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A wrong paradigm of the church and the kingdom of God

There is much confusion and misunderstanding about God, truth, Christianity, the church and the broader kingdom. Consequently, growing out of that confusion, we have shortchanged those things. We have gone to several extremes such as: truth is for the church and the church’s role is described as spiritual and should not focus on the issues that are confronting our lives every day-politics, science, economics, art, history and so it goes. Those are what we call kingdom of God issues which are not part of the “spirituality of the church.” This creates the misunderstanding that the church has nothing to say about those things. Not long after we formed our denomination (the PCA), we adopted a position on abortion. I remember one of my older minister friends saying to me, “I thought we were not going to deal with those kinds of social issues.” You might guess my response to him.

The opposite of that extreme is that the church should be involved in every kind of activity possible, building hospitals, focusing on politics, duplicating the university’s curriculum, and getting involved in every kind of social cause. Such a dualistic model represents part of Bill’s problem. He is really confused. Part of him belongs to the church and he must do certain things that are church related such as pray, read the Bible, worship, and share the Gospel, while there is another part of his life that involves his law career which cannot be connected with the church because the church focuses only on the spiritual part of life.

Believing Christ’s great commission was given to his church, we therefore believe the church has a major role in the entire genre of Christian education by teaching the people to observe all things Christ has commanded. That is what we call “kingdom education” and kingdom education equips us for all of life.

We believe that it is both urgent and crucial for us to revisit this area of truth, the church and the kingdom, in order to think or rethink the assignments, roles, and spheres in making disciples. This of course assumes that discipleship presents a far greater challenge than simply focusing on the individual and his or her relationship to Christ in a saving sense. While all of Christian education must have the person and work of Christ as its nucleus, it must also include the Great Commission in Matthew 28: 19, 20, coupled with the first commission in Genesis 1:28, “Be fruitful and multiply and fill the earth and subdue it and have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the heaven and over every living thing that moves on the earth” (ESV). Those two assignments are not antithetical nor should one replace the other. In looking at both commissions from the Lord, we realize that Christianity has a broader application than mere Bible study, though studying God’s Word is at the heart of the discipleship process. And while we would never attempt to demean the importance of Bible study, because the Bible actually gives us the foundation for all truth, simply studying the content of the Bible alone does not accomplish what we call kingdom education. We must not only understand the Word, we must also understand the world. However, our understanding of the world must be in light of understanding the Word. “Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path,” Psalm 119:105.

To understand the whole concept of Christian education as kingdom discipleship (we use those two terms interchangeably), we must understand something of the relation of the church’s role and position within the broader kingdom. This is what we will address in this pr

Suggestion: Do this 2-3 hour activity with all of your church leaders. Give this scenario: You have 15 new Christians who know nothing about the Bible. You have 3 hours to meet and disciple them every week. You must determine what they should know, be, and be able to do after 3 years. By the end of this exercise you will understand if your church is truly discipling its people and why you need to set a direction for discipleship.

Secondly, we need to stop thinking that because we teach a class on discipleship that we have discipled our people! Discipleship is a life-long process moving a person from where he or she is to being like Jesus. Here is another suggestion.

Draw up a sheet for every individual in your church. Put the person’s name on the top. Then use this chart – or something that better fits your situation.

Then put something like:

Your leaders meeting with every individual is a good way to determine where he or she is on this progress chart. By the way, this is a good way to go about your shepherding responsibilities. Then plan how you will disciple this person to move along until he or she is living with a Christian world and life view and is able to disciple someone else.

Are you beginning to see the difference between this approach to discipleship and what you are doing now? With this plan you will multiply your disciplemaking capacity. You will also develop a church filled with ministers. Remember: a pastor was never called to do the work of the ministry, but to “equip the saints for the work of ministry” (Eph. 4:11-12). The Great Commission calls us to make disciples!

Many pastors try to do everything, and they burn out, because they have not grasped that the role of the pastor is one of equipping (here is that CE word again). The only way we can equip the saints to do the work of the ministry is to disciple them! The only way we can disciple them is by having a plan (better know as a curriculum – another CE term). A curriculum is a roadmap that will enable you to move people from where they are to where they can effectively disciple others. What pastor would not want a church filled with people equipped to do what he would have to do by himself?

As I said at the beginning, Christian Education is not just Sunday school – it never was! CE demands that we have a curriculum in place. A curriculum helps us to see where we are headed so we can make plans how we will get there.

Remember the schoolteacher’s “plan”? What is your plan? Download our suggested lesson planning sheet.

