A Brief Theology of Church Planting

Many Church Planting Movements (CPM's) are able to rapidly reproduce disciples by quickly establishing the gospel through households. The growth in some has been so rapid that they find themselves criticized by those in established or traditional churches for being overly focused on pragmatism. In other words, the idea of "If it works, it must be of God" takes precedence over what is true/biblical. While that kind of attitude certainly exists, I believe that such a characterization is as unfair as thinking that those in established churches care more about theology than people without a faith in Christ. Both accusations are generalizations that should cause us to consider whether either have an element of truth in each person's particular context.

More needs to be written and explored with regard to the theology of CPM's. Bob Vajko, a church planting consultant, has written a great article that gives us a snapshot into the intersection of Scripture and church planting. It's called "Church Planting in the 21st Century."