, in verse 21, “… that all of them may be one, Father, just as you are in me and I am in you.”

Now, this is really interesting. That statement is just loaded theologically. “Just as you are in me and I am in you.” What we’ve got to realize is that from the very beginning of Scripture, God is singular and plural at the same time. This is a conversation between God the Son and God the Father. We know that God the Spirit is in the picture as well. We’ve got one God in three persons all over Scripture, and that’s huge for understanding why Jesus is praying this right here.

So, the plea, the prayer for unity in is based on the very character of God. However, here’s where it gets even better. When Jesus prays, He prays, “I want to give them the glory you gave me. So, just as I am in you, and you are in me, I want them to be in me as well.” What we’ve got here is an incredible picture in of the fact that...

David Platt, “Small Groups: Engage in Christ,” in David Platt Sermon Archive (Birmingham, AL: David Platt, 2007), 853.

We have been invited to join in the mystery of divine community.

David Platt, “Small Groups: Engage in Christ,” in David Platt Sermon Archive (Birmingham, AL: David Platt, 2007), 854.

We have been invited to join in the mystery of divine community.

God desires for His glory to be the foundation of our community in this world.

Think about it with me. You share life with your Creator, God. I share life with my Creator, God. Through Christ, we share life with Him, and as a result … think of the implications for our unity with each other. That means you and I share life together. That’s the picture from the very beginning of Scripture, and it’s the way God has designed it.

David Platt, “Small Groups: Engage in Christ,” in David Platt Sermon Archive (Birmingham, AL: David Platt, 2007), 854.

God desires for His glory to be the foundation of our community in this world.

Now, this is huge. This is not some manufactured, contrived unity that we have in the church, that we have with each other. This is a personal unity, a unity of nature, the fact that the glory of Christ dwells in you, and the glory of Christ dwells in me. That’s what provides unity.

God desires for our community to be the reflection of His glory in this world.

Now, this is huge. This is not some manufactured, contrived unity that we have in the church, that we have with each other. This is a personal unity, a unity of nature, the fact that the glory of Christ dwells in you, and the glory of Christ dwells in me. That’s what provides unity.

What Scripture is teaching here is that there is an eternal glory that God has entrusted to us in the Son of God, Jesus Christ’s glory that He’s put in us, that unites all of us together. It’s an incredible picture of unity. The foundation … and this is why … this is why we can be one family, from every nation, and every tribe, and every people, and every language across this planet, united together across all socioeconomic levels, and united together across jobs or skills or passions because the glory of Christ is the foundation for our unity with each other.

What Scripture is teaching here is that there is an eternal glory that God has entrusted to us in the Son of God, Jesus Christ’s glory that He’s put in us, that unites all of us together. It’s an incredible picture of unity. The foundation … and this is why … this is why we can be one family, from every nation, and every tribe, and every people, and every language across this planet, united together across all socioeconomic levels, and united together across jobs or skills or passions because the glory of Christ is the foundation for our unity with each other.

David Platt, “Small Groups: Engage in Christ,” in David Platt Sermon Archive (Birmingham, AL: David Platt, 2007), 854.

Not only that, but God desires for our community … just flip it around here,

David Platt, “Small Groups: Engage in Christ,” in David Platt Sermon Archive (Birmingham, AL: David Platt, 2007), 855.

God desires for our community to be the reflection of His glory in this world.

God desires for our community to be the reflection of His glory in this world.

That’s what Jesus is praying in ...

John 17:21 NKJV

21 that they all may be one, as You, Father, are in Me, and I in You; that they also may be one in Us, that the world may believe that You sent Me.

John 17:

Jesus is acknowledging that His glory would be reflected in the way His church related to each other, the way His people related to each other. This is huge. A lost world cannot see God, but a lost world can see Christians, can see the church. What Jesus is saying is very heavy here. If the world sees Christians loving and caring for each other, then they will believe that God is love. However, if the world sees Christians fighting and bickering with one another, then they will reject the gospel message. They’ll reject it all together.

