Elmer L' Towns, Dean

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• Elmer L. Towns, Dean
• School of Religion
• Co-founder,
• Liberty University
• Lynchburg, Virginia

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Foundations of Church Planting
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A. Introduction
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B. It takes two wings to fly.
The key to plating a church is

• Organism Organization
• Life (Internal) Structure
  (External)
• Inner conviction Rational
• Growth from inner to outer Growth from
  outer to inner
• Spirit-directed Leadership
• Intercessor Infrastructure
• Ministry Marketing
• Prayer Programs

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C. Three definitions of church growth
1. Church Growth is statistics, large numbers,
making lists, and statistics.
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• Donald McGavran went to India in 1930 as an
  educational missionary. What he thought was his
  denominations failure, led to great insight in
  church planting and church growth. His radical
  book, The Bridges of God.

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Put a church in every caste
Caste
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• 2. Church growth is evangelism by church
  planting. Donald McGavran
• 3. Church Growth is a behavioral
  science/discipline.
• a. Gather data concerning a problem.
• b. Examine the data.
• c. Suggest a hypothesis that will solve the
  problem.
• d. Test the solution to verify it if the
  principle is true.
• e. Establish laws or principles.

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D. What to Learn From Church Growth and
Donald McGavran
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1. The Necessity of Cross-Cultural Evangelistic
Church-Planting

• E-O INTERNAL BARRIER
• Overcoming the barriers of those unsaved in
  the church, i.e., spiritual blindness, hardness
  to the Gospel, ignorance of the Gospel, etc.

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• E-1 STAIN GLASS BARRIER
• Overcoming the barriers of people in the
  churchs neighborhood, i.e., poor location,
  comfort in the building, cleanliness, type of
  building, wrong type of
  denomination, etc.

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• E-2 CULTURAL AND CLASS BARRIER
• Witnessing to people of a different ethnic,
  race, or socio-economic background.
• E-3 LINGUISTIC BARRIER
• Witnessing to people who speak a different
  dialect or language.

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2. Focus on Receptive Groups
Reach the Reachable Win the Winnable Train the
Trainable Use the Usable Elmer Towns
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3. Types of Church Growth

• a. Internal growth (spiritual factors of growth
  in grace, the Word, conformity to Christ,
  attitude, etc.).
• b. External growth (Natural factors of growth in
  attendance, offering, membership, baptisms,
  enrollment, numerical growth, etc.)
• c. Transfer growth.

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d. Biological growth. e. Conversion growth. f.
Extension growth (beginning another similar type
church in a similar type neighborhood). g.
Expansion growth or bridge growth (beginning
another church in a different culture, i.e.
cross-cultural evangelism).
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4. The Homogeneous Principle (People Movement)

• Everyone knows everyone, everyone relates to
  everyone, and everyone waits on everyone before
  anyone will do anything.

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5. Science is a Valid Tool to Find Right
Principles and Methods

• Methods are many, Principles are few
• Methods may change, But principles never do.

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E. The First Communication of the Great
Commission - Command

• As the Father has sent Me, I also send you
  (John 2021).

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• Late Sunday afternoon on Resurrection Day.
• Ten disciples present.
• Jesus just gave them a command to go.

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F. The Second Communication of the Great
Commission - Preach

• And He said to them, Go into all the world
  and preach the gospel to every creature (Mark
  1615).

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• A week later to 11 disciples (Mark 1614).
• Jesus added the purpose for their going, Preach
  the gospel to every creature.
• That could be passing out literature from door to
  door, posting the Gospel on a website, printing
  the Gospel in a local newspaper, buying local
  television or radio time to share the Gospel, or
  any other means of publicizing the Gospel by
  media.

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G. The Third Communication of the
Great Commission - Strategy

• Go therefore and make disciples of all the
  nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father
  and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching
  them to observe all things that I have commanded
  you and lo, I am with you always, even to the
  end of the age (Matthew 2819-20).

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• Probably one week later on a mountain in Galilee
  (Matt. 2816).
• Jesus added make disciples, i.e., matheteusate
  panta ta ethne. This is not nations but ethnic
  groups.
• a. Get disciples from every ethnic
  group.
• b. Influence the culture of the ethnic
  group to make it Christian.

