Articles

1)       At 6:30 pm we began with 15-20 adults and several children, meeting in the home of the church planter, which also doubles as a beauty parlor during the week. All the hair dressing equipment had been moved to another room to make space for the plastic chairs that were set up in a circle. It was very hot and crowded, but nobody seemed to mind (except the visiting missionaries!)

Teachings, from a conference on church planting movements, by Victor John, who initiated a remarkable movement in India with around 3 million people baptized and 80,000 churches planted.

Scripture seems to paint two contradictory portraits of the Living God—a terrible judge and a loving Father. Which is it? Can he be both?

 We read not only that God has prepared hell for the unbe­lieving, but also that he commanded Joshua to practice ethnic cleansing in Canaan, poured out fire from heaven to consume Sodom and Gomorrah and opened the earth to swallow those who opposed Moses. Unapproachable in his purity, even the most righteous fell on their faces near his presence paralyzed by their unworthiness. He demanded unquestioning obedience and punished with unspeakable anguish those who did not comply.

 No wonder we’re at least a little confused when he appears in the New Testament telling us how much he loves us and inviting us to be his children. We see Jesus healing the sick, forgiving prostitutes and murderers, going into the houses of sinners. He invited children in his lap and portrayed his Father as so tender that the most wayward sinner could run to his side in absolute safety.

 So what happened to God? Did he get saved somewhere between Malachi and Matthew? Had he reinvented himself into a nicer, gentler God? Of course not! He is unchanging, the same throughout all eternity.

One of the main paradigm shifts within this movement of simple churches is the belief that ordinary men and women hear God.  They can be entrusted with the affairs of the Kingdom.  It does not need specially trained people to manage the church.  The Holy Spirit is able to run the church by speaking directly to His people.   He will do a far better job of it than our organizations and denominations ever can.

Whenever I read through the gospels I am amazed at how little Jesus said about the church. Only Matthew records him even using the word and then only twice. Why didn't he tell his followers more about how to organize a church, run its ministries and plan its services?

I think I know why. He didn't talk about it is because he was too involved living it. He became a friend to Zaccheus, James, John, Peter, Mary, Martha, Lazarus, Nicodemus, a rejected woman at a well who remained nameless and countless others that came into his proximity. Look at the ways he engaged them, built relationships with them centered in the Father's love and served them with no thought for himself. That was the power of his kingdom and the secret to living in the joy of his family. "I no longer call you servants... I have called you friends," (John 15:15) and in that simple declaration Jesus identified for all time the nature of the relationship God has always desired with those he created-intimate friendship.

I have been serving as a missionary in Kiev, Ukraine for the past twelve years. I am involved in making disciples, and in planting, establishing and caring for simple churches.

In light of the fact that most of the churches with which I work are small and are simple and organic in nature, I am often asked a question. Timmy, are you against big churches and big meetings? I am quick to answer that I am not against that which is big. For me it is not about big or small, and it is not about a model or strategy for church planting, development and reproduction.

Kiev, Ukraine         May 27^th -29^th

Do you want to be a more passionate disciple of Jesus Christ? Do you desire to multiply your life and make disciples more effectively? Do you long to see churches started that are centered on Jesus Christ, that experience deep loving relationships, and that are able to reach the lost and multiply? If this describes your heart and if you are active in a simple church, then this conference is designed for you.

The conference teachings will be in English with Russian translation.

If you would like more information about the conference, please write us at simplechurch.books@gmail.com

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It all began in a boat on a lake with a few fishing poles. It was there, surrounded by the lazy water, my dad and I would have a key conversation that would change the trajectory of my life. My dad was giving me a simple update on his life and shared that his church was hiring a discipleship pastor.

After I pushed past my internal dialog about how hiring a pastor for discipleship betrayed that the church didn’t see everything they did as discipleship, I heard my father say he was excited to learn how to make disciples—finally.

I was thankful for my father’s surge of energy toward Jesus’ commission but also a bit troubled. My dad didn’t seem to realize he raised me in a home where daily life was engaged as intentional ministry. He owned several small businesses and believed his business was meant to be a blessing to people and the city we lived in. As a result, we joined our parents in countless acts of kindness, generosity, and hospitality.

It was not uncommon for one of us four boys to give up our room for a season to make room for a young man getting a fresh start, a broken husband whose marriage was on the rocks, or a runaway teen who needed some stability. My dad would love and mentor these men during the day at one of his businesses while my mom would nurture and care for them like one of her own.

“Church planting is the most effective form of evangelism under heaven,” missiologist C. Peter Wagner once said. But is this still true today? Global nomad and missionary Andrew Jones, who works with emerging ‘Jesus movements’ around the world, suggests it’s time to rethink our missions practice, and move from ‘church as a weekly meeting in a building or a house’ towards ‘more sustainable, holistic, and measurably transformational Kingdom solutions.’



Over the past two years Jones and his family travelled to over 30 nations in North America, Europe, Africa and Asia, where they met with many ‘underground’ missionary pioneers. “One of the biggest trends I observed is the shift away from planting traditional churches (pastor-building-program oriented) towards a wide range of Kingdom expressions,” Jones says.