Third Pillar of a Biblical Base for Church Planting

The Church is an Organism -- A Body ( 1 Cor 12:12-31) Organisms give birth to other organisms by reproduction as life generates life. The church is born to reproduce by giving life. When filled with and guided by the Spirit, the church not only reproduced by multiplying believers but it reproduced by multiplying new churches. We should be concerned to see churches born that recognize from the moment of their birth that they are to produce other churches. This will lead to the multiplication of churches. Commenting on the power of the reproductive model as seen in the church of Antioch, Bill Hull states, “We see the power of the model of reproduction: If you multiply a reproductive church, it creates other reproductive churches. This will remain true until modeling breaks down.” The powerful movement of life coming from the church as an organism led to the expansion of the church everywhere in the Roman Empire. Norman A. Niklas explains: The first element in this equation represents the most important factor. Without the supernatural resources of our sovereign God, the planting and growing of churches would be impossible. By His power believers are born, disciples are made and churches reproduce. A French missiological book, quoting a German pastoral theology (Grundriss der Praktischen Theologie), stresses the same truth: The Church particularly insists on the fact that it is not in good health without this expansion beyond its present frontiers. These remarks signify that one should not count missions among the 'works' of the Church, to be mentioned after many others, but missions is an integral part of her organism.