I think that is a great question and one that must be both asked and answered. As we have processed this question we looked at what Scripture has to say, and we also sought to learn from those who are currently utilizing multiple campuses.
The Scriptures do not mandate that all churches utilize a multi-campus approach. The church throughout its history has long believed that we are not mandated anywhere in the New Testament to mimic exactly what we see in the early church in terms of its organization and structure. However, Christians, and particularly Baptists, have long believed that there are principles laid out in the New Testament concerning governance, leadership, and church practice that should guide how we are organized and structured. We do not believe that a multi-campus approach violates these governing principles found in the New Testament.
In fact, we believe that it is entirely possible that due to the exponential growth in the size of the Jerusalem church, which is recorded in chapters 2-8 of the book of Acts, the early church might have been utilizing something very similar to a multi-campus approach. We observe from the text that thousands of Christians were meeting daily in the temple, possibly being taught at different times by different apostles in different sized gatherings, all under the same leadership and all sharing the same resources. Let me give a little more detail to our observations:
- The apostles were radically committed to teaching God's Word and sharing the Gospel. In Acts 2:38 we read, "And Peter said to them, "Repent and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins, and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit." Notice also that as the church gathered they were taught, day after day, by the apostles.
-The Jerusalem church experienced exponential growth. Acts 2:41, "So those who received His word were baptized, and there were added that day about three thousand souls." Acts 2:47, "And the Lord added to their number day by day those who who were being saved." When we read on in Acts 3 and 4 we see that 5000 more men responded to Peter's sermon (notice also that this number does not reflect women and children.) So we see that in a very short period of time the church in Jerusalem grew from 120 to over 10,000 people!
-There was only ONE church in Jerusalem! There seems to be three instances in the book of Acts where there is reference to the church in Jerusalem...each reference is in the singular form. (See Acts 8:1, 11:22, 15:4). In each of these instances it was NOT multiple churches, but ONE church.
-It is POSSIBLE that the ONE Church in Jerusalem was taught at different times by different apostles. From Acts 2:46 we see that the Jerusalem church met in the temple daily to be taught by the disciples. We know that the temple was large, but that doesn't necessarily mean that all 10,000+ people met everyday at the same time. It is very possible that they gathered in smaller groups and that the apostles shared the teaching responsibilities.
So based upon what we observe from the church in Jerusalem and the principles found in the New Testament we believe that having a multi-campus approach to spreading the Gospel does not violate Scripture in any way.
Will Toburen
(I want to share that these thoughts were compiled from Scripture, Al Gilbert, JD Greear - Pastor of the Summit Church in Durham, John Piper, and Derek Radney)
7 comments:
Is there a way to submit suggestions for the campus site if you are in a high growth area? Are there any potential cluster sites that can be shared. We love Calvary and as members wish we could participate more if a campus was closer to our home.
Your proposed model seems to offer the best resolution to a growing ministry and completely in keeping with the commandment to spread the Word. I believe smaller groups can be very instrumental in sharing Christ in localities.
Also, families with children would find it easier to participate and bring neighbors and friends during week activities if they did not have a long commute. We have visited and considered moving membership to a more local church but love the music, heartbeat, and mission of Calvary. When do you think a site decision will be made?
We are praying that a final decision will come fairly quickly. However we want to make sure that we do due diligence and therefore we don't want to rush the process.
As for making suggestions or further questions you can email scw@calvarynow.com.
It's so awesome to see how God's plan is working at Calvary. The presentation Sunday was very encouraging and it is amazing how God can bless us with opened doors and at the same time closed doors. I'm really excited about learning more surrouding the second campus and seeking God's will in how our family can be apart of lengthening the cords or strengthening the stakes.
Hey Will, Mike again. I guess this means that you guys are going multi-campus. I helped a church launch a satellite...so being deliberate is very smart! Is it a video venue? Where will it be located? I know satellites (at least first ones) work best if they aren't too far from home...so they can capitalize on clusters of people from their congregation.
Peace,
Mike
I am just curious. Though the early church did use major metropolitan areas as launching sites for the placement of new church cells, these were house churches which were accessible to all strata of society - rich and poor, Jew and Gentile, men and women.
In seeking to create a second campus in a growing area (likely an upper middle class white neighborhood), a campus whose ministries will evidence the same "successful DNA" as Calvary, are we giving enough thought to those needy souls in areas of our society that growth tends to neglect?
Keep on praying and planning as God leads.
Will the website or blog be updated with the information shared this Sunday May 4 regarding the second campus?
We will be on vacation out of town that day
Post a Comment