In January, Co-Mission, a network of local churches in London, launched a film We Plant Churches to Reach the Lost.
Through a series of testimonies the film explains why the network does what it does. Co-mission seeks to follow Christ’s command in Matthew 28:19: ‘Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptising them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit.’
Same mission
Accordingly, Richard Coekin, Director of Co-Mission writes: ‘As a network we are not trying to plant churches in London just to having a growing network. We are planting churches to help reach the lost of London. We believe that the defining activity of a church is Bible teaching and the primary goal of a church is to glorify God through holy evangelism. For, when God took flesh in Jesus, He came as the holy evangelist, the divine cross-cultural missionary from heaven and wise church-planter, building His house upon the rock of the gospel.’ Two encouraging examples of going and making disciples can be found at Bridge Church, Peckham, and Dundonald Church, Raynes Park.
New church
Bridge Church, Peckham was launched in January 2019. Their strategy is simple: engage the local community primarily through door knocking, evangelise the interested primarily through one-to-one Bible study, establish the believers primarily through the Sunday gathering, and equip the enthusiastic primarily through midweek ministry training. There have been huge encouragements in the early days for this group of 30. A minister-in-training and two Cornhill students have strengthened the ministry team, as well as some people joining the plant from the local community, either as Christians looking for a place to call home, or from invitations from friends.
New building
Meanwhile Dundonald Church, Raynes Park, has been meeting in a converted paper factory for 11 years. However, significant growth has meant that the venue needs to be rethought. In God’s kindness money has been raised to rebuild the church building, but the short-term reality means Dundonald will need somewhere else to meet for up to two years. They are seeing this potential vulnerability of the church as an opportunity to ‘plant out temporarily’. Their ‘Let’s Go’ vision evening clarified how the church will reach the community from their temporary venues in a local school and parish church.
Coekin concludes: ‘We’re are praying that all the churches in the network, no matter their age or stage, retain the urgency that is there from the launch. ‘Since, then, we know what it is to fear the Lord, we try to persuade others. What we are is plain to God, and I hope it is also plain to your conscience’ (2 Corinthians 5:11).
