Mission Frontiers

March-April 2016:

Sending-Base Movements

Contents:

Are Movements the Seeds of a Second Reformation?

by Robby Butler

From Church to Movement

by Steve Addison

Caring Better For Members

By Training Them to Multiply

by Jimmy Tam

From Great Church To Equipping Church

by Steve Wright

Train New Disciples to Obey Jesus

by Troy Cooper

Telling Stories of Hope

by Jeff Sundell

Training “Movement Catalysts”

ETHNĚ Pursues A Revolution in Missionary Training

by Stan Parks

Disciple-Making Movements at Work

by Greg Getz

Starting From Scratch

by James Nyman

Household Churches

by George Patterson & Dick Scoggins; David & Paul Watson

5 Levels of Movement Leadership

by Nathan Shank

Movements Multiplying Movements

by Jeff Sundell & Garret Lawrence

First Tool:

Oikos Map & My Story/His Story

by

Gospel Tool:

3 Circles

by Fred Campbell

Hastening “No Place Left” Locally

by Steve Smith

Strategic Pursuit of CPMs Through International Students

by Robert Osburn Jr.

The Freewill Offerings Generation

by Steve Smith

Can Poor Christians Obey The Great Commission?

by Alex Araujo

Making Sure We Are Making Sense

by greg.parsons@frontierventures.org

Editorial

Are Movements the Seeds of a Second Reformation?

by Robby Butler

It is again my privilege to fill in for Rick Wood, who is still catching up from recent surgery and major home reconstruction following an attic fire caused by lighting. Please pray for God’s blessing on Rick and his family far beyond the attacks they recently endured.

A revolution is unfolding in the Church—perhaps even a second Reformation. Nearly 500 years ago (1517) Martin Luther ignited the Protestant Reformation with his 95 theses. This issue of MF documents a change of similar significance spreading among sending-base churches, coming this time through the application of mission field insights regarding the biblical principles Jesus and His disciples modeled:

- Going to the lost instead of asking them to come to us,

- Training everyone to obey all Jesus commanded,

- The authority of all believers to baptize, etc.

Many mission leaders have known for some time that nations are discipled through movements—rapidly reproducing generations of disciples, churches and leaders—but now this understanding is spreading like leaven in sending-base churches. Two years ago MF reported on one church moving this direction.[1] Now we offer five case studies, from three continents, including several mega-churches (here & here) and a small ethnic church (here). We also excerpt five (mostly) new books (here, here, here, & here)—all aimed at awakening and equipping Christ’s body to pursue God for movements everywhere, until there is No Place Left!

A Second Reformation?

Whether or not we call the application of this insight a “reformation,” it has broad implications for:

- “ordinary” church members,

- “house” churches and “dedicated-building” churches,

- our households, workplaces and wider communities,

- internationals in our midst, and

- the laborers we send to the unreached and unengaged.

What will God do in and through “ordinary” church members when we pursue loving obedience to Jesus as seriously as we take adding to our knowledge? What does it do for us when we learn to share our testimony and the gospel with faith and confidence, and become consistent in praying for lost family and friends (here)? What happens to our faith and maturity when we seek God’s guidance with others to reach the lost in our communities (here)? What happens as movements multiply leaders (here)? Can we better care for our members by equipping and sending them to bring Christ into their relationships with family and friends who will never come to their church?

What will God do in and through our churches when members come to expect training and equipping alongside comfort and communion? What happens in churches where Sunday worship incorporates training and celebration of how God is working to multiply disciples (here)? What happens when one goal of a weekly “service” is worship unfolding in our homes and multiplying in homes of the lost around the clock (here)?

What will God do in our communities as local churches move from being a hub to which we invite others to a sending base that equips members to lead the lost to follow Jesus? What happens in communities where believers are trained to make disciples where they live, work and play—including broken households and families (here), their businesses (here), and their recreational activities?

What will God do among the internationals in our midst as we go to their homes, offer to pray with them, and train them to lead their own and other families in following Jesus? What will God do in Muslim and other ethnic communities in our midst (here)? What might He do through the future international government and business leaders now among us as students (here)?

Finally, what will God do in preparing laborers for the unreached as senders and goers alike gain firsthand experience in movements? What will happen in the toughest harvest fields when the laborers arrive with prior experience in cross-cultural evangelism, discipleship, church-planting and leadership development (here)? And what will happen when laborers from different movements collaborate and learn from one another (here)?

Paradigm Shifts for an Emerging Reformation

Teaching is NOT Training

Would you accept surgery from a doctor who had only listened to lectures? Jesus didn’t teach disciples in a classroom. He took them into dangerous and difficult situations to model ministry, then sent them out as sheep among wolves. Classroom orientation and practice can offer helpful preparation, but learning occurs as we together go with Him into the harvest.

Ekklesia is NOT primarily a Gathering of Strangers

Jesus loves to enter, restore and transform existing relationships. In the gospels and Acts we repeatedly see Jesus and His disciples restore individuals to their community and extend God’s blessing to whole households and communities.[2] When households and relational networks believe together, the witness of their round-the-clock community is far more compelling than any event or program. When we do gather with relative strangers for worship, let this also become a training environment that equips us to bring Christ to our loved ones who won’t attend a church.

Joining the Reformation

One book excerpt in this issue of MF introduces the true-to-life fictionalized account of a movement, with discussion points after each chapter, for a team to follow and adapt step-by-step in seeking God for a movement (here). Two other articles here can help you better pray, lead others to follow Jesus, and train others to do the same (here & here). And two more articles on the website present proven models for following up two kinds of peoples: Those open to conversation prior to following Jesus, and those who have already determined to follow Him.

Reactions to Reformations

Whether we call the emerging transition a reformation, an awakening, or something far more modest, it is already clear that some will resist the change while others embrace it warmly. Those who want to “get in the game” can email me at RobbyQButler@gmail.com.

May God guide us forward with clarity and charity, maximizing the benefits and minimizing the problems.

Even so, come, Lord Jesus!

[1] No Longer “Church as Usual” Missionfrontiers.org/issue/article/no-longer-church-as-usual

[2] In today’s fractured world we can legitimately extend this to relational networks.

About The Author

Robby Butler

Robby Butler served at the U.S. Center for World Mission from 1980 to 2004. He now serves as a consultant to church and mission leaders, and an occasional writer for Mission Frontiers.

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Feature

From Church to Movement

by Steve Addison

Paul spent three years in Ephesus, a city of about 200,000 people and capital of the Roman province of Asia (modern-day Turkey) with a population of at least ten million people. At the end of Paul’s stay, Luke tells us, “all the Jews and Greeks who lived in the province of Asia heard the word of the Lord” (Acts 19:10).

Paul himself did not take the gospel to the whole province of Asia. He planted a church in Ephesus and fueled a movement by teaching disciples every day. From there Epaphras established churches in neighboring Laodicea, Hierapolis and Colossae (Colossians 1:3-8; 2:1; 4:13). Paul no doubt trained and sent others throughout Asia Minor. Most of the churches in Revelation 2–3—Smyrna, Pergamum, Thyatira, Sardis, and Philadelphia—may have started in this way.

Traditional churches can become catalysts for movements, but there is nothing automatic about this journey. Our best efforts in managing change and training are not enough; God has to initiate and sustain the work, and involve the right people at the right time.

The following stories from sending-base churches on three continents illustrate a variety of ways churches can equip members to bring Christ into their households and relational networks. In this way churches can better care for their members while preparing laborers with the skills and experience to pursue God for movements among the unreached and unengaged.

Cape Town,  South Africa[1]

Peter Snyman was frank; he didn’t believe The Lighthouse could adopt a disciple-making movement strategy. But David Broodryk painted a picture of how this church could reach the whole of Cape Town. As they talked, a strategy emerged and Peter was captivated by Discovery Bible Study (DBS)[2] as the lynchpin for a disciple-making movement. He bought in, then asked David to share the vision for disciple-making movements with the pastors and elders of The Lighthouse in November 2010.

David knew that most key leaders must focus on maintaining the stability of their churches and may not be the early adopters of disciple-making movements, yet they are the gateway to early adopters who are ready for action. Such early adopters are often found among those most frustrated with lack of visible progress in disciple-making.

So David trained the senior leaders and elders of the church, who then agreed to let David offer the training to a wider group of leaders and influencers. Finally, David returned for a third training early in 2011, to which the whole church was invited. Three hundred people participated, while two thousand people received a taste of the training in a church service. This training helped build church-wide ownership and surfaced early adopters, revealing many who were ready for action, forming them into teams, helping them get started, and assisting them in bringing others on board.

Not everyone embraced disciple-making movements; some were cautious and others resistant. Lighthouse leadership knew not everybody would be ready to go into the community and make disciples, so they provided other ways to participate in disciple-making. They also released early adopters to share the gospel, make and baptize disciples, and train others. Some dropped other involvements to devote themselves to multiplying disciples, and Peter formed a pioneer team of early adopters from among the staff, interns, and congregation. Soon pockets of resistance and indifference melted as reports began flowing in of lives changed by the gospel.

The entire church became supportive of disciple-making movements through three stages:

1. DBS groups spread through the church.

2. Lighthouse members started DBS with friends and family who were far from God.

3. Motivated members began seeking out persons of peace in groups with no relational link to church members.

In this third stage, teams went to groups unlikely to step inside The Lighthouse—Somalian refugees, prostitutes, drug addicts, and gang members. And God worked to start DBS and form new believers into reproducing churches.

Some Lighthouse members also began studies among farm laborers in a community an hour’s transit from Cape Town. Soon the new disciples there were walking in oppressive heat to pioneer more new groups among yet other farm laborers. A local farmer offered to transport them, but the laborers declined because they wanted to take responsibility for multiplying. So their newly formed churches were led and financed by the farm laborers themselves.

Earlier in 2010, in preparation for the Soccer World Cup, South Africa had rounded up homeless people and put them in a shack town called Blikkiesdorp (Tin Can Town). Lighthouse members and other disciple-makers from Cape Town began walking the rows of one-room shacks, looking for persons of peace. Within half an hour they found some, and began forming discipleship groups in this community. Then as the inhabitants of Tin Can Town returned to their original communities, they began reproducing disciples in those communities.

One eight-year-old girl from Lighthouse watched her father facilitate DBS and announced, “I can do this!” They lived in a rough area known for its gangs, so she began working with the children at the local park. Two years later she is still making disciples, attending the Lighthouse leaders’ gathering, and sometimes bringing disciples with her.

Other Lighthouse members formed DBS groups in their workplaces, with one in the police headquarters at the initiative of a high-ranking female police officer.

Peter can no longer keep track of all the groups that have started, and settles for tracking about 180 DBS groups where Lighthouse has a direct mentoring relationship, some third- and fourth-generation.

As The Lighthouse gained momentum in pursuing God for a movement, David Broodryk—the outside catalyst—made Peter an offer, “I’ll stop all my training and coaching in Cape Town, and work solely with you and Lighthouse, on the condition that you give away what you’ve learned to the city’s other churches.”

Peter agreed and built a coalition of churches pursuing disciple-making movements in Cape Town. Each month they meet to share struggles, challenges, lessons and breakthroughs. They also identify unreached areas and people groups in the city, form teams to reach them, and hold each other accountable for what they will do next.

Houston, TX

Sugar Creek Baptist is a megachurch of 4,000 on the outskirts of Houston, amidst a growing number of counties where the majority are ethnic minorities.[3] Don Waybright is the missions pastor, with a focus both local and global. Outside the U.S., Sugar Creek is a catalyst for movements in Honduras, along the Amazon in Peru and Colombia, and in Mozambique and north India.

