Welcome To Day Three Gather The Core

Lifecycle Model

1. Preparation: 12. Conception: 2-3-4-103. Prenatal: 404. Prenatal: 805. Birth: 60-120

Growth-Maturity Reproduction

Parental Stage: Growth

Planter: Single Focus

GatheringGatheringGatheringGatheringGathering

Critical Mass Reality

$40K

40 People

Missional Core: 10

• Can you gather 40 people and raise $40K in six-nine months?

Planting Reality

• If you can’t gather 40 adults around your vision in nine months, your plant wouldn’t survive.

Key Verse

I planted, Apollos watered,

but God gave the growth. 1 Corinthians 3:6-9 (ESV)

Six Proven Gathering Strategies

13.Viral Evangelism14.Lay Networking15.Community Bridging16.Sneak Previews17.Small Groups18.Marketing

Viral Evangelism90% Factor

Primal Question How does the gospel

spread?

Stark: How did an obscure, marginal Jesus cult become the dominant religious force in the western world in a few centuries?

Interaction

How did you come to Christ?

Early Church: Growth

In the first year after Christ’s death, the number of disciples went from 120 to 20,000 in a city of 55,000-100,000 (Jerusalem).

20-40% City Population

Key Scriptures

Acts 1:15- 120 (core group) Acts 2:41- 3,000 (public launch) Acts 2:47- Lord Added Daily Acts 4:4- 5,000 Men Acts 6:7- Increased rapidly, large # Priests Acts 11:26- Taught many people Acts 12:24- Continued to increase & spread Acts 17:6- Turned world upside down Acts 19:20- Spread widely & grew in power Acts 21:20- Many thousands of Jews

Common Explanations

Mass Conversions

Early Christian missionaries were so empowered by the “divine spirit” that at the first hearing whole multitudes in a body eagerly embraced in their souls piety towards the Creator of the universe.

Bible in corn field theory− Apostles + Bible + Spirit + Easy Pagans =

MASS CONVERSIONS

Miracles

Christianity did not grow because of miracle working the marketplaces (although there may have been much of that going on), or because Constantine said it should, or even because the martyrs gave it such credibility.

− Rodney Stark

Superior Doctrine

Mass conversions … assumes that doctrinal appeal lies at the heart of the conversion process—that people hear the message, find it attractive and embrace the faith. But modern social science relegates doctrine to a very secondary role, claiming that most people do not really become very attached to the doctrines of their new faith until after their conversion. (Stark p. 14)

REAL REASON

Stark’s Response

Epidemics Role of women Urban Chaos & Crisis Martyrs Opportunity & Organization Superior Doctrine: Virtue

#1: Contagious Relationships

The primary means of growth was through the united and motivated efforts of the growing number of Christian believers, who invited their friends, relatives, and neighbors to share the ‘good news’.

Wolf: Oikos Evangelism

The basic thrust of the New Testament evangelism was not individual evangelism, it was not mass evangelism; and it was definitely not child evangelism.

The normative pattern of evangelism in the early church was OIKOS EVANGELISM. (Tom Wolf)

Green: Household

We are quite right in stressing the centrality of the (oikos) household to Christian advance.

Christian missionaries made a deliberate point of gaining whatever households they could as lighthouses, so to speak, from which the gospel could illuminate the surrounding darkness.

Classic Passage: John 1 Classic passage: John 1

John Baptist: Second cousin of Jesus Andrew & John: First Seekers (John’s Disciples)

First Thing Andrew gets Peter John gets James Phillip found Nathanael (friend)

– John 1:35-51

Spreads along pre-existing networks

Additional Scripture Gospels

− Demon Possessed : Mk 5:19− Zacchaeus: Luke 19:9− Royal Official: John 4:53− Matthew: Mark 2:14-15− John 4: Women at Well

Acts− Acts 10: Cornelius− Acts 16: Lydia− Acts 16: Jailer

Epistles− House churches

Internet Accelerated

90 % Factor!

Ninety percent of your gathering growth will come from one thing!

Arn Study: 90%

2% 3%

6%

2%

5%

1%

3%

90%

• Special Need: 1-2%• Walk-In: 2-3%• Visitation: 1-2%• Pastor: 5-6%• Crusade: .05%• Sunday School: 4-5%• Church Program: 2-3%• Friend Invited: 90%

Why do people come to church?

Today’s Mega Church

• North Point: Andy Stanley• Fellowship: Ed Young• Attendance: 20,000+

Great Preaching Awesome Worship Cafeteria Programming

More than 90% of the adults we baptize came at the invitation of a friend.

New England Converts: 71%

A caring Christian friend, neighbor, coworker, or family member, is the single most important factor in seeing a person come to a living faith in Christ.

2007: Unchurched Study

1. Don’t like us− Get on nerves: 44%− Hypocrites: 72%

2. Confused about God

3. Open to conversations− Jesus positive: 71%− Christian friend: 90%− Open to talk: 78%

Other Evangelism: 3-7%

Campus Crusade:− “I found it”– Conversions: Thousands++– Church Incorporation: 3%

Seattle BG Crusade– Attendance: 434,100– Conversions: 18,136– Church Incorporation: 7%

Why? Why? Why?

1. Trust Factor

Skeptical Age

76%of consumers don’t believe that companies tell the truth in advertisments. Yankelowich

THERE IS STILL ONE TRUSTED MEDIUMLEFT IN THE WORLD

Major Exception

MY FRIENDS – THEIR FRIENDS – AND ALL THOSE WE COLLECTIVELY RESPECT

Natural Sharing

The early church was not encumbered with the wholly unnatural (unnatural then and unnatural now) experience of forced evangelism; going reluctantly, flinchingly and embarrassingly door to door to encounter people they did not know, to explain a message which the first time often did not make sense, to an audience totally uninterested or unfriendly.

Mormon Evangelism

Cold Turkey: 1:1,000Home: 1:2

2. Transformation Factor

Transformation

The early church spread through oikos evangelism - evangelizing family members who saw the old sinner become the new saint; sharing with the neighbor who questioned how such a difference had come over his old friend, and reaching the guys in the local trade union or the oikos that played tennis together.

Fragrance

In the early church, it was the restoration of balance, the restitution of wrongs, and the fragrance of an enchanting new life that drew so many to the fledgling oikos of God.

II Cor. 2:15 “Aroma of Christ”

Transformation Is Key

If oikos evangelism is God's key to the natural and rapid spread of the Good News, … then life transformation is the key to oikos penetration and persuasion.

3. Time Factor

A. Paul Conversion Model

B. Peter Conversion Model

Jn. 1: Andrew Introduces Mark 5: Discovery Mt. 16:16- Christ declaration Mt. 16:18- Rock Mt. 16:23- Satan Mt. 26:33- Never deny Mt. 26:70- Don’t know him Jn. 21: Love me? Acts 4: Sanhedrin Acts 10: Cornelius (Unclean) Acts 11: Jerusalem church Acts 15: Council (Grace) Galatians 2: Hypocrisy

Conversion Takes Time: 86%

One Time Several Months Several Years0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

60%

14%

32%

54%

Recent Convert Study: Vision New England

Planter: Prospecting Focus The planter has to

have a high prospecting focus during the prenatal development stage.

It takes many prospects to create the critical mass for a healthy launch.

Must Read Article!

Planters consistently underestimate the amount of prospecting time it takes to gather a healthy core group.

Prospecting needs to be your #1 time commitment at this point.

That means 25-35 hours a week.

MAP: Prospecting Plan

Prospecting: Using social networks to find “prospects” for your church.

What is your prospecting plan?

The End

Key Books