Central Gospel Church in Seoul, Korea (Assemblies of God), has a membership estimated at 350,000. Growing at a rate of 10,000 members per month, it is predicted that the membership will top 500,000 within a few years. The pastor, Paul Y. Cho, is committed to the use of small cell groups, to which he attributes the church’s phenomenal growth. In this excerpt adapted from his book More than Numbers (Word, 1984; used by permission), Dr. Cho describes how the cell system works.
We tried the cell system in our church and it didn’t work. What went wrong?” an American pastor asked me recently. As I analyzed his experimentation with the system I found essential in building my church, I discovered several problems.
Although the pastor had read my book Successful Home Cell Groups, he himself had not participated in the cell system. This is a fatal mistake. You must take a continual and active role in its implementation and motivation.
Second, he did not wait long enough for the truth to become an integral part of his church’s consciousness. You cannot expect something new to take hold immediately. You must first unteach people the wrong concepts before they accept a new way of doing things. Most churches traditionally have viewed the work of the ministry as the role of the pastor, who was hired to preach, visit the sick and elderly, marry and bury, and to build up the membership. It takes months and years of teaching to change these ingrained false concepts.
Third, many churches establish home cell groups by simply laying out a map of the community, and then saying to the leaders, “Have a meeting in your home.” But too often the home meeting becomes simply another church service. Since most of the people are already members of your church, why should they attend another church service?
Let us address five important questions: (1) What is a cell group? (2) How does a cell group function? (3) How is a cell group organized? (4) How are cell group leaders chosen? (5) What happens to a cell group when it gets too large?
I believe the answers to these questions will answer most others.
What A Cell Group Is
A cell group is not a social gathering, although people do socialize in cell groups. It is not a home meeting or house church, although cell groups may meet in homes. It is not a center for charity, although cell groups may perform charitable acts. A cell group is not another church service, although there may be singing, praying, and speaking.
A cell group is the basic part of our church. It is not another church program. It has a limited size, usually not more than 15 families. It has a definite goal, set by my associate ministers and me, a definite plan given to each cell in written form. It has definite leadership, trained in our school. It has a homogeneous membership—that is, the people who comprise it are similar in background.
When we first experimented with the cell system, we tried to get all of the leading men, mostly our deacons, to start a meeting in their homes. We found this was not workable. Many of the men were busy in their businesses and sometimes got home late at night. They did not have the energy to accept another responsibility. They also felt we had to try the system out on a small scale before committing ourselves too broadly to something new.
Although I could not disagree with their logic, I knew I had heard from the Holy Spirit and had to obey. It is important to hear from God for a new and fresh vision for your church, for unless you have been given a vision from the Holy Spirit, you will not be able to persevere through all of the obstacles.
Then God showed me that we should use women as cell leaders. This was totally revolutionary to us. In Korea, as in most of the Orient, leadership is a man’s business. The traditional role for women is to marry, have children, and keep a good and happy home. Because our culture is basically male-oriented, to give women positions of responsibility and authority in the church was more revolutionary than to establish the cell system itself.
The first problem I had in using women was theological. Paul did say, “Let your women keep silence in the churches” (1 Cor. 14:34). However, Peter, preaching at Pentecost, said, “But this is that which was spoken by the prophet Joel; … in the last days, saith God, … your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, … and on my servants and on my handmaidens I will pour out in those days of my Spirit; and they shall prophesy” (Acts 2:16–18). The promise of the Holy Spirit giving the ability to prophesy was not made just to men, but also to women. I also noticed that women were more loyal and faithful than men in the ministry of Jesus. As I prayed and studied, I concluded that a woman could have a ministry as long as she was under the authority of the church.
Once the women began to be used and we had overcome all of the ensuing obstacles, the men in the church became much more cooperative. These women have worked hard. My advice is, “Don’t be afraid of using women.”
The Homogeneous Principle
There is one basic sociological principle that must be maintained for cell groups to be successful. That principle is homogeneity. By homogeneity I mean like, or similar, in kind. In his book Our Kind of People, Peter Wagner describes his basic theory that churches will grow if they minister to similar groups of people. The same basic homogeneous principle holds true in Korea. Our national culture is divided more along the lines of education and profession. Therefore, medical doctors, college professsors, and other professional people will have more in common with one another than with factory workers and waiters. Housewives will find more in common with other housewives than with female teachers. We found that cell groups based upon this homogeneous principle were more successful than cell groups based primarily on geographical lines.
I have discovered that groups based on geographical considerations alone tend to bring people together who have little in common, what we call heterogeneous cell groups. So much time and energy will be spent trying to develop a feeling of oneness that the main purpose of reaching the lost and caring for the sheep will not be as effective.
