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Education Ministry

Posted on March 28, 2008 ...

Christian Education
Learning to better Love God, Love People, and Serve the Kingdom

March 30th: Planting New Congregations Sunday
     I have heard it and, to tell the truth, I have probably uttered it: "What do we need with more churches, the ones we have aren't anywhere near full?" This line is usually followed by something that approximates: "We need to focus on filling the churches that we have, not starting new ones." Although this is a line of thought that is certainly understandable, it fails to take into account many of the dynamics of reaching people who are not of the culture or background that readily incorporates structured religious activities into their life.
     If we, for a moment, put ourselves into the shoes of those outside established churches we can gain some appreciation for their reluctance to just show up one day at our door with an immediate understanding of the unwritten systems, expected courtesies, and established cliques that are all a part of this or any other established congregation. There is no doubt that much effort is directed toward making visitors feel welcome, and for those who are already accustomed to our perspective of what church is, that is the most important thing that we can do. However, for those who have very different backgrounds, being welcomed is not the same thing as being tutored, incorporated, and finding purpose and significance in an environment in which they are comfortable. A wise pastor once told me "It is easier to build a church a specific way than it is to change an established one."
     There is, of course, the other side of the coin as well. The current congregation is usually comfortable with the style of worship and the established church procedures and it is truthfully not reasonable to ask them to modify what brought them to the congregation in the first place.
     The rather obvious answer to the desire to bring others to Christ, while not reinventing a current congregation, is church planting. A core group from an established congregation, in faith, begins a small group tailored to meet the needs of a group of unreached people with the intent that it would develop into a totally new congregation. The early Christian church is our example of how this works. Such small groups were the beginnings of the churches at Ephesus, Corinth, Phillipi, etc. It is almost a certainty that these congregations would not have existed if they were required to have Jewish synagogues and Jewish ritualistic religion in each of their communities and they certainly would not have come to Jerusalem to be a part of traditional Jewish religion.
     A motto of our congregation is that "The church exists for those who do not attend." We can mean that very passively, ie (we are here if they decide to drop by) or we can mean that actively, (our desire is to see others come to faith in Christ Jesus and we are willing to expend effort, time, and resources to reach them at their level).
Are you a church planter? Does the call to reach out to the lost and the unchurched resonate deeply within the very fiber of your being? Do you search for significance of your call more than ease of accomplishment? Church planters come from varied backgrounds but have a common desire to be serious and intentional about impacting the eternal destiny of those around them. The North American Mission Board has a site http://www.churchplantingvillage.net/site/c.iiJTKZPEJpH/b.784519/ that will allow you to take a "Quick Test" to see how you might relate to church planting. If you are interested, take the test and also ask them to send results to NorthClevBaptEdu@aol.com . I would be happy to talk with anyone who feels that God is leading them in this direction. Verlin