Small Group Prayer Power

 Jesus assured his followers of his presence and the power that would mean as they met together.

Mat 18:20 “For where two or three come together in my name, I am there with them."

In the previous verse Jesus had emphasized the power of agreement in prayer. This is also a great promise, but one that is often abused. There is so much more to effective prayer than a handful of sinful believers agreeing on what they think should happen.

Mat 18:19 "And I tell you more: whenever two of you on earth agree about anything you pray for, it will be done for you by my Father in heaven.”

Jesus tells us so much more about what is necessary for effective prayer. His words are expanded in the teachings of the writers of the early letters in the New Testament. It is enough to know at this point that Jesus seeks unity among his followers so that their prayers will have the power to fight evil in this world.

The Bible study group, the Sunday School class, must teach its participants the importance of prayer. This is done through Bible study. It is also done through practice. We were not called to study prayer as necessary as that may be. We were called to practice prayer, use prayer, and communicate with our heavenly Father through prayer. Prayer is the lifeline between child and Father, servant and Master.

In the small group the participants can learn to trust one another. Trust is the foundation for honest and vulnerable prayer. In our times of solitary prayer, no one hears but God. In a time of sharing with one other individual, the intimacy is held between just two people. In a small group setting there are more minds listening. There is a great variety of background experiences through which we see the prayer concerns of others.

These background experiences will shape how we respond to the revelations in our group. We must be sympathetic and compassionate. We may be tempted to be judgmental and critical. We can never let this happen as we are all sinners in need of God’s grace. In a spirit of supportive prayer, the members of a small group must be willing to listen and seek the will of the Spirit of God and not an answer according to a personal agenda.

As this openness and vulnerability are practiced within the group, trust is developed. Every individual is seen to be equal in light of their need for God’s intervention through strength and forgiveness. Joining together in group prayer creates a bond among the members as all realize we stand equal before God.

In group prayer praise becomes a corporate activity. The people of God become worshippers through their praise of who God is and how he has revealed himself in creation and especially through his Son Jesus Christ. The group uses prayer to praise God for what he has done in the life of each individual and for the Body of Christ, the Church.

The Bible study group intercedes for each individual member through the use of corporate prayer. One person’s need is lifted up by multiple individuals. Prayer for the individual takes on an added dimension as others reveal they have the same need. God’s intervention is sought for all with a particular concern.

Though more is needed to make prayer in unity effective, that unity is vital. Members of the group all seek the will of God through humbled and vulnerable hearts. The group confesses its own weakness to meet the needs of others. The group seeks the wisdom of God, the strength of God, and the grace of God.

In all this the individual sees the need for a dependency upon the power of God to face each day and everything that day may bring. When the group confesses the need for prayer, the individual sees the need on a personal level. Then the power of prayer becomes more effective for all.

Teaching People to Live the Word

 It has been said more than once poor teaching can empty a classroom faster than good outreach can fill it. Having been an educator most of my adult life, experience has taught me the truth of the statement. What people find when they walk into a room will determine if they want to come back.

Sunday School, small group Bible studies, have the critical responsibility of introducing Jesus Christ to people who do not know him through a study of the record of his revelation in the Bible. The underlying thought is small groups can learn in ways large groups and individuals alone cannot learn. Multiple individuals bring varied experiences into the conversation allowing the biblical principles to speak to everyone. Yet the group is not too large to make the study impersonal.

With the Bible as the primary textbook, the object is to convey the lessons of the text into the lives of the participants. Far more than seeking to convey knowledge, the goal is to allow the Holy Spirit to transform lives. Whether the student is a seeker wanting to know about who this Jesus is or the individual has been a follower of Christ for 60 years, transformation remains a goal for everyone.

Rom 12:2 Do not conform yourselves to the standards of this world, but let God transform you inwardly by a complete change of your mind. Then you will be able to know the will of God---what is good and is pleasing to him and is perfect.

No matter how old a Christian or how new, the process of growing more Christlike and closer to the will of God never ends. In the small group context, every individual has the opportunity to grow in their spiritual development at their own pace and in a manner that will make that growth effective in their daily life.

Teaching so everyone has a chance to learn involves knowing how people learn. We do not all learn most effectively in the same way. Recognizing our various senses gives us a picture of how to plan our various methods of teaching. Seeing, hearing, and touching are the three most common channels for learning.

