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“Planting Organic Christ Centred Communities” ORGANIC CHRIST CENTRED COMMUNITY PLANTING • This is to lay a foundation… • During our time together, a foundation will be laid for what is involved in starting organic Christ Centred Communities. The metaphors of agriculture and nature are used in both training intensives to help us understand how God grows and reproduces disciples, leaders, Christ Centred Communities, networks and even movements. • This first session, Foundations for Organic Christ Centred Community Planting, is designed to lay the groundwork for the process that will unfold during our time together. In this session we will attempt to provide definition and Biblical foundation for the principles and practices of organic Christ Centred Community planting. Our hope is that you will be ready to go forward with enthusiasm once these basic ideas are spelled out. • In this course you will: – Discuss and begin to apply “organic” ideals to Christ Centred Community planting methodologies. – Join presenters in reconsidering the nature of the Christ Centred Community, uncovering a simple “working” description and her essential DNA for health, growth and reproduction. – Study key Biblical passages looking for insights about the nature of the kingdom of God and its implications for the Christ Centred Community today. – Take a look at a redefined understanding of the work of a Christ Centred Community planter and the nature of Christ Centred Community multiplication. – Consider the differences between institutional and organic approaches to Christ Centred Community and Christ Centred Community planting. – Review the phases of organic Christ Centred Community planting. – Hear the expectations of the presenters and express your own expectations for this intensive. – Don’t bash the bride! If you do, sometime soon you will be taking on the groom and you don’t want to do that. – New Wineskins – are good for new wine but the best wine is generally in old wineskins. – We have to be inclusive, not exclusive! FOUNDATIONS FOR ORGANIC CHRIST CENTRED COMMUNITY PLANTING • The Christ Centred Community should not be losing ground...but gaining (Mt. 16:13-18) • When Jesus came to the region of Caesarea Philippi, he asked his disciples, “Who do people say that 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 that 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 Christ Centred Community, and the gates of Hades will not overcome it.” Matthew 16:13-18 How Jesus sees the Christ Centred Community… • 1. A Christ Centred Community starts with life’s most important question: “Who is Jesus to you?” Any discussion about the Christ Centred Community that doesn’t start with Jesus misses the mark… • 2. Jesus builds the Christ Centred Community, not you! He builds it – “I will build my Christ Centred Community (Church).” • 3. It is Jesus’ Christ Centred Community, not yours! He owns it – “I will build my Christ Centred Community” • 4. We are at war in this world and wherever the Christ Centred Community is being built the battle rages fiercest. We will face opposition… “the gates of hell will not overpower it” • Gates are of hell not heaven • Gates are not offensive weapons • Jesus gives us the keys • 5. The Christ Centred Community is not supposed to be on the defence but on the offence! We should not be the threatened, but threatening! • The Thinker is part of a bigger statue called the gates of hell – he is contemplating eternal destiny. • The Christ Centred Community is to grow by reproduction more than one Christ Centred Community growing. That’s how bodies grow! • There is no force on earth that can stop the Christ Centred Community from accomplishing the mission given her by Jesus… • …except her own lack of faith. PRINCIPLES OF ORGANIC GARDENING • “Today the organic dream is in peril…What has been lost is that one key insight about organic: that everything is connected. The organic dream has been reduced to a farming method.” • From ORION, July/August 2003, “Getting Over Organic” by Michael Pollan • 1. The key for growth in the farm or garden is the health of the soil. • 2. Organic farmers remove hindrances to healthy growth from the soil. • 3. In an organic garden, a variety of plants and crops grow up together. • 4. Organic gardeners don’t add chemicals which are not in their natural form. • 5. Chemical nutrients may