byFaith – PCA Headlines MTW on TwitterI recently traveled to Haiti to see some of what God is doing there. We participated in the first worship service in the first church to be rebuilt since the earthquake. MTW is partnering with Reformation Hope, International and The Presbyterian Church in Haiti to bring the Gospel in word and deed to the people of Haiti. Here is the first installment of our trip:
“So, whether you eat or drink, or(A) whatever you do, do all to the glory of God.” 1 Corinthians 10:31
One way to drink to the glory of God could be drinking better coffee. No, really! A friend of mine who is a church planter in the Atlanta-area, mentioned that they switched coffee they use for their fellowship time. He told me that not only is it good coffee, it’s for a good cause. The coffee is grown and harvested in Rwanda, by Rwandans. And there’s a missional connection. I’ll let you read their website to find out more about that: http://www.landof1000hills.com/
I’d love to see a PCA church begin something like this with an MTW work. A couple of years ago, MTW gave away coffee cups with small bags of coffee from our work in Ethiopia. The coffee was roasted and bagged by ladies who this ministry was reaching out to, who had been widowed by AIDS. The work allowed them to provide for themselves and their children. It’d be great to see some connection like that expanded. It would certainly create a meaninful partnership between US churches and the ministry in the country where the coffee is purchased from. Imagine each Sunday, a tasty reminder of missions for your people to sip on!
The following is part of a report from MTW’s Coordinator, Dr. Paul Kooistra. In it he describes the need for both US missionaries and partnerships with national leaders. MTW has seen a real growth in the number of national partners. This is truly exciting to think about, and I look forward to seeing more PCA members go to equip even more national partners. Indeed, theological training and ministry equipping are some of the strongest offerings the PCA has to the Church beyond our borders.
I am often asked why MTW does not work with nationals. The answer to the question is that we do work with nationals. In fact, we work with a lot of nationals. The number of our national partners now exceeds the number of long-term missionaries.
Some who ask this question are actually asking why we don’t work exclusively with nationals. To many it seems much more efficient and more economical.
As I have indicated above, MTW does not in any way diminish the importance of working with nationals. From the beginning of the Church, nationals have played a vital leadership role. Paul, during his first missionary journey, appointed local leaders in Iconium, Lystra and Derbe. Throughout church history the translation of the Bible into the vernacular was of primary importance.
On the other hand, we see that one church reached out to another church and to the masses held captive in the darkness of their own sin. It is not possible to reach out only with money. If we don’t give ourselves, we have missed the very essence of the gospel. The incarnation of God argues for an incarnational response.
We actually have some places in the world where nationals ask us to come, wanting no monetary help, but only the encouragement and connectivity with the Church in the United States. They recognize that their church is richer spiritually for its interaction with our Church.
What is now needed is for our Church to realize that we are richer for our interaction with other churches around the world. Paul reminds us that the body of Christ is made up of many parts. Usually, we only interpret this truth in relationship to the gifts of the Holy Spirit. We need to see that this also relates to the different parts of the Church around the world. We need each other, and that is one reason we respond to the Great Commission.
Pray for MTW and our missionaries as we deal with the weak dollar and the financial crisis within the U.S. We will be monitoring the budget very closely. I pray we will be able to deal with this matter by being very careful. - Paul Kooistra
by Basil Grafas
I can, when everything lines up well, when I have had sleep and exercise, when things are in the groove, be a pretty good communicator. Conversations are a delight, whether they are with colleagues, foreign brothers or sisters, or my wife. They are effortless. They build me up and take me to wonderful places. Without trying to speak for you, I wouldn’t be surprised if you felt the same way.
Most of the time, however, I am not a great communicator. I even surprise myself at my ability to mishandle relationships, alienate old friends, confuse my workmates, and irritate family members. I would like to be William Shakespeare, but end up sounding like Conan the Barbarian.
