The Genius of Church Planting

In preparing notes to speak on evangelism and the local church, I began considering the genius of church planting. Church planting combines many of the focal points important for local church evangelism and adds to them the entrepreneurial spirit of youth—a powerful mix!

Consider how church planting amalgamates the best of the following:

• The gift of the evangelist
• Follow-up and discipleship
• Pastoral ministry
• A zeal to starting something new

In addition to these four, church planting also:

• Frustrates the plans of the Evil One
• Glorifies Christ

So, church planting as an evangelism tool is a powerful motivational force that can and has captured the zeal of young minds to accomplish something truly substantial for Christ. In fact, church planting is a six-way “Win-Win” proposition!

#1—Church Planting Combines the Best of the Gift of the Evangelist

In Ephesians 4:11 Christ is described as giving gifts of particular leaders to His church. There are five in all:

“And He personally gave some to be apostles, some prophets, some evangelists, some pastors and teachers.” (Ephesians 4:11)

So the crucified and risen Christ poured out His gift of leaders upon the church to gather and multiply His elect. And one of those leaders was the “apostle,” among whom was the Apostle Paul, who penned the verse above. Yet, although Paul was an apostle he functioned in all five of the roles named above. Several verses focus on Paul’s role as an evangelist.

First, when Paul was seeking the leading of the Lord for his future ministry, God spoke to him in a dream:

“During the night a vision appeared to Paul: A Macedonian man was standing and pleading with him, ‘Cross over to Macedonia and help us!’ After he had seen the vision, we immediately made efforts to set out for Macedonia, concluding that God had called us to evangelize them.” (Acts 16:9-10)

So God called the Apostle Paul to the ministry of evangelizing. Evangelism is also the first stage of church planting.

#2—Church Planting Includes Follow-Up and Discipleship

After evangelism comes follow-up and discipleship. Paul did not leave his converts unattended, but sought to follow-up with them and disciple them. In the Acts we find Paul following-up on the churches he planted at the end of his first missionary journey. Notice how Luke described the follow-up ministry of Paul:

“After they had evangelized that town and made many disciples, they returned to Lystra, to Iconium, and to Antioch, strengthening the disciples by encouraging them to continue in the faith and by telling them, ‘It is necessary to pass through many troubles on our way into the kingdom of God.’ When they had appointed elders in every church and prayed with fasting, they committed them to the Lord in whom they had believed.” (Acts 14:21-23)

In these verses, we find the first three stages of church planting evangelism gathered in one place. We read of Paul (1) “evangelizing” the city of Derbe. This evangelism resulted in Paul’s team making “many” disciples. Next we find that they (2) strengthened the disciples and encouraged them. So their follow-up consisted of their gathering the disciples and encouraging them to press on in the faith.

#3—Church Planting Encourages the Gift of the Pastor

Then Paul’s missionary team (3) gathered the disciples into local church fellowships by appointing leaders for each church. What a great example of church planting by the Apostle Paul and his team we find in Acts 14!

As to pastoral ministry, another vision of Paul explained God’s calling for the pastor to evangelize. In Acts 18:8-10 God again spoke to Paul in a dream:

“Crispus, the leader of the synagogue, believed the Lord, along with his whole household. Many of the Corinthians, when they heard, believed and were baptized. Then the Lord said to Paul in a night vision, ‘Don’t be afraid, but keep on speaking and don’t be silent. For I am with you, and no one will lay a hand on you to hurt you, because I have many people in this city.’” (Acts 18:8-10)

Verse 10 stands as particularly engaging to the pastor. Although the pastor’s number one ministry is shepherding the gathered people of God, he still needs to remember, “I have many people in his city.”

The pastor therefore needs to lead his people in evangelism and into evangelism!

It seems like that vision rang in his ears for the rest of his life. Around 20 years later Paul wrote to Timothy to “do the work of an evangelist.” Fulfilling his ministry provided the context for this admonition.

