Alexander Campbell raises what he calls a challenge to the emerging church:
Having taken a closer look at what most within the EC are doing (certainly here in the UK), it has become increasingly clear to me that their fundamental model of church is based on exactly the same model as existing / historic church. There is no underlying difference. This model of church will not produce movement. It may be more culturally relevant and effective in reaching specific subcultures but when it comes to the ability to reproduce and multiply it will be no different from the existing church model.
Full article is here and is a good read.
Comments
3 responses to “A Challenge to the Emerging Church”
The model used by the “existing/historic church” is reponsible for the Gospel existing in every nation on the planet, and yet Campbell claims this model doesn’t work and should not be assumed by the EC.
Does anyone else find that to be a ridiculous assumption?
What model should be assumed then? If the one being used by the “existing/historic church,” one based on the authority of Christ over His Body, the guidance of the Holy Spirit, and the inspiration of the Scriptures, is no good, then we are in a mess of hurt and no clever EC model is going to make one lick of difference.
Appreciate the comment. It seems to me that most saturation church planting movements around the world actually began as organic or simple church expressions and then were turned into more traditional models of church. It’s also worth noting the recent explosive growth in China that has consisted almost exclusively of house churches. If anyone out there has not read Roland Allen’s, The Spontaneous Expansion of the Church, it’s a classic.
What’s all this about church models? God uses the principle of growth: (plant)seed, (nurture)seedling, (prune)plant, (behold)flower/fruit, death of plant, new seeds scattered. Or to put it more biblically, “The shepherd is struck, the sheep are scattered”. I think the gospel is spread by people talking to people. It’s that simple. We had a grand discussion about “the gathering” a few weeks ago in which we covered “the mission” and the “gathering” quite well. I think the bottom line for church structures is to ask: are they healthy “plants” with flowers and seed pods, or perhaps they are young (emerging) plants with great promise, or perhaps they are dead and dying and the flowers and seedpods have dropped long ago. In other words, God is more interested in purposeful production (er, excuse me, reproduction) than what it looks like. (It should all “look like” Jesus anyway, which to me means Spirit-filled, Spirit-led and Spirit-loving).