Holly Weeks’ book, Failure to Communicate: How Conversations Go Wrong and What You Can Do to Right Them, was predestined for me. As I digested the text, it struck me that every conversational misstep she mentioned is listed in my permanent criminal record. (Click here to continue reading this book review)
by, Joe Creech
The relationship between a church and its ministry partners—both missionaries and national workers—is a lot like a marriage. The relationship has to be developed and nurtured during the dating period in which they get to know each other. The relationship matures as they labor together in ministry. There will be various roles that both parties must learn and grow in over the years. The major difference is that this marriage takes place at a great distance. Nonetheless, establishing ministry partnerships will bring immeasurable benefits to our churches, both here at home and overseas. Through this, glory is brought to God as His kingdom is built.
We are challenged in Scripture with the beauty of partnership in the gospel. The great missionary Paul says that we are fellow-workers—partners—together with God (1 Corinthians 3:9). Paul thanks others for their partnership in the gospel (Philippians 1:5). The kingdom of God will not be brought to earth by all of us running around as individuals doing our own thing. Rather as we come into relationship, joining hands with brothers and sisters and moving forward in the power of the Holy Spirit, the church will be built in such a manner that the gates of hell cannot stand against it. Our building partnerships is crucial to this, because relationship sets the context in which ministry can take place. (click here to read more of this article)
Join MTW Team Ecuador in Quito and Guayaquil for a long weekend of learning and experiencing the church planting work in Ecuador.
This trip is for lay missions leaders, session members, and other involved in missions, and will help those already interested in Ecuador to deepen their understanding and consider how their congregation may become more strategically involved in God’s work there. Members and potential members of the Ecuador partnership are highly encouraged to participate.
Participants would ideally travel to Quito on Thursday, November 6 a
nd depart either late on the 10th or on the 11th.
The cost of the trip is $570 (plus airfare to/from Quito). This will include food, lodging, in-country transportation (including round-trip airfare to Guayaquil), insurance (required), and entry/exit taxes.
Click here for a complete brochure on the trip. (.pdf)
Contact Seth Wallace for more information at (678) 823-0004 x2145 or by email.
Come see the work of one of our new fields. Spend October 4-7, 2008 in Greece with MTW and national leadership to learn more about what is in store for the ministry there. This trip is primarily for those interested in serving through MTW in Greece and/or developing a team there. If you are interested in learning more, contact Opal Hardgrove by email or by phone at 678-823-0004 ext. 2302.
A MAJOR TREND IN MISSIONS
One of the most significant trends in missions today is the increasing number of churches that are focusing their ministry participation. The reasons for this direction include the following motivations:
THE NEED FOR FOCUS
Developing a missions ministry is a bit like digging a well. To reach water, one must dig a well with the proper dimensions: it must be deeper than it is wide. Not only will such a well more likely reach water, the water will be fresh and plentiful.
Many churches are discovering that to have a lasting impact in missions, their missions ministry must have the right dimensions. It must be deep: the investment of prayers, energy, and finances should be significant. And while they may support people all over the world, their primary emphasis must not be too wide, perhaps focusing on one or two areas of commitment. No matter what size, all churches would do well to identify as precisely as possible the Lord’s missions direction for their congregation.
Through prayer and study, the following issues can help churches develop the right dimensions for going deep in their missions ministry:
Existing relationships
Does your church currently support a missionary? Is a church member serving as a missionary? Do you have other connections to an ongoing ministry? If so, you may want to deepen an existing relationship rather than start a new one.
Church members’ vision
Are there members or leaders of your church who have experience and/or a desire to work with a particular people group or area of the world? Have members of your church participated in short-term projects that have given them a heart for a certain group of people? God very often uses the vision of a few people to lead an entire church in the same direction.
Unique Connections
Does your church have a unique relationship to a region? Perhaps people from a particular country live near your church, and members have developed an interest in working with them locally and overseas. Or perhaps the nationality of a church member could serve as a
natural bridge to a part of the world.
