Discipleship and Church Planting
By Robert J. Vajko, TEAM
What a shocker for one who believes in church planting—the Bible never says, “Go therefore and plant churches in all the nations.” If this is true, then why teach and preach church planting and why have a “Help for Planting and Multiplying Churches” bulletin? Nevertheless, there is no doubt in my mind that the Bible teaches the importance of planting churches since
1) This is the biblical way as seen in the book of Acts
2) Half of the New Testament letters were written to planted churches
3) The Apostle Paul spent his life planting new churches
4) When the Holy Spirit is at work in a church, leaders are sent out to plant new churches as in Acts 13:1-3.
We could continue this list and add more reasons as I have done in my study, “The Biblical, Theological and Missiological Bases for Planting New Churches.” (available by e-mail on request).
But this still leaves us with the question of the relationship between discipleship and church planting. Do they fit together? How do they fit together? Why is it important that they fit together?
Let’s start with:
I. The Importance of Discipleship.
A. It is the great emphasis of the four Gospels where Jesus is the great disciple maker.
B. It is the great emphasis of the book of Acts where the result of evangelism is always the making of disciples.
II. The Failure of not Linking Discipleship to Church Planting.
A. One ends up with loose disciples floating around or, worse yet, professions of faith that do not result in the four qualities of Acts 2:42.
B. It is not the true biblical flow as seen in the Acts and Epistles.
C. In the TEAM France ministry area the work started with an emphasis on evangelism and discipleship but the local church vision was not clear. The result was shocking and had as a result work that had no fruit that continued with disciples developing in local churches.
D. It was in the light of this problem that Vernon Mortenson, General Director at that time, explains his counsel to the missionaries, “To them I stressed that missionary work should have as its prime focus the creation of churches in the New Testament patter. Art Johnston [acting field leader at that time] would later say that these conversations had greatly influenced the thinking of both Rod and himself. In these first years, however, the work did not have church planting as a clear overall goal.” (Mortenson 1994, 739)
III. The Failure of not Linking Church Planting to Discipleship.
A. One ends up with weak churches.
B. The result is pew-sitting instead of powerful change.
C. There is little transformation as disciple-making is limited to a few and the church as a whole does not grow in quality.
D. As Bob Roberts states in referring to emphasizing churches without true disciples being transformed is that we arrive at “the point where the primary things we ask of people is their money, attendance, and a few hours every quarter to help with a Sunday school project….We don’t make a difference because the gospel has not made us different as
God intended intended it to do. We are just more religious. We are more worried that our church is not growing than the fact that we are not growing in our walk with God.” (Roberts 2006, 14).
IV. The Beauty and Balance of Putting the Two Together.
A. A church becomes more vibrant.
B. The biblical church is a “disciple making church” which is the New Testament vision.
C. A church grows by “following” rather than “attracting by programs.”
D. There is a commitment not to a discipleship program but to discipleship as such as seen in such activities as small groups, life-transformation groups (see Cole 1999), and one-on-one discipleship.
E. As Diet Schindler, a church planter in Germany states, “Life change occurs where there is nearness, openness and accountability.” (Schindler 2008, 337)
F. Neil Cole, a proponent of more organic disciple-making churches, explains, “I have come to understand church as this: the presence of Jesus among His people called out as a spiritual family to pursue His mission on this planet.” (Cole 2008). In this Cole has put the DNA of Divine presence, Nurture of believers, and Apostolic mission.
When people are married we state, “Let not man put asunder what God has joined together.” Let us not do that in church planting but let us wed in beauty true discipleship and planting churches composed of these kind of disciples.
Questions for church planters:
• To what degree are the believers in your church plant growing in discipleship including the word, prayer, witnessing, and obedience out of love for Christ?
• Do those whom you are helping in discipleship really have a life commitment to others in the local church body?
• How can you keep this balance?
Reference List
Cole, Neil. 1999. Cultivating a Life for God. Carol Stream, IL: ChurchSmart Resources.
________. 2008. “A Dangerous Question and Organic Church.” www.CMAResources.org
(accessed Oct 13, 2008)
Hull, Bill. 1990. The Disciple Making Church. Grand Rapids, MI: Revell.
