MISSIONAL CHURCHINITIATIVE

EXTERNAL

Resources for Evangelism

and Church Planting

Eurasia Region

CONTENT

5 MoMentuM7 IntroductIon8 theologIcalandFoundatIonalPrIncIPles40 PractIcalaPPlIcatIons

55 PrinciPlesofchurchPlanting57 Foreword58 IntroductIon60 naturalchurchPlantIng63 BecomIngachurchPlanter67 churchPlantIngmodels78 startInganewcongregatIon82 organIzIngthenewchurch84 develoPmentoFPastoralQualItIesInachurchPlanter88 resPonsIBIlItIesoFthePastor/churchPlanter95 whataBoutthechurchPlanterssuPPort?97 conclusIon98 suggestedreadIng

101 MethodsofrelationalevangelisM102 eachonewInone105 theBIgBrother/BIgsIsterPlan107 sermonoutlIne116 systemoFPrayercells/smallgrouPPlan123 evangelIstIccamPaIgns

129 treasurechestoflove

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MOMENTUM

toolsForchurchPlantIngandchurchdeveloPmentInthePost-chrIstIanworld

acollectIonoFresourcesForthechurchIneuroPeandthewest

Bymomentum,uKltd.achurchdeveloPmentPartneroFthechurchoFthenazareneIneurasIa

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Copyright MOMENTUM, UK Ltd, 2010This edition translated and published by arrangement with MOMENTUM.All rights reserved.

Unless otherwise noted, Scripture taken from the Holy Bible, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION. Copyright 1973, 1978, 1984 by Biblica, Inc. All rights reserved world-wide. Used by permission.

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INTRODUCTION

MOMENTUM UK Ltd is the result of a vision by its four founding Naza-rene partners: British Isles North District, British Isles South District, Eurasia Region, and Nazarene Theological College. MOMENTUM is about MOVEMENT. Its heartbeat is to help create, foster and inspire a new wave of Christian thinking and practice that will lead to a re-newed focus on relevant and effective mission across the land. We pray that through the dynamism of the Holy Spirit we may be a catalyst for change, renewal, progress, and development.

There are five components to MOMENTUMs work:

To deliver training and education that equips students to be more effective for mission in the 21st century.

To support and develop church planting. Demonstrating the impor-tance of this component, MOMENTUM has planted a new church in England based on the establishment of missional hubs.

To provide church health checking through curriculum, church health checks, and tools.

To resource churches with practical tools through newsletters, Toolkits for local churches and pastors, among other resources.

To develop partnerships both inside and outside the Nazarene church.

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SECTION ITHEOLOGICAL AND FOUNDATIONAL PRINCIPLES

A THEOLOGY OF CHURCH GROWTH

Is there a need for theology in studying church growth? Every aspect of the work and ministry of the church must have

a theological basis, rooted in an aspect of Gods own character and work.

How does the desire to grow the church fit with Gods purposes? Perhaps it is more accurate to speak of theological principles that are foundational for the practice of church growth rather than a theology per se.

QUESTION: What do we know about God and His work that leads us to conclude that He is concerned about church growth?

A church growth theology written for the church growth movementIn the early 1980s, George W. Peters reacted to the criticism that church growth was narrowly focused on getting people saved, numerical growth, and methods for doing this well. He said that, for centuries, theological principles underpinned the ministry of evangelism, and that church growth writers merely implied these principles rather than explicitly stating them. He reasoned that although there was no handbook called, The Theological Basis of Church Growth, it was evident that there was a strong theological basis leading to the formation, burden and practice of the church growth movement. It was the same theological church growth movement beliefs that led the church from its beginning to reach out and win people for Christ. However he did acknowledge that although this theology was implicit, it was never made explicit. Therefore, Hutton extrapolates a theology of church growth from the four pillars outlined in George Peters, A Theology of Church Growth as foundational pillars for establishing church growth theory and practice1.

1 George Peters, A Theology of Church Growth, Zondervan, 1981. T. Hutton develops these principles in his lecture: Has Church Growth theory a legitimate theological basis? Growing Healthy Churches, Lecture 2. 2009.

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1. God has created the world, and His creation is responsible to Him.

2. Mankind has rebelled against God; all have become sinners and are lost.

3. God works redemptively to make Israel His people and to be His priestly nation to the world. A light to others.

4. God sends His Son into the world as the only Saviour for Israel and all peoples.

5. Jesus Christ, through His life and death, provides the only way to salvation.

6. Jesus commissions the apostles to preach this Gospel to all nations .

7. The Holy Spirit is Gods mission agent, preparing people to believe in Jesus Christ.

8. Those who hear and receive Jesus are adopted into Gods family through His grace and are added to the church.

9. The church in every generation is commanded to continue preaching the Gospel.

10. Church growth is evidence of Gods love and human response to His Son.

These 10 principles expressed in varying forms by other church growth theologians can be reduced to a few essential points:

God is the missionary God Who sets out to redeem His world (Mission Dei).

He sends His Son into the world to save the world. The Son sends His Spirit into the world to witness about the

Son. The Spirit sends the church out on a mission to reach the lost.

This means that church growth is a direct corollary of Gods mission. A key test for church growth theologians is John 20:21: As the Father has sent me, I am sending you.

If Gods mission to reach the lost is successful, it will result in people believing in Christ. The key text for church growth theologians is the Great Commission found in Matthew 28:19-20: Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything

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I have commanded you. People following Christ and joining with the church is the evidence that Gods mission is being fulfilled. Church growth theology presupposes Gods universal love, mans universal sinfulness, and Gods universal redemption in Christ, as evidenced by the lost being found and brought into the Church. This is the heart of a church growth theology.

The importance of measuring growthConnected to church growth and the unshakeable conviction that the church should be growing as new people join Gods family is a conviction that measuring that growth is justified theologically, biblically, and scientifically.

Theological Jesus Himself says that even in heaven there is rejoicing over one lost sheep that returns. Is God counting? The theological point is that Gods mission heart knows when lost people are being found. In Christ, God reaches the masses as well as individuals; He knows them all. Likewise the Holy Spirit has inspired the Bibles authors to record numerical growth as an illustration and proof that Gods mission is being accomplished.

BiblicalThe church growth movement points out that numerical records are a significant feature of the growing church, particularly demonstrated in Acts. In response to criticism that measuring new believers is unspiritual at worst and minimalist at best, members of the movement note that it wasnt unspiritual or minimalist for the New Testament writers to do so. It was important not for numbers sake, but to know conclusively that the Holy Spirit was achieving His mission to redeem people among communities, cities and societies. Numbers evidenced the Holy Spirits presence and activity.

ScientificThe church growth movement considered itself scientific, claiming verifiable observations it considered normative for church growth. These observations included the importance of recognising host communities, factors to learn cultural relevancy and the importance of contextualisation and indigenous leadership and practice. They also advocated that collecting and analysing data was useful in drawing out

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trends and observations. Statistics are numerical patterns that can be used for helpful analysis and overview. Denominations and churches that carefully collate and analyse numerical data can prayerfully draw useful patterns for the church on a range of issues, such as church growth, membership, new Christians, financial giving, and so on. Though numbers do not say everything, they do say something. When used carefully, they can help analyse both successes and failures and raise questions that need to be addressed. However, there are many that question whether the church growth movement can be properly described as scientific; there are strong theological reasons as to why certain aspects of their missiological observation, such as the famous HUP (homogenous unit principle), should NOT be used to inform and shape missional strategy. The observation that more people will become Christians if they do not have to cross linguistic, racial and cultural barriers may be inherently true as a sociological observation but may not be deemed to be compatible with an intentional strategy of kingdom building cross-cultural communities or multi-cultural communities. If numerical growth is the only driving force then there is a danger that those strategies that deliver growth can triumph at the expense of kingdom virtues and values. The work, Evaluating the Church Growth Movement: Five views, edited by G. L. McIntosh (Zondervan, 2004), is an excellent discussion between missiologists on these and other issues.

