NT Practices and Their Consequences

1. Apostolic leadership with a decentralized management structure leads to the planting of rapidly multiplying organic ekklesias (Acts 6:1-7; 11:19,20; 16:5; 14:23; Titus 1:5-9).

2. Close family fellowship (Koinonia) leads to caring and sharing ekklesias (Acts 2:42; Eph. 2:19; Heb. 10:24,25; Titus 1:8).

3. Community meals (breaking bread) leads to the breaking down of caste, class, culture and racial barriers (Acts 2:42; 46,47; 1Cor. 11:20-22; Acts 20:7; Rev. 3:20; Gal. 3:27-29).

4. Prayer with “one accord” and prayer walking everywhere with holy hands raised up, praying for rulers and those in authority, binding and losing the strongman leads to tearing down of the strongholds and release of those in bondage (Mark 3:27; Acts 4:24-28; 2Tim.2:1-4, 8; Rom. 15:6; 16:20).

5. Unity among the believers leads to sharing their material blessings with the poor so that none lack (Acts 2:44,45; 4:32-35). 

6. Going out two by two, finding the “Person of peace,” selecting performers rather than intellectuals, contextualizing culture, (as Paul did when he used heathen literature) and power encounters, result in miracles, baptisms and daily addition to the numbers of believers (Luke10:1-9; Acts 2:46,47; 8:5-13; 17: 23, 28; Rom. 15:19).

7. Searching the Scriptures daily, sharing the whole wisdom of Yahweh from house to house, and convincing those who contradict, grounds the new believers in sound doctrine (Act.17:11; 20:20,27; Titus1:9; Heb. 3:13).

8. Convicting an unbeliever to repent and offering him as a sweet smelling sacrifice as a central part of worship results in everyone practicing the priesthood of all believers (1Cor. 14:24,25; 2Cor. 2:14-16;  Rom.15:16).

9. Participatory and interactive reasoning, disputing and persuading in small groups under fivefold ministry gifted equippers, and recognizing the gathering of two or three as an authentic ekklesia, results in the rapid growth and multiplication of mature ekklesias (1Cor. 14:26; Eph. 4:11-13; Matt. 18:18-20; Acts 16:5).

10. Paul discipled Timothy, who discipled faithful men and they discipled others and monitored multiple generations. This model of setting up a discipling chain fulfils the Great Commission to “make disciples of all nations” (2Tim. 2:2; Matt. 28:19; Acts 6:7).

Evangelism is easy but discipleship is hard. Intentional raising up disciples through modelling was the mission, the passion and consistent focus of the Man from Nazareth. Paul also mentored multiple generations, like TimothygEpaphrasg Archippus and Nympha (Col. 4:12-17). The key to reaching the ends of the earth is to doggedly maintain every discipleship chain. Every break delays the completion. Institutional churches are the worst offenders because they permanently quarantine and shackle believers and prevent their maturing into disciple makers.

House Ekklesias in Danger of Becoming a Denomination: Organic house ekklesias are simple, flexible and have the capacity to multiply and reach the most unreached areas. Most churches, all over the world, were birthed in the homes of the people. Later on when buildings and structures were added on, they went into captivity, which made them barren. Most creatures do not breed in captivity and the Bride certainly does not. Like humans, the Bride has only a short period of reproductive grace after which menopause takes place. Hence the urgency for the early diagnosis of barrenness and corrective therapy. 

Man made Bride requires bricks and mortar, music, academic credentials, anointed sermons, professional priests and programs but has no womb. It can grow big but it can never reproduce. Whereas an organic Bride is born with multiplicative organs.

Churches Have Age Related Mindsets: Missions, which started over one hundred years ago, have schools, hospitals, property and problems but no harvest. They think survival. Charismatic missions are forty to fifty years old. They opened up new territories but refused to leave and move on. They practice outdated, traditional methods of evangelism embedded as they are in making converts rather than disciples. Many have become experts in sheep stealing. They enter unsuspecting house churches, introduce loud music, which they call worship, and give sermons with lots of sizzle and acrobatics but little harvest (Acts 20:29,30). 

