Planting Churches Among the City's Poor - Volume 2

P ART I: C OACHING U RBAN C HURCH P LANTERS • 131

2. Identified, Commissioned, and Released Indigenous Leaders

a. Selected by and for the body publicly and prayerfully

b. Determiners of the church’s direction and operation

c. Accountable to the church’s membership for their life and ministry

d. The body exercising wisdom as it determines which leaders to fund (i.e., how many it can afford to fund fully or partially), while at the same time relying on lay leaders and members to meet its needs as God leads

e. Acknowledged separately from missionary leadership as authority of the body

3. Selection of its Own Pastor and Pastoral Staff

a. Creation of a charter/by-laws/constitution/covenant delineating role of pastor(s) and relationship to body

b. Installation of a pastor duly ratified by membership and endorsed by leadership

c. Formal recognition of pastor’s authority and responsibility

d. Affirmation of community’s support and submission to pastoral leadership

4. Limited and Decreasing Oversight, Participation, and Direction

a. Missionaries have surrendered all significant positions and authority

b. Clear understanding of the role of the missionaries presently serving our body

c. Distinct lines between missionaries and indigenous leaders in decision-making and direction setting of the church

d. Encouragement for missionaries to seek God’s leading regarding new communities to target for new outreaches of the Gospel