What continues a series of posts on the book Total Church on Tuesdays leaves us here today at the chapter on Church Planting. Tim Chester and Steve Timmis write about the need for church planting in the conclusion to this helpful chapter:
The New Testament pattern of church life implies a regular transplanting of churches. This creates a missionary dynamic in which new leaders can emerge and the church can re-invent itself. Church planting is part of normal church life. At present church planting carries a certain mystique. Church planters are portrayed as a unique kind of rugged pioneer. But we need to create a culture in which transplanting is normal. Every local church should be aiming to transplant and raise up church planters. (pp.97-98)
What strikes me with this chapter is how foreign it is to much of the way I was raised to think. In our age of the mega-church, we often don’t think in terms of reproduce and transplanting ourselves but as growing ourselves to some huge structure that others can oo and awe at. The NT paints a different picture, though. The church was consistently reproducing itself and establishing new congregations. This is quite a thought. Is your church aiming at transplanting itself and raising up church planters? Just a thought.