The international missions were afraid of offending the local churches and opted to be only the “evangelistic arm” of the church. This flawed philosophy came from the West where churches (Bodies) exist everywhere. But what can the arm do where the Body does not exist? (George Ninan). They trained “workers” who distributed gospel packets by the millions and screened the Jesus film everywhere and gathered lots of wonderful stories for fund raising but it did not translate into lasting fruit. What little harvest they had perished after handing it over to the institutionalized churches. They are now getting into the church-planting act. This is unlikely to bear much fruit because they are still embedded in the old paradigm of evangelism rather than making disciples.  

Resistance to change has little to do with doctrine.  Its bottom line is the lure of filthy lucre and the challenge to the temporal authority of religious bureaucrats (Tit.1:11).

House ekklesias are still in their infancy but they already dream about reaching the ends of the earth. They do not need the traditional paraphernalia to do ekklesia. To them their shop, office, home, bus or train, the market place, in fact wherever two or three gather in His name, is the authentic ekklesia and a fit place for gossiping the gospel.

The Greek words “didesko,” “dialegomai” and “elegcho” do not mean sermons but teaching, learning, dialogue, persuading, reasoning, debating, convincing, even disputing and rebuking  (Acts 9:29; 17:2,4,11; 18:4; Titus 1:9).

If you are shooting for eternity, even a small error in the trajectory can land you in hellfire. Money can accelerate a Church Planting Movement (CPM) but it cannot sustain it. If we change from constantly pumping resources to priming the pump, a CPM can function on its own (Gene Davis). 

Yeshua is more anxious than us to come to small, reproductive fellowships (the Bride), where He can meet the lost people who are willing to obey Him, share a meal and love each other.

Money cannot disciple hearts and minds. God uses people to disciple people. (Floyd McClung) 

Reasoned dialogue is a sign of maturity. Replacing dialogue with monologue is like emasculating the ekklesia. Yeshua spent His lifetime dialoguing. All the extra-biblical accretions must be replaced with an outward looking model that includes dialogue, caring, sharing meals and disciple making. In spite of many claims, true NT house ekklesias hardly exist. Beware, the enemy enters as a well-meaning dominant male who then works overtime to jettison the “iron sharpens iron” interactive paradigm and kills the ekklesia by making it “inward looking” (Acts 20: 29,30).

Christians preaching to Christians does not expand the kingdom. The kingdom expanders operate outside the box. 

House ekklesias are not independent entities but are interdependent, fortified by the local network of ekklesias. The “individualistic Western exclusive culture” customizes an individual for a personal relationship with Christ, resulting in a fragmented church, whereas the biblical model is based on an “inclusive collectivistic culture.” The Body of Christ, His holy temple, is being built up. Some are feeble, some not so honourable and others who are not so comely, but all the same, they provide social, cultural and spiritual connectivity to each other. (1 Cor. 1:26-31; 12:12-27; 1Pet. 2:5).

We must move from proclamation (evangelism) to saturation church planting (application) as our goal. (Raju Abraham) 

The Top Ten Reasons for Starting House Churches:

1. Biblical - This was the New Testament pattern established by Jesus and the apostles and carried on by the early church for the first three centuries. It has emerged again and again in renewals, reforms and revival movements throughout the history of the church. 

2. Exponential - To reach a growing world, we need to multiply, not just add. Current house church movements worldwide are spreading more rapidly than traditional church planting and church growth efforts. 

3. Effective - The most effective method of evangelism is not growing existing churches, but planting new ones. House churches are the most easily reproducible form of church, proving to be the most obvious choice for church planting. 

4. Natural - House churches become part of the local community and easily tap into existing relationship connections, thereby more readily taking on an indigenous flavour. 

5. People Focused – House churches focus on relationships and the development of people, not on organizing programs or projects. 

6. Efficient – House churches are more mobile, flexible, and adaptable than conventional churches, especially in areas characterized by persecution and/or poverty. 

