THE HOUSE CHURCH UPDATE

 Sample: 1.

Eat, meet, gossip the Gospel and multiply

House church, also called Simple church or Organic church etc., is where the original Ecclesia, the called out people gathered to break bread, share the Gospel and multiply.  For example:

• 
  The Day of the Pentecost, is the birthday of the Ecclesia, when 3000 souls were baptized. They met in homes and multiplied daily in numbers daily. (Acts 2:41; 47)
• When Peter was in Jail, the ecclesia gathered in the house of Mary, the mother of Mark, and prayed with one accord until he was released. (Acts 12:12)
• Cornelius the Centurion and his colleagues were baptized both in the Holy Spirit as well as water, in his house in the army barracks. (Acts 10:44-47)
• Lydia, Phoebe, Priscilla, Apphia, Nympha were all house church facilitators.  
• Paul shared the whole wisdom of God from house to house. (Acts 20:20,27)
• Paul greeted the ecclesia that met in the house of Pricilla and Aquila. (1 Cor. 16:19)
• The Holy Spirit fell on all the disciples when they were in a house. (Acts 2:1-3)
• Jesus broke bread and ate the Last Supper in the house of Mary the mother of Mark. Soon breaking of bread spread to many the houses in Jerusalem. (Mark 14:14)
  

Current News: 

• National: Kandhmal district of Orissa which five years ago saw the worst anti-Christian violence when a Hindu leader was shot dead by Maoists. Nearly a 100 Christians were killed and over 50,000 made homeless. Now has Christian presence in majority of the 2950 villages. Neighbouring districts are reporting similar happenings.
• Global: Mongolia had less than 500 Christians until the last decade, now claim to have over 70,000 Christians through its house church movement.

Sample 2. 

THE HOUSE CHURCH UPDATE

Go and make disciples of all nations

The house church movement in the past couple of decades has gone viral and multiplied in numbers unprecedented. For Example:

• China a godless Communist country, which had about a million Christians in 1947, now has around hundred million Christians, most of them in the underground house churches.
• South Korea, a Buddhist country now has about 40% Christianity, mo st of growth came from cell churches.
• Middle East and other Muslim countries have seen phenomenal growth in some of the most hostile regions. As the visible church is being demolished, the invisible underground house church movement is flourishing on the blood of the martyrs.
• Latin American Catholic countries are experiencing a great revival, through Basic Ecclesial Communities (house churches), a whole new way of “being the church.” The most recent example being Cuba. They are discovering that they can worship God without expensive religious buildings, priests, chants, candles and incense.
• Africa is just beginning to get in the band wagon. It is dangerous to go to a traditional church because of targeted terrorist violence. People are finding out that you can practice real Body life in the safety and convenience of their homes.
• India has over 650,000 villages and over 400,000 slums and shanty towns. Some guestimate that in the last two decades, anywhere from 30 percent or more of the villages in north India, where there were few, now have at least a small Christian presence, all through the house church movement.

Current News: 

• National: A politician during a TV debate said that conversion in his state of Himachal has reached an alarming situation suggesting that Parliament should pass a law, banning conversion. When that happens, kingdomization of India will go ballistic.
• Global: Myanmar a very hostile country to the Gospel, has seen one of the fastest movements with tens of thousands of most persecuted Rohingya Muslims and their persecutors the Rakhine Buddhist, both are coming to Christ, just in this decade. The recent seamless political shift from dictatorship to secular government is the direct result of the Houses of Prayer.

Sample 3. 

THE HOUSE CHURCH UPDATE

The Great Commission

The Great Commission is the last and supreme command of Yeshua, before his ascension to heaven. It is the core of the core, the mandate and the marching order of his Ecclesia. It is Jesus’ strategy for reaching the ends of the earth and enabling all nations, tongues and tribes to stand before his Throne and worship him. Matthew 28:18-20; Acts 1:8; Revelation 7:9,10

• Go – Yeshua went to every village and town and preached the gospel to those who sat in darkness and in the shadows of death, therefore, we must go and do the same where Christ has not been named. Mark 1:38; Matthew 4:16; Romans 15:19,20
• Make disciples - Yeshua was a disciple-maker therefore, all his disciples must become disciple-makers.
• Baptize them – Yeshua was a baptizer therefore all his disciples must become baptizers. John 4:1,2
• Teach them to Obey – Yeshua obeyed his Father unto death, hence, we must also obey him to go and make disciples, baptize and teach them to obey the Great Commission. 
• Send them – Yeshua said to his disciples, “As the Father has sent me, so I send you;” The churches must not let believers to stagnate on the pews but equip them to be effective workplace ministers, to transform their hostile domains into an expression of ecclesia, with kingdom values of love, joy, peace, equality and justice. John 20:21, Eph. 4:12