be added when they are considered a natural supplement to the soil. • 6. Gardeners tend their garden often and with care. The plants are inspected for pests. • 7. When growth gets out of hand, the farmer thins out some of the growth… sometimes by transplanting vegetation to a different location. • 8. To increase production in fruit trees and grapevines, farmers maintain a regular pruning regimen. • 9. Organic farmers trust their seeds, but not all seeds germinate…so they plant lots of them! • 10. The organic gardener is dependent on the Creator for sunlight and rainfall. RECONSIDERING THE IDEA OF A “CHRIST CENTRED COMMUNITY” SOME IMPORTANT ASSUMPTIONS ABOUT CHRIST CENTRED COMMUNITY • The Christ Centred Community is a living entity. I use the word organic implying that God grows the Christ Centred Community using means that correspond with growth in the natural world. • a. The Christ Centred Community begins in the fields, not in the barns (Proverbs 24:27 (NIV) Finish your outdoor work and get your fields ready; after that, build your house.) b. God grows the kingdom, His Christ Centred Community in (super) natural ways not in artificial or manufactured ways (Mark 4:26-29). c. Just as God breathed life into all living creatures (Genesis 2:7), He also breathed life into His Christ Centred Community (John 21:21-23; Acts 2). d. All living things are to be fruitful and multiply and fill the earth (Gen.1:28) the Christ Centred Community is no exception (Acts 1:8)! e. Most of the metaphors for the kingdom and the Christ Centred Community use natural, organic concepts to identify and describe it. 2. CHRIST CENTRED COMMUNITY IS A “HOLY PEOPLE” WHO BRING A “HOLY PRESENCE.” IT IS NOT A “HOLY PLACE”. • The gospel says, ‘Go,’ but our Churches say, ‘Stay.’ The gospel says, ‘Seek the lost,’ but our Churches say, ‘Let the lost seek the Church.’” Howard Snyder - From The Problem of Wineskins, (Downers Grove, Ill: InterVarsity, 1975) a. God intends for us to decentralize and fill the earth with His glory (Genesis 1:28; 9:1; Matt. 28:19-20; Acts 1:8). b. People tend to stay in one place and start a building project (Genesis 11:7-8; Matthew 17:1-6 Peter – let’s build a monument!). c. God does not dwell in temples made of human hands (1 Kings 8:27 (NIV) “But will God really dwell on earth? The heavens, even the highest heaven, cannot contain you. How much less this temple I have built!” Acts 7:48 (NIV) “However, the Most High does not live in houses made by men. As the prophet says; Acts 17:24 (NIV) “The God who made the world and everything in it is the Lord of heaven and earth and does not live in temples built by hands.). c. God does not dwell in temples made of human hands (1 Kings 8:27 (NIV) “But will God really dwell on earth? The heavens, even the highest heaven, cannot contain you. How much less this temple I have built!” Acts 7:48 (NIV) “However, the Most High does not live in houses made by men. As the prophet says; Acts 17:24 (NIV) “The God who made the world and everything in it is the Lord of heaven and earth and does not live in temples built by hands.). d. The New Covenant has the human heart as God’s dwelling place (Ezekial 37:26-28; 2 Corinthians 6:16). e. God now indwells His people; they are His temple (1 Corinthians 3:16; 6:19). Our hope and glory is not in the building we are in but in the Master who is building His life within us (Colossians 1:27).If you want a building you can have one – start the building project in 300 years – that’s following the example of the New Testament… f. God Himself tore the veil that separates Him from His people (Matthew 27:50; Hebrews 10:19-22). g. Jesus predicted the destruction of the temple which occurred in 70 AD (Matthew 24:2). h. Jesus declared that we are not bound to a location for worship (John 4:20-24). i. Jesus said it is better that he goes away and that we be decentralized. He lived, died, rose again and ascended to heaven so that we could carry God’s presence all over the world (John 16:511). – Before Jesus was born, where would we have to go to be in the presence of God? The holy of holies in the Temple in Jerusalem – While Jesus was walking this planet, where would we have to go to be in God’s presence? Where ever Jesus was. – After the death, burial, resurrection, ascension and Pentecost, where do we need to go to be in the presence of God? Wherever God’s people are gathered together (Matthew 18:20). j. We are now a decentralized nation of priests (1 Peter 2:8-9; Heb. 4:1416). 