Church relationship
Do you have a close relationship with another church that is already working with a particular people group? Developing a partnership for ministry may be a natural and effective way to go forward.
Ministry emphasis
Do you desire to participate with a particular type of ministry? Or do members of your church have certain skills or occupations that could be used most effectively in a specific field?
Some churches have developed a small committee to explore these and other issues in order to bring a recommendation to church leaders. Selecting a missions focus is no small task and one that must be supported by much prayer, study, and time. This investment on the front end will help determine God’s leading for a significant long-term commitment.
PARTNERSHIPS: A NEW MODEL FOR MISSIONS
Once an emphasis is determined, your church may want to explore joining others who share your commitment. Ecclesiastes 4:12 says a “cord of three strands is not easily broken.” Historically, the three strands of missions ministry have been churches, agencies, and field workers—though each has had to work fairly independently. Today, however, advancements in communications and transportation have appropriately given churches a desire for more direct involvement in field ministry. Mission to the World affirms this development, and is committed to facilitating churches in deeper connection to the field. Effective field ministry requires that this connection be coordinated, so that churches, MTW, and the field are working closely together and in a common direction. In order to accomplish this, Mission to the World is establishing partnerships for the development and support of ministry teams all over the world. The partnership would work closely with the field team to devise a common strategy for such responsibilities as:
This article is available in .pdf format for easier reading and printing by clicking here.
by, Rev. Scott Seaton
These descriptions are actual comments from church leaders. Perhaps some of them describe your missions ministry. How did we get here? In many churches, members who long to see the gospel spread throughout the world form or join the missions committee. Perhaps they have missions experience themselves or know people who have served cross-culturally. Serving on the missions team seems like a good way to participate in the Great Commission. But once on the team, they find themselves bombarded with support requests for a seemingly infinite variety of ministries. Each proposal is appealing in its own way. To respond to the numerous requests, the team listens to each presentation and looks at their limited budget. With nothing to guide them other than the winsomeness of the missionary, the appeal of the proposal, and the availability of funds, the missions team allocates support to some missionaries and pass others by. As one PCA pastor frankly admitted, “Our support goes to good missionaries who give a good presentation on a good day for the church.”
The Priority in Missions
It’s clear in these cases that the missions ministry lacks a unifying purpose to guide its decisions. With no established priorities, every ministry opportunity has equal value and importance. To bring clarity, the church must actively determine priorities rather than passively respond to requests. What, then, is the most biblical and effective approach to spreading the gospel? Throughout the history of Christendom, theologians have answered that question with striking clarity: the primary instrument ordained by God to extend His
kingdom is the Church.
Cyprian: “You cannot have God for your Father unless you have the church for your Mother.”
Augustine: “Without [the church] there is no forgiveness of sins.”
Calvin: “God’s fatherly favor and the especial witness of spiritual life are limited to his flock, so that it is always disastrous to leave the church.”
Westminster Confession of Faith (25:2): “out of [the church] there is no ordinary possibility of salvation.”
To modern ears, these words may appear to be antiquated commitments to institutional religion or a restrictive emphasis on one of many ministry options. A closer look at Scripture, however, reveals God’s affectionate commitment to the priority of the Church. Many passages speak of the centrality of the Church, but perhaps none so clearly as the 16th chapter of the gospel of Matthew. Jesus and his disciples are in Caesarea Philippi, a site for worship of the Greek god Pan. Against this backdrop, where people came to proclaim the deity of Pan, Jesus put forward two questions. The first question was a safe one. The second, far more penetrating:
When Jesus came to the region of Caesarea Philippi, he asked his disciples, “Who do people say the Son of Man is?” They replied, “Some say John the Baptist; others say Elijah; and still others, Jeremiah or one of the prophets.” “But what about you?” he asked. “Who do you say I am?” Simon Peter answered, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.” Jesus replied, “Blessed are you, Simon son of Jonah, for this was not revealed to you by man, but by my Father in heaven. And I tell you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of hell will not overcome it.”
