The
LIFE Groups of Fellowship
The
home cell groups at Fellowship are called "LIFE" Groups (LIFE stands
for "Living In Fellowship Everyday").
These pages contain information regarding our vision and strategy to be a
New Testament Church. We believe
that the "pictures" of the church in Acts 2 (vs 42-47) and 4 (vs
32-35) are intended to be a model for local churches in every age.
We desire to be an Acts 2 & 4 church!
The Cell Group Vision:
That
which was from the beginning, which we have heard, which we have seen
with our eyes, which we have looked at and our hands have touched
- this we proclaim concerning the Word of life.
The life appeared; we have seen it and testify to it, and
we proclaim to you the eternal life, which was with the Father and has appeared
to us. We proclaim to you what we
have seen and heard, so that you also may have fellowship with us.
And our fellowship is with the Father and with his Son, Jesus Christ.
1 John 1:2-3
Cell Life Involves:
-
Experiencing
the life of Christ . . .
-
. . .
in fellowship with one another . . .
-
. . .
as we extend His life and fellowship to more and more people.
Why have home
cell groups?
A
fundamental reason for home cell groups is that we desire to take the words of
Jesus and the Scriptures seriously. In
Matthew 7:24, Jesus described the "wise man who built his house on the rock"
as the one who "hears these sayings of Mine, and does them".
The foolish man is the one who "hears these sayings of Mine, and
does not do them" (v26). We
want to be wise and we want the lives of our church members to be spiritually
strong, built on the rock of Christ. Additionally, James 1:22 urges us to be "doers of the
word, and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves".
LIFE Groups are 'spiritual greenhouses' where care, feeding, protecting
and pruning lead to fruitfulness and Christ likeness. James reminds us that "as the spirit without the body is
dead, so faith without works is dead also" (2:26).
So, the primary point of LIFE Groups is to help each other apply God's
Word to our lives so that we can spiritually grow up to be like Jesus (Eph
4:15).
Additionally,
here are some further reasons for having cell groups:
The Church has a Commission from Christ
We must be harvesters for Jesus -
-
Matt
9:35-38 > the harvest is plentiful
-
Lk
10:1-2 > pray to the Lord of the harvest
-
Jn
4:31-35 > gather fruit for eternal life
We are disciplemakers -
-
Matt
28:18-20 > make disciples . . . baptize . . . teach
-
Lk
24:46-47 > to all the nations . . . from Jerusalem
-
Acts
1:8 > you shall receive power . . . be My witnesses
There is a Biblical Basis for home cell groups
-
Ex
18:13-27 > the original model for Israel
-
Neh
3 > effective small group strategy
-
Lk
6:13; 9:14; 10:1 > the model of Jesus
-
Acts
2:46-47; 5:42 > the early church model
-
Acts
13:1-20:38 > the mission strategy of the apostle Paul
(e.g.
Acts [8:3] 12:12; 16:15, 40; 20:20; Rom 16:5; 1 Cor 16:19; Col 4:15)
What is a "cell"
(LIFE Group)?
Colossians 3:12-17 describes "community"
·
not a perfect family
·
a healthy family
·
a healing family
The
kinds of things that we do together:
-
have
fun and food together (have picnics, family fun events)
-
include
people in your everyday activities like shopping, entertainment, serving one
another
-
sit
together, if possible, in church worship services
-
celebrate
birthdays, anniversaries and special occasions within your LIFE Group
-
do
mission projects together
-
help
each other reach out to neighbors (block parties, direct evangelism, etc.)
-
do
C.O.K.E. events together (Conspiracy Of Kindness Evangelism)
We look for progress, not perfection!
Every
LIFE Group will have it's own unique personality!
God
loves variety, just look around!
What are the
values that we want to uphold?
1)
Every member is a minister -
a. every member is equipped for service by "giving the ministry away"
(an Eph 4:11-12 model)
b. every member is a "producer" rather than a "consumer".
2)
Leaders are called to serve.
3)
The church should be organized in workable units.
4)
The criteria for "success" is NT community (not
numbers).
5)
Each Cell seeks to be a "slice of life"
(inter-generational).
6)
Children and youth love Christ and minister in the church.
7)
Jesus, indwelling and empowering His church, is the "key"
to Cell life.
8)
The church functions every day of the week through Cell bodylife.
9)
There should be clear accountability in the church (we have a LIFE
Group covenant).
10)
Members are faithful stewards of their lives and resources.
11)
Cells of 5-15 Christians are the primary units of the Church.
12)
Cells interconnect with each other as the whole church.
13)
Celebration worship is an overflow of Cell life.
14)
Bible study teaches "how to fish" rather than "giving
a fish".
15)
Parents are responsible for the spiritual welfare of their
children.
16)
The church practices the "one anothers" of the NT.
17)
Evangelism flows out of edification within healthy Cells.
18)
Prayer is a way of life.
19)
Members are both "hearers and doers" of the Word; transformation
rather than information is the goal.
20)
The measure of true discipleship is maturity in Christ.
What are we
trying to accomplish?
We want to
live in authentic Christian community (Acts 2:41-47; 4:32-35)
We
want to be "doers of the word and not hearers only" (Jas. 1:22)
We
want to be fishers of men for Jesus [together, with a net] (Matt 4:19; Lk
5:4-11)
The
LIFE Group is where personal love and care are
experienced, where friendships and relationships in the church are nurtured and
where faith grows and relational evangelism can take place.
Additionally, the LIFE Groups can minister together in mission
opportunities.
What happens in
the LIFE Group meetings each week?
The
model is Acts 2:42-47 (4:32-35). Each
cell meeting focuses on four things (based on Acts 2:42): Scripture, Fellowship,
Worship, Prayer. A possible
scenario might be:
1.
Fellowship (20 min), snacks, gathering time, etc.;
2.
Worship (10 min), sharing songs, singing hymns or choruses to accompaniment tape
or CD;
3.
Scripture (40 min), an application oriented study;
4.
Prayer (20 min), praying with and for one another.
The
times are approximate. There are
some LIFE Groups that enjoy a meal together each week or on occasion.
A full meal will add at least a half hour to the meeting time.
The groups can arrange these elements of their meeting as they wish and
are encouraged to follow the direction of the Holy Spirit.
The LIFE Group leaders meet weekly for accountability and instruction.
What have we
have learned from having home cell groups?
We have had LIFE Groups at Fellowship for two years.
Here are some things that we have learned in that time.
-
LIFE
Groups are not about what you can get, but what you can give.
-
An
irony: the families that "don't need" LIFE Groups the most are
most needed in LIFE Groups (broken families today need models and
encouragement from those "less" broken).
-
Pursuing
the Kingdom of God is much harder than we could imagine.
We can only pursue it in the power of the Holy Spirit.
A godly church is composed of people pursuing godliness as a family.
-
The
spiritual power of a godly family cannot be measured (we're raising godly
children).
-
LIFE
Groups will impact the next generation for Christ and His Kingdom (they
bless children and youth).
-
God
has promised a harvest of spiritual blessings if we will sow to the Spirit
and not give up (Gal 6:7-10).
If
you are interested in visiting a LIFE Group in Fellowship, you may call our
church office (913-764-3153) and a group leader will be in touch with you.
A new
commandment I give to you, that you love one another; as I have loved you, that
you also love one another. By this
all will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another.
John 13:34-35
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