CELL-BASED MINISTRY: A POSITIVE FACTOR FOR CHURCH GROWTH IN LATIN AMERICA By Joel Comiskey A Dissertation Presented to the Faculty of the School of World Mission And Institute of Church Growth FULLER THEOLOGICAL SEMINARY In Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree Doctor of Philosophy In Intercultural Studies June 1997 ABSTRACT Comiskey, Joel Thomas 1997 “Cell-Based Ministry as a Positive Factor for Church Growth in Latin America.” Fuller Theological Seminary, School of World Mission. Ph.D. in Intercultural Studies. 297 pp. Many are aware that the largest church in the history of Christianity is comprised of tens of thousands of small groups, and David Yonggi Cho has demonstrated that a church can continue to grow rapidly without losing the quality care of its members. Several churches in Latin America have already experienced rapid growth through a cell- based ministry. These churches, while learning principles from Korea, have contextualized the cell-based model for Latin America. The purpose of this dissertation will be to examine key variables of cell-based ministry in selected growing churches in Latin America and to compare those variables in order to describe the ways in which cell-based ministry contributes to church growth. I will examine the patterns of growth in these churches, the organizational structure of the cell-based ministry, patterns of effective cell leadership, and factors connected with cell multiplication. Along with the interviews and participant observation in these case study churches, I prepared a questionnaire consisting of twenty-nine questions to determine which factors were significant in helping a leader multiply his or her cell group. The dependent variables were four questions related to cell multiplication. The rest of the questions were constructed as independent variables to determine what affect they might have on cell multiplication. These findings, along with the patterns and differences among the cell churches, are presented in Chapters 6 through 10. ii Chapter 1 deals with the theology of the church as it relates to cell-based ministry. Chapter 2 covers the history of small groups from the Old Testament to Methodism. Chapter 3 looks at cell group strategies today, including the Pure Cell model and the Meta model. Chapter 4 focuses on Latin American cultural patterns, while Chapter 5 specifically deals with Latin American leadership patterns. After laying the foundation for cell-based ministry in Chapters 1 through 5, Chapter 6 describes the five churches, Chapter 7 analyzes the organizational aspects of their cell ministry, Chapter 8 explores the leadership patterns of cell-based ministry in these churches, Chapter 9 examines the process of cell group multiplication in the case study churches and Chapter 10 offers a final summary and recommendations based on the research. Mentor: C. Peter Wagner 356 words iii DEDICATION to my wife Celyce, my faithful partner and best friend iv ACKNOWLEDGMENTS If it were not for certain people, this Ph.D. would not be possible. I especially want to thank my wonderful wife, Celyce Comiskey, who provided untiring support and encouragement during these intense months of study. She was not only a great mother, picking up the slack with our children and our home, but was also an invaluable sounding board for my ideas and provided needed editing for my dissertation. My three children Sarah, Nicole, and Chelsea, also deserve special attention for their patience with Daddy during these months of study. If it were not for my parents, Tom and Phyllis Comiskey, I would not be getting this esteemed degree. They have been a constant encouragement to me and have modeled to me the importance of education since childhood. I want to thank Peter Wagner, my mentor, who was also my model and constant inspiration. It was a great joy to work under someone who I respect so greatly and whose example I want to follow. Paul Pierson also formed part of my doctoral committee. I want to especially thank him for the personal time that he spent with me, offering valuable advice and corrections. I must also thank Pablo Deiros for being the third person on my doctoral guidance committee and for his valuable help in preparing my questionnaire in the Spanish language. Fred Smith offered patient advice and encouragement to me, especially when I was preparing to enter the Ph.D. program. Richard Gorsuch also helped immensely in the area of statistics and the formation of my questionnaire. There are two students who deserve special thanks. Kate Leung, a Ph.D. student in the School of Psychology, spent many hours of her busy schedule instructing me concerning the quantitative aspects of my research. She urged me to continue when I v was at the point of giving up, and I am very grateful for it. Aivars Ozolins also spent many extra hours of his time offering help in the early stages of my Ph.D. proposal. I also want to thank Alan McMahan, Mike Crow, and Ian Prescott, fellow SWM doctoral students, who in addition to their encouragement, gave me many valuable insights during our weekly lunch discussions. They also gave me many suggestions concerning my field research. Above all I give thanks to the Lord for His abundant grace, empowering, and insight. I can testify that these words of the apostle Paul are true in my own life, “For in him you have been enriched in every way--in all your speaking and in all your knowledge” (1 Co. 1:5). vi TABLE OF CONTENTS ABSTRACT...................................................................................................................... II DEDICATION.................................................................................................................IV ACKNOWLEDGMENTS ............................................................................................... V TABLE OF CONTENTS ............................................................................................. VII LIST OF TABLES ....................................................................................................... XIV LIST OF FIGURES ..................................................................................................... XVI LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS ................................................................................... XVII INTRODUCTION............................................................................................................. 1 CHAPTER 1 THEOLOGICAL FOUNDATIONS OF CELL-BASED MINISTRY.6 THE CHURCH: WHAT IT IS ............................................................................................... 6 Description from the Biblical Text.............................................................................. 6 Biblical Imagery of the Church .................................................................................. 8 Marks of the Church ................................................................................................. 11 THE CHURCH: WHAT IT DOES ....................................................................................... 13 Engagement in Discipleship ..................................................................................... 13 Participation in Social Activity................................................................................. 19 Testimony to the Kingdom of God ............................................................................ 23 CONCLUSION.................................................................................................................. 26 CHAPTER 2 HISTORY OF THE CELL MOVEMENT .......................................... 27 SMALL GROUPS IN BIBLICAL PERSPECTIVE.................................................................... 27 Small Groups in the Old Testament.......................................................................... 28 Small Groups in the New Testament......................................................................... 29 SMALL GROUPS IN EARLY CHRISTIAN HISTORY ............................................................ 31 Changes that Affected the Small Group Movement Negatively............................... 31 Small Groups among the Clergy............................................................................... 33 SMALL GROUPS AND MONASTICISM .............................................................................. 33 From Isolation to Community................................................................................... 34 Evangelistic Bands in Monasticism .......................................................................... 34 SMALL GROUPS OF THE PRE-REFORMATION PERIOD ..................................................... 35 vii Yearning for Change................................................................................................. 35 Brethren of the Common Life.................................................................................... 36 SMALL GROUPS DURING THE TIME OF THE REFORMATION............................................ 37 Anabaptist Movement ............................................................................................... 37 Luther and Small Groups.......................................................................................... 40 Martin Bucer............................................................................................................. 42 SMALL GROUPS AFTER THE REFORMATION.................................................................... 44 Pietism .....................................................................................................................