In almost every book I have read on church growth over the last decade the same model of what we are trying to do underlies the practice. The model proposes that there are people in the world who have rejected or never heard the gospel and they are left all alone and without hope because those with the gospel are cloistered in churches, unable or unwilling to reach the lost. These books call us to move out of our safe cloisters and draw people from the world into our churches.

There have been changes over the years in how to do this. Late last century the method was to make our church meetings so user friendly, impediment free and attractive that people were drawn from the world into congregational life. By the end of the century the mantra changed because it was perceived that "outsiders" didn't mind Jesus, it was the church they hated. So began the method of taking churches "off site" to make them look and feel less like church. House churches, and cell churches arose as ways to accomplish this goal.

My own opinion on this change is that we need both methods, and yet both suffer from two fatal practical and theological problems.

We need both methods because, for some people in our city the established church with its rootedness and history is where they turn when they seek (or better, are called) by Jesus. Good established ministries are easy things for congregation members to invite friends to. In fact, I think in our day where nominalism is almost dead, church buildings are an asset rather than a hindrance in reaching such people. But to think that people are drawn to the Christian community merely because we do our meetings well is naive. Friendships draw people into community, and sometimes smaller fellowships work best in enabling this to happen.

However, the two problems with both models are that they may truncate the task God has given us, and they diminish the gift God gives us of each other. Let me explain.

To see our task, under God, as drawing people from the world to the church is too small and selfish. Our task is to draw people from the world, to the church where they are sustained, built up and taught, so that they may then go back to the world to spread the Faith. Any ministry that is not as concerned in the sending believers into the world as it is in gathering people needs to re-think its position.

Which leads to the second danger. That is, in our training of people in our churches, we often train them to do personal ministry, and so they go from our churches to individually reach the world. However the evidence is that people are most likely to join a fellowship of God's people because of the group that exists. This means we should think about and train each other in "pack" evangelism - assisting and supporting each other as we live in the world promoting Christ. This will help in drawing people from the world to the church. But it also means that we must think and work together in going out into the world too. How can we create ministries and work as a group to see others saved?

Here are a couple of simple suggestions that we can start with, and will expand on in future months.

What if the pastor of a congregation, and all of us as members, were to think carefully about the different affinity groups we are in? By affinity I mean groups where we have ongoing relationships with people; for example soccer clubs, pre-schools or gyms. These affinities are God-given, as He determines where we will live and what we will do, and if these affinities give gospel opportunities, why not invite some other congregation members to join you in this affinity, to enjoy the affinity together, but also to pray and work together to be able to share the gospel with others in the affinity? It is always easier sharing Christ as part of a team than on your own. You may then begin a ministry within that affinity, or you may invite people along with your friends to things that are happening at church. Let's use the gift of each other.

Archie Poulos is a lecturer at Moore Theological College and heads the Moore College Missions Committee