7 Reasons to Plant Churches
7 Reasons to Plant Churches
There are 12 churches in the suburb in which I live. They represent just about every major denominational group and theological strand. There are immersion Baptists and sprinkling Paedo-Baptists; those who speak in tongues and cessationists; there are Arminians and Calvinists; Sunday Sabbaths and Saturday Sabbaths; high church and low church; priests and congregatationalists. The question is why would we (and even should we) plant new churches in a suburb like this. I think there are 7 reasons why we should.
1. New churches do more evangelism
Older churches build extensive ministries, they start choirs and soup kitchens, they run preaching programmes and publish Bible Study material. As churches develop they slowly and subtly move resources away from the outsider towards the maintenance, development and growth of the insider. New churches are different they are forced to do evangelism to survive. We need to plant new churches to aid in the reaching of outsiders.
2. New churches are different
God is God who loves variety. He creates people to be different . They like different music, wear different clothes, watch different movies, speak different languages. New churches develop a different culture from the mother church. Different leaders, do different things and appeal to different people. We should plant churches to reach people different to ourselves.
3. New churches force individuals to grow
People in larger churches become lazy. They don’t serve because they don’t have to serve. As new churches are planted people are recruited into ministries and given opportunities to serve and lead that they would not get in a larger church. New church plants give individuals opportunities to grow.
4. New churches are better at relationships
As churches get larger they become less relational and more organisational. People in older established churches are often less relationally connected. It is easy in a large church to become a spectator, disconnected from people. God calls us to love him and to love each other. Because new churches are smaller they are more relational.
5. A church planted in a community can exist for a long period of time
Churches go through cycles. At times they are vibrant and happening. At others they struggle and strain but over a period of time a church planted in a community can hold the gospel light in that community for generations. A new church plant may take years even decades to grow but it is worth doing because it places a gospel community in a place for decades.
6. New churches start new ministries
As new churches are planted they begin new ministries, sometimes ministries that cannot be attempted in the mother church. New leaders have new ideas and do works of service in a different way to the mother church. Church planting begins ministries to the world that would not happen without the plant.
7. Church planting is God’s plan to reach the world
Wherever the gospel goes, as people are converted, churches are started. Christianity is a team sport not an individual exercise. God places Christians together into a church and uses them to reach their community of relationships. We must plan to plant churches as a part of God’s kingdom advancing.
For the Love of Liturgy
We received the warmest possible welcome when we arrived at the church that was to become our new home. We had moved half way around the world and we were lonely. On that first Sunday we visited, complete strangers offered us the use of their camping gear, in case we wanted to attend the all-church camp-out the following weekend. Week after week, the gospel was preached, and we were loved. We were bowled over, encouraged, included.
And yet, I grieved.
I grieved because we had been in a small church, and this was a large one. I grieved because we didn’t know the words to the songs, and it made me feel out. I grieved for another reason, too, although it took me several weeks to be able to name the sadness that pressed on me each Sunday.
I grieved because I missed the liturgy.
Our new church was buzzword compliant: it had community, worship, biblical preaching, and God-focused and people-loving congregants. Those were non-negotiables we had been looking for and we were so grateful to be there.
But they did not have a liturgy.
At first, I didn’t understand why I missed it so much. I was not raised in a Christian family and my first taste of the faith had been in exuberantly charismatic happy-clappy circles. However, in my college years I had found myself in a little church plant that met in a university lecture hall. There were no robes or smells and bells—but it was a low-church Anglican group, and every service had aspects of the Book of Common Prayer woven into the worship.
At first, I hated it. The congregational readings seemed rote, and I wondered how heartfelt a prayer truly could be if one were reading it off a page. But as the weeks stretched into months, and then into years, I found my soul gratefully sighing into the rhythms of the ancients.
The liturgy taught me to pray in a way I hadn’t before. The collects took the words of scripture and gave me words of intercession for God’s people and God’s world which had been breathed by the saints for centuries before me. I was grateful and aware that I was learning to pray.
The liturgy taught me to participate in a way I hadn’t before. Reading prayers and scripture responsively during a worship service forced me to see myself as part of a congregation, rather than as part of an audience. Communal prayers expressed the priesthood of all believers in a beautiful and practical way. Prayer was no longer something I did at home, while others prayed on my behalf at church. No, now we prayed together. I was grateful and aware that I was learning about corporate worship.
However, it was only after we left and I found myself grieving that I realized I had come to love one more thing about the liturgy we had left behind, and that was this: the liturgy taught me the beauty of beginning all worship with repentance.
For nearly ten years, each of our corporate worship services had begun with a prayer of confession:
Most merciful God,
we confess that we have sinned against thee
in thought, word, and deed,
by what we have done,
and by what we have left undone.
We have not loved thee with our whole heart;
we have not loved our neighbors as ourselves.
We are truly sorry and we humbly repent.
For the sake of thy Son Jesus Christ,
have mercy on us and forgive us;
that we may delight in thy will,
and walk in thy ways,
to the glory of thy Name. Amen.
