(this article will appear in the upcoming October-November issue of The Church Advocate)
Every church which ever existed began as a
church plant. For this reason alone, I grow weary when tensions surface between
established churches and church planting advocates. Label me naïve, but it is
unnecessary and avoidable. Just as the human race is motivated to reproduce, so
the church is designed to have children (e.g. to give birth to other churches).
Can we agree on this? --we need new
church plants.
Churches have a natural life cycle. They were
born and, unless they are continually renewed, they will die. Even Rick Warren
said, “No local church, including
Saddleback, is meant to last forever” (Christianity
Today, April 2013, p.36). That is painful but the reality. Hundreds of CGGC
churches have died through the years. Some died in infancy without ever
reaching their full potential. Others lived a long life, blessed succeeding
generations, even sent pastors and missionaries into ministry, and then
succumbed to old age; why they died is the subject of another article. Some
congregations today are barely surviving—the sounds of death rattles can be
heard even as the seriousness of the affliction is ignored. Because churches
have a life-cycle, we need new church
plants to replace those that do not survive.
Should established churches be ignored
for the sake of church planting? Absolutely not! Some churches can be
renewed—must be renewed. Churches which struggle to survive need
intervention…if it is not too late. My years of ministry experience have taught
me that declining or stalled churches only experience renewal if they are
desperate enough to change, which may mean a willingness to sacrifice some
sacred cows and follow visionary leadership. However, it is easier to give
birth than to raise the dead! Having said all this, my plea to church planters
is…we need you!
The obvious reason is that we need you and your people to replenish those who are no longer
with us. Your churches replenish those which have closed, and new disciples
fill the ranks of those who have passed on to glory. But we don’t want to just
hold our own. We know that if we are only keeping pace with attrition, we are
losing ground. The population is growing. Society is more unchurched. We relish
the enthusiasm and need the life which new church plants bring to the body.
We need
you
for the way you infuse a denomination with vitality. Tim Keller emphasizes how
“…planting a lot of new churches is one
of the best ways to renew existing churches” (p. 360, Center Church, 2012).
How does that work? The growth of church plants often force plateaued and
declining churches to evaluate their identity and vision—and then make radical
adjustments in the face of reality. That outcome is preferred over criticism of
new churches! You can help us. Church plants serve as the Research &
Development department in attempting new ministry approaches which established
churches otherwise are often too reluctant to adopt. Motivate us; show us how
to do better.
We need
you
to partner with nearby existing churches to teach concepts and principles which
can enliven those churches. That would go a long way to demonstrate that you
are about the kingdom. You have something to teach established churches about
children’s ministry, small groups, relevant worship, and ministry focus. Yes,
your ideas may scare existing churches, but if you offer help, they can’t say
you didn’t care or didn’t offer assistance. As a result, you may discover that
established churches offer a few resources which could bless your church plant
in return.
We need
you
because new churches reach people established churches usually don’t and can’t
reach. The disciples you produce were not being reached before you came into
existence. All of us applaud you for that! In many cities and even small
communities, there are not enough churches in existence if everyone decided to
attend worship on any given Sunday. And we need different kinds of
churches: varied styles of worship,
churches focused on ethnic identities and international churches, churches
which worship on Saturday as well as Sunday, and churches which don’t have a
“church building” at all. We need new church plants like this…and many more models
that we have not yet even imagined. It will take all kinds of churches to reach
all kinds of people.
We need
you
to contribute to the denomination’s united expression of domestic and
international mission. I know you have connections and interests in ways and
places that the CGGC is not involved. I get that—but don’t turn your back on
the mother who gave you birth. Attending denominational events to learn more
about the DNA of who we are and how we function goes a long way towards gaining
acceptance…and a voice for greater change in the denomination. Contributing
generously to cooperative and designated ministries helps to convince “legacy”
churches that you are really committed to our family.
Speaking of terminology, we need you to communicate in ways that existing churches
understand. I am familiar with “insider” missiology language which seems
foreign to the average Christian. Church planters have similar insider
vocabulary which often includes acronyms or initials which carry meaning for planters
but make no sense to those who are not involved in planting. You may be students
of culture and experts in contextualizing the gospel to unchurched people, but when
it comes to selling your message to existing churches (i.e., convincing them to
support church planting), you create barriers by communicating in ways that
make others feel belittled or (worse) insulted. We all care deeply about the
church. Maybe it’s not always just the fault of established churches that they don’t
get it! We need you to make it
plain.
“Us vs. them” attitudes should not exist in
the church. They are the product of fear. Since “perfect love drives out fear” (1 John 4:18), it seems only natural
(but is really supernatural) that both new church plants and established
churches can benefit from a close relationship. Remember…we’re in this
together. We need each other!