3. THE TERM “HOUSE CHURCH” IS INCOMPLETE • So we refer to the “organic Christ Centred Community” (or “simple Christ Centred Community”) for the following reasons. • House Churches have been viewed as reactionary and not reproducing… • The Christ Centred Community is not a building whether it has a steeple or a building… • • • • • 4. A TYPICAL DESCRIPTION OF CHRIST CENTRED COMMUNITY WILL INCLUDE: A group of believers gathered together regularly That consider themselves a Christ Centred Community That have qualified leaders That regularly practice baptism, communion and discipline They have an agreed upon doctrinal basis • Who’s missing? • Jesus! • All the above characteristics were present in Acts 1 but the Holy Spirit (Jesus) hadn’t showed up! 5. OUR UNDERSTANDING OF WHAT A CHRIST CENTRED COMMUNITY IS… • The presence of Jesus among His people called out as a spiritual family to pursue His mission on this planet. THE DNA OF THE CHRIST CENTRED COMMUNITY IN THE KINGDOM OF GOD • “No empire building. No controls. No personal glory.” Felicity Dale • All living things have a specific and unique DNA. We believe the following to be the DNA of a Christ Centred Community in its simplest form: DIVINE TRUTH • Truth is the foundation for everything. By Divine Truth we mean the dynamic and living presence of Christ and His Word. NURTURING RELATIONSHIPS • Healthy relationships are what make up a family. Love for one another is to be a constant pursuit of the family of God. This is the most basic of Christ’s commands. APOSTOLIC MISSION • Just as Jesus was sent on a mission, so we are also sent out on mission for Him. Our mission is to go into the world and disciple the nations for their good and God’s glory. • Divine Truth is the code that binds Nurturing Relationships and Apostolic Mission together. It brings the Christ Centred Community to life and dictates the development of the body. SOME TRUTHS ABOUT THE CHRIST CENTRED COMMUNITY’S DNA • The DNA is not something we add to our life, it is the code that dictates the makeup, health and development of life. • DNA unravelled is not DNA. The potency and potential is found in the component parts working together. You can not truly have one and not have the others. • The DNA should be found in every cell, or sphere of a Christ Centred Community, its disciples, leaders, families, Life Groups (LG’s), regional gatherings and or movements. • SOME TRUTHS ABOUT THE CHRIST CENTRED COMMUNITY’S DNA cont… • The DNA provides a pattern for diagnosing the health of a Christ Centred Community’s life and practice. • Genetic mutations in the DNA can result in malformations, infertility and illness in the body. • New followers and mature disciples alike need DNA as the code that dictates life and development. • The DNA is not about spiritual gifts. It is about loving obedience. • Spiritual giving is more important than spiritual gifts. PRACTICAL APPLICATION CONVERSATION In small groups, discuss possible implications of accepting the definition of Christ Centred Community as proposed. What would this mean for practices such as personal witness, Christian community, and spirituality? What other implications emerge that would affect us in regards to how we live as followers of Jesus? THE BIBLICAL FRAMEWORK FOR PLANTING CHRIST CENTRED COMMUNITIES ORGANICALLY – Jesus said, “Do you not understand this parable? How will you understand all the parables?” Mark 4:13 • 1. THE PARABLE OF WHERE IT ALL STARTS (MARK 4:1-20) A. THIS PARABLE IS BASIC TO UNDERSTANDING ALL THE PARABLES OF THE KINGDOM (V. 13). WHY? 1) It is simple & straight forward. 2) It is natural & therefore has a universal understanding. 3) This is where the kingdom starts. It is the bottom line of the very basics. 4) If you can’t get this part right the rest will be lost. • B. YOU’VE GOT TO START WITH A SOWER IN THE FIELD. The Christ follower has got to be in the world (his field). C. YOU’VE GOT TO START WITH THE RIGHT SEED: THE WORD OF GOD (V.14). • There is no substitute for God’s word! • What is seed? It is a package of life. Every seed holds a tiny living plant. (Patricia Lauber – Seeds – Pop Stick Guide – Hebrews 4:12 (NIV) For the word of God is living and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart. • What is the fruit of the apple tree? – Apples? D. YOU’VE GOT TO START WITH THE RIGHT SOIL. THERE ARE FOUR OPTIONS: • 1) Hard and unreceptive (v.15) – unreceptive to the gospel, demonically distracted... • 2) Shallow, short-lived without depth – commitment is to whatever feels right at the moment and is shallow and quits with any distress to their commitment (vv. 16-17). • 3) Weed infested and distracted by other things (vv. 18-19). Distracted by the world and the things of the world. 