Discipleship = Community; Community does not always = Discipleship

I am a huge advocate for Discipleship Groups taking place in the context of the local church.  I am also a huge supporter of Community Groups.  It is important to note, however, the distinct differences between to the two groups.  In today’s Christian culture, buzzwords like community and discipleship get thrown around a lot.  Rarely do we take the time to pinpoint the meaning of these terms, and the vision behind the distinct groups. 

As I attempt to make this distinction please note that depending on your church background and ministry context this comparison may not be as black and white as I make it appear on the following chart.  I’m also aware that every church has a different definition for a “community group” and a “discipleship group”.  Generally speaking however, here are the major differences and similarities between the two groups:

	Discipleship Groups	Community Groups
Word & Application	Word, external context, direct applications with life-on-life follow-up	Word, encourages personal application without availability to follow-up
Leadership	Led by a D-group Leader	Led by a couple or multiply couples
Commitment	High level commitment and availability	Low level commitment and flexibility in schedules
Emphasis	Word, prayer, fellowship, relational evangelism, modeling & transformation	Word, prayer, fellowship & being a ‘next step’ for people in the Body of Christ
Members	Men and women (in separate groups) who were specifically selected	Mixed gender groups; usually with an open-door policy
Multiplication rate	Slower in the initial years, but increases as d-group members multiply their ministries	Steady growth- splitting into separate community groups by addition
Missional component	Evangelism training and follow-up	Encourages missional living, but lacks in accountability
Recruiting style	Formal/heavy commitment	Informal/easy

Whether you join a Community Group or a Discipleship group may depend on your season of life.  Discipleship groups usually require a level of time commitment that may not seem reasonable in the midst of have 3 young children, an abrupt change of career, or having your house on the market.  In busy season of life, a community group may be the best option. 

Discipleship is unique in its emphasis on modeling Christ-likeness to one another.  Jesus intentionally selected twelve men to be his disciples.  These twelve men got to learn from Jesus’ teachings and learn from Jesus’ modeling.  Jesus always modeled his teachings before his disciples.  Modeling is what makes life-on-life discipleship so fruitful.  Discipleship always includes community, but community does not always include discipleship.  

Signs you are ready to transition into a community group:

§  You see your need for community and fellowship beyond a single worship service.

§  You desire to form a deeper investment you local church body, but still need some flexibility.

§  You desire to meet and connect with other couples, families and/or singles in your church.

Signs you are ready to transition into a discipleship group:

§  You see your need for brothers (or sisters) in Christ who intentionally follow-up with you in your walk.

§  There is someone specific in your church that has character, competency, and conviction worth modeling, and you strongly desire to be mentored by them.

§  You are ready for a higher commitment to Christian fellowship, study of the Word, prayer and evangelism training.

Be sure to ask your church leadership what ministry opportunities they offer with community groups and intentional discipleship.

Misconceptions About Your Worship

Many of us subconsciously enter into worship with a long list of expectations.  We tell ourselves: “It isn’t a good worship service unless I have an emotional experience” or “This service will only be worth my time if we do the songs I like to sing.” Sometimes we even come into worship with the expectation that nothing will happen.  “Why would God meet me any differently this morning?  Sunday mornings are always the same.”  We live in a culture designed to accommodate and satisfy us every waking moment of the day.  Netflix, Youtube, smart phones, and Jimmy Johns tell us we deserve to have what we want, when we want it.  Corporate worship is a radically different experience compared to our quick-fix consumerism. 

Corporate worship is when the people of God come together, before the throne of grace, to experience soul-satisfying worship- centered upon our creator and redeemer.  Now don’t get me wrong, expectant worship is a beautiful thing!  God desires for us to approach his throne with a spirit of expectation.  Nevertheless, we need to address our self-centered expectations and misconceptions we hold towards worship, while also re-aligning our hearts to soul-satisfying, expectant worship.

1. | Corporate Worship is not primarily an emotional experience sprinkled with some biblical truths.  Authentic worship is centered on biblical truth that may lead to an emotional response.  We all naturally love our feelings: the feeling of scoring the game winning point, the feeling of watching the hero step in to save the day, the feeling of satisfaction after completing a long-term project.  As much as we love our feelings, we tend to look to our own feelings for guidance.  Emotions and feelings are not bad things, but they are not inerrant like the Word of God.  That is why the very foundation of our worship must be the Word, not our emotions.

2. | Corporate Worship is not a show.  Worship literally means ascribing weigh or worth. Do we want to give weight and worth to a 45 minute performance, or a Holy, eternal God?  Viewed as a performance, worship will never intersect with the deepest needs of our hearts.  A ‘worship experience’ cannot come near to the satisfaction for which our hearts long.  We can only adequately find this fullness of joy in God himself (Psalm 16:11).  Worship isn’t about a man-made performance; it is about Christ’s astonishing performance on our behalf!  Let’s fix our eyes on that victory, rather than exchanging the goodness of the Gospel for a less satisfying hope.

3. | Corporate Worship is not about our preferences.  I know that this misconception may be particularly difficult to hear.  We all have preferences in worship.  Some prefer acapella led hymns in the daylight; others prefer screamo-style worship in dark warehouses.  Whatever our preferences may be, we need to first look to Jesus’ example in how he approached his preferences.  In Gethsemane, Jesus stated his personal desire very clearly, saying: “My Father, if it be possible, let this cup pass from me; nevertheless, not as I will but as you will” (Matthew 26:39).  In worship, we marvel at Jesus’ radical surrender of his own preferences on our behalf.  Because worship isn’t primarily about us, sometimes we need to die to our preferences and live out the gospel among members of our congregation who prefer a different style of worship.  Now I am not giving a license for worship leaders to pick songs no one in their congregations likes.  But sometimes the most radical way we experience the gospel through a worship service is when we die to our preferences for the sake of others.

4. | Corporate Worship is not a liturgical series of empty duties:  "Please stand, please sing along, you may be seated, listen to these words, reading together, etc..." Corporate worship is design to be so much more than a duty-filled outline of worship.  Sometimes in planning services, we can get too caught up in the idea of “flow”.  We say things like, “We don’t want to break up the flow of worship!”- as if the Holy Spirit’s working is dependent upon my ability to end a song with the correct chord.  Listen to Mike Cosper’s description of non-ritualistic worship, prior to the fall:

“All of [worship] happen[ed] without a hint of ritual. There are no separated-out worship services; there is only the glorious and glorifying life lived with and unto God.  If someone were to ask Adam, “When do you worship God?” he might reply, “When do we not!” Worship isn’t something other, external, compartmentalized, or confined. It is life with God, lived unto God for his glory and our pleasure.”

It’s hard to even imagine what life in the garden was like before the fall: no sermons, no slideshows, and no worship team rehearsals.  It was perfect, holy and continuous communion with the God of the universe!   There was no need for rituals.  Ever moment of every second of every day, Adam’s life was a pleasing aroma to God.  Today in our churches, we get a small foretaste of the eternal, soul-satisfying worship we will experience in eternity!