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• H. Three steps to accomplish their task
• The first step was more than just preaching, they
  were to get results. Their task now included
  winning people to faith and discipline each
  convert so that they follow Jesus.
• The second step was baptizing each new convert.
  Since water

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• Baptism is identifying with a local body,
  just as spirit baptism identifies with His body
  in Heaven, then this second step is churching,
  i.e., getting new converts to join a church
  fellowship.
• 3. The third step is teaching. How much? All
  things that Jesus taught His disciples. What
  should they accomplish with what they learn?
  Obey!

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I. The Fourth Communication of the Great
Commission - Content

• Then He said to them, Thus it is written, and
  thus it was necessary for the Christ to suffer
  and to rise from the dead the third day, and that
  repentance and remission of sins should be
  preached in His name to all nations, beginning at
  Jerusalem. And you are witnesses of these
  things (Luke 2446-48).

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• He met with His disciples in Jerusalem, He led
  them out as far as Bethany (Luke 2450).
• The disciples did not understand the
  substitutionary nature of Jesus death as He hung
  on the Cross.

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• Now on the last day before retuning to Heaven,
  Jesus instructs them to preach the good news of
  His death and resurrection.
• They are to preach repentance its a simple word
  that means to change the mind.

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• You are witnesses of these things (Luke 2448).
  Just as a witness must share what he has seen,
  heard, and experienced, the disciples were to
  share with every person in the world their
  experiences with Jesus Christ.

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J. The Fifth Communication of the Great
Commission - Geography

• But you shall receive power when the Holy
  Spirit has come upon you and you shall be
  witnesses to Me in Jerusalem, and in all Judea
  and Samaria, and to the end of the earth (Acts
  18).

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• Stay in Jerusalem until there is a solid
  foundation.
• They are to go to Samaria, the next closest group
  of people, and finally the ends of the earth.
• The Great Commission would be fulfilled in a
  gradual manner.

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• End of Lesson One

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Models of Church Planting

• Elmer L. Towns
• Liberty University

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Jesus Christ is the Original
Church Planter

• And I also say to you that you are Peter, and
  on this rock I will build My church, and the
  gates of Hades shall not prevail against it
  (Matt. 1618).

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• Every true church is planted by Jesus Christ
  because He said, I will build.
• Jesus plans to plant new churches in the future
  because will denotes the future.
• New churches should be planted and grow because
  build is continuous in the original language. I
  will be building.

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• Each new church plant belongs to Jesus not the
  church planter, the deacons, the people because
  Jesus called it My church.
• The church is planted by called out people
  because ecclesia is out-called-ones (ek out,
  kaleo to call).
• The church is an attacking weapon in Gods hand.

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Eleven Models of Church Planting
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• 1. The pioneering church planter.
• The pioneering method is used by some young
  men who go to the city for which they have a
  burden for and do everything within their ability
  to get a church started. They are usually not
  supported by a denomination, association or a
  local church. The pioneering church planter
  wants freedom to do what God has led him to do.

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Principles of the Pioneer Church Planter

• a. The personality traits of the church planter
• (1) Some think the church planter must
  be the rugged individualist who can
  persevere in spite of the odds.

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• (2) Others think he must be a charismatic
  personality attracting people to himself.
• (3) The author has seen all types of men plant
  and build churches.
• (4) Since Jesus is the founder of the church, he
  uses human channels who are dedicated to him.
• (5) God can accentuate a mans talents while at
  the same time compensate his weaknesses.

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• Gods man beats insurmountable odds, and
  overcomes oppressive obstacles to accomplish a
  work of God.
• Men who start churches must be pioneers.
• Some church pioneers have a ruggedness to
  plant, but lack the patience to water (I Cor.
  36). These men will generally plant one church
  after another.

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• (9) The man who would begin a church must be
  humble realizing that it is God who works
  through all of his abilities.
• (10) He must have vision as the prophet of the
  Old Testament who was called a seer (I Sam.
  99).
• (11) Courage is another attribute of the church
  planter.
• (12) Compassion is another needed quality.

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• (13) Tenacity is needed in every successful life.
  The church planter must never give up.
• (14) The church planter must be controlled by the
  Spirit in his preaching, teaching, soul-winning
  and church management.
• (15) The church planter must display the fruit of
  the Spirit.

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• b. The church planter faces insurmountable odds
  with limited resources in unlikely circumstances
• (1) A church is never a human invention,
  or is it a mans accomplishment.
• (2) An ecclesia is a people called out
  from sin, gathered in Gods assembly.

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• (3) The world does not love a church because
  it convicts the surrounding community by its
  purity and humility.
• (4) God must perform a miracle each time a new
  church comes into existence.

