Fight Club (no, not the movie)
Great idea, with eternal value. From Jonathan Dodson via Boundless.org
Why Fight Clubs?
Word began to spread. Our worship leader started a new Fight Club with two other guys. Soon after that women started forming clubs: simple groups of two or three people of the same gender who meet regularly to help one another beat the flesh and believe in the promises of God.
Three rules of Fight Club
- Know your sin
- Fight your sin
- Trust your Savior
How does a Fight Club Work?
Fight Clubs are small, simple, biblical, reproducible and missional. No more than two or three people to a group. If the group grows beyond three, it is important that the newest member only participate a couple of times to get the idea and then start a new group. This retains the intimacy and trust built in the initial group, while also fostering reproduction — more Fight Clubs! Fight Clubs are simple and biblical in their content, following a progression of Text-Theology-Life.
- Text: A Fight Club agrees to focus on a common biblical text. Each person in the Fight Club commits to devotionally read the same chapter from a book of the Bible each week. For example, your group could read through Colossians in four weeks. As you read, make a point of asking the Holy Spirit to draw your attention to whatever He wants you to know. The Spirit may be prompting you repent of a sin, rejoice in a promise or meditate on an insight. Each week when you get together, make the text your initial focus.
- Theology: Work through the verses in community, trying to follow the flow of the author. From there, try to understand the central theological message of the chapter. Be sure you ask the question: “How does the person and work of Jesus inform this text?” Strive to be Christ-centered, not application-centered. Jesus is sufficient for our failures and strong for our successes.
- Life: This is followed by bringing in your personal struggles and successes from your devotional reading. Be sure to allow plenty of time for this. Share your lives; promote godly accountability and faithful prayer. Finally, be sure to share the names of people whom you are trying to bless with the gospel. Pray as a group, asking God to help you trust His promises, as well as asking Him to give unbelievers the same gift of faith.
Fight Clubs are simple, biblical and missional, following the pattern of Text-Theology-Life. They avoid legalism by promoting a Christ-centered reading of the Scriptures. They avoid license by taking seriously the fight of faith against the flesh. Best of all, they promote lasting joy in Jesus.