We began every service with a time of reflection and confession for the things we had done wrong, or things we had failed to do right. And then, in every service, the words of grace were spoken over our community.
The Almighty and merciful Lord grant you absolution and
remission of all your sins, true repentance, amendment of
life, and the grace and consolation of his Holy Spirit. Amen
Week after week, we began our worship by being called to the carpet for a good, hard look at who we really were. No matter how lipsticked and well-put-together I may have appeared when entering the building, the first few minutes of the service always undid me. The real me, the authentic me, the one who disappointed and screwed up and underperformed and overcompensated—THAT me was acknowledged. And then, O glorious words of grace, that same foolish and fallible me was forgiven and reminded of his love and grace.
The real me was seen. The real me was forgiven. And so, the real me was now free to worship. Restored and forgiven. Known and loved.
I love my new church. I love the faces I see each week, the songs we sing, and the way that people dive fiercely into loving, serving and seeking God. But every now and then I find myself feeling a little too glossy on a Sunday morning, and the smile on my face betrays the ache in my heart.
On those days, I miss the liturgy most of all, and sometimes I find I need to stop singing (yet-another) wonderful Chris Tomlin song, and quiet my heart for just long enough to remember those words, “God, I confess that I have sinned against you, in thought and word and deed, and in what I have left undone….”
Weekly, I need those moments of true repentance, so that I can enter into the moments of true joy.
This article was written by Bronwyn Lea (www.bronlea.com) and first appeared in She Loves Magazine (shelovesmagazine.com)
Bishop Edwin Ngubane has Passed Away
Dear REACH - South Africa Family
Bishop Edwin Ngubane went to be with his Lord and Master on Sunday 29 June 2014 at 21h00.
"Our brother has run a good race, now he has gone to be with the Lord of Glory. Indeed he has fought the good fight, he has finished the race, he has kept the faith. We will continue to pray for Genevieve, Stephanie and Langa. He has set the example and now we must continue to carry on with gospel work."
Lutic Mosoane (St Paul's Pretoria)
"Rest in Peace - Mfundisi Wam' - Faithful & Humble Man of God
Kuyobongwa namaqhawe,
Aphiwe nemiqhele
Abuse njalo njalo,
NeNkosi yobukhosi. "
Andries Tsehle
"Our prayers are with all in REACH SA"
Andy Lines Crosslinks
"We join you in prayer. Edwin was a faithful servant he will be missed greatly."
Shadrack Zinamala
"May Bishop Ngubane's beautiful soul rest in peace. Gone but not forgotten."
Jomo Mchunu
"Look forward to seeing this friend in heaven one day but a very sad heart tonight for his wife and little kids who have lost a special man!"
Jeanine Palacio
"Naked I came from my mother's womb, and naked shall I return. The Lord gave and the Lord has taken away..." My friend, my leader, my Bishop, my brother. May your soul rest in you will never be forgotten. Mbomvu! Somahhashi! Ncukumane!"
Njabulo Mazibuko
MANY THANKS Des. ...For your letter. How very SAD for REACH, and for Edwin Ngubane’s dear family to know that he has departed for Glory. Certainly it’s at times like these that one has to remember that God’s ways are not our ways, and that our Sovereign God’s purposes are past finding out, and ...... HIS WAY IS PERFECT – however it affects those left behind, and the great work he was involved in.
We will certainly be praying for his wife and two children, and for all those near to him – especially his family, that they will come to know Edwin’s Saviour. What a gap that will leave in REACH, and we trust the Lord will raise up more like Edwin who are capable of carrying the baton into the work he started.
Our hearts are really sad as we knew Edwin very well. In fact, I have his testimony recorded since he was at Hillbrow – LONG before he became a Bishop.
Many thanks for informing us, Love to you both,
Billy & Freda Farr (Ireland).
Our brother will be greatly missed. He was a faithful servant of the Lord. However, for him, to die certainly was gain. For him the suffering is over and he has heard the words, "Well done good and faithful servant." However, it is a great sadness for those who knew him especially his dear wife, Genevieve, and children, Stephanie and Langa.I have been much in prayer for him and his family in recent days and will continue to be much in prayer for his family in these difficult days for them.
Pierre Wedepohl
"For me to live is Christ, and to die is gain". Phil.1:21
Hail Him as Thy Matchless King (Why the Ascension of Christ is Critical)
What do Kurt Darren, the Soweto Gospel Choir and Mango Groove have in common? They all performed at the second inauguration of Jacob Zuma! On 24 May 2014 thousands of people braved the chilly weather and made their way to the Union Buildings in Pretoria to witness Jacob Zuma’s inauguration, where he was installed, inducted and confirmed as the President of the Republic of South Africa.
The doctrine of the ascension of Christ teaches that Jesus ascended into heaven in bodily form and in heaven he was installed, inducted and confirmed as having the position of all supremacy. Jesus was inaugurated as President of the Universe and given ultimate and all authority and power. The ascension demonstrates that Jesus is the name above every name.