“But as for you, be serious about everything, endure hardship, do the work of an evangelist, fulfill your ministry.” (2 Timothy 4:5)

#4—God Has Given Youth a Zeal to Starting Something New

God has often instilled into the psyche of youth the desire to start something new. It is part of human nature and it is part of God’s plan. Solomon encouraged young people:

“Rejoice, young man, while you are young, and let your heart be glad in the days of your youth. And walk in the ways of your heart and in the sight of your eyes; but know that for all of these things God will bring you to judgment.” (Ecclesiastes 11:9)

The Apostle John picked up on this youthful zeal in an interesting way:

“I am writing to you, young men, because you have had victory over the evil one. … I have written to you, young men, because you are strong, God’s word remains in you, and you have had victory over the evil one.” (1 John 2:13, 14)

It is exciting to experience young people being filled with zeal for things of Christ. Church planting movements are founded. New music is written. New patterns of church life and worship are established. Spiritual awakenings happen. It is beautiful to see the creative work of the Holy Spirit in the lives of young people!

#5—Church Planting Frustrates the Plans of the Evil One

Interestingly, as noted by the Apostle John above, when youth are ministering with their God-given zeal, they are victorious over the evil one! Church planting results in the frustration of the plans of the evil one in two ways: (1) it frustrates his work the life of the young church planter, and (2) it frustrates his plans in the lives of those impacted by the church planter!

#6—Church Planting Glorifies Christ

Church planting also glorifies Christ by working together with Him to accomplish what He is busy doing in the world. Jesus said:

“And I also say to you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build My church, and the forces of Hades will not overpower it.” (Matthew 16:18)

Christ is in the business of “building His church.” And when we are involved in church planting we are joining Him in His work of building His church!

Paul described this work as building on the foundation of Christ:

“According to God’s grace that was given to me, I have laid a foundation as a skilled master builder, and another builds on it. But each one must be careful how he builds on it. For no one can lay any other foundation than what has been laid down. That foundation is Jesus Christ.” (1 Corinthians 3:10-11)

So church planting is genius. It is a six way “Win-Win.” It furthers the cause of Christ in history, frustrates the devil, and it amalgamates every stage of Christ’s Great Commission. May God give us the zeal to plant churches and may He call out many young people to this important work!

Six Cries for Saving Mercy from Psalm 119

Cries for salvific mercy, a.k.a. Sinner’s Prayer, Prayer of the Sinner, or Sinner’s Plea, have come under fire recently as providing an inadequate explanation of the way of salvation. While not disagreeing with the need for a persevering faith, in one place in Scripture a man asked, “What must I do to be saved?” The response given him was clear and simple:

“Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and you will be saved, you and your household.” (Acts 16:31)

However, long before the Philippian jailer cried out for mercy, the Psalmist wrote Psalm 119. And in this Psalm we find six pleas for saving mercy, all of which were answered in and through the death of Jesus Christ on the cross for the sins of the world.

Firstly, in Psalm 119:122, the Psalmist requests or pleads with God to become a pledge for him. It is an interesting plea, as in the book of Proverbs teaches on several occasions that we should not make a pledge, and especially not for a stranger. For example, here is Proverbs 22:26-27:

“Do not be one of those who shakes hands in a pledge,
“One of those who is surety for debts;
“If you have nothing with which to pay,
“Why should he take away your bed from under you?” (Prov 22:26-27)

However, in the case of Psalm 119:122, the psalmist pleads, calling himself a servant of the Lord, and asks for God to take him in pledge. It is a very fascinating request in light of Proverbs:

“Be surety for Your servant for good;
“Do not let the proud oppress me.” (Psalm 119:122)

The Psalmist here used the same verb for “pledge” as is found in Proverbs 22. So here we have the Psalmist requesting that God to become surety for his debt. And this is exactly what God did for us in Christ!

Remember, however, that Paul taught in Romans that Christ died for us, not when we were His servants, but rather when we were His enemies! Jesus did exactly that when He died on the cross? He cancelled the certificate of debt that was held against us due to our sins:

“And you, being dead in your trespasses and the uncircumcision of your flesh, He has made alive together with Him, having forgiven you all trespasses, having wiped out the handwriting of requirements that was against us, which was contrary to us. And He has taken it out of the way, having nailed it to the cross.” (Col 2:13-14)

So, in essence, the death of Jesus on the cross was God’s answer to the plea of the Psalmist in Psalm 119:122! What an amazing and beautiful link between the Old and New Covenants, where the New became a fulfillment of the Old.

