READING ACTS AS NORMATIVE
A Blueprint for Today
by Gregory Twitchell
2017
ROADBLOCKS AND LAUNCHING PADS
I have been taking and facilitating BILD Series Courses for ten years now. I have seen many people get
excited about the lessons and many have grown immensely from the readings, the Socratic discussions,
and the discovery process. I love those light bulb moments and have watched many times as one student
or another has had those “aha” moments, as someone discovers a previously unrecognized truth, and you
just see their face light up! That is more exciting to me than almost anything else I can
imagine. However, not everyone has embraced the Antioch Courses as quickly as others. There are those
who have either not seen the value of them, or have been turned off by the amount of work required. One
of the biggest roadblocks that I have heard brought up is the idea that the New Testament is normative
and is filled with prescriptive models that we should all follow. These ideas are introduced in the first
course that BILD offers, Acts, which is particularly difficult, as many have been brought up reading the
book as primarily historical in nature. One that provides us with a history of what happened, but
certainly not as something that contains principles we are intended to follow. Some of us have deemed
this “the prescriptive vs. descriptive” debate. Does Acts contain models that are prescribed for us to
follow or does it simply describe for us the events as they happened back then? I believe that the New
Testament is filled with normative principles that we are intended to follow and that the book of Acts in
particular contains a wealth of forms that were reported to us as having happened historically, but were
intended to be passed on and followed today. This doesn’t mean that every detail is prescriptive, but that
there are important concepts that the Apostles intended for the church to follow until Christ returns!
I have wrestled with this for some time, engaging some of my friends in this conversation and trying to
come up with convincing arguments. Here in this paper I have made an attempt to provide a number of
reasons why I believe that the New Testament, and the book of Acts in particular is filled with normative
teaching that applies to us today. Through Luke’s writing, and an understanding of Paul’s mission, his
expectations, his model, and his completed work we will see that there is more here than a history lesson
of what was, it is a blueprint of what should be today.
LUKE’S INTENTION
Luke wrote his two-scroll account for Theophilus, around A. D. 60-62, when Paul was in a Roman prison.
This would have been prior to the martyrdom of James (A.D. 62), the Christian persecution under Nero
(A.D. 64), and the fall of Jerusalem(A. D. 70), as these significant events were not recorded by Luke, and
surely would have been.
Luke 1:1-4
“Inasmuch as many have undertaken to compile a narrative of the things that have been accomplished among
us, 2 just as those who from the beginning were eyewitnesses and ministers of the word have delivered them to
us, 3 it seemed good to me also, having followed all things closely for some time past, to write an orderly
account for you, most excellent Theophilus, 4 that you may have certainty concerning the things you have been
taught.” 1
My understanding of this passage is that Luke, in his introduction to this book, is addressing someone or
some group named “Theophilus” with an orderly written account. He wrote to them “concerning the
things you have been taught”, presumably by word of mouth. By putting these things in print and
circulating them, there would have been opportunity for other eye-witnesses to affirm or deny the
recorded events. Luke believes so strongly in his written record that he proclaims that Theophilus will
1
The Holy Bible: English Standard Version. (2016). (Lk 1:1–4). Wheaton: Standard Bible Society.
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READING ACTS AS NORMATIVE
by Greg Twitchell 3
have “certainty” regarding the things he has been taught. Luke is writing an accurate account that will
stand up to scrutiny and even be confirmed by previous teaching and eye-witness accounts.
This is a 2-book set with the same author, same recipient, and same writing style. Would any of us say
that the Gospel of Luke is not prescriptive? Would we say that Luke wrote his account of the Gospel
merely as historical content for us to have a description of the events? I doubt it. When we read the book
of Luke, we embrace it as being full of principles for us to follow from the words of Jesus, to his style of
teaching, and ministry methods. Do we question whether or not we should follow his example in the
Lord’s Prayer? No, over and over again, we follow the teaching in Luke, while we assume that Acts was
purely a description of what they did back then.
Acts 1:1-8
“In the first book, O Theophilus, I have dealt with all that Jesus began to do and teach, 2 until the day when he
was taken up, after he had given commands through the Holy Spirit to the apostles whom he had chosen. 3 He
presented himself alive to them after his suffering by many proofs, appearing to them during forty days and
speaking about the kingdom of God.
