Characteristics of the early church which helped it to develop disciples Bible study Fellowship Worship (breaking of bread, praising God) Prayer Love (sharing needs) Visiting one another Evangelism Result Acts 6:7 Then the word of God spread, and the number of the disciples multiplied greatly in Jerusalem, and a great many of the priests were obedient to the faith. Acts 6:7 (NKJV) George Whitefield and John Wesley were contemporaries in seventeenth-century England. Both dedicated themselves to God’s work in the same small group at Oxford University. Both were excellent in open-air preaching. Both witnessed thousands of conversions through their ministries. Yet John Wesley left behind a 100,000-member church, while George Whitefield could point to little tangible fruit toward the end of his ministry. Why? Wesley dedicated himself to training and releasing small-group leaders, while Whitefield was too busy preaching and doing the work of the ministry. The Adventist Church in South America has a membership of about 2.7 million. Brazil has become the country with the largest number of Seventh-day Adventists in the world, with almost 1.4 million members.2 There are other populous areas within South America that have experienced tremendous growth; such as Peru, with 525,000 members; Bolivia, with 190,000 members; Chile, with 125,000 members; Page 3 Argentina, with 115,000 members; and Ecuador, with 75,000 members.3 Between 1996 and 2005, church membership in South America increased 180 percent—a very good rate when contrasted with the growth rate of the Adventist Church around the world, which in that same period grew 54 percent. Though many factors are involved in this growth, we consider the use of small groups as one of the most effective. In the Adventist Church in South America (SAD), approximately 65,000 small groups exist, and great effort has been made so that small groups become the basis of the church’s missionary outreach.4 Small groups have proven to be an effective instrument in God’s hands to bring us more growth, growth in relationships, growth in preparing disciples, and growth in planting new churches.
Characteristics of the early church which helped it to develop disciples Bible study Fellowship Worship (breaking of bread, praising God) Prayer Love (sharing needs) Visiting one another Evangelism Result Acts 6:7 Then the word of God spread, and the number of the disciples multiplied greatly in Jerusalem, and a great many of the priests were obedient to the faith. Acts 6:7 (NKJV) George Whitefield and John Wesley were contemporaries in seventeenth-century England. Both dedicated themselves to God’s work in the same small group at Oxford University. Both were excellent in open-air preaching. Both witnessed thousands of conversions through their ministries. Yet John Wesley left behind a 100,000-member church, while George Whitefield could point to little tangible fruit toward the end of his ministry. Why? Wesley dedicated himself to training and releasing small-group leaders, while Whitefield was too busy preaching and doing the work of the ministry. The Adventist Church in South America has a membership of about 2.7 million. Brazil has become the country with the largest number of Seventh-day Adventists in the world, with almost 1.4 million members.2 There are other populous areas within South America that have experienced tremendous growth; such as Peru, with 525,000 members; Bolivia, with 190,000 members; Chile, with 125,000 members; Page 3 Argentina, with 115,000 members; and Ecuador, with 75,000 members.3 Between 1996 and 2005, church membership in South America increased 180 percent—a very good rate when contrasted with the growth rate of the Adventist Church around the world, which in that same period grew 54 percent. Though many factors are involved in this growth, we consider the use of small groups as one of the most effective. In the Adventist Church in South America (SAD), approximately 65,000 small groups exist, and great effort has been made so that small groups become the basis of the church’s missionary outreach.4 Small groups have proven to be an effective instrument in God’s hands to bring us more growth, growth in relationships, growth in preparing disciples, and growth in planting new churches.