4) Good, deep and receptive soil (v. 20). • Only one out of the 4 seeds produces fruit – this could be discouraging. Of those who receive the message, two thirds will not bear fruit…. • This is not discouraging because it is affirming our discipling experience. We are not responsible for the bearing of the fruit. • (Re)Produces 30x’s the fruit, which equals: 3000% • (Re)Produces 60x’s the fruit, which equals: 6000% • (Re)Produces 100x’s the fruit, which equals: 10000% • One apple tree has enough fruit to produce an entire orchard • It has been calculated that one sheaf of wheat, left alone to reproduce after eight years has enough potential to feed the whole world! • 2. THE PARABLE OF HOW IT GROWS (MARK 4:26-29) – He also said, “This is what the kingdom of God is like. A man scatters seed on the ground. Night and day, whether he sleeps or gets up, the seed sprouts and grows, though he does not know how. All by itself the soil produces grain—first the stalk, then the head, then the full kernel in the head. As soon as the grain is ripe, he puts the sickle to it, because the harvest has come.” 3. THE PARABLE OF HOW IT ALL ENDS UP (MARK 4:30-32) – Again he said, “What shall we say the kingdom of God is like, or what parable shall we use to describe it? It is like a mustard seed, which is the smallest seed you plant in the ground. Yet when planted, it grows and becomes the largest of all garden plants, with such big branches that the birds of the air can perch in its shade.” • Read the above parables and ask the following Discovery Questions of the people at your table for discussion: • What did you like best about what you read? • What did you not like? • What did you not understand? • What new things did you learn about God or His kingdom? • What idea or phrase do you want to take with you this week? • What are you going to do about it? THE MARKINGS OF A CHRIST CENTRED COMMUNITY MOVEMENT 1. WHAT CHRIST CENTRED COMMUNITY MULTIPLICATION IS NOT... a. Christ Centred Community planting without multigenerational reproduction. b. Gathering and assimilating Christians from other Churches to form new Christ Centred Communities. c. Big revival meetings and evangelistic crusades. d. A centralized leadership development institution that sends out many Christ Centred Community planters. You must cut the umbilical chord and institutions don’t do this. 2. WHAT A CHRIST CENTRED COMMUNITY PLANTING MOVEMENT IS… “a rapid and multiplicative increase of indigenous Churches planting Churches within a given people group or population segment.” David Garrison (Christ Centred Community Planting Movements, p.7) 3. EVIDENCES OF A CHRIST CENTRED COMMUNITY MOVEMENT “An organic farm, properly speaking, is not one that uses certain methods and substances and avoids others; it is a farm whose structure is formed in imitation of the structure of a natural system. It has the integrity, the independence, and the benign dependence of an organism.” From The Gift of Good Land by Wendell Berry (p.143) 3. EVIDENCES OF A CHRIST CENTRED COMMUNITY MULTIPLICATION MOVEMENT a. Simple and reproducible strategies that release common Christians for uncommon work. b. Witness and multiplication that is natural and spontaneous. c. Reproduction occurs at every level and in every unit of the Christ Centred Community life developing from micro to macro. d. Interdependence among the Christ Centred Communities, not unhealthy dependence nor self-centred independence. 3. EVIDENCES OF A CHRIST CENTRED COMMUNITY MULTIPLICATION MOVEMENT e. The Christ Centred Communities must be... – 1) Self-perpetuating: she is healthy and enduring and will continue to live without needing any outside props or infusion of resources – 2) Self-propagating: she reproduces and will continue to reproduce over time CLARIFYING A GOAL HIGHER THAN CHRIST CENTRED COMMUNITY MULTIPLICATION In organic approaches to farming (and mission...) 1. Our highest goal is not a single plant. 2. Our highest goal is not a single fruitbearing plant. 3. Our highest goal is not even a field full of fruit-bearing plants. 