Tim Keller from Redeemer presbyterian Church USA, writes a powerful article on 'Why Plant Churches?' For the full article see below...
http://download.redeemer.com/pdf/learn/resources/Why_Plant_Churches-Keller.pdf
Here are a few highlights for me:
In the article he more than suggests that, 'Jesus essential call was to plant churches'. That's powerful. Virtually all of the great evangelistic challenges of the New Testament are basically calls to plant churches... Matt 28:18-20. Acts 2:41-47. The only way to be truely sure you are increasing the number of Christians in a town is to increase the number of churches.
I believe the Apostle Paul's "missionary journey's" in the book of Acts, should be more accurately called, "Church planting and church strengthening journey's".
It is a great mistake, Keller goes on to say, to choose between church planting & church renewal. Strange as it my seem, the planting of new churches in a city is one of the VERY best ways to revitalize many older churches in the vicinity and renew the whole body of Christ. WHY?
1. New churches bring new ideas to the whole body.
2. New churches are the best ways to surface creative, strong leaders for the whole body.
3. New churches challenge other churches to self examination.
4. The new church may be an evangelistic feeder for a whole community.
"Church planting is still the most effective long term evangelistic method under God's Heaven!" How are you involved?
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ReplyDeleteHi Nick . . . Great reminder and refreshment in "Church Planting Motivity" - excellent to hear again/fresh (through Keller and you) the call of the "gurus who have intentioned us in the past" (Wagner, McGavaran, Schaller, Hunter) to keep acting in the present . . . "to plant or not to plant is not the question!!!!" - Plant is the mission. I've been challenged in the aspect of "planting new churches inside larger churches" as well as churches outside of them!!! . . . cheers JD
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