Houston has significant refugee populations of Burmese, Bhutanese, and Nepalis. So Don invited the Keystone Project[4] to send teams of missionaries to each of those communities. Sugar Creek provided financial and logistical support and encouraged its members to get involved.

The teams moved in among fifty thousand refugees living in just a few blocks of high density, multilevel housing, and began engaging people from Hindu, Muslim and Buddhist backgrounds. About three hundred people have come to know Christ, with multiple streams of fourth-generation disciples and 12 healthy new churches, including one second-generation church.

Sugar Creek planted another church at the University of Houston as an incubator for church-planting movements, reaching students and mobilizing them for mission beyond the university. Right next to the university is a marginalized community of African Americans containing some of the most dangerous neighborhoods in the country. Now students are making disciples there and seeing first- and second-generation churches in this community, and Sugar Creek has released one of their staff to lead this work.

Other Sugar Creek members are reproducing disciples and simple churches within the prison system around Houston. Transformation in the Darrington Maximum Security Prison has been so dramatic that prison authorities have asked that it be reproduced in all twenty-six prisons around Houston.

Sugar Creek is also training young families to reach their communities in the suburbs, multiplying new groups in new housing developments.

Sugar Creek is catalyzing a gospel-centered church planting movement with other churches in Houston called NoPlaceLeft—Houston. They brought in Ray Vaughn as a monthly trainer, eventually asking him to move to Houston as their first missionary to the whole city of Houston. Since moving there six months ago Ray has helped develop monthly trainings which have equipped 400 members of Sugar Creek with simple tools for having gospel conversations to identify persons of peace. A couple dozen of those trained have become very active in the harvest. Ray has also hosted initial trainings with a number of other local churches, several of which want to start monthly trainings also. Altogether 3,300 believers in Houston have learned to share the gospel over the past six months. Sugar Creek is enlisting and supporting other missionary teams to create multiple threads of leadership and strategy to see the NoPlaceLeft vision in Houston become a reality. Meanwhile Don participates in learning communities for practitioners and increasingly sends out Sugar Creek staff and members with movement experience as trainers to equip other churches around the U.S.

Melbourne, Australia

Dave Lawton was a pastor at Crossway—a church of four thousand in Melbourne, Australia.[5] Then he began using his days off to walk the western suburbs of Melbourne with his wife Colleen, praying and looking for persons of peace. Soon they found themselves leading DBS in homes, and eventually Dave had to tell Crossway he could not continue as a Crossway pastor because of their work in the suburbs.

Instead of accepting Dave’s resignation, Crossway’s senior pastor rewrote Dave’s job description to fit his vision for multiplying disciples and then helped him start a new sending structure named Praxeis. Crossway also revised its mission priorities from planting traditional churches to sparking disciple-making movements.

Soon others joined Dave and Colleen, and Dave’s vision stretched to the whole nation of Australia. Praxeis is now an independent entity, working in partnership with Crossway and other churches. Today over 150 Praxeis volunteers are walking cities and towns throughout Australia, praying and looking for persons of peace. Twelve have raised missionary support to do this full time. And Praxeis now has workers in Hungary and Spain, with additional plans for a team in Japan.

Churches That Pursue God for Movement

The first step toward a movement is expanding a church’s vision from building that church to reaching those who will never go to church.

The ultimate step in a church’s role in a movement is preparing and giving away its skilled practitioners and resources in pursuit of pioneer movements among the unreached and unengaged in distant lands.

God often uses experienced movement pioneers from outside a church as change agents to

1. fuel a hunger for change,

2. cast a vision for what God will do,

3. introduce simple, reproducible

4. steps of loving obedience to Jesus, and

5. keep movements from getting stuck or off track.

Every church has leaders and influencers who need to own the transition from a vision for their church to one for their community. Even after the new vision is clear, implementation can be painful. One day after a movement catalyst clashed with his senior pastor, the pastor told him, “I’ve been doing this job for over thirty years. I know how to lead this church. But I don’t understand your language. Still, I want you to keep speaking that language and don’t stop.”

Once key church leaders are seeking God for a movement, experienced trainers can equip leaders and members in basic skills for meeting new people, offering to pray for their needs and sharing a testimony and the gospel with them. Most people, church leaders included, will find the prospect of sharing the gospel with strangers terrifying, so experienced trainers are also helpful in taking new trainees into the harvest field.

As new laborers go among the lost, God often does amazing things in the lives of both church members and those they meet. And disciples who go looking for persons of peace often return rejoicing at having seen the power of God. This experience often changes people and their priorities.

Even with someone to guide them, many will not be ready immediately to apply with strangers what they learn in training. It is important not to press this, but to gently encourage everyone toward simply making disciples in their own household and other relational networks.

To build momentum for change, vision has to be validated by action. Key to the transition are early adopters—and you can’t predict who they will be—who will reorient their lives and ministries around multiplying disciples. As these are encouraged and supported, stories of what God is doing in people’s lives will pour in to build the faith of others and silence critics.

Once early adopters are identified, form them into teams for encouragement and accountability, gathering them monthly in small groups to discuss four questions (ninety minutes is usually sufficient).

1. What has God done so far toward reproducing gospel, discipleship, and church formation?

2. Where are you stuck in gospel, discipleship, and church formation?

3. What two things do you need to do to move toward multiple generations?

4. How can we pray for you?

Teams of early adopters can soon become trainers and coaches for the rest of the church. And periodically (often twice a year) such teams will meet with other practitioners for “mid-level” training, where each team member works through the same four questions in depth with others. With an experienced facilitator, such teams rapidly master the basic principles of disciple-making movements.

Churches pursuing God for movements will seek to:

- cultivate a vision for the formation of multiple streams of four generations of discipleship groups and churches in its community and in the unreached fields to which God has called it,

- mobilize teams to seek persons of peace locally in unreached communities and people groups,

- partner with agencies to send proven, fruitful laborers to the unreached and unengaged,

- equip other churches, through training and coaching, to pursue God for movements, and

- train every willing believer to have skill and confidence to bring Jesus into their own household, extended family and other relational networks with these simple steps:[6]

- pray for those far from God (oikos map),

- pray with the lost for their needs,

- share a personal testimony/God’s story, and

- facilitate DBS.

This article adapted from Pioneering Movements by Steve Addison © 2015 Used by permission of InterVarsity Press,
P.O. Box 1400, Downers Grove, IL 60515, USA. http://www.ivpress.com

[1] Adapted from Steve Addison’s podcast interviews with David Broodryk, August 7, 2014, Movements.net/2014/08/07/how-churches-can-spark-disciple-making-movements-podcast.html and Peter Snyman, September 29, 2014, Movements.net/2014/09/29/from-church-to-movement-peter-snyman-podcast.html

[2] MissionFrontiers.org/issue/article/small-groups-that-have-the-dna-of-a-disciple-making-movement

[3] Adapted from Steve Addison’s podcast interview with Don Waybright, September 22, 2014, Movements.net/2014/09/22/church-to-movement-don-waybright-podcast.html

[4] KeystoneProject.org

[5] Adapted from Steve Addison’s podcast interview with Dave Lawton, July 17, 2014.

[6] Fields.net and juio.net

About The Author

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Feature

Caring Better For Members

By Training Them to Multiply

by Jimmy Tam

Back in 2000 I planted a bilingual Cantonese/Mandarin church in Los Angeles. I worked hard at caring for our members and poured lots of effort into programs and events, drawing crowds of up to 100, but our regular membership remained around 50 adults.

From the beginning I urged our members to be faithful witnesses, then in 2014 I took responsibility to lead our church on an intentional journey

- from being recipients of and participants in church ministry

- to being missionaries to our community.

My Own Turning Point

In August of 2014 I met Sean in Hong Kong and first learned about church-planting movements. After just ninety minutes of training we went into a rough part of Hong Kong. To my astonishment we found a person there interested in hearing about Jesus.

Back in L.A. I shared this experience with my church, and three months later arranged for Sean to offer training for our members to seek out people prepared for the gospel.

Our Church Transition

I prepared our members with one-liners in the bulletin like “Don’t bring people to the church, bring the church to them.” And I created and shared short video skits in our Sunday service, explaining why we would be discouraging people from bringing friends to church:

- What happens outside church is more important.

- Church is very simple but we have complicated it.

- We want to bring Jesus into families rather than bringing people to church.

Fifty percent of our members attended our first training, and 20% were eager to apply it. We started a “love our neighbor” campaign to meet those around our church. We trained our members to say, “Jesus taught us to love our neighbors, and we want to do that. How can we pray for you?” With neighbors who received prayer we returned and asked, “Can we share a story of love that really encouraged us?” And with neighbors who let us share a story we asked:

- What do you think about Jesus?

- What do you think about this story?

- What is God telling you from this story?

- What does He want you to do?

- Who can we pray with you for?

Our neighborhood is Hispanic, and this led us into cross-cultural evangelism. Whole families participated, including three kids under ten, and it was a great experience. Afterward nearly a dozen of our members began consistently telling their story with Jesus’ story and “Seven Stories of Love.”

Our New Normal

In place of my Sunday sermon time we now have training, celebration and testimony from our members’ experiences in sharing over the past week. We also practice “baptism parties.” Sean provided some of the materials we use, and I wrote the rest.

Our four-week training cycle covers:

- Testimony (our personal story with Jesus’ story)

- Storytelling (one of the “stories of love”)

- How to pray for the sick

- How to run a home church.

Every other Sunday we break into groups for communion and practice, with everyone asking someone, “What are you thankful for, and how can we pray for you?”

We now call our building a training center, not a church, and only allow our original members to attend … no new believers! For Chinese New Year, Christmas and Thanksgiving we have only a brief time of worship, then encourage everyone to go share Jesus’ love with others.

Now, one year later, 70% of our members are making disciples and planting household churches in ten church-planting teams, each with two or more members:

- Five family teams.

- Two young adult teams.

- One elderly team.

- And two college student teams.

Half a dozen of our families are leading new believers to do church in their homes, while our young adults are mainly going door to door. Our college students have also started three or four seeker groups. We have started a dozen house churches or seeker groups, and our teams are excited about seeking out others who are waiting for the gospel.

Now, instead of me baptizing people at our building we offer a $100 subsidy from the church for members to host baptism parties in their homes. Our members are spontaneously baptizing people and telling me about it afterward. Since we have equipped and emboldened them with training and experience, at least 50% of our members are now actively sharing in their workplace.

Over the past year, our members have matured dramatically, are experiencing increased warfare, and our church is praying a lot more.

Caring More Effectively

I have always cared for our members, but I have learned that I care for them more effectively by equipping them to bring Jesus into their contexts than by asking them to bring others to receive my ministry.

About The Author

Jimmy Tam pastors Sunrise Christian Community, an evangelical Chinese church in Alhambra. He is originally from Hong Kong. His passion is to love Jesus, continue Jesus’ mission to make disciples, and train others to do the same. He and his wife have three children.
pastorjimmy@sunrisela.org

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Feature

From Great Church To Equipping Church

by Steve Wright

Where believers are already present, effective missionaries:

- model effective witness among the lost to find Persons of Peace (POPs)

- train existing believers to share in the harvest (starting with each one’s sphere of influence).

Jesus’ and Paul’s pattern of training new disciples to obey all Jesus commanded is not only critical on the field. It can also turn stable churches into “birthing” churches that multiply laborers for the harvest.

One breakout church in the most “never-churched” city in the U.S. exemplifies this.

One Breakout Church

At 17% “never-churched” residents, West Palm Beach, Florida tops Barna’s list. The city also ranks 11th (48%) for total unchurched.  It’s the last place you’d expect a stable church to see sudden growth through new believers. And when Jimmy Scroggins accepted the role of Lead Pastor in 2008, the 107-year old Family Church had been without a senior pastor for five years.
Yet instead of beefing up services to attract new members, Scroggins began to cast vision for more gospel conversations and congregations.