Secondly, this pattern is also found true of another cry in Psalm 119. In the case of Psalm 119:154, the Psalmist is cried out for a lawyer to plead his case:

“Plead my cause and redeem me;
“Revive me according to Your word.” (Psalm 119:154)

The Psalmist sees his need for representation for his cause. And in 1 John 2:1-2 we read that Jesus is our Lawyer before the Father, arguing His case for on our behalf because of His atoning blood:

“My little children, these things I write to you, so that you may not sin. And if anyone sins, we have an Advocate [Lawyer] with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous. And He Himself is the propitiation for our sins, and not for ours only but also for the whole world.” (1 John 2:1-2)

The parallelism is amazing and even astounding. Jesus became the fulfillment of this plea of the Psalmist, as found in Psalm 119:154. The Psalmist asked for a lawyer, and Jesus became His Lawyer. Yet He was not only a lawyer for the Psalmist alone, but also for the entire world!

Thirdly, in Psalm 119:154, the Psalmist also cried out to be redeemed. He longed for redemption through a Kinsman-Redeemer. He needed someone who had the legal authority to purchase him from his self-imposed captivity. Again Jesus was His answer. The sinless Lamb of God brought a sufficient redemption to all of humanity by His blood shed on Calvary’s cross:

“And they sang a new song, saying: ‘You are worthy to take the scroll, And to open its seals; For You were slain, And have redeemed us to God by Your blood Out of every tribe and tongue and people and nation, And have made us kings and priests to our God; And we shall reign on the earth.’” (Rev 5:9-10)

Again Jesus was the Psalmist’s answer!

Fourthly, the Psalmist pled for deliverance. He was in trouble that necessitated deliverance from captivity and judgment:

“Let my supplication come before You;
“Deliver me according to Your word.” (Psalm 119:170)

Here Christ stepped in and provided deliverance to all who would turn to Him for salvation:

“For they themselves declare concerning us what manner of entry we had to you, and how you turned to God from idols to serve the living and true God, and to wait for His Son from heaven, whom He raised from the dead, even Jesus who delivers us from the wrath to come.” (1 Thess 1:9-10)

Fifthly, Jesus therefore provided salvation—another answer to the plea of Psalm 119:146:

“I cry out to You;
“Save me, and I will keep Your testimonies.” (Psa 119:146)

And was not Jesus the Savior of the world?

“And we have seen and testify that the Father has sent the Son as Savior of the world.” (1 John 4:14)

Sixthly and finally, through Jesus, men who were once dead in trespasses and sins, are brought to life (hence “revived”) by His death and resurrection. Hence, we find the Psalmist requesting life from the giver of life:

“Deal bountifully with Your servant,
“That I may live and keep Your word.” (Psalm 119:17)

“My soul clings to the dust;
“Revive me according to Your word.” (Psalm 119:25)

“Turn away my eyes from looking at worthless things,
“And revive me in Your way.” (Psalm 119:37)

“Behold, I long for Your precepts;
“Revive me in Your righteousness.” (Psalm 119:40)

“Revive me according to Your lovingkindness,
“So that I may keep the testimony of Your mouth” (Psalm 119:88)

“I am afflicted very much;
“Revive me, O Lord, according to Your word.” (Psalm 119:107)

“Hear my voice according to Your lovingkindness;
“O Lord, revive me according to Your justice (Psalm 119:149)

“Plead my cause and redeem me;
“Revive me according to Your word (Psalm 119:154)

“Great are Your tender mercies, O Lord;
“Revive me according to Your judgments (Psalm 119:156)

“Consider how I love Your precepts;
“Revive me, O Lord, according to Your lovingkindness.” (Psalm 119:159)

Even so, Jesus became the answer for the spiritually dead condition of man, as stated so clearly by the Apostle Paul:

“But God, who is rich in mercy, because of His great love with which He loved us, even when we were dead in trespasses, made us alive together with Christ (by grace you have been saved), and raised us up together, and made us sit together in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus, that in the ages to come He might show the exceeding riches of His grace in His kindness toward us in Christ Jesus.” (Eph 2:4-7)

From death to life, from lost to saved, from bondage to deliverance, from captivity to redemption, from guilty to acquitted. All these requested for mercy granted through the death of Jesus on the cross. What an amazing salvation available in Christ! Six cries for mercy found in Psalm 119. And, amazingly enough, Jesus was and is the answer to all of these cries for mercy.

Balancing Evangelism and Discipleship

A quote from a 1914 book by L. R. Scarborough has intrigued me for many years. I have used it in my evangelism notes to demonstrate how various individuals approached the concept of evangelism in history. In this quote Scarborough discussed the interrelationship between evangelism and discipleship, or using the terminology of his day, soul-winning and soul-building:

“It is not wise to say that soul winning is the main thing or that soul building is the main thing. They are Siamese twins of God’s gospel, going hand in hand, and they ought to keep up with each other.... And this leads me to say that the main thing in the Kingdom of God is the evangelistic spirit, the martial note and conquest tread.” (L. R. Scarborough, Recruits for World Conquest [New York: Revell, 1914], 58.)

In this quote, Scarborough answered an unspoken question about the primacy of evangelism and/or discipleship by noting that both are of equal priority. One reason that this quote intrigued me was that I had wrestled with this same issue when attending seminary in the early 1980s. In my case I placed evangelism above discipleship as it concerns the Great Commission. So, Scarborough’s wise comment gave me warning not to overstate my case for evangelism!

While teaching on follow-up and discipleship several years ago, I was struck with some unexpected biblical insight in answer to this question. It struck me that Ezekiel 3 provides the answer to this age-old enigma. Ezekiel 3:15-21 both affirms the statement of Brother Scarborough, and brings harmony between those who emphasize evangelism and those who emphasize discipleship:

“Then I came to the captives at Tel Abib, who dwelt by the River Chebar; and I sat where they sat, and remained there astonished among them seven days.

“Now it came to pass at the end of seven days that the word of the LORD came to me, saying, ‘Son of man, I have made you a watchman for the house of Israel; therefore hear a word from My mouth, and give them warning from Me:

“‘When I say to the wicked, “You shall surely die,” and you give him no warning, nor speak to warn the wicked from his wicked way, to save his life, that same wicked man shall die in his iniquity; but his blood I will require at your hand. Yet, if you warn the wicked, and he does not turn from his wickedness, nor from his wicked way, he shall die in his iniquity; but you have delivered your soul.

“‘Again, when a righteous man turns from his righteousness and commits iniquity, and I lay a stumbling block before him, he shall die; because you did not give him warning, he shall die in his sin, and his righteousness which he has done shall not be remembered; but his blood I will require at your hand. Nevertheless if you warn the righteous man that the righteous should not sin, and he does not sin, he shall surely live because he took warning; also you will have delivered your soul.’”

Since the late 1980s, I have used Ezekiel 3:16-19 to teach the urgency of evangelism. Likewise, in the past three or four years, I have required my Basic Evangelism students to memorize verses 18-19. But it had never crossed my mind that the interrelationship between the warning of the wicked and the warning of the righteous in Ezekiel 3 proved the validity of Scarborough’s quote.

What do I mean? The same command and the same terminology in verse 17, which precedes both the warning of the wicked and the righteous, applies both to warning of the wicked and the righteous in verses 18-21. So, we find

• The same message: “a word from My mouth”;
• The same command: “to warn”;
• The same responsibility: “to warn”;
• The same judgment: “bloodguilty” for failing to warn either one; and
• The same “deliverance” for warning them [paralleling Paul’s thrice repeated repetition of “every man” in Col 1:28].

