Church Planting is a big part of our mission to see God's kingdom come on earth.
For more information on church planting in the Vineyard, visit our national Web site: www.vineyardusa.org
We are very excited to have launched our first 'church plant' in Mexico City in 2008. Vereda is pastored by Josh & Dania Harder. www.thehardersinmexico.com
Here are just a handful of reasons why we in Des Moines believe in planting churches:
1. Church planting is biblical (Acts 14:23)
Trace the expansion of the Church through the book of Acts from Jerusalem to Judea to Samaria and to the uttermost parts of the earth and you will see that church planters led the way. Church planting is one of the key kingdom activities. It's endorsed by God. And we can see it's importance by how fiercely the devil tries to stop it. Every new church planter is tested. By evil and undisciplined people. By attacks on marriages. By sickness. By depression. If this wasn't important, why would the devil put up such a fuss about it?
2. Church planting is the most effective form of evangelism
Statistically, newer churches tend to introduce many more people per capita then older churches. In one study among evangelical churches, those under 3 years old consistently led three times as many people to Jesus per 100 church members as churches that were over 10 years old.
3. There are many people not being reached by current churches
21st century churches will not look like typical 20th century church. each generation has to be reached on its own terms culturally & stylistically.
1 Cor. 9: 19-22 says, "Though I am free and belong to no man, I make myself a slave to everyone, to win as many as possible. To the Jews I became like a Jew, to win the Jews. To those under the law I became like one under the law (though I myself am not under the law), so as to win those under the law. To those not having the law I became like one not having the law (though I am not free from God's law but am under Christ's law), so as to win those not having the law. To the weak I became weak, to win the weak. I have become all things to all men so that by all possible means I might save some."
Even in saturated areas, there may be large percentages of people who are disconnected from God and a church community. We need to reach people using the the new culture, worship, and language that evolves over time.
4. We need new churches in new areas (Romans 15:20)
The goal is self-reproducing churches in order to have exponential growth. Without churches, there is no conservation of the harvest. Without new, vital churches, an area can become hardened after people have heard the gospel but have no place to connect together in community. And there are still many places in our world that have no strong presence of a biblical community.
5. The very nature of the church directs us to church planting
Planting is a natural process of a healthy church, it’s hard to stop planting once you start. When you get new Christians growing, discipled, and healthy, they begin to say, ‘I want to do what you do’, and they want to go out and do it themselves. Raising kids to be healthy means they naturally desire to reproduce. Healthy churches are a lot like healthy families.
6. New churches often exhibit more life than older churches
It’s easier to have babies than to raise the dead.” C. Peter Wagner
- New churches grow better than old churches
- Usually are more visionary
- Easier to experiment and innovate
- Higher participation, "ownership"
- Easier to "take in" new converts
7. Church planting is one of the best ways to allow for the development of new leadership and to utilize the gifts and talents of the members
In sending out the best leaders from the mother church, it makes room for new leaders to emerge. And people who couldn't find room to really exercise their leadership gifts in an existing church can find lots of room to grow in a newer church plant.
8. To reach the unreached, we need to offer them a variety of options
"Each new generation must be evangelized on its own terms.” C. Peter Wagner
There are many people not currently being reached:
- Among certain ethnic and immigrant groups
- Among younger generations
- In the cities
- In the mission field
9. Churches that die need to be replaced
Currently, the church in America is in trouble. Tthe culture has changed. 71% of Americans do not believe in absolute truth. Most of the churches are either plateaued or in decline. Of the approximately 350,000 churches in America, four out of five are either plateaued or declining. Many of these churches don't know it, but they will die in the early 21st century. 3,500 to 4,000 churches die every year. One study estimates that in the 1990s 100,000 of these churches will close their doors. Despite the growth of some churches, there has been no increase overall in people becoming Christians (George Barna). The majority of people are unchurched. Only 37% of Americans attend services in a given week. Only 31% of boomers, 34% of baby-busters.