Take-away #1: Seek God for a vision bigger than growing your own church!

Family Church made a key decision to drop many other good things and focus on the vision of reaching the Six million South Floridians who are still far from God. They are intentionally training their members to turn everyday interactions into gospel conversations. Family Church summarizes this as “abandoning the regional mega-church model” to focus on “equipping their members as missionaries.”

Take-away #2: Focus NOT ONLY on ministry to members, but on equipping members to minister!

Just like in the book of Acts, Scroggins knew that focused prayer precedes any movement of God. Pastor Steve Wright, Family Church Pastor of Discipleship and Church Planting says, “The movement of God we are seeing is a testimony that God delights in blessing weakness, and His arms really are long and mighty to save!”

Take-away #3: Rely continuously on the Holy Spirit rather than principles, tools or strategies.

There is no master plan at Family Church. Scroggins came with a vision to reach South Floridians with the gospel. Through prayer and obedience, they have launched church planting residency programs in both English and Spanish where they are training bivocational pastors and ministry leaders. They have planted seven campuses (so far) and partnered with five other churches. And, according to Wright, they are “training everyday people to be sent in Jesus’ name and on his mission.” Tools and strategies are being developed, but the movement is God’s.

Take-away #4: Train members to win the lost.

Through 2013, most of Family Church’s baptisms came from transfer growth or members inviting others to events and programs. Then interaction with “never-churched” Floridians led to training members in a simple, reproducible 3 Circles gospel tool. The following year baptisms tripled to 240 and spread through multiple generations (new believers winning others). And in 2015 the church recorded 336 baptisms! Many of these baptisms are from one-on-one gospel conversations using 3 Circles, and other churches and missions agencies worldwide are using their own adaptations of this 3 Circles gospeling tool.

Take-away #5: Seek or develop simpler and more reproducible evangelism tools

As in effective movements around the world, Family Church is eagerly learning from others. They adopted storyboarding to engage a variety of learning styles in sharing “The Seven Commands of Christ” and “The Seven Stories of Hope.” They have focused initial discipleship on obeying seven commands of Jesus. Through such discipleship, Family Church is seeing 4th and 5th generational growth, with new believers quickly leading others to Christ and discipling them.

Take-away #6: Learn from others to tie evangelism to obedience-oriented discipleship.

Recognizing the role metrics play in shaping behavior, Family Church has started tracking “obedient disciples” in addition to counting “baptized believers.” They are intentionally engaging those they baptize in one-on-one discipleship, getting them in a Bible study group for long-term discipleship and moving them toward serving.

Take-away #7: Measure disciples by obedience.

Family Church continues pressing in to Jesus, noting that even 14,000 baptisms would only reduce the unchurched in their county by one percentage point. Thus they are using every opportunity to train people to be disciple-makers. They have preached through “Seven Commands of Christ” and “Stories of Hope” at all of their campuses, and they are using their bi-annual Leadership Rally and quarterly leadership trainings to equip leaders to turn everyday interactions into gospel conversations.

Take-away #8: Develop and release those with leadership giftings.

As of late 2015, Family Church has built a network of neighborhood churches with seven campuses. Several of these are led by bivocational pastors trained through their residency program. And one campus has planted another. Last fall OutReach Magazine featured Family Church as 9th among the 100 fastest-growing U.S. churches.

Training for Obedience-to-Jesus

(Break into smaller groups as necessary for full participation within available time.)

1. Share highs and lows from the past week.

2. Each retell the memory verse and story from before.

3. Each report how they shared and obeyed the story, and what happened.

4. Assess with the group, based on overall obedience, whether to repeat the previous lesson or proceed with the next.

5. Storyboard the appropriate lesson.

6. Each list or map lost individuals in their sphere of influence and pray for them in pairs.

7. Homework: Daily read/rehearse the memory verse and story aloud, pray for opportunities and share the story. Then tell another group member how it went.

Storyboarding for Faster Learning

(Break into smaller groups as necessary for full participation within available time.)

1. Read the story as a group and outline it.

2. Each draw six boxes and read the story again together, with each writing and/or drawing it in the boxes.

3. Each retell the story to a partner, referencing only their own boxes; then swap roles and repeat.

4. Discuss the story with these SOS questions: What does it Say about God? What should I Obey? What should I Say to others?

5. Each share what they will personally obey from the story.

6. Each identify with whom they will share this story and the 3 Circles gospel presentation in the coming week.

Seven Stories of Hope

(as taught at Family Church)

1. Hope for the Rejected: Luke 7:36-50 (The Woman Weeping at Jesus’ Feet)

2. Hope for the Non-Religious: Luke 18:9-14 (Pharisee & Tax Collector)

3. Hope Changes Things: Luke 19:1-10 (Jesus & Zacchaeus)

4. Hope Forgives: Matthew 18:21-35 (The Parable of the Unforgiving Servant)

5. Hope Through Death: Luke 23:26-43 (Thieves on the Cross)

6. Hope Rose from the Dead: Luke 24:1-20  (Resurrection)

7. Hope is Waiting for You: Luke 15:11-32 (Prodigal Son)

See Web-only article Sharing Stories of Hope

Seven Commands of Christ

(as taught at Family Church)

1. Repent & Believe: Mark 1:15, Luke 7:36-50 (The Woman Weeping at Jesus’ Feet)

2. Baptism: Matthew 28:19, Acts 8:26-39 (Philip and the Ethiopian Official)

3. Gather: Hebrews 10:24-25, Acts 2:41-47 (First Church Formed)

4. Love Neighbors: Matthew 22:37-39, Luke 10:25-37 (The Good Samaritan)

5. Make Disciples: Matthew 28:18-20, John 4:4-42 (The Samaritan Woman at the Well)

6. Pray: Matthew 6:9-13, Matthew 6:5-15 (Jesus Teaches about Prayer)

7. Persevere: John 16:33, Luke 22:39-47 (Gethsemane & Crucifixion)

cities.barna.org/barna-cities-the-top-churchless-metro-areas

About The Author

Steve is Pastor of Discipleship and Church Planting at Family Church. He wrote reThink: Is Student Ministry Working? and ApParent Privilege. He and Tina have three children—Sara, William and Tyler.
swright@gofamilychurch.org

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Train New Disciples to Obey Jesus

by Troy Cooper

(Adapted from a mastery process developed by Family Bible Church and Troy Cooper.)

- Break into smaller groups as necessary for full participation within available time.

- Share highs and lows from the past week.

- Each retell the memory verse and story from the week before.

- Each report how they shared and obeyed the story, and what happened.

- Assess with the group (or individual), based on overall obedience over the past week, whether to repeat the previous lesson or proceed with the next.

- Storyboard the appropriate lesson from the list below.

- Each list or map lost individuals in their sphere of influence and pray for them in pairs.

- Homework: Daily read/rehearse the memory verse and story aloud, pray for a chance to share the story, share it, then report to another group member how it went.

Storyboarding for Faster Learning

- Read the story as a group and outline it.

- Each draw six boxes and read the story again together, with each writing and/or drawing it in the boxes.

- Each retell the story to a partner, referencing only your boxes; then swap roles and repeat.

- Discuss the story with these SOS questions:

- What does it Say about God, What should I Obey? What should I Say to others?

- Each share what they will personally obey from the story.

- Each identify with whom they will share the story and the Three Circles Gospel presentation in the coming week.

Seven Commands of Christ (memory verses & stories)

1. Repent & Believe: Mark 1:15, Luke 7:36-50
The Woman Weeping at Jesus’ Feet

2. Make Disciples: Matthew 28:18-20, John 4:4-42
The Samaritan Woman at the Well

3. Baptism: Matthew 28:19, Acts 8:26-39
Philip and the Ethiopian Official

4. Gather: Hebrews 10:24-25, Acts 2:41-47
First Church Formed

5. Love Our Neighbors: Matthew 22:37-39, Luke 10:25-37
The Good Samaritan

6. Pray: Matthew 6:9-13, Matthew 6:5-15
Jesus Teaches about Prayer

7. Love Our Enemies: John 16:33, Luke 22:39-47
Gethsemane & Crucifixion

About The Author

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Telling Stories of Hope

by Jeff Sundell

Leading a Bible Conversation with a “Yellow-Light” Person

Adapted from materials by Jeff Sundell

With anyone who isn’t ready to follow Jesus, but is open to further spiritual conversation, adapt the following process as appropriate:

- PREPARATION (select a story prayerfully from the list below):

- Read the story aloud.

- Try retelling it in your own words without looking at the story.

- Repeat 2–3 times as necessary to get most of the details without having it perfect.

- Seek a context most comfortable to the other person, preferable in their home, with their friends or family.

- Tell the story.

- Ask one or more to retell what they recall.

- If someone appears comfortable reading, invite them to read the story aloud.
(From their own Bible if available, or from yours. If one one else appears comfortable reading aloud, read the story to them.)

- Ask what they noticed that you or they missed in telling the story.
(Your own example of imperfection in telling the story will give them greater confidence for telling the story to others.)

- Discuss these questions:

- What do we learn about God/Jesus?

- What do we learn about people?

- Do we see in this story a Sin to avoid?

- Do we see in this story a Promise to claim?

- Do we see in this story an Example to follow?

- Do we see in this story a Command to obey?

- Who do you most identify with in the story, and why?

- What keeps you from following Jesus today?

- Ask them to try telling the story again.

- Gently invite them to set goals by asking them:

- What from this story is Jesus asking you to obey?

- Who do you know that needs to hear this story?

- Ask how they would like you to pray for them.

- Pray aloud for them, and for those they mentioned needing to hear this story.

Seven Stories of Hope (adapted from George Patterson):

1. Hope for the Rejected: The Woman Weeping at Jesus’ Feet — Luke 7:36–50

2. Hope for the Non-Religious: Pharisee & Tax Collector — Luke 18:9–17

3. Hope Changes Things: Zacchaeus — Luke 18:18–30

4. Hope Forgives: Unforgiving Servant — Matthew 18:21–35

5. Hope Through Death: Thieves on the Cross — Luke 22:66–23:25

6. Hope Rose from the Dead: Resurrection — Luke 24:1–20

7. Hope is Waiting for You: Prodigal Son — Luke 15:11–32

About The Author

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Feature

Training “Movement Catalysts”

ETHNĚ Pursues A Revolution in Missionary Training

by Stan Parks

While the global ETHNĚ network celebrates 100+ CPMs globally, there are still 6700+ UPGs and more overlapping unreached cities, nations, and language groups. The next generation of missionaries must be equipped to be members of CPM catalyst teams.

The “shocking secret” of missionary training is how few workers receive practical experience in movements prior to their deployment. No other industry would provide such limited training!

It is amazing how effective some missionaries have become through self-learning and on-the-field mentoring. What is heartbreaking is the time and resources spent on missionaries who never learn to seek God for movements.

How can we train missionaries to be most effective? We must understand the first goal of missions—to birth the Church where it is not present toward the ultimate goal of discipling nations. The indigenous Church that is birthed must learn to both reproduce and live out all the kingdom aspects of God’s community in their own culture. Only God can empower our efforts, but He uses our human efforts as we seek Him for a multiplying movement of new disciples, churches, and leaders within the (formerly) unreached group we serve.

A Church Planting Movement is not just one type of mission effort, but an overarching goal. Missionaries in community development, education, arts, business, media, and other ministries can (and have) all contribute and seek God together for multiplying indigenous disciples, churches and leaders living out the full Kingdom in their own context.

Thankfully, new training models that incorporate movement experience are developing rapidly, and leaders around the world are discussing how best to link existing efforts with new processes in an “open-source” way that better serves missionary trainees from all sending nations.

