The document discusses defining the role and approach of 21st century urban churches. It addresses defining key terms, the historical moment, challenges faced, and establishing an agenda. The agenda emphasizes being apostolic, compassionate, intellectually engaging, pursuing excellence, utilizing media, demanding integrity, thinking globally, and offering holistic ministry. The overall aim is to thoughtfully define how urban churches can most effectively carry out their mission.

1. THE ROLE OF THE 21 ST CENTURY URBAN CHURCH Behold the mounts, they are come unto the city to take it; and the city is given into the hand of the Chaldeans, that fight against it, because of the sword and of the famine and of the pestilence: and what thou hast spoken is come to pass; and behold, thou seest it. And thou hast said unto me…Buy thee the field… (Jeremiah 32:24-25) Pastor Joseph Carlos Robinson Risky Business

2. Sequence Of Ideas Define Our Approach How Should We Think About This Issue? Define Our Terms What Do We Mean By Church, 21 st Century, Urban? Define Our Challenge What Are The Difficulties? Define Our Agenda What Should We Do?

3. FORM PATTERN STRUCTURE ORGANIZATION METHOD TRADITIONS ECCELSIASTICAL NOTES SCRIPTURE (What We Should Do) PRINCIPLES HISTORY (What Has Been Done) LESSONS SITUATIONS (What We Should Be Doing ) IMPLICATIONS P H I L O S O P H Y DEVELOPING A PHILOSOPHY OF MINISTRY Gene Getz Sharpening The Focus Of The Church Anyone who attempts to formulate a biblical philosophy of ministry and develop a contemporary strategy and methodology that stands squarely on scriptural foundations must ask and answer some fundamental questions. Why does the church exist? What is its ultimate purpose? Why has God left it in the world in the first place?

5. DEFINTIONS OF THE CHURCH The whole company of regenerate persons in all times and again, in heaven and on earth…identified with the spiritual kingdom of God; that redeemed humanity in which God in Christ exercises actual spiritual dominion (Strong) The church is hope of the world (Bill Hybels) Wherever Jesus is, there is the church (Ignatius) The church seeks to be an actualization or proximate realization of the Kingdom of God within the conditions of history. The Church seeks to extend the sphere of the Kingdom in real time human history. The local, visible ekkelesia is the whole church expressed locally in a particular time and space. (Thomas Oden)

8. DEFINING THE URBAN CONTEXT Population Growth and Density Sociopolitical Hierarchy Spatial Differentiation Concentrated Poverty Islands Of Affluence Isolated Communities Alternative Economies Destination Of Choice For Immigrants Economic Exploitation

13. DEFINING OUR CHALLENGE 21 ST Century Urban Ministry Is Risky Business Counter Cultural The economic distress of America’s cities may be the most pressing issue facing the nation. Lack of business and jobs in disadvantaged urban area fuels not only a crushing cycle of poverty but also crippling social problems. (Michael Porter) The Manufacturing Base Has Moved South Or Overseas Explosive Suburban and Exburban Growth Dense concentrations of poverty, ignorance, and despair

14. DEFINING OUR CHALLENGE 21 ST Century Urban Ministry Is Risky Business Counterfeit Religion Religion is the opiate of the Masses (Karl Marx) The danger of so much contemporary Christianity is that you end up with a Gospel that endeavors to meet your needs but does not challenge your priorities. (Lewis Gibbs) The Downside Of Prosperity Catholic Church Scandals Widening Suspicion of Influence of “megachurch” phenom Unprecedented Media Attention Everyone Is A Profit

15. DEFINING OUR CHALLENGE 21 ST Century Urban Ministry Is Risky Business Counterintuitive Most investment decisions are driven by interest in stable organizations in a stable environment with proven good and services with a reasonable expectation of a return. It was a small group of eleven men whom Jesus commissioned to carry on his work and to bring the gospel to the whole world. They were not distinguished, they were not well educated; they had no influential backers. In their own nation they were nobodies and in any case, their own nation was a mere second class province on the eastern extremity of the Roman map. If they had stopped to weigh up the probabilities of succeeding in their mission, even granted their conviction that Jesus was alive and his Spirit went with them to equip them equip them for their task, their hearts must surely sunk, so heavily were the odds weighted against them. Michael Green

16. DEFINING OUR CHALLENGE 21 ST Century Urban Ministry Is Risky Business And the disciples were first called Christians at Antioch. (Acts 11:26) Antioch, queen of the east, was the third city in the empire after Rome and Alexandria. It had a population of a half a million ,and was a large international city , and had been so since Alexander the Great had conquered it in the 4 th century. As one of the largest cities of the empire, and one of the great commercial centers of the antiquity with business connections all over the world, Antioch saw the coming and going of all sorts of people from every quarter of the globe. Hellenistic City, Roman city, Jewish city, it was the meeting point of Orient and Greek civilization. (Peter Brown)

22. DEFINING OUR AGENDA WE MUST BE DEMAND INTEGRITY We Must Model Godly Behavior On All Levels Nowhere in the New Testament is the “anointing” listed as a prerequisite for leadership in the local church (Jack Hayford) Likewise, must the deacons be grave, not double tongued, not given to much wine, not greedy of filthy lucre; holding the mystery of the faith in a pure conscience, and these first be proved….(1 Timothy 3:8-10) Character Counts Discipline Matters Trust Is Required Loyalty Is Expected Commitment Is Not Optional Sacrifice Is Necessary

24. DEFINING OUR AGENDA WE MUST BE HOLISTIC We Must Minister To The Whole Person Evangelicalism has been given a hard time in the liberal arts colleges, being depicted as intellectually vacuous, culturally destructive and spiritually simplistic. Evangelicalism is portrayed as something you grow out of, not something you grow up within. I am quite sure that evangelicalism, firmly grounded in the truth and relevance of the Christian gospel, has the potential to extend its influence into the higher education sphere. Not only would this invalidate the seductive stereotypes which are force-fed to our students; it could also lead to the values and beliefs of evangelicalism percolating into areas of our culture where it is at present a silent absence. (Allistar McGrath) Build Housing Parenting Classes Teach Financial Responsibility Teach Healthy Living Encourage Political Participation Build Schools Create Business Leverage Resources Beloved, I wish above all things that thou mayest prosper and be in health even as thy soul prospers. (3 John 2)

26. DEFINING OUR AGENDA RISKY BUSINESS IS THE ONLY KIND OF BUSINESS THAT GOD IS IN Then came the word of the Lord unto Jeremiah, saying Behold, I am the Lord, the God of all flesh: is there anything too hard for me? (Jeremiah 32:27) For without faith, it is impossible to please the Lord. Hebrew 11:6