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Small
Group FAQ |
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The Bible to be the Word of God, inspired
by the Holy Spirit, and authoritative in all matters of faith and
practice.
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In the Trinity, the one true God
eternally co-existent as the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, all sharing
in the work of creation, providence and redemption.
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God the Father is an infinite,
perfect spirit who concerns Himself with the affairs of man, who hears
and answers prayer and saves all who come to him through Jesus Christ.
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Jesus Christ, God's only begotten
Son, came to earth in the flesh, born of the Virgin Mary. He lived a
sinless life, voluntarily died a vicarious death on the cross,
shedding his blood for the remission of sin, arose bodily the third
day, ascended into Heaven where he intercedes for his people and
will return personally, visibly to the earth.
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The Holy Spirit, came forth from
the Father and the Son to bring men to faith in Jesus Christ and
to regenerate, indwell, sanctify, comfort and empower those who
believe.
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Salvation is necessary for all
men to be accepted by God since all are sinners by nature and by
choice and thereby under condemnation of God. Those who repent
of their sins and receive Jesus Christ as Savior and Lord by
faith are saved and are born anew by the Holy Spirit, becoming
the children of God with eternal life.
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The Church universal is a
living, spiritual body composed of all believers in Christ of
all generations. The local church consists of a company of
baptized believers who are associated together in worship,
edification, evangelism and service. The local church is
independent and autonomous, responsible only to Jesus Christ,
but voluntarily may cooperate with other groups of believers
for the good of God's work.
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The Ordinances given the
church by Jesus Christ are two:
1. Baptism, which is immersion of the believer in water in
identification with the death and resurrection of Christ,
done in obedience upon a prior credible confession of faith.
2. The Lord's supper, which commemorates the Lord's death,
and is to be observed often until Jesus Christ's return.
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Christian Conduct ought
to be exemplified by living for the glory of God, being a
faithful steward of time, talent, and treasure, and
endeavoring to become like Jesus.
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Religious Liberty
should be afforded all men to establish a relationship
with God free from ecclesiastical or political
authority, and that church and government must be kept
separate as having different functions.
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In the end time,
Jesus Christ will return to earth to consummate His
Kingdom. Therein shall occur the resurrection of the
just and the unjust, the final judgment with eternal
life for those in Christ and endless suffering and
eternal separation from God for unbelievers.
TBC is a church of small groups. We believe the real Christian maturity occurs in Purpose Driven Small Groups where members put into action the 5 purposes given in the Bible by Jesus Christ. These 5 purposes are fellowship, discipleship, ministry, evangelism, and worship. It is our desire that spiritual seekers become transformed believers of Jesus Christ who model Purpose Driven lives and motivate others to do the same.
A host is the person who is willing to offer him/herslef to assist the members lead a purpose driven life. A host generally (but not necessarily) provides the place to study together, food/snacks, and may press the buttons on the VCR. The host will also facilitate a rotation for members to oragnize group discussions.
5. Who can host a small group?
Anyone can host a small group as long as they fit the requirements.
Please see question 8 or click here.
6. Do I need to be in a small group as a member of TBC?
TBC is a church of small groups. Realistically, if you are not
in a small group, you are losing an important connection to our church
and your Christian life. Of course, you can be a member of TBC and
not in a small group, but it is our desire that you will grow
spiritually by being part of one.
7. Do I need to be a "Bible expert" to host a small group?
Not at all! If you have the desire to be a host of a small
group, then the important thing is that you will continue to grow in
your relationship with Jesus Christ. The Holy Spirit will
guide you with your leadership as you continue to pray to the
Lord. The small group curriculum is the Biblical expert
teaching.
8. Do I need any special requirements to be a small group host?
We ask that the host be a TBC member that has committed to completing class 210 and classes 201-401. The host should
not be struggling with any moral issues; drugs, alcohol,
cohabitation, or have any marital struggles (divorce in process,
separation etc.) and must accept the Bible as the authority of beliefs.
9. How many people should be in a small group?
A small group should start with at least 3 people, but there is
no top limit as long as there is one group facilitator for
about every 10 people.
10. Where do I get materials for the small groups?
The materials can be found at TBC's Resource Center and at the
Welcome Table.
11. Where can we have small group meetings?
This is up to you. Small group meetings can be held at
your home, at a restaurant, or even in public places. If the
group is meeting at a person's residence who is not a member
of TBC, we ask that the host has fulfilled the Host
Requirements. Please take note of any rules and regulations
of any public place you meet at. Due to space limitations,
TBC cannot offer rooms for any group meetings.
12. What other materials can we use?
Our resource center has plenty of other materials that are
highly recommended. We ask that you do not use materials
outside of our resource center as these are not approved
materials. If you have any questions, please contact the
TBC Small Group ministry.
13. Do I need to be bilingual to host a small group?
No. It is not required. Most groups have
been defined either English speaking or other. If
you have any questions about particular group, please
contact us and we can let you know a group's language
before you visit.
14. Do we need to have food?
Although food may encourage fellowship and better
concentration, it is not a requirement during the
meetings.
15. What is the Purpose Driven Health Assessment?
The Purpose Driven Health Assessment is a tool that
will help you to measure the progress of your
spiritual health. It can usually be found at the
back of your booklet. We encourage you to do it as a group, and
hope that you will keep it handy. Everyone needs to
see a doctor for a check up, and this is the same
with your spiritual health as well. Our spiritual
health needs to be assessed and managed so that we
can mature like Jesus Christ. If we are not
balancing all five purposes in our life, then our
spiritual health will suffer. It is not made
to score your spiritual health, but rather help
anyone pinpoint their weaknesses and to work them
into balance.
The process of balancing the five purposes in our
lives takes time and reflection. First, we need to
evaluate where we are. Once we have a picture of
where we are we then need to determine where we
need to grow by focusing on one or more of the
purpose areas.
Once we've targeted a specific growth area, we
need a plan. By answering the questions under each
purpose, the user will see where their strengths
are and identify where they need to focus more of
their attention for growth.
Another aspect of the tool is the ability to get
valuable feedback from a few people that know us
best, such as a spouse, a small group member, or a
mentor, by having them complete the same
assessment on us. We don't always see ourselves as
others do. The valuable, godly relationships in
our lives can pinpoint the strengths and
weaknesses that we may not identify in ourselves.
16. Do you have a question not answered here?
If your questions cannot be answered here or in
the back of the book, then please come to one of our training seminars like class 210 or contact Pastor Takeshi at takeshi@tokyobaptist.org.
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