Friday 20 November 2009

What is good about the "New Apostles"

I have been mulling over what I think about people who I see shaping and influencing Churches within Newfrontiers from more of a distance than within the movement.

I have posted some ideas here and here.

I think there are major benefits to what seems to be happening in the following ways:

  • ACCESS: Through the media channels, notably their websites including video sermons and blogs, people can get access to the latest teaching / resources / ideas in an instant, usually for free.
  • RECORD: Through publishing, books & resources etc there is a clear record of who advised what and who was thinking what over a period of time. I know what Keller was saying in 2006 and I can chart how that changes by listening to him in 2009. There is a publicness to the advice given, strategies suggested which means it can be discussed, mulled over in the public domain, accepted as wisdom or rejected as foolishness or anything in between.
  • BODY: People are tapping into resources from much wider afield within the body of Christ than just people they know in their movement of Churches. This opens up international possibilities too. Having said that it is interesting the within newfrontiers the directions of this seem to be going towards Church growth, reformed or charismatic in differing ways. Some seem to be going one way, others a mixture of all three.

  • RELATIONSHIPS FORMING: It seems that at times these new links are becoming clearer relationships, with people going off the Bethel for this conference, Willow Creek for that conference, and others visiting our Churches / conferences like Driscoll in 2008. The new media possibilities are actually forming a bridge upon which future relationships and understanding can flow.
So there are definitely some positives. But I also have some concerns, which I will outline next.

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