Predictable Patterns for the Scattered Church
In last week’s post, I talked about how the recent shutdown during the early weeks of the coronavirus pandemic actually presented the 21st-century church with a wonderful opportunity. Almost overnight we went from being the church gathered to being the church scattered. In so doing, we rediscovered the value and power of the 1st-century roots of our faith.
Acts 2 tells us that shortly after Pentecost, the early church began the regular habit of gathering together in the Temple courts as well as meeting in smaller groups from house to house.
These scattered church communities were called oikos – households. They functioned very much like a large extended family. Usually, they included the members of the nuclear family living in the house along with their household staff, close friends, and even business associates. These groups experienced a shared life out of which they demonstrated and declared the Good News of Jesus.
This rhythm of Temple and home helped propel the movement of Jesus-followers to deeper discipleship and exponential evangelistic growth.
The rhythm of Temple and home helped propel the movement of Jesus-followers to deeper discipleship and exponential evangelistic growth.
There isn’t a pastor I know who wouldn’t love to see the kind of growth the early church experienced happen in their church!
I’m convinced that essential to developing a culture of discipleship and mission is creating a healthy rhythm of temple and home, church gathered and church scattered.
Now that churches are opening back up, gathering again for worship and teaching on Sundays, we would be wise to make sure we don’t lose the rhythm of the scattered church we’ve learned to depend on in these weeks of the shutdown.
We need to help those small communities grow, mature, and multiply, because here’s the reality of the matter. Though some spiritual formation occurs in the church gathered, it’s in the church scattered that deep discipleship happens and Kingdom mission occurs.
Though some spiritual formation occurs in the church gathered, it’s in the church scattered that deep discipleship happens and Kingdom mission occurs.
Predictable Patterns for the Early Church
So, how do we do that? As we move forward, what should these smaller communities be doing?
Well, what did the early church do? The Scripture tells us in Acts 2:42-47.
They devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and to fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer. Everyone was filled with awe at the many wonders and signs performed by the apostles. All the believers were together and had everything in common. They sold property and possessions to give to anyone who had need. Every day they continued to meet together in the temple courts. They broke bread in their homes and ate together with glad and sincere hearts, praising God and enjoying the favor of all the people. And the Lord added to their number daily those who were being saved.
Acts 2:42-47
The practices the oikos of the early church engaged in together were consistent, regular behaviors the believers built their lives around. Author Mike Breen calls them “predictable patterns.” They were:
Shared devotional life (Word, worship, and prayer)
Shared meals
Shared resources
Shared fellowship
Shared mission
Predictable Patterns for Today’s Church
What might these predictable patterns look like for our scattered church rhythms? Whether it’s a small group, family group, life group, or missional community, making these five practices a priority will deepen your relationships with one another, with God, and with the people of peace around you.
Prioritizing the predictable patterns of the scattered church in our communities will deepen our relationships with one another, with God, and with the people of peace around us.
Here are a few ideas:
Shared Devotional Life
• Spend time in the Word.
In-depth Bible studies are great, but time in the Word together doesn’t necessarily require spending hours in preparation and study. There are simple methods of engaging the scripture that anyone across the spectrum of age and spiritual maturity can participate in and gain from. And you don’t need a seminary degree to lead!
For instance, for almost 2 years, my wife Gwen and I had a group of over 20 (mostly young families) gather in our home on Tuesday nights. We sought to create a sense of oikos by being intentional about putting these predictable patterns into practice.
One of the ways we engaged the Bible together was to select a passage of Scripture and have someone read it out loud to the group. Then one of us would paraphrase the passage, putting it into our own words. We then asked a series of questions: What got your attention? What did you learn about God? What did you learn about yourself? What are you going to do about it?
Sometimes we would share our responses with everyone, other times we would split up into smaller groups. Sometimes we had the kids with us, other times we would divide by gender. The how didn’t matter so much as encountering the Word and responding to it in faith.
• Spend time in worship.
Singing together is the most common way we can worship as an oikos. There are numerous resources that can help with that, like YouTube videos or Spotify. In our community group, we always made sure to involve the kids in our worship by including a couple of songs just for them.
But worship is more than singing! Another predictable pattern we used in our oikos was to go around the table and have everyone share one thing they were grateful for. This was a weekly practice and extremely accessible for everyone - kids, pre-Christians, and long-time Christians alike.
• Spend time in prayer.
Praying with one another knits your hearts together in ways that deepen the intimacy and connection in a community and loosens the power of God to move in and through you.
We found asking a few questions helped focus our prayer times: Is anyone sick? Is anyone anxious or worried? Are there People of Peace on our hearts? What does our community need?
One evening when we asked these questions, a young mom spoke up. She and her husband wanted to have another child, but the medications she was on for MS made it unwise for her to conceive. She asked us to pray that God would heal her so she could have a baby.
That night we gathered around her, laid hands on her, and prayed for God’s miraculous intervention.
A few weeks later we were thrilled and amazed when we got a text from her saying that her latest scan showed her lesions had scabbed over. Her MS was not active! Her doctor cleared her to stop her medications and a year later, she and her husband welcomed a healthy baby boy into their family.
Shared Meals
There’s just something about sitting down at the table together that breaks down barriers and opens the doors of conversation. In our oikos, we adopted the “scruffy hospitality” approach to shared meals. We treat you like family! That means the house isn’t perfect. Everybody chips in. You help set up, cook, and clean up. There’s plenty of ketchup and ranch dressing for the kids, and plenty of grace for the spills.
Shared Resources
When you treat each other like family, then when someone has a need, you try to help. Someone’s sick? Let’s take them meals. Someone’s car needs repairs but they can’t afford the fix? Let’s loan them a car or take up a collection to help cover the costs. Mow the lawn of that single mom. Offer babysitting so that young couple can have a date night.
Shared resources don’t have to be the extreme examples we see in Acts of selling property and giving the money to the poor. God may call you to that kind of more radical community, but for the most part, sharing our resources simply means treating one another like family.
Shared Fellowship
An important part of developing an oikos is to enjoy being together! Just hanging out and having fun! Plan a game night. Go watch one of the kids’ soccer matches. Have a cookout and invite people of peace. Sure, discipleship is serious business, but if there isn’t joy when we get together, why would anyone want to join us?
Sure, discipleship is serious business, but if there isn’t joy when we get together, why would anyone want to join us?
Shared Mission
This is the last in this list of predictable patterns, but it probably should be first. It really should be the tip of the spear for our communities.
Why do we exist? Is it just for us? For our comfort and convenience? So we feel good and learn a lot? Or are we here to invite the lost into the family of God?
Why do our community groups exist? Is it just for us? For our comfort and convenience? So we feel good and learn a lot? Or are we here to invite the lost into the family of God?
Mission for an oikos is not a what. It’s a who. It’s not simply a service project. It’s the people God has put in our lives that He is preparing for Himself. It’s the individuals in our neighborhoods or networks (school, workplace, sports team, gym, etc.) who seem to be open to the Jesus in us.
Make this missional vision a regular part of your prayer together. Invite these folks into your oikos activities. The family of God is not exclusive. There’s always room at the table for more.
The family of God is not exclusive. There’s always room at the table for more.
Acts 2 says that because of the way God’s people were living their lives together, God added daily to their number those who were being saved. I believe if we follow their example, imitating their predictable patterns for the scattered church, we too will see a harvest in our neighborhoods and networks today.
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