After Jesus healed the demon possessed man he said: "Go home to your friends and tell them what wonderful
thing God has done." Mark 5:19 (16 IV)
Jesus to Zacchaeus: "Today salvation has come to this house [Gk: oikos]." Luke 19:9
After Jesus healed the son of a royal official, "he and all his household [Gk:
oikia] believed." John 4:53 (55 IV)
Levi invited fellow tax collectors to dinner and many believed. Mark 2:14-15 (11-12 IV)
Andrew brought his brother Peter to Christ and Phillip brought his friend Nathaniel.
John 1:40-41, 45
Cornelius feared God "with all his house [Gk: oikos]." He brought together his relatives and close
friends and all responded. Acts 10:1-2, 24, 44
Lydia and "her household [Gk: oikos]" were baptized. Acts 16:14-15
Paul and Silas to the jailor: "Believe in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved, you and
your household [Gk: oikos]." They all came to believe. Acts 16:30-34
The Greek word oikos which appears in some form in most of these scriptures passages is translated house or household, bu
the word oikos refers to a wider group of person that we mean today by the word household. It includes family, friends, associates at work, and other people we frequently associate with. The church in the first century
grew because early Christians shared with people that belonged to their "oikos". The church has always grown best when Christians share with family, friends, and associates.
WHY PEOPLE COME TO CHURCH
(Research by the Institute for American church Growth)
Special Need 1-2 %
Walk-in 2-3%
Pastor 5-6%
Visitation 1-2%
Sunday School 4-5%
Crusade ½%
Church Program 2-3%
Friend/relative 75-90%
Chart from The Master's Plan for Making Disciples
, Win Arn and Charles Arn. This book is highly recommended. Published by Baker Book House.
Kenneth Scott Latourette: "the primary change agents in the spread of faith . . . were the men and women who earned their
livelihood in some purely secular manner, and spoke of their faith to those whom they met in this natural fashion." A History of the Expansion of Christianity, Vol I, 1937, p. 116.
Michael Green:
"The early Christians knew that when the message of faith was heard and demonstrated by friends and family who were known and trusted. . . receptivity to the Gospel increased tremendously."
Evangelism in the Early Church, 1970, p. 210
October 22, 2004