The plan of creation…

Jesus is acknowledging that His glory would be reflected in the way His church related to each other, the way His people related to each other. This is huge. A lost world cannot see God, but a lost world can see Christians, can see the church. What Jesus is saying is very heavy here. If the world sees Christians loving and caring for each other, then they will believe that God is love. However, if the world sees Christians fighting and bickering with one another, then they will reject the gospel message. They’ll reject it all together.

That’s why Francis Schaeffer, one of my favorite writers, said,

“Our relationship with each other is the criterion the world uses to judge whether our message is truthful. Christian community is the final apologetic. I am convinced that our increasingly relativistic world, increasingly pluralistic and skeptical culture that we live in, that the greatest apologetic, the greatest defense for the Christian faith is a church that loves and cares and sacrifices for each other like Christ has designed us to.”

That’s really important. He desires for the community to be the reflection of His glory in the world. Jesus died to make it possible. God desires unity. This needs to be taken very seriously in the church. It’s why we walk this life together, because of the pattern of our Creator, because we want to display His glory.

David Platt, “Small Groups: Engage in Christ,” in David Platt Sermon Archive (Birmingham, AL: David Platt, 2007), 855.

The plan of creation…

Let’s look to Genesis for a second and God’s plan for creation. Let’s look at starting with verse 27...

Genesis 1:27–28 NKJV

27 So God created man in His own image; in the image of God He created him; male and female He created them. 28 Then God blessed them, and God said to them, “Be fruitful and multiply; fill the earth and subdue it; have dominion over the fish of the sea, over the birds of the air, and over every living thing that moves on the earth.”

So, what happens is God creates man in His own image. What does that mean? Well, not that he looks like you or me. As we ask that question, I believe two primary truths unfold in and 2 for what it means to me made in His image. Number one...

God created us to enjoy life in Him.

But all was not good in paradise.

Genesis 2:18 NKJV

18 And the Lord God said, “It is not good that man should be alone; I will make him a helper comparable to him.”

Perfect creation yet something was missing. We need companionship and community. Which means...

God created us to experience life with each other.

God didn’t create us to go through life alone. We need community. We need the body of Christ. We need community. We see community in who God is, and we need community in how we’re created. Next...

The precedent of Christ…

Let’s go back to . Let’s look at the precedent Jesus set. Because when He prays this prayer, He is praying for a small group. His predominant focus was on this small group of guys, that He had spent the majority of His time with.

We know Jesus wants to reach the multitudes and the masses, and he says, “I’m going to do it through a small group.” This was Jesus’ strategy. Don’t miss it...

Jesus’ method for reaching the multitudes was a small group of men.

That was the precedent Jesus set. He used a small group to reach the world. But look here in your notes. In the gospels we have four different lists of the apostles. Each time they’re listed you see those mentioned in bold in the exact same place in the list. Peter is always at the top. Other guys, then you see Philip, you see his name mentioned over and over again. Other guys, then you get down to James mentioned in the same place. Then under him the political revolutionaries: Thaddeus, Simon the Zealot, and Judas Iscariot.

These guys, even the twelve were subdivided into a smaller group. There were times when He would pull aside Peter, James and John, and sometimes Andrew. He would take them places and do things with them He never did with the other guys. He invested in people. I’m convinced that still today it’s...

People, not programs, are God’s method for winning the world to Himself.

From one to three to twelve, and by the time you get to it’s 120. The next chapter thousands and thousands. And eventually, millions and millions.

God’s plan has always been to use people. Remember, the church is made up of people. But if we’re not careful, even small groups can turn into programs. And when I’m talking about small groups, it means any smaller group in the church who comes together for a special purpose. Sunday School, Awana, Sunday Evening Bible Study… Jesus showed us why small groups was important. Next...

The practice of the early church…

Let’s go on a little tour. Let’s start with and what I want to do is just show you in a few verses the practice of the early church, and how the early church put this into action.

