Reflections on Church Planting
On Sunday, August 14, 2022, my family and I, along with our launch team of about 25 people, stood on the stage of Colonial Heights Baptist Church and were commissioned to plant a new church, Cross Community Church in the reservoir area of Brandon, MS. If you would have asked me on that day how I felt about the new adventure we were about to go on together, I would have said I was equal parts terrified about all that could possibly go wrong and extremely excited and confident in all God was going to do. It turns out, I was correct on both counts.
Since that day, our church has been met with many difficult times and situations, and we have celebrated a countless number of blessings from the Lord. Over two years later, here are some things the Lord has graciously taught me.
The Importance of Biblical Beliefs
During my training to become a church planter, I was once warned that new churches often attract the type of people who want to come in and take over. These people see a young church and a small congregation as an opportunity to quickly gain a large degree of influence and control. In the short time that Cross Community Church has existed, we have already encountered this sort of person on more than one occasion. In each of these situations, as the pastor, I have attempted to not argue with these people over opinions on how the church should be run, but instead point them to Scripture and allow the Word of God to dictate our mission and how the church is to properly function. No one other than the Lord Himself gets to determine the direction of His church, and He has declared His plan to us clearly in His Word.
The Importance of Real Relationships
Ministry can be lonely work, which is why church planting needs to be a team effort. I confess I am one of those people who often tries to do it all myself. However, God has to remind me on a regular basis that the vitally important work of launching a new church and reaching a community can not and should not be done alone. Planters must open up their lives to their team members and the people they hope to reach with the gospel. Pastors must do all they can to cultivate gospel-centered community among their people.
The Importance of Dedicated Discipleship
Fulfilling the Great Commission is more than just making new converts. It also includes teaching those new disciples everything Jesus taught and did. Statistics say that people who are far from God are more likely to visit a church plant than an older established church. As church plants reach new believers, our job is to do much more than baptize them and give them a place to sit in our worship gatherings. We must also disciple them, help them grow in their relationship with the Lord, and lead them to become more like Christ.
The Importance of Sacrificial Service
When it comes to community outreach, some churches evaluate success by the return on their investment. For them, if the outreach and community service efforts do not result in more people visiting their services and joining their congregation, then the efforts did not bear any fruit. However, Jesus does not call us to love our neighbor only when it is beneficial for us. He calls His church to care for all people, especially those who cannot care for themselves.
The Importance of Worldwide Witness
When the Lord calls you to plant a new church in a specific place, there is genuine temptation to prioritize reaching that place over everything else. However, in the Great Commission, Christ did not command us to make disciples only in the area closest to the location of our church building. He commanded us to make disciples of all nations. When planting a church, do not set missions and church multiplication off to the side until your new church reaches a certain size, but rather make praying, giving, going, and sending for the sake of unreached nations and people groups a priority from the very beginning.
The Importance of Persistent Prayer
I mentioned earlier that I am the type of person who falsely believes I can do things on my own. Unfortunately, I have also too often made the horrible mistake of thinking I can do the work of ministry without relying on God to accomplish the work through me. Thankfully, He is always gracious to remind me that apart from Him, I can do nothing. Therefore, pastors and planters must constantly go to the Lord in prayer and ask Him to complete the mission He has put before us. God has called us to work tirelessly in establishing His church, but He is the one responsible for the results. So we must pray, and then pray some more, and then keep praying for Him to bring about His good and perfect will for us, our church members, and the communities He has called us to serve.
Author: Matthew Smith is the pastor of Cross Community Church in Brandon, MS.
