Why Lay-led Church Plants?

1. Why Lay-led Church Plants?

2. “I saw jets of light shining from cities and villages, and from the high places and the low places of the earth.” Lay-led church plants make this vision not only feasible, but practical.

3. The Harvest Is Ripe Do you not say, ‘There are still four months and then comes the harvest’? Behold, I say to you, lift up your eyes and look at the fields, for they are already white for harvest! John 4:35

4. How we harvest now....

5. Then He said to them, “The harvest truly is great, but the laborers are few; therefore pray the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into His harvest. Luke 10:2

6. How would businessmen respond to the tremendous investment opportunity of a large ripe harvest that they didn’t plant but could reap the proceeds? They would say, “The profit is in the harvest. We will recoup our cost.”

7. One Holy Spirit Empowered Christian • “Do not be afraid, O worm Jacob, O little Israel, for I myself will help you” • “See, I will make you into a threshing sledge, new and sharp, with many teeth.” Isaiah 41:14-15 7

8. How God Wants To Harvest 8

9. Multiply Leaders Leaders are to “divest themselves of their power and invest in their followers in such a way that others are empowered, while the leaders themselves end with the greatest power of all, the power of seeing themselves reproduced in others.” Transforming Leadership, 16 “The things that you have heard from me among many witnesses, commit these to faithful men who will be able to teach others also.” 2 Timothy 2:2

10. Competency Concerns • “Not that we are competent in ourselves to claim anything for ourselves, but our competence comes from God. He has made us competent as ministers of a new covenant—not of the letter but of the Spirit; for the letter kills, but the Spirit gives life.” • “you show that you are a letter from Christ…written not with ink but the Spirit of the living God” 2 Corinthians 3:4-7

11. Jars of Clay “But we have this treasure in jars of clay to show that this all-surpassing power is from God and not from us.” 2 Corinthians 4:7

12. Power From A Risen Christ “But you shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be witnesses to Me in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.” Acts 1:8

13. Find your way to the heart. “Your success will depend not so much upon your knowledge and accomplishments, as upon your ability to find your way to the heart. By being social and coming close to the people, you may turn the current of their thought more readily than by the most able discourse.” Gospel Workers, p. 193

14. We are to be laborers together with the heavenly angels in presenting Jesus to the world. With almost impatient eagerness the angels wait for our co-operation; for man must be the channel to communicate with man. And when we give ourselves to Christ in wholehearted devotion, angels rejoice that they may speak through our voices to reveal God’s love. DA 297 “Go therefore and make disciples...and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.” Matthew 28:19-20 It’s not what you can do...

15. Waiting For More Knowledge “Too many are waiting for a wealth of knowledge they will never realize until they go out and share the pittance they have. He who begins with a little knowledge, in a humble way, and tells what he knows, while seeking diligently for further knowledge, will find the whole heavenly treasure awaiting his demand. The more he seeks to impart light, the more light he will receive. The more one tries to explain the Word of God to others, with a love for souls, the plainer it becomes to himself. The more we use our knowledge and exercise our powers, the more knowledge and power we shall have.” COL 354

16. Often we wait for Great Opportunities to come while daily Small Opportunities parade by. • God blesses us according to our faithfulness in the small things. • Growth is a matter of faithfulness.

17. Money, time, influence.... • “He who is faithful in that which is least is also faithful in much. • Matthew 25:21

18. “Those whose hearts are filled with the love of Christ, will follow the example of Him who for our sake became poor, that through His poverty we might be made rich. Money, time, influence—all the gifts they have received from God’s hand, they will value only as a means of advancing the work of the gospel. Thus it was in the early church; and when in the church of today it is seen that by the power of the Spirit the members have taken their affections from the things of the world, and that they are willing to make sacrifices in order that their fellow men may hear the gospel, the truths proclaimed will have a powerful influence upon the hearers.” Acts of the Apostles, 71