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And while staying with them he ordered them not to depart from Jerusalem, but to wait for the promise of
the Father, which, he said, “you heard from me; 5 for John baptized with water, but you will be baptized with
the Holy Spirit not many days from now.”
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So when they had come together, they asked him, “Lord, will you at this time restore the kingdom to
Israel?” 7 He said to them, “It is not for you to know times or seasons that the Father has fixed by his own
authority. 8 But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you will be my witnesses in
Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.”2
Luke picks up the story very quickly here, seemingly making the assumption that we have already read
his other “best seller”. This second book picks up where the first left off, with an ascription to the same
recipient. In the opening verse we see that Luke is dealing with all that Jesus did and taught. He writes
directly about Jesus in his first volume, the Gospel of Luke, and continues to deal with all that Jesus did
and taught through his Apostles in this second volume, as they carry out his ministry of establishing the
church. If we want to see what he taught them and connect the dots as he did for the Disciples on the
road to Emmaus, then we need to take a really close look at the principles Luke lays out for us in the book
of Acts.
This opening also has a quote from Jesus at the end of verse 6 that could be seen as a Thesis statement,
giving us a clue to the direction this book will take in following the establishment of Christianity from
Jerusalem to the earths end. Arthur Patzia, in his book, The Emergence of the Church, identifies 6
sections in the book of Acts that help us see the organization of the book as a picture of the progression of
the church into the world. He identifies a summary statement at the close of each of these 6 sections:
1. Acts 1:1-6:7
“The word of God continued to spread; the number of the disciples increased greatly
in Jerusalem, and a great many of the priests became obedient to the faith.”
2. Acts 6:8-9:31
“Meanwhile the church throughout Judea, Galilee, and Samaria had peace and was
built up. Living in the fear of the Lord and in the comfort of the Holy Spirit, it
increased in numbers.”
3. Acts 9:32-12:24 “But the word of God continued to advance and gain adherents.”
2
The Holy Bible: English Standard Version. (2016). (Ac 1:1–8). Wheaton: Standard Bible Society.
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4. Acts 12:25-16:5 “So the churches were strengthened in the faith and increased in numbers daily.”
5. Acts 16:6-19:20 “So the word of the Lord grew mightily and prevailed.”
6. Acts 19:21-28:31 “He (Paul) lived there (Rome) two whole years at his own expense and welcomed all
who came to him, proclaiming the kingdom of God and teaching about the lord Jesus
Christ with all boldness and without hindrance.”
This understanding is helpful in that it shows us what Luke’s intention was in writing, and the summary
statements give us the idea that this is the end of a section. This would explain why he leaves out so
much of the story from the other Apostles perspective and why he doesn’t give us an ongoing picture of
what is going on back in Jerusalem. His concern was to take us from Jerusalem to Rome and show the
progression of the gospel and the growth of the church as the instrument by which the great commission
would be corporately accomplished. Patzia goes on to write, “. . . the growth of the church as a whole is
subordinate to Luke’s main theme of showing how the gospel spread from Jerusalem to Rome. These cities
are the two geographical foci around which the book of Acts is structured.”
“If it can be demonstrated that Luke’s intent in Acts was to lay down a pattern for the
church for all times, then that pattern surely becomes normative, that is, it is what God
requires of all Christians under any conditions.” - How To Read The Bible For All It’s
Worth, Fee & Stuart p. 89
So why did Luke record the things he did and leave out so many other details? If Luke were writing as a
historian, then he did a terrible job! He mentions people that we have no context for, and some of the key
story lines and main characters go out of the story never to return. If Luke were writing any type of
history for us, then what happened to the Church in Jerusalem? Where does Peter travel to while Paul is
on his missionary journeys. Where do the other Apostles end up? Why are we left with so many
questions? A good historian, writing an “ordered account”, should have given us more details of the key
events and players in the story. But he doesn’t. He follows Paul as the Church expands into the Roman
Empire.
Fee and Stuart write in their helpful work, How to Read the Bible for All It’s Worth, “Luke has interests
that include more than simply entertaining or informing the reader. Making note of those interests is of
special importance as you read or study Acts. Exegesis of Acts, therefore, includes not only the purely
historical questions like what happened? But also the theological ones such as what was Luke’s purpose in
selecting and shaping the material in this way?3” Why did a well-educated researcher, who had access to
first hand accounts, include the things he did and leave out other things? He certainly could have given us
a lot more information. So Fee & Stuart’s question of “what was Luke’s purpose in selecting and shaping
the material” is very apropos. What was his intention in writing if not to give us a historical account? I
believe that he was letting us know how the church went out from Jerusalem to Judea and Samaria and to
the ends of the earth. He not only follows this progression of growth making the Church the main
character instead of the people, but he gives us insights into the principles that gave the church a solid
foundation.
