The Basic Idea of Church Planting

April 1, 2009 – 1:50 pm

In a Wall Street Journal “Houses of Worship” column, Fred Barnes tells of his involvement in a church plant in the Washington D. C. area. Particularly interesting is his simple explanation of the core elements of church planting: the original meeting place (a school auditorium), the commitment to fellowship and discipleship within the new congregation, and the pioneering spirit involved.

He ends the brief article with a conclusion that could have been pasted straight straight from a church planting textbook: ‘It [Christ the King, the church plant] aims to be a “healthy church,” like its parent. “A healthy church reproduces itself,” Mr. Glade says. Christ the King may soon do just that. Its assistant rector wants to plant his own church.’

Entire article.

HT: Al Mohler, who points out that while “church planting” is a growing concept, it is not a new idea. In fact, as he points out, it was a central, essential element of  the spread of the gospel in the first century after Christ.