7. Equal Opportunity - Because of their small, intimate and participatory nature, all believers have the opportunity to exercise their spiritual gifts during house church meetings, not just professional ministers or key leaders. 

8. Unbounded – House churches are not limited by church buildings. Whatever use buildings may or may not have, history shows that they are not necessary for rapid church planting movements to start; in fact, buildings may be a hindrance. Although church buildings are not evil by any means, nor are homes in any way “magical,” the practical release of time, energy and money away from building maintenance and into evangelism and discipleship should cause us to rethink current practices. 

9. Inexpensive – House churches are less expensive than traditional church, because no costly buildings, programs or professional ministers are required. 

10. Immediate – A house church can start now, right in your living room. Simply come together, listen to Yeshua and do what He says. There is no need to rent a special hall, or wait for a building to be constructed or a full-time pastor to be hired to begin a church.

Rad Zdero in “The Global House Church Movement” (Wm Carey)

Holy Communion as a Stronghold: Holy Communion is a memorial of the Passover meal. Yeshua served roast lamb, bitter herbs, bread and wine for the Last Supper and said, “do this in remembrance of me” (Exodus 12:8;  1Cor.11:24,25). The Agape meal (Jude 1:12) is a full meal and does not just consist of a wafer and a sip of wine. The early ekklesia celebrated it with a potluck dinner. In the Corinthian ekklesia, some rich members ate their food before others and Paul sharply rebuked them. Not only the meal but Haggadah “telling the story”, was central to the Passover (Acts 20:7; 1Cor. 11:20-23; Exo. 12:26,27; 13:8). The entire Jerusalem was discipled on their Benshem, the dining tables while sharing meals and stories and the Lord added to their numbers daily. The Passover included burning the leaven bread, searching the hidden  Afikomen, rushing to open the door for Elijah’s return and young ones freely asking questions about the meaning of the ritual, “passed over” the story of their heritage. This resonated with everyone, especially the youth. 

Compared to the exciting interactive Passover, our Holy Communion is a funeral service. The crumb and sip paradigm must shift back to Agape meal from house to house. (Varadaraj)

Every day, Yeshua and His disciples ate in somebody else’s house. He accepted invitations from all kinds of sinners, including tax collectors. Sometimes He invited Himself. No wonder He was called a glutton and a winebibber. His ragtag evangelistic team consisted of fishermen, tax collectors and women like Mary of Magdala, famous for seven devils, Joanna, wife of a rich official, Susanna and many others who left everything to be with Him. They ate together symbolizing the eschatological wedding meal at the Lord’s Table in the new Kingdom (Acts 2:46,47; Luke 7:34; 8:1-3; John 4:34).

It is not how many eat the Lord’s Supper in your church now but how many will eat at the marriage supper of the Lamb? 

Christianity begins with eating in the House of Peace (Luke 10:5-8). It multiplies by eating from house to house (Acts 2:46,47). It is affirmed by hungry Yeshua knocking on the door and eating supper with you. It is sustained by addiction to hospitality (1Cor.16:15). It ends in a banquet with the redeemed harlots, publicans and sinners eating with Christ (Rev. 3:20; 19:9; Matt 21:31).

In a caste, class, gender and race-ridden society, eating together sends a very powerful message of love, justice and equality, so necessary for the evangelization of the world. 

Baptize The Whole City: When the Jews came to Jerusalem for the feasts, they would camp around a Mikve (pool). There were 200 of these. Before entering the Temple, they would make their confession to two witnesses and then take a Bath of Purification. Women confessed their sins to women and went to a separate pool for the cleansing dip. The Day of Pentecost was celebrated with thousands baptizing each other with no pastors in sight. This was not a one-day event but it continued until stopped by persecution. By then most of the city had been baptized, the Temple was empty and the believers were worshipping in homes (Acts 2:46,47).

Baptism is a defining moment. The sight and smell of the great unwashed crowds around us should be bothering us.