Theological issues the church growth movement has had to address What is the nature of the Church (one holy, catholic, apostolic

church)? What is the relationship between the Church and the kingdom? What is the motivation or goal of church growth? What does a growing healthy church look like biblically and

theologically?

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SHIFTING PARADIGMS: FROM CHURCH GROWTH TO CHURCH HEALTH

In the early 1990s, key writers and leaders within the church growth movement began to question the prominence given to church growth theory in the evangelical church. Voices from all denominations began to call the Church to broaden its emphasis by rediscovering the wider biblical ethos of the church. This call, prompted by many of the criticisms we have just noted, and the changing contexts of mission, has led to the present clamour for church health to be placed firmly on the ecclesiological agenda.

How is this call different and what does it mean? It means: the quality of the church is emphasised as much as the quantity

of the church. the shape and ethos of the church is emphasised as much as

the ministry of the church. the authenticity of the church community is as paramount as the

its activity. that forming people through a transformational process is as

important as bringing people to faith. that the agenda and mission of the kingdom is as vital as the

growth of the church. that the spirituality of the church is as important as the work of

the church. that the churchs development is as important as the

transformation of the world.

The emphasis on church health serves as a correction to the excesses of the church growth movement. It is noted in church growth curricula, books, conferences and strategies that developing healthy churches is the key to growth. It reflects a new emphasis that, incidentally, should fit well in a Wesleyan church, which at its heart is an evangelical community preaching holiness (indeed wholeness/health). We are well placed theologically to embrace this change and be leading agents of health and transformation.

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The challenge is for church leaders and church communities to rediscover the importance of healthy churches characterized by holistic, balanced, multi-faceted and, yes, growing communities. Growth is a result of health. We know it is possible for a growing church to be unhealthy, but a healthy church is unlikely to experience lack of growth.

Churches must reflect theologically and biblically about this challenge. Various practical tools can help pastors learn how to develop healthy churches.

Perhaps the next exercise, developed by MOMENTUM (really written by the Apostle John) to help us learn to reflect on the Bible from a health perspective, may be of assistance. This is one example that could be applied to other New Testament passages, such as the letters to the churches. In Revelation 2-3 we see how Christ is concerned for the witness, shape, ethos and values of seven Christian communities. The readers may start by looking at these churches with church health glasses on, then fill in the grid supplied here by discussing it together. Finally, ask: What lessons can we learn about church health from this passage?

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CHURCH HEALTH/ILLNESS OF CHURCH

IS THERE A REMEDY?

IS THERE A PROMISE?

Church oneEPHESUS

Church TwoSMYRNA

Church ThreePERGAMUM

Church FourTHYATIRA

Church FiveSARDIS

Church SixPHILADELPHIA

Church SevenLAODICEA

Developing the healthy church is not just a new initiative, but a challenge to the church to be balanced in its focus, ethos, and scope. It is a call to discover and develop the critical characteristics that comprise what the church is, and to continually develop and evaluate these in practical ways. More of how this can be done is outlined in the next section. But for now, let us end where we started, by quoting Paul who said this about the church:He makes the whole body fit together perfectly. As each part does its own special work, it helps the other parts grow, so that the whole body is healthy and growing and full of love. (Ephesians 4:16 New Living Translation)

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HEALTHY CHURCH PLANTINGAND CHURCH HEALTH

IntroductionIn the last 10 years, on both sides of the Atlantic Ocean there has been a significant paradigm shift within the evangelical movement from a church growth mandate to a church health mandate. As a consequence, there has been a shift from planting churches (especially saturation planting) to planting healthy, sustainable and reproducing churches.

The church growth movement, which has had such an influence on church planting in the last 50 or more years, must be recognized as bringing many good contributions to the kingdom of God and the Church. Some of the most important contributions are worth mentioning.

Church growth is a concern to God; non-growth displeases God. Disciples are tangible, identifiable, and countable people who increase the church numerically.

Church growth shifted the authority and leadership in mission churches to indigenous leadership and ministry.

It demonstrated that a surge in church planting is an effective missionary strategy in and across cultural and class barriers.

It developed an evangelistic focus on receptivity among ethnic and cultural groups.

It recognized identifiable barriers that inhibit church growth and applied principles to overcome barriers and make mission more effective.

The movement established the importance of contextualization in missionary strategy.

It employed social science observations and research tools to gain insight into society and people, as a critical component of developing effective strategies.

The movement called the Church to make the Great Commission the forefront of mission, particularly evangelism, conversion, disciple-making and reproducing.

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However, along with these contributions there have been some unhealthy outcomes for the evangelical movement and evangelical church planting.

Overemphasis on numbers and in particular numerical growth (conversion).

The churchs size tends to be equated with the success and health of the church.

Discipleship and follow-through is often weaker than evangelism. Narrowly defining and practicing mission, when the call to

mission supersedes church growth. The focus is church-centered more than kingdom-centered. Stronger on pragmatism and weaker on Biblical and theological

perspectives of mission (i.e. the end justifies the means?). Overreliance on social sciences. Incessant comparison of churches. Development of marketing and commercial strategies that

compromise the Gospel or make the church whatever users want it to be.

The focus on church planting as the key evangelistic strategy means that hundreds of churches were planted to win converts but many of them closed only a few years later because they started poorly and lacked health, sustainability, and good solid foundations.

It is the last point in particular that focuses our mind today: the need to plant healthy and sustainable churches.

Of course, church health and church growth are not necessarily mutually exclusive philosophies, as Rick Warren noted almost a decade ago:

It is possible to have a growing church without being healthy but not possible to have a healthy church without growing. The issue for the 21st century church will not be church growth but church health

However even Warren, trained at Fuller Theological Seminary and taught by the movements fathers Donald McGavran and Peter Wagner, places the emphasis on church health and not on church growth, which

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is always consequential. Perhaps it is good to be reminded again of how Paul prays for the church of God in his great Ephesians prayer:

He makes the whole body fit together perfectly. As each part does its own special work, it helps the other parts grow, so that the whole body is healthy and growing and full of love. (Ephesians 4:16, New Living Translation)

Or in the words Charles Wesley wrote 270 years ago:

Jesus! the name that charms our fears,That bids our sorrows cease,Tis music in the sinners ears,Tis life, and health, and peace.

[Church] is not just a dream of more and better individual Christians standing like isolated statues in a museum. It is a dream of a community vibrant with life, pulsating with forgiveness, loud with celebration, fruitful in mission.2

a community vibrant with life,pulsating with forgiveness,

loud with celebration,fruitful in mission

Not bad values at all for guiding the planting of a healthy church!

There is no room in this documentnor is its purposeto describe both the legacy and impact of the church growth movement on church planting. However, it is important to note that the rediscovery of church health and related issues is largely a reaction to the church growth movement. This is beginning to have a profound effect upon current church planting work in the United Kingdom and on the North American continent. In the United Kingdom this rediscovery of health has also come out of painful experiences in the 1990s during which many churches were planted and failed through the combination of initiatives, Challenge 2000 and the decade of Evangelism, among the most notable. Today we reflect theologically and analyze these experiences.