If you need help doing this, Christian Education and Publications and Great Commission Publications are here to help. We offer seminars of all kinds to help your church be better disciplemakers. We have developed a brochure that you can use to develop your own Christian education plan, Does Your Church Have a Discipleship Plan?

Let’s go a bit further before offering some suggestions and solutions.

If you or an outside consultant were to analyze your church programs, my educated guess is you or they will find very active churches with many enjoyable programs. But what is being accomplished toward true discipleship (another good CE word!). You will find Sunday school and other times children and youth meet. What coordination is there between these groups? Are the youth leaders sitting down with the children’s leaders to see what the other is doing? If a child is in those groups for several years will they receive well rounded, well planned training enabling them to know, be, and do what is needed for living in God’s Kingdom? Isn’t this what we demand from our schools? Then why are we not trying to accomplish something just as effective in our churches? Do we not think that discipleship is as important as what they learn in school?

A question for pastors: do you know what curriculum is being used in Sunday school? If not, how do you know it is not contradicting what you are teaching from the pulpit? Is your Sunday school using several different curricula? Why? Every curriculum has a different philosophy of what it wants to cover and when it will cover it. The use of multiple curricula means the same material does not allow a pattern in which a child naturally progresses from one stage to the next in a logical sequence. Pastors, we encourage you to PLEASE know and review what is being taught in your churches! (Christian Education and Publications and Great Commission Publications have regional trainers to help you with this).

It is a trend for colleges and seminaries to offer either a Youth Leaders’ program or Children’s Leaders’ program. Are these future leaders being taught that their group is part of a whole church? Or are we encouraging programs where each is doing their own thing? This approach teaches the groups to think individualistically instead of strategically. Do you want a church where every program does its own thing, or one that is united and striving to serve Christ’s Kingdom – together? Also, who are you training to pull together all the ministries so they are following the stated purpose of your church? Are you aware of what is being accomplished? If not, then you need to ask if your people are being discipled to live and advance the Kingdom of God. Don’t confuse busyness with growth; an active church does not mean it is accomplishing anything.

Bottom line: How does all this fit with your church’s mission or purpose statement? Does your church have such a statement? This statement tells everyone why your local church exists and what it is trying to accomplish. If you don’t have one, how do you know what you are accomplishing in the process?

Here pictured below is a sample of a typically active church. Note that each ministry is in place, but their ministries are all going in their own directions, and may or may not be accomplishing your church’s overall purpose and mission.

In the next image, each ministry is fulfilling the overall mission/purpose statement of the church in a coordinated and unified manner. Each ministry is aware of what the other is doing because all is coordinated. This strengthens each ministry and the church as a whole.

Does your church have a mission or purpose statement? If so, does every ministry leader know what it is? If not, how will they know if they are moving in the direction the church wants to go? If you don’t have one then try this: Ask each of your church leaders to write down what they believe to be your church’s mission. Then have them rank the five most important things they believe your church should be doing. Compare them. If you have five leaders you will probably have five different lists. What you have is chaos because each one is under the assumption his list matches everyone else’s.

How does this work in practice in your children and youth ministries? Both leaders should meet with the elders to make sure each is in line with the church’s goals. They will have to determine what they want their ‘graduates’ to know, be, and do. Once determined, it is time to work backwards to see what must be taught at each grade level in order to achieve this goal. What is the goal of your adult discipleship? It should be to see that every person in your congregation has a Christian worldview setting the direction of their lives according to the Bible. Disconnected sermons and Bible studies that jump from subject to subject or book to book without any planned objectives won’t accomplish this!

Continued…

Do you need a sermon or devotional idea for Christmas? Dr. George Fuller, pastor, former seminary professor and president and presently a member of the CEP Committee, Seniors’ Ministry consultant, offers the following sermon outline for you for your consideration. Our thanks to Dr. Fuller for making this available.

“Jesus, tell us about Christmas.”

Where did you come from?

…from my Father

“Yes, you know me, and you know where I am from. I am not here on my own, but he who sent me is true. You do not know him; but I know him because I am from him and he sent me” (John 11:28-29).

…my Father sent me

“If God were your Father; you would love me, for I came from God and now am here. I have not come on my own; but he sent me” (John 8:42).

Why did you come?

…to represent the Father

“I have come in my Father’s name…” (John 4:43).

“I came from the Father and entered the world; now I am leaving the world and going back to the Father” (John 16:28).

…to bring salvation

“For I did not come to judge the world, but to save it” (John 12:47).

…to invite sinners to become my disciples

“For I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners” (Matthew 9:13).

