Daniel Im

Pastor + Author

Leadership

Mid-Size Communities or Small Groups? Interview with Rick Howerton

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Back in May 2013, I was featured on Rick Howerton’s Blog with NavPress for a four day interview on “Small Groups or Mid-Size Communities?”

Rick Howerton is one of the most genuine guys that I’ve met and I’m so grateful for his ministry to me and to the global church! Since then, he has joined the staff at Lifeway, and thus the previous posts have gone away. So I’ve taken the content that I wrote for that interview and put it up on my site in the links below:

I encourage you to read through my answers to the following questions on his site and engage in a conversation with us about this viral concept. Click on the links below to see my answers.

Let’s talk!

Mid-Size Communities Part 4: The Theological Rationale

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In part 3, I shared a FAQ list regarding mid-size communities (MSCs). You can get a good feeling as to what an MSC is by reading through the FAQs, or by looking at this infographic, but what’s the theological rationale for them anyway? Are MSCs just a repackaged version of Adult Bible Fellowship? Are they just the new hot thing? Or are they merely a different version of missional communities?

Well, let’s dig in. In order to look at the theological rationale for MSCs, we first need to ask more of a fundamental question: What is the church and what is her mission?

Is the Church, as Hans Kung suggests, the visible church building that people can belong to, as well as the invisible global Church composed of all true believers? Or is the Church better described, in a biblical way, as “God’s household” (Eph 2:19), “the body of Christ” (1 Cor 12:27), and a place where all of the biblical “one another’s” are lived out?

There is nothing wrong with describing the Church in those ways, but perhaps a better way to understand the Church is to begin with the end in mind? What if the Church was defined and understood through the lens of its mission? If it were, then the Church would not fall into the trap of being a loving community for its own sake or be mistaken as a rotary club. Although William Rush states that “the more the Church understands its own nature, the more it gets hold of its own vocation,” I actually believe the opposite is just as true. The more the Church understands its own mission or vocation, the more it will grab hold of its own nature.

So what is the mission that God has given the Church?

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A Framework for Discipleship

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Framework

Can we use research to discover the core attributes of a disciple? Or is this a purely biblical matter?

In a previous post, I shared different methods that we use to filter whether or not someone is a disciple of Jesus. The only problem with those common methods is that they are often anecdotal, and purely based on situational experiences.

Take Greg Ogden’s list, for example. He presents a biblical standard for discipleship by outlining how disciples:

  • Are proactive ministers
  • Live a disciplined way of life
  • Understand that discipleship affects all of life
  • Are a countercultural force
  • Are an essential, chosen organism
  • Are a biblically informed people
  • Are people who share their faith

This is a fantastic list, and very difficult to disagree with, since it is biblical. The problem with his list and everyone else’s is that they are merely anecdotal good ideas and frameworks. There is no evidence that these ideas, when transformed into a discipleship pathway, will actually produce the attributes of a healthy disciple.

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Is Your Neighbour a Disciple?

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How can you tell if someone is a disciple of Jesus?

In a previous post, I summarized six expert definitions of a disciple and concluded with this as my definition: “A disciple of Jesus is an individual who is continually being transformed into the likeness of Christ, as he or she is learning and participating in the mission of God with others.”

If that’s what a disciple is, is there some easy way to tell if the guy that you are passing by on the street, or the lady that is in the cubicle next to you, is a disciple? After all, how can you really tell if someone is “continually being transformed into the likeness of Christ” when you only have a two minute interaction with them?

Perhaps it’s a list of visible outer actions and attitudes? Such as, whether or not you know John 3:16 by heart, sponsor a Compassion child, or file your income taxes honestly and on time? Although these are outer actions that you would expect a Christian to embody and live out, these are not actions exclusive to Christians.

Instead, what if it’s a combination of both outer and inner actions and attitudes? What if the evidence of being a disciple of Jesus is the presence of the following three aspects in your life?

  • The faithful acceptance of everyday problems
  • The inner presence (fruit of the Spirit) and outer evidence (gifts of the Spirit) of the Holy Spirit in your life
  • The regular practice of the spiritual disciplines

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What is a Disciple? Six Expert Views

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Do you know how many times the word “Christian” occurs in the New Testament? A measly three times. On the other hand, the word “disciple” occurs 269 times. Although the term “Christian” has been watered down, and many see discipleship as an optional matter, it is clear that this is not what Jesus intended (see previous post). After all, the early disciples were called Christians because they were learners, students, and apprentices of Christ. Thus, just as “being Canadian” is a part of the identity of a Canadian citizen, “being Christian” or “being a disciple” is an identity issue.

But what exactly is a disciple? What sort of definition should we use to understand our identity?

Here are six different definitions of a disciple by experts:

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