SimpleChurch Journal:

I haven’t written much about the Simple Church Online Course that I offer because it tends to fill up as soon as I make it available (it’s limited to 15 participants at a time).

However, there are a couple of spaces available for the next offering (starts in March) so I thought I would describe it a bit. If you are interested, don't delay. Spaces are available on a first-come, first served basis. More info here.

First, I want to be clear that it has been designed primarily for people who are newer to the concepts of simple/organic/house church. That said, this course provides a way for participants to interact with some excellent resources and then digest the material by interacting with each other.

While this started as an experiment, I have been quite impressed by the quality of the participants and the depth of conversations that take place. I believe those involved are experiencing a transformational boost in the deconstruction/reconstruction process as much because of the relationships as the material.

Here are a couple of quotes from former participants:

“A unique and extremely insightful collection of resources, experiences, and other people who will finally let you know that – “You are not crazy for hoping that there is more of Jesus to be known and shared in a way that is actually simple!”

"I came to the course wanting a better understanding of simple church and how to implement it... I’ve gained a better understanding of what it means to be on mission with God and how to invite others on the journey. The potential impact of the course for me is life changing."

"I found [the Simple Church Course] material to be very solid and helpful. Engaging with others globally has been eye-opening, enjoyable and definitely faith-building."

Some of the topics that we cover include:

From institutional to organic: the living church
Simple Gatherings: participatory, Spirit-led, family
The lifestyle of a Jesus-follower, 24/7
Reproductive principles that can lead to church planting movements
Reaching others: incarnational, relational, and genuine love
Discipling disciple-makers

More info here. Limited space available.

Victor Choudhrie, who has facilitated a massive house church planting movement in India, has described his thoughts on what God is doing today around the world. This is a very inspiring read (as well as challenging)!

The Decade That Changed The Church: The longest lasting Revival in Church history took place during the Communist persecution in China from 1947 to late nineties. During this period the Christian population grew from one million to the present hundred + million without foreign missionaries, dollars, pastors, tele-evangelists, crusades, leaders, sacred buildings, Sunday worship service, guitars, Bibles or tithing. All these have sneaked back through the backdoor and succeeded in killing the movement.

“The early churches were strong in faith and grew in numbers daily” (Acts 16:5). There was both quality and quantity. But even in the first century, the seven churches of the Revelation of St. John were already lukewarm and corrupted. Then came Bishop Ignatius (Martyred AD 110) who ruled that the Bishop was to be treated on par with the Lord and that no baptisms or love feasts (Holy Communion) could be celebrated without the presence of the clergy, thus introducing the Reverend culture, killing the Body Ministry of 1 Corinthians 14:26 led by the Brethren (fraternity of men and women). This Episcopal decree resulted in 1% of the clergy dominating as legislators, administrators and worship leaders and dehumanized over 99% of believers as laymen.

Then came the Roman Emperor Constantine (CE 272-337), a sun worshipping hybrid Christian who did a lot of good but also imposed the solar cross instead of the Menorah the lamp, as the sign of the church (Revelation 1:20). He built the first Cathedral, appointed professional clergy, declared Sun-Day as a day of worship, appointed himself the virtual Pope, banned the house churches and herded all believers in the brick and mortar buildings and called it the church and corrupted the Bride for 1700 years. However the authentic church survived in secret, often illegal house churches.

Then came Martin Luther’s Reformation (AD 1545) who preached “Sola Scriptura and Priesthood of all Believers” but in practice further concretized church structures and the Reverend culture by banning house churches. With the voices of the apostles and prophets suppressed, the modern church has firmly planted herself in Babylon and sucked in the tide of the world. She has gone into the ways of the flesh and everyone is doing his own thing. Judges 21:25

The church has however, undergone cataclysmic changes, especially in the last decade, as had not taken place in centuries. With 80-100 million followers in secret house churches in China; 100,000 house churches planted in India; one million evangelical Latin Catholics now worshipping in Basic Ecclesial Communities (BEC) and five million Americans in 30,000 house churches and several other countries reporting explosive growth, the return of the prodigal church back to the house church is a full circle reversal to God’s intended original form and function. It seems that the 2000 years of incubation period is over and suddenly the green shoots are sprouting everywhere in the spiritual landscape to welcome Christ the King.

From a paper entitled "Global Trends, Concerns and Challenges."

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