Planting Churches among the City's Poor - Volume 1

32 • P LANTING C HURCHES AMONG THE C ITY ’ S P OOR : V OLUME 1

These guidelines will help the church planter avoid creating dependency in the budding church. However, the church itself must exercise its gifts so it grows to become a fully self-functioning body. If the young church is taught to depend upon the Holy Spirit and to see Jesus as the head of the Body then self-functioning will likely result. Self-Determination The church makes its own decisions without outside interference or control. Decision-making occurs in ways that are culturally appropriate to church members. Paul provided for self-determination in the churches he planted by appointing elders to lead each church (Acts 14:23). This formal leader ship structure developed out of the informal organism of the church. As the church became self-functioning through the exercise of spiritual gifts, it soon became apparent which members were gifted to lead the church body. Those recognized as leaders in the informal network of community relationships then received formal recognition and leadership positions in the church. One key to Paul’s success in church planting was his willingness to appoint leaders quickly, trusting God for their growth and performance. Paul did not hold on to the strings of control indefinitely. Developing indigenous leadership for the inner-city church is the church planter’s first priority, following the initial work of evangelism. Ray Bakke believes, “The congregation can almost always provide whatever is needed for ministry in their own situation. The real difficulty is convincing them of their own power to act and make decisions for themselves.” 24 Building the decision-making capacity of a young church is like muscle building. Making many small decisions builds the confidence needed to make larger decisions. Missionary church-planter Charles Brock asserts, “The church needs to begin making decisions as it develops. The three week-old church need not have the knowledge of a ten-year-old church. The planter must be careful to act as counselor, yet not as a decision maker.” 25 Stanley Hallet echoes this attitude, “Experience shows that top-down authority tends to promote dependency, but that decentralized authority allows neighborhood people to begin to shape their own lives.” 26 ________________________________________________________________________

24 Ray Bakke, The Urban Christian (Downers Grove, IL: Inter-Varsity Press, 1987), p. 95

25 Brock, p. 34

26 Stanley Hallet, “To Build a City,” Signs of the Kingdom in the Secular City , p. 7