Dangerous & Short-Circuit Practices Concerning Evangelization & Creating an Environment for Multiplication and a CPM to Occur Prepared by: Dr. Jim Slack South America AGMs 2008

Dangerous, Short-Circuit Practices Accepting or feeling obligated to use any “Best Practices” methods and approaches that do not fit the cultural (worldview) and linguistic needs of the EPG you are evangelizing. Missionaries and volunteers involved in planting churches beyond the first generation (Growth can occur, but seldom CPM type growth)

Dangerous, Short-Circuit Practices Generic is deadly when not adapted in light of the worldview (especially the religious background) of the people group Missionaries and volunteers planting churches by any means other than reproducible, indigenous models and methods (Growth can occur but it almost always become dependent)

Dangerous, Short-Circuit Practices Going beyond the ethnic people group, and especially beyond the emerging church being planted or the churches planting them, to secure the new churches’ pastors and leaders Taking or sending leaders, and for sure members, beyond their normal areas of work, shopping, fellowship, worldview setting and personal financial means, for training,

Dangerous, Short-Circuit Practices Missionaries and volunteers using any language for evangelization other than the EPG’s heart language Missionaries and volunteers using any evangelization, and especially teaching techniques, that are not indigenous and compatible with the EPGs evangelization potential. (This does not imply that such use won’t work but that it will work at a level far less than more culturally compatible methods.)

Dangerous, Short-Circuit Practices Buying any land, bringing in any individuals to assist them in building buildings to house their churches, and/or assisting in securing any funds for use in paying pastors’ or workers’ salaries. It is not implied that this kind of assistance is wrong or sinful, but that it presents a model they cannot duplicate and ties the growth to a non-indigenous model.

Dangerous, Short-Circuit Practices Taking the initiative or supporting financially any development of any institutions or denominational structures in behalf of the EPG’s churches. Here again, this is not seen as wrong or sinful, but a model that is not indigenous, that cannot be duplicated and that will divert attention away from impacting lostness.

Dangerous, Short-Circuit Practices Modeling or encouraging local leaders and members in their preaching, teaching or leading Bible studies in any language other than the EPG’s heart language Providing any equipment for EPG leaders, emerging churches and churches planting churches that is not within their natural and economic “reach”

Dangerous, Short-Circuit Practices Occasions when form (structure and the operational rules of that structure) determines function rather than New Testament function determines form (structure) In other words, requiring any non-New Testament conditions for a group existing and being recognized as a New Testament church

Dangerous, Short-Circuit Practices Outsiders and at times insiders setting any numerical size as required size for being or recognizing a local church as a church Missionary involvement as a pastor or official leader in any local churches. This does not mean that missionaries will not be involved in first generation churches as the church planter.

Dangerous, Short-Circuit Practices The SC and/or EPG team members and volunteers should not lead any of the emerging churches in the EPG to affiliate with any other group of churches that teach and practice extra-biblical evangelization practices. Even forming or joining an association or a convention should be when the EPG churches choose to do so and not when the SC-led team tells them to do so.

Dangerous, Short-Circuit Practices Using as the initial and basic church planting model that of the traditional feeder cell group model that ties each cell to a mother church. A cell group approach that does not teach and encourage each cell to become its own local church A cell group approach that does not encourage cells that have organized as churches to recognize their own pastor and to grant their pastor the right to handle the ordinances in behalf of that local congregation.

Dangerous, Short-Circuit Practices Prepared by: Dr. Jim Slack Based upon Historic Missiological Research from Many Sources Based also upon fifteen on-site CPM Assessments from 2000 to Present January 2008 Edition

Church Planting Model Needed Believers in the churches mirror a cross- section of the EPG’s demographics Typical new churches planted can and do fit within a typical home after which they divide and plant a new church in another home Emerging churches that get their leaders from within their own believers or from among those in the church that is planting them

Church Planting Model Needed Model that contains and practices viable and reproducible witness, discipleship and leader- mentoring activities in and through the church planting process Model that can be reproduced repeatedly by believers within the new churches being planted without outside support or assistance Model that can be reproduced by oral or literate, educated or uneducated believers

Church Planting Model Needed Model that is “pitched” to or based upon the most common demographic denominators of the EPG Evangelization presentation content engages and speaks to the EPG’s common worldview barriers to the Gospel in the most tactful, Biblically based and reproducible ways