Thursday, July 31, 2008

Grassroots Healthy Church Podcast - Episode 3

I thought this was the best podcast by far. Is anyone listening to them? If so, give us some feedback.

Issue for Discussion: The Shift From Church Growth to Kingdom Growth

Download: Podcast Episode 3 - The Shift From Church Growth to Kingdom Growth
If you right click on the sermon, then click "Save Target As", you can save the MP3 to your computer.

Quotes from Reggie McNeil's The Present Future:
"There were several things wrong with the church growth movement. A lot of 'growth' was merely the migration of Christians moving from one church to another. The most notable trend was the closing down of the mom-and-pop operations and moving to the mall and, even later, to the supercenter. … With rare exception the 'growth' here was the cannibalization of the smaller membership churches by these emerging superchurches." – p 22

“More energy expended on the church's survival or success is misplaced.”
“Churches that understand the realities of the present future are shifting the target of ministry efforts from church activity to community transformation.”
“The North American church culture is not spiritual enough to reach our culture.”
“The Pharisees' evangelism strategy sounds eerily familiar.”
“Religious people have always been a problem for God.”
“The consumer church sees resources plowed into community transformation as ‘diverted’ from the church.”
“We will see more and more people, in the church and out, who have the call, the ability, and the finances to resource their own ministry passions in the community.”


Guests:

Fran Leeman, pastor of the Lifespring Community Church in Plainfield, IL, a growing suburb of Chicago.

Lance Finley, Director of Youth and Family Ministries for the Churches of God General Conference, a denomination based in Findlay, OH

Bill Sloat, pastor of Faith Community Church, in Denver, PA, a small town in Lancaster country, PA, who also has a doctorate in church history, specifically revivalist history of the 1700’s and 1800's.

And I'm Brian Miller, pastor of The Crossover Church in Mattoon, IL, a town of about 20,000 in East Central Illinois.

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