LIBERTY UNIVERSITY SCHOOL OF DIVINITY
Analysis Paper 4
Submitted to Dr. Rod Dempsey
in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the completion of
DSMN 630 – B01
Small Group Ministries
by
Brian Mclaughlin
June 23rd, 2019
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Contents
Introduction ……………………………………………………………………………………..3
How to Grow a Small Group……………………………………………………………………4
Challenges to Growth……………………………………………………………………………6
Conclusion……………………………………………………………………………………...7-8
Bibliography ……………………………………………………………………………………..9
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Introduction
To measure the health of a church, one needs to look no further than to see if small
groups are present. Small groups are a way for people to connect and share with each other life
experiences. Jesus Christ never asked for the church to make disciples if it was convenient. He
commanded His followers and those today to go and make disciples. This is found in (Matt
28:18-20)1. How to make disciples is the question at hand. Small group supports the culture in
having success in discipleship. It gives strong development and individual focus of specific ways
to grow ministry.
The way to have small groups grow stronger is through evangelism, and through
community-built programs that help people stay connected. In these groups there should be an
environment that is inviting showing the community what the group is all about. It should not be
a social club. Not just a place to ‘hang’ out. Eventually, after the group becomes larger, will be
the opportunity to have more small groups be created. Earley and Dempsey state, “…small
groups need to be OPEN groups. Open to new people consistently coming into the Christian
community where they can see and hear about Christ among friends.”2 A small group that has
more members from their own community, than their church, is a great sign of a vibrant, thriving
and healthy group. If the group is all about discipleship, outreach, evangelism and the like, then
the small group is moving in the right direction. In this paper, will be the discussion of small
group growth and what are suggested by the author’s writings.
How to Grow a Small Group
1 Unless otherwise noted, all scripture is taken from the English Standard Version
2 Rod Dempsey and Dave Earley, Leading Healthy, Growing, Multiplying Small Groups (Lynchburg, VA:
Liberty Press, 2015),112.
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When starting a small group, it is important to know the surrounding culture that is near
the place where people will gather. House goes into detail of the importance of community
building, “Jesus made it possible for us to reflect the relational nature of God through life in the
community. When we live in community as a declaration of the gospel, we announce that Jesus
has restored what sin had broken, and we experience life as God intended.”3 It is important to be
prayed up in a small group setting and to be praying for the one person who will be the spiritual
leader in the group. All things should be prayed for in a small group. Once a leader is installed, it
is then important to set the parameters of what to expect that is to be provided by the leader.
God’s word speaks of vision and how without people are lost in (Prov 29:18, ESV). People need
to have an organized group to come to. Knowing what is being taught and the direction that the
group is going is paramount to further growth.
Earley and Dempsey say, “The primary purposes, passions and practices of the healthy
small group are focused on developing community. The Bible supplies the clearest guidelines for
how to develop community in your group.”4 There are small groups out there that focus on
different varieties of helping people, where others focus solely on the build-up of the community.
No matter what though, the main emphasis for any of the small groups is to make disciples. The
other point is to build relationships with each other. People when connected can be used by God
for their special talents too. Arnold says, “As long as the group knows what each person expects,
the group can minister to both individual and community. Problems can enter the group when
people, for one reason or another, have not communicated their hopes for what the group can do
3 Brad House, Community: Taking Your Small Group Off Life Support. Wheaton, Ill: Crossway,
2012.ebook.
4 Rod Dempsey and Dave Earley, Leading Healthy, Growing, Multiplying Small Groups (Lynchburg, VA:
Liberty Press, 2015),38.
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for them.”5 Small groups need to have open dialogue to each other, and the standard set so that
people have a strong understanding of what and when to expect the group to function.
Yet, another way to have small groups form is by going for what God allows someone to
have. In other words, if the resources keep coming in and the people continue to build interest, it
could be that God is causing the group to be large right from the start. It is important always to
trust in His timing alone. From the leader’s point of view, his or her emphasis is for those who
decide to be a part of the group share the vision that God has given to them. Teamwork to make
the dreamwork. The goal after all is to have people come together and share or carry one
another’s burdens. It is a place to unwind and be in the presence of the Lord promoting growth
and sustainability in Jesus Christ. The beauty of small groups is when the people catch on to the
vision and the emphasis of making disciples, then they will clearly see that they can make
disciples where they live too.
It is important for the leader to never lose sight of the people who come that have needs.