2 Brian McLaren, The Church on the Other Side: Doing Ministry in a Postmodern Matrix, Zondervan, 2000, (p 35).

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In the 2003 booklet Church Planting: Past, Present and Future by George Lings and Stuart Murray, and Planting Mission-Shaped churches Today by Martin Robinson, the authors reflected on church planting practice in the 1990s by noting several factors that all too often contributed to unhealthy and unsuccessful church planting. To their notes I have added other factors that need to be addressed if healthy church planting is to occur.

Unhealthy Practice Church planters often were not properly prepared for the task of

church planting. The lead church planter (pioneer or team leader) was not

assessed or evaluated as to experience, suitability and gifting. Many new plants lacked any strategic awareness and were

planted for many wrong reasons (usually pragmatic reactions). Many new plants cloned existing models (the mother) and

therefore cloned much of the DNA of already failing churches. Many new plants did not exegete the culture and context (among

the most vital things a church planter needs to do). Many church plant leaders and church plant teams had no

church planting training or experience/exposure. Many church plant leaders and teams had no accountability or

support mechanisms. Many new plants were bogged down with structure, programme

and ecclesiology rather than birthing new mission. Many new plants had no model of missional or incarnational

living, instead were based solely or primarily on attritional models (i.e. the launch was what we worked for!).

Many sponsoring denominations fell into two extremes of position that were unhelpful. They either put too many obstacles in the way of the new church or put none. Both were irresponsible and did not help the planter or the planting.

Many new plants did not consider what they were planting (what type of church it would be) and whether it was culturally relevant (many had no idea of how to be church other than how they always were).

Many new churches had no strategy (not even a loose one) of how to focus effort and activity. Many new churches did not consider critical sustainability and discipleship issues for ongoing health (conversion was the driving force).

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The consequence is tangible.

The 1980s-90s could be summed up as:Plant as many churches as you possibly can to win the lost and add to the church.

So what is emerging in the 2000s?Plant as many healthy churches as you can to extend Gods kingdom and glorify God.

What does that mean to our current missional practice?It means that much more careful attention is given to the church planting process from the earliest stages to the formation of the fully-fledged church, and that this is done intentionally. It means that more attention is now given to the type of church that will be planted, its shape, its ethos, its value, its DNA to ensure that healthy churches are born that will survive and thrive and reproduce in the years ahead.

We need to ask the following in church planting: What are the key foundational principles that address the issue of how to birth healthy churches? These questions will be addressed in the following section.

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Seven key foundational principles for planting healthy churches

1. A theological basisIssue to address: How does church planting relate to our understanding of God?

Church planting is not about empire building. Church planting is not particularly about growing a denomination. Church planting is not even primarily about church growth. Church planting IS about joining God on His Mission to His

world. Denominations are an instrument of His mission.

All evangelism, including church planting, must be rooted and flow from an understanding of the Missio Dei (the mission of God). Everything God has done in this world flows from His outward-looking heart.

Mission is defined, directed, energized and accomplished by GodAll that the church does in mission must be related to the missionary work of God3

It is not the church of God that has a mission in the world but the God of mission who has a church in the world 4

Gods missionary purposes are cosmic in scope, concerned with the restoration of all things, the establishment of shalom, the renewal of creation and the coming of the kingdom as well as the redemption of fallen humanity and the building of the church.5

God is the missionary building His kingdom and we are to join God on His kingdom mission. When new churches are not born out of an understanding of Gods mission, they can easily degenerate into nothing more than another church brand type where believers come to be fed!

3 Stuart Murray, Church Planting: Laying Foundations, Herald Press, 2001, p. 39.4 Mission-Shaped Church, Church House Publishing, 2004, p. 85.5 Ibid.

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Healthy new churches seize the missionary opportunities God is creating for them as the Missionary God. Their primary motivation must be a burden and love for people: For God so loved. . . that he gave. . . Mission is not primarily about our programmes, our models, or our ideas. It is about having the heart of Jesus, who was moved with compassion when he saw the people were harassed and lost and without a shepherd. When a church is birthed because it shares the outward-looking heart of God, it is born for the right reasons. What is the motivation for church planting?

2. A contextual awareness Issue to address: How is church planting informed by a particular context?

Church planting is not about planting preconceived churches. Church planting is not about cloning. Church planting is not about parachuting in predefined church

culture. Church planting IS about planting a church informed by the

context.

It takes all kinds of churches to reach all kinds of people.6 All church plants must therefore be informed by the context in which the church plant will be born.

General context (Western Christianity): A post-Christian context, A postmodern context, A post-community context, and A post-European context.

Particular local context (local community): Demographics, Geographics, Community analysis and research, and Whether or not we are to plant a church in this place

(what is this place like).

6 Rick Warren, The Purpose-Driven Church: Growth without compromising your mes-sage and mission, Zondervan, 1995, p.61.

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New church planters need to be experts in their communities. They should be conducting every possible research to build a community profile of what the target community is like and that information should assist in helping the new church formulate its mission, model, ministry and methods of planting. Contextualization is among the most important things to get right in the new church plant. What will work in this place? Failure to discern the appropriate context into which the new church is to be born will almost inevitably lead to difficulties -- difficulties that that may be irreversible. (MOMENTUM)

3. A cultural understandingIssue to address: How does church planting relate to people and their customs?

Church planting is not about imposing our culture on others. Church planting is not about denouncing other cultures. Church planting is not about dismissing important customs as

irrelevant. Church planting IS about planting a church sensitive to its

surrounding culture.

Cultural sensitivity is, in some ways, an extension of contextualizing except that it relates to the specific issue of how the giver and receiver both identify their own and each others underlying world views. It is also how they interpret the good news of Jesus (itself culturally shaped) into a host culture sensitively. Church planters must conduct two types of research of a potential target area or people group:

Quantitative research (statistical information and hard facts)

Qualitative research (the story behind the statistics) What are the people like? What are the norms and customs of the people? What traditions are sacred to the people? What are the street cultures? What are the taboos of the society? Who are the key people?

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Where are the key places of power and influence? What is familiar and important to the people group?

Dr. Donald McGavern, a founder of the church planting movement, was well known for his statement that people like to become Christians without crossing racial, linguistic or class barriers.7 We have to ensure that new churches become sensitive to the cultures they are to penetrate and, in their shape and form, do not create an unfamiliar, alien environment in which people are expected to come and be comfortable.

4. A strategic planIssue to address: How is the church planting process formed, grown, launched, and developed?

Church planting is not born without careful planning. Church planting must not be directionless. Church planting is not about hit and miss. Church planting IS about planting a church intentionally through

careful and strategic planning that includes the following stages:

1) Initial idea2) Many conversations to share an idea3) Ownership of the idea4) Public owning of the informal conversation5) The establishment of a launch group to pray and explore6) Ownership/sponsorship by another church/group/district7) Fact-finding on target group and community8) Shape, ethos and model of church formulated9) Plans for the official launch of the church10) Team allocation of responsibilities11) Training and equipping12) Promotion and prayer13) Further recruiting where necessary14) Discussion about after-launch processes15) Pre-launch events and publicity16) Launch17) Implementation of plans to develop church

7 Lausanne Committee for World Evangelism. (1978). LOP 1: The Pasadena Consultation - Homogeneous Unit Principle ,Retrieved from http://www.lausanne.org/all-documents/lop-1.html

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New churches should not be born prematurely. Carefully consider the many important things that need to be in place to launch a new church successfully. Strategic thinking is necessary from the conception of an idea to the development and sustainability of the new church. Vision, strategy, goals and implementation plans will need to be formulated and delivered in specific time frames. Goals need to be SMART.

