Teaching and perfecting the saints by informal group meeting is for the building up of the Body. There is a little difference between the building up of the Body and the building up of the church. The group meetings cannot directly build the church because a group is not the church; a group is only a part of the Body. First, we must feed the new ones. Then we must teach and perfect them to build each other up. This is to build up the Body. However, when we come to a local church meeting, we must prophesy. This is to build up the church. In Ephesians 4 the perfecting of the saints is for the building up of the Body of Christ (v. 12). In 1 Corinthians 14 prophesying is for the building up of the church (vv. 3-5). The building of the church is local, but in the small groups we build up the Body.
You must not forget these four points. It does not matter whether you know how to carry them out or not. When you return to your locality, you must look to the Lord for His grace so that you can practice these points and live such a life. You should not tell people that you are going to do a work. To promote such a work is wrong and will stir up trouble. You do not need to say anything, but just live such a life. As you live such a life, you spontaneously go to bring people to the Lord. Some will see what you are doing and will want to have fellowship with you. They may then become your team members and go out together with you. There is no need for any kind of promotion or propaganda but a daily practice.
To repeat, first go out and bring people to be saved. No one will criticize you for doing this. Immediately after their salvation, you should go back to cherish and nourish them. When there are a few of you doing the same thing with these three or four, you can bring them together for an informal group meeting. Then you need to bring them to prophesy in the church meetings.
Eleventh, you need to avoid three things: discord, separation, and division. In the New Testament there are three cases to illustrate these. Discord is illustrated by the two sisters Euodias and Syntyche in Philippians 4:2. They were co-workers who were not in one accord and spoke different things. This is a case of discord.
The story of Barnabas and Paul illustrates the second point. They were very intimate co-workers. It was Barnabas who brought Saul into the ministry (Acts 11:24-26). At the beginning of their ministry journey, Barnabas took the lead. The record in Acts mentions Barnabas first, then Saul (Acts 11:30; 12:25; 13:2, 7). Acts 13:9 records that at a certain point in their journey, Saul's name was changed to Paul. From this point on, Paul took the lead in the apostolic ministry. This was probably due to the fact that Barnabas did not have as much of a speaking ministry as Paul (Acts 14:12). Although they worked closely together, something happened. After they had agreed to go back and visit the new believers, Barnabas proposed to bring his cousin Mark with them. However, Paul was unwilling to bring him along because he withdrew during their first trip (Acts 13:13). Therefore they separated from each other (Acts 15:37-39). They were not divided, but separated.
In 1 Corinthians 1:10-13 there is the case of division among the Corinthian believers. They were divided by their differing appreciations of the gifted persons. They cared for their preferences and neglected the oneness of the Body of Christ. By this they made divisions.
Wherever you are, you must try your best to avoid creating any kind of discord, separation, or division. First, discord comes when two of you hold on to your own opinions so that you cannot speak the same thing. This may cause a separation between you. Separation comes out of discord. After separation will come division.