…to distinguish between my disciples and others

“Do not suppose that I have come to bring peace to the earth. I did not come to bring peace, but a sword. For I have come to turn ‘a man against his father, a daughter against her mother, a daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law – a man’s enemies will be the members of his own household'” (Matthew 10:34-35).

“I have come to bring fire on the earth…. Do you think I came to bring peace on earth? No, I tell you, but division. From now on there will be five in one family divided against each other, three against two and two against three…” (Luke 12:49-52).

…to seek and to save the lost

“For the Son of Man came to seek and to save what was lost” (Luke 19:10).

…to be a light

“I have come into the world as a light, so that no one who believes in me should stay in darkness” (John 12:46).

…to give life

“…I am the gate for the sheep…. I am come that they may have life, and have it to the full” (John 10:7-10).

…to present truth

“You are right in saying I am a king. In fact, for this reason I was born, and for this I came into the world, to testify to the truth. Everyone on the side of truth listens to me” (John 18:37).

…to serve

“…whoever wants to become great among you must be your servant, and whoever wants to be first must be your slave – just as the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life a ransom for many” (Matthew 20:26-28).

…to give my life as a ransom

(Matthew 20:28)

…to die

“Now my heart is troubled, and what shall I say? ‘Father, save me from this hour?’ No, it was for this very reason I came to this hour. Father, glorify your name” (John 12:27-28).

What should we do?

First, recognize that I came for you.

(see Jesus’ words mentioned above).

And, obey my law written in your hearts.

“Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I have not come to abolish them but to fulfill them…” (Matthew 5:17ff.).

And, come and follow me.

“Peace be with you! As the Father has sent me, I am sending you”

(John 20:21).

“Your attitude should be the same as that of Christ Jesus: who, being in very nature God, did not consider equality with God something to be grasped, but made himself nothing, taking the very nature of a servant, being made in human likeness. And being found in appearance as a man, he humbled himself and became obedient to death – even death on a cross!

Therefore God exalted him to the highest place and gave him the name that is above every name, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.”

-Philippians 2:5-11

What Kind of Youth Group Could Benefit from a Small Group Centered Youth Ministry?

A foundation of small groups is not ideal for all youth ministries. Some ministries do not experience any of the problems listed at the beginning of this article. Some larger youth ministries have extremely effective evangelistic large groups and effective small group discipleship as well. What characterizes a youth ministry that might thrive on a small-group model?

Small-to-Medium Sized Churches

Mark DeVries places youth ministries in one of two categories^[5]. The first category is a “Fortune 500” ministry, one which functions at a high level in all areas: evangelism, discipleship, mission, student leadership, etc. The other category is “Stick To Your Knitting.” This ministry chooses a focus for the ministry and does it very well. The drawback of the “Fortune 500” model is that it tends to occur in larger churches, churches with the human and financial resources to support such an extensive ministry. Such a church may not want to downplay many of the successful existing programs in order to focus solely on small groups. But a smaller large-group focused church that may be spreading itself thin with too few resources spread over an ambitious list of programs, might want to consider focusing on small groups.

Also, some youth ministries have a certain number of students right around that subjective threshold that makes the difference between good energy and a lack of enthusiasm. For such groups, a small number of visitors makes your group seem enormous, but if a few regulars have another engagement, the room seems empty. If your group has about 15 regular folks, you may have had a night where 20 people showed up and your large group meeting had incredible energy. Conversely, you may have had 8 people show up one night and the room seemed empty. If the program is based on a smaller number of people, it’s not devastating when only a small number of students show up. In fact, some of the best nights, those in which you really see God working, can be those with a smaller group of students. And as a bonus, it can still be really exciting when you have a big night.

Potential Leaders

Your church should consider basing its ministry on small groups if you have a pool of potential leaders with the following qualities: 1) They are relationship oriented and desire to spend the majority of their ministry time engaging in intimate relationships with teenagers. 2) They recognize the value of consistency and the necessity of prioritizing youth nights. Consistency is essential for building significant and trusting relationships, and is pragmatically important so there is not a small group without their leader on a given night. 3) They are grace-oriented, meaning that they are able to create and facilitate an environment in which students are able to speak frankly about their temptations and struggles without being intimidated, preached to, or made to feel unwelcome in any way. 4) They are able to teach a lesson and lead a study of some sort. 5) They demonstrate their commitment to students through regular prayer and interaction outside of church activities. 6) They are trainable in any of the areas listed above.