5. A relevant modelIssue to address: What is the most appropriate model to use for a new plant?

Church planting can be started in many different ways. Not all church plants have to look the same. Not all church plant models work equally well in every place. Church planting IS about choosing the most appropriate way

to start the new church.

Range of models Mother/daughter model Multi-congregational model Urban centre model Pioneering model Satellite model Cell model Targeted ethnic model

Replant model

Key issue: How are we best likely to reach our target people or our target community?

Stuart Murray, a leading writer on postmodernity and post Christendom, and mission consultant to several UK denominations says:

Since we live in a complex maze of cultures and identities, we must not assume that one church planting model will be appropriate in all circumstances. . . Different social contexts will employ different approaches. Different ecclesiastical structures will

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employ different methods. Sociological analysis, theological reflection, and prayer planning are all needed. However we must remember that there are many different ways of planting churches.8

6. A flexible structureIssue to address: How is the new church going to be organised?

New churches need the minimal amount of structure. Overladen structure can kill a new church. Not every church will need to be organized in the same way. Church planting IS about having structures to enable the

church to fulfill the mission.

Since new churches may be born through a new model, and in response to a new or changing context, it is vital that the church planters ensure the structures of a new church do not become fixed too early. Indeed, there is both a need and an opportunity for new churches to be creative in how they are organised. Many churches that have been organized for a while struggle with overloaded church organisation and structure. New churches need to keep structures flexible to respond to new situations as they arise, even when denominations expect to have set organisational forms.

7. A health and sustainability outlook Issue to address: How is the new church going to be healthy and develop?

New churches will not survive unless there is a church development process/plan.

New churches need to establish healthy theory and practice to survive.

Many new churches will fail to be in existence 5 years beyond their birth unless careful thought is given to issues beyond launch.

Church planting IS about establishing healthy, developing and sustainable congregations.

A recent report, Healthy Churches Handbook, R. Warren for Anglican churches in Durham, stated that churches that are going to become 8 Stuart Murray, Church Planting: Laying Foundations, Herald Press, 2001, p.259.

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healthy need to embody a good understanding and practice of the key marks of a growing, healthy church. When these seven principles are applied, the churches that result are indeed healthy churches. These churches are marked by the following indicators:

Inspiring corporate worship Missional focus Ongoing spiritual development Effective leadership Sense of community Mobilized team ministry Applied Biblical preaching and teaching Flexible structures Contextual relevancy

CONCLUSIONSWe know that God wants us to not only start churches, but start healthy churches.

Healthy new churches must have: Theological basis Contextual awareness Cultural understanding Strategic plan Relevant model Flexible structure, and A Health and Sustainability Outlook.

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PLANTING HOLY AND HEALTHY CHURCHES

A Wesleyan approach to church planting and church development in Europe

The cultural context (in Europe)In presenting this argument, I would be on much safer ground to keep to my own cultural context in Scotland. But talking about haggis and bagpipes, the Bay City Rollers, Glasgow Rangers and William Wallace may not connect very well with you. So, I have decided to approach the context from a more general Western cultural perspective, which I am only too aware gives a broad picture rather than the more localized picture that is essential to the church planting task.

The contextualization of church planting is among the most critical principles for church planting. It must be said from the outset: Starting healthy new communities can only be successful if one takes seriously the context in which the new church will be planted. Far too often church planters and their models, methods, and strategies are parachuted in from other contexts because it is assumed success elsewhere will inevitably reproduce success in the next context. This is not only dangerous (maybe even reckless) but is sure to fail if there are not intentional and thorough strategies developed that take seriously the targeted communitys individual context. Far too often, in our zeal to plant a new church, we transplant people, cultures and models that are not appropriate for the communities we are trying to reach.Therefore, I am very conscious of the problems with setting a context as wide and varied as Western Europe. However, it may be fair to say in broad terms (so long as we keep context in mind) that there are a number of trends that may accurately describe elements of the cultural context of planting churches within Western Europe today. Of these, briefly the following four cultural factors are:

Post-Christian contextThere is a degree of consensus among church leaders, writers, Christian denominations, and organizations that the church and Christian faith are under threat in the West. Its influence and position are fast eroding across the continent while other religious and spiritual forces are gaining

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influence. Statistically the church in the West is in crisis, especially across institutional and traditional churches. Certainly there is a new and urgent call for Christians and churches to move from maintenance to mission.

The missional theme is reflected in a surge of new writers and thinkers in recent years. Contemporary Western movements such as Fresh expressions of church and the Emergent Church are grappling, in part, with how to respond to Western Europes post-Christian society. As Murray says,

Much of western culture is experiencing a culture shift from Christendom to post-Christendom. This is obvious in Europe and Australasia and increasingly apparent in many parts of North America. After centuries of cultural dominance, the churches are now back on the social margins where they were in the early centuries. Our story, language and practices are becoming unfamiliar.9

In a paper I presented to a pastors conference I stated: What is taking place is not merely the continued decline of organized Christianity, but the death of the culture that formerly influenced the West as a whole. The pace of decline is different in different places but decline it is nonetheless. The culture of Christianity in that sense is being eroded in Europe and being replaced by new forms of spirituality. People are still interested in spirituality, but whereas the church was the place to embrace spirituality, it is now only a place, with many believing Christianity has had its day. Even in what are regarded as traditional Christian countries there are now second or third pagan generations and we cannot simply work on the premise that all we have to do to bring people to Christ is to ask them to remember their long-held, traditional faith. Very many people have no residue of Christian faith at all; its not just dormant; its non-existent; in so many instances we have to go back to basics; we are in a critical missionary situation.10

9 Stuart Murray, Post-Christendom: Church and Mission in a Strange New World, Pater-noster Press, 2004, p.3.10 Trevor Hutton. The world is not my parish but my network: emerging trends of context.

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A postmodern contextPostmodern is a term that originated in art and literature and has created a new framework of thinking that has permeated the popular mindset at all levels. It has brought changing paradigms of thinking that has identifiable broad-stroke themes.

Postmodernity is essentially a reaction to modernity, an age fostered by the Renaissance, the Enlightenment and the Industrial Revolution in which reason and progress were held to be the keys to a successful society. In contrast, postmodernism is suspicious of reason, progress, objectivity, certainty, and individuality, and prefers to value open spirituality, pluralism, the experiential, relativism, community, creativity, the arts, environmentalism, global concerns, holistic approaches and genuine authenticity.

The postmodernist says there is no single worldview that captures reality, no overall master story that underlies humanity. Reason is to be distrusted because there is no way to know which persons reason is reliable. There is no such thing as true objectivity. There is no absolute truth to appeal to for understanding history and culture. There are no moral absolutes. There is no truth, only truths. There are no principles, only preferences. There is no grand reason, only reasons. There is no privileged civilization, only a sea of cultures, beliefs, periods, and styles. There is no big story, just stories.

