Biblical Basis and Early Church Examples of Small Group Practice in the Church

 

Biblical Basis and Early Church Examples of Small Group Practice in the Church

Acts 2:46: "And they broke bread at home and ate their meals with glad and single hearts."

Acts 5:42: "Day by day, in the temple courts and from house to house, they ceased not to teach and preach Jesus as the Christ."

Acts 16:31-34: "Believe in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved, you and your household... He and all his household rejoiced in their faith in God."

Acts 20:20: "I did not shrink from declaring anything profitable to you, but taught you publicly and from house to house."

 

Category	Biblical Basis/Example	Meaning & Definition	Spiritual Effect	Early Church Practice	Modern Small Group Application	Related Scriptures & Exposition
House Churches	Church in Priscilla and Aquila's house	Church gatherings based on households, embodying the family nature of the church	Building intimate relationships, facilitating pastoral care, promoting life fellowship	Establishing churches in homes, hosting saints, perfecting co-workers	Opening homes as meeting places for life sharing and truth pursuit	Rom 16:5 "Greet also the church in their house"; 1 Cor 16:19; Philemon 2
Breaking of Bread	Early church breaking bread daily	Commemorating the Lord's death, expressing the unity of the Lord's body	Maintaining fellowship with the Lord, strengthening mutual connection among saints	Breaking bread daily at home with glad hearts, sharing meals	Love feasts and breaking bread in small groups, remembering the Lord's death	Acts 2:46 "Breaking bread from house to house with glad and sincere hearts"; Acts 20:7; 1 Cor 11:23-26
Prayer Gatherings	Prayer meeting in the upper room	United prayer, demonstrating body coordination	Releasing spiritual authority, accomplishing God's will	120 people praying together in upper room for ten days, receiving the outpouring of the Holy Spirit	Small group prayer meetings, interceding for various needs	Acts 1:14 "All continued with one accord in prayer"; Acts 2:42; Acts 4:24-31
Word Teaching	Apostles teaching in every house	Apostolic teaching, perfecting and building up of saints	Truth transmission, life growth and maturity	Apostles daily teaching and preaching Jesus in temple and homes	Word sharing and truth pursuit in small groups, mutual perfecting	Acts 5:42 "Daily in the temple and in every house they did not cease teaching and preaching Jesus as the Christ"; Acts 20:20
Mutual Love	Having all things in common, caring for one another	Life connection and practical care among saints	Witnessing Christ, attracting people to the Lord	Believers having all things common, caring for each other, finding favor with people	Mutual support and care in small group life, practicing body life	John 13:34-35 "A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another"; Acts 2:44-47; Gal 6:2
Gospel Expansion	Lydia's household testimony	Whole household believing, home becoming gospel base	Gospel spreading, church establishment and multiplication	Lydia, seller of purple fabric, household baptized, hosting apostles	Inviting friends and relatives to small groups, whole family gospel testimony	Acts 16:14-15 "The Lord opened her heart to heed what Paul spoke...she and her household were baptized"
Testimony in Trials	Philippian jailer's household	Showing Lord's grace in trials, whole household believing	Witnessing Lord's love in adversity, strengthening saints' faith	Prison keeper and household baptized, hosting Paul and Silas at home	Small groups as refuge in trials, mutual comfort and support	Acts 16:31-34 "Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and you will be saved, you and your household...he rejoiced, having believed in God with all his household"
Gentile Gospel	Cornelius' household gathering	Breaking racial barriers, gospel to all nations	Gentiles first receiving gospel, church internationalization	Roman centurion gathering relatives and close friends at home to hear the word	Small groups open to different ethnic groups, practicing inclusiveness and acceptance	Acts 10:24-48 "Cornelius was waiting for them, and had called together his relatives and close friends...the Holy Spirit fell upon all those who heard the word"
Body Coordination	Each exercising gifts in service	Function of members, reality of body life	Healthy church growth, saints' life maturity	Early church members serving according to gifts, coordinating with each other	Each functioning in small groups, mutual perfecting and building	1 Cor 12:12-27 "For as the body is one and has many members...God has set the members, each one of them, in the body just as He pleased"
Life Supply	Apostles perfecting saints	Life feeding and perfecting, saints growing to maturity	Reaching the measure of the stature of Christ, building up Christ's body	Apostles, prophets, evangelists, pastor-teachers perfecting saints	Experienced saints in small groups perfecting new believers and weak ones	Eph 4:11-16 "For the perfecting of the saints for the work of ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ...grows up in all things into Him who is the head—Christ"
Truth Pursuit	Bereans searching Scriptures	Diligently searching Scriptures, understanding God's word	Truth equipment, life transformation and renewal	Daily searching Scriptures to see whether these things were so	Bible study in small groups, sharing light and experiences	Acts 17:11 "These were more fair-minded than those in Thessalonica, in that they received the word with all readiness, and searched the Scriptures daily"; 2 Tim 2:15
Meeting Frequency	Daily gathering without ceasing	Persistent continuous gathering, not forsaking assembling	Maintaining spiritual fervor, mutual encouragement and building	Early church gathering daily in temple and homes	Regular small group meetings, establishing stable gathering habits	Heb 10:24-25 "Not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together...but exhorting one another, and so much the more as you see the Day approaching"
Church Governance	Elders shepherding in every house	Close care, shepherding house by house	Saints receiving appropriate care, healthy church development	Elders governing God's church, shepherding flocks everywhere	Small group responsible brothers and sisters bearing shepherding responsibility	Acts 20:20 "How I kept back nothing that was helpful, but proclaimed it to you, and taught you publicly and from house to house"

 

This message consists of four main parts: 

1. The New Testament Basis for Small Group Meetings - Explained from five aspects: home gatherings, breaking bread, prayer, teaching, and mutual love.

2. Specific Examples of Small Group Meetings in the Early Church - Including the Jerusalem Church, Priscilla and Aquila, and Lydia's home.

3. Spiritual Principles and Key Points for Small Group Meetings - Principles of Body Coordination, Life Supply, and Gospel Burden.

4. Detailed Explanation of Related Scriptures - Providing More Detailed Biblical Basis

  

This table demonstrates that small group meetings not only have a solid biblical basis but also offer rich examples of their practice in the early church. The book of Acts shows that the early church met both in the temple and in homes, combining large and small gatherings. This provides the biblical basis for the practice of small groups today.