Yeshua was not all sermons and miracles, but a greater champion baptizer than John the Baptist (that is what the Jews accused Him of) (John 4:1,2). Constantly moving up the next level of the “Fivefold Pentecostal model” is the key to avoid stuckages:

1. g Pray 2. g Anoint 3. g Baptise 4. g Equip and 5. g Send

Sadly millions of Christians are stuck in the wilderness of Prayer cells, Bible study classes and meetings but will not cross the Jordan to take possession of their inheritance. What use are all these if we are not converting the harvest into lasting fruit? We need to get back to the Pentecostal model and convert all our unfruitful members into champion baptizers, and then only can we reach the four billion unwashed people on the planet. Peter gave a three-minute sermon and opened his account with 3000 baptisms. Yahweh baptized 600,000 families in the Red Sea, knowing that most would backslide and will have to be destroyed in the wilderness (Exo.12:37; 1Cor.10:1-5). Israel was baptized on the basis of their belief in the great works of Yahweh and not because of the prayers or the great sermons of Moses (Exo. 14:31).

To delay baptism is unbiblical. (Mark 16:16). While a Great Commissioner Disciples, Dunks and makes them Diligent (obedient), a Duplicate Christian does not. The malpractice by the clergy of monopolizing dunking disenfranchises the ordinary believer. It is the biggest church growth inhibiter. Yeshua, Peter and Paul all relegated dunking to their juniors (1Cor.1:14-17).  

Most Christians are fake. In spite of the Lord’s clear command, they do not disciple nor dunk and remain disobedient.

Ordination as a Stronghold: The religious elite manipulate control of the church through the process of ordaining a select few who then do church ministry—serving the Eucharist, baptizing, conducting wedding and funeral services and, of course, giving sermons. These functions are not mentioned anywhere in the Scriptures. While the elders can lay hands on us and bless us, it is the sovereign act of the Holy Spirit that “chose and ordained” each one of us to bring forth abundant fruit (John 15:8,16 KJV). 

The Charismata: Speaking in tongues is publicly misused on Sundays and privately unused the rest of the week (1Cor. 14:4,5). In reality, a church without multiple gifts is a dead church. Every single believer has been provided with free gifts and is therefore charismatic (1Cor. 12:7). There is a large spectrum of gifts to choose from. The Father has given us Motivational gifts such as helping, serving, giving aid, administration etc. (Romans 12: 4-13). The Holy Spirit has given us Manifestation Gifts such as the utterance of wisdom, revelation, knowledge, faith, healing, tongues and interpretation etc. (1Cor. 12:4-11). The Son has given us the Equipping Gifts such as apostles, prophets, evangelists, shepherds and teachers (Ephesians 4:11-13). All these gifts are not titles for flaunting but practical ministries for building up the Body of Christ. Any ranking in the ekklesia would contradict this context since each one has a different mix of gifts and upgrades are freely available. All you have to do is to desire them, work for them and use them (Mark 16:17; 1Cor. 12: 29-31; 14:1). (David White)

Praise Yeshua for the 150,000 who choose to become His followers everyday worldwide. We need to shoot for one million a day to catch up with the backlog of four billion lost people.

Prayer For Profit: Healed or delivered people are often exploited with the threat of the return of the sickness or the evil spirit to extract the last ounce of oil from them. Healing oil and holy water are sold for a price and have become a good source of income for many. The evil practice of praying for maximizing profit is not new. Balak offered money to Balaam to prophesy. The rampant merchandization of prayer through mushrooming Prayer Towers, where prayers are offered at a price, is sad indeed. 

The Bride of Christ is the most abused and merchandized entity. Going to church just to feel good is masturbation because it is just self-gratification. If you are not sold out for God then you only have a refrigerated Christianity. (Sunday Adelaja)

The Lord’s Prayer is both apostolic, (Thy kingdom come on earth) as well as holistic, (Give us this day our daily bread). 

Yahweh walked with Adam and walks in the midst of His people (Lev. 26:12; 2Cor. 6:16; Acts 15:14). Enoch’s grandson Methuselah which means, “When he dies the flood will come.” The forthcoming devastation sent such shock waves that Enoch started walking with Yahweh and walked right into heaven. A much greater devastation by fire is coming when the elements will melt (2Pet. 3:12). This should send tectonic shock waves through us to walk with Yahweh, raising our holy hands and praying everywhere (1Tim. 2:8).