Current News: 

• National: Andhra Pradesh has seen the fastest growing house church movement in the last decade in India. Of the 28439 villages, great majority of them now have Christian presence. Even the traditional churches like the Methodists, Lutherans, Pentecostals and the CSI cooperated in igniting the movement. This does not mean that the work has finished. Actually most of them are new believers and they need to be equipped as fishers of men, to finish the task of discipling remaining nations, tongues and tribes.

• Global: Iran is one of the very hard-core Shia Islamic nation, where it is reported that tens of thousands of new believers have joined the underground house church movement. On October 19th 2010, Ayatollah Khamenei, their Supreme leader, announced that our greatest enemy is not that great Shaitan (Satan) America nor that small Shaitan Israel, but the greatest threat to Islam is from the network of small house churches.

Sample 4. 

THE HOUSE CHURCH UPDATE

The Luke 10 strategy

What do you do when you go to plant a house church? Yeshua gave his disciples the Luke 10 Strategy: 

• Yeshua sent his disciples to go two by two. Initially, he sent them only unto the lost sheep of Israel, as they knew the culture and the language etc. (Commissioning) (Matt. 10:1,2,5) 
• Later he sent the twelve disciples 2x2 to the Gentiles with power and authority, to heal the sick, cast out demons and preach the kingdom. (Empowerment). Mark 6:7; Luke 9:1-3
• The 12 disciples then made 70 other disciples whom Yeshua again sent 2x2. (Multiplication). (Luke 10:1)
• He did not tell them to reap the harvest, but to equip local laborers as harvesters, then move on. (Colonizing). (Luke 10:2)
• He told them that they are to go as lambs among wolves. He warned not to make hullabaloo and wake up the sleeping the enemy. (Secretly invading enemy territory). (V.3)
• Find the ‘house of peace’ that would provide food and accommodation as their wages. (Raise resources from the harvest field). (V.5)
• There they are to eat first. (Relational). (Vs. 5-8)
• They are to fully preach the Gospel, not just with words but through healing and deliverance. (Proclamation). (V. 9; Romans 15:19,20)

When they came back rejoicing, Yeshua told them that he saw Satan falling down from the sky and gave them power over all the power of the enemy but warned them not to rejoice because the spirits are under their control but because their names are written in the Book of the Lamb. Luke 10:17-19

Current News:

• National: Punjab the land of the turbaned Sikhs, saw the first house church movement, late in 1860s. It was led by Dit, an illiterate, small, dark-skinned, cripple from polio, who bought and sold cattle hide for a living.  He brought 56,000 Churhas, a low caste people into the kingdom. Punjab is the first state in India to see another house Ecclesia movement. Significant numbers of its 12,000 villages, now have Christian presence.
• Global: Nepal where Buddha was born, has seen a very healthy house church movement in the recent years. It is joy to hear worship songs coming out early in the morning from the Himalayan hill tops. Constitutionally it was the only Hindu nation in the world, but now, the new constitution claims to be secular, even as it criminalizes religious conversion.

Sample 5.

THE HOUSE CHURCH UPDATE

What are some of the ingredients of a healthy Ecclesia?

 Our best example is the first Ecclesia that came into existence immediately after the Pentecost. (Acts 2:37-47)

After Peter’s Pentecost message, they asked, “What shall we do?” Peter said, “Repent, be baptized and receive the gift of the Holy Spirit to transform your family and others. 

• In a healthy Ecclesia, unbelievers hear life transforming message; repent, get baptized and receive empowerment to transform others. (Acts 2: 37-39)
• A healthy Ecclesia has apostolic teaching, that comes with two legs that sends out people to make disciples. (Acts 2:42)
• A healthy Ecclesia has koinonia, which means a purpose oriented fellowship. (V. 42)
• A healthy Ecclesia has Tafilla (prayer), which does not mean a shopping list, but a prayer of self-evaluation to see that we have right relation with Father God. (V. 42)
• Healing and deliverances are common in a healthy Ecclesia. (V.43)
• In a healthy church they do not give Tithe, but generously share their possessions and freewill offerings with the apostles, elders and the needy. (V. 44-45; 4:34,35)
• They go out fishing and bring seekers and unbelievers to their dining tables and convince and convict them. (V. 46; Titus 1:9) 