Fee, Gordon and Stewart, Doug. How to Read the Bible For All It’s Worth. Grand Rapids Michigan:
Zondervan Corp. 1972. Print.
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David Hesselgraves Pauline Cycle4 (see illustration below) provides us some insight into many of the
things Paul did in each city he visited. I appreciate this visual and I think that it shows us the value of a
church being mission minded in its approach to the spread of the gospel, the making of disciples and the
establishment of churches to propagate the work of being a pillar of truth and good works from
generation to generation. It helps me to see the process that he followed and the valuable principles that
our churches today could emulate and measure themselves against. Each of these 10 points are rooted in
scripture and have a purpose for the church.
PAUL’S MISSION
The questions arises, did Paul have a strategy for his missionary activity? Was Hesselgrave correct in his
research? If no, then Paul was a master of going with the flow and God superintended in such a way that
we have never seen before or since. If yes, then either Paul was a genius, or the Lord had an intentional
Hesselgrave, David. Planting Churches Cross Culturally: North America and Beyond. Baker Books. 2000.
Print. Page 47.
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plan in mind for Paul to follow. As we look at the following verses, I believe that we will see that God had
a specific plan for the Bride of His son, which would be revealed through Paul’s ministry.
Ephesians 3:3-10
“3 how the mystery was made known to me by revelation, as I have written briefly. 4 When you read this, you can
perceive my insight into the mystery of Christ, 5 which was not made known to the sons of men in other
generations as it has now been revealed to his holy apostles and prophets by the Spirit. 6 This mystery is that the
Gentiles are fellow heirs, members of the same body, and partakers of the promise in Christ Jesus through the
gospel. 7 Of this gospel I was made a minister according to the gift of God’s grace, which was given me by the
working of his power. 8 To me, though I am the very least of all the saints, this grace was given, to preach to the
Gentiles the unsearchable riches of Christ, 9 and to bring to light for everyone what is the plan of the mystery
hidden for ages in God, who created all things, 10 so that through the church the manifold wisdom of God might
now be made known to the rulers and authorities in the heavenly places. 5”
This is a significant passage to our understanding of Paul’s role in the establishment and expansion of the
early church. Not only was he a significant missionary, a gifted evangelist, and a prolific writer, but he is
claiming to be the bearer of insight into a mystery of God, whose understanding has been kept secret
from other believers since ages past. This is truly, as Steve Kemp, Academic Dean of the Antioch School
pointed out to me, an “apologetic for Paul and the apostolic plan”. Understanding the significant role of
sodal leaders in doing the work of planting and establishing churches is a critical aspect of the success of
the First Century Church and a missing piece in our Denomination today. This revelation was given to
him from the Holy Spirit and it affects not only the preaching of the gospel to the Gentiles, (which Peter
had previously dealt with in his vision of the animals on the bed sheet) but it also affects the Covenant or
“promise” that comes through Jesus the Messiah, and finally, it affects the furtherance of the gospel
message and making of disciples through this organism called “the church” throughout the ages. Let me
break this down one point at a time.
First, Paul claims to have insight into a mystery of God that has been kept secret for ages past. This
mystery is referred to in several places including Romans 11 and 16. In Chapter 11 he says, “25 Lest you
be wise in your own sight, I do not want you to be unaware of this mystery, brothers: a partial hardening has
come upon Israel, until the fullness of the Gentiles has come in.6” The fullness of the Gentiles refers to those
outside of the Jewish faith who would come to accept Jesus as Savior and Lord. This mystery that was
explained fully in Ephesians 3, appears to be something that Paul referred to often and was part of a two
pronged mission statement that the Lord had given him. The Kerygma, or proclamation of the gospel to
the Gentiles and the establishment of the Church, the way God intended, through the ages, until the full
number of Gentiles has been saved. Which presumably will precede the Second Coming of the Lord.
