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About

The GCM Collective exists to promote, create and equip Gospel Communities on Mission.

A gospel community is a group of believers that lives out the mission of God together as family, in a specific area to a particular people group, by declaring and demonstrating the gospel in tangible forms.  Regular people, living ordinary lives, with great gospel intentionality. 

To learn more about our team here at the GCM Collective go here: Our Team

Vision

One Gospel Community on Mission per 1000 people in every city or region that God allows us to help serve.

Strategy

Organize and develop a GCM Church Multiplication Hub in a city or region as a way to accelerate the multiplication of gospel communities on mission (GCMs) in that area. The Collective of leaders begin to share resources, encouraging one another toward effective gospel ministry with the hope of multiplying GCMs that form into new churches. The goal is to saturate the region with disciples of Jesus living on mission together in everyday life. As the GCM Collective grows, and the local churches mature, gifted leaders are released to serve the ongoing advancement of the gospel through training, coaching and helping to start new gospel works regionally, nationally and internationally.

GCM Church Multiplication Hub

INCLUDES THE FOLLOWING:

GCM Collective

Minimally, one group of 5 leaders from at least 3 churches that agree with the GCM Collective Vision, Strategy and Distinctives working together as a “collective”. This group is committed to take on the initial/primary role of leadership to seed the following components of a Church Multiplication Hub in their city.

Note: Some of these may be traditional churches that are either transitioning to G-C-M or sending out planters; some may be new church plants; some may be currently affiliated with other organizations i.e. Missio, Soma, 3DM, Forge etc.This could be a very diverse group in terms of initial experience–all connected by the GCM Distinctives and the goals of the regional Hub. 

Catalytic Leadership Team

A catalytic team committed to the Ephesians 4 paradigm of equipping will be released and funded by the regional Collective. This team provides a diversity of leadership in evangelism, gospel proclamation, theology, missiology, the arts, pastoral care, spiritual formation, and administration with the goal of facilitating rapid multiplication of gospel communities on mission.

Coaching Structure

Leaders will be trained to coach emerging and established leaders “cross network”, to promote maximum growth, multiplication and learning from other leaders in the Collective.

Church-based Theological Education (CBTE)

Training that develops disciples theologically and practically in the context of local ministry and mission. This will provide equipping for everyday people, pastors and church planters who are prepared and sent to begin new gospel works.

Partnering and Resource Sharing

Partnering on city-wide gospel initiatives and sharing resources such as communication tools, administrative support, building use, training tools etc. All of this with the goal of maximizing Kingdom resources in a city/region to free up local missionaries and pastors for the everyday mission of making disciples.

Learning Experiences

Experiential training provided for the development and multiplication of GCMs and leadership through content, conferences and immersion training. This will take place in the context of a local church and provide practical learning experiences that are short-term (1-3 days), mid-term (1-6 weeks) and long-term (6 mos.–3 years). Created to facilitate learning and education while participating in the life of incarnational, missional communities and their leadership. Participants will experience what everyday gospel ministry looks like, learn theological, missiological and ecclesiological principles and discover how to transfer these concepts into their own context.

GCM Collective Distinctives

GOSPEL COMMUNITIES LIVING ON MISSION IS THE PRIMARY ORGANIZING STRUCTURE OF THE CHURCH

The gospel is central to everything

The gospel is not simply the means by which we are converted–it is the good news of redemption through Jesus Christ that reconciles us to God and adopts us into his family. It transforms our hearts, shapes our ethics, pastors our souls and changes our behavior. It creates the Christian community and defines its purpose. The gospel is the word we speak to bring unbelievers to faith and to bring believers to maturity. The Christian community is created by the gospel for the gospel. 

Community is the primary apologetic of the gospel

Because the Christian community is created by the gospel it is the place where the gospel can be seen and understood. The reign of God is a reign of life, justice, peace, blessing and freedom. But the good news that God is king is not heard as good news by a world that has chosen self-rule. The people of God therefore are to so live under the reign of God that the world sees that God is good and his reign is good news. We explain and commend the gospel through our lives and especially through our life together in Christian community.

Community is missional and mission is communal

The Christian community is created by the gospel for the gospel. So its defining purpose is to glorify Christ by proclaiming and demonstrating the gospel to a needy world. Christian community cannot be introspective. It is always seeking to bless its neighborhood and proclaim Christ to a lost world. Because the Christian community is an apologetic of the gospel, mission should normally not be a lone activity. Wherever possible we want to do mission together and introduce unbelievers to the Christian community.

We share our lives as extended family

The church is the community created by the gospel, so Christians are not individuals who gather for meetings, but members of God’s family. Our identity is communal. We make decisions with regard to the implications for the church, and we make significant decisions in consultation with the church. We should share our lives together as a family. We spend time with one another, care for one another, exhort one another with the gospel, pray with one another and take the initiative to resolve conflict, all the time inviting unbelievers to participate in this common life. In a broken world we offer a place of belonging. Church life is family life.

All believers exercise gospel ministry

Mission should be communal. Gospel ministry is not the preserve of a professional elite or people in full-time ministry. It belongs to all God’s people. We are all given the privilege and responsibility of mission. We are all missionaries. We are not all called to be the same–our different gifts and personalities compliment one another as we share together in the exciting privilege of mission. We need one another. The role of leaders is not to do gospel ministry on behalf of others, but to prepare God’s people for gospel ministry.

Discipleship, shepherding and leadership development happens in community on mission

The Christian community is the primary, God-given context for pastoral care and leadership development. In the Christian community the gospel not only informs the head, but also transforms the heart. The gospel is not only learned, but also lived. We learn about gospel ministry by doing gospel ministry. The idols of our hearts are revealed not in a therapist’s office, nor in a classroom, but in the context of shared lives. And in the context of a shared life we daily apply the gospel to one another’s hearts and lives. 

The goal of teaching and preaching is gospel transformation that equips for ministry

Good Bible teaching and preaching should capture and recapture our affections for Christ. Our goal is not simply to have good Bible teaching, but for the Bible to shape people’s hearts and lives. We want to be doers of the word as well as hearers of the word. The frontline of gospel ministry is not a sermon when the church gathers; it is the lives and words of the people of God throughout the week. Bible teaching, when the church gathers together matters, but it matters because it prepares God’s people for frontline gospel ministry throughout the week. This is to be the goal and measure of our teaching and preaching.

 

For our theological statement go here: The GCM Collective Theological Statement