January 01, 2019 by Stan Parks and Tim Martin

Clarifying Some Misconceptions

         1.  24:14? Who are you?

We are not an organization. We are a coalition of like-minded individuals, practitioners and organizations who have made a commitment to a vision of seeing movements in every unreached people and place. Our initial goal is to see effective kingdom movement engagement in every unreached people and place by December 31, 2025. We do this based on four values:

a.  Reaching the unreached in line with Matt. 24:14, that is, to bring the gospel of the kingdom to every unreached people and place.

b. Accomplishing this through “Church-Planting Movements,” involving multiplying disciples, churches, leaders and movements themselves.

c.  Having a wartime sense of urgency to engage every unreached people and place with a movement strategy by the end of 2025.

     d.  Doing these things in collaboration with others.

         2.  Why are you using the name 24:14?

Matt. 24:14 is the cornerstone for this initiative. Jesus promised: “This gospel of the kingdom will be preached in the whole world as a testimony to all nations (ethne), and then the end will come.” Our focus is to participate in seeing the gospel go to every people group on earth. We long to be in the generation that finishes what Jesus began and other faithful workers before us have given their lives to. We know that Jesus waits to return until every people group has had an opportunity to respond to the gospel and become part of His Bride.

3.  Are you setting 2025 as the year that all nations will be reached?

No, our goal is to engage every unreached people and place with an effective kingdom movement strategy by December 31, 2025. This means that a team (local or expat or combination) equipped in movement strategy will be on location in every unreached people and place. There is no implication related to a date that the task will be finished. That is God’s responsibility. God determines when movements take off.

         4.  Why do you feel such urgency in moving this forward?

2000 years have passed since Jesus spoke the Great Commission. 2 Pet. 3:12 tells us to “hasten the day of his return.” Ps. 90:12 tells us to number our days. A group of 24:14 founders waited on the Lord and asked if we should set a deadline or not. We felt Him telling us that by setting an urgent deadline, we could make wiser use of our time and make the sacrifices needed to fulfill the vision. 

5.  Are you trying to get all missions organizations to align around your strategy?

No. We recognize that God has called many churches, mission organizations and networks to specialized ministries. The 24:14 Coalition is composed of people and organizations that either have the desire to be or have been successful catalysts of movements, using different strategies. Various organizations and practitioners have unique methods and tools but all of us share many of the same CPM distinctives. These are strategies based on trying to apply in modern contexts patterns of disciple-making and church formation we see in the gospels and the book of Acts.

6.  There have been other attempts to get people to collaborate on finishing the Great Commission. What is different about 24:14?

24:14 builds on these other good initiatives. Some of the previous ones helped the global church reach certain milestones (e.g. adopting people groups). 24:14 is about finishing what others have started by catalyzing movements that can reach entire people groups and places in a sustained manner. The 24:14 coalition is partnering with other networks like Ethne, Finishing the Task, GACX, GCPN, etc. One distinctive is that 24:14 is led by Church-Planting Movement leaders. Another factor is that experience in movements (particularly among the unreached) has increased substantially, resulting in much-improved “best practices.”

7.  What is a “Church-Planting Movement?”

A Church-Planting Movement (CPM) is defined as the multiplication of disciples making disciples and leaders developing leaders, resulting in indigenous churches planting churches which begin to spread rapidly through a people group or population segment. These new disciples and churches begin to transform their communities as the new Body of Christ lives out kingdom values.

When consistent (multiple-stream) 4th generation reproduction of churches occurs, church planting has crossed a threshold to becoming a sustainable movement. While it may take years to begin, once a movement starts, we usually see this 4th generation threshold crossed within three to five years. Increasingly, CPMs are starting new CPMs within other people groups and population segments.

8.  What is your definition of church?

Acts 2:36-47.

While there are a variety of definitions around the world, most of these movements would agree that a core definition of church is what we see the first church being and doing in Acts 2. In fact, many of them would lead a newly baptized group of disciples to study Acts 2 and begin to pray and work out how they can become this type of church. We encourage you to do this exercise with your own church.