A healthy Ecclesia is one that grows and multiplies spontaneously on a daily basis, without the need for a building with a cross on top, professional priest, music, tithe and programs. (V. 47)

Current News: 

• National: After well over a hundred years of missionary effort, spearheaded by strategists like Donald McGavran, Chhattisgarh had just a handful of churches in the cities and towns but not many in the villages, but now in the last twenty years or so, out of around 20,000 villages, nearly 15,000 villages have Christian presence. Most of these gatherings have been planted and mentored by first generation believers from Non-Christian background.
• Global: When the Communist government confiscated the radio broadcasting station in Ethiopia, in early nineties, the Lutherans had only around 5000 members. The church went underground and secretly met in homes and now they are experiencing exponential growth and multiplication. Many other churches are experiencing the same phenomenon.

Sample 6.

THE HOUSE CHURCH UPDATE

Everyone has something to share 

What do you actually do in the house Ecclesia?

• Gathering: “Not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as the manner of some is, but exhorting one another, even more so as you see the Day approaching. Gathering for edification and fellowship is an important agenda of the Ecclesia. Hebrew 10:25. 
• Breaking bread: “And upon the first day of the week (not Sunday but Saturday evening), when we were gathered together to break bread…” For as often as ye eat this bread, and drink the cup, ye proclaim the Lord’s death till he come. Jews and Gentiles eating food together broke barriers that sent a huge message of redemption. Acts 20:7; 1Cor. 11:26
• Everyone Participates: “Brethren (not brothers but fraternity - both men and women)? When you come together, each one of you has a psalm, has a teaching, has a tongue, has a revelation, has an interpretation. Let all things be for building up.” 1Cor. 14:26-32 
• Seekers invited: But if all prophesy, and an unbeliever or a seeker comes, he is convinced and convicted by all.  So the secrets of his heart are revealed, so falling prostrate, he will worship God and acknowledge that God is truly among you. 1Co 14:24,25
• The house ecclesia is Christ centered, seeker friendly and relational, hence it grows and multiplies every time it gathers.

Current News:

National: UP (Utter Pradesh) has been the most populous state in north India with a population of well over 200 million people. However, in spite of huge ex-pat missionary effort for well over a hundred years, it had a Christian population of only 0.6% with very little Christian presence in the rural heartland. In the last couple of decades, through the house church movement, out of over 100,000 villages, at least 30,000 now have Christian presence. 

Global: Sudan in North Africa has been one of the hard core Muslim countries.  More than a million Sudanese have come to know Jesus Christ as their saviour just recently. And over the past 10 years or so, the estimates are now at more than 5 million. Many people who are coming to Christ are not the work of the Church there. Instead, they are forcing themselves into the kingdom through no human contact, but directly through dreams and visions. Luke  16:16

Sample 7.

THE HOUSE CHURCH UPDATE

What is the core purpose of gathering in a house ecclesia?

• The main purpose is to worship Yahweh, through offering lost people as living sacrifice and then equipping them to be prolific fishers of men. Eph. 4:12; Romans 15:16; Matt. 4:19
• Able, Noah, Abraham, Moses and all the prophets worshipped God by offering animal sacrifice. The temple was called Ba’yth Zebakh, meaning house of Sacrifice. 2Chron. 7:12
• Jesus became full and final sacrifice; hence we no longer offer animal sacrifice to worship. Heb.10:5,10
• Now we are the sacrifice, and have to offer our bodies and minds as reasonable latreia = worship. Our body and mind must now be dedicated for his service. Rom. 12:1,2
• Then as Priests we are to offer repented and baptized Gentiles, as living sacrifice, sanctified (empowered) by the Holy Spirit. Romans 15:16
• Next, the five-fold ministry gifted elders like the apostles, prophets, evangelists, shepherds and teachers must equip them to be workplace place ministers. The ecclesia then must metamorphose into a congregation of work-place ministers. Eph. 4:11-13
• All this is to be done quietly in small interactive groups in Gentile homes, without special buildings, quality sermons, ear splitting music or fat budgets. Malachi 1:11; 1Cor. 14:26
• The metrics of a healthy House ecclesia are evaluated on the basis of ability to convince and convict those who oppose and convert their domains into kingdom of God. Titus 1:9

Current News: 

• National: Mizos of north-east India were head hunters. Now with 90% Christianity, they are the biggest per capita givers and the largest missionary senders per church. This is also true of other tribes like Naga and Kuki of that region.
• Global: Japan - Mitsuo Fukuda started his ministry from traditional church and tried to transition to house church but it was so hard to do it; so he gave it up. Then he looked for young guys to do house church, but he failed again. He then decided to start house church planting by going directly to non-believers, and by God’s grace he planted almost 100 house churches in two years!

