Week 1 - MICROCHURCH
Welcome to Be The Way!
Be The Way is a six-week group immersion into MicroChurch.
It’s for new MicroChurches that want to discover the essential DNA of being a MicroChurch AND for existing small groups that want to explore the possibility of transitioning to a MicroChurch.
May God bless your experience of MicroChurch.
Introductions
Let’s start with some introductions.
Tell us your name and where you grew up and what you liked most and what you liked least about where you grew up.
How did you end up in this gathering and what do you hope to get out of it?
What’s Church?
Ask God to speak to you as you read His Word.
Acts 2:36-3:19 (NIV)
36 “Therefore let all Israel be assured of this: God has made this Jesus, whom you crucified, both Lord and Messiah.”
37 When the people heard this, they were cut to the heart and said to Peter and the other apostles, “Brothers, what shall we do?”
38 Peter replied, “Repent and be baptized, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins. And you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. 39 The promise is for you and your children and for all who are far off—for all whom the Lord our God will call.”
40 With many other words he warned them; and he pleaded with them, “Save yourselves from this corrupt generation.” 41 Those who accepted his message were baptized, and about three thousand were added to their number that day.
42 They devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and to fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer. 43 Everyone was filled with awe at the many wonders and signs performed by the apostles. 44 All the believers were together and had everything in common. 45 They sold property and possessions to give to anyone who had need. 46 Every day they continued to meet together in the temple courts. They broke bread in their homes and ate together with glad and sincere hearts, 47 praising God and enjoying the favor of all the people. And the Lord added to their number daily those who were being saved.
1 One day Peter and John were going up to the temple at the time of prayer—at three in the afternoon. 2 Now a man who was lame from birth was being carried to the temple gate called Beautiful, where he was put every day to beg from those going into the temple courts. 3 When he saw Peter and John about to enter, he asked them for money. 4 Peter looked straight at him, as did John. Then Peter said, “Look at us!” 5 So the man gave them his attention, expecting to get something from them.
6 Then Peter said, “Silver or gold I do not have, but what I do have I give you. In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, walk.” 7 Taking him by the right hand, he helped him up, and instantly the man’s feet and ankles became strong. 8 He jumped to his feet and began to walk. Then he went with them into the temple courts, walking and jumping, and praising God. 9 When all the people saw him walking and praising God, 10 they recognized him as the same man who used to sit begging at the temple gate called Beautiful, and they were filled with wonder and amazement at what had happened to him.
11 While the man held on to Peter and John, all the people were astonished and came running to them in the place called Solomon’s Colonnade. 12 When Peter saw this, he said to them: “Fellow Israelites, why does this surprise you? Why do you stare at us as if by our own power or godliness we had made this man walk? 13 The God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, the God of our fathers, has glorified his servant Jesus. You handed him over to be killed, and you disowned him before Pilate, though he had decided to let him go. 14 You disowned the Holy and Righteous One and asked that a murderer be released to you. 15 You killed the author of life, but God raised him from the dead. We are witnesses of this. 16 By faith in the name of Jesus, this man whom you see and know was made strong. It is Jesus’ name and the faith that comes through him that has completely healed him, as you can all see.
17 “Now, fellow Israelites, I know that you acted in ignorance, as did your leaders. 18 But this is how God fulfilled what he had foretold through all the prophets, saying that his Messiah would suffer. 19 Repent, then, and turn to God, so that your sins may be wiped out, that times of refreshing may come from the Lord.”
What stands out to you in this passage?
What excites you about this passage?
How has your experience of church been like and dislike the experience of the early church here in Acts?
If you were to boil church down to its essence, you could describe it this way. The church has four crucial priorities based on four key relationships:
WORSHIP - Our Relationship to Jesus
DISCOVERY - Our Relationship to the Bible
COMMUNITY - Our Relationship to Each Other
MISSION - Our Relationship to the World
Wherever you have these four priorities and relationships, you have a church. That’s because that church 1) seeks Jesus passionately, 2) lives life biblically, 3) loves each other sacrificially and 4) shares the Good News of Jesus boldly.
Look through Acts 2:36-3:10 again and highlight where each of the four priorities and relationships are found in the passage.
That’s church. Now, what about MicroChurch?
Why MicroChurch?
MicroChurch is a smaller way of being church.