Acts 2:46 NKJV

46 So continuing daily with one accord in the temple, and breaking bread from house to house, they ate their food with gladness and simplicity of heart,

Acts 2:

How did they do that without a worship center? They did it by realizing that worship happens in our homes or anywhere people casually get together. Disciple making also happens outside the 4 walls of the church building. They met from house to house.

Fast forward to .

Acts 12:12 NKJV

12 So, when he had considered this, he came to the house of Mary, the mother of John whose surname was Mark, where many were gathered together praying.

Acts 12

They were meeting together and praying. Fast forward to . It’s one of my favorite stories in the NT because it reminds me that Paul was also a long-winded preacher.

Acts 20:7–8 NKJV

7 Now on the first day of the week, when the disciples came together to break bread, Paul, ready to depart the next day, spoke to them and continued his message until midnight. 8 There were many lamps in the upper room where they were gathered together.

Acts 20:7-8

Here they are meeting together. Let’s look at two more examples. Look at Romans...

Romans 16:5 NKJV

5 Likewise greet the church that is in their house. Greet my beloved Epaenetus, who is the firstfruits of Achaia to Christ.

Romans

Here again a small group of believers meeting in a house. Now go one book over to the end of 1 Corinthians.

1 Corinthians 16:19 NKJV

19 The churches of Asia greet you. Aquila and Priscilla greet you heartily in the Lord, with the church that is in their house.

David Platt Sermon Archive The Practice of the Early Church …

Now, here’s the deal. When we see Jesus in John 17 praying, “I have given them the glory that you gave me,” that doesn’t seem like a big deal to us when we hear that today, but it was a huge deal because, up until that point in John 17, everything in the Old Testament picture was built around encountering the glory of God, where? At the temple. You have to go to the temple to encounter the glory of God. You want to see the glory of God, you want to experience the glory of God, then you go to the temple.

However, then what happens is, Jesus prays, “I’m going to give my glory to them, and my glory’s going to be in them.” So, as a result, when you get to the book of Acts and the letters that follow, it’s not about going to the temple to encounter the glory of God. Now the glory of God dwells in the hearts and lives of this people called the church, and wherever they meet together, whether it’s in a home or a random meeting room, there you’ve got the glory of God dwelling. It’s an amazing picture.

Now, here’s the deal. When we see Jesus in praying, “I have given them the glory that you gave me,” that doesn’t seem like a big deal to us when we hear that today, but it was a huge deal because, up until that point in , everything in the Old Testament picture was built around encountering the glory of God, where? At the temple. You have to go to the temple to encounter the glory of God. You want to see the glory of God, you want to experience the glory of God, then you go to the temple.

Christ chose for His glory to dwell in local bodies of believers, not local buildings for believers.

Now, here’s the deal. When we see Jesus in praying, “I have given them the glory that you gave me,” that doesn’t seem like a big deal to us when we hear that today, but it was a huge deal because, up until that point in , everything in the Old Testament picture was built around encountering the glory of God, where? At the temple. You have to go to the temple to encounter the glory of God. You want to see the glory of God, you want to experience the glory of God, then you go to the temple.

However, then what happens is, Jesus prays, “I’m going to give my glory to them, and my glory’s going to be in them.” So, as a result, when you get to the book of Acts and the letters that follow, it’s not about going to the temple to encounter the glory of God. Now the glory of God dwells in the hearts and lives of this people called the church, and wherever they meet together, whether it’s in a home or a random meeting room, there you’ve got the glory of God dwelling. It’s an amazing picture.

The problem was, it didn’t take long to go back to the old way of doing things. This is an oversimplification of church history, I know, but about 250 A.D., Cyprian of Carthage begins to say that we need to distinguish in the church between clergy and laity. We’ll have normal Christians who are lay people, and we’ll have clergy who are the “Super Christians”, who really lead in the mission. As a result, a few years later, in 313 A.D., Constantine legalizes Christianity and opens the way for churches to build buildings for the clergy to work in.

David Platt, “Small Groups: Engage in Christ,” in David Platt Sermon Archive (Birmingham, AL: David Platt, 2007), 861.