Prayer walking is the most effective prayer strategy and fastest growing ministry. It results in the demolition of religious, cultural and social strongholds, building of roads, opening up of fountains of water, abundant food production and finding the man of peace.

Accountability Structure: There is no standard NT model of the ekklesia. The sheer variety of practices varies from all night prayer at Mary’s house (Acts 12:5,12) to gathering for breaking bread (Acts 20:7), fasting and praying for the appointing of elders or sending missionaries (Acts 13:1-3;14:23), crying out to the Lord for more power and boldness in the face of persecution (Acts 4:29-31), and searching the Scriptures together daily to check the veracity of Paul’s teaching (Acts 17:11). There are many forms of local expressions of the Body from whom we can learn many lessons, but we do not have to blindly duplicate their structures. We do not need to appoint Elders, Deacons and Bishops and establish authority structures as a priority. Paul never addressed people by their titles but simply called them brothers, sisters, elders, fathers, mothers, sons, disciples and saints. In the church, relationship comes first, then strategy.  The structure comes last. A reversal of this pattern is a recipe for disaster (1Cor. 14:33).

For greater transparency, accountability and effectiveness, Paul appointed a plurality of Elders and not just one leader. 

This does not mean that there were no rules of the game and everybody did as they liked. There was apostolic authority and supervision (bishop means supervisor), but no control. The modern day vertical authority structure controls and therefore dehumanizes. A plurality of leadership consisting of fivefold-ministry gifted equippers (Apostles, Prophets, Evangelists, Shepherds and Teachers) provided a horizontal authority structure of spiritual fathers. This is indispensable for the rapid and balanced development of effective leaders. 

Yahweh ruled through the prophets who ranked higher than kings like Samuel over Saul, Nathan over David, Elijah over Ahab. The presence of prophets made the kings shiver. King Josiah and Hilkiah the High priest submitted to the authority of Huldah the prophetess, who was just a housewife (2Kings 22:12-14). 

Yeshua did not leave us a model to build but a guide to follow. We experience the life of the ekklesia not because we meet in a certain place or in a certain way. If we substitute any method or design then we end up following it and not Him, thus building a counterfeit church instead of the real deal. (Wayne Jacobsen)

It is not us and them. It is just us. There is only one Body of Christ. We are the ekklesia and we can do more united than divided.  So let us unify, simplify and multiply. (Robert Fitts)

Brides Must Reproduce Brides: Believers are not accountable to just one leader demanding loyalty and allegiance, but relate to a plurality of spiritual fathers (Heb. 13:17; 1 Cor. 4:15). The objective of appointing Elders was not to provide permanency and stability to the ekklesia, which would eventually lead to senility and obsolescence, but to keep the gatherings reproductive and multiplicative. 

It is not how many come but how many are sent out, that is the benchmark. Seeker-driven, multi-site, decentralized micro-ekklesia is Yahweh’s strategy for reaching the ends of the earth.

Going to church is a non-productive exercise, while going to make disciples is a highly profitable activity. If the ekklesia becomes a discipling hub then the differences can be blurred.  The ekklesia was never meant to be a permanent structure with the same people meeting together and singing the same songs, under the authority of the same person. It is like a nest that birds build for a season and when the purpose is fulfilled then everyone flies away to build their own nests. Reproduction is normative in Yahweh’s creation. Just as every bird must build her own nest, Yahweh in His mercy has given ministry gifts to every believer to build his own ministry (1Cor.12:7; 1 Pet. 4:10). 

The Bride of Yeshua must breed unashamedly and unapologetically. She must be prolifically fruitful and multiply and fill the earth. A Bride that does not replicate is a barren Bride and lacks intimate relationship with her Lord. 