ETHNĚ movement leaders around the world are exploring how to train missionaries through involvement in existing movements to catalyze new movements among the unreached. Catalyzing and serving an expanding, multi-generational CPM can be far more complicated than simply producing one stream of reproducing disciples.

In various locations around the world, ETHNĚ members are beta-testing a new trans-national, trans-organizational, and trans-denominational “movement catalyst training process.” This consists of three phases, often with different groups or networks handling different phases.

Each phase aims to develop:

- heart (character/relationship with God & others),

- head (needed knowledge and wisdom), and

- hands (skills needed to become a cross-cultural movement catalyst).

Phase 1 – Internship: a home-based group process focuses on forging an apprentice’s character, experience and competency in leading the relational networks of their extended family and other relationships where they live, work and play to follow Jesus while also learning to seek persons of peace in other cultures.

This involves an intentional preparatory community in home and nearby cultures, with a focus on growing in obedience, praying for the kingdom, sharing the gospel in word and deed, and practicing Jesus’ model of ministry. This is not a destination, but a starting point for a life-long practice of initiating discipling groups and churches that reproduce themselves. Measures of success include a teachable spirit, competence in applying CPM principles and practices, and a faithful walk in the power and authority of Christ.

Phase 2 – Residency: a field-based group CPM experience led by CPM experienced leaders in a “Hub”—a strategic location for reaching a family of unreached peoples. An apprentice learns the language and culture as a contributing member to a pre-existing Ephesus Team. This forges the apprentice’s character, experience and competence to either continue to phase 3 or return to their home culture as an effective Great Commission servant in that context.

This cross-cultural immersion involves apprentices in applying cross-culturally the principles mastered in their internship. This is done under a local Ephesus team closer to the apprentice’s ultimate call to an unreached group, and involves partnering with local believers in finding Persons of Peace, catalyzing new groups, and developing leaders to sustain a movement through the 4th generation and beyond within an ongoing CPM effort. In an accountable group in which “iron sharpens iron” (Prov. 27:17), apprentices discover and adopt the skills of a servant leader dependent on the Holy Spirit. Success is measured by effectiveness in applying CPM principles in a cross-cultural environment.

Phase 3 – Launch: forming a start-up CPM catalyst team, with coaching from the leaders of the Residency phase.

These equipped catalysts arrive on the field well prepared to seek God for movements among the unreached group(s) to which God has called them. They continue with coaching from other experienced CPM leaders, meeting periodically to share case studies, new tools, on-the-job training, encouragement and fellowship.

If you are already involved in similar training efforts or would like to be part of this type of training process, please contact us at ephesus@ethne.net

About The Author

Stan Parks is a disciple of Jesus helping to reach lost people globally as a CPM trainer and coach. He is VP of Global Strategies for Act Beyond (Beyond.org) and part of the Ephesus CPM Vision with Ethne (ethne.net). Stan Parks and his wife Kay have three children—Noel, Kaleb, and Seth.
ephesus@ethne.net

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Feature

Disciple-Making Movements at Work

by Greg Getz

On a factory tour a worker jumped up and greeted my guide with rare enthusiasm.

“What was that?” I asked when we were out of sight.

“I saved his marriage.”

My guide—a pastor’s kid and former Christian counselor—holds responsibility for changing the corporate culture of a billion dollar company.

We had met to explore what it might look like for this company to  invest itself in the Great Commandment, the Great Commission, and what I’ve come to call the Great Team—the Apostles, Pastors, Evangelists, Shepherds and Teachers (APEST) of Ephesians 4:11.

A Mission Field on our Doorstep

I began pondering.

“What happens to a man’s productivity, company loyalty, and the rest of his life when God uses his work environment to save his marriage?”

“How else can the invasion of God’s Kingdom into the workplace help transform society?”

Yet as Drew Steadman observed in MF a year ago: “When Christians are urged to share the gospel, they instinctively reach out first to strangers and overlook people already in their life. We have to train them to live as ambassadors in the places where God has already put them—work place, neighborhood, social groups, family and friends.”[1]

Many believers spend more waking hours at work than any other single location. What will happen when the Church equips, as missionaries to this context, members who own or work at a business? What will happen when business owners and workers alike apply the principles refined in remote mission fields to pursue God for disciple-making movements in their own work environments?

Imagine the “spiritual capital” created when companies see their greatest bottom line as better husbands and wives, fathers and mothers, families, and communities![2] Imagine the global impact when companies see adding new divisions, markets, locations, and franchises as part of their discipleship multiplication strategy!

A Vision is Born

Legacy Initiative Network was born to pursue this vision by assisting leaders (in business, organization, and ministry) to develop their context as discipling communities that equip employees to lead their relational networks into Spirit-led, Jesus-following ekklesia. We seek to do here at home what Business As Mission (BAM) and Business For Transformation (B4T) networks are seeking to do on the field![3]

[1] MissionFrontiers.org/issue/article/antioch

[2] MissionFrontiers.org/issue/article/spiritual-capital

[3] The Business for Transformation Network (Nexusb4t.com) and the Newvo Network (newvobusiness.com)

About The Author

After a business career in landscape architecture, Greg was a church planting pastor with the Missionary Church, created the online Pastoral Leadership Institute, and then developed Field USA—a network of U.S. practitioners pursuing disciple-making movements. He earned a ThM. from Dallas Theological Seminary. Greg and his wife Sara have three grown children and five grandchildren.
greg@legacyinitiativenetwork.com

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Feature

Starting From Scratch

by James Nyman

Wondering how to get started if your church isn’t yet pursuing movements? Stubborn Perseverance may help. Here’s an excerpt from James Nyman’s new book (2016: Mission Network).

Faisal thought about how his life had changed since he had attended a seminar about church-planting movements (CPMs). I was so frustrated over my ineffectiveness in reaching my own people, and that seminar turned my world upside down! Studying how the Holy Spirit equipped and led the first century believers to reach their world has given my life new purpose and brought me new and deeper friendships. God, I know it could get difficult, or even dangerous, but would you use us to initiate a movement among our own people?

Faisal’s CPM training had concluded with a challenge for all the participants to gather groups to study CPM principles in the Bible. Faisal and his wife Fatima brainstormed who to invite, then narrowed the list to ten couples. Six agreed to participate, but after the third week, only two couples wanted to continue.

Pursuing a CPM had required a high commitment from each of them. Faisal had had to stop doing many good activities, including leading a men’s ministry and weekly fishing with other believers. Most of his friends hadn’t understood his new passion to reach their Muslim neighbors, so he was especially grateful to God for these partners.

Faisal was amazed at how quickly God had knit their hearts together around the CPM vision. He looked forward eagerly to their weekly meetings, delighting in a depth of friendship he had not previously known.

…

Faisal took a long drink from his water bottle and wiped his mouth with the back of his hand. “Let’s start our discussion. What motivates you to study CPM principles?”

“That’s easy,” Yusuf said. “I remember what you asked us the first time we met. ‘If not you, who? If not now, when?’ Those questions really pierced my heart. Who is going to tell our unsaved family and friends about God’s grace and mercy? Nur and I have been comfortable letting our lives be our witness. Yet if we don’t share verbally about Isa now, when will we do it? No one knows the day of his death.”

“You also asked us,” Nasrudin said, “‘How many of our ethnic group, the Sayang, will hear the good news of Isa Al Masih today?’ It struck me that, besides the six of us, I don’t know of anyone else who is telling our people about Isa. That’s just not right!” he added, pounding his fist.

“I am motivated by all Isa has done in my life,” Amina said. “When I stop to think about all the wonderful blessings Isa has given me, I’m really quite speechless. He healed the wounds in my heart and provided me such a wonderful marriage with Nasrudin. How could I not share with others? I want them to enjoy the same joy and peace I experience.”

“I agree with these motivations,” Nur said. “But for me, there is another motive. From studying the Taurat and Injil I know hell is real, and Isa is the only way to heaven. I can’t bear the thought of my family and friends going to hell. It is always risky to talk about Isa, but what if they never hear Isa died for them because I am quiet? What if they die and go to hell because Yusuf and I are afraid of how they will respond to us? I must choose to risk suffering in this life so the people I love won’t needlessly suffer in the next life. I need training to help me overcome my fears and know what to say.”

Faisal waited, but no one spoke further.

“Those are all excellent motivations,” Faisal said. “I long to see God do among our own people what He has done among so many others in history. Learning how God can use just a few unified people to bring great change has given my life new meaning and purpose. I feel fulfilled in ways I have never felt before.”

Faisal stopped to rub his calves. “Well, we still have a lot of mountain to climb, and we’ll need several more breaks before we reach the top. We’ll have another discussion during our next break. Is everyone ready?”

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Feature

Household Churches

by George Patterson & Dick Scoggins; David & Paul Watson

At the first Sunday meeting of a house church of eight in England, they set up a pulpit and invited an outside preacher! Such “house church” adaptations of a “dedicated building” church are fundamentally different from the kind of “household churches” through which movements flow.

In his 1982 article A Church in Every People: Plain Talk About a Difficult Subject,[1] Donald McGavran observed that “perhaps 90 out of 100 missionaries who intend church planting” employ methods that hinder movements rather than facilitating them. The “One-by-One Method” of winning and gathering strangers rather than winning groups with pre-existing relationships is known today as “extraction evangelism.” This results in “Conglomerate Churches”—new faith communities competing with existing relational networks. Such “churches” draw strangers together to form a new, transient “family.” The Western “house church” often replicates this dynamic.

The movement understanding of “household” (or oikos) church is fundamentally different.

The following two book excerpts detail key differences between

- “household” churches—birthed as the gospel enriches pre-existing relationships, and

- “conglomerate” churches—patched together from people without prior relationships.

Work Through Existing Relationships

BY George Patterson & Dick Scoggins

Excerpt from Church Multiplication Guide: The Miracle of Church Reproduction (2002: William Carey Library) Book available at Missionbooks.org

The fact that Jesus is knocking at people’s door becomes good news and travels along the same lines as gossip, between family members and close friends. Churches reproduce spontaneously wherever there is popular interest in the gospel of Jesus Christ. “Popular” does not necessarily mean that the people like it, but that it is of the people. People are interested in it, talk about it and even argue about it. The common people—not just religious types and clergy—are concerned about the good news of salvation in Jesus Christ. Some will reject it, but everyone is nevertheless concerned about it.

God does not view persons as isolated individuals. He sees a seeker as part of a wider network of friends and relatives. Except for hermits who isolate themselves from the world, every person has such networks. To imitate Jesus in His incarnation, believers must step outside their church buildings and missionary compounds to work with the people, rather than developing ever-bigger programs to attract people to the church. You must work within family and social structures, rather than always bringing new believers into our own organization to find Jesus. You must spend time with them in their homes, listening to them and giving to them a model for evangelizing that they can imitate at once and pass on to their people.

Such “incarnational” evangelism imitates Jesus who emptied Himself of His divine glory and power to become a man, to experience things from our viewpoint, to identify with Jewish culture, and to draw near to “tax collectors and sinners.” Similarly, you must empty yourself of your cultural prejudices and draw near to those of other cultures. You must work within existing webs of relationships, within families and with new believers’ and seekers’ networks of friends. Patterson explains how he used such a community approach:

When we penetrated a town for the first time with the gospel, we found it unwise to rent a room for meetings and invite the people to come where we were in control of everything. We could feel secure but they could not. On one Christmas Eve, for example, instead of inviting them to a celebration in a rented hall, we visited them in their homes and joined in with them in their festivities. Well, not in all their festivities! We made ourselves “vulnerable.” We took them baked goods or some other small token of friendship, rather than inviting them to an “outsider” meeting without their friends and family, where they would have felt uncomfortable.