These churches go on to study and apply many more aspects of being church from the New Testament. We encourage you to have a definition of church that is no more and no less than the New Testament gives us.

9.  Are there CPMs in the Bible?

Church-Planting Movements is a modern term to describe what has been happening throughout Church history.

Undoubtedly Church-Planting Movements have been around since the first century of the Christian era. You only have to read between the lines to see Church-Planting Movements as the back-story for the rise of Christianity from Christ to Constantine. In his book of Acts, Luke reported that: “all the Jews and Greeks who lived in the province of Asia heard the word of the Lord.” (Acts 19:10) The Apostle Paul commended the Thessalonians through whom “the Lord’s message…has become known everywhere,” (1 Thess. 1:8) and near the end of his life declared: “there is no more place for me to work in these regions,” (Rom. 15:23) because of his desire “to preach the gospel where Christ was not known.” (Rom. 15:20)¹

10.  Is the CPM approach against traditional churches?

God is using all kinds of churches to accomplish His purposes in the world. We are all parts of the Body of Christ and we need to honor each other. We do realize that church history and current global realities make it very clear that the Great Commission cannot be completed using only traditional church models. The amount of resources needed for a traditional Western style church does not allow for the growth needed to exceed population growth, and cultural patterns identified with the Western world are often a poor medium for bringing the gospel to non-Westerners (who constitute most of the world's unreached peoples). The primary push for CPMs is the reaching of those who are not being reached and are not likely to be reached by traditional church patterns. Biblical patterns that are simple and easily reproducible (such as those God is using to bring CPMs) offer the best hope for completing His command to bring Good News to all nations and peoples. So for anyone serious about reaching the unreached in significant numbers, we strongly recommend ministry patterns that aim to catalyze a CPM.

11.  Why do you advocate rapid multiplication? Doesn’t that increase the possibility for heresy?

Actually, heresy is generally less prevalent in movements because of the very interactive nature of discipleship. Heresy is a seed the enemy sows among groups of believers whether they are a part of movements or traditional churches. The question is not whether the enemy will sow such problems but whether we are equipping disciples and churches to guard against false teachings and address them when they arise. Even the New Testament church faced such challenges, but equipping believers to rely on Scripture as their authority and study the Scripture together as the body (as in Acts 17:11) helps guard against creative and eloquent false teachers. Heresy usually comes from influential, dynamic, and persuasive leaders and/or institutions. We avoid and deal with heresy by going back to God’s Word and self-correcting according to God’s Word. The strategies we use to make disciples are very Bible-based. Questions that arise are brought back to the Word of God, in order for God’s Word to be the source for answers, not individuals.

A focus on obedience-based discipleship instead of knowledge-based discipleship also protects against heresy. In other words, disciples are not just committed to gaining knowledge, but the measure of their discipleship is obedience to that knowledge.

12.  Does rapid growth of a movement lead to shallow discipleship?

Shallow discipleship tends to take place when new believers learn that:

• the main thing expected of them is to attend church meetings once or twice a week.
• obedience to Scripture is encouraged but not required.
• the most important teachings from God will be presented to them by a church leader.

             Sadly, these are among the messages many believers around the world receive.

The best way to nurture real discipleship is to train new believers to:

• interact with God’s Word (the Bible) for themselves and discover (together with other believers) what it says and how it applies to their lives.
• obey what they believe God is telling them to do through His Word.
• share the “real situation” of their lives with other followers of Jesus, pray for and encourage one another, and apply the “one anothers” of the NT.
• share the reality of life in Christ with those who don’t yet know Him.

    These patterns of real discipleship are at the heart of what we see in Church-Planting Movements.

Aren’t movements just a fad?

There have been movements throughout history including in the book of Acts, the Celtic movement led by Patrick, the Moravian movement, the Wesleyan movement, the Welsh revival, etc. This new wave of movements began in 1994, 24 years ago, and is increasing exponentially through the present with over 650 identified movements.

Like the early church, these movements are—to put it in technical terms—”messy.” They are full of humans and human weaknesses and God’s strength despite those weaknesses. If you have other questions or other answers we would be glad to dialogue. You can write us at [email protected].