The recognition and understanding of such a philosophical mindset in the West is critical to church planting and it should inform both the principles and models that are employed in starting and developing new Christian communities. In planting a church, serious and thoughtful consideration must be given to how that church is defined, expressed, and structured in reaching postmoderns. It will require new and fresh approaches if that church is to be relevant and engage with both the unchurched and the increasing number of de-churched people.

A post-community contextThe Western world has been described as the New Network Society. In a network society place is less important than flows. In other words, it is the flowing of information, contacts, relationships, technology and capital that shape society. The Internet is a classic example. From one

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perspective it has no centre, no one place where choices are controlled. Everywhere is linked to everywhere else. The only pilot is the search engine. Networks of relationships are created through it (chat rooms, blogging, etc.) and friendships are maintained electronically (usually via e-mail or social network message). Information technology, the Internet, technological revolutions in transport and telecommunications, economics, growing global power and competitive markets have all created the global village.Networking has not replaced community but defined it. Communities are mainly networks of communities within communities. As Ulrich Beck says, To live in one place no longer means to live together, and living together no longer means living in the same space.11 Martin Albow echoes the same theme, It is so possible today for people living in the same street to have a fleeting relationship with a neighbour but a relationship with someone who lives on the other side of the world. 12

Geographical location alone can no longer be seen as the determining basis of community. People instead define their community through their leisure, work and friendships, i.e. their network. Locality, place and territory do still have significance but rather than being the predominant significant factor of community they form one layer of the complex maze. People are more likely to belong to places rather than a place; to networks rather than a community.

Church planting must take seriously the need to develop models of planting that use relational networking as the key evangelistic tool. It is not insignificant that in Britain the cell and house churches are the fastest growing churches in the last ten years and the most prolific in church planting. Perhaps our predominant Western model of the mother-daughter church plant needs to be complemented by other models that focus on the new network society.

A post-European contextEurope has always been a multifaceted community made up of people, language and cultural groups. Yet, arguably, with the globalizing economy, transient people groups and populations, increasing migration and immigration, and the continuing expansion of the European

11 Mission-Shaped Church, Church House Publishing, 2004, p. 6.12 Ibid.

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community, Europe itself has become a mini-world market and a multi-cultural phenomenon not paralleled in any point of its previous history. The indigenous national peoples are increasingly scattered and joined by many world people groups. In the past, the continent of Europe could be described as a mixture of cultures and peoples. Now individual European countries themselves grapple with the implications of being multicultural, multi-ethic, and multi-faith in ways that are unprecedented in any previous generation. Fluidity of movement across the European Union is significantly changing the cultural identity of nationhood. In setting the context for establishing new church plants, we have to recognize and deal with this context, and which also means new churches should be created to reflect the new society.

In brief: if we are to plant healthy new churches in Europe, they need to be informed by context. The immediate local context is the most important, but in a Western European context there are at least four cultural factors that should inform and shape our understanding and practice of church planting if we want to start relevant and strong churches. These cultural factors are: the post-Christian context, the postmodern context, the post-community context, and the post-European context.

The theological context (A Wesleyan approach) I want to endorse all denominations that plant churches out of a missional concern; I do not want to endorse any sectarian or exclusive mentality. However, the question has been posed: Is there a Wesleyan approach to planting healthy churches? I do not think there is a particularly Wesleyan way, or even Nazarene way, of planting new churches. My research across the topic has not identified anything unique in the Wesleyan tradition that is not found in other theological circles in why and how new churches are started.

Church planting is rooted in evangelistic and missional concern. Many denominations share the Great Commission as the call, with missional and theological concepts as the motivation and rationale for planting churches. It is fair to say that only in the last 20 years has serious theological reflection been an important part of church planting. I welcome this. At the same time I am concerned that in our denomination there is not enough balance between church planting practice and theological reflection. Nazarenes or Wesleyans do not, in my view, have

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a greater appreciation and understanding of the theological basis for church planting than other churches.

It is also the case that there are no distinct Wesleyan models of church planting. If we were to take the major models for church planting (catalyst pioneer, mother-daughter, cell or house church, urban ministry centre, new expressions of church, multi-congregational, etc.) we would find most denominations have an expression of all these models, and many of these models can also be found within Wesleyan circles. There is no evidence to suggest, even with church planting models, that there is a unique Wesleyan model because of theological doctrine and persuasion.

Although Wesleyans do not have a distinct model or method for planting a church, the ethos of the plant (i.e. its DNA) should reflect a Wesleyan doctrinal core if we are Wesleyans. We should think about planting Wesleyan churches rather than Wesleyan church planting.

What DNA ought to be a basic building component from the beginning of a truly Wesleyan church plant? We cannot plant a truly Wesleyan church unless it has from its conception at least the five following core DNA components.

Integrity and transparency A Wesleyan church will have an inherent desire to embody integrity and transparency as a major ethos. Call this holiness unto the Lord or entire sanctification or Christian perfection or perfect love or baptism of the Spirit if you wish. A Wesleyan church will always want to create the DNA of integrity and transparency as it aims to wholeheartedly reflect the likeness of Christ in holy living. A new Nazarene church ought to have a clear understanding of the need to emphasize and embody the call of God for purity and consecration, for wholehearted devotion to God and ones neighbours, emphasizing the dynamic power of the Holy Spirit to birth, cleanse, assure, and empower a new community of faith. Holy churches becoming healthy churches. A holy church is a healthy church.

Universal valueA Wesleyan church will have an inherent desire to share the good news

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about Jesus with all people regardless of age, creed, gender, race, social status, etc. because the church fundamentally embraces the universality of the Gospel and Jesus as the universal Savior. An instinctive heartbeat in a new Nazarene church is the belief that God loves the entire world and that all have an opportunity to come to know Jesus Christ. The church will aim to show by proclamation and presence the good news to all.

Social transformation A Wesleyan church will have an inherent desire to bring social transformation to its context and community. The new church, from its conception, will be outward looking and involved in incarnational ministry that seeks to transform its community. John Wesley said, The gospel of Christ knows no religion but social; no holiness but social holiness13 -- and then exemplified this conviction through his work on behalf of the poor, the enslaved, the imprisoned, the unlearned, and the addicted. Wesleyans, at heart, are those who minister holistically and challenge the social, cultural, economic, and even political structures that create, manifest and aid sinfulness. A Wesleyan church will want to act as an agent of transformation, ushering in the Kingdom of God. Holiness is not just personal piety; it is not just communal piety. It is nothing less than the creation of integrity and transparency within the very social fabric of the wider community.

A place for the marginalizedWhen the Church of the Nazarene was founded, a key foundational ethos of Nazarenes was and still is ministry to the marginalized within society. Founder Phineas Bresee chose the name Nazarene to emphasize the churchs solidarity with the urban poor. He said,

The first miracle after the baptism of the Holy Ghost was wrought upon a beggar. It means that the first service of a Holy Ghost-baptized church is to the poor; that its ministry is to those who are lowest down; that its gifts are for those who need them the most. As the Spirit was upon Jesus to preach the gospel to the poor, so His Spirit is upon His servants for the same purpose.14

13 Works, (Emory edition), VII, p. 59314 Phineas Bresee, This is taken from the Messenger, September 12, 1901, as quoted in Harold Ivan Smith, The Quotable Bresee, Beacon Hill Press, 1983, p. 167.

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Whether we are in the city, in urban or rural or suburban contexts, the DNA of a Wesleyan church will be to engage with the marginalized in some way.