So in essence, Ezekiel 3:17-21 answers the age-old question (“Which is more important, evangelism or discipleship?”) with the answer: “Neither, they are both equally important”! So this application, if it is valid, renders the timeless question—which was clearly an issue in the time of Scarborough in 1914—a mute point. Neither side wins the debate!

Therefore there is no need for competition between our areas of ministry. Both evangelism and discipleship are equally important. Both church planting and evangelism have their place. It’s not an issue of either/or but both/and. Now isn’t that a freeing thought!

The ramifications of this thought may take a while to sink in. If both evangelism and discipleship are equally important in the ministry of the local church, then many of our churches need either to ratchet up their evangelism programs or to rethink the effectiveness of their discipleship methods! If both are equally important in church planting, the ramifications are pretty intense as to how we teach and practice urgent evangelism, as well as life-on-life discipleship. If evangelism and discipleship are equally important in Christ’s Great Commission, what then are the ramifications for seminary education? The implications are serious and ought to be pondered at all levels.

Furthermore, let’s apply Ezekiel 3 to Matthew’s Great Commission:

1. Matthew 28 addresses both ministry to the wicked and to the righteous. While preaching or testifying is the main concept in the Great Commissions of Mark, Luke, and Acts, in Matthew 28 ministry to the wicked is included in the words “make/win disciples” to Jesus (cf. Matt 27:57).
2. Our main spiritual responsibility is to warn lost people, seeking to win them to Christ, and to become His disciples. Notice that warning is more than just informing. It is informing about Christ with the purpose of winning, while warning them of the consequences of rejection. “Warning” is definitely the end-game of a Gospel conversation.
3. If they refuse to take warning, and to become His disciples, then according to Ezekiel 3 our responsibility is complete. We have warned them. We have fulfilled our obligation to them.
4. If they do take warning, and they do become disciples of Christ, then not only are we delivered, but they are made righteous by the blood of Christ, and our responsibility continues. We are then commanded to baptize them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. And once that command is fulfilled, we are commanded to teach them to observe all that Christ has commanded. And in these last two commands we find the glue between evangelism and the local church, baptism, as well as the purpose for the local church, teaching them to observe all that Christ commanded.

So in the words “Go and win disciples” we have our responsibility to warn the wicked. And in the words “baptizing them … and teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you” we have our responsibility to the righteous who take warning, to give them further warning.

Notice also that the so-called righteous ones who do not take warning in Ezek 3:20, will not be saved by their good works: “his righteousness which he has done shall not be remembered.” Yes, for good works do not save anyone (Rom 3:19-20). But what does save the righteous is found in verse 21—that is, he takes warning. It seems like Jesus built on this idea when He said:

“When Jesus heard it, He said to them, ‘Those who are well have no need of a physician, but those who are sick. I did not come to call the righteous, but sinners, to repentance’” (Mar 2:17; cf. Matt 9:12-13; Luke 5:31-32).

Ezekiel 3 is a very potent passage indeed!

Further, those emphasizing church planting are not incorrect in their interest in assessing the spiritual condition of others. Notice that in verse 15 the prophet Ezekiel “sits” for seven days in consternation, brooding or brewing. By the way, the Hebrew verb for “sit” (yashab) is found 4 times in this verse—Incredible repetition! Finally, at the end of seven days, verse 16 says that the word of the Lord came to the prophet. So the prophet waited one full week before God commanded him to warn all men. Therefore, while Ezekiel 3 clearly teaches urgent evangelism, it does not teach rash, judgmental, dismissive, or aloof evangelism. Rather it teaches urgent evangelism with God-given conviction, insight, and humility.

The power of this passage is amazing. While it so clearly teaches urgent evangelism, it also includes several other vital lessons. Clearly this passage motivated the Apostle Paul in his evangelism efforts (cf. Acts 18:6; 20:24-27). May this passage also motivate us to obey and teach obedience to the Great Commission, and may it also bring us to new levels of unity in our evangelism, discipleship, and church planting. So, L. R. Scarborough was right after all, soul-winning and soul-building are Siamese twins of God’s Gospel. Let’s teach, preach, administer, and work so that these Siamese twins can keep up with each other!