this video is good ... it shows that this 'out of the box' thinking is no longer quiet so pioneering but is becoming much more mainstream ... (click twice to view it)
there is, however, more than a small element of idealistic romanticism that one detects in the video ... As we have learned, it takes hard work...working at relationships. 20 years down the road all of the ugly warts and defects and human carnality of the "simple church" approach will be evident ... it is still going to take men and women who surrender their will and ego, and embrace the cross of Christ to coach and perfect the saints for the work of ministry ... it will still take apostles to start groups, help them multiply and reproduce, keep them from becoming isolated, or ingrown or even from veering off into error ... it will still take prophets, teachers, pastors and evangelists to equip and coach among the simple churches ...
nevertheless, I see this as a healthy corrective and we (in Princeton, FL along with our friends in Columbus, Oh) already have 4 to 5 years experience with it ... as we continue to work out the bugs ...
I hope you will contribute some comments for discussion....
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3 comments:
ok...so what do you think of this trend away from large, complex 'walmart' style churches requiring skilled professional management to the smaller, home-style 'simple' church? Would this work for you? What needs do you think might be left unmet by such simple churches.
20 years, you say? It's days and week's, brother, not years. :) All the intimacy of a small group can just bring out the worst in some - the best in others.
Let's keep overcoming evil with good!
House Church Network
I just watched the video. Very good. I believe God is after something in the Church. Even those of us who are "unchurched" (I'm "unchruched" in Lexington.), if we are followers of Jesus are still biblically part of "The Church".
I attended a one-day seminar yesterday conducted by Dr. Jeff Myers, a college professor and author whose ministry focus is on training Kingdom leaders for the next generation. The seminar he presented is titled "Passing the Baton - How to Mentor, Coach and Disciple the Next Generation".
He quoted from sociological research that had coined the term "Authoritative Institutions" and stated that there were only two left in our Western context, the family and the "Christian School" (he was speaking to Christian educators and had stated earlier that "values-free" education is not 'authoritative, nor effective', thus eliminating public education). I would not make it quite so narrow. I think media and "culture" have become authoritative institutions, but that's another discussion.
The point is that he intentionally left out the Church as an "authoritative institution". He quoted statistics from Brana and Josh McDowell about the failure and ineffectiveness of the church in life-on-life transformation through mentoring -- the usual dismal statistics about the next generation: 70% of 23-30 year olds drop out of church, 30-50% of self-identified born-again college Christian freshman declare themselves not to be born again when they graduate -- the failure of programs, programming, and large spectator-based events to embed Kingdom values or transform lives.
His statement that relates to this discussion hit my ears as if he had screamed it, "The Church in its 'present configuration' is not an authoritative institution," he said. I agree with him, and, personally, I think it's a travesty. What do you (the readers) think is the solution? Is the simple church movement part of God's answer to that problem?
Bty, Joseph, Wolfgang Simpson, one of the speakers in the video would agree with your last statement about the need for apostolic leaders to help network house churches and keep them focused misionally. In his second book, "The Starfish Manifesto" (For a free PDF copy of the book, Google The Starfish Manifesto) which I'm now reading, he says that without apostolic leaders the simple church movement will turn in on itself, wither and die over time.
John M.
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