If Mr. Chun the banker is in charge of a cell meeting, his cell will be comprised mainly of financial people. Their one-hour cell meeting might take place in a local restaurant and look very much like a business lunch. They have a clear goal: it is the salvation of two souls per year—knowing that if they get two heads of households to accept Christ as Savior their families will also become members of the family of God. After sharing what God has been doing in their lives and in the lives of their families, they might spend some time praying for their specific needs. Yet, before the hour is up, they will discuss one potential convert. Perhaps it is another financial person who has a problem. If that person is going to respond to the gospel, it will be during a time when he needs more support than his family and his present religion can give him.
The potential convert is invited to the meeting. Notice that he is invited to a nonthreatening location and by people to whom he can relate. If he were invited to a heterogeneous group, he might feel totally out of place. But he knows at least one person at the luncheon and will note that the others he is meeting with have something in common with him.
The men in the group will try to help the potential convert—let us call him Mr. Lee. Mr. Lee is not immediately bombarded with the gospel, but he is shown love and concern. This is the gospel in action. Not only is Mr. Chun helpful to Mr. Lee, but all of the members of the cell try to be of help. Soon Mr. Lee will be open to the message of Jesus Christ. He and his family will want to join our church because they have already joined the family of God. Mrs. Lee will want to join a cell with wives of the cell group members. When Mr. Lee has been accepted as a member of the cell, they can pray concerning the next person to be invited.
Also, though two would be targeted for conversion in the year, this does not mean more cannot be reached. But they have been given a clear goal; if they convert four people in one year, they have doubled their goal and feel very proud about it.
Donald A. McGavran, who has been called the father of the modern church-growth movement, states in Understanding Church Growth, “Men and women do like to become Christians without crossing barriers” (p. 227). This experienced scholar and missionary states many examples of the homogeneous principle working in his research throughout the world. Yet we must remember that the homogeneous principle is used in developing our cell system, not in developing our entire church. We do not differentiate between rich and poor, high and low, or well-educated and uneducated; we are all one in the body of Christ. But in developing our cell system, we try to use this natural principle for the sake of more efficiently reaching the lost for Jesus Christ.
The clearest example of this principle can be found in the New Testament. The original church started out as a Jewish movement. Thousands of Jews accepted Jesus Christ as their Messiah. The early church met regularly in the temple and synagogues and kept the Jewish festivals. As long as becoming a Christian did not mean you were not Jewish, the church thrived within the Jewish community. The principle remains true that people will accept the gospel if they don’t feel that they must become something other than what they already are.
In our church, we have a licensed minister for every 30 cells to pastor them. Our cells are also divided into 12 districts, each district headed by an ordained minister. On the wall of our church offices are maps and charts for each district. In fact, it looks like a military strategy room. This is a war we are fighting. The enemy is the Devil. The battlefield is the hearts of lost humanity. The objective is to get as many souls saved as possible before Jesus comes.
One of the problems we have in preaching the gospel in Seoul is how to reach people who live in high-rise/high-security buildings. One of our female cell-group leaders took an apartment in one of the most difficult buildings to evangelize. Then she moved her ministry into the elevator and would ride it up and down looking for ways to serve her neighbors. One day, a lady entered the elevator with a small child and some groceries, so she offered to help her. Once in the apartment, our leader invited the woman to come up to her apartment for tea. The next day, during tea, she witnessed to the woman about Jesus Christ. These tea sessions continued, until a few weeks later the woman accepted Jesus Christ as Savior. Now the leader had an accomplice in her elevator ministry. Today most of the residents of that building are committed Christians. There are a number of cell meetings in that building every week.
In today’s urban explosion, evangelism can conquer even the high-rise building. Every difficult situation is an opportunity for evangelism. With 18,000 cell groups in our church, there are 18,000 stories that could be told, Yet, it is sufficient to say that once the system gets going in a church, there are no limits to growth potential.
How A Group Functions
There is no one way a cell group takes form. It can be held in a classroom during off hours; it can be in a hotel, marketplace, or high-rise building. Yet, each group has a leader who has gone through a prescribed training program. He is also responsible to choose an assistant, so when the group gets too large the second group will have a trained leader ready to function.
The cell group also has a treasurer. We saw a problem developing soon after the system was put into effect in our church when a cell leader began lending money to other members of the cell without any accounting or anyone’s knowledge. After the problem was discovered, we appointed treasurers for every group. If there is a financial need within the cell group, money is given to the member who is in need until he can get back on his feet. A record is kept of all financial matters and it is open for any member of that cell to inspect. This takes away any possibility of misunderstanding.
We have also had to limit the amount of socializing that could be done within each group. In the beginning we had families serving lovely meals when the group visited. However, when they were invited to another home, the hostess would try to outdo the food served in the previous home. Those who were poor felt discouraged because they could not compete with the more prosperous hosts. This situation could have destroyed the entire system if we had not put a stop to it. Now, the cells that meet in homes during the week limit their eating to tea and possibly a few cookies.