Secondly, we see in Romans 16:25 Paul says, “25 Now to him who is able to strengthen you according to my
gospel and the preaching of Jesus Christ, according to the revelation of the mystery that was kept secret for
long ages.7” With our hindsight, we can look back to the Old Testament and see where the text points to
the seed of Abraham being the father of many Nations, and to the coming Messiah as being the Savior of
the World. In all of this we read into it our understanding of Jesus as coming to redeem the Jews and
Gentiles alike, but this wouldn’t have been as obvious to the Jews of Paul’s day. Many in fact tried to stop
him or make the Gentiles at least become Jews first. But this wasn’t the plan of God. So Paul becomes the
Apostle to the Gentiles.
The Holy Bible: English Standard Version. (2016). (Eph 3:3–10). Wheaton: Standard Bible Society.
The Holy Bible: English Standard Version. (2016). (Ro 11:25). Wheaton: Standard Bible Society.
7 The Holy Bible: English Standard Version. (2016). (Ro 16:25). Wheaton: Standard Bible Society.
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The third significant part of this revelation is that Paul is given a “plan, management, or administration”
to follow in regards to the church. The Greek word here, is oikonomia which primarily means “the
management of a household or house law or house rules”. Paul is indicating here by the use of this word
that he has been given the understanding of how to set up, much like a steward, the management of God’s
household-the Church. This divinely inspired insight into the management and operation of the church
suggests that Paul is speaking for God in the way he wants his Churches to be set up and run. Paul asserts
that he is God’s mouthpiece in establishing this organism called the church. That through the principles
he passes on to us through Luke’s account of the establishment of the Church we are to take notice and
even emulate! If Paul had not intended for us to follow his model in church planting and church life,
perhaps he could have used another Greek word that implies household suggestions rather than
household rules or law.
PAUL’S EXPECTATIONS
Jeff Reed writes, “Paul expected people to follow the principles he established for the local churches. Those
churches who had not yet fully followed his instructions were considered as needing to ‘be set in order’ (i.e.
to be lacking)8.”
Paul had a certain expectation throughout his ministry and writing that what he had taught, and the
principles he had established should be continued. As he wrote to Titus, “5 This is why I left you in Crete,
so that you might put what remained into order, and appoint elders in every town as I directed you 9 .”
Apparently, there was a certain “order” for things to be put into in each town. Paul had spent time teaching
Titus as he had done with Timothy, Silas and others to go and represent him to the churches that they had
established. He didn’t want them doing whatever they wanted. Following their-own understanding of what it
meant to be a church. He wanted them to be ordered the way he had directed them. There were correct steps
and principles and incorrect ones. So how are we to know what “order” Paul wanted things put into?
I believe that this comes through the writing of his Epistles. In each of his letters, whether it is to a church or an
individual, he is bringing some level of correction and teaching them how they should be functioning. This is
called the “Establishing process” whereby the church is taught to function a certain way, or to follow a certain
model. One of the beautiful things about Christianity is that there is form and there is freedom, the important
thing is to know the parameters of each. For example, no where in the New Testament are we told how long we
should worship for, what instruments we can and can’t use, or what style we should follow. Does this mean
that anything goes? No because there are principles throughout scripture that God gives us to follow regarding
the attitudes of our hearts as we worship. We have examples of songs in the Old and New Testaments, and we
are told to worship with “Psalms, Hymns, and Spiritual Songs” (Eph. 5:19; Col. 3:16). So there is some form
within a wide range of freedom that allows for cultural and traditional differences, even to some degree our
preferences regarding worship. Throughout the New Testament, there are many examples of form and freedom
that we need to understand and follow.
I believe that part of Paul’s Job description was the revealing of God’s “house order”. Reed writes, “Paul
understood his job to be one of declaring how God wanted His church structured and how it was to function
during His administration. He had a two-fold job description:
A. To preach the gospel to the Gentiles
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Reed, Jeff. Acts Course-Project Guides and Models. LearnCorp, L.C. 1987. Print. Page 41.
The Holy Bible: English Standard Version. (2016). (Tt 1:5). Wheaton: Standard Bible Society.
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B. To bring to light the administration of the mystery (Eph. 3:8-10; 1 Tim. 3:14-15)
These “house order” texts were certainly intended to be more than a teaching for the believer’s back then,
but principles for us to follow throughout the existence of the church. They are foundational to the
operation and our understanding of what the church is.
