Church Planting Part 3 - Ian Mckellar

Advice To Get You Going 

Ian & Nola McKellar relocated from South Africa to Asia in 2002.
They went to help build up local churches that relate to the NCMI team.
In 2009 they started leading Church of Joy in Singapore. They have a passion to see God's Word and God's Spirit build the beloved community and bless the city.

My advice to church planters is to preach a series. Preach through a book of the Bible; Matthew or Mark are wonderful as you start. They give you a solid foundation of Christ being central. They give insight into the ways of Jesus, which are definitely so very different to the ways of man. They also help us understand the Trinity and the life of the Spirit.

In all that you preach, remember to preach the gospel. Preach the good news of the cross, and the saving grace of our Lord and Savior Jesus. When you continually preach the gospel your people will not fall into the trap of salvation by good works, or into legalism. Unbelievers will be saved. AND your people will be equipped to preach the gospel to others. The best evangelism training you can do is to always preach the gospel every Sunday. This will equip your people and give them a love for passing on the good news. Equipping the saints for the work of the ministry is one of the major keys to building the church.

Ephesians, or Philippians are also good. They are not too long. Which is good, because as you go you will find God speaking and leading this new church, and you will want to adjust your preaching accordingly. Ephesians gives a very rich understanding of what the church should be; that’s a good way to start. And Philippians is a joyous celebration in the midst of great hardship and opposition. Much needed when you are planting.

Or preach through Romans 15 and Acts 19. Romans 15 lays out Paul’s strategy for church planting. Giving a lot of attention to attitude and the Holy Spirit’s help.

Paul is dealing with relational issues so that Rome can become a base to reach Spain.

Acts 19 is a wonderful account of Paul’s base in Ephesus. It strategically lays out his priorities in building up a new church which will become a base to reach into Europe.

A church planter once told me that planters make their own pressure. He said that the people starting with us do not feel that same pressure; in fact they love the intimacy and the excitement of a new beginning. He told me that he was one of the foundational members of what is now a very large church. When this church was just starting he loved it. He was close to the pastor. And the spiritual life of himself and his family was changing every week. He was not impatient or frustrated about growth in numbers of the church. In fact he liked it like it was!

Try not to become impatient or frustrated. Building up the first core community of believers is vital to later growth. As new people come in they take the example of those already there. So there is great value in building well and not rushing over issues of the heart.

That united core of disciples will become the joyful and peace-filled community who are so filled with hope from God’s word as they faithfully follow Christ Jesus, that they will overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit so that all may glorify the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. (See Romans 15:4-6 & 13). What an exciting adventure, what a privilege! What a King!