Sample 7.

THE HOUSE CHURCH UPDATE

Money matters What do you do with the offerings?

The Mosaic law had three different kinds of offerings. 

• 1. The Temple Tax of half a Shekel was given by rich and poor alike. It was used for the upkeep of the Tabernacle and the Levites. Exodus 30:13-15
• 2. The Tithe, which was not cash but food, like animals, grains, fruits and wine etc. 
• Every third year, there was double Tithe. The regular Tithe was eaten at the Temple, while the second Tithe was eaten at home with the orphans, widows, Gentile servants and the Levites. The Levites also gave Tithe of the Tithe. Malachi 1:11; Deut. 14:22-29; Neh. 10:38
• Landless people like Jesus the carpenter and Peter the fisherman, did not give tithe.
• 3. Freewill offering – Could be cash, silver or gold and was put in boxes in the outer court, like the poor widow who gave her two mite. Ezra 7:16; Mark 12:42,43
• In the modern church what you pay is temple tax and freewill offering and not the tithe. 
• Temple tax is for hatching (baby baptism), matching (wedding) and dispatching (burial.)
• The Tithe is now breaking bread from house to house. Those who can afford, bring their potluck dinner and share it with the poor. Breaking bread in hundreds of houses every evening, resulted in poverty being eliminated from Jerusalem. Acts 2:44-47; 20:7
• Freewill offering has no limits. Rich or poor can give as much as they like. It is for reaping the harvest, and not for church upkeep, “He who sows sparingly shall reap sparingly, and he who sows bountifully shall also reap bountifully.” 2Cor. 9:6,7; Rom. 10:14 

Current news:

• National: Not long ago Bihar state in India was considered a graveyard of missions. In the last couple of decades about 60 small local missions have joined hands to finish the task of the Great Commission. It is no longer a graveyard of missions but a vineyard of missions.
• Global: A poor Nigerian was recruited for Communist leadership training in Russia. Instead he found Christ and planted the largest Megachurch in Europe in Ukraine that has planted over 1000 daughter churches. Based on the biblical principles of financial management from Luke 19:13-20, this church has produced more millionaires than any of the premier Business Schools in the world.  

Sample 8.

THE HOUSE CHURCH UPDATE

Rapid Multiplication

Just how explosive was the growth and multiplication of the New Testament Ecclesia?

The Day of the Pentecost is the birthday of the Ecclesia: Peter in the power of the Holy Spirit opened his account with 3000 souls who repented, baptized and received the gift of the Holy Spirit; that rapidly multiplied into myriads (tens of thousands).  Acts 2:41, 21:20

Acts 2:47 – And the Lord added to their numbers daily; 

Acts 5:28- City saturation of Jerusalem. From the upper room to every room, “You have filled the whole city with your teachings”; 

Acts 6:1,7 – Exponential multiplication of disciples; 

Acts 8:7-12 – Samaria evangelized by Philip, the table cleaner, “Many unclean spirits came out screaming….and those who believed were baptized.” 

Acts 16:5 – Daily multiplication of quality churches, “And the churches were strengthened in faith and multiplied in numbers daily”;  

Acts 19:8-12 – Wearing his apron and towel, as Paul earned his living while making tents in the Hall of Tyrannous in the fish market in Ephesus; he taught Jews and Gentiles with many mighty miracles and within two years all Asia (Turkey) heard the Gospel; 

Romans 15:19,20, 1Cor. 4:20 – Gospel fully preached from Jerusalem to Illyricum, a distance of over 2000 KM, not just with words but with miracles and signs.

Romans 15:23 – “No more places left.” Heading for Spain, the utter most part of the earth.