All of this recorded information should be seen as more than a historical example, but as being pregnant
with principles that we should be following today. 2 Timothy 2:2 says, “2 and what you have heard from
me in the presence of many witnesses entrust to faithful men, who will be able to teach others also.10” Many of
us have taught on this passage, and have counted through the generations listed here. Paul-Timothy-faithful
men-others also = 4 groups or generations, implying that this teaching is to be passed on from generation to
generation. Paul also trained Titus, Silas, John Mark and others who in turn passed on the same training to
others. And the others didn’t stop, but passed it down the line. We are in the same “generational” lineage when
we take Paul’s teaching seriously today!
We love to teach on this passage referring to the gospel or the teaching of the New Testament, often referring to
the spoken word. I would take it one step further. While I believe that Paul passed on great teaching and much
of it was recorded for our benefit in his letters, the text says that, “they heard from him in the presence of many
witnesses. . .” This implies to me that he is not only referring to his messages, but to what these witnesses saw
him model in his life and ministry. How did he teach people? What is the model that he would have them pass
on? What have they experienced in the life of the church that he would want them to remember and emulate? I
have had a number of interns over the years. 10 while doing youth ministry and pastoral ministry and 4 while
serving as a Superintendent. While I hope that they have learned a lot from the things I have said, I would
guess that many of the lessons that will stick with them the longest will be the ones that I modeled. How did I
prepare that sermon series? How did I interact with my staff? Why did I organize that event the way I did?
How did I love my wife and children? So much of what we remember is not from what was spoken, but what
we saw modeled. I would guess that these men would have learned a lot about how Paul preached in a new
town, how he gathered new converts and instructed them. How he organized these new born churches and
prepared local leaders to take over when they moved on. I believe that much of this is not verbalized in the
Epistles so much as modeled in the narrative of the book of Acts.
PAUL’S COMPLETED WORK
One of the most perplexing passages I have ever come across in the New Testament is found in Romans
15:23 where he says, “23 But now I have finished my work in these regions, and after all these long years of
waiting, I am eager to visit you. 11” What does Paul mean by saying, “I have finished my work”? How can he
say that when there are so many people who haven’t accepted Christ? So many, who haven’t even heard the
gospel. Let alone all the places where there was no church of any flavor, none. How can Paul say that his work
is done when the church had just been birthed and there was so much left to do?
I believe that Paul made this comment because he had accomplished what the Lord had given him to do. Paul’s
job wasn’t to evangelize the world, but to establish churches in key cities who would plant churches that plant
churches. Paul knew that if he established churches who would spontaneously expand and multiply, then his
work was essentially done when he had infiltrated the key cities that the Lord had directed him to.
The Holy Bible: English Standard Version. (2016). (2 Ti 2:2). Wheaton: Standard Bible Society.
Tyndale House Publishers. (2013). Holy Bible: New Living Translation (Ro 15:23). Carol Stream, IL:
Tyndale House Publishers.
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by Greg Twitchell 9
The important point here is that the model matters. If Paul had established a mega church, it would have grown
really large, but not necessarily have multiplied across the countryside. If he had planted traditional churches,
they would not have lasted for the long haul. Paul knew that the model that he had been given by God through
the Holy Spirit was one that would stand the test of time. Networks of House Churches that were simple in
nature, organized like a household, and geared toward spontaneously expanding quickly and easily. This model
was so effective and Paul was so confident that it would work across every culture, every social group, and
every age, that he had complete peace about considering his work accomplished.
Roland Allen points out, “And the work which he did was really a completed work. So far as the foundation
of the churches is concerned, it is perfectly clear that the writer of Acts intends to represent St. Paul’s work
as complete. The churches were really established. Whatever disasters fell upon them in later years,
whatever failure there was, whatever ruin, failure was not due to any insufficiency or lack of care and
completeness in the Apostle’s teaching or organization. When he left them he left them because his work
was fully accomplished.12”
OUR TRADITIONS & PAUL’S MODEL
I wrestled with this picture: Are we to imitate everything we see in the New Testament? Are we to do
ministry exactly as Peter and Paul and John did? Of course not—we can drive instead of walk, email
instead of hand deliver letters, etc. We have functions we must carry out such as preaching the gospel,
establishing believers in the faith and training leaders to carry on the work. But we have freedom when it
comes to the forms we use to carry out these functions.