A cell meeting must also be limited in time. In the beginning, people want to drag the group meeting on. Some have questions to ask, others want prayer for a particular problem. Yet, if the time is not limited, meetings become too long, and people who have to work the next day are reluctant to attend again. It is also a good philosophy for people to go home when they still have a desire for more.
Choosing Leaders
Leadership is a quality inherent in the personalities of some people. A good pastor will always keep his eyes open for people who natuarally attract others to themselves. Sometimes people who have a knack for communicating with other people make excellent leaders. Usually I find that those with leadership qualities will surface naturally. My job then is to direct that leadership quality toward useful service to the whole church.
Our leaders are trained in our school, and they are motivated to use their full potential in the work of God. This is done by recognition for good service and a system of awards and certificates of accomplishment. I cannot overstress the importance of laying out a clear goal and plan for each leader.
Concentration On Outreach
I reemphasize the importance of keeping cell groups as outreach vehicles in the church. One of the problems a group of people have when they meet together regularly is that they become ingrown. When someone becomes part of a cell group, he soon develops a family tie to other members of the group. As in your family, you enjoy being together and you act differently when a visitor comes into your home. It is hard to incorporate outsiders. That is why the purpose of the cell group has to be stressed continually. Bringing in people from the outside also gives the newly trained members of the cell group the opportunity to teach someone else.
We naturally have a tendency to remember those things we believe are most important. So also in a cell group. A new member of the group begins to be trained in the theology and methodology of soul winning. If he is not given someone to teach what he is learning, he will not learn with the same enthusiasm.
Reaching Discouraged Believers
There are many people in a community who have been members of a church but are not now attending anywhere. Most Christian dropouts seem to have similar stories. They still believe in Jesus Christ. They still consider themselves Christians. But they have been disappointed in the church. Some might have been involved in a church split or become disillusioned with the pastor or church leadership. Some might have fallen into sin and feel ashamed to go back to church. Whatever the reason, there is still a large group of people who need to be brought back into the fold.
A cell group leader is also trained in counseling others. This is very important, for a Christian dropout does not need to be treated like the person who has never heard the gospel. Someone needs to listen to a person who is wounded, then show him or her that the grace of God is applicable to anyone who will call upon him.
Without passing judgment and condemnation, the cell leader introduces the wounded Christian to other members of the cell, who also show a genuine concern. Once the wounded Christian dropout feels he is loved and accepted, he is ready to come back to the church. The cell group then becomes a personal and intimate outreach to needy Christians who are not attending any church. If they were invited to church immediately, they might be turned off. Therefore, not only soul winning, but healing and bringing home those who are not attending church are ministries that can be effectively carried out in the cell system.
When A Cell Gets Too Large
If you are going to have a problem, let it be due to success, not failure. Groups that get too large for the facilities in which they are meeting, and for the purpose they were intended to fulfill, are divided. Yet, this is not easy for some people. The way to divide successfully is to keep the leadership they know. Remember, the cell leader had been training the new leader for this purpose all along, so the new leader is not a stranger. The group will also have a successful division if the purpose for the division is continually emphasized. Cell groups exist to lead sinners to Jesus Christ. If the group becomes too large, then there is a natural hindrance for people to get to know Jesus.
Once the cell has divided into two parts, the leaders from both cells meet regularly. They keep in personal touch with each member. When someone is in the hospital, that person is visited. If there is a personal need, then the leader is there. Each person is pastored far more personally than in most churches that have only a few hundred members.
A young man had started a cell in one of the suburbs of Seoul, and soon there were so many that they had to rent buses on Sunday morning to get them all to church. I could never have properly ministered to the needs of that community some 30 miles away, but our cell system was there and meeting the needs effectively.
When I teach the cell system in church-growth conferences, I usually draw a triangle on a blackboad. If you put the triangle upside-down and place the pastor underneath the triangle, you are demonstrating the conventional way most churches grow. The larger the church, the more weight falls on the shoulders of the pastor.
However, by developing the cell system, a church can grow without destroying its leader. I show this by turning the triangle right-side up. The pastor now is on top of the triangle. The size of the church does not affect the weight upon the pastor.
You have the same Holy Spirit that I do, the same Spirit who opened my eyes to see the reality of the cell system as God’s plan to cause the growth of a new era of superchurches. He can give you the specific answers you need as you go to him in faith and prayer.
Don’t be hindered by the advice of those who say, “It can’t work in this community.” Every town, no matter how large or small, has a key for revival. As you spend time developing an intimate fellowship with the Holy Spirit, he will give you the key to your community. God is not going to bring about church growth in your church without using you. It won’t fall from the sky like rain. It must begin in your heart. It is not only for Korea. It is for every corner of the earth.
Tim Stafford is a free-lance writer living in Santa Rosa, California. He is a distinguished contributor to several magazines. His latest book is Do You Sometimes Feel Like a Nobody? (Zondervan, 1980).
