Are Small Groups Essential for Discipleship?

It’s easy to assume people see the importance of small groups, both in youth ministry and the church as a whole. You can find church leaders and resource providers who hold up small groups as the singular solution to any discipleship, spiritual growth, or ministry effectiveness issue. We have small group bible studies, Sunday school classes, breakout groups, home groups – not to mention “Life Groups” and “Community Groups” (we have so many different brandings for groups, a friend of mine has joked we will soon just have something called, “Group Groups”). 

These kinds of groups are part of the fabric of how many of us do ministry. Yet just because something is pervasive and assumed doesn’t mean it’s right for us to pursue or emphasize it. In this series, our goal is to take a step back and think purposefully about small groups and youth ministry. 

Are small groups necessary, optional, or a distraction? What’s the best way to implement them? In this article, I’d like to begin by proposing that without intentional small groups, our discipleship plans are lacking.

Small Groups Can Help Intentionally

Saying that “without intentional small groups, our discipleship plans are lacking” is a bold statement to make. It’s important to understand three crucial words in that proposal: intentional, discipleship, and lacking. I’ll work backward on those to ensure you hear me accurately. 

This article is not suggesting that youth ministry without small groups is wrong or unbiblical, but that there’s something potentially lacking. There’s something more to be gained by implementing small groups. That gain largely comes in the form of discipleship. Evangelism, service/ministry, and worship are all aspects of youth ministry that are possible without small groups and, in some ways, could even be more effective in larger groups. If the “goal of youth ministry is to make adult disciples whose faith took root in their teen years”, however, then we need to understand what discipleship entails. 

In Luke 9:23, Jesus describes a disciple as one who denies himself, takes up his cross, and follows Jesus. Discipleship is built around teaching and modeling a life of submission to Christ, as those we disciple follow, learn, and imitate Christ through our example. There are elements of discipleship that happen in a large group setting, particularly teaching God’s Word. However, if our discipleship is only with a crowd, it can become a monologue when information is dispensed in an impersonal way. 

Good teaching will have safeguards against that by making good application, but the problem remains: large-group formats alone miss out on the fruit that’s possible through fostering personal conversations in small groups. This is why the word “intentional” is the most important piece of what I’m suggesting. 

Simply gathering in small groups does not accomplish discipleship. It’s possible that small groups can become too task-oriented (solely focused on discussing the message) or overly people-oriented (when the social aspects of gathering leads to discussing Scripture as an afterthought).

One way small groups can become meaningful and prove themselves a foundational component of discipleship is by practicing the “one another” commands. Jesus said in John 13:35 that “all people will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another.” The New Testament is full of “one another” commands, including honoring one another, confessing sin to one another, and encouraging one another. Intentional small groups are one of the best ways we can practice these one another commands. In my experience, this works best when the small groups are consistent from week to week, as time together helps students build the trust needed to open up and share, experience and work through tension and conflict, and discover opportunities to practice Christian community. We can equip small group leaders to lead small groups purposefully by providing resources and instruction, such as the Gospel Culture practices.

Small Groups Can Help Catechetically

Our definition of discipleship matters a great deal in understanding the role intentional small groups can play. If discipleship is simply about information transfer, then large group teaching alone can accomplish that fairly well. However, if discipleship is more holistic and involves the entire person, then our approach must be more comprehensive. I’ve been greatly helped by the way Mike McGarry frames this as “catechetical discipleship”. 

The process of catechesis involves doctrine (head), spirituality (heart), and godliness (hands). One easy way to approach discipleship holistically is to balance our teaching across these three areas. But we can also provide modes of ministry that emphasize each of those areas. Teaching (in large or small group) often addresses the head; but intentional small groups where we model and lead students to practice Christian community can be key in ministering to the heart and hands. 

How do your small group questions foster discussion? How do your groups approach things like prayer time? Do your groups serve together? Do you have consistency among your leaders, or is it a rotation? These are all important questions to consider, because depending on your answer to each one, your groups will look different. They will accomplish different goals. That’s not intended to be a knock against what you currently do; it is an invitation to think about what could be possible in your youth ministry small groups. 

If there are ways to tailor your groups to engage your students’ head, heart, and hands, then why wouldn’t you?

Small Groups Can Help Contextually

It’s easy to be dogmatic in a series like this, where we’re presenting and contending for one side of an argument. So it’s important to consider one’s ministry context in implementing these ideas. I’m sure some of you serve in ministries where your whole group is the size of a typical small group, and there are others with enough students to create small groups for every grade and gender. What I hope you are hearing is not “this is what small groups must look like”, but I do hope you’re hearing some reasons for being intentional with whatever small groups look like in your context. 

The goal is not to develop one specific system that’s held up as a standard for all youth pastors everywhere to follow. The goal is to ask, “How can we best serve our students in pursuing Christ?” As much as we want to prioritize right learning, we cannot stop our discipleship there. Small groups, I believe, can help us move from “learning” to “formation” through a regular rhythm of a shared faith community. 

If you have 14 small groups each week, are you intentional with what happens in those groups? Are they taking the next step in the right direction, or have you begun to focus more on maintaining the system than you are on guarding its disciple-making mission? If your group has never had small groups, how might you be purposeful with discipling students catechetically, in their head, heart, and hands? No matter what form it takes, when we are intentional with small group community in our youth ministries, our discipleship is more robust and complete.

If you are in a spot where launching these ideas won't be easy, don’t be overwhelmed. Start small (no joke intended). Do you have a few leaders who are passionate about pouring into students that you could invite to start a pilot group? Do you have parents who would consider volunteering to help split larger groups into more manageable sizes? Do you have student leaders who could help you pull other students in? 

In whatever context God has placed you, continue to prioritize teaching the Word faithfully, then look for ways to build those deeper relationships, foster community, and call your students to growing together as they grow in Christ. Trust God with the rest.