"And I say also unto thee, That thou art Peter, and upon this rock I will build my church;
and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it." Matthew 16:18
Church Planting was very important to Jesus. He did not see it as something optional, as if it were one of the things that we could do in missions work, if we chose to. This is non-negotiable. The whole plan for those who would become disciples was to build the church and this means that every geographical and every demographic group needs to be involved on a local level with this assignment.
Church planting is based on God's Initiative
God causes the Church to grow, both numerically and spiritually. In I Corinthians 3:5-8, Paul clearly brings out the truth that it is God who gives growth to the church and that He uses people as His instruments for the fulfillment of His plan. "What then is Apollos? What is Paul? Servants through whom you believed, as the Lord assigned to each. I planted, Apollos watered, but God gave the growth. So neither he who plants nor he who waters is anything, but only God who gives the growth. He who plants and he who waters are equal, and each shall receive his wages according to his labour."
It is only God who gives the growth to the Church. He uses us as missionaries as His instruments to fulfill His purpose. This is clear in the expansion of the Early Church in the Book of Acts. We read in Acts 2:47, that "The Lord added to the church daily those who were being saved." This shows the activity of God in planting and building His Church. Those on the forefront of the mission field are privileged people witnessing God's active involvement in saving people and adding them to His Church, and thus building His universal Church.
What is important to you? Building God's Kingdom through Church Planting is very important to God. He calls us to make disciples (plural), thus creating community. It is important to Jesus. It is important for us.
and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it." Matthew 16:18
Church Planting was very important to Jesus. He did not see it as something optional, as if it were one of the things that we could do in missions work, if we chose to. This is non-negotiable. The whole plan for those who would become disciples was to build the church and this means that every geographical and every demographic group needs to be involved on a local level with this assignment.
Church planting is based on God's Initiative
God causes the Church to grow, both numerically and spiritually. In I Corinthians 3:5-8, Paul clearly brings out the truth that it is God who gives growth to the church and that He uses people as His instruments for the fulfillment of His plan. "What then is Apollos? What is Paul? Servants through whom you believed, as the Lord assigned to each. I planted, Apollos watered, but God gave the growth. So neither he who plants nor he who waters is anything, but only God who gives the growth. He who plants and he who waters are equal, and each shall receive his wages according to his labour."
It is only God who gives the growth to the Church. He uses us as missionaries as His instruments to fulfill His purpose. This is clear in the expansion of the Early Church in the Book of Acts. We read in Acts 2:47, that "The Lord added to the church daily those who were being saved." This shows the activity of God in planting and building His Church. Those on the forefront of the mission field are privileged people witnessing God's active involvement in saving people and adding them to His Church, and thus building His universal Church.
What is important to you? Building God's Kingdom through Church Planting is very important to God. He calls us to make disciples (plural), thus creating community. It is important to Jesus. It is important for us.