QUOTE
Ministry Visitation in Micro-mission fields: Evangelism at Yoido has an explicit
territorial, geographical emphasis. Geographical districts of cell networks
mimic the old parish system.
Evangelism focuses on the immediate
geographical neighborhood of the cell leader. The Korean term for cell leader
is literally ku-yok jang which means “leader in one’s small geographical
territory or area.” These leaders “have spiritual oversight of a specific area
and are responsible to visit participants and reach out to non-Christian
neighbors.”[1] Cell groups identify needs within the lives
of specific people in their micro-mission field and set goals;[2]
the cell group then visits and prays for and with specific people in their
neighborhood. Gift giving, ranging from gifts at special occasions[3]
to the personal delivery of a copy of the weekly church newspaper is culturally
valued and offers a valid reason to visit a non-Christian.[4]
Cell groups focus on ministering to their neighbors in micro-mission fields;
they solve small, local human problems through building helpful relationships
first horizontally between neighbors and then vertically between those
neighbors and Jesus Christ through prayer to meet needs.[5]
[1]Hurston, Growing the World’s Largest Church, 72. It is westerners, not Yoido Church, who adopted the word “cell group” in order to emphasize biological metaphor of cell multiplication.
[2]Ibid., 101.
[3]Ibid., 74. This is also an expectation within the cell.
[4]The four page Full Gospel News “contains a summary of Dr. Cho’s previous Sunday sermon, notes for the upcoming home cell meeting lesson, at least one personal testimony of healing or salvation, and assorted church news.” Weekly circulation in 1978 was ten thousand copies; the name was changed to Full Gospel Family in 1994. In 1990 the circulation had climbed to 1.4 million copies each week; each week the church gives each staff pastor two thousand copies to distribute through cell leaders. Each copy delivered is an opportunity for conversation. Hurston, Growing the World’s Largest Church, 103, 218.
[5]Ibid., 104. Yoido’s ministry is massively decentralized through the use of cells working in micro-mission fields functioning as geographical and sociological niches. Each cell functions as a local niche for a crossing the chasmdiffusion strategy. Cf. Christopher P. Scheitle “Organizational Niches and Religious Markets: Uniting Two Literatures,” Interdisciplinary Journal of Research on Religion 3, 2007, http://www.religjournal.com/ (accessed June 12, 2007).
NOTE (my response)
DISCERNMENT QUESTIONS
RESOURCES
Footnotes:
The quote is from Major League Disciple Making: An Overview of the Best Research on the Cell Church, an online course developed for the Institute for Discipleship at www.BeADisciple.com in 2009. Course materials, including these lectures, can be downloaded here: http://www.disciplewalk.com/IFD_MLD_Class_Links.html
All Scripture quotations are from the Revised Standard Version of the Bible, copyright © 1946, 1952, and 1971 National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved. Please review the page How and Why We Use Quotes.