Unedited Notes from the morning breakout.
What does it take to really build a multiplicative infrastructure that moves throughout the world? The secret is “you.” It’s within you – within every follower of Christ. They key is the presence of Christ in us. We all have the secret, but we just cover it up with all sorts of other stuff.
Pay it Forward trailer.
We want multiplication, but we usually perform addition, but we’re really good at subtraction and division.
What would you do if 100 people came to Christ in a day? What about 1,000 in a week? About 10,000 in a month? What about 1,000,000 in a year? No longer can you do church the way you’re used to. You’d be left thinking that church as we know it must change. Additive growth grows to a ceiling. Multiplicative growth has no ceiling. If our vision isn’t to see 100,000,000 come to Christ – we are stuck in an additive process.
What church multiplication is not.
Church planting without multigenerational reproduction is not multiplication. Church has daughter church, granddaughter church, great-granddaughter church, and great-great-granddaughter church. Fourth generation multiplication. A good leader can easily create three generations – great leader attracts other leaders who has followers. To get to the fourth generation requires you to give it away. Multiplication takes time – we want to take our finger off the X and put it on the + because that moves more quickly and it’s easier.
Gathering and assimilating other Christians from other churches to form new ones. This is NOT multiplication, it’s actually subtraction. Megachurches are expanding, the church itself is actually shrinking in America.
A centralized leadership development institution that sends out man church planters. Not multiplication – it can never be. If you require an institution to produce your leaders it means the churches aren’t doing it.
What it is…
The church must be self-perpetuating: she is healthy, enduring and will continue to live without needing any outside props of infusion of resources.
The church must be self-propagating: she reproduces and will naturally start other churches.
Formation of Networks: A Chain vs. A Hub
Advantages of decentralization (organic church is not a model – not saying house church – living connected growth – can be done in any model) – rapid reproduction, global impact much faster, less cost of maintenance, God is more obviously the author, more resistant to persecution, and resistant to heresy. The solution to heresy is not better trained pulpits, but better trained pews.
Advantages of centralization – better communication, faster regional impact, pooled resources, more visible presence, greater longevity of the church
The Kingdom of God begins like a mustard seed. It always begins at the smallest level – at the micro and not the macro.
Disciples, Leaders, Churches, Movements. We need to grow disciples to grow leaders who grow churches that grow movements. Your church is only as good as your disciples. God is the Bible Answer Man – not you. Trust the Holy Spirit to teach.
We usually see leadership like the Addidas “Impossible is Nothing” commercial. Chain reaction movement – impetus carried by each member. If one of use steps out of the way, the momentum stops.
The gravity of social groupings. Church is not a one-size-fits-all mentality.
2-3: Most essential size for life change
12-15: Best size for a spiritual family – not a good leadership group size
25-75: Best size for training
120-150: “Dunbar number” – 151 people stops connections. Ideal for feeling a part of a larger entity… an extended family.
300-500: Good number for casting vision and communicating an idea.
Unlimited multitudes beyond that.
How did we implement these sizes?
2-3: LTG – closest friends (Life Transformation Groups)
12-15: Simple Church family
25-75 = Regional leadership equipping
120-160 – Simple church network
300-500 – SPecial gathering conference
Infinity and Beyond
What size should leadership be? It’s outside this growth pattern and feeds all parts. It should be 5-7. Jesus didn’t violate these numbers.
Solution to institutionalization: Luke 9:23-24. The greatest sin of the evangelical church is self-preservation.
Hopefully, you see in these writings a man who is staying The Course and pursuing The Path amidst the pitfalls and selfish ways of being a son of Adam. I pray earnestly that my writing would encourage some of you by showing you that this journey - though arduous and sometimes tragic - is a journey of great satisfaction. A satisfaction greater than our greatest imaginings. The trials and refining fire of tribulation are to be recognized as a small shadow of the suffering of our Savior so that we can rejoice, as Peter and the disciples did, to be counted worthy to suffer for the sake of the Name.