Church Planting

The following post is a compendium of personal ideas about church planting that have seemed to come together in my mind over decades.

These are just my views, but they are based on real life experiences of at least 3 large, successful church plants, plus several small ones, some of which have failed and some of which have succeeded, plus the fruit of observations and conclusions drawn as to why churches often cannot bring themselves to plant.

Here are my views:

1)  Churches (congregations) do not routinely plant churches.

I think this rule holds true among both the independents and in the denominations.  It is not only a truism, but perhaps is the way things ought to be, as I will explain below.  Church planting is better done in other ways than as a routine policy of individual congregations.

It's true that plenty of counterexamples to observation 1) could be provided.  However, I suspect that congregations that are successful, repeat planters of other congregations have special properties about them which are not typical of the usual congregation, and perhaps should not be typical.  I'm not saying by this that churches should never try to plant churches.  I'm just saying that as a rule this is not the way things work. 

I think the basic reason for churches not being able to plant churches is that individual congregations are usually strapped for support, considering all that they need to do in their own ministries.  They are therefore substantially unwilling to part with either their money or their staff time or any of their members, which is what it will take to start another church.  So, attempts which are made to start other churches as a matter of policy often fail, because the "pull" is toward the center and not out toward the periphery.

Even if the alleged "selfishness" of individual congregations were overcome, such that planting could occur as a matter of policy, one has to ask whether an individual congregation ought to truly do more along these lines, or whether first precedence ought to go toward properly maintaining the local ministries to which it is known that the Lord has already called them.

2)  New congregations are planted by individuals, or by interested bodies, at the call of the Spirit, and not by the routine policy actions of existing congregations.

a)  An "interested body" can be a significant portion of one congregation which wants to split off from an existing church and form a new one.  Or, it could be a body in a more remote location that wishes to "clone" another church which is looked upon as a model or ideal.  In all cases, this is an exceptional process and not a typical situation.  Such "splants" (split+plant) are often done in bitterness, though in my experience of certain real "splants" of decades past, this is actually a great way for a single congregation to plant a new church, if done willingly!  There is high motivation to succeed among the "splanters," and if this is accompanied by the willing support of the originating church, it can and has resulted in successful and friendly plants of new congregations.  This requires submission to the sovereignty of God.

b)  Another way in which new congregations can be planted is by intentional action of denominational policy through the organs of the "regional church."  The fellowship or presbytery can make its own plans using its own resources and personnel (including church planters) to start new works.  This approach demands sufficient resources (and authority) at the level of the regional church.  Not all regional church governments have the authority or resources (or motivation) to make this happen.  This can partly be due to the relative independence of the congregations that form a part of the regional church, a thing often seen among the newer presbyterian denominations which suffered bitterly in the old days from presbyterial authority that was too strong.

In any case, it is not possible for anyone to "plant a church" anywhere without a call from the Spirit.  There is no way that simple "authority" can make it happen.

c)  The model illustrated by the "Apostle Paul Evangelistic Association."  This kind of individual work needs supervision, since none of us is that kind of apostle any more, and therefore this approach fits pretty much under part b) above.  The reason for mentioning this at all is that Paul's procedure is so plainly written in the New Testament.  Though the churches Paul founded supplied money and some personnel to support his evangelistic efforts by their direct involvement, what he did does not illustrate church planting by the intentional efforts of local congregations to routinely plant new ones.  I would suggest that in the unwritten history of the New Testament age, that individuals who were called by the Spirit emulated the Apostle (but under the control of the churches, and not individualistically.)

These ideas are only a small part of the picture.  However, I think that thinking this through can help avoid the guilt feelings or sense of failure that can occur in churches when planting of new congregations seems inordinately difficult or delayed.  Perhaps the wrong tactics or strategy is being followed.  Therefore, I think that a Scriptural and realistic "political science" has its place in understanding how to succeed.

We must discern the practical Scriptural reasons for planting churches.  I think that "we ought to, as a church" is overplayed in today's active church-planting climate.  As I illustrated in point 2) above, interested individuals (under authority), and interested bodies who wish to move out, are a more typical source of new plants.  These are probably more reflective of the call of the Spirit, rather than individual congregations just feeling a burden to "do something."

It would help a lot to understand the historic and Scriptural ways that churches have been planted, to culturally "translate" those ways and means into today's conditions, and then to place the responsibility for church planting upon the shoulders of individuals, authorities and institutions that we believe are really tasked by the Spirit to do it.