An enemy of this kind of incarnational evangelism is the missionary’s desire to control the process, mistakenly wanting to evangelize where he feels secure and can do everything his own way. He wants to invite seekers and new believers to his house, to a place that he rents, or to a restaurant where he can pick up the bill so that he remains in control. The missionary may feel at ease, but the seekers feel insecure. Thus he extracts them from their network of friends and family and brings them into a new social network of his making. Such evangelism by extraction was neither Jesus’ way nor that of His apostles. They evangelized where they were not in control. Peter evangelized Cornelius’ social network under Cornelius’ roof. Cornelius was Italian, so Peter and his Jewish coworkers had to eat non-Jewish foods for several days in Cornelius’ home. The Jewish Christians in Jerusalem scolded Peter for that (Acts 11:1-18). God had given to Peter a disturbing vision to prepare him for that.

Ask God how you can help your people to see how He wants the gospel to flow through them to their relatives and friends.

Extraction Evangelism and Community Evangelism

BY David & Paul Watson

Excerpt from Contagious Disciple Making: Leading Others on a Journey of Discovery (2014: Thomas Nelson) ContagiousDiscipleMaking.com

Extraction Discipleship is similar to extraction evangelism. Unrelated people convert, are pulled out of their silos, and are brought together to form a new church. They learn a new culture, begin to speak an insider language, and are encouraged to bring others into the new community—if the outsiders are ready to leave their old silos. Redeeming their old silo is not a serious thought, though other individuals will be sought—if it is not too much trouble (in other words, little or no persecution). Soon, the new believers are so adapted to their new silo and so alienated from their old silo that it is next to impossible for them to reach their families, communities, or nations. Families perceive their loved ones as being stolen or kidnapped from them in much the same way Christians feel about cults and their practices. Silos are suspicious of anyone who would abandon his or her cultural roots. And nations rarely tolerate traitors …

Changing our evangelistic mind-set isn’t easy. Extraction evangelism is ingrained in Western Christian culture. Yet extraction evangelism techniques create too many barriers to the Gospel to result in Disciple-Making Movements. Period. Extraction evangelism techniques even inoculate people against receiving the Gospel. Disciple-making, on the other hand, is part of catalyzing Disciple-Making Movements around the world. If Disciple-Making Movements are our goal, we have to make the jump from extraction-evangelism thinking to disciple-making thinking.

[1] Published in the Perspectives Reader and the September-October, 1997 issue of MF:
missionfrontiers.org/issue/article/a-church-in-every-people

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5 Levels of Movement Leadership

by Nathan Shank

Movements rise and fall on leadership reproduction. On the edge of movements in Asia, we have clung to simple application of the Word as the standard for success or failure in our church planting. Over the years, we have repeatedly seen the need for leadership at several levels across movements.

Jesus was on a timeline to engage “all the towns and villages of Galilee” with the good news of the Kingdom (Matt. 9:35). It wasn’t enough for the 12 and 70 to do the work; He instructed them to first, “Beg the Lord of the harvest to thrust out laborers” (Matt. 9:37–3 and Luke 10:2).

Jesus’ band of disciples, indwelt by God’s Spirit, were promised power (Acts 1:8) and the Lord’s presence (Matt 28:20) to the end of both geography and time.

And the book of Acts records the early Church’s transition from addition to multiplication (Acts 2:41,47; 5:14; 6:1,7; 9:31; 11:21; 21:19–20).

The dynamics of developing a multiplying work force were graciously included in the Holy Spirit’s record of Paul’s labors. Acts and the Epistles read like a playbook for advance (1 Thess. 1:4–10) and apostolic triage among newly established churches (1 Cor).

A key question in any movement (or church) is, “How do we identify, develop and mobilize emerging leaders into their God-given roles in our fields (or community)?” For those pursuing movements, what cues exist within Scripture to guide our expectations of emerging leadership?

Following is an outline of movement leadership roles we have encountered consistent with Paul’s example.

1. Seed Sowers-

engage lostness with the Gospel.

Mobilization goal

- 100%; Every believer an ambassador, a minister of reconciliation — 2 Cor. 5:11–21.

Characteristics

- Sows in obedience to Jesus’ command to be His witnesses.

- Overcomes fear and prejudice with love for the lost.

- Wins some in their own “Oikos” (relational network) to faith.

- Uses simple tools — testimony and a simple gospel presentation.

- Models seed sowing for others.

Common Barriers to mobilizing seed sowers

- Lack of expectation among church leaders

- Lack of training for believers.

Next Steps

- Instruct them to gather discipleship groups within relational networks.

- Train them in a simple discipleship process.

- Build their confidence for discipling a group.

- Teach them to guide participative Bible study

- Lead them through Acts 2 and 13 to see the function of churches.

- Impart to them reproducible and indigenous church “DNA.

2. Church Planters-

engage new fields, sow the Word, nurture the growth and birth new churches.

Mobilization goal

- As many as possible; A high percentage are called to start new churches — 1 Cor. 3:10–11.

Characteristics

- Models effective seed sowing among strangers.

- Facilitates discipling of new believers in their relational networks.

- Encourages body life with baptism, the Lord’s Supper, etc.

- Identifies spiritual gifts toward proper church function.

- Discovers the pastor locally rather than assuming that role.

- Develops emerging leaders to entrust with leadership.

Common Barriers to mobilizing church planters

- Applying extra-biblical qualifications (eloquence, dynamic vision, scholarly knowledge of the Bible).

- Restricting authority regarding baptism, the Lord’s Supper, etc.

- Pushing church planters into pastoral leadership.

- Subsidizing some as church planters in ways that undermine expecting everyone to plant churches.

Next Steps

- Guide them to apply 1 Tim. 3:1–7 & Titus 1:5–9 in selecting local leaders.

- Urge them to release their fruit to emerging local leaders.

- Expose them to multiplication in scripture and in other fields.

- Train them to filter disciples by fruitfulness and faithfulness.

- Teach them to track the progress of new gatherings in the biblical functions of church.[1

3. Church Planting Multipliers-

successfully multiply through new generations of church planters and churches (2nd, 3rd, 4th generations) — Titus 1:5–6, Col. 1:3–9, 4:7–17

Characteristics

- Recognizes and releases authority for church leadership.

- Equips and mobilizes seed sowers and church planters.

- Casts vision for 2nd, 3rd & 4th gen autonomous churches.

- Delegates responsibility and authority.

- Models engagement of new fields, gospel seed sowing, disciple-making and church formation.

- Provides diagnostics and training for a wider network.

- Envisions ministry beyond their abilities.

Common Barrier to mobilizing church planting multipliers

- Extra-biblical systems of church government and ordination.

Next Steps

- Expose them to other fruitful fields for bigger vision.

- Lead them to see gaps and fruitful tools used elsewhere.

- Guide them to consider their role in the global context.

- Urge them to evaluate “What’s It Going to Take?” (WIGTAKE) to fulfill God’s purposes.

- Encourage them to serve/debrief other CP Multipliers.

- Exhort them to recognize their potential as a catalyst for other movements.

4. Movement Trainers-

introduce pre-existing autonomous networks to biblical training for multiplying churches— 2 Tim. 2:2

Characteristics

- Empowers others, independent networks. (Does NOT “own” the fruit of their labor.)

- Trains leaders in this and previous levels.

- Diagnoses network strengths and weaknesses with the five parts and four fields.[2]

- Brings biblical correction to barriers to reproduction.

- Casts multiplication vision in other networks.

- Mobilizes the resources for training other networks.

Common Barrier to mobilizing movement trainers

- Pursuing their own ministry to the exclusion of serving other ministries.

Next Steps

- Help them develop a strategic focus.

- Encourage them to increased prayer.

- Urge them to study “panta ta ethne” in scripture.

- Cultivate their burden for unengaged populations.

- Build their vision to reach engaged population segments until there is No Place Left.

5. Strategy Coordinators-

train and release leaders and mobilize networks / resources to saturate a specific population segment — Rom. 15:15–23, Acts 20:17–35

Characteristics

- Focuses on a specific unreached segment or people.

- Mobilizes networks and resources to reach this people group.

- Applies balanced, reproducible church planting strategy.

- Trains and develops all other levels of leadership.

- Diagnoses/cross-pollinates multiple streams of multiplying churches.

- Pursues No Place Left in their chosen people.

Common Pitfalls for strategy coordinators

- Losing focus amidst competing needs and responses to success.

- Early success drawing outside attention.

- Additional agendas backed by foreign funding.

Next Steps

- Discovering unengaged segments beyond their current focus.

- Developing strategy coordinators from within their movement.

- Preparing an exit strategy for their current focus.

- Pursuing No Place Left in their current focus where Jesus isn’t yet preached.

Adapted from Four Fields of Kingdom Growth: Starting and Releasing Healthy Churches by Nathan and Kari Shank (2014) Movements.net/4_fields_manual_shank

Further developed in Steve Addison’s new book Pioneering Movements: Leadership that Multiplies Disciples and Churches (2015: InterVarsity Press)

[1] Generational Mapping: Tracking Elements of Church Formation Within CPMs in MissionFrontiers.org/issue/article/generational-mapping

[2] See video and manual at Movements.net/4_Fields_nathan_shank

About The Author

Nathan Shank has been living and working in South Asia since 2000. He and his wife have dedicated themselves to the multiplication of God’s kingdom through church planting. Nathan and his team are currently tracking more than 75 church planting networks around the world with fourth generation churches. He is a regular contributor to David Garrison’s ChurchPlantingMovements.com and Steve Addison’s Movements.net

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Movements Multiplying Movements

by Jeff Sundell & Garret Lawrence

God’s plans will be fulfilled. The question is not if they will happen, but when? His purpose is to fill the earth with the knowledge of His glory, and to do so through multiplying His people until there is no place left among the nations without local witness (Hab 2:14, Rom 15:23, Rev 7:9).

No Place Left is an end vision. It’s a statement of finality. It’s a biblical mantra revealing God’s heart to multiply His glory among the nations. And we can see, from the examples of both Jesus and Paul, a consistent pattern of what it means to make disciples of all nations toward No Place Left (1 Cor 11:1). That pattern can be summarized into five parts: (1) Entry, (2) Gospel, (3) Discipleship, (4) Church Formation, and (5) Leadership Multiplication.[1] These five parts are woven throughout the New Testament and can also been seen in most, if not all, of the Church Planting Movements happening today.

Perspective from Austin

In 2013, Jeff Sundell trained Fred and Melissa Campbell in the “Five Parts.”[2] Then in the winter of 2013, Fred and Melissa began coaching our team of practitioners in Austin. In March 2015, we had the opportunity to go to Asia to see church planting movements firsthand. We returned home with greater resolve to practice the five parts of Jesus and Paul’s pattern.

Seeing that our church has a vision for sending cross-cultural workers to unreached people groups, the trip also served to show us more clearly what it would take to prepare long-term cross-cultural workers for catalytic work amongst unreached people groups. Movement practitioners suggested the best way to prepare cross-cultural workers is to have them multiply churches generationally in their own locale before moving overseas to do it in another context. In other words, to effectively equip cross-cultural workers, train them to live in the five parts locally before they go and train others to do so globally.

As we continued the pursuit locally, Jeff suggested, “What if we could put a team of practitioners inside a movement to learn from the movement, to sharpen training skills, and to also assist people groups of that country in pushing a movement forward?” In fall of 2015, Jeff invited us to go to Asia to give it a try.

Learning from Movements

We went to Asia to learn from an existing movement through partnering with nationals to train local believers in the five parts.

- Over a 10-day period, here is what happened:

- 500 national believers from different villages and districts were trained.

- Over 50 people were led to faith by participants being trained.

- 20 of those new believers were baptized by the end of the week.

- 3 new churches were formed.