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God Always Looks for a Man

• When the human race was threatened by sexual
  abuses. Noah
• When the nations were given over to idolatry.
  Abraham
• When the world faced seven hard years of famine.
  Joseph
• Gods man always attempts the unattainable,
  whether his name
• is Samuel, David, Nehemiah or Paul.

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• (5) A church is always built by a man, but is
  never built on a man.
• (6) A great church is always caused, it never
  just happens.
• (7) Although God does not use a modern Gideon
  to slay an army of Midianites, he still uses the
  same principles.
• (8) Dr. G. B. Vick said, If a young man wants
  to start a church that will be influential, he
  must study great men.

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Strengths of Pioneer Method

• Churches are started.
• Pastor/planter has the greatest liberty in
  guiding a church into the New Testament model.
• The church is as strong as the ability of the
  pastor to produce growth.
• Fits the role of the New Testament church planter.

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Mother/Daughter Church Planting
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• 2. Mother/daughter-church planting. Church
  growth leaders have used the technical expression
  extension growth to describe one church starting
  another church like itself in a culture similar
  to the one in which the mother church is located.

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Extended Dependent Satellite Model
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• 3. The extended dependent satellite model.
• a. A mother church begins ministry in
  another location but without the purpose of
  making the new ministry an indigenous
  church plant.
• b. This ministry has been attempted through
  Sunday school extensions, missions and/or
  mission churches.

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The Dependent Satellite Church Model
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• 4. A dependent-satellite cell model.
• a. This is church planting in an area
  different than the mother church, or to a
  people different from people in the mother
  church.
• b. This is cross-cultural church planting.

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The Extended Satellite Cell Model
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• 5. The extended satellite cell model.
• a. A group is sent to organize a cell made
  up to Christians in outlying communities
  from the mother church. Pastor Yonggi Cho
  of the Yoido Full Gospel Central Church
  in South Korea, has reported approximately
  65,000 small cell groups throughout the
  city of Seoul, Korea.

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• b. Each group has approximately 10 people in
  number.
• c. The extended satellite-cell model was not
  intended to start churches, however many of the
  small groups become strong and break off,
  forming themselves into a local church.

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The Dependent Satellite Church Model
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• 6. The dependent satellite model.
• a. The mother church begins both satellite
  churches and cells at the same time.
• b. Some of the cells begun by the mother
  church become satellite churches.

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• c. The mother church intentionally plants a
  new church. Then the new satellite church forms
  cells just like the mother church.
• d. Pastor David Earley of New Life Community
  Church in Gahanna, Ohio, has begun four churches
  following this model. Each one of the
  satellite churches bears the same name as his
  church.

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• e. The New Life Community Church of Gahanna
  has approximately 2000 in attendance.
• f. In a nearby community, Pastor Matt Chittum
  began New Life Community Church of Hilliard,
  Ohio, with an attendance of approximately 150.
  
• g. The mother church has 90 cells and the
  Hilliard church has 10 cell groups.

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The Associational and
District Team Model
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• 7. The associational and district team model.
  
• a. Many Southern Baptist associations
  have banded together with money,
  resources, and vision to plant a new church
  in or near the association.
• b. The new church plant is begun by an
  association, even though it may or may not
  have one to two sponsoring mother churches
  from that denomination.

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The Colonization Model
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• 8. The colonization model.
• a. A church plans to start another church
  that is an extension of itself.
• b. The church extends itself into a
  different neighborhood with a plan to
  eventually move the mother church into that
  neighborhood.

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• c. The Wallace Memorial Presbyterian Church in
  Downtown Washington, DC, made a bold initiative
  in the 1960s to move from a decaying inner-city
  neighborhood to the outlying suburbs of nearby
  Hyattsville, Maryland.

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The Fusion Church Model
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• 9. The fusion church plant.
• a. More than one sick or dying churches
  have fused together to form a healthy
  congregation.
• b. While this is not a new church
  plant, it does represent raising up a new
  church in an area.

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The Catalytic-Church Plant Model
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• 10. The catalytic church plant model.
• a. A dynamic church plants a
  daughter church like itself.
• b. The daughter church duplicates
  the process by planting another church
  like itself.

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The Task-Force Model of
Church Planting
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• 11. The task-force model of church planting.
• a. A group is organized in the mother
  church that focuses on church planting.
• b. The group plants a church.
• c. When the church is self sustaining,
  the task force returns to the mother church
  and makes plans to repeat the church
  planting operation in another area.