OptimismA Wesleyan church remembers that Jesus works to prepare the ground for receiving the Gospel. Nazarenes often call this prevenient grace. New, healthy Nazarene churches will enter a community and context confident that Jesus grace is already working in that community. Rather than believing we are bringing the Gospel to a new community or context, we must acknowledge that Jesus precedes us in each church planting initiative. In this Wesleyan optimism of grace (as I like to call it) we have faith and expectancy that God has prepared the way for His work, His Church and His Gospel.

In conclusion, although there may not be a particularly Wesleyan way to plant a church, or superior Wesleyan theological insight into church planting, it is essential that the new churchs DNA includes integrity and transparency, universal value, social transformation, a call to the marginalized, and a belief in the optimism of grace. As stated previously, we should think about planting Wesleyan churches rather than Wesleyan church planting.

Biotic context (Planting healthy churches)There is a huge difference between planting a church and planting a healthy church, as reflected in the late Dr. Bill Sullivans book Planting Churches, which has been reprinted under the title Starting Strong New churches. I find it interesting that, in recent years, Saddleback Church in Orange County, California, United States, and its leadership under Rick Warren, have dropped church growth phraseology for church health phraseology.Warren states: I believe the key issue for churches in the twenty-first century will be church health, not church growth.15 I think this is a significant theme emerging in denominations that signed -on wholesale to church growth theory, and practice.

Perhaps in our European context, the work pioneered by Christian Swartz in his movement and work Natural Church Development16 gives us one 15 Rick Warren, The Purpose-Driven Church: Growth without compromising your mes-sage and mission, Zondervan, 1995, p. 17.16 Christian A. Schwartz, Natural Church Development, UK edition, BCGA, 1995

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strategy for developing healthy communities. According to Swartz, this will happen if we remove the barriers to health and embody key characteristics and principles that stimulate health. Through extensive research Swartz first identifies key characteristics of a healthy church and names eight that he has identified as being present in a healthy church.1. Empowering leadership2. Gift-oriented lay ministry3. Passionate spirituality4. Functional structures5. Inspiring worship services6. Holistic small groups7. Need-oriented evangelism8. Loving relationships

Recent research has added other health indicators which include: 9. Vision and direction 10. Sound Biblical doctrine11. Engagement with youth and children12. Accountability structures13. Gentle but firm application of discipline 14. Cultural relevancy15. Intentional equippingand training16. Vibrant prayer17. Intentional disciple-making18. Leadership transition and development

When we come to speak about healthy churches, we need to consider growth, development, maturity, the process of becoming, the ongoing transformation, the journey into holiness, and wholeness. We need to embrace its ongoing development into maturity as one of the necessary DNA components. Healthy churches must develop and progress; every church community is on an ever expanding journey of faith. This means that healthy churches are constantly looking to the Spirit for renewal and reformation; empowerment and change; to balance orthodoxy with cultural relevancy; for courage to foster belonging without losing believing and behaving; for involvement in reaching people where they really are without becoming what they are; for developing a close-knit community but not becoming inward focused; for being contextually

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relevant without being market driven. Even if we do not like the Rick Warren and Saddleback Church strategy and model, we can at least appreciate his pioneering emphasis on establishing new churches that intentionally balance all the main purposes of God. As Warren says, a healthy church will:17

grow warmer though fellowship;grow deeper though discipleship;grow stronger through worship;grow broader through ministry;grow larger though evangelism.

Balancing Gods purposes for the church will create a healthy church.

In addition to naming eightquality characteristics (we have added ten others), Schwarz identifies six other health development principles, which he says are essential to a healthy church. His terms are listed, followed by the Living Bible equivalent, listed in parenthesis, to help clarify their meanings.

1. Interdependence (understanding how and why things work together)

2. Multiplication (understanding how and why things need to reproduce)

3. Energy Transformation (understanding how negatives can be turned into positives)

4. Multi-usage (understanding how tasks can serve a number of different purposes)

5. Symbiosis (understanding how diversity and unity can both be accommodated)

6. Function (understanding if something actually works or not)

Though technically expressed, these principles help us identify issues and tenets essential to health and development. The points that Schwarz raises can be expressed in practical questions for both church planters and pastors in existing churches:

17 Rick Warren, The Purpose-Driven Church: Growth without compromising your message and mission, Zondervan, 1995, p. 48.

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What are the principles that create and sustain life, and how do we develop them in the living organism of the church? What are the barriers that hinder health and development, and how are they to be dealt with if a church is to develop into maturity? What can make a church ill, and what is the remedy for that illness? What do we need to put in place to develop people through a life process of maturity and growth, and how is that to be done in a relevant, engaging and intentional way? The questions can go on and on, but if we are to plant healthy churches, we must seriously address the sustainability issues of the church. Indeed, this should be an ongoing and exciting challenge that engages our efforts, energies, and wills, and stretches our faith.

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CONCLUSION

So what have we learned about A Wesleyan Approach to Church Planting and church development in Europe? Let me suggest ten practical pointes that put us on the right track for planting holy and healthy churches:

10 PRACTICAL POINTERS 1. Healthy new Nazarene churches must be contextualized locally at all times.2. Healthy new Nazarene churches must have a theological and missiological foundation.3. Healthy new Nazarene churches must hold timeless principles, but express them in timely ways.4. Healthy new Nazarene churches must intentionally have a Wesleyan DNA from the start.5. Healthy new Nazarene churches must embrace both proclamation and presence.6. Healthy new Nazarene churches must be balanced in focusing on all of Gods purposes.7. Healthy new Nazarene churches must implement strategies for

church and people development.8. Healthy new Nazarene churches must look to develop people through a life process.9. Healthy new Nazarene churches must intentionally be open to renewal, reform, and change.10. Healthy new Nazarene churches must recognize that although some plant and some water

it is God who gives the growth!

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SUMMARY STATEMENT

Basic assumptions as a background for church planting: Language applications in the post-Christian context

1. God is always working missionally for the whole of His own creation. His purposes and plans are for the reconciliation of all things.

2. The Bible tells this BIG story but expresses it in a mosaic and matrix of historical particulars and interlinked biblical stories.

3. The ongoing mission of God in the world calls the church in every generation to identify with and respond to this mission.

4. Gods story is lived out and expressed in real contexts of mission from generation to generation, nation to nation, culture to culture, subculture to subculture, community to community, people to people, and person to person.

5. We always work in the interface between Gods universal purposes and our particular setting (context). Mission is always an engagement with God, and for God, in real life situations and settings.

6. We are one partner in Gods mission. We are not it but we are an important part of it. Others are part of it, too!

7. There is no one single context of mission, but contexts within contexts (multi-contexts).

8. This module will help us examine general and specific contexts in which there must always be a relation to the universality of Gods missional purposes.

