Time and time again I have seen the value of community for discipleship. On February 15th some of our guys from Recovery are going to testify to the importance of community in their own life. Most of us, however, don’t need to be told. We know that community helps shape us, hold us accountable, and encourage us towards change and growth. We know the importance of community. Brad House knows the importance of it too and that’s why his book emphasizes the importance of community repeatedly. In fact while I thought I was going to be reading a book small groups in particular, House has written a book that is about the big picture of community in the church. If it weren’t for its redundancy in places and the fact that it claims to be about small groups this would be a faultless book. House combines big picture inspiration with practical application in his book Community, making it a useful resource for all pastors.
Though the book’s subtitle claims to be about “taking your small groups off of life support,” the book is really about a more comprehensive look at community in the life of the body. He has plenty to say about small groups, but often what he writes seems more appropriate and applicable to the larger life of the church. House puts the burden of community, discipleship, instruction, worship, repentance, evangelism, and even church planting onto small group ministry. He makes a compelling case for how small groups can assist in each of those areas, but often he goes a step further. He states more plainly that small group ministries that don’t make such elements a part of their ministry are being reductionist in their overall approach to small groups. Such statements are hyperbolic at best and flat-out wrong at worst. For example, his chapter on “Neighborhoods” offers readers a wonderfully practical guide to utilizing small groups to reach your neighborhood with the gospel. But House goes beyond just giving us a guide and insisting that small groups must be utilized for evangelism (see also p. 48, 61, and 93). Such statements are extremes and find their way into the book repeatedly. Often such statements work better when discussing the overall community of the church, not simply small groups. Small Groups are one expression of the life of the church, but often House acts as if they are the only expression of community in the church. In that regard, the book can be frustrating. But much of what he says is compelling, helpful, and workable.
The book is broken down into three parts. Part one lays a solid theological foundation for community. House begins by arguing that we were designed for community but that the church at large is hemorrhaging community. We need to revisit how we are creating community in our churches. He examines in particular the kind of small group ministries that many churches have. Such ministries exist with no solid foundations in the church and with no clearly defined goals. He wants to help us think more specifically about our small group ministry and ask the tough questions about why we do what we do. He wants us to operate from a place of Biblical conviction and not simply trendiness or amorphous need. Most helpful in part one is his discussion of the purpose of small group ministry. He reminds us that community for community’s sake is not enough, we need more of a gospel foundation for our small group ministry.
Part two is classified as “Redefining Community Groups.” Here some of the redundancies become more evident. Chapter four expounds on the same ideas already discussed in chapter one. House communicates these ideas with perhaps a bit more detail, but it begins to feel like you’ve been reading the same chapter twice. His goal, however, is commendable. He wants us to think more carefully about how we define community and the various key elements of small group ministry. His discussions here are very practical and helpful. He helps readers think through the logistics of evangelism, of structure, and of developing real relationships. The practical examples highlight how effective and easy some of this ministry can be.
Finally, part three covers the implementation. His chapter on repentance was helpful, even if the addition of the word “missional” all over the place felt forced. Chapter ten focuses on the nitty-gritty of implementation as House walks us through how his church began to make these changes to their small group ministry. That is all put in the context of the church’s larger history with community development in chapter eleven.
Overall I found some very helpful material in this book, much of which will keep me occupied in thinking for weeks. I want to think carefully about how to maximize the potential of our small group ministry at CBC. If the book was sometimes frustrating because of its hyperbole or its redundancy I think it can still be an encouraging resources for pastors and small group leaders. Community is a book worth checking out if you can press through some of these little frustrations.
Sparrow & Heart Soul Care 