Alongside this training we visited house churches within the movement. In one of these churches, every family present had planted other multiplying house churches.

Our team had several key takeaways from this time:

1. Common DNA

The DNA in the U.S. and the DNA in Asia are 95% the same! We felt tremendous confidence for training cross-culturally because we were already practicing and training people in the “Five Parts” locally.

2. Keep It Simple

Training cross-culturally forced us to keep the process simple. Working through a translator challenged us to do things in a reproducible way.

3. Healthy Church

Babies don’t mature overnight, and neither do churches. We must give church identity from the beginning and help church starts grow into health over time through obedience-based discipleship.

4. Model-Watch

Modeling and practice are important. If we expect people to go out and implement, we must first model it, then give them plenty of repetitions to practice.

5. Be a Doer of the Word

A chef always tastes the food first. If you are not personally implementing the five parts, you cannot expect to train others to do it.

6. Shared End Vision

Our team’s vision became a shared vision. “No Place Left” is a global, unifying vision for the church.

The Asian Leader’s Perspective

Our team partnered with an Asian movement catalyst who observed, “This is the first time we have had a team of ‘Five Parts’ practitioners come and join in the movement here. You are well-prepared trainers, and the strongest team I have hosted. You will do greater things than I have done.” He went on to share that the team helped advance his long-term strategy and got his own leaders unstuck in key areas.

Jeff Sundell’s Perspective

In the U.S. context we have a habit of making simple things complex. But when you train cross culturally you must keep things simple. The team learned to be concise and to the point. They went in as learners, and did a great job! One of the team members was an engineer. After training in a remote village one evening, lying on his back on a bed 3 feet too short for him, he thought, “I could do this. I could be a missionary.” He determined upon returning home to rearrange his lifestyle to focus more on the harvest in Austin. Another teammate mentioned how simple the training was and how similar it was to their work in the U.S. The main thing they learned, though, is that the pursuit of movements takes hard work and perseverance. The team had already shared the Gospel over 1,000 times in the U.S. in the past 6 months, and their practice of the five parts in the U.S. prepared them well to train in Asia.

Jeff’s Vision for the Future of Missions

What if we could borrow national leaders from existing movements, connect them with other practitioners like this team from the U.S., and send them together to new areas as catalysts for movements? When practitioners with experience in generational growth in the U.S. are sent to serve long term overseas they still need language and culture acquisition, but their potential effectiveness is greatly accelerated. As e3 Partners sends long-term workers overseas they are actively looking for people with generational movement experience. The first few teams with this kind of experience are now preparing to go. It will be very exciting to see what God does in the next three to five years as we see movements multiply in the U.S. to prepare more effective workers for the unreached and unengaged.

Global Learning, Local Impact

Needless to say, this experience strengthened our team. Here are some elements in our action plan moving forward.

1. Vision for God’s Glory

Everyone expressed an increased hunger and vision for God’s glory among the nations. We plan to intentionally pursue God for movements among every tribe, tongue, and nation in our locality while remaining ready to move anywhere God leads in order to see the Great Commission completed.

2. Passion for Our Neighbors

Our experience brought a deeper love for those who are far from God and a heightened urgency to share the Gospel. We plan to share the Gospel daily as a way to love God with all of our hearts, souls, minds, and strength, and to love our neighbors as ourselves.

3. Obedience Based Discipleship

The Great Commission is the highest call of our lives. We must go, make disciples, baptize and teach new disciples to obey everything Jesus commanded.

4. Identity as Church

The best thing we can do for new disciples is help them form into churches or assimilate them into an existing local church. We plan to help groups of new disciples self-identify as churches.

5. Leadership Development

The hindering lid on movements is leadership. We must give the Kingdom away to continue developing more leaders. We plan to train more people to become church planting multipliers.

In Summary

Exposure to and experience within a movement did sharpen our skills while helping push a movement forward. Such cross-pollination is very strategic in awakening and uniting the body of Christ around the world, and it is effective in inspiring Great Commission urgency.

In Hastening the hero says, “There will be a last generation. Why not us?”[3]

I pray that ours will be the last generation. Movements multiplying movements in this generation could play a key role in seeing God’s purpose fulfilled. May we put away self-centered dreams, and instead join with God in His work to reconcile all nations to Himself in Christ.

[1] Nathan Shank. Four Fields of Kingdom Growth: Starting and Releasing Healthy Churches, pp.20–21. Movements.net/4_fields_manual_shank

[2] Steve Addison. Pioneering Movements: Leadership that Multiplies Disciples and Churches (2015: IVP), p.121.

[3] Steve Smith. Hastening: No Place Left book ONE (2015: 2414 Ventures). p.254.

About The Author

Jeff served as a strategy associate for Northern India, Nepal and Bhutan before leading an effort to birth movements in the U.S. His passion is to turn people “far from God” into reproducing disciples of Jesus Christ who gather into healthy reproducing churches.
1969alfs@gmail.com

Garret is a movement practitioner and catalyst in the U.S. He is passionate about seeing the fulfillment of Revelation 7:9 in this generation.
atx1002@gmail.com

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Feature

First Tool:

Oikos Map & My Story/His Story

by

Adapted with permission from JUIO.net/#!oikos-mapping/ce45

When Jesus found people open to his message he often stayed and shared with others in their relational network (family, friends, co-workers and acquaintances). Sometimes “households” (Greek oikos) or even whole villages received the good news in this way.

When Matthew and Zaccheus (tax collectors) followed or received Jesus, he went to meet their household. The woman at the well, and the demoniac both went back to their villages where they told people about Jesus and his message even before the people in their villages had met him. This is how the gospel spreads virally.

OIkos Map

Learning this principle from Jesus, we practice and immediately teach each new follower of Jesus to draw out an “Oikos Map” with names of people we know who are “far from God.” We include both those we know personally (with whom we will go and share our story and God’s story) and those we have incidental contact with (those “far from God” that we will teach our family and friends to share with as our family and friends follow Jesus).

We begin by drawing a bubble in the middle of a sheet of paper and putting our name in it. Then we draw connected bubbles around our bubble with the names of “far from God” people we know directly. We try to map as many people as we can.

Then we draw lines from these people to bubbles where we write down those they know. Finally we draw an empty bubble at the end of every stream of relationships to encourage continued prayer and sharing through the “generations.”

We then set ourselves and those we are discipling a goal to share with five people every seven days, updating our map each week and choosing five more people to share with.

My Story / His Story

Jesus told the restored demonaic to let others know what God had done for him. So practice describing in one sentence each:

- our life before Jesus

- a clear gospel such as transformed us

- how our life has changed as a result

- an invitation to join us in following Jesus.

This presents our experience as supporting testimony for the gospel in a way that invites a positive response. If God leads them to follow Jesus, or even if they are just open to further discussion, we invite them to gather a few family or friends to discuss the Bible in a context that will be most com

About The Author

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Feature

Gospel Tool:

3 Circles

by Fred Campbell

As adapted by No Place Left Practitioners

Family Church set out to equip members to turn everyday interactions into gospel conversations. The 3 Circles tool they developed contributed to tripling their baptisms from 80 in 2013 to 240 in 2014. Movements in several parts of the world have adapted 3 Circles.

Jimmy Scroggins walks through the original 3 Circles in six minutes at namb.net/video/3circlesguide.

The Southern Baptist North American Mission Board turned it into a smartphone app: “Life Conversation Guide.”

The additional refinements below came through the application of 3 Circles in House of Peace searches on two continents.

Ten-year old Malachi models the adaption below in this four-minute video: vimeo.com/128678770

A Conversational Tactic

One study indicates that Americans average 27 conversations a day. These often surface struggles or issues which invite us to offer a reason for the hope we have (1 Pet 3:15).

The 3 Circles is more than a simple gospel presentation, it’s an interactive tactic for:

- guiding a conversation to include the gospel

- telling God’s story within your own story

- inviting a response

- training new believers to do the same.

A Sample Conversation

Let’s join Chris and Larry mid-conversation, as Larry mentions a disappointment.

L: “It’s been a rough day, starting with a fight with my wife.”

C: “Yeah, I’ve had days like that. A good friend shared something with me that gave me hope and helped me change. You are a good friend, and I’d like to share it with you.”

C draws a circle and writes Brokenness inside: “We live in a world of brokenness, full of hurting people hurting each other. I used to be so full of anger that I took it out on those around me. I could see myself doing it, but I didn’t know how to stop.”

C draws squiggly arrows out from and looping back to Brokenness: “We try escaping brokenness in relationships, career, pleasure or dulling our pain, but this just leads to greater brokenness. I used to get drunk frequently, and had a long string of relationships. But in the end I just felt more pain.”

L: “Yeah, I know what you mean. I’ve focused on my career, but it seems to be tearing my marriage apart. So what did you learn?”

C draws a second circle, to the left of the first, and writes God’s Design inside. “I learned that our brokenness was not God’s original design! We see evidence of His design when we see the beauty of a newborn baby or an incredible sunrise or sunset.”

C draws an arrow from God’s Design to Brokenness and writes sin above it. “But each of us have rebelled against God and walked away from His design. The Bible calls this sin, and this leaves us in brokenness.”

C draws a third circle below and between the first two (forming an upside-down triangle of circles), and writes Jesus inside the top half. “God saw we could not escape our brokenness on our own, so God demonstrated his love towards us!”

C draws a down-arrow below Jesus’s name inside the circle. “He sent Jesus to the earth and Jesus lived a perfect life.”

C draws a cross next to the down-arrow. “He suffered a horrible death on a cross to take our brokenness upon Himself.”

C draws an up-arrow next to the cross. “Then Jesus rose again. He has power over death! He’s alive!”

C draws a line from Brokenness to Jesus, labels it with a king’s crown, and writes restored. “Jesus said if you will turn from your brokenness, believe that God raised Him from the dead, and confess Jesus as king of your life, you will be restored back to God’s design! SO I DID THAT! And now…”

C draws a line from Jesus to God’s Design and labels it grow. “I’m growing in God’s design …”

C draws an arrow from God’s design back to brokenness. “And I go tell others in brokenness about this GOOD NEWS!”

L: “That’s powerful!”

C: “Where do you see yourself in this picture?”

L points to Brokenness.

C: “And where would you like to be?”

L: “In God’s design.”

C: “You can get there right now. Larry, do you believe God raised Jesus from the dead?”

L: “Yes.”

C: “Larry, do you want to turn now from your brokenness?”

L: “Yes.”

C: “Would you confess to Jesus, not me, that you choose to follow Him as your king? Just tell him that!”

L: “Okay. Jesus, I turn from my brokenness and choose to follow you. Be the king of my life, Jesus!”

C: “Way to go Larry! Now let me show you some verses in the Bible!”

C opens to Matt. 28:18. “Jesus said, ‘all authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me.’ Do you believe Jesus has all authority in heaven and earth?”

L: “Yes.”

C: “Are you giving Jesus authority over your life?”

L: “Yes.”

C: “‘Therefore go and make disciples of all nations.” Larry, do you know what a ‘disciple’ is?”

L: “No,”

C: “It’s like an apprentice, following and becoming like Jesus! Do you want to be a disciple of Jesus?”

L: “Yes, but I don’t know how.”

C: “We will care for you and help you! Jesus continued, ‘baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.’ Baptism is a symbol of what Jesus did for us—He died, was buried, and three days later rose from the dead! Baptism is also a picture of the miracle that happens inside us when we follow Him—we die to our old self and are raised up to walk a new life with Jesus! Will you obey Jesus’ example and command to be baptized now?”

L: “Yes, let’s do it!”

C: “Great. Now let me continue, ‘teach them to obey everything I have commanded you.’ Larry, can we come back and continue teaching you how to obey everything Jesus commanded?”