Making disciples is the central function of the ekklesia; hence hospitality and the ability to convict seekers are the most important qualifications of Elders (Titus 1: 8,9; 1 Tim. 3:2; 1Cor. 14:24,25; 1Peter 4:8-10). Eloquent sermons, motivational talks and structures have little role to play in discipling the nations. Fivefold gifts are not titles or offices to be flaunted but ministries to be done. They should result in the perfecting of the saints and the edification of the Body (Eph. 4:11-13). The explosive growth of the Jerusalem ekklesia lasted only eight years and then it was no more (Acts 8:1). The gospel, however, spread all over, both spontaneously through ordinary believers (Acts 11:19-21) and intentionally through apostolic design (Rom. 15:19-21).

While the world is haemorrhaging, irrational exuberance and raucous Sunday celebrations must give place to bringing fruit worthy of repentance (Math. 3:8; Luke 3:8). There is merit in celebration only when we win a victory over the enemy and possess new territories. In the ekklesia, everyone is a minister and must have a ministry of his own and set his own milestones for celebration (1John 2:27).

Maintaining the status quo is not just weakness; it is betrayal. In the ekklesia everyone is a minister and anyone who refuses to go and possess his inheritance prepared from the foundation of the earth, is either ignorant of the consequences or disobedient.

Spiritual Fathers Needed: A true discipling ekklesia grows and multiplies outside of human control. The Jerusalem ekklesia, history’s fastest growing ekklesia, had no formal structure. The Spirit gives different vision and different methodology to each one at different times and places (1 Cor. 12:4-11), provided we tarry for the Spirit to envision and empower us. Further, the Spirit gives different utterance to everyone in the assembly. To some He gives psalms, to others teaching, revelation, tongues, interpretation, dreams, visions, prophecy etc. (Cor. 14:3, 23-32). The second time the Holy Spirit fell on the disciples, they did not speak in tongues but preached the gospel boldly (Acts 4:31). There is no single method, but heterogeneity is normative. However, one dominant male can mess up the message. 

The purpose of gathering is not for empty worship but the people get together with an expectancy that Yahweh will reveal his “action plan” to His prophetic ekklesia (Amos 3:7). By the end of the meeting, everyone should know what Yahweh wants “done.” The Holy Spirit rather than the leader is in command. A leader is only a fatherly facilitator, not necessarily a speaker and definitely not a controller.

How Rapid is Rapid?: If Yeshua could multiply the fishes and the loaves for the five thousand hungry families at an incredible speed, there is no reason why He cannot multiply His ekklesia just as rapidly but for the church acting as a speed breaker.

The difference between an institutional church and a NT church is not denominational or doctrinal. An institutional church is lead by the wisdom of the flesh while the NT model is led by the power of the Spirit. (1 Cor. 2:4,5) (Wolfgang Simson) 

The preaching, healing, deliverance and baptizing in Philip’s Evangelistic ministry in Samaria did not result in lasting fruit until the Apostle Peter came and baptized them in the Holy Spirit (Acts 8:16; Matt. 7:22,23). In Paul’s Apostolic ministry, rapidly multiplying ekklesias with lasting fruit consistently resulted (Acts 19:1-12). Apostolic mentoring and impartation of the Spirit on the local people, results in an ekklesia planting movement. Because Christ lives, being a martyr is not a tragedy but a triumph. 

A Church Planting Movement (CPM) is a rapid multiplication of indigenous churches planting churches that sweeps through a People Group or a population segment. A CPM must outstrip population growth rate to reach the entire nation. (David Garrison)  

Hyper acceleration: Yeshua empowered His disciples to be His witnesses in Jerusalem, Judea, Samaria, and to the ends of the earth. Within hours of their anointing, thousands were being baptized in the Jerusalem with an exponential growth of disciples (Acts 1:8; 2:41,47; 6:1,7); within days ekklesias were multiplying in Judea and beyond (Acts 9:31; 16:5); within weeks thousands were baptized in Samaria (Acts 8:5,16); within months the gospel had been sounded all over the World (Col. 1:6, 23). The rapid discipling of nations is the norm in the New Testament ekklesia; otherwise you are wasting time and wallowing in John’s shallow water baptism. Rapid fruitfulness is a consistent indicator of being baptized in the Holy Spirit. “You say it is four months but I say the harvest is ready now” (Matt.3:11; John 4:35). 

