Sunday School: The Original Small Group Experience

Beware of the Use of Broad Brushstrokes in the Article Below. :-) 

I recently read an article named "The 5-Step Formula for Sunday School Growth". David Francis, the author, claims that Sunday School is the original Small Group. I've heard that phrase spoken before. It makes me wonder... which one is better? Sunday School or Small Groups?

Are Small Groups Better?

In full disclosure, I've never been a fan of small groups, either as a participant, leader, or as an outsider listening to stories of someone else's bad experience after bad experience. Theoretically, they are supposed to promoted genuine fellowship and spiritual growth. I don't believe they accomplish either because of various reasons, including weak biblical content, artificial fellowship, and forced social environments. Brian Jones, in his post "Why Churches Should Euthanize Small Groups", nails this topic better than I could. If you're like me (and if you are, that's scary), it will resonate with you.

Is Sunday School Better?

I've already stated the basic reasons why I think Small Groups fail to promote genuine fellowship and spiritual growth. I personally don't think they are effective at either. But does Sunday School achieve these outcomes? Is Sunday School better?

I personally believe that Sunday School is better than small groups at promoting genuine fellowship and spiritual growth. It makes so much more sense to me for the following reasons:

Respecting the Congregation's Time: Everyone's already at church on Sunday morning. Why ask them to give up another evening during the week? 

Leadership Oversight: One of the banes of small groups is that pretty much anyone can be a small group leader. Jones' strongest point is here:

The Achilles’ heel of the modern-day small group movement is simple: Small groups don’t create disciples; disciples create disciples. And modern-day small groups are led, for the most part, by people who have attended the church, had a conversion experience, led a reasonably moral life, and can read the study-guide questions, but are not disciples themselves.

American churches have lowered the bar of small group leadership to an absurd level. In fact, it’s so ridiculous most churches would be better off not even having small groups than to offer them with leaders who aren’t disciples.

With Sunday School, it's easier to oversee the teachers when they're all in one building.

Strong, Biblical Content: This one is hard to argue because it is possible for a church to provide a solid curriculum for its small groups. But this item is tied to #2. Without strong leadership in the individual Small Groups, it is difficult to maintain the integrity of the material. It may not be taught as designed. Even if you have the best curriculum, if your leaders/teachers are not strong, biblical leaders, then the content is compromised. It is possible to have weak teachers in Sunday School, but it's easier to oversee them and encourage and coach them if they're all in the same building.

Dynamic Fellowship: For the most part, Small Groups exist to create environments for fellowship. The normal Small Group has 8-12 people gathering in a home with snacks and fellowship. This meeting is simply not a normal experience in US culture. It might be true that we host friends, family, and other guests in our home, but those settings--even though they might be organized and planned--are organic. Small Groups are generally forced and artificial. Sunday School is essentially training, and those who have been in the workforce are accustomed to training sessions. They may not like them, but they know what it means to sit and focus on a certain topic. As this occurs regularly in Sunday School, members get to know each other naturally.

The Answer
Whether or not you agree with me about Sunday School vs. Small Groups, let us agree that neither one is the magic bullet. Both are attempts at developing true fellowship and spiritual growth, but neither is the only answer.

Whether we go with Sunday School or Small Groups (or both), there are 3 basic principles that we need to follow to help other believers grow spiritually as we fellowship with one another:

1. Be in Each Other's Homes: This actually doesn't mean we need to be in each other's houses, though it includes that. But we should be eating with each other, spending time with each other, going to each other's birthday parties, and just developing genuine friendships.
2. One-on-One Discipleship: It is vital that individual believers develop strong relationships, especially one-on-one. Beyond the everyday life activities, one of our goals should be to "make disciples" (Matthew 28:18-20). This command includes teaching another and not just hanging out. There are resources available to help you make this happen, including Design for Discipleship from NavPress (good, but not free) and Multiply (good and free). Another excellent resource, Reading the Bible One-to-One, is available online at Reading121.com or in print.
3. Smaller Group Discipleship: In his book, Discipleship Essentials, Greg Ogden recommends discipleship groups of 3-4. He writes that just two individuals creates more of a teacher-student environment and creates an inequality between them. On the other hand, if the group is too big (for example, a group of 10), then it is much too easy for participants to avoid engaging in the group. The same ideas contained in the materials above can be used in a smaller group setting.

So then, there is not just one avenue for discipleship and fellowship. The local church must explore various ways to create environments for its members to grow individually and collectively. 

What are some ways you've seen or experienced that have helped you or someone else you know grow spiritually through interacting with others? Sunday School? Small Groups? Something else?