Current News:

• National: Over a hundred million Bhojpuri people reside in Bihar, UP and other areas. Till early nineties there were just a few western model churches among them. Only ex-pats could be called missionaries, not the local grassroots people. Since then, focus changed - their philosophy, “Church-planting-movement equals local-leadership-movement.” Now many missions have spawned and they are reporting millions accepting Jesus as Lord.
• Global: Saudi Arabia, allegedly practices the purest form of Wahhabi Islam. It does not permit building of churches, gathering for worship at homes or even possessing a Bible is a criminal offence. Conversion to Christianity invites punishment by death. However, one research shows that everyday about 50,000 Saudis are reading the Bible through the internet and there are thousands of secret believers. 

Sample 9.

THE HOUSE CHURCH UPDATE

Ecclesia is where transformation takes place

Just what is transformation?

• Transformation is a shift from a sinner to a saint.
• Sin does not mean stealing, lying, idolatry or adultery. These are just the symptoms.
• The Greek word hamartia means missing the mark.
• When Adam disobeyed, he made an open declaration of independence (rebellion) from God and decided to do his own thing through acquiring knowledge of good and evil.
• God told Adam that he will die, the day he does that. Adam did not die physically but the God’s Spirit left him and he died spiritually. Thus the real death is spiritual death.
• Adam become spiritually poor as he lost the spirit of God; he became materially poor as now he had to eat by the sweat of his brow; he became relationally poor, blaming his wife for everything; he became intellectually poor (knowledge of the Word of God) and he became motivationally poor as he had nothing to look forward to.
• Jesus came to, “Seek and save that (Garden of Eden), which was lost.” Luke 19:10
• When we repent, get baptized and receive the Holy Spirit, we are born again. Acts 2:37-39
• Thus transformation is a holistic change that removes all the different types of poverty.
• In effect, it is God and man and nature living together in harmony, love, joy and peace.

Current News:

• National: There are over twenty million strong Gypsy tribals called Banjara, Lambadi etc. who live in over 180 of the 676 districts of India. When in early nineties, a veterinarian adopted them for CPM, there were less than 2000 believers among them. Today, as result of strategic networking and cutting edge training and equipping of Banjara master trainers and team builders, over a million Banjaras have become followers of Christ.
• Global: Cambodia - Khmer Rouge soldiers who had massacred thousands of their own intellectuals in 1975-79 were living in exile. When some Christian food aid workers reached there, they were warned that if you mention the name of Jesus, we will kill you. However, within a month, the leader came and said that Jesus told him in a vision, “You must tell my people about Him.” Today all the killers have become followers of Christ.

Sample 10.

THE HOUSE CHURCH UPDATE

Empowerment

What did the Disciples have that we do not? 

• Jesus said to his disciples, “Wait for empowerment by the Holy Spirit and then you shall be my witnesses in Jerusalem, Judea, Samaria and to the ends of the earth. Acts 1:8
• Vision: Without empowerment there will be no vision to see that the earth will be filled with the knowledge of the glory of the Lord as the waters cover the sea. Hab. 2:14
• Without empowerment we will visualize the church, not as Bride but as an organization complete with all the above mentioned extensions. These add ons will choke the Bride with too many chores and leave her no time or energy to reproduce.
• But the Bride is a living organism. She comes complete with the DNA of reproduction. 
• Peter said to the 3000, “Repent, be baptized and receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.  He prayed to God to stretch forth his hand and the place shook. Paul re-baptized 12 Ephesian disciples and laid hands on them for empowerment. Acts 2:39; 19:1-7 
• Could it be that we are functioning without being empowered? Hence fruitless.

Sample 11. 

THE HOUSE CHURCH UPDATE

Obstacles to CPM 

We have buildings with crosses on top, pulpits, good music, comfortable chairs, excellent acoustics, electronics, mobile phones, trains, planes, air conditioned buses, charismatic speakers and multiple versions of the Bible; so what is stopping the CPM from going ballistic? Could all these be, in fact the obstacles? 

• Lack of empowerment by the Holy Spirit for healing and deliverance ministry. Luke 9:1-3
• Lack of vision: God said, “Look at the nations… write down the vision and run with it…the earth will be filled with the knowledge of the God’s glory as the waters cover the sea.” Hab. 1:5; 2:1-3; 14
• Lack of strategy for fulfilling that vision.
• Looking at the Bride as a complex organization, rather than as a living organism with a reproductive DNA.
• Giving scholarly but powerless sermons, “For the kingdom of God is not in word, but in power.” 1 Cor. 4:20
• Not recognizing where two or three gather in his name as a n ecclesia, even though Jesus promised that he is in their midst and has given them the keys of kingdom to demolish the gates of hell. Matt. 16:18,19; 18:18-20