In May, I posted an article that contained a graphic that pictured the Parable of the Soils. This parable is one of several Kingdom Parables spoken by Jesus that are referred to and used by Church Planting Movement practitioners when teaching about effective CPM ministry.
Below is a very interesting CPM graphic that pictures and teaches about the four fields and five parts of Church Planting Movements that are occurring around the world.
I found this graphic on the website of City Church Woodbine. City Church Woodbine is, as far as I know, a fairly new church in Nashville, Tennessee that is committed to reaching its city and the world through the multiplication of disciples and churches. The church had posted a “Church Planting Movement Multiplication” chart and then had it into the infographic.
This infographic pictures the CPM elements of entry, evangelism, discipleship, church formation, leadership development, and reproduction and multiplication of disciples and churches that are practical and relevant for ministry in all contexts and among all peoples.
The infographic begins by showing us that the Father’s heart-felt desire is that “all men be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth.” That salvation, and that knowledge of the truth, is found in the Father’s Son, the Lord Jesus Christ.
We are to go into all the world, beginning in our homes, proclaiming the Gospel of Jesus Christ, multiplying disciples and churches, until all have heard the Gospel and have had the opportunity to either receive or reject Christ as their personal Savior. (Matthew 28:18-20)
The End Vision of all that we pray and labor toward, then, individually, as believers, and corporately, as churches, is that the time will come when ” … the earth will be filled with the knowledge of the glory of the LORD, as the waters cover the sea.” (Habakkuk 2:14) It is the time when ” … a great multitude, which no one could (can) number, from every nation and all tribes and peoples and tongues, (are) standing before the throne and before the Lamb, clothed in white robes, and palm branches were (are) in their hands; and they cry out with one loud voice, saying, ‘Salvation to our God who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb.'” (Revelation 7:9)
The CPM infographic goes on to outline what one CPM practitioner refers to as the 5 Parts of CPM. Church Planting Movements, while a vision we have for ministry, is bottom-line a God ordained means of achieving glory for Himself, the expansion of His Kingdom on this earth, and, ultimately, the above described End Vision.
The first part is the Entry into any new community or culture. The Entry is much more than a “platform” (i.e., English, medicine, agriculture, etc.) that gains us a Visa and entry into a network or nation. Entry has to do with engaging a people where they live and immersing ourselves in their culture. This involves learning the language, history, culture, tradition, family structure, decision-making processes, and life nuances of those the Lord has commissioned us to serve and share Christ with. It results in identification with and better understanding of the people. Doing this builds relationship bridges across which the Gospel can travel into hearts and lives. Knowing the people and the world in which they live also gives us insight and wisdom for the development of ministry strategies for evangelism, discipleship, and church planting, with the understanding that it is the Lord Who directs and open the doors for ministry. A major component of Entry is praying for and finding the Person(s) of Peace (POP).
Evangelism, or the sowing of the Gospel seed, is the second part of CPM. Believers must be equipped for the ministry of evangelism. One aspect of this equipping is to ask three questions of the people : 1) “Why should I share the Gospel?” “I have been forgiven of my sins and I am commissioned by the Lord to share.” 2 ) “What do I say?” “What my life was like before I became a Christian; how I came to faith; and how my life has been different since I became I a believer”. 3) “With whom do I share?” Have the individual make a list of people who “are far away from God” and commit to share the Gospel with them that week. The telling of “my story” (point #2) is a bridge to the presentation of the Gospel and the call to people to accept Christ as their personal Savior. Evangelism, of course, can be done in many ways, but perhaps the best way is Mouth-to-Ear *M2E). The point is this: share the Gospel often and share it with everyone. A characteristic of CPMs around the world is the abundant sowing of the Gospel seed.
Evangelism is followed-up with Discipleship. As individuals come to faith in Christ they must be discipled in their faith and for ministry. The Great Commission is to make disciples, not just converts. And, it must emphasized that discipleship is not merely a matter of gaining knowledge. Learning and knowing is a part of discipleship but discipleship is not simply knowledge-based. Discipleship is obedience-based. We are commissioned to teach disciples to ” … obey all things I (Jesus) have commanded you …. ” There are any number of ways that we can disciple pre-and-new believers, but the emphasis is that we must disciple people and we must be intentional and purposeful in this ministry. II Timothy 2:2.
As unbelievers are being discipled for salvation and new believers are being discipled, it is natural that New Churches will be formed. It is in the context of church, the assembly of believers, that community and discipleship are best achieved. Scripture teaches that we need one another and that it is in community that we experience the “one anothers” of the Spirit-filled life. And, it is the church that God uses to carry out His work, extend His Kingdom on this earth, and represent and reflect Him to a watching world.
The fifth part of CPM is Leadership Development. As disciples are being made and churches developed, emerging church leaders are going to be identified. Characteristics of these men and women will be obedience, faithfulness, and sacrifice. Leadership can be developed in a variety of ways, but the CPM “best practice” process can be described by the acronym, “MAWL”.
“M” stands for “Model.” Current leaders will model leadership as he or she include emerging leadership in ministry. Jesus modeled leadership as the Twelve accompanied Him through three years of mnistry on this earth. So we must model ministry for our disciples.
“A” stands for “Assist.” In this phase of leadership development, the current leaders share ministry assignments and responsibilites with emerging leaders. When the emerging leaders are fulfilling their responsibilities, they grow in their ministry competence and gain confidence for their future ministries.
The “W” in “MAWL” stands for “Watch.” This is the time in the development process when the more mature and experienced leader releases the emerging leader to lead in and facilitate all aspects of the new church. The current leader participates, observes, and provides feedback that instructs and encourages the younger leader in his or her development and ministry.
The final letter in the “MAWL” acronym, “L”, stands for “Leave.” Once leadership has been modeled and the emerging leader has assisted and assumed ministry, the mentor leader leaves to continue his or her ministry of evangelism, making disciples, church planting, and leadership development in other places among other peoples. The mentor will not completely sever a mentoring relationship with his disciple, though. He or she will remain in contact through visits, the visits of his representatives, letters, or other means of communication, offering encouragement and ministry counsel.
“MAWL” ministry is the kind of On-The-Job training (OTJ) ministry that the Apostle Paul exercised as he carried the Gospel across the Mediterranean world, making multiplying disciples and starting multiplying churches. MAWL ministry is being implemented and found in Church Planting Movements that are occuring around the world today.
As these “parts” of CPM are lived out, implemented, and reproduced and multiplied in the lives of disciples and churches, the result will be, by God’s grace, a Church Planting Movement.
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I have found the CPM Infographic to be an interesting graphic that presents a number of the primary elements found in Church Planting Movements. The lay-out of the graphic helps us to easily trace and remember these elements.
The elements depicted in this graphic are usually associated with what the Lord is doing overseas in and through Church Planting Movements. I would remind us that Vision and Endvision should characterize the heart, life, and ministry of every believer, every church, every where. I would also suggest that the Five Parts strategy for ministry (which there is much more to than I have described above) has very real application potential for the ministry of the multiplication of disciples and churches in our Western, anywhere USA, context.
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You can view the original Infographic document here.
Wilson Geisler has written a very informative article about the Five Parts. It is entitled “Some Practical Aspects of the 5 Parts of Jesus’ Masterplan.” It can be read here.
If you are prayerfully considering the implementation of a disciple making and church planting multiplication ministry, I would encourage you to check and go through the CPM manual of Nathan and Kari Shank. It is entiled “The Four Fields – Mark 4:26-29. Reproducing Churches Using Simple Tools.” The manual can be found at Four Fields.