But, I realized something pretty important: Just because we have freedom, doesn’t mean it would be wise
to choose any form we want. If we’re going to choose forms different than the first-century forms, we
must have a very compelling reason to do so. We are compelled by our commission and our love for
people to choose not just good forms—but the best forms. Forms that are the most effective at winning
the lost, building up believers in the faith and training leaders. Not just forms that are familiar,
comfortable and less demanding, but “becoming all things to all men so that we may by all means save
some” (1 Corinthians 9:22). That means choosing methods even if they are unfamiliar, uncomfortable or
very demanding.
There are some principles and models that Paul and the Apostles lay out for us that are incredibly
important. Howard Snyder points out in his book, The Form of the Church, the importance that the right
model can bring. “As we take a closer look at structure, I emphasize that the structure is not the Church,
just as the wineskin is not the wine. But the structure is necessary in order for the Church to live and serve in
space and time. Every Christian fellowship must have a culturally appropriate way of doing things at
certain times and in certain places. A church which intends to grow and serve the Kingdom of God must be
structured in harmony with the biblical understanding of the Church. This is not to say that a church
structured otherwise will not grow, for churches with the most diverse structures have obviously gown and
survived. But a church not structured in harmony with biblical principles will never achieve the quality of
growth and the authenticity of discipleship which God intends.13”
Allen, Roland. Missionary Methods: St. Paul’s or Ours. Grand Rapids, Michigan: Eerdmans. Print. Page 3.
Snyder, Howard. The Form of the Church-From the Community of the King. Intervarsity Press. 1977.
Print. Page 139.
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Take a step back for a moment and look across the history of the Church since its inception till today. We
have seen the early church take off and get rooted to the point where the church has spread across the
world to almost every Nation and culture. But there were a lot of bumps in the road between here and
there. Around 590AD Gregory the Great saved Christendom from the Barbarians who invaded Rome
multiple times during its years of decay. He and the monks who assisted him saved the religious writings
and art. By retreating to their monasteries, they preserved private holiness as well as assisting with
bringing societal and political stability.
In 1054 The Church went through a huge split and divided into the Eastern Orthodox Church and the
Western Holy Catholic Church. Phyllis Tickle writes in her book, The Great Emergence, “Luther had his
Theses and his hammer. In 1054, the Patriarch of Greek or Eastern Orthodox Christianity had his
anathemas and Leo IX had his bulls of excommunication. The Patriarch had Constantinople and the Pope
had Rome. One had Greek and used leavened bread for the mass and believed that the Holy Spirit descended
from God the Father. The other called Latin the language of God and God’s uses, used only unleavened bread
in the communion meal, and argued that the Holy Spirit descends equally from God the Father and God the
Son.14” Thus a church split like you have never seen before divided not only Christianity, but in many
ways the map and much of human history as a result.
This chart shows that
significant events in God’s
plan for mankind happen
about every 500 years.
YEARS
650
400
464
619
557
464
463
500
2100BC
1450BC
1050BC
586BC
33AD
590AD
1054AD
1517AD
2017AD
God Calls Abram
Moses leads Israelites out of Egypt
Davidic Monarchy
Solomons Temple Destroyed – Babylonian Captivity
Jesus Ministry/Launch of apostolic mission
Gregory the Great
Great Schism
Great Reformation
TODAY
The Catholic Church grew into prominence and became the largest institution the world had ever seen.
With all of its edicts from the Pope, traditions, Latin Bibles, hierarchy, and indulgences. Eventually,
reform was needed and Luther sparked it off by tacking his 95 Thesis to the Wittenberg Door in 1517.
The Reformation brought about some significant theological changes but it fell short of implementing the
churches practice. Here we are now, 500 years later, celebrating (if that is the right term) the
Reformation, and wondering what is next? Some are content with the fractured plurality of
denominations and non-denominations that we exist with. While many of us are dissatisfied with the
church hopping, consumer minded, age segregated, program driven, entertainment that is called “church”
today. Even if you attend a church that doesn’t have any of that, stop and consider how many traditions
that your church follows that are not found in scripture. A quick list may include:
 Having a bulletin
 Printing an order of service
 Having a Sunday School
 Meeting in a building that we call the “church”
 Communion on the first Sunday of the month
 Having a “Pastor” who does most of the ministry of the church
 Annual congregational meetings
 Church Boards that are made up of representatives
14
Tickle, Phyllis. The Great Emergence. Baker Books. 2008. Print. Page 20.
