This document discusses strategies for starting new churches. It argues that starting new churches is important because it follows the New Testament pattern, can help evangelize growing populations, and inspires the starting of additional churches. Some principles for planting new churches include working through existing local churches, carefully choosing a target area, communicating the gospel message with relevance, congregating new believers, and having a plan for continual growth. Existing churches can get involved by sponsoring new plants, providing volunteers and financial support, and developing satellite congregations. When planting, churches should analyze the target demographic, select an area that is open to the gospel, and communicate in a way that addresses the concerns of that community. New believers should initially meet in home-

1. Introduction to Missiology
Ch.28 – Strategies for Starting Churches

2. Why Start Churches?
 It is the NT pattern
 World population growth exceeds the capacity of existing
churches to evangelize and assimilate, even if they were
trying
 Most established churches plateau by the ten-year mark
 New churches are more flexible and adaptable to new people

3. Reasons to Start
 Diversity exceeds the ability of any one church to adapt to
all the different kinds of people
 Easier to win people in their own setting, which means
planting a church there
 New churches are more evangelistically effective
 New churches inspire the starting of additional churches
 New churches mobilize a higher percentage of their
members for ministry

4. Principles for Planting
 Work through existing local churches
 Do careful study before choosing a target
 Communicate the message with relevance
 As seekers become believers, congregate
 Implement a plan of continual development and growth

5. Application: How to Involve Churches?
 Mission committees and sponsorship
 Volunteers to become a new core group
 Sacrificial giving for a new congregation
 Introduce church starting as a core value

6. Involving Churches (Cont)
 Hire a planter to plant a daughter church
 Hive off a significant number of members
 Become a partner with other churches to plant
 Convert the church into multiple congregations
 Develop a satellite congregation of a different style on a
different day or place

7. Application: Target audience
 Do a demographic analysis – whether near or far
 Criteria for selection include some or all of
 The group most like the current congregation
 The group most open to the gospel
 The group most unchurched
 The group like the intended planter

8. Application: Relevant Communication
 How does the gospel address the pressing concerns of the
target audience?
 What crises have emerged that provide entry points for
service and a message of hope?
 Obtain answers through prayer-walking, surveys, and
friendship building

9. Application: Congregating Believers
 Gather converts into home-based small groups
 Quickly identify and work through potential leaders
 Develop a time of worship and teaching that involves
converts and seekers and reflects their sensibilities of what
is proper
 Extend the ministry though convert-led evangelism and
ministry
 Formalize the new church only after a pattern of
multiplication of converts, leaders, and groups is
established