Some individuals learn best through visual activities. This would involve reading, pictures, and charts. Those who learn most effectively through hearing respond best to lectures, discussions, music, and recordings. Touch brings in activities that involve hands-on learning, manipulating, writing, and constructing in two and three dimensions.

The classroom with its variety of activities can create that invaluable “teaching moment”. At this point the situation allows the teacher to emphasize an insight that is relevant to the student’s current situation. The application is immediately apparent. The student experiences that special moment that transforms their perspective on the subject and perhaps life itself.

The small group of students may all be eager to learn, but the teacher may not have the ideal teaching setting. The creative teacher will look at the setting, understand the learning methods of the students, and then seek to find the best tools available to create an effective learning context. This could be technical and electronic tools, posters and signs, writing on a chalkboard, or writing in the dust on the ground. Singing and verbal repetition have proven to be some of the most effective memorization tools in the history of mankind.

The primary point to remember is that in the small group context, the teacher is teaching students, not the Bible. The Bible is the content being taught to the students. We should never feel we have to force the Bible to say what we want it to say.

The opposite is true. We start with the Bible and the belief that within its words we have the pathway to a living relationship with God through Jesus Christ. The Bible records for us and reveals to us the history of God’s efforts to bring sinful man back into a relationship with him that will last for eternity.

Pro 22:6 Teach children how they should live, and they will remember it all their life.

Building an Effective Bible Study Ministry

 Studying the Bible is not an option for a Christian. For someone who wants to know what Christians are supposed to believe and practice, studying the Bible likewise is not an option. Anyone who wants to know what Christianity is all about must start with the Bible.

Many believers have come to a point of faith in God through Jesus Christ by reading portions of the Bible on their own. The Bible has the power to reveal a person’s soul and its needs. When that person is sincerely seeking Truth, the printed word will lead that person to the Living Word who is Truth incarnate.

Others have found their minds opened to the leadership of the Holy Spirit by joining with a believer to understand what the Bible was saying. The study became a common pilgrimage where each grew from the questions raised and the answers discovered through their search in the Scriptures.

In the context of corporate worship, believers and non believers share the same social experience but come from a different perspective. The testimony of believers voiced in song, prayer, and scriptural exposition touches each mind uniquely under the influence of the Holy Spirit. In the context of the Family of God gathered for worship, the Holy Spirit uses not only the written word but also the faith expression of multiple believers to reveal Truth in the Bible.

The Sunday School is the Church organized in small group fashion to focus upon the written word of God. These small groups may be only two or three, or the numbers may reach into the hundreds when insufficient leadership is available. For adults the ideal is between twelve and twenty participants. This allows for the development of supportive relationships and openness in sharing personal spiritual growth experiences.

Though the Sunday School class has one primary text for study, the Bible, it also has other functions which are critical for a climate in which the Holy Spirit is free to work in the heart of participants. Teaching the participants the content and thrust of Scripture and leading them to see the priority of the relationship God wants to have with every individual is the most obvious function. Five other functions include 1) reaching others who are not part of the Body of Christ, 2) strengthening the spiritual walk of believers through discipleship training, 3) encouraging prayer as a mark of the relationship with God, 4) nurturing others in the Body of Christ through acts of ministry, and 5) using evangelism and ministry to touch the lives of those who do not know Christ as Lord and Savior.

When we think Sunday School, we think Bible teaching. Studying God’s word and applying its lessons to life is essential for growing as a Christian and being the salt and light Christ has called us to be. To understand what the Bible says we must read it, interpret it correctly both in its historical context and in its modern application, and apply its principles to our lives and relationships.

Good outreach depends upon a personal relationship with Christ, humility, and a love for all people. It takes initiative and boldness. It takes the conviction only through Christ can we have eternal life.

In small group Bible study we learn what it means to be disciples of Christ. We learn the cost of discipleship, the patterns of discipleship, and the rewards of discipleship.

In small group Bible study we learn about and practice prayer, the channel of communication that keeps us close to God

We practice through relationships developed in small group Bible study ministry to each other. We develop that interdependence that is critical to the Body of Christ.

Finally we work together to go forth in mission efforts to reach those who are outside the Body of Christ to offer hope for eternal life. Every believer is a missionary. Working through and supported by a small Bible study group makes this most effective.

2Ti 2:15 Do your best to present yourself to God as one approved, a worker who has no need to be ashamed, rightly handling the word of truth.