Christians have debated whether the rock Jesus refers to is the foundation of the apostles, the confession of believers, or Christ himself—or all three. But among the riches of this passage, Christ teaches many things about His mission in the key passage, I will build my church, and the gates of hell will not overcome it:
An Organic Community
The Bible describes the church as the body of Christ, the bride of Christ, the people, family and flock of God. Even God’s temple is described as made of living stones. Each of these images is organic and connected, emphasizing the living, loving relationship we have with Christ and each other. We see the key place of the church in God’s plan when we read “Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her” (Ephesians 5:25). It is the church that both experiences and expresses the life of Christ, with all the power of the resurrection working to grow this body.
Each of the biblical pictures of the Church has something in common: unity. There is both a unity with Christ and a unity with other members that is not simply a lofty, unattainable goal. Rather, unity speaks to the essence of what it means to be a Christian. By definition, to be a Christian means to live in community. The “communion of saints” is nothing less than a “union with” with the Lord and His people.
And when the world sees this unity that Christ prayed for, it will know that we are indeed His followers (John 13:35) and that the Father sent His Son (John 17:21). In other words, Christian unity has profound missional implications. In places where the gospel has yet to penetrate, genuine Christian community may be the most significant witness in that culture.
The Centrality of the Church
Indeed, Christ loves His church, and it is central in the mind and mission of our Savior. The establishment of the universal Church and the multiplication of local churches is how God will accomplish His purpose of bringing glory to Himself, by uniting all things under Christ. Put another way, it could be said that the church is God’s plan A; there is no plan B. He has always intended to create a people for His own possession (1 Peter 2:9). This has been God’s plan from all eternity, first expressed in the Garden of Eden, through the people of Israel, and into the New Testament church. From the opening pages of Scripture, we see that God had in mind more than the mere conversion of individuals. Rather, He intended that those who had been alienated from God and others would now be enfolded into a new community. And in that community, or church, Christ would dwell in fullness and give life to His new creation. Therefore, fulfillment of the Great
Commission must reflect God’s emphasis: the establishment of new churches committed to following Christ. The Westminster Confession is unambiguous about the centrality of the church:
The visible church, which is also catholic or universal under the gospel (not confined to one nation, as before under the law), consists of all those throughout the world that profess the true religion, and of their children; and is the kingdom of the Lord Jesus Christ, the house and family of God, out of which there is no ordinary possibility of salvation (WCF, chapter XXV).
If missions is about the expansion of God’s kingdom, then the priority of missions must be to establish churches where none exist (Romans 15:20). Because it is God’s plan that all peoples will worship Him (Revelation 7), the church must cross cultural barriers to establish communities of believers among every people group. Cross-cultural church planting, then, must be the biblical priority and unifying purpose for our missions ministries.
If cross-cultural church planting is the priority of missions, how do local missions leaders focus on the expansion of the Church? Three key questions will help.
1. Are we committed to the church planting as the primary means of extending God’s kingdom?
An honest and consistent answer to this question is absolutely essential, and it must be answered before further evaluation or planning. When challenged by the biblical priority of the Church, though, a typical response arises: if God has called the missionaries to a particular ministry, who are we to say otherwise? Some missions committees explicitly talk about their obligation to support whoever comes their way, should funds exist.
One way to respond is to compare a purpose for your ministry with the calling of a missionary. Most missions committees look for a strong sense of God’s leading to a particular people, location and strategy—and would be unenthusiastic about a missionary having no direction. Why should it be any different for a missions ministry? Further, establishing a priority does not de-legitimize God’s calling people in other ways. The Church of Jesus Christ has many parts and is far bigger than any one of us. But as you determine what part God has for your missions ministry, consider the following:
2. Do the ministries we support have a biblical view of the local church?
Many ministries talk about their emphasis on church planting; in fact, it’s almost in vogue now. But experience shows that they mean many different things. The term church has been used to describe all of the following:
All of these could be valid and fruitful ministries, but it is questionable whether they are what the Bible means by a church. In God’s wisdom, the Bible does not specify the exact forms of a church, as we would likely focus on the institutional structure rather than the organic nature of His body. To make it more confusing, the common elements of a church— worship, teaching, evangelism, discipleship, service, fellowship, the sacraments, etc.—are found in a variety of ministries. So when is a church a church? It’s
not always easy to discern, but in addition to the elements of the church just mentioned, here are a few critical questions to ask the missionaries or agency:
Mission to the World affirms that local expressions of the church will take on a variety of forms appropriate to their context. Thus, a simple definition or description of a local church will always elude us. However, we also recognize that certain principles transcend all contexts. Further, planning for our missionaries and accountability to our supporters require that we have some mutually agreeable understanding of what we mean by ‘local church.’ Thus, MTW has adopted the following definition of a church-planting project:
Church-planting projects must have at least 10 non-missionary adults gathering regularly for worship and an identified church planter who is committed to seeing a self-supporting, self-governing, self-propagating church established.
3. How directly do the ministries we support grow the church?
Establishing the church involves many elements, such as training, evangelism, Bible translation and mercy ministry. When these facets occur apart from the ministry of the church, individual lives may be deeply touched, but the church may only be indirectly built up—if at all. That’s not to say such expressions are wrong. However, the more such ministries are connected to the church, the more effectively they contribute to the ultimate goal of missions: bringing people into a lasting Christian community where they can serve
and grow.
The missionaries and ministries you support should be able to demonstrate how directly they are connected to church planting. Is ministry an integral expression of a local body, or is the local church essentially unnecessary? Will people in the community become connected to the church, to a separate ministry, or nothing at all? Is the real goal the perpetuation of an outside ministry or the establishment of the local church?
Insight and experience will help missions leaders navigate the waters of cross-cultural church planting. But establishing and following biblical priorities is well worth it. As your church becomes more focused on church planting, your missions ministry will develop a clear and cohesive purpose resulting in a lasting impact for God’s kingdom. And that will truly be a good day for the church.
Rev. Scott Seaton is MTW’s former International Director of Enterprise for Christian-Muslim Relations. He has also helped MTW to resource and equip church missions ministries and is now a church planter with the Presbyterian Church of America (PCA) at Emmanuel Presbyterian in Arlington, Virginia.
This article is available in PDF format for easier reading and printing by clicking here.
by, Dan Iverson
For the record, I am for facilitation. In a sense, Scripture is calling us to facilitate when it says “equip the saints” to minister (Ephesians 4:11). Jethro, in effect, told Moses to facilitate (Exodus 18:17). D.L. Moody wisely said, “Don’t do the work of a thousand men. Put a thousand men to work!” We must be equipping increasing numbers of workers to multiply churches and reach the world.
On the other hand I have some concerns about the growing facilitation emphasis in missions circles. As a longtime missionary to Japan, I daily experience the strengths and weaknesses of both direct and facilitative church planting. I facilitate some indigenous Japanese workers by serving, supporting, and coaching from a distance while concurrently doing direct church planting as a missionary pastor working toward a church-planting movement (CPM) together with three younger Japanese co-pastors.
Praise God that facilitation in missions is increasingly possible. God promised to raise up indigenous “Gentile Levite” church planters (Isaiah 66:21), and is doing so worldwide. Christ is building His Church. There are increasing numbers of healthy churches with whom we can partner, serve, and facilitate as we pursue biblical, indigenous CPMs.
And in large part, facilitation is possible today from Brazil to Bangladesh because of foundations laid by missionaries through more direct evangelism in previous generations. In many places, however, those foundations are lacking. The national church is weak or nearly non-existent. There are not scores of indigenous church planters waiting to be facilitated. Evangelism and church planting by cross-cultural missionaries are still needed so that some day, by God’s grace, there will be indigenous movements with whom we can partner. (Click here to continue reading this article…)