The problem was, it didn’t take long to go back to the old way of doing things. This is an oversimplification of church history, I know, but about 250 A.D., Cyprian of Carthage begins to say that we need to distinguish in the church between clergy and laity. We’ll have normal Christians who are lay people, and we’ll have clergy who are the “Super Christians”, who really lead in the mission. As a result, a few years later, in 313 A.D., Constantine legalizes Christianity and opens the way for churches to build buildings for the clergy to work in.

Christ chose for His glory to dwell in local bodies of believers, not local buildings for believers.

David Platt, “Small Groups: Engage in Christ,” in David Platt Sermon Archive (Birmingham, AL: David Platt, 2007), 861.

Christ chose for His glory to dwell in local bodies of believers, not local buildings for believers.

WE ARE THE CHURCH!

We are the body of Christ. We are to be in community together. We learn from one another. We can grow together.

Corporate worship on Sunday morning is important and necessary for the health of the body. But that’s not where true growth takes place. We grow together. We encourage one another. We hold each other accountable. We help each other grow. That kind of community can’t happen when you’re simply looking at the back of other people’s heads on Sunday morning.

Small groups were key to their sanctification.

The bulk of the NT teaching concerns our sanctification, or our holiness, growing in Christ. To whom was all this teaching directed? Through letters to… bodies of believers. The church. This is how you grow in Christ. In community with other believers.

, an exhortation, encouragement to holiness, is in a corporate context to the Church in Rome. The last half of Ephesians, is challenging the church to holiness. is a stern warning to the Hebrews, “Don’t forsake the assembling of yourselves together because you need to spur one another on towards Christ.” We have a responsibility to each other in the body of Christ. Christianity was never intended to be lived in isolation.

Small groups were crucial to their multiplication.

Christianity expanded from house to house. Isn’t that a great picture?

The potential of the church today…

If this has been the pattern of our Creator from the very beginning, and His design in creation, and this is what Christ modeled for us, and this is what the early church was doing, just think with me. I think one of the overarching truths in is this...

Biblical community and biblical mission are inseparable.

They go together. God has designed it so that we would experience life and community together in a way that accomplishes His mission.

So, how do those two things come together? I think that is the crux of what it means to make disciples. It means that we share life with each other in our journeys with Christ, and we do it in a way that we’re sharing the Word and showing the Word and teaching the Word and serving the world together. We experience community as we participate in mission together. They go together.

We want to give ourselves to the most effective avenue for disciple-making to occur.

So, if that happens in disciple-making, then we need to ask ourselves do…

David Platt, “Small Groups: Engage in Christ,” in David Platt Sermon Archive (Birmingham, AL: David Platt, 2007), 863.

We want to give ourselves to the most effective avenue for disciple-making to occur.

When you think about small groups such as Sunday School, our Bible Studies on Sunday evening, other times when the church comes together outside these four walls...

Small groups are biblical.

Jesus did them; the early church did them. They met together. They walked together. There’s only so much influence you can have in a class or group of 40 or 50. It’s not completely sharing life. We help each other grow when we get serious and transparent with each other.

Small groups are simple.

Getting together with our brothers and sisters in Christ doesn’t have to be part of a program. Don’t wait for the church to program your spiritual growth. Reach out to one another. You shouldn’t be dependent on the church to program your outreach, your prayer times, or your gathering together for spiritual growth and community. Also, don’t blame the church because you’re not doing anything. As the Nike slogan goes… just do it.

Small groups are reproducible.

We can be reproducing ourselves across our neighborhoods.

Small groups are cross-cultural.

You probably work with people who are not just like you. You have influence with others we may never have. Consider spending time discipling others.

We want to give ourselves to the most intentional advancement of the Gospel to the whole world.

So I want to urge you to break out of your mold and join the deeper life of the church. I look forward to seeing you on Sunday evenings as we study God’s Word and talk together. How about arriving just an hour earlier on Sunday mornings and study God’s Word together in a small group? So what now… This week...