THE HOLISTIC CHURCH

                                                                                 Pr Arthur Thangiah

When Jesus walked on the face of this earth, the gospels record 12 instances of his telling people “Be whole”.  The word “whole” implies being wholesome or completely sound. Jesus was concerned that the people who came to him, would not only receive their immediate need fulfilled (healing, deliverance etc) but receive all that the Father had in store for them and be completely sound.

 Today, as Jesus is seated on the right hand of the Father, his concern is that the church, his body be whole. This wholeness would imply a balanced growth in the 3 dimensions of internal quality growth, external numerical growth and influence upon the community. Rick Warren has mentioned in his book “The purpose – Driven Church” that “A great commitment to the great commission of Mt 28:18-20 exhorts us to “Go therefore and make disciples of all nations baptizing them in name of the Father and of the son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you”

The great commandment of Mt 22:37 – 40 exhorts us to “Love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul and with all your mind and also to love your neighbour as yourself.”

 Proposed below are some salient features of a prototype church model that would seek to embody wholeness.

 1.     Model of every member of the church in ministry

Lawrence Khong in his book “The Apostolic Cell Church” mentions in a lighter vein about the usual expectations of a pastor as follows “Wanted the perfect pastor, approximately 28 years old, with 30 years preaching experience. Must have a heart for the youth, work well with the elderly, participate in church sports, visit every hospitalized member, participate in evangelism outreaches, make 30 calls per day on church members, always be in the office when parishioners phone. Walking on water a plus, “The wholistic Church seeks to move away from a pastor-does-all model or the pastor plus few do all model to the 20/80 model. The 20/80 model is derived from Eph 4:11-16 i.e. the pastor and his team of leaders constitute about 20% of the church and they equip the other 80% to do the work of ministry thus enabling the church to grow. Equipping is not to happen by chance but by intention through training materials, one-to-one mentoring, specialized one-year training centres etc.

 At the Bombay Baptist Church, we have a one year training centre, wherein chosen disciples are trained for one year in order to equip them to minister as well as to become equippers. The training centre runs in English , Tamil and Hindi. In addition, equipping seminars are conducting regularly for leaders and potential leaders.

 2.     Model of every Church releasing agape into the community

The church is called upon to translate the agape love of Christ into action into the poor and socially marginalised sections of society and to see the people in these sections transformed and integrated into society.

 We have floated a social trust to oversee activities of ministering agape love to street children, drug addicts, prisoners and other destitutes of society who will normally never walk into a “church.” Initial friendship contacts are established on the streets, railway platforms etc; As friendship increases, help centres are set up where people can come in and receive help, (like Balwadis for street children, de-addiction camps for drug addicts etc;) Further rehab centres are set-up (like children’s homes for street children, home for ex-addicts etc;) to help the concerned people to be transformed and rehabilitated into society.

 3.     Model of varying methods of casting the net

Jesus’ command “Follow me and I will make you fishers of men” was in the context of community and implied a community or group of people casting the net as opposed to individual fishermen. The church as the redeemed community casts out the net in various ways.

 1.     Preaching and persuasion of the mind

2.     Good works that touch the heart

3.     Demonstration of the power of God in signs and wonders expressed through healings, miracles, deliverances etc.

We have sought to implement all three aspects.

People can come in to the contact and help centres in the community and receive the love of Jesus in action. Seeker-sensitive Sunday meetings seek to present the gospel in a seeker-friendly and simple to understand way and thereby persuade people to receive the goodness of God. Power demonstration meetings are also held wherein the sick, the bound and tormented can see the demonstration of the power of God in providing instant release from sickness and bondage.

 4.     Model of financial self-sufficiency of the church for the work in the community.

Acts 20:35 says “It is more blessed to give than to receive” The wholistic Church reflects the generous nature of God in the attitude to giving.

 The Old Testament presents a model of giving as follows:

 “The first tithe was given to the Levites – a support to the ministry, (Num 18:21-29). The tithe was brought into the store house (Malachi 3:10).

 “The second tithe was used while going to the temple 3 times a year and was used to celebrate at the temple site with friends, family, servants and others (Dt 12:10-18, II Kings 12:9-12). This tithe could be equater’ to be used for equipping purposes in camps, conferences etc;

“The third tithe was given once in three years (equal to 3.3% every year) and was used for the poor, needy, orphans, widows and (retired) Levites in their home town (Dt 14:28.29). Thus 3.3% of the income was donated to the poor and needy.

Thus at the local church level, everyone is encouraged to tithe, save a tithe to be spent for the equipping conferences and donate 3.3% to the poor through the social trust so that there is planned provision from within to meet all the financial needs.

The above features are by no means exhaustive but when these are built into a prototype church model, it releases an all-round growth in the 3 dimensions of quantity growth, quality growth and influence upon one community. The above model is then duplicated as the church sub-divides or plants a new church in another geographic location thus leading to many wholistic churches that will fill the earth.

© Viv Grigg & Urban Leadership Foundationand other materials © by various contributors & Urban Leadership Foundation,  for The Encarnacao Training Commission.  Last modified: July 2010