Mortenson, Vernon. 1994. God Made it Grow. Pasadena, CA: William Carey Press.
Roberts, Bob. 2006. Transformation: How Glocal Churches Transform Lives and the World.Grand Rapids: MI: Zondervan.
Schindler, Dietrich. 2008. “Good-to-Great Church Planting: The Road Less Traveled. Evangelical Missions Quarterly No. 44, 3 (July): 330-337.
Vajko, Robert. 2003. “The Biblical, Theological, and Missiological Bases for
Planting New Churches.” In Proclaiming Truth, Pastoring Hearts. Adelaide, S. Australia: ACM Press. Edited by R. Todd Stanton & Leslie J. Crawford.
Wednesday, June 16, 2010
Wednesday, June 9, 2010
God and the Theology of Church Planting
God and the Theology of Church Planting
The church planter needs to have two major strands in his ministry. They are the two strands of theology and missiology. A missiological vision without a vision of God is a warped vision. So I want to briefly share how we are to keep God as the center of our vision in church planting.
We need to ask why we want to plant new churches. Church planting can have various motivations such as the desire to start new churches in order to win more people to Christ –which tends to happen in newly-planted churches as over against older churches. Another motivation can be the desire for innovation, especially when we see older and more traditional churches stuck in a rut of tradition which can hinder creativity. Other motivations are an understanding that our denomination or fellowship of churches will plateau and not grow if we do not plant new churches.
But although these motivations are not necessarily wrong they lack the main motivation and that is to plant churches in obedience to Christ and for the glory of God. Let’s look together at these two motivations.
First, our motivation must be obedience to the Lord Jesus Christ who has said, “Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age." (Matthew 28:19-20 ESV). We see the results of this in the book of Acts where, although not always cognizant of our Lord’s command, believers went out empowered by the Holy Spirit and disciples made disciples. The result was the need for new churches to be established everywhere people came to Christ. This evangelism was both spontaneous as believers were scattered out from Jerusalem and structured as Paul and his church planting colleagues won disciples and planted churches with these new believers in strategic cities of the Roman Empire.
Second, our motivation must be the glory of God. How much more meaningful church-planting becomes as we see new bodies of new believers gathered in new assemblies to live for and worship the Lord God of hosts. As my wife and I look back at church-planting that we have been privileged to participate in, the greatest joy is seeing lost people changed into worshippers in various parts of the world. Jesus said this when he said, “But the hour is coming, and is now here, when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth, for the Father is seeking such people to worship ahim. (John 4:23 ESV)
Is there a greater motivation theologically than to see churches filled with worshippers who previously worshipped something other than God? What a mission that we have to plant churches filled with lost people who are now people who love God!
And then we see God at work developing these believers in relationship to one another. But it is God who always needs to get the glory. These words need to be engraved on the heart of every church planter: “What then is Apollos? What is Paul? Servants through whom you believed, as the Lord assigned to each. I planted, Apollos watered, but God gave the growth. So neither he who plants nor he who waters is anything, but only God who gives the growth. (1 Cor. 3:5-7 ESV)
If a church is planted, grows, and multiplies in the true biblical sense, it must be because God is giving the growth. Yes, we do something but unless accompanied by the working of God, it will come to nothing. Is this one of the reasons that church plants do not survive—that we are trying to do it in our own strength without the power of God at work. God forbid!
Two corollaries for church planters are that the power comes from God and so the praise should go to God when a church is planted, grows, and multiplies.
The church planter needs to have two major strands in his ministry. They are the two strands of theology and missiology. A missiological vision without a vision of God is a warped vision. So I want to briefly share how we are to keep God as the center of our vision in church planting.
We need to ask why we want to plant new churches. Church planting can have various motivations such as the desire to start new churches in order to win more people to Christ –which tends to happen in newly-planted churches as over against older churches. Another motivation can be the desire for innovation, especially when we see older and more traditional churches stuck in a rut of tradition which can hinder creativity. Other motivations are an understanding that our denomination or fellowship of churches will plateau and not grow if we do not plant new churches.