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SECTION II

PRACTICAL PROCESSES FORPLANTING NEW CHURCHES

DEVELOPING A NEW START INITIATIVEPractical application for the Church of the Nazarene in the European Context

Newstart Mission StatementNewstart is an intentional effort to equip and resource the Church of the Nazarene with New Testament strategy of starting strong new churches to reach people for Christ. Newstart can empower established churches to sponsor strong new ones. (International Church of the Nazarene)

How a Newstart Ministry is DesignatedA ministry is designated as Newstart through a process of formal recognition by the district (and General Church of the Nazarene). This process flows from the initial idea to the official establishment of a new church, and involves the following key steps:

1. Newstart idea2. Newstart formulated plan3. Newstart district recognition (General church/CECD)4. Newstart district support (i.e. finance, training, resourcing, equipping)5. Newstart development to a new church6. Official organisation

How a Newstart Idea is Formulated for District RecognitionFor a Newstart designation to be conferred by the district and therefore be supported officially, a Newstart plan must be formulated and presented to the District Evangelism Task Force (ETF). It should contain the following items:

1. A proposal for a Newstart ministry2. Initial support for the Newstart ministry (from people, or

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sponsoring church)3. Location for Newstart ministry4. Initial demographical study of the target area5. Profile of people being targeted in location6. Study of existing churches and ministry in the location7. Note of contacts or opportunities already in location area8. Note of groups or people who have volunteered to help9. Note about the enthusiasm of the sponsoring church/pastor10. Short- and medium-term goals to birth the vision 11. Initial timescale plan detailing the significant steps towards the

project launch, including specific and measurable phases of development

12. Plan of finances that may be needed to launch and sustain the project, including any finances committed already or likely to be received

13. Initial ministry programme that will initiate the Newstart, including methods and tools to accomplish the desired outcomes

14. If the Newstart pastor is an already pastoring a church, include how all parties understand issues of handover for both churches.

District recognition and support of NewstartsOnce a Newstart application has been received with the above information in a report, and approved by the Evangelism Task Force (or district superintendent), the ETF (or DS) should facilitate:

1. Any specific recommendations 2. Necessary assessment3. Required training or equipping4. Initial funding 5. Procedure for mentoring and encouraging6. Procedure for on-going assessment and accountability7. Other

Movement towards new churchesAs the Newstart goals are achieved and the Newstart is born, so the ETF and district are to move the church toward full organisation with Manual requirements under the normal procedures.

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CHURCH PLANTING: CONVICTIONS CONTEXTAND CONSTRAINTS

What kind of church eventually emerges depends on the interaction of three factors:

1. Convictions2. Context3. Constraints

Convictions What vision do you have for a new church? The diagram/picture of how your church might look (not the

building!!!). What ethos will your church have? What foundational values are absolutely essential?

Context: What context do you envision your new church having? How might you find out more about the context into which you

will plant? What is the difference between church planting and church

cloning? How and why might your context shape your new church?

Constraints: What are your current constraints on starting a new church? What are your personnel constraints? What are the resources or financial constraints? How might you address these? Or how might you begin to

address these?

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Church planting brings together the interplay of context, convictions, and constraints, and largely shapes what the new church will look like and what it will do. It is vital for the planting team to determine all three aspects and how they are going to integrate them. Do the convictions relate to the context in which the church is planted? Does the context place constraints on what can and cannot be done? Do constraints impose on the convictions? The team should discuss these three components in light of their vision, values, ethos and plans of action BEFORE they start the church planting exercise.

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How to discover your context?There are five basic components of community research that help identify the community you need to reach.

1. Observation2. Conversation3. Investigation4. Interpretation5. Application

Observation: How might you go about observing your community? What are some of the things you might observe? Why is observation helpful?

Conversation: Who might you hold conversations with in the community you

are going to plant in? How might you conduct these conversations?

Investigation: How might you go about practically investigating and researching

your target community? What else might you like to research and why?

Interpretation: Based on the information you have received, you need to build

a COMMUNITY PROFILE so that you have a snapshot of the community you are going to reach.

What principles/ideas are you going to use to make sure your interpretation is as accurate as possible?

Application: Profiling should lead to action! What you do should relate to

what you have discovered! Use the case studies provided to answer the question: What type of ministry might you deliver in this context?

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THE WAY FORWARD: A PRACTICAL CONCLUSION

10 useful pointers for the way aheadAswethinkaboutdevelopingnew,relevantchurchesinourcontext,thereareseveralpointerstokeepinmind.

1. Prayer and support.The prayers of the church community are essential. The church that is thinking of planting new relevant churches should commit itself to pray and seek Gods direction about what it should do. Special times of prayer should be called for those that want to take this process forward. Guidance, direction and dependence on God are necessary.

2. Other listening to God.In addition to prayer, we should listen to what other people feel God is saying to them. The church should call a new church plant conversation (for those that are serious about this) to pray and discuss with each other what is God saying to us? This is not a planning or strategy meeting but a general soul sharing of what God is saying to other people. Is God saying anything to us from the Bible? Is God saying anything to us through the people in the community? Has God put ideas or burdens on our hearts?

3. ConnectionIt is vital that new churches remain connected, committed, and accountable to the wider Body of Christ. And it is vital that the wider Body of Christ supports, resources, empowers and prays for these fresh expressions. Whatever decision is made about what a church might and should do, it is vital a decision is at the start that the pioneers of change or leaders of the new churches are accountable and part of the local church body.

4. Recognise two obvious dangers.There is danger in thinking everything has to be new so that we throw the baby out with the bath water. New ways are needed but principles and practices that have stood the test of time have something to teach us.

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There is also danger in staying with the old, fossilizing the church. It can end up as extinct as the dinosaurs. Resisting and rejecting new things leads to extinction.

5. Get the process order right.Five practical pointers are necessary for starting a new, relevant church: Discover what you already know. Take stock of where you are

right now. Do some initial research. Set up a small task group (3-5 people)

to explore in more detail the conversations already begun and possibilities for a new church.

Listen more deeply. This means the task force group should meet with appropriate parties to talk about ideas, vision, and possibilities. Prayer, reflection and wider consultations are taken. Having come up with some ideas or vision, the task force needs to listen to what others think.

Reflect and test Gods call. Begin to explore possible action, perhaps by running a pilot and seeing how this goes. Testing out some ideas without an absolute commitment to them, no matter what, is useful and necessary.

Having tested the waters, act on what might be done as a course of action over a more sustainable time, maybe the next year or so.

6. Start at the fringe and not the center.Dont begin by asking How can we attract new people to what we do here? or How can we make this existing congregation change to become renewed and relevant? New expressions of church work best by starting at the fringe and birthing new things alongside and out of existing church. The aim is to find a team of 3 to 5 people who are given permission to experiment on the fringes to create a new community of church. Birthing alongside what already exists is a safer and more sensible strategy than trying to change everyone to be the fresh expression. It wont work. Start at the fringe and not the centre.

7. Get as many models and resources as possible.This should include:

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Acquiring new media and showing clips of them in your worship regularly to show what it is about.

Get models and samples for the congregation. Use the listed resources in this document. Join the existing networks (where you can learn from other

stories in a learning community). Train your potential church planters.

8. Primary commitment for someRealize that all new births require commitment and time. If a new expression of church is to be birthed, then it requires some people to make this their primary church commitment and should not be treated as another program in the church.

9. Use consultancy agencies to help shape and guide the process.You do not have to do this on your own. Missional agencies such as MOMENTUM Uk Ltd (an active church planting partner of the Church of the Nazarene in Eurasia) can serve to help guide a church through the process.

10. Have a go!Dont be too overawed. Risk-taking is necessary if anything is to be achieved. Guided by principles in this document and the wisdom and experience of others, step out and give it a go. Dont get bogged down in organizational structures and unnecessary red tape! Keep it simple from the start. Go on, have a go! Good things happen when you go for it! (Alan Webb)

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PRINCIPLES OF CHURCH PLANTING

godcanuseyoutoPlantachurch

BylouIeBustleandgustavocrocKer

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Originally published under the title:The A B Cs of Church Planting: God Can Use You to Plant Churches.