4. Our highest goal is the health and fertility of the land so that it will produce generation after generation of fruit-bearing plants. AND THE HIGHEST GOAL OF ALL... –That Jesus would reign as Lord of all the earth… THE CONTRAST BETWEEN THE INSTITUTIONAL AND ORGANIC APPROACH TO CHRIST CENTRED COMMUNITY PLANTING Institutional Approach Organic Approach Seating: Rows only Circle(s) Environment: Anonymous Intimate Leader source: Institutions of higher learning The harvest Growth: Addition where it can be found Multiplication at every level Results: An audience is attracted An army is raised up Ministry Practitioners: The Ordained The Ordinary Resources: Imported to the harvest Discovered in the harvest THE CONTRAST BETWEEN THE INSTITUTIONAL AND ORGANIC APPROACH TO CHRIST CENTRED COMMUNITY PLANTING Institutional Approach Primary leadership: Organic Approach Pastoral teacher Apostolic team Learning lab: Classroom based education Trench based education Cost: Expensive Inexpensive Ministry Location: The Meeting place The Marketplace Goal: Deeper knowledge Deeper relationships THE CONTRAST BETWEEN THE INSTITUTIONAL AND ORGANIC APPROACH TO CHRIST CENTRED COMMUNITY PLANTING Institutional Approach Organic Approach Full seating capacity Full sending capacity Passive: “You all Come!” Active: “We all go!” Attraction: Felt need programming Obvious Life Transformation Expectations: Conversions are surprising Conversions are expected and seen Success: Christ Centred Community posture: Overview of the Organic Christ Centred Community Planting Process 1. Cultivation has to do with the preparation and improvement of the soil for raising healthy crops. In an organic approach to Christ Centred Community planting, cultivation is doing what the Lord leads us to do relationally and prayerfully in order to prepare people and communities for the reception of the gospel. Overview of the Organic Christ Centred Community Planting Process 2. Sowing has to do with planting seed in the soil of a selected environment intending that it will take root and grow. In an organic approach to Christ Centred Community planting, sowing has to do with implanting the gospel message into the lives of individuals and the cultures in which they live. The seed must be planted in soil. No farmer expects the soil to come to the seed. Overview of the Organic Christ Centred Community Planting Process 3. Growing is the germination of a planted seed that takes root in the soil while sending a stem into the light and air above the ground. In an organic approach to Christ Centred Community planting, growing begins with the reception of God’s message and the sealing of the Holy Spirit. In this stage God develops conviction in the lives of people and social groupings so that they come alive in Jesus, connect with a cluster of believers or even grow into a new reproductive Christ Centred Community. MY EXPECTIONS AND DREAMS • 1. That you would be encouraged and challenged to shift your current thinking, in some way, about Church (the Christ Centred Community), mission and the way of Jesus. • 2. That you would find others whom you might be able to team up with to bring transformation to your region. • 3. That you will have time to both discuss and reflect on the application of these ideas to you own life and context. MY EXPECTIONS AND DREAMS • 4. That you will decide to become part of a Regional Gathering or Mission for support and strategic implementation of organic Christ Centred Community planting principles. • 5. That you would experience a unique encounter with God here. • 6. That 10 years, 5 years, 1 year from now we could look back and say, the Father’s kingdom has come because of this course and it’s implementation - in the lives of the people who attended and as a result, many, many more... YOUR EXPECTATIONS • 1. List 1-3 key expectations you have for this course. Use some paper and write your thoughts out before you leave (anonymous or not). • 2. Take some time now to record some thoughts, feelings or plans so far. YOUR EXPECTATIONS • REFLECTING and RESPONDING: In this space, record notes regarding ideas that impress you; issues that trouble you; input that makes a connection in some way; areas of personal interest, and intentional responses to what you have learned. You may also want to list questions that need answering and items for prayer. • HEAD: What is an idea or concept