19. More Holy Spirit The measure of the Holy Spirit we receive will be proportioned to the measure of our desire and the faith exercised for it, and the use we shall make of the light and knowledge that shall be given to us. We shall be entrusted with the Holy Spirit according to our capacity to receive and our ability to impart it to others. Christ says, “Every one that asketh receiveth; and he that seeketh findeth” (Luke 11:10). YRP 67 19

20. San Antonio Fil-Am International • Largest Lay-Led Church in North America • 225 in attendance • Active youth program • 20 Baptisms annually • NCD average of 65 • 25+ nationalities • Own beautiful facility and an additional piece of land • Excellent tithe base Lay leaders Ray Barizo and Sam Palomero with Pastor/Coach Walter Allred

21. San Antonio

22. Met in park under tree • 95 Members • 120 Attending • 25 Baptisms per year • Felt God leading to plant • Prayed for a year and a half • 85 Attending • 28 Baptisms in last meeting

23. “Houston, we have a problem!” • Conversation I had to have with Conference president • “My lay pastors are baptizing too many people. I can’t be in my church and their churches often enough to baptize all the people.” • Solution: “Pastor Allred will be in his church three Sabbaths per month.” • Permission granted for lay pastors to baptize

24. Richard Moller • Felt called to ministry • Elder, then Head Elder • Church board voted as Pastor • 21 Baptisms, February 23, 2013 • Richard’s goal is for 36 baptisms this year

25. Houston

27. April Moller • Painfully shy • Extensive coaching led to an awakened passion to start prayer ministry • Encouraged April to speak on prayer • Column of light

28. Investment Return • They are passionate • More “laborers” to gather the harvest • They can make a difference • Ownership is very high • We can’t pay pastors to finish the work • God has gifted, called, and utilized committed laymen to do a great work

29. Florida Conference • 90 Lay led church plants. • Equivalence of 30 districts with three churches each. • 400 Member Lay led church. • Two of their three top soul winners are lay evangelists.

30. Let The Members Say... “Go work for souls that are perishing in darkness. We ourselves will carry forward the services of the church. We will keep up the meetings, and, by abiding in Christ, will maintain spiritual life. We will work for souls that are about us, and we will send our prayers and our gifts to sustain the laborers in more needy and destitute fields.” Testimonies, Vol. 6, p. 30 (1900)

31. A Compelling Vision • “Why would God send more people to our church if we don’t have a great dream? Why would God give a multi-gifted, multi-talented, and financially wealthy person to a church if the biggest thing you are going to do is paint the restrooms next year?” • “God gives us resources according to our dreams and according our obedience.” John Maxwell

32. A Clear Vision Ignites Growth • “We discovered many pastors and churches were receptive to the church planting vision. They simply needed the spark ignited by the conference. The president, Steve Gifford, was instrumental in promoting church planting at every available opportunity. In addition, the conference secretary, Leighton Holley, played a key role. He worked to free up resources for the purpose of planting churches.” Tom Evans, Abstract • From 2002-2004 Texas saw an “initial rapid increase in church plants” that were started. This was attributed to “picking ripe fruit.”

33. Clear Goals “Beginning in 2008, an intentional focus on moving church plants to their next organizational level was initiated. The objective was to move groups to companies and companies to churches. A goal was set to bring two church plants to every executive committee.” -Tom Evans

34. How God Wants To Harvest 34

35. Nothing Else “The vigorous, continual planting of new congregations is the single most crucial strategy for 1) the numerical growth of the Body of Christ in any city, and 2) the continual corporate renewal and revival of the existing churches within a city. Nothing else—not crusades, outreach programs, para-church ministries, growing mega-churches, congregational consulting, nor church renewal processes—will have the consistent impact of dynamic, extensive church planting. This is an eyebrow raising statement. But to those who have done any study at all, it is not even controversial.“ -Tim Keller

36. Walter Allred • 713-824-1444 • wdallred@hotmail.com