Christian people generally tend, quite rightly, to make a lot of Jesus’ birth at Christmas and Jesus’ death and resurrection at Easter. But often Ascension Day is the ugly sister, not receiving much consideration. Sometimes Christians, although they know the ascension is in the Bible, are not 100% sure why the ascension is even important.
Augustine of Hippo
Augustine of Hippo, a Christian theologian from the 4th Century, said that the Ascension festival “is that festival which confirms the grace of all the’ festivals together, without which the profitableness of every festival would have perished. For unless the Saviour had ascended into heaven, his Nativity would have come to nothing … and his Passion would have borne no fruit for us, and his most holy Resurrection would have been useless.”
Doctrinal Statements
The literal, real, historical ascension of Christ to heaven is part and parcel of true, biblical Christianity. The Baptist and Presbyterian Confessions of faith read:
“On the third day Jesus rose from the dead with the same body in which He had suffered, with which He also ascended into Heaven, and there sits at the right hand of His Father making intercession, and shall return to judge men and angels at the end of the world.”
39 Articles of Religion
Article 4 of the 39 Articles of Religion of the Anglican church reads:
“Christ truly rose again from the dead. His was a bodily resurrection, with flesh, bones and all things that belong to the perfection of our human nature. His ascension was a bodily ascension into heaven, where he is now enthroned until the last day, when he will return to judge all men.”
The ascension and therefore exaltation of Jesus to the right hand of God is crucial, fundamental and critical to our Christian faith. If Jesus did not ascend to heaven, his supernatural birth, saving death and glorious resurrection would be to no avail.
Westminster Larger Catechism
The Westminster Larger Catechism (a doctrinal manual for a large part of the Reformed Evangelical world) says this about Jesus being now in heaven:
“Christ makes intercession, by his appearing in our nature continually before the Father in heaven, in the merit of his obedience and sacrifice on earth, declaring his will to have it applied to all believers; answering all accusations against them, and procuring for them quiet of conscience, notwithstanding daily failings, access with boldness to the throne.”
Jesus saves us completely through his death on the cross and there is nothing we can add or contribute to our salvation. Nothing else is necessary to supplement our salvation. Yet because of Jesus’ ascension to heaven, he is our interceding high priest and applies the benefits and merits of his atoning death to us each hour and each day. Christians still sin and at times are entangled in grievous sin, but we have a Mediator who applies the benefits of his substitutionary sacrifice to us continually.
Pentecost
On the day of Pentecost, about 10 days after Jesus’ ascension, the followers of Jesus were prayerfully waiting in Jerusalem as Jesus said they should. The Holy Spirit was poured out in a spectacular way and the believers began preaching and witnessing about Jesus in foreign languages. Other people in Jerusalem are amazed as they heard the gospel in their own native tongue (Acts 2:6). What happened was a reversal of the Tower of Babel.
The Tower of Babel
In Genesis 11 God confused the languages as judgment on people and scattered the nations. Now, representatives of the nations hear the gospel in their own language. God is gathering the nations together under Christ. This is a small foretaste of heaven where one day people from all tribes, languages and cultures will be gathered before the throne of God. Peter, the follower who not so long before had denied Christ, now stands up to boldly preach.
Evidence for the Ascension
Here is an important exert from Peter’s sermon Peter’s sermon, “God has raised this Jesus to life, and we are all witnesses of the fact. Exalted to the right hand of God, he has received from the Father the promised Holy Spirit and has poured out what you now see and hear.” (Acts 2:32-33)
Peter said that the pouring out of the Holy Spirit, the tongues of fire and the speaking in other languages was evidence that Jesus is exalted at the right hand of God. Peter says that Jesus was humbled to the point of death but now is exalted to the position of all authority. The ascension confirms that Jesus is enthroned as Ruler of the World and the pouring out of Holy Spirit is historical evidence of that enthronement in heaven. Note Peter’s conclusion in v36, “Let all the house of Israel therefore know for certain that God has made him both Lord and Christ, this Jesus whom you crucified.” Again, the ascension shows, confirms and demonstrates that Jesus is Lord and King.
Two ways to live
You cannot think of Jesus as a baby in a manager or a harmless, sweet teacher who taught people to love each other. If Jesus is exalted to the right hand of God, Jesus can no longer serve you – you have to serve him. The implication of the cross is that sin deserves death. The implication of the resurrection is that God offers new life. The implication of the ascension is that Jesus rules over the world and all people. Either we submit to Jesus’ rule by repenting of sin and trusting in Christ and receive the forgiveness of sins. Or we continue to rebel against Jesus’ rule and face God’s judgement.
Matchless King
At Jesus’ magnificent return one day, every knee will bow and every tongue will confess that Jesus Christ is Lord. Some people will voluntarily bow in adoration and worship. Many will reluctantly bow in fear and dread. Will you bow now before it’s too late? The first verse of the grand old hymn Crown him with many crowns has these apt words:
Crown him with many crowns,
the Lamb upon his throne,
Hark! how the heavenly anthem drowns
all music but its own.
Awake, my soul, and sing
of him who died for thee,
and hail him as thy matchless King
through all eternity.
Written by Andre Visagie
www.pastorfish.co.za