that challenged your thinking and that you will continue to mull over as a result of this session? • HEART: What is a feeling, emotion, or reaction that emerged from the issues within this session? • HANDS: What is a real world response or act of obedience that was stimulated in this session? • CULTIVATING THE SOIL OF PEOPLE’S HEARTS • CULTIVATION IN THE BIBLE – Joel 1:10 The fields are ruined, the ground is dried up…Despair, you farmers, wail you vine growers; grief for the wheat and the barley, because the harvest of the field is destroyed…Put on sackcloth, O priests, and mourn...declare a holy fast; call a sacred assembly. Summon the elders and all who live in the land to the house of the Lord your God and cry out to the Lord. • CULTIVATING THE SOIL OF PEOPLE’S HEARTS • CULTIVATION IN THE BIBLE – Hosea 10:12 …break up your unploughed ground; for it is time to seek the Lord until he comes and showers righteousness on you. – Psalm 107:35 He turned the desert into pools of water and the parched ground into flowing springs… – Proverbs 24:27 Finish your outdoor work and get your fields ready; after that, build your house. – Isaiah 44:3 For I will pour water on the thirsty land, and streams on the dry ground; I will pour out my Spirit. • CULTIVATING THE SOIL OF PEOPLE’S HEARTS • CULTIVATION IN THE BIBLE – Luke 8:15 The seed on good soil stands for those with a noble and good heart, who hear the word, retain it, and by persevering produce a crop. – 1 Corinthians 3:9 You are God’s field (lit. cultivated land). – “Social Network Theory” suggests that “the average person has 1500 acquaintances with older and wealthier types tending to exceed that level. It is believed that any two people on planet earth can be linked by 5 or fewer intermediaries.” – Dan Selgman “Me and Monica” Forbes, March 23, 1998, p. 76 OIKOS WITNESS • 1. Oikos is a Greek word, which includes a family of words based on the idea of a home or household. • 2. In addition to many references to the houses people live in, the Church meeting in homes, and the Biblical teaching that believers belong to the household of God, oikos also carries the following notions: – a. A person’s oikos is the fundamental natural unit of society...one’s family, friends, neighbours, and associates (Acts 10, 11; Philippians 4:22). – b. God has placed people in particular oikos contexts so that they might find him (Acts 17:26, 27). – c. Peter says that a spiritual oikos is made of people who are likened to “living stones” (1 Peter 2:5). • 3. Crucial insights connecting oikos to our missional task: – a. For every Christian, mission begins with those who God has put in their lives. – b. Keys to being a witness in your oikos are: * Time and availability * A Life that is open and being renewed day by day * Hospitality * Spiritual intuition * Generosity – c. While God has made oikos the natural means to be a witness, it can also be a difficult spiritual environment... particularly for those who have been believers for a long time (Mark 6:4). – d. The key to the spread of the gospel may not be your oikos. Rather, the gospel is more likely to experience expansion through the oikos of a new believer. SOIL ANALYSIS • The organic farmer must understand the type of soil in which he or she is working. There should also be a growing awareness of when soil would be considered “good” and when it would be considered “bad” where planting is concerned. A “soil analysis” can determine the potential for receptivity so that the good seed can be planted where it is mostly likely to take root and grow. – 1. IDENTIFYING POTENTIALLY GOOD SOIL – 2. IDENTIFYING POTENTIALLY BAD SOIL PRACTICAL EXERCISE • 1. Below, make a list of 10 or so people in your oikos who don’t yet have a relationship with King Jesus. • 2. Spend some time in prayer for these people, asking the Lord to lead you in understanding their spiritual condition and what He would have you do in cultivating their hearts for the gospel seed. • 3. Pray about what needs they may have, that you can meet, in order to see their hearts become better soil. Put the names of these people in your oikos below the description of what you think they need most right now. Jot down an idea or two on how you might be proactive in your work of cultivation. – a. TILLING is the work you do in asking questions and getting to know them. This is the work of digging into their life on a deeper level. Do you