CHURCH PLANTING #2: Defining Roles & Choosing a Location

The conversation centered around leadership structure and roles in a church plant, with a focus on accountability, spiritual gifts, and character. Speakers emphasized the importance of understanding one’s passions and abilities, as well as the need for leaders to be above reproach and worthy of respect. They cited biblical references and personal experiences to underscore the importance of these qualities in ministry leadership.

Action Items

• [ ] Evaluate roles based on a person’s SHAPE – their spiritual gifts, heart, abilities, personality, and experiences.
• [ ] Consider removing someone from a leadership position if their character is not fitting for the role.
• [ ] When appointing people to roles, do so carefully and intentionally based on SHAPE rather than just availability. Avoid being hasty.

Outline

Church leadership structure and roles.

• Speaker 1 discusses the leadership structure of their church plant, including the roles of elders, lead evangelist, and campus ministers.
• Accountability is built into every level of leadership, with no one person in charge of everything, and ultimate answerability to Jesus.
• Leaders at the church include children’s ministers, healing ministry leaders, media ministry, coffee ministry, entertaining angels ministry, treasurer, worship team, cell leaders, zone leaders, and small group leaders.
• Speaker emphasizes importance of building healthy DNA in church plants to empower ministers.

Leadership, authority, and accountability with examples from the Bible.

• Speaker shares struggles with leadership, authority, and accountability, citing fear and insecurity as major obstacles.
• Speaker emphasizes importance of trusting God and doing leadership roles with humility and accountability.
• Speaker emphasizes importance of leaders working hard for God’s people.

Leadership, accountability, and communication in Christian ministry.

• Leaders must be held accountable and leaders need to be friends with other leaders and groups.
• Leaders are called to do difficult things like correcting people, but with love and humility.
• Being a leader means being a servant, not lord, and doing whatever God says.

Leadership roles and spiritual gifts in a church plant.

• Speaker 2 emphasizes the importance of obedience and submission to leaders, citing Hebrews 13:17.
• Speaker 1 advises evaluating roles and responsibilities based on a person’s spiritual gifts, using the acronym S-H-A-P-E.
• The Holy Spirit gives gifts to every believer, including the ability to do extraordinary things (Luke 4:1-2).
• Jesus, fully God and fully man, was led by the Holy Spirit to be tempted in the wilderness (Luke 4:1-2).

Spiritual gifts and the Holy Spirit’s role in empowering believers to serve.

• Speaker reflects on how Jesus’ teachings have impacted their life and faith.
• Speaker emphasizes the importance of understanding spiritual gifts and their role in ministry.

Selecting leaders based on spiritual gifts, emphasizing Holy Spirit’s role.

• The speaker highlights the importance of the Holy Spirit in leadership roles, emphasizing that only those with a tempered character can serve effectively.
• The speaker references Colossians 2:9-10 to illustrate the idea that God dwells bodily in Christ, and Christians have been filled with His fullness.

Spiritual gifts and heart passions.

• Speaker 1 emphasizes the importance of submitting to the Holy Spirit and bearing fruit, citing Galatians 5:22-25 and First Peter 4:10.
• Speaker 2 highlights the role of spiritual gifts in determining one’s belonging, encouraging listeners to evaluate and utilize their gifts for God’s glory.
• Speaker discusses the heart and its role in determining passions and desires.
• Passion and excitement are signs of a heart that is aligned with God’s will.
• Guarding one’s heart is crucial for living a life that honors God.

Passions, abilities, and serving God.

• Speaker 2 shares personal experiences and biblical insights on the importance of considering one’s heart and abilities when pursuing God’s plan.
• Speaker 1 encourages listeners to discover their strengths and passions, rather than relying on their own opinions or what others think they can do.

Various skills and abilities, with emphasis on spiritual gifts.

• Speaker discusses the idea that every person has unique skills and abilities, and that these gifts are given by God.
• Speaker references Bible verses to support the idea that gifts are distributed differently among individuals, and that they should be used to serve others.

Personality, gifts, and serving in the church.

• Speaker 1: Some people are gifted at serving, while others have unique talents (0:34-0:35)
• Speaker 2: God has placed each person in the body with a specific part to play (0:35-0:40)
• Speaker reflects on their past beliefs about their personality and how it relates to their faith, sharing a personal story of transformation.
• The speaker emphasizes the importance of reaching out to people different from oneself, citing biblical examples and personal experiences.

Leadership roles and character development.

• Evaluate and be open to God’s shape for your life, drawing on experiences and aptitudes.
• Leadership roles should be based on experience, character, and spiritual gifts.

Character and leadership in a church plant.

• Church planter must be above reproach, faithful, and hospitable.
• Speaker discusses challenges of removing people from leadership positions, including a worship leader who lacked integrity and a small group leader who neglected his family.
• Speaker recounts instances of removing people from leadership due to unfaithfulness to their spouse, highlighting the importance of character and integrity in leadership roles.
• Speaker emphasizes importance of character in church planting, citing First Timothy 4:16.
• Speaker shares personal experiences with accountability and character growth in small group setting.

Church leadership, discipline, and appointment.

• Speaker 1 highlights the unique culture at The Crossings, where leaders are trusted and held accountable, and removal from leadership is not seen as a personal attack.
• Speaker 2 shares a personal experience of removing a youth minister from leadership, emphasizing the importance of creating a culture of trust and accountability.
• Speaker 1 emphasizes the importance of character in church leadership, citing Paul’s approach to church discipline in Corinthians.
• Appointment of church leaders is different in their context, involving various roles beyond elders and deacons, with a focus on high character and spiritual maturity.

Biblical appointment of elders, emphasizing prayer and laying hands.

• The appointment of elders in the early church was not done through democratic processes but through the laying on of hands by evangelists (Acts 6:6-7).
• The laying on of hands was a symbolic act that conveyed spiritual authority and empowerment for specific tasks, such as church planting (1 Timothy 5:21-22).
• Leader advises against hasty decision-making in leadership appointments.

This content was featured at the 2024 Antioch Collective Annual Assembly at The Crossings Church St. Charles County in O’Fallon, MO. For more like this, visit https://antiochcollective.org/