These needs must be addressed and dealt with at an early point of the member’s life or things can
spiral out of hand very quickly. Other areas of importance are birthdays, victory over sin
celebrations and the like, need to be placed as high priority. In this way, people will see that the
leader or leadership truly does care for them. Even if the group grows larger, it is the leader’s
responsibility to see to it that everyone’s needs have been taken care of to the best of human
ability. The other element is building up people in the group by consistently pointing them to the
way-maker Jesus Christ.
Challenges to Growth
5 Jeffrey Arnold. 2010. The Big Book on Small Groups. Westmont: InterVarsity Press.124.
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When it comes to the major challenges in small groups, it is when there is growth and not
everyone is attained to. Earley and Dempsey state this well, “The most effective and healthy
groups maintain an emphasis on multiplying leaders and forming new groups from the existing
group. In order to accomplish this strategy, you must keep a really clear focus on the harvest
fields (your vision).”6 There is the very real possibility that current members of the group may
have been rubbed the wrong way by something that was said or done, and now base that
experience on their whole view of what the group is like. Only this can happen when the people
are not being properly attended to, or when they lose sight of the vision. As a leader, it is
important to observe what the group is doing. How it is interacting and developing under the
small group’s leadership is important to their further growth. People will form clichés and not
remain involved if not careful. To add insult to injury, anyone who is brand new to the group will
not want to come back because of the disconnect that is present. This can be eradicated when the
group’s leadership creates the environment of being the same and carrying out the vision even
when newcomers arrive.
Another issue and a big one is people staying true to the group. It comes right back to the
leadership that creates the culture. Those in charge must believe in and adhere to the vision and
mission at hand. So that there is sustained interest and compatibility. If the leadership of the
group is not willing to take the time to commit and dedicate their time to the people of the group,
then it only stands to reason that the people themselves will not want to remain part of the group.
Speed of the leader is the speed of the crew. The small group must be on the forefront of the
leader’s mind. Furthermore, the leadership must never lose sight of who matters most, and what
matters most; prayer and Jesus Christ. Comiskey says, “While the church exists apart from the
6 Rod Dempsey and Dave Earley, Leading Healthy, Growing, Multiplying Small Groups (Lynchburg, VA:
Liberty Press, 2015),112.
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structure it embodies, the home draws out the triune values of love, community, and family
transformation. The early house church practices were linked and even determined by the venue
—the what was determined by the where.”7 Small groups are not a fly by night kind of process
either. It takes time to have people be interested in the vision and leadership someone provides.
Conclusion
Leaders need to follow up with people who say they might come and never do. Or,
people who say that they will bring a friend and never do. As mentioned before, the leadership
must trust in God’s timing. It is important to remember that if the group is not a priority for the
leader, it will not be for the group either. Yes, there will need to be sacrifices made. There also
will need to be a solid leadership that help one another to have the group build. This requires
time and commitment. Above all, the group coming together must be bathed in prayer of what
should or should not be done. It is vital to be in and do God’s will. Staying to true to God’s word
the leader of the group will reap the benefits later.
Having the right leadership in place of these groups is so important. It makes a difference
from the time of the group’s infancy to later how it will either thrive or dive. The leadership must
be on fire for God, compassionate about the community, and willing to be servants to all. Any
part of the leadership that is missing these needed traits, will cause the small group to crumble.
People by nature are not seeking to help another person unless there are incentives that go along
with it. On the other hand, people who are God led seek to please the Lord by reaching out to the
hurting, lost, or those in need. Small groups should never be on the back burner of a church.
They need to be the go-to spot for people to see that true intimate building up of one another
happens here and they do not want to miss what God has in store for them. People seeing how
7 Joel Comiskey. Biblical Foundations for the Cell-Based Church: New Testament Insights for the 21st
Century Church Moreno, Calif: CCS Publishing, 2016.99.
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small groups benefit them will in turn make them want to help others see how they will benefit
too. In this way the church and small groups are helping to fulfill the Great Commission.
Bibliography
Arnold, Jeffrey. The Big Book on Small Groups. Downers Grove, IL: Intervarsity Press, 2004.
Comiskey, Joel. Biblical Foundations for the Cell-Based Church. Moreno Valley, CA: CCS
Publishing, 2012.
Dempsey, Rod. Leading Healthy, Growing, Multiplying Small Groups. Lynchburg: Liberty
University Press, 2015. MBS Direct.
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