know them? How well? – b. MULCHING is laying your life more fully into their’s. It’s sharing yourself with the good, the bad, and the ugly. Are they getting to know you? Are they seeing the hope within you? – c. WATERING is offering refreshment from the Lord in ways they need it most. Prayer, acts of kindness, and hospitality are examples. Are you meeting their needs appropriately? • 4. Share with 2 0r 3 others one or two examples of how you intend to cultivate the lives of the people in your oikos. • 5. Pray for each other. JESUS’ PRINCIPLES OF APOSTOLIC MISSIONS • Jesus preached two separate sermons with almost identical content, one was to the twelve disciples (Matt. 10/Mark 6/Luke 9), the other to the seventy (Luke 10). Both sermons were delivered on separate occasions preparing His disciples for the harvest. These are the closest we have to Jesus’ actual missional methodology. Long ignored by the Church it is time we listened to this valuable and insightful way of understanding how cultivating the soil can quickly result in a Christ Centred Community planting movement. When Jesus repeats Himself and three out of four gospels make sure that the message is included, we better pay attention. • I have drawn five incarnational principles for ministry from Jesus’ words. We have listed them in a simple and repeated acrostic of P.O.P. to make it more memorable. • Jesus was moved to the very core of his being – bowels… • The first 3 principles usually happen or function simultaneously rather than chronologically… 1. PRACTICE OF PRAYER • “The harvest is plentiful but the workers are few. Ask the Lord of the harvest to send out workers into the harvest field (Matthew 9:37-38).” • Children – begging – please, please, please… • The Christ Centred Community is more spiritual than physical – there is a romantic element that involves prayer… • Before the Christ Centred Community is ever conceived on earth it must be a gleam in heavens eye… • Practical Missional Insights… • Luke 10:2b The begging God for workers – 10-2B virus… 2. POCKETS OF PEOPLE • “He sent them out two by two ahead of him to every town and place where he was about to go (Luke 10:1).” • Practical Missional Insights… • Special interest groups – oikos groups, people who are responsive – look for darkness – share the light of the gospel – it dispels the darkness • Neil Cole’s wife said – “It is so much more fun to be light in the darkness than it is to be light in the light!” 3. POWER OF PRESENCE • “As you go, preach this message: ‘The kingdom of heaven is near.’ Heal the sick, raise the dead, cleanse those who have leprosy, drive out demons. Freely you have received, freely give (Matthew 10:7-8).” • Practical Missional Insights… • The Church suffers from memory loss, it is not amnesia, it is Alzheimer’s! Where we have forgotten our family and those close to us. • Announce that God’s kingdom has come! The kingdom of God does not need the permission of others… • All authority of heaven and earth walks with you – you will overcome… • There are 2 types of people in the world – moths and cockroaches – when you turn on the light you will be able to tell who they are – Moths attracted & Cockroaches run… • 4. PERSON OF PEACE • “When you enter a house, first say ‘Peace to this house.’ If a man of peace is there, your peace will rest on him...Stay in that house...do not move from house to house (Luke 10:7-8).” • A person of peace is someone that God has sovereignly prepared to hear and receive the gospel of the kingdom. A new group or Christ Centred Community is usually about to form with the emergence of a person of peace. • He doesn’t say go from house to house – he says stay there that they when they come to Christ – the multiplication affect takes place • A person of peace is a person of... • a. Responsiveness: they are interested in the gospel. • b. Relational Influence: they are well connected. • c. Reputation: they are persons of well known character (good or bad). • Biblical examples… • Matthew (Matt. 9:9 ff) - bad • Gerasene demoniac (Mark 5) - bad • Zacheaus (Luke 19) - bad • Ethiopian Eunuch (Act 8) - good • Lydia (Act 16) - good • Cornelius (Acts 10) - good • Woman at the well (John 4) - bad • Philippian Jailer (Acts 16) - good • Practical Missional Insights • God shows that all that is needed was the gospel – the rest is up to the Holy Spirit The power of a changed life is more powerful than anyone else