L: “Sure. When?”

C: “How about this same time next week?”

L: “Great!”

C: “Look at this last part, Larry. Jesus promised, ‘And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.’ Larry, how does that make you feel?”

L: “Really Good. Really Good.”

C: “Never forget Jesus’ promise to you, Larry! Now let’s go find water so you can obey Jesus’ command and be baptized!”

L: “Let’s Go!”

About The Author

Since 2007 successful business owner Fred and his wife Melissa have been praying, “Lord Jesus, Give us Austin or we die!” Fred has been an evangelist and discipler through and outside his work, but found those brought to church often not staying nor reproducing. Then God introduced them to a pattern of care for reproducing disciples and churches. In 2013 they experienced GOD while doing the Great Commission, and saw 60 new groups in 60 days which reproduced hundreds more new believers.

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Feature

Hastening “No Place Left” Locally

by Steve Smith

A few years ago MF featured David Platt’s Radical, a strategic book for mobilizing the church. We are delighted now to feature Steve Smith’s thriller No Place Left saga, designed to carry the Church further in the same direction. This excerpt is from Hastening (Book One).

“Dude, haven’t you heard what’s happening?” Lance asked. “Christopher Owen has been speaking at all the campus fellowships, sending seven point shock waves throughout. He’s launched a high-powered missions group called the Kingdom Preparation Force. They’re saying we can help prepare for Jesus’ return. They’re talking 2025 as a target date. It’s kinda radical, but a lot of us are praying seriously about joining. A gap year for some, or for George and me …,” he grinned broadly, “after graduation in a few weeks!”

Phil’s eyes widened. “What? You guys are going to skip out on getting a job to join up with some new missions group? What will your parents think?”

“My parents are good with it!” Lance smiled broadly. “It’s only for a year,” he added. “And, ya know, the job market is kinda soft right now anyway. But I’ve also been thinking. I’ve been vainly pursuing the American dream. But 2025? Dude, that’s just ten years from now. I can do anything for Jesus for ten years!”

“It’s not just us, Phil,” George said. “A lot of folks are signing up. Of course, it will take more than a year to finish the whole task, but we’re starting with a one-year commitment. This is the real thing, man. It fits with what we know in our hearts and minds to be right. Christopher Owen has been around here longer than any of us. Even Professor Steward, from the history department, is part of this.”

“Professor Steward? Really?” Phil shook his head. “If what you’re saying is true, this may be it—just what I have been searching for!”

“Uh, probably not,” George said, glancing worriedly at Lance. “This isn’t for everybody. We’ll be going places missionaries aren’t welcome. There’s a lot of risk involved.”

But Phil wasn’t to be dissuaded. “Okay. Maybe I’ll give this Christopher guy a call.”

Lance grabbed Phil’s arm, perhaps a bit too firmly. “Dude, you’ll need to move fast. Our first meeting is May 24th, a week after graduation. Make sure this is what you really want to do. It’s going to be a tough year.”

George said, “And if that’s not enough, Church in the City has been calling all of its members to make disciples who make more disciples who make more disciples. Just like the Great Commission says.”

Lance nodded. “Like it’s the pattern all Jesus-followers are supposed to have. You know, follow Jesus and fish for men.”

Kellie motioned for the three guys to come closer. “Do you guys know Ruth Grant?”

Phil raised an eyebrow. “That bashful nerd from math class?”

Kellie smiled. “Well, she’s raising havoc on campus. I’ve never heard anyone share the gospel so much. In fact, I hadn’t heard her say more than ten words until recently. But she led two sorority gals to the Lord just a few weeks ago. She’s been discipling them in the study center. And those two gals have now led so many of their sorority sisters to the Lord that they’ve formed a discipleship group in their sorority house living room.”

Lance laughed and looked around. “So that’s what happened! Now it makes sense. One of my ATO buddies was led to faith last week by a girl in their house. He’s now started a new group with several of the guys in our frat house at 6 a.m. on Tuesdays! Dude, nobody gets up at six!”

“All I’m saying,” said George, “is that this call Christopher Owen is making is not just to finish the missions task. It’s a call to return to biblical discipleship. They’re trying to start a discipleship movement here in L.A. before they leave for the nations.”

Kellie smirked as she spoke. “Ahem, my sister is Christopher Owen’s wife, Chara.”

George raised his hand to his mouth. “Oh my gosh! I hope I didn’t say anything embarrassing!”

Kellie playfully punched him in the arm. “Yeah, I’m keeping track of all you guys say! Seriously, though, Chara is telling me that just through Ruth’s touch, we have six new generations of disciples and groups! Greeks, athletes, math students, landscape workers on campus! It’s crazy!

“When I think about how shy and introverted Ruth is, if the Holy Spirit can do that through her, there is hope for me—for all of us. God wants to launch a discipleship revolution through us that will touch the nations. We are going to do there what we are doing here. Ruth is proof that it can work.”

She paused and nodded her head slowly. “I’m with you, Lance. I can do anything for Jesus for ten years! And my brother-in-law who’s leading the charge? He’s the real deal!”

About The Author

Steve Smith

Steve Smith planted a church in Los Angeles and then helped initiate a church planting movement (CPM) among an unreached people group in East Asia. The last ten years he has trained believers in CPM and currently oversees the work of the International Mission Board (SBC) in reaching Southeast Asian Peoples.

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Feature

Strategic Pursuit of CPMs Through International Students

by Robert Osburn Jr.

“The university is a clear-cut fulcrum with which to move the world. More potently than by any other means, change the university and you change the world.” — Dr. Charles Malik, president of the UN General Assembly.

Don’t want to risk your life bringing the gospel to dangerous places like Afghanistan, Somalia, Iraq or Syria? The Church must go to these places with the gospel, but we can also engage their future leaders studying on our doorsteps! Over a million international students study in the USA alone, while another 3 million leave their country to study in Europe or other parts of the world. Many of these are being prepared for key positions of leadership in their homeland.

Churches that eagerly prepare laborers for discipling nations are well advised to equip and engage their members to pursue God for movements through international students.

Consider these factors:

- Many of today’s international leaders, including the current dictator of North Korea, studied outside their home country.

- Many of tomorrow’s leaders—in all levels of government, all segments of society, and in every country—are away from home now as students.

- Students studying abroad currently are often ready to learn, eager for friendship, spiritually hungry, open to a new worldview, and prepared to embrace a vision for making a difference back home.

- Today’s students may influence or even determine the future receptivity of their homelands to church-planting movements.

- International student ministry provides a low-cost, readily accessible training context for aspiring overseas laborers who want to develop the skills for pursuing God for cross-cultural movements.

- While developing and mastering cross-cultural communication skills, prospective missionaries engaged with international students can demonstrate effectiveness with peoples similar to those they may later be called to reach—all prior to the heavy investment of relocation.

We are curently gathering articles and suggestions for an issue of MF on pursuing God for movements through international student ministry. Please forward suggestions, outlines or drafts to bob@wilberforceacademy.org

About The Author

Robert Osburn has been in international student ministry for 30 years at the University of Minnesota. He now leads the Wilberforce Academy, a ministry that trains international students to be redemptive change agents in their home societies. He has a ThM from Dallas Seminary (1978) and a PhD in comparative and international development education from the University of Minnesota (2005). He has been a board member with the Association of Christians Ministering among Internationals (ACMI) and presented at countless ACMI conferences.
bob@wilberforceacademy.org

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Kingdom Kernels

The Freewill Offerings Generation

by Steve Smith

My eyes have longed for this day, and I believe I am seeing the first fruits of it. A generation is rising up that may fulfill the great Messianic Psalm 110:

1The Lord says to my Lord: “Sit at My right hand

Until I make Your enemies a footstool for Your feet.”

2The Lord will stretch forth Your strong scepter from Zion, saying,

“Rule in the midst of Your enemies.”

3Your people will volunteer freely in the day of Your power;

In holy array, from the womb of the dawn,

Your youth are to You as the dew. (Psalm 110:1-3, NASB95)

Having just spent two weeks with men and women from across North America aged 16 to 60+, my soul was thrilled to see their passion to make Jesus the King of every nation, every people group, every neighborhood. With humility and a volunteer spirit (they came to this meeting at their own expense), they are joyfully sacrificing all to make sure there is no place left where Jesus is not named (Rom. 15:23). A great many of them are in the midst of budding movements of God in which new disciples and new churches are multiplying in their cities. They are living out the spirit of Psalm 110.

Bringing the Nations Before the Throne

Psalm 110 is a strong Messianic psalm that Jesus quoted in regard to His role as the Messiah (e.g. Matt. 22:44). It is a psalm quoted by the writer of Hebrews to exalt Jesus at the right hand of the Father far above the angels (Heb. 3:13).

The central mission of the church has always been the fulfillment of the Lord’s Prayer through the Great Commission that His Kingdom will come fully on earth as in heaven. Jesus sent out His followers to make disciples of all of the nations and peoples, thereby calling them to bow the knee to the True King (Psa. 110:1).

Peter, on the day of Pentecost, referred to this psalm to announce to the “nations” that Jesus is the Lord and Christ that was promised (Acts 2:34-36). There in Jerusalem began the launch to fulfill the vision of Psalm 110—to bring all of the nations to the footstool of Jesus Christ. Later, Paul continued this theme that every knee will bow to the True King (Phil. 2:10-11). The disciples remembered the words of their King that until the gospel of His reign comes to every people group, the end will not come (Matt. 24:14; Rev. 7:9).

One thing I love about this whole mission is the motivation of the Bride. The motivation is not one of duty (though the King rightfully demands our duty—Luke 17:10), but of love for our King. We long to see Him receive the full worship of all nations. We long to bring to Him an offering worthy of His Name—the Gentiles presented to Him as an acceptable offering (e.g. Rom. 15:16).

This is the grand mission of the Father—to bring all the nations to bow before His Son. When that day finally comes, and Jesus sits on His throne, then He will bring all of creation back to His Father (1 Cor. 15:24). This is the passion of the Son—bringing full glory to His Father. This is the storyline of history orchestrated through the power of the Spirit—to sum up all things in Christ (Eph. 1:10). Mass migrations of Muslim refugees to places where they can hear the gospel remind us that the Father is the one driving history’s storyline.

The Psalm 110:3 Generation

A generation is growing up that longs to live in the same spirit—to see Jesus enthroned as King in every people group, every city, every county, every neighborhood. There has always been a subset of God’s people with this passion. But what strikes me about our generation is the rapidly increasing numbers sacrificially aspiring to this vision.

I see in their hearts a zeal that ignites them like their Lord:

His disciples remembered that it was written, “Zeal for your house will consume me.”
(John 2:17, ESV)

It’s at times like these—when I see their desire to reach their entire cities and states, and their sacrificial commitment to live humbly under the Spirit’s leading—that I get a catch in my throat and think “It’s happening—finally!”

In the middle of Psalm 110, verse three describes the generation that will rise up “in the day of Your power.” This seems to point toward the end of the age when Christ will fully exert His reign over the nations and will return for His Bride. It describes the culmination of the Great Commission—all peoples having received the gospel and the Church having been birthed in every language, tongue, tribe and nation.

Just prior to the fulfillment of the Great Commission, of getting to no place left globally, will be the rising up of a unique generation—the last generation. They will be the means the Spirit uses to bring about the end and will be characterized as follows:

1. Freewill Offerings

First, they will be characterized as freewill offerings. The Hebrew text literally says: “Your people will become freewill offerings in the day of your power.” Most English translations render this something like “offer themselves freely” or “volunteer freely.” The mind of a Hebrew reading this would immediately flashback to a couple of places in the Old Testament.