But although these motivations are not necessarily wrong they lack the main motivation and that is to plant churches in obedience to Christ and for the glory of God. Let’s look together at these two motivations.
First, our motivation must be obedience to the Lord Jesus Christ who has said, “Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age." (Matthew 28:19-20 ESV). We see the results of this in the book of Acts where, although not always cognizant of our Lord’s command, believers went out empowered by the Holy Spirit and disciples made disciples. The result was the need for new churches to be established everywhere people came to Christ. This evangelism was both spontaneous as believers were scattered out from Jerusalem and structured as Paul and his church planting colleagues won disciples and planted churches with these new believers in strategic cities of the Roman Empire.
Second, our motivation must be the glory of God. How much more meaningful church-planting becomes as we see new bodies of new believers gathered in new assemblies to live for and worship the Lord God of hosts. As my wife and I look back at church-planting that we have been privileged to participate in, the greatest joy is seeing lost people changed into worshippers in various parts of the world. Jesus said this when he said, “But the hour is coming, and is now here, when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth, for the Father is seeking such people to worship ahim. (John 4:23 ESV)
Is there a greater motivation theologically than to see churches filled with worshippers who previously worshipped something other than God? What a mission that we have to plant churches filled with lost people who are now people who love God!
And then we see God at work developing these believers in relationship to one another. But it is God who always needs to get the glory. These words need to be engraved on the heart of every church planter: “What then is Apollos? What is Paul? Servants through whom you believed, as the Lord assigned to each. I planted, Apollos watered, but God gave the growth. So neither he who plants nor he who waters is anything, but only God who gives the growth. (1 Cor. 3:5-7 ESV)
If a church is planted, grows, and multiplies in the true biblical sense, it must be because God is giving the growth. Yes, we do something but unless accompanied by the working of God, it will come to nothing. Is this one of the reasons that church plants do not survive—that we are trying to do it in our own strength without the power of God at work. God forbid!
Two corollaries for church planters are that the power comes from God and so the praise should go to God when a church is planted, grows, and multiplies.
Wednesday, June 2, 2010
Summary, Lessons, & Questions about Hungary Ministry
Summary:
1. This has been the most profitable trip to Hungary so far we feel.
2. We have had amazing doors opened up to us because of the fact that the planned European Conference did not take place for a number of regions. The result was that we were asked to go to train in outlying regions rather than having church planters come to Budapest as last year. This was hardest on us but gave us the greatest exposure to many church planters.
3. So after Budapest, we went to Debrecen which is the 2nd largest city in Hungary (pop. 211,000) with ministry with Sandor (Alexander) Toth’s church. This church has sent a team to Szeged to plant a church and wants to plant a church in France as you will remember from the e-mail I sent you. The result of decentralization was contact with all his leaders and then in the evening sessions with participation of leaders from 6 other Baptist Churches and the pastor of the Pentecostal Church).
Then we went to Szeged (3rd largest city in Hungary, population 156,000) from Debrecen and had evening services in the largest Baptist Church in the City (fairly traditional) with the participants from 7 churches in Szeged and suburbs. We visited a church in Kubekhaza planted by Gabor Szasz that meets in the social center and the mayor attends. This city is right on the border of Serbia and Romania and we saw those two countries from there. We were concerned about some of the teaching which did not fit the more traditional church but we got an e-mail from Mark Sipos who is church planting among students there stating: “Your ministry in Szeged was very powerful and activated the churches. Somebody from the 'first' Baptist Church said, "We need more meetings, like this."
4. Then we returned to the Budapest area and visited a very traditional country church in Feltsöpetény north of Budapest. This church wants to plant a church in a village but it is very difficult. We need someone who is more experienced with church planting in small villages to give them help.
5. On Saturday we had an amazing opportunity at the Logos Bible School in Miskolc (3rd largest city in Hungary – 184,000). There we had some 80 participants from a number of areas. This was, in our thinking, the most dynamic. They had translated our power points on church planting and multiplication (see above) into Hungarian. There was the best participation in this time for a number of reasons.
