“Oh, You Mean Small Groups?”-“Not Quite!”

“Oh, You Mean Small Groups?”

When I tell people we meet in Home Churches, they often smile and say, “Oh, you mean small groups?”

It makes sense. Many churches have small groups. They are places to connect, to study the Bible, to pray, to build friendships. And that is a good thing. We all need spaces where we are known and supported.

But when we say Home Church, we do not mean a midweek add-on. We mean church. Not a Bible study that sits alongside church. Not a support network that feeds into church. Church itself.

So what is the difference?

Not Part of the Church. The Church.

In many models, the main expression of church is the large Sunday gathering. Small groups help people connect more personally, but they are not usually understood to be the church in their own right.

A Home Church is a church of up to fifteen people committed to practicing the ways of Jesus together as a spiritual family. It worships. It prays. It reads Scripture. It breaks bread. It disciples. It practices generosity and forgiveness. It loves its neighbours, It tells people about Jesus. It looks to help meet the needs of the neighbourhood. It shares life.

In Acts 2, the first Christians devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching, to fellowship, to the breaking of bread, and to prayer. They met in larger spaces, but they also met in homes. Their faith was not built around an event but around shared life under the Lordship of Jesus.

That is what we are trying to recover.

Small Enough to Be Real

There is something about smallness that makes honesty possible.

In a large gathering, you can slip in and out unnoticed. In a small church family, you are seen. Your gifts are seen. Your struggles are seen too.

Jesus had crowds, but He formed twelve. Within that twelve, He drew even closer to three. He built a community small enough for real transformation.

When a church is small:

• Everyone can participate, not just observe.

• Everyone can use their gifts, not just a few.

• Forgiveness is not theoretical.

• Hospitality is normal.

• Discipleship becomes relational, not programmatic.

• Evangelism is agile and responsive.

All Functions of the Church

If you step back, church life tends to revolve around a few core things: worship, community formation, discipleship, evangelism, and mercy and justice.

Small groups, in the mode typical of most churches (including Liberty in the past), often focus mainly on community and discipleship. Sometimes a bit of worship. That is good and needed.

But evangelism and mercy/service can drift elsewhere. They get centralised. Organised. Turned into programmes or paid positions. We believe a church, however small, should carry all the functions!

It is a quiet tragedy when gatherings so perfectly shaped for everyday discipleship and grassroots mission settle into being safe discussion circles, when in reality they are often far better placed than larger meetings to notice, respond, and carry the love of Jesus into the streets around them.

A Home Church worships together. It forms deep community. It disciples one another intentionally. But it also understands itself as sent. It asks how to share the good news of Jesus. It looks for practical ways to love and serve. Mission is part of the church’s identity.

Loving Your Actual Neighbours

When Jesus said, “Love your neighbour as yourself,” He was not speaking in abstract terms. He was calling us to love the people near us. Home Churches are located in neighbourhoods on purpose. We gather in homes, not just because it is cosy, but because it roots us somewhere.

We pray for the streets around us. We notice needs. We ask who might need friendship, practical help, or an introduction to Jesus. We talk openly about our friends, families, and colleagues who do not yet know Him. We hold one another accountable, gently and honestly, to live as witnesses.

This makes mission normal.

And because the church is small, it can respond quickly. A meal for a struggling family. Support for someone isolated. Help for a neighbour in crisis. It does not need a large budget or a formal structure. It needs people who are paying attention and willing to act.

Mission and discipleship become intertwined. As we step out together, we grow together.

Everyone Involved

In the New Testament, the church is described as a body. Every member matters. Every member is gifted by the Holy Spirit for the good of others.

In a Home Church, everyone comes not just to receive but to contribute. A prayer. A Scripture. A song. A word of encouragement. A story of what God has been doing.

In the same way, everyone shares responsibility for mission. It is not the job of a select few. It is part of following Jesus. We help each other take steps of courage. We celebrate small conversations. We pray for boldness and compassion.

Church becomes a network of discipling relationships that flow inward and outward at the same time.

Designed to Multiply

Keeping churches small is about staying healthy and reproducible.

As a Home Church grows, it prepares to multiply. New leaders are trained. New gatherings begin. New communities are reached. This keeps us outward-looking. It gives people the opportunity to grow. It reminds us that the church exists not only for those already inside, but for those not yet part of the family.

In the book of Acts, the Lord added to their number day by day. Homes became hubs of worship, community, and mission. That pattern still makes sense.

So No, Not Just a Small Group

When someone says, “Oh, you mean small groups?” we can say, “Not quite.”

Small groups are often designed to help Christians connect. Home Churches are designed to help Christians worship, grow, love one another deeply, and live on mission together in a particular place.

They are small enough for everyone to be known. Small enough for everyone to contribute. Small enough to multiply. And intentional enough to carry the full life of the church, including evangelism and mercy.

The real question is not whether we prefer big or small gatherings.

The real question is this:

If Jesus has loved us and sent us, what kind of church structure will actually help ordinary people love God with heart, soul, mind, and strength, love one another deeply, and love their neighbours in real, practical ways?

For us, the answer is Home Church.