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1
by Greg Twitchell 1
Having age and gender segregated ministries
While these are not necessarily bad or wrong, we have certainly built a strong attachment to many of
these preferences that are simply traditions that we have developed over time and are not scriptural
mandates. Meanwhile, many of the things that scripture does teach have been forgotten along the way. I
believe that we need to get back to Paul’s model and rediscover the principles that made the early church
so effective for the first few hundred years of its existence. I believe that we are on the cusp of some
major transformation in church history once again, and that the church of tomorrow won’t look exactly
like it does today. If we are going to adopt a major change, lets at least make one that is founded on
scriptural principals as closely as possible.
THE WAY FORWARD IS BACK
“By and large most sectors of evangelical Protestantism have a “restoration movement” mentality. We
regularly look back to the church and Christian experience in the first century either as the norm to be
restored or the ideal to be approximated.15” - Fee & Stuart
As I study the early church, I can’t help but come away with a sense of amazement at the growth they
experienced. Over the first 300 years, they grew by 40% annually! According to Rodney Stark in his
book, The Rise of Christianity estimated that they grew from 1000 believers in year 40 to 33,822,008 in
the year 350. That is unprecedented! We’ve never seen that kind of growth recorded at any other time in
the life of the church! Oh, except when the church in China had to go underground and meet in homes.
Or, more recently when the church in India and other parts of Asia have grown by millions upon millions
through house church movements over the past decade. Huh, I wonder if there is some correlation there?
All three times that the church has grown like crazy has been during times of persecution, and when the
church was following a simple New Testament model. Persecution may be coming to this country at
some point, the question is whether we will slowly die out like the Evangelical Church in Europe, or go
through another “reformation” and find new life and vitality like India and Africa are experiencing today.
CHRISTIAN GROWTH PROJECTED AT 40% PER DECADE
YEAR
NUMBER OF CHRISTIANS
40
1000
15
1400
100
7530
150
40,496
200
217,795
250
1,171,356
300
6,299,832
350
33,822,008
*Based on an estimated population of 60 million.16
PERCENT OF POPULATION
0.0017
0.0023
0.0126
0.07
0.36
1.9
10.5
56.5
Fee, Gordon and Stewart, Doug. How to Read the Bible For All It’s Worth. Grand Rapids Michigan:
Zondervan Corp. 1972. Print. Page 88.
16 Stark, Rodney. The Rise of Christianity. San Francisco: Harper. 1997. Print. Page 7.
15
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I honestly believe that Holy Spirit gave Paul the plan for the church. While there is plenty of room within
the plan for cultural differences and creative expression, there are some very solid principals that should
be followed regarding the purpose of the church, our structure, our mission, our understanding of
planting, and how we train and equip leaders to name a few. It is not my purpose here to explain all of
these in detail, but to suggest that we should gain a better understanding of the Biblical model and begin
moving toward this “Biblical Blueprint” in our ministry today.
It is my sincere prayer that we will be open to studying together, afresh, the early church model, and
consider how we might plant new works with those who are willing to be sent out to follow this new/old
model. I believe that change will require a tremendous paradigm shift for all of us that will not come
without intentional study and a willingness to break from some of our traditions. I also believe that the
way forward in planting will require that some of our established traditional churches will have to give
up some very good people and send them out like Paul and Barnabas from Antioch, to take part in a
church planting movement across our Jerusalem, Judea, and Samaria! My goal for us as a Region is not to
plant a church and pat ourselves on the back, feeling like we have done something tremendous. But
rather, our goal is to launch a movement of planting multiple house churches all over New England.
Continuing the story of Luke and Paul and the progression of the gospel through the establishment of
Churches to the uttermost parts of the earth!
Rev. Greg Twitchell is married to Missie and they have 4
children that they home school. Greg graduated from Gordon
College with a B.A. in Biblical and Theological Studies and
Youth Ministry. He served as Youth Pastor at Oxford AC
Church, as Pastor of the Port Clyde AC Church, and currently
serves as Superintendent of the Eastern Region of Advent
Christian General Conference.
He is passionate about Leadership Development,
Apprenticeship, Church Planting, and seeing the Church in New
England revitalized. Strengths Finder:
Responsibility – Maximizer – Belief – Learner - Input
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