Escolar Documentos
Profissional Documentos
Cultura Documentos
Session 13
Homework
Introduction
Jesus' essential call was to plant new communities of disciples (i.e.
churches). Virtually all the great evangelistic challenges of the New
Testament are basically calls to plant churches, not simply to share the
faith. e 'Great Commission' (Matt. 28: 18-20) is not just a call to 'make
disciples' but to 'baptize' and to ‘teach’ people to obey everything that
Christ commanded us to do. In Acts and elsewhere, it is clear that
baptism means incorporation into a worshipping community with
accountability and boundaries (cf. Acts 2:41-47). e only way to be truly
sure you are increasing the number of Christians in a town is to increase
the number of churches. While evangelistic crusades and outreach
programs are not to be discarded, their effectiveness is far inferior to
church planting. Why? Much traditional evangelism aims to get a
‘decision’ for Christ. Experience, however, shows us that many of these
'decisions' disappear and never result in changed lives. Why? Many
decisions are not really conversions, but often only the beginning of a
journey of seeking God. Only a person who is being 'evangelized' in the
context of an on-going worshipping and shepherding community can be
sure of finally coming home into vital, and life-transforming faith. is is
why a leading missiologist like C. Peter Wagner can say, "Planting new
churches is the most effective evangelistic methodology known under
heaven."1
How effective was Paul’s strategy? Did it really work? At the end of his
life Paul saw many of his churches consumed by in-fighting. Some had
grown cold in their passion and fervor for God and his Kingdom of justice
and peace. Others were facing severe persecution, to the point of
Even when the emperor Julian of Rome, in the fourth century, tried to
reverse the empire’s embrace of Christianity and to restore the pagan
(Hellenistic and Roman) charities and cults, Julian labelled the disciples of
Jesus as “impious” in the same breath that he grudgingly gave respect to
the ways they cared for the poor. In a letter to his own high priest in
Galatia in 362, Julian admonished his priests to match the virtues of
Christians, even if their “moral character” is “pretended”. “I think that
when the poor happened to be neglected and overlooked by the priests,
the impious Galileans observed this and devoted themselves to
benevolence… e impious Galileans support not only their poor but ours
as well; everyone can see that our people lack aid from us.”14
is doesn’t mean that older churches should be closed down, and that we
all should roll up our sleeves and start new churches. Older churches have
their rightful place, particularly since they have a stability and steadiness
that many people thrive on and need. In fact, a good number of non-
Christians will only be reached by churches with long roots in the
community and the trappings of stability and respectability.17
reflection questions
Write your answers and thoughts to these questions into your Application
Journal and be prepared to share your findings in the next class session.
www.redeemer2.com/resources/papers/why%20plant%202%2011%20TLeaders.pdf
3 Eduardo Hoornaert, e Memory of the Christian People, 81
4 Eduardo Hoornaert, e Memory of the Christian People, 165
5 Eduardo Hoornaert, e Memory of the Christian People, 76
6 online available at http://www.billmuehlenberg.com/1999/04/08/end-times-and-
christian-responsibility/
7 Ray Bakke, e Urban Christian, 83
8 Melba Padilla Maggay, Transforming Society, 153
9 quoted in Pedrito U. Maynard-Reid, Complete Evangelism, 17
10 Graham Gordon, What If You God Involved?, 84
11 Philip Yancey, e Jesus I Never Knew, 156
12 Eduardo Hoornaert, e Memory of the Christian People, 121
13 Bob Moffit, If Jesus Were Mayor, 36
14 quoted in Mark Lewis Taylor, e Executed God, 132-133
15 Tim Keller, Why Plant Churches, article online available at http://
www.redeemer2.com/resources/papers/why%20plant%202%2011%20TLeaders.pdf
16 Tim Keller, Why Plant Churches, article online available at http://
www.redeemer2.com/resources/papers/why%20plant%202%2011%20TLeaders.pdf
17 Tim Keller, Why Plant Churches, article online available at http://
www.redeemer2.com/resources/papers/why%20plant%202%2011%20TLeaders.pdf