"Z" thinking and saturation church planting

If Christian leaders were to ask themselves the question, "What is the ultimate end toward which God is working in history?" or "What does God want for the people in the place where I serve Him?"… how would it affect the way they minister there? The answers to these questions should describe the vision and define the tasks of their ministries.

What is "Z" thinking?

What is the ultimate end toward which God is working? The answer can be called