Col Marshall on radical MTS part I

Bernie and I have blogged some stuff on the MTS National Recruiters Convention over on the MTS TAS blog.

Here I'd like to share a few of the radical, experimental ideas that Col Marshall through at us during one of his sessions.

Ongoing weaknesses and strengths of the MTS movement
Weaknesses: because the MTS movement is still too dominated by clerical/professional ministry. Still too dominated by Sunday services. Still too dominated by pulpit ministry.

Strengths: a hybrid of church-based preaching and 1:1 discipleship. Without exposition, discipleship becomes legalistic/cultish. Without discipleship, exposition becomes an institution.

Great need: remain flexible and radical in vision of discipleship

  • The normal Christian lifestyle is to be committed to making disciples.
  • The normal Christian lifestyle is to walk the way of the cross, as slaves to Christ.
  • Help people be personally free to be who God has made them to be.
  • Help people be structurally free to create whatever we need to.
  • MTS is, basically, a Bible reading movement. You need Bible reading movement to have disciplemaking movement. And you need a disciplemaking movement to have a churchplanting movement.
  • We will find the Phillip Jensen's and Mark Driscoll's along the way, but we need to recruit and equip all people. Some will build their ministry in 1:1 ministry, some through pulpit ministry.