One of the reasons church planting is attractive is that it inherently involves something new—a new church in a new place with new people. This is a good thing. After all, part of the call of Christ involves taking the gospel to those who’ve never heard it. We need people willing to go where Christ is neither named nor known.
But there are also many churches in various parts of the world that are dying. Places where Christianity once flourished.
In regions like the UK and Europe, Christianity has been on the decline for decades, which means that many churches are closing their doors, both literally and figuratively. In these circumstances, church planting is desperately needed. But perhaps just as significant a need is church revitalization, or “re-planting.”
Revitalization involves bringing life to dying churches by dealing with the various causes of decline. It can take numerous forms, and the parallels to church planting are many. But what is church revitalization, and why is it important?
To help us consider these things, I’m excited to have Steve Robinson with us on the podcast.
Free eBook by Tim Keller: ‘The Freedom of Self-Forgetfulness’
Imagine a life where you don’t feel inadequate, easily offended, desperate to prove yourself, or endlessly preoccupied with how you look to others. Imagine relishing, not resenting, the success of others. Living this way isn’t far-fetched. It’s actually guaranteed to believers, as they learn to receive God’s approval, rather than striving to earn it.
In Tim Keller’s short ebook, The Freedom of Self-Forgetfulness: The Path To True Christian Joy, he explains how to overcome the toxic tendencies of our age一not by diluting biblical truth or denying our differences一but by rooting our identity in Christ.
TGC is offering this Keller resource for free, so you can discover the “blessed rest” that only self-forgetfulness brings.
