Apostolic Missiology: Part 1-Some Questions to Get Us Started

I recently spoke to church planters at an event held in Atlanta by the North American Mission Board, addressing some of the material in my most recent book Discovering Church Planting.  I have been told the audio will be made available very soon.  When that happens, I'll link it to the blog and post my Powerpoint presentation for you as well. 

While we wait for this material, I'm going to start a new series today based on some of that presentation. 

The main point I'm attempting to make in this series is: in any context, the Church must operate from an apostolic missiology when it comes to missionary endeavors.  Nowhere is this matter more urgent today than in the U.S. and Canadian contexts in particular, and throughout western nations in general.  I plan to describe this particular missiology in a future post.  Until then. . .

As Goes Your Theology, As Goes Your Missiology, As Go Your Methods

Church planters must be outstanding theologians and outstanding missionaries.  To have one without the other is a liability to the Kingdom.  If our theological foundation is wrong, our missiology and methods are on tenuous grounds when it comes to the advancement of the Kingdom among a population segment, people group, etc.  

Where is the Pendulum in the West?

What is a church planter?  I know just asking this question on this blog may seem like an elementary matter.  I assure you such is not the case (and I promise I'm not trying to fill blog space with unnecessary information. :) ) Have you ever searched the Scriptures for a biblical portrait of  a church planter?  If so, what does that picture look like? 

Let me ask another question to get us thinking in this new blog series:  Particularily in the U.S., how is the church planter typically defined, as a missionary or as a pastor?  In other words, in what direction does the church planting pendulum point (toward pastor or missionary) when it comes to a general understanding the church planter in the 21st century in western contexts?  How do most of the books, conferences, blogs, church planters themselves, etc. describe the church planter, as missionary or as pastor? 

I'll leave you with a more important question:  Does the Bible generally describe a church planter as a person functioning primarily in a pastoral role or an apostolic role?

As goes your theology, as goes your missiology, as go your methods.

Stay tuned...