The need for church planting in Ireland
Acts 13:1-3
1 In the church at Antioch there were prophets and teachers: Barnabas, Simeon called Niger, Lucius of Cyrene, Manaen (who had been brought up with Herod the tetrarch) and Saul. 2 While they were worshiping the Lord and fasting, the Holy Spirit said, “Set apart for me Barnabas and Saul for the work to which I have called them.” 3 So after they had fasted and prayed, they placed their hands on them and sent them off.
Times have changed in modern day Ireland. Figures from the 2006 census in the Republic of Ireland show that after Catholicism, the second largest ‘faith’ group in the Republic are those who have ‘no religion’. Recently, ‘Atheist Ireland’ celebrated this with an international conference in Dublin where the High Priest of atheism, Richard Dawkins was the guest speaker. Gone are the days when Catholic priest and nuns roamed the streets being greeted with respect, people went to church in their droves, and what church authorities said was law! Modern Irish people are not interested and are not listening.
Things are not much better for the Protestant population of the Republic either. The Commission on Ministry Report to the Church of Ireland General Synod in May this year sounded the death knell of the Church of Ireland in the west of Ireland. In his report, Archdeacon Gary Hastings of Galway talked about ‘the end of the church of Ireland as we know it’, arguing that within 20 years small rural parishes in the west will have disappeared. Urban churches may last a little longer, but given the marginalization of religion in mainstream European and Irish culture, they are ‘as doomed as any small rural parish’ (pp.402-404 General Synod Reports 2011).
Time to man the lifeboats and die slowly? That may be one way of facing up to the realities of church decline in Ireland. Or, time to abandon biblical teaching in favour of an all-inclusive ‘anything-goes’ by way of belief approach to it all? That seems to be the conclusion being hinted at in the Commission on Ministry Report. Or, is it time to actively plan for and work for a whole new generation of Christ-honouring, biblically faithful churches that are gathered and meet in new ways? Perhaps the example of the church in Antioch, where Christians were first called Christians, can give us a clear pointer to the future direction Christians need to take in 21st century Ireland?
Here was a local church that had an enormous impact. From this one church, individual missionaries and teams of missionaries were sent out (Acts 13:3; 15:36-41; 18:22-23) to evangelize and plant churches all over Turkey and Greece. Because of this one church people were evangelized and churches planted in Derbe, Lystra, Iconium, Philippi, Thessalonica, Berea, Athens, Corinth and Ephesus! John Calvin, the 16th century Protestant Reformer, remarked in his commentary on the church in Antioch that God had so poured his grace on this church that ‘streams of grace flowed from it to other places’. He went on to make the further remark: ‘So, even in our time, God enriches certain churches more than others so that they be nurseries for propagating the teaching of the Gospel’.
Isn’t that an amazing challenge to churches today?! Here is a picture of what our local church could be and what it could do for the Kingdom of God in Ireland today. Our church could be a source from which ‘streams of grace’ flow into other parts of our country, town or city! After all, isn’t that what Jesus said would be true of the individual Christian? ‘Whoever believes in me, as the Scripture has said, streams of living water will flow from within him’ (John 8:38). If it is true that grace should flow from individual Christian lives to others, how much more true is it of the local church? Could our local church be so faithful to the Gospel and in training our people for Gospel ministry that it acts as a kind of nursery to produce all kinds of Gospel workers who could flow out from it to bring God’s blessings to other parts of the town, city or region? How could we do this and what should we do? Perhaps, we should look at Antioch? How did it become such a church with such a ministry that ‘streams of grace’ flowed from it to others? We learn two things from the verses above that give us a clue.
First of all, God’s concerns were their concerns. They looked upwards not inwards. Here was a church made up of diverse nationalities, cultures and social background as the names of their leaders (v.1) plainly tell us, but yet who were totally united in the Gospel and God’s concerns. Here they were fasting and worshipping the Lord together (v.2), but for what purpose? Well, from the conclusion of the story (vv.2b-3), it seems it was for the purpose of how to carry out the Great Commission of Jesus to go and make disciples. The Spirit-given consensus was that it was time to release a missionary team. Barnabus and Paul would be released for the mission to which God had already called them.
God’s concerns were their concerns. They recognized that God’s concern is all about mission – spreading the Good News of His Son, the Lord Jesus Christ. Sometimes, the reality of the local church is that God’s concerns are God’s concerns but our concerns are about ourselves and our own domestic church issues! If we are to be a church from which ‘streams of grace’ flow out we need to make sure that the cause of Jesus is our number one concern above all internal concerns! How serious are we as a local church about making God’s concerns our first priority? The more we do, the more likely our church can make a difference, perhaps even sending out teams, or missionaries, who evangelize and church plant in our towns, cities and country.
Secondly, they put God’s concerns into action. They did not merely theoretically recognize the importance of mission – they did it! Two of their best teachers were actually sent out. Paul and Barnabus went out, evangelized and planted churches. Furthermore, these planted churches evangelized and planted other churches, copying not only the example of Paul, but also the example of Antioch, by being prepared to release their people, such as Timothy from Lystra, for the work of the Gospel in other places. There comes a time when we need to take courage as a church and simply obey the Lord’s command to start evangelizing. Amazing things can happen when we do. ‘Streams of grace’ begin to flow.
The evidence of the book of Acts is that the most effective way of evangelizing towns, regions and whole countries is to plant churches that evangelize and plant churches. The reality in Ireland is that we need such new church plants to reach Ireland. Why? Many existing churches and mainline denominations are no longer preaching the Gospel – they have lost their way. Whole communities in Ireland, such as working class men, students, addicts, business communities and a host of others, are not being reached by existing churches. Many young people have ‘voted with their feet’ and have left. New generations of Irish people are not hearing the Gospel. Should we simply accept this and refuse to adapt in order to reach them? Not at all! We need existing churches to make God’s concern for the spread of the Gospel their number one concern. When the Gospel is central in the local church and people being built up in the Word, such churches will be like a nursery, raising up fresh Gospel workers for Ireland. Perhaps, they’ll even copy Antioch and send out teams of missionaries, who return to be refreshed, and then go out again! ‘Streams of grace’ that bring new life!