The quantum jump in the Book of Acts from simple daily addition of believers (Acts 2:47; 5:14) to daily multiplication of disciples (6:1-7), to a daily multiplication of churches (16:5), had several growth drivers. The Apostles chose Greeks of good repute, filled with the Spirit and wisdom. The strategic transfer of dominant Hebraic leadership to the despised Greeks was a watershed that changed everything that Jews held sacrosanct for millennia. The apostles remained spiritual Fathers and focused on the ministry of the Word and prayer. The rapid penetration of the gospel into the Gentile world then made the ekklesia grow out of human control.

Organic House Ekklesia: Unlike the orderly program-based institutional church, the free for all, participatory and interactive format of the house ekklesia may sound a bit chaotic; but the Holy Spirit ensures that it is creative chaos. Where Christ is, there is liberty (2 Cor. 3:17). The Spirit-led ekklesia “blows where it lists and no one knows where it comes from and where it goes” (John 3:3-8). The NT ekklesia is an experience quite unlike the stereotyped, repetitive and predictable Sunday service. The ekklesia is the household of Yahweh (Eph. 2:19), a symbol of freedom of expression where everyone in the family is encouraged to grow to their fullest potential. Nothing kills Body life faster than control by one man; an insult to the Holy Spirit led, collective wisdom of the assembly of Royal Priests (1Pet. 2:9). 

The Temple Died in AD 135: Yeshua foretold His disciples, “Not a stone will be left of the Temple buildings.” In AD 70, the Roman general, Titus, burnt the Temple to ashes. The golden dome melted and the soldiers extracted the gold by removing the stones. The Menorah was stolen and the Temple was no longer the light. In AD 135, Hadrian decimated what remained. He ploughed the Temple area and outlawed circumcision, the Sabbath and the synagogue. No two stones remained together. Yahweh sent a strong signal that sacred buildings had no place in world evangelism. The survivors went to the ends of the earth preaching the gospel. In the new kingdom there will be no temple and no sun, as Yahveh and the Lamb will be the temple and the light (Matt.24:2;Acts 7:48,49; Rev.21:22,23).  

The NT Ekklesia Died in AD 312: First the NT ekklesia went through a genetic mutation by the Roman Emperor Constantine, a sun worshipping, hybrid Christian. He replaced house ekklesias with sacred buildings, self-supporting ministers with paid clergy and daily gatherings with Sunday services, effectively murdering the NT ekklesia. All reformation in the past have been only theological, not structural. With the addition of Western church culture, the modern church has incarnated as a sterile mongrel, not the genuine Bride. No one has the right to restructure Yahweh’s Bride. She needs to be resurrected and restored.

Men and Women Were His Method: Yeshua used the principle of “Small is not only beautiful but also effective.” Yeshua did not change the world but He produced a team of world changers. We need to shift from the pastor/teacher-centered model to a “team building” model and aim at producing world changers.   

The ekklesia should not only be passionate about fulfilling the Great Commission but actually paranoid about it.

There is no such thing as a “spontaneous” ekklesia planting movement (CPM). Only weeds grow spontaneously. Sparking rapid “Saturation movement” requires continuous intentional “stimulus packages”. The harvest does grow while the man sleeps, but it still needs a sower to sow the seed and a reaper with the sickle to gather the harvest (Mark 4:27).  

To succeed, keep clarifying the vision, narrow the focus and enter into the mechanical phase of implementing the vision. Think steps and not programs. To avoid glitches, discuss your options and their implications with many. Monitor outcome for course correction, and work hard on succession planning.

Today the greatest challenge before the church is to multiply earth inheritors to whom the King will say, “Come blessed of my Father, inherit the earth prepared for you from the foundation of the earth” (Matt. 25:34). What Yeshua needs is “the blessed meek who are willing and determined to inherit the earth” (Matt. 5:5).