A whole host of sacrifices and offerings were prescribed in the Old Testament, and all but one were mandatory—the freewill offering. The freewill offering was an expression of love and gratitude based on how one’s heart had been moved (Exod. 35:29). The people of Israel lavished their precious articles and efforts on the Lord in the building of the tabernacle to such a degree that Moses had to restrain them—they were giving too much (Exod. 36:2-7). Again, after returning from the Exile centuries later, the Jewish remnant was so moved that they rebuilt the destroyed temple out of freewill offerings (Ezra 1:4-5; 2:68-69).

A generation will rise up characterized by fulfilling the Great Commission, not out of duty, but out of sacrificial love and gratitude to their King. They will finish what many faithful men and women in previous generations have started.

Remarkably they will be largely a “lay” movement—characterized by many who do not receive full-time financial support (though full-time workers will still play strategic roles). A freewill offering generation will rise up to go beyond what is expected of most believers.

2. In Holy Array

This generation will not only work to fulfill a mission, but will do it in the proper spirit—the clothing of holiness. They will see themselves as set apart unto God and will dedicate themselves to His purposes.

As their Lord was holy, they will give themselves to holiness (1 Peter 1:15). They will rise up as a holy priesthood offering spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God (1 Peter 2:5). They will be a holy generation that longs to offer up a sanctified (“made holy”) offering of the nations (Rom. 15:16). This generation will be characterized by a rededication to moral purity, Spirit-filling, grace-empowered living and utter dedication to God alone.

3. Like Dew Covering the Earth

The last phrase of Psalm 110:3 is the hardest to translate. But the meaning seems to be clear. You know what it is like to walk across a dewy lawn early in the morning. You cannot keep your feet dry no matter how you step.

In the day of Christ’s power, the holy freewill offerings will be so abundant that they will cover the earth like the dew of the morning. Multitudes of God’s people from the nations will go to all nations and peoples so abundantly that there will be no place left where they are not preaching.

This is what encourages me so greatly. It seems, from my vantage point, that the momentum of the global church dedicating themselves to become freewill offerings is increasing.

Launching at Home, Not Just in the Nations

Remarkably the emerging generation is trying to hold all of Acts 1:8 in balance—reaching their Jerusalem, Judaea and Samaria simultaneously and in the same spirit as reaching the nations. A growing number of disciples and churches are rising up who are attempting to launch kingdom movements at home in their cities, suburbs and counties in the very same manner they hope to do overseas among the nations.

For two decades, missionaries around the world have increasingly understood that we cannot reach the vast multitudes of lostness without movements of multiplying disciples and churches. We have sought to raise the sails of highly reproducible biblical processes and methods that the Spirit can blow upon to multiply disciples among the harvest. Individuals and churches from “churched” contexts have often come to the same realization and chosen to work in a similar manner among the UPGs of earth.

What is encouraging about the Psalm 110:3 generation is that this same spirit is returning home to the sending churches. Why not reach our own cities and counties in the same way that we reach the nations? If these biblical principles work effectively among unreached people groups and cities, then why not at home?

Many churches are saying, “Let’s ask God to launch kingdom movements at home in the same way as among the unreached. Let’s learn how to do it at home so that we can do it among the nations.”

Jesus did this very thing with His disciples. He sent them to home turf (the Jewish nation) armed with the biblical principles of bringing in the harvest (Matt. 10; Luke 10). He taught them to learn first how to find and win God-prepared households in a place they were familiar with and actually forbade them to go to the Gentiles at first (Matt. 10:5-6). Leaving the familiar comfort of synagogues and Jesus’ side, they went into homes and spread the kingdom. It’s as if Jesus would not send them to the nations until they learned how to do it at home. Once they had learned in closer-to-home environments, Jesus launched them to the ends of the earth.

The Psalm 110:3ers are attempting to launch the same type of movements at home they hope to launch among the unreached people groups of the world.  Multiplying generations of new baptized disciples and new churches among unreached and unchurched segments are emerging in city after city in North America. Across the rest of the sending world, fruit is being borne in a similar manner.

The freewill offerings generation is growing by leaps and bounds as their eyes are set on making the King known in every people group until there is no place left to work. They long to catalyze movements around the world—starting at home. A year ago, the ranks of the Psalm 110:3ers felt very lonely. They are a lot less lonely now!

About The Author

Steve Smith

Steve Smith planted a church in Los Angeles and then helped initiate a church planting movement (CPM) among an unreached people group in East Asia. The last ten years he has trained believers in CPM and currently oversees the work of the International Mission Board (SBC) in reaching Southeast Asian Peoples.

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Raising Local Resources

Can Poor Christians Obey The Great Commission?

by Alex Araujo

God’s way of reaching the nations is through his people. We can begin with Abraham, a man called and sent by God. Isaiah reports to us in his 66th chapter, verse 18, that God would raise some of his people and send them to the nations. The Spirit set apart Paul and Barnabas in Antioch to go on his mission. And, of course, there is the ultimate Sent One, Jesus Christ himself.

Jesus directs his followers to make disciples in the familiar Great Commission passage of Matthew 28.

My point is this: In none of these examples does the sender or the servant raise the question of money. In fact, at least in one instance, Jesus instructed 72 of his disciples to not take any money or material possessions with them on a mission. And yet, “The seventy-two returned with joy and said, ‘Lord, even the demons submit to us in your name.’ (Lk.10:1-18). Apparently, their lack of material resources did not hinder their ministry.

I contrast this with our modern missions movement and our obsession with money. Budgets are often the first consideration. This contrast bears some serious examination. How has money gone from being a humble, seldom mentioned servant to the primary concern (I am not exaggerating here) of mission enterprises, especially from the West?

The Great Commission was given by Jesus to a small number of followers in Jerusalem. It was a big assignment: make disciples of every nation by teaching them to obey all that Jesus taught.

How was that small band of people supposed to fulfill such an enormous task without well-endowed Christian foundations or large foreign churches with financial capacity to adopt projects? The early church had no affluent “North” to appeal to for funds. In Peter’s magnificent words to the poor cripple at the temple gate,“Silver or gold I do not have, but what I do have I give you. In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, walk” (Acts 3:6).

At this point someone may say, “Wait a second! Are you saying that we should not need money at all? Didn’t Jesus and his disciples carry with them a money purse, and didn’t they have a group of ladies who helped fund their work?”

That is precisely my point: Jesus and his disciples were able to do what God desired while relying on the locally available resources. There was no talk of how much more they could have done if only they had more money.

The question I want to raise is not whether or not we use money. Rather it is how we think of money in relation to our obedience to Christ. My point is that in the New Testament, money for ministry was not a topic of discussion. If we examine each mention of money in the New Testament, it never is about how to fund ministry. The closest instance is Paul’s fund-raising campaign to help the starving believers in Jerusalem. And that was for disaster relief, not a strategy for funding ministry.

What, then, if not money, fueled the emerging community of followers of Jesus the Son of God?

With the Great Commission of Matthew 28, Jesus makes no mention of money. But he did say three important things:

1. I have all authority to send you and to bless you in your going. Surely, as you go, you will need food and shelter and other basic needs. So does everyone else you meet along the way, as it has been since the creation of the world.  Do what you must do to provide these things for yourself and those who depend on you. But what will enable you to make disciples is divine authority. And that I have and give you.

2. Teach those who receive you with good will to obey all that I have commanded you. You don’t need to look hard to know what it is you are supposed to teach, for you have been with me and learned from me.

3. I will be with you all the way until your task is done.

Have you noticed how these things get lost in the talk about money in missions? I wonder what would happen if we focus on these three things in all our mission planning. At some point, perhaps at the very end and almost as an afterthought, like in the New Testament, we might talk about money.

Imagine how this would transform the understanding of our brothers and sisters in less affluent countries as they consider their calling and role in reaching their own people.

About The Author

Alex is Senior Advisor to the President of United World Mission and also offers pastoral care to UWM’s regional leaders. For most of his ministry life, Alex has served in the gap between North American and majority world ministries. He has written and counseled ministry leaders concerning accountability and dependency, as well as how to resolve cross-cultural tensions in mission partnerships.

Alex was born and raised in Brazil, where he grew up in a church initially established with help from British and American missionaries. He served with IFES in Portugal, with COMIBAM in Brazil, as Director of International Operations for Partners International, and as a consultant on cross-cultural dynamics for Interdev. Alex helped found International Partnering Associates, an international fellowship of missions partnering trainers and consultants.
araujoone@gmail.com

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Further Reflections

Making Sure We Are Making Sense

by greg.parsons@frontierventures.org

Those of us in mission circles think a lot about how to communicate the gospel. Along the way we try out those ideas. Let me let you peek into part of a recent discussion between global workers with dozens of years (most over 30) “trying it out” all over the world.

Since contextualization means lots of different things in different contexts, the question that started our discussion was: How might local believers understand biblical ideas in their own (indigenous) culture—rather than importing forms from outside cultures?[1]

We have all heard Bible translators working in a hot, flat place struggle to communicate a phrase like “your sins will be white as snow,” or talk about the “lamb of God” in a place that only knows pigs—like in Papua New Guinea.

At the core we want communication to be understood. So we have to think about what is heard, not just what is said. One brother noted that the incarnation of Jesus is the perfect example of contextualization—both from God’s perspective in sending Jesus, and in Jesus living out the message.

Another brother who has worked in Thailand for 30+ years wrote that too often “contextualization” attempts to move people from their birth community to another community. In that situation contextualization means trying to make this different (“Christian”) community as familiar to locals as possible, so as to minimize the trauma of the shift. But it is still a different community and often the gospel is then not accepted more broadly among the people. What this brother is trying to do now is make the message “feel at home” in their community. He uses their “dictionary of meaning” to communicate faithfully in their context. The goal is for their birth community to become new but not different or “other.”

Perhaps the clearest summary is in Darrell Whiteman’s IBMR article on the subject. He says that the purpose of contextualization is to “communicate the Gospel in word and deed and to establish the church in ways that make sense to people within their local cultural context, presenting Christianity in such a way that it meets people’s deepest needs and penetrates their worldview, thus allowing them to follow Christ and remain within their own culture.” He goes on to note that “Good contextualization offends people for the right reasons. Bad contextualization, or the lack of it altogether, offends them for the wrong reasons.”[2]

So…what do we do with that?

Increasingly, no matter where we live, we are being forced to think through these issues. Naturally, global workers are forced to, but what about the rest of us, as we seek to engage people near us from different backgrounds?

The son of one of my friends is in his 30s. While growing up in a solid Christian home, he struggled with his faith. He joined the military and went off to war in the Middle East. At some point he began to get tattoos. I don’t know the whole story of how that started, but he had a passion to reflect his life – his story – on his body. One arm is full of all the guns and equipment he was trained to use (most of which he did!). In the center of his chest is a detailed, color tattoo of his parent’s wedding day.

Even though he is out of the army and has come back to the Lord in a powerful way, he continues to tell his story this way and add more of the story to his body. As a result, he can speak to people with whom we would not have an audience.

I share this to help us think about how many people today look at their lives and “purpose”—especially young people—looking for a way to fit into life and the world. They are trying to make sense of things in ways that most of my generation and much of the Christian church doesn’t understand and doesn’t communicate with well.

Consider what you might do to reach out and learn someone else’s story and love them. Then you will be better able to tell your story of all that God has done to get you to where you are today.

[1] Often, for the local people/culture, these outside forms have different, little or no meaning[s] at all.

[2] Contextualization: The Theory, the Gap, the Challenge by Darrell Whiteman in IBMR, January 1997, pp. 2-3. Internationalbulletin.org/issues/1997-01/1997-01-002-whiteman.pdf

About The Author

Garrett

Greg has been on the staff of Frontier Ventures (formerly USCWM) since 1982. He and his wife, Kathleen, have two children and one grandchild.

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