These qualities are essential in leading adolescent small groups. A small group based youth ministry requires a great amount of time, energy, and effort on the part of leaders. Therefore, success or failure depends largely on the leadership. Those adults wishing to chaperone rather than minister need not apply.

The Mother Church is Itself Based on Small Groups

Many churches today make small groups their primary method of intimate ministry. If this philosophy of ministry describes your church, why not get on board with the church as a whole and adopt the same methodology for your student ministry? In this way the youth ministry functions in the same way as adult small groups, as a subset of the church’s corporate worship service.

Your Gifts and Passions

People are different. Some people are energized by putting on a large group meeting. Because their passion lines up with the central focus of their ministry work, they often become successful in creating a large group ministry meeting. On the other hand, many youth pastors have a temperament that much prefers the intimate workings of small groups, and dread the fact that they must put so much energy into a weekly large group meeting. Dom John Chapman, in speaking of prayer, encourages us to “Pray as you can, not as you can’t.”^[6] I believe ministry should be the same. God has given us specific gift mixes and passions to enable us to do ministry, and we should follow those gift mixes and passions. If your heart is crying out for you to focus on small groups, focus on small groups. If you find that evangelism is easier for you and more effective in a smaller group context than a larger group, do your evangelism in small groups, not large ones. It is important to note that we will always have tasks that are uncomfortable or difficult for us; I am not advocating neglecting those simply because we do not want to do them. However, if you feel as if your ministry would be more effective by lining up your actions with your passion and gift mix, I think the presence of those gifts and passions is a good indicator that God is calling you to do so.

What Does Small Group Based Youth Ministry Look Like?

The primary vehicle of ministry for most youth ministries is one gathering which gathers as many adolescents as possible. This is the first stage of the youth ministry-it’s the primary place for teaching, outreach, evangelism, and discipleship, and it’s the first event to which visiting students are invited. It is the one thing throughout the week that the youth pastor puts the most time into and promotes the most. Consequently, it is the most consistent and well-attended event on the calendar. Small group based youth ministry shifts the weight of all these things to small groups.

This could end up looking like several different things. It could mean simply that the time during the traditional Wednesday night youth service set apart for a corporate talk is substituted for small group time. Small group night could still start with a corporate gathering with time for a brief game or icebreaker. Sometimes worship could be done before breaking into small groups. On the other hand, it could mean that small groups meet at different times and different places throughout the week and come together only once per month for something corporate. However, enough time must be allotted for real discussion and study. At least one hour is usually needed for each student to share a little about their lives, pray, and go through some sort of teaching.

It should be obvious that this method involves a significant shift from traditional thinking about small groups. Most assume small groups are primarily fit for discipleship. Small group based youth ministry necessitates that small groups are the primary tool for discipleship and evangelism. It is imperative not to hide behind small group based ministry as an excuse to hunker down and focus on discipleship in a Christian ghetto. On the contrary, it takes the existing model of discipleship ministry-a small, tight-knit group of students led by an adult leader-and expands it to be the platform for all ministry, not just discipleship. It is born out of a desire to see evangelism and numerical growth (as well as other ministry purposes)-just out of a different setting. The natural temptation for some who engage in large group settings is to only be focused on growing numbers. The natural temptation for some who engage in small group settings is to neglect the importance of growing numbers. Do not fall into either trap.

Conclusion

What is advocated in this article is a method. Many people are constantly on the lookout for a new method of doing ministry that will cause attendance to balloon or spiritual growth to surpass our wildest expectations. It is important to remember that method never substitutes for ministry. DeVries quotes S.L. Parker reminding us of the importance of not placing all our eggs in the basket of method.

“Reams of material are written and taught with an approach to reaching an end by effortless means–and more will be written. Advertising messages continually promote methods of achieving end results with little or no effort. And this material and these messages are so effective that in many cases people will work harder to avoid the extra effort than actually applying the extra effort that will produce the originally desired outcome.”^[7]

Re-focusing energy on small groups instead of large groups will not do anything if we are not actively building relationships and meeting new students. If true evangelism and discipleship are not happening within small groups, then the method is nothing more than a “clanging gong or a crashing cymbal.” The best a good method can do is increase the effectiveness of genuine ministry. Ironically, I believe that this particular method requires more work on the part of the youth pastor and leaders, not less. But I do think that if the work is put in prayerfully, a small group-based youth ministry can increase effectiveness and quality of ministry and in doing so, glorify the name of our great God.

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^[5] DeVries, FBYM, 106-109.

^[6] Richard Foster, Prayer (New York, HarperCollins: 1992), 7.

^[7] DeVries, SYM, 140.