Copyright for 1st Edition Louie E. Bustle, 1992.Copyright for 2nd Edition Louie E. Bustle, Gustavo A. Crocker, 2010.

Scripture taken from the Holy Bible, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION.Copyright 1973, 1978, 1984 by Biblica, Inc. All rights reserved worldwide.Used by permission.

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FOREWORD

Principles Of Church Planting is a long overdue book on a subject that is close to my heart. Having been a church planter at the start of my full-time ministry, I am quite aware of what its like for someone to pioneer a new church with no people, no property and no money!

Louie Bustle and Gustavo Crocker are both visionaries who know how to lead. Both of these authors are among the best strategic thinkers in the church world today. They both have a worldview because of their missionary service and understand how to plant a church in any area of the world despite the challenges of culture, geography or the global economy.

This book is a must read for those who feel the call to step into new frontiers of ministry and plant a church. It is loaded with vital informa-tion on how to structure and build a strong local church. Its pages are filled with ideas, plans, programs and methods for those who are willing to step out on faith to build a great church. It also helps the reader find various models and methods that work in different cultures and set-tings.

The genius of the book is its simplicity. Dr. Thom Rainer recently wrote a book title, Simple Church. Principles of Church Planting is written on a level that anyone can understand and identify with. With confidence the authors tell us that God can use anyone to plant a church. In fact, all God needs is your willingness!

As I read this book, I was once again reminded that church planting is the best way for church denominations to grow and evangelize. New churches assimilate better and reach more new people for Christ. As church leaders, we must join with Louie Bustle and Gustavo Crocker in a worldwide endeavor to plant more churches.

Stan TolerGeneral Superintendent, Church of the Nazarene& Bestselling Author

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INTRODUCTION

How can we build a church today, many are asking, when the cost is so staggering? Peoples hearts are so hard; how can the Church win them? How is it possible to evangelize the protected, high-rise apart-ment complexes or the busy centers of urban sprawl?

We are tricked into thinking the task is too big, even for our all-powerful God and His Church. But God has answers for the impossible questions we are asking, and He wants to build His Kingdom through His chosen children around the world. In Ephesians 3:20, the apostle Paul declares, Now to Him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to His power that is at work within us (NIV).

The Church must dare to do the impossible. The key is that the Power must be operating in us. We must learn to ask boldly and think big for God. It is Satans desire to finish off the Church, but since he cannot, his second best strategy is to slow it down and defeat its purpose. Satan has confused Church leaders minds and has brought us to defeat with negative questions.

But Jesus really expects us to win the world. He cannot be pleased with a strategy that nets so few churches and so few new members. In the New Testament, Jesus makes it convincingly clear He wants us to reach the entire world for which He died. The Church must do a better job, and it can. Planting new centers of hope and grace are part of the plan and we must engage in such a plan.

Jesus explained in Acts 1:8. You will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem and in all Judea and in all Samaria, and to the ends of the earth (NIV). He is able to do more than we ask or think because His Power is operating in us. This is the key. Today we need an increasing measure of Gods Holy Spirit to be Christ in the world. We trust God will help us change our mentality so He may do the impossible through us.

The church planting philosophy of the Church of the Nazarene has gone through several changes. In many instances we have given the respon-sibility of starting new churches to the district superintendents. The pastors responsibilities have been primarily in the local church. Some have been taught that a small church is ugly and a big church is beauti-

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ful. In reality we need beautiful churches of all sizes to share the hope of Christ with the world. We are not in competition with each other. We are in a race as a team to build the Kingdom of God before Jesus returns. It is impossible for the district superintendents alone to start all the new churches. This is a task for all believers!

More recently we have been awakened to the responsibility of all pas-tors duplicating themselves, every church starting a new church, and every member winning new people to Jesus Christ. The New Testament teaches us this responsibility.

Small churches that are springing up around the world will eventually grow bigger if they are healthy churches. We have been deceived into thinking that we do a better job if we do it slower. The truth is, God wants to build the Kingdom fast enough so that nobody would perish. The slower we are, the more souls we lose. Many new churches pro-duce many new people, which means many new converts. We can also grow big, healthy churches that will reach people in their communities who would not otherwise be reached.

We have often asked pastors and leaders the typical question: How did you get into the Church? Many of them were introduced to the Church by people in whom they had confidence. Friends bringing friends to Jesus is certainly a New Testament concept. Almost all of the rest said they were saved in churches that were started close to their homes. Most of them had lived within a 10-block radius of the church. They were invited to a Church of the Nazarene, attended, accepted the Lord, and made that church their home.

This is indicative of the way the Church operates. We are called to be faithful witnesses, but we also need more cells and meeting places for the Body of Christ around the world. Todays challenge is not only to bring the people to the Church but also to take the Church to the peo-ple. We hope that in these few pages you will be challenged to be a church planter.

More recently we have been awakened to the responsibility of every pastor duplicating himself or herself, every church starting a new church, and every member winning new peo-ple to Jesus Christ. The New Testament teaches us this re-sponsibility.

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NATURAL CHURCH PLANTING

If Jesus is to reach the world through us, we have to realize that the traditional concept of church growth must be changed. The worlds population is growing faster than the Christian Church. Unfortunately, many Christians believe that the only way to keep up with the popula-tion growth is by pouring large amounts of money into planting few, expensive churches. Too many pastors have come to us saying, If I had more money, I would have better growth! Such a mentality backs them into a corner.

Is God dependent upon gifts of money from outside the local congrega-tion? No! God relies on His Spirit-filled people, not money, to build the Kingdom. That was the secret of the early church. When faced with the question at the temples entrance, the apostles responded to the crip-pled man: We have neither gold nor silver, but what we have, we give to you The power of the Holy Spirit is the gift that we exercise to give hope to the crippled world around us.

To start a new church, we need leaders who will put their heart and soul into the task of building the Kingdom of God, whatever the cost. The church must be built upon the vision that humanity is lost and needs God in their hearts. The desire for revival and the fire of the Holy Spirit must fuel that vision and accompany the teaching and preaching of the Word. More people are challenged by inspiration from the foolishness of preaching than by any other method (I Corinthians 1:21).

As the church planter leads the new congregation and teaches them about responsible community living and stewardship, its members will assume financial responsibility for the new church. When God is in con-trol and we have the challenge before us, the impossible becomes pos-sible.

In one local church board meeting, the members were discussing call-ing a new pastor. One member said, We do not have a parsonage for the new pastor to live in, so there is no way for us to call one. After lengthy discussion, one of the board members said, I have an apart-ment that I will provide for the new pastor to live in. You should have seen the surprise on the faces of the other board members. Not only

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had they not asked, they had not believed. Sacrifice has always been one of the greatest elements in building the Kingdom. God not only requires it, He demands it of His people. Sacrifice is difficult for us to understand, but it is necessary.One of the distinctives of the Church of the Nazarene is holistic growth. A leader said some time ago, We want the Church to grow, but not too fast. The biblical pattern indicates that the Church cannot grow too fast, but we do want good growth, on a solid base. We want supervi-sion, but we do not want to control growth. A Church whose mission is built on outward vision will grow. An egotistical, inward look stymies growth.

The disciples did not fear growth; neither did Dr. Phineas F. Bresee, founder of the Church of the Nazarene. He had a vision that included the world, sending missionaries and pastors and starting churches eve-rywhere possible. He also had a vision for building his Glory Barn (a simple building that would make even the poor feel welcome) on the local scene. We want growth with