6. On Sunday, we were at the Rock Church pastured by Istvan Durko, the head of the church planting commission of the Baptist Union. Afterwards we met with his leaders and he shared their vision of a daughter church in another area.
7. Things to think through:
• They want us to return next year and Gabor Rabatin wants us to go to Romania where their church has envisaged the planting of new churches among the Hungarians in Romania.
• The Rákoskeresztúr Church has planted a church in London and we talked about helping with this church next year when we hope to attend the Society of Biblical Literature’s annual meeting in London in July.
• There is a need to help these churches and pastors in their vision to reach out here in Hungary. There is a vision of a number of churches to plant a church in the center of Budapest.
• But they are reaching out to new areas such as the Ukraine, Romania, the UK, and now a possibility in France.
What is exciting about this is that all this is done by Hungarians. However, they need a want missionary input to help them in multiplication and missions vision.
Questions:
1. What should we do?
2. How can we get involved more and in what way?
3. How can we profit from their outreach to join them and reach new areas?
4. How can we introduce ourselves in this context so as to help them without hindering spontaneity?
5. How can missionaries do more of mobilizing nationals rather than doing the work?
1. This has been the most profitable trip to Hungary so far we feel.
2. We have had amazing doors opened up to us because of the fact that the planned European Conference did not take place for a number of regions. The result was that we were asked to go to train in outlying regions rather than having church planters come to Budapest as last year. This was hardest on us but gave us the greatest exposure to many church planters.
3. So after Budapest, we went to Debrecen which is the 2nd largest city in Hungary (pop. 211,000) with ministry with Sandor (Alexander) Toth’s church. This church has sent a team to Szeged to plant a church and wants to plant a church in France as you will remember from the e-mail I sent you. The result of decentralization was contact with all his leaders and then in the evening sessions with participation of leaders from 6 other Baptist Churches and the pastor of the Pentecostal Church).
Then we went to Szeged (3rd largest city in Hungary, population 156,000) from Debrecen and had evening services in the largest Baptist Church in the City (fairly traditional) with the participants from 7 churches in Szeged and suburbs. We visited a church in Kubekhaza planted by Gabor Szasz that meets in the social center and the mayor attends. This city is right on the border of Serbia and Romania and we saw those two countries from there. We were concerned about some of the teaching which did not fit the more traditional church but we got an e-mail from Mark Sipos who is church planting among students there stating: “Your ministry in Szeged was very powerful and activated the churches. Somebody from the 'first' Baptist Church said, "We need more meetings, like this."
4. Then we returned to the Budapest area and visited a very traditional country church in Feltsöpetény north of Budapest. This church wants to plant a church in a village but it is very difficult. We need someone who is more experienced with church planting in small villages to give them help.
5. On Saturday we had an amazing opportunity at the Logos Bible School in Miskolc (3rd largest city in Hungary – 184,000). There we had some 80 participants from a number of areas. This was, in our thinking, the most dynamic. They had translated our power points on church planting and multiplication (see above) into Hungarian. There was the best participation in this time for a number of reasons.
6. On Sunday, we were at the Rock Church pastured by Istvan Durko, the head of the church planting commission of the Baptist Union. Afterwards we met with his leaders and he shared their vision of a daughter church in another area.
7. Things to think through:
• They want us to return next year and Gabor Rabatin wants us to go to Romania where their church has envisaged the planting of new churches among the Hungarians in Romania.
• The Rákoskeresztúr Church has planted a church in London and we talked about helping with this church next year when we hope to attend the Society of Biblical Literature’s annual meeting in London in July.
• There is a need to help these churches and pastors in their vision to reach out here in Hungary. There is a vision of a number of churches to plant a church in the center of Budapest.
• But they are reaching out to new areas such as the Ukraine, Romania, the UK, and now a possibility in France.
What is exciting about this is that all this is done by Hungarians. However, they need a want missionary input to help them in multiplication and missions vision.
Questions:
1. What should we do?
2. How can we get involved more and in what way?
3. How can we profit from their outreach to join them and reach new areas?
4. How can we introduce ourselves in this context so as to help them without hindering spontaneity?
5. How can missionaries do more of mobilizing nationals rather than doing the work?
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