Romans 16:3-5 (NLT)
3 Give my greetings to Priscilla and Aquila, my co-workers in the ministry of Christ Jesus. 4 In fact, they once risked their lives for me. I am thankful to them, and so are all the Gentile churches. 5 Also give my greetings to the church that meets in their home.
1. Small Is Simple
By removing complexity, we can focus on priorities. Some churches are so complex that they have a hard time prioritizing relationships. The buildings, the budgets and the programs all demand so much attention. But pretty much all a MicroChurch has are relationships. And that’s a good thing—a freeing thing. It allows us to focus all our energy on these relationships and the priorities that flow from these relationships. And once again, those are:
WORSHIP - Our Relationship to Jesus
DISCOVERY - Our Relationship to the Bible
COMMUNITY - Our Relationship to Each Other
MISSION - Our Relationship to the World
2. Small Is Engaging
1 Corinthians 14:26 (NET)
What should you do then, brothers and sisters? When you come together, each one has a song, has a lesson, has a revelation, has a tongue, has an interpretation. Let all these things be done for the strengthening of the church.
Everyone gets to play in a MicroChurch. You get your need prayed for. You contribute your voice to the Discovery Bible Study. You exercise your gift of encouragement or leadership. Small welcomes involvement.
Here are two simple ground rules for engagement:
Everyone gets to participate, but no one is allowed to dominate.
What’s shared here, stays here.
3. Small Is Strategic
MicroChurches don’t cost a lot of money. They don’t take a lot of resources. They utilize the people, the relationships and the spaces already there. So MicroChurches are accessible, contextual, sustainable, replicable, and therefore, unstoppable.
Matthew 13:33 (NLT)
Jesus also used this illustration: “The Kingdom of Heaven is like the yeast a woman used in making bread. Even though she put only a little yeast in three measures of flour, it permeated every part of the dough.”
Which reason for MicroChurch do you find most compelling and why?
Can you think of another reason for MicroChurch?
MicroChurch or Small Group?
What’s the difference between a small group and a MicroChurch?
The key difference between a small group and a MicroChurch is that a MicroChurch IS YOUR CHURCH. It’s your primary spiritual family. It’s where you put your relational and ministry energy. It’s where you pursue worship, discovery, community and mission with your brothers and sisters in Christ. For example, when your MicroChurch begins giving financially, together you’ll discern how best to use that money for God’s Kingdom.
How would your view of MicroChurch change if you saw it as your primary church family?
How would your experience of church change if you committed yourself to a MicroChurch family?
We Are Church Documentary
Francis Chan and a community of simple churches in San Francisco have been living out the key relationships and crucial priorities of MicroChurch for some time. Here’s their story. When you see a larger group together, it is probably a collective gathering with many of their house churches coming together for worship, community and mission.
What are your reactions to this video? What questions does it raise? What hopes does it inspire?
Let’s change gears from talking about MicroChurch to experiencing MicroChurch. Let’s celebrate the Lord’s Supper together.
Let’s start with a few brief testimonies. Have a couple people answer this question: “What does Jesus’ sacrifice on the cross mean to you?”
Read 1 Corinthians 11:23-26 (NIV):
23 For I received from the Lord what I also passed on to you: The Lord Jesus, on the night he was betrayed, took bread, 24 and when he had given thanks, he broke it and said, “This is my body, which is for you; do this in remembrance of me.” 25 In the same way, after supper he took the cup, saying, “This cup is the new covenant in my blood; do this, whenever you drink it, in remembrance of me.” 26 For whenever you eat this bread and drink this cup, you proclaim the Lord’s death until he comes.
Keep in mind that the Lord’s Supper is for believers only. But anyone can become a believer right now. Anyone can turn from their sin and trust in Jesus and celebrate the Lord’s Supper as a declaration of their faith in Jesus.
As you pass out the bread and cups, say, “The body of Christ, given for you” and “The blood of Christ, shed for you.”
Ask someone to thank the Lord for His sacrifice on the cross and the forgiveness of our sins.
Then eat the bread and drink the cup.
See MEAL AND THE MEAL for additional ideas on how to celebrate the Lord’s Supper.
Closing
How did God speak to you or how did you encounter God in our gathering?
When will we meet again?
Who will facilitate that gathering? (See FOR THE FACILITATOR for help in leading a gathering.)
Each week you are encouraged to share a meal together. See MEAL AND THE MEAL.
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