Articles Number Five

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Church plants need pastors who can get churches up and running and are willing to live with the uncertainty involved in planting. That’s a different skillset to being a church pastor. And so we need to keep recruiting men who have the ability and capacity to survive and thrive under a different set of pressures to a more predictable pattern of ministry. Finally, church plants need church planting teams. If we are to extend our activities beyond the neighbouring suburbs of our existing churches, we need people who are willing to be enterprising, and willing to move. That’s going to be easier for those who rent and who’ve yet to put down roots in a local community. But hopefully the gospel needs of our city will make some of us face the possibility of relocating to help get a new church up and running. These are some of the obstacles we face. There are others. But let’s move on to the outcomes of our prayerful deliberations. OUTCOMES What’s happening behind the scenes? As you might expect, it’s an ongoing conversation. We’ve learnt lots over the last 15 years and continue to learn. Whilst we’re not quite yet in possession of a faultless grand plan, we’ve moved beyond the back of a paper napkin with which Jay Mariner and I sketched out a five-year plan for BLoC. There have been some encouraging outcomes from our prayerful consideration and ongoing discussion, including: 1. We’re paying renewed attention to our training pipeline. We want to keep encouraging men and women to consider our Ministry Training Scheme. We’re hoping that from within this group some will emerge who are keen to be involved in planting. In addition, Andy Harker has been beavering away behind the scenes planning the launch of a London Church Planting Academy which will build on our collaboration with existing church planting partners and foster greater coordination and cross-fertilisation of best practice. 2. We’re identifying potential locations that could become church planting hubs, much as Raynes Park has in South West London. And so we’re doing what we can to understand the social geography of our city. We want to build up a picture not simply of which churches are where, but who is where, how long they’re there for, where they go next and so on. For example, a central London church like Christ Church Mayfair can plant, every few years, into a zone 2 or 3 suburb 20 minutes tube journey away. They’ve done that in Haringey in the North East and they’re planning to do it again in a different location in 2-3 years’ time. 3. We’re working with like-minded, Bible-believing churches and organisations to deepen our gospel partnerships. I spent a very enjoyable morning in April with a group of church leaders in a Co-Mission regional cluster exploring possibilities in their patch of London. We’re liaising with organisations like the FIEC, the Church of England and London City Mission to open up opportunities. It may be that the churches we help plant aren’t Co-Mission churches. That’s alright. But some choose to be so. We’re helping to plant new churches in a couple of London locations right now with church leadership teams who are on the same page as us (theologically speaking) and who would like the church to be a part of our network of churches. That’s exciting. Our tagline is A Passion, for Planting, for London, for Christ. We know why we’re planting churches: for the glory of the Lord Jesus Christ. We know where we’re doing it: this great diverse and densely populated capital city of ours. And we’re getting better at how we’re doing it: we’re focussed on planting because although we’ve got lots to learn, we’re aware that the Lord has already given us experience and expertise in developing successful strategies for planting. We’re asking people to hang around and be part of something bigger than their own Christian lives, than even the life of their local church. And for that to be a credible ask we’ve got to show them the plan. This brief article can only scratch the surface of what’s going on behind the scenes. I hope it’s encouraging. Please pray for us as we work on planting RICHARD PERKINS is Director of Church Planting for Co-Mission and lead planter at Bridge Church Peckham. 30
A N D J O S H R A JA , E S T H E R R I C K Rick is married to Esther and they have a 6-month old son, Joshua. Rick and Esther first met at a Co-Mission Mission Breakfast in October 2013 with a joint desire to share the gospel with those who haven’t heard. Rick became a Christian in 2007 from a Hindu background at Christ Church Balham. Having practised as a medical doctor for a number of years and having worked in a mission hospital in Madagascar, he saw the desperate and urgent need for people to hear the good news of Jesus. He completed a ministry apprenticeship, the Cornhill training course and studied theology at London Seminary. Esther grew up being taught about Jesus by her parents and grew to love him for herself as a child. She worked as a PE teacher for 12 years, served as a missionary in Ethiopia for 3 years, completed the Cornhill training course and is currently on maternity leave from being the Youth and Children’s Worker at Grace Church Worcester Park. Rick is currently doing a part-time masters in theology at Puritan Reformed Theological Seminary, USA and working as a doctor. Both are getting their heads around parenting whilst preparing to plant a church in North East London. A meeting with London City Mission (LCM) identified Clayhall and Barkingside in North East London as high priority: It is culturally and ethnically diverse but a spiritual desert. The 2011 census revealed 61.1% Asian/Asian British make up with 21.5% Hindu, 25.7% Muslim, 10% Sikh, 9.2% Jewish. A group of four churches (Woodford Evangelical, Grove Hill Evangelical, Salway Evangelical and Grace Church Wanstead) who have worked together in mission for many years have been praying for a new work to be established in the same area. Rick and Esther have been in discussions with these four churches, Co-Mission and LCM about how they could work together to establish a culturally diverse church plant in Clayhall and Barkingside. A church that will glorify God, proclaim the gospel, make disciples, train up leaders, send out gospel workers and, God willing, plant more churches. They are looking to move in January 2020, to connect with people and the communities there, to establish a leadership team and recruit a core team from the four partnership churches. Weekly meetings would begin at their house as a “house church” as they study God’s Word together, pray and plan. Members of the core team would be looking to get involved in community activities as a means of establishing and growing relationships within the local area. This is all with a view to launching a public Sunday gathering within 12 months. You have read the desperate need and overwhelming passion for the gospel but their ultimate motivation is to obey the Lord Jesus’ command to “Go and make disciples of all nations”. For Rick and Esther that starts with our own nation and our own city of London. ARTICLES 31
Page 1 and 2: ARTICLES
Page 3 and 4: CONTENTS 2. The Power of the cross
Page 5 and 6: The Apostle Paul’s preaching and
Page 7 and 8: CLEANSING • From the corruption o
Page 9 and 10: 1 CORINTHIANS 1:18-31 For the messa
Page 11 and 12: Like all Co-Mission churches, we we
Page 13: LOOKING TO CHRIST’S POWER Christi
Page 16 and 17: Being true to our feelings is viewe
Page 18 and 19: SEXUALITY AND THE SCHOOL RUN From 2
Page 20 and 21: WORKPLACE WITNESS What does UK empl
Page 22 and 23: HOLDING OUT CHRISTIAN HOPE IN CONTR
Page 24 and 25: EUTHANASIA Euthanasia is where some
Page 26 and 27: L O V E A N D MONEY “The people o
Page 28: With your help, we are aiming to ra
Page 31: The simple answer is ‘planting ch
Page 35 and 36: MIDWEEK LUNCHTIME WORKPLACE MINISTR
Page 37 and 38: I Imagine giving a child a bucket a
Page 39 and 40: WHAT DO WE DO WHEN GOD’S COMMANDS
Page 41 and 42: OUR CHURCHES & PLANTS ESTABLISHED C
Page 43 and 44: THIS MAGAZINE, BUT ON THE INTERNET

Articles Number Five

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