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Floyd McClung on Church Planting session 2 - podcast

Here is the second session of Floyd's Church Planting session held at Crossway 31st of May.

Download floyd_cp_session_2.mp3

Floyd McClung on Church Planting session 1 - podcast

Here is the first session of Floyd's Church Planting session held at Crossway 31st of May.

Download floyd_cp_session_1.mp3

It was a powerful gathering!

Have a read of what my good friend Peter Roenfeldt emailed out about our gathering of Church planters with Floyd and Sally. Peter has a great blog, check it out by clicking on the link above.

Hello Friends,

One evening this week almost 40 people gathered in a Melbourne suburban home for coffee, and a chat with Sally and Floyd McClung. One participant said, "It was a powerful gathering!" and I think I understood what was meant! It wasn't primarily a reference to Sally or Floyd's teaching, although their story was inspiring and they encouraged and blessed all gathered. But in that room were people who are planting house churches, factory churches, and skate-park churches. Some are planting a church among Afghans in Melbourne, others working in the growth corridors of the city, some working in country towns. There were youth there who are reaching children, and others building faith communities among young adults. Some came from planting churches in Buddhist and Muslim cultures. It was an unbelievable mix of people on fire for God and his kingdom.

After years of ministering in the States, Afghanistan and the Netherlands, Sally and Floyd have moved to South Africa. Floyd told us, "We wanted to be where God is active, among the poor and dispossessed. We are planting churches and planters come in to see what we are doing, to be equipped. We are working with planters in over 20 countries".

We have a lot to learn from the majority Christian world, where the Christian faith is experiencing explosive growth. In Church Next Eddie Gibbs and Ian Coffey identified lessons from this majority Christian world. These are some they noted factors that could revolutionize a church in the western world.

(1)   Most pastors are first generation Christians

(2)   Education and training is through apprenticeships, rather than residential seminaries

(3)   Churches are missional (sometimes used as a synonym for the essence of emerging church in a western context!)

(4)   Apostolic leaders are emerging from within the harvest or breaking from bureaucratic systems

(5)   Leaders mentor new leaders, who go out to plant new churches

(6)   New missionary movements are being mobilized, and

(7)   Organisational structures are of a networking nature based upon mutual recognition and strong

relationships.

How would your church plant be impacted by cultivating these principles? Maybe it would become a movement, not just a local plant!

Be radical. Be faithful,

Peter Roennfeldt   

Floyd speaks on reaching the Muslim World

Floyd gave an inspiring word on reaching the Muslim World.

For a podcast of the message or watch it on windows video streaming go to

http://www.crossway.org.au/templates/cuscrossway/details.asp?id=20315&PID=45631&Style=

Here's a summary.

FACTS…

For every two Muslims in the world there are three Christians.

Muslims have come to faith in Jesus in the last 13 years than the previous 1300 years.

Hundreds of thousands, if not millions, of Muslims have discovered the love of Jesus in Indonesia, Iran, Central Asia, the Middle East and North Africa.

Every year millions of Jesus followers pray and fast during Ramadan for Muslims.

Rapidly multiplying, spontaneous church planting movements have broken out in Bangladesh, Western China and North Africa.

Questions…why reach Muslims with the Good News of Jesus?

Before we consider the challenge of reaching Muslims for Jesus, we must ask the question: Why share Jesus with Muslims? Aren't we at war with Muslim terrorists? Aren't they out to destroy us and our way of life? In fact, could we not conclude that God has cursed Muslims?

God made a covenant with Israel, so wouldn't God be pleased if we prayed against the enemies of Israel, the descendants of Ishmael? But Genesis 17:19-20 says,  "But God replied, "Sarah, your wife, will bear you a son. You will name him Isaac, and I will confirm my everlasting covenant with him and his descendants. As for Ishmael, I will bless him also, just as you have asked. I will cause him to multiply and become a great nation. Twelve princes will be among his descendants."

REASONS TO REACH MUSLIMS WITH THE GOOD NEWS

1.    We reach Muslims because Jesus the Lamb is Worthy. Jesus is worthy of their praise. The Lamb is worthy of the worship and praise of every tribe and tongue, Muslim, Buddhist, Hindu, animist, Os agnostics….everyone!

2.    We reach Muslims because the Spirit is Moving among them. Holy Spirit is stirring the hearts of Muslims to come to Jesus. Dreams, visions, hunger….

3.    We reach them because the Lost are Dying. Hell is real. Eternity without Jesus is the destiny of those who have not heard the good news.

4.    We reach them because the Poor are Suffering. They are longing for hope and freedom.

5.    We reach them because the Church is Commissioned! We are commanded by the Father, Son and Spirit to go All Nations. The church is the hope of the world!

6.    We reach them because Believers are Dying for lack of vision. For his sake we go, but for our own sake we are sent!

7.    We reach them because Father is Waiting. Mission is about God, for God, through God, from God.

Floyd McClung- 5 steps to plant a Church

Floyd spoke at the YWAM base in Surrey Hills and gave 5 steps to plant a Church. They are pray, meet, talk, gather and multiply.

1. Pray. Prayer changes us, and helps us participate in how God sees things and how he feels. It all starts as we seek God's heart. Everything comes out of this. As we do this we start to see people as God sees them. We share his heart for neighbourhoods and peoples. The beginning point is to start praying, to fast, get up early, stay up late, to get desperate for God and express that desperation. We need to stir our hearts and take a risk.

2. Meet People. Making disciples is not a command for building Christians, but rather it is a command regarding people who don't know Jesus! Jesus did not make disciples out of the religious, rather he made disciples from those alienated, those that religion rejected. We need to follow Jesus example and do the same. It's hard to do if we don't get to meet these people. So Floyd says find some 'bad' people and hang out.

3. Talk to People. The next step is simple... begin to talk to people. Hear their story and share your story with them. Do you want a lot of fruit? Meet a lot of people. Serve them. Shy people will not produce a lot of fruit. Find those who are ready... think of the parable of the sower. Spread the seed with abandon, wildly and generously. But then find the good soil and invest your time there. Out of fifty people you might get five who are good soil. Only some will be ready. Look for deep serious hearts. Share Jesus, sow the good news, do a Bible study together.

4. Gather People. Get creative and base Church around the needs and gathering point of the community. Maybe it's in a sports team, or in a business. Gather people and eat together, share together, sing songs and worship together and pray together.

5. Raise up leaders and multiply. The final step is to do yourself out of a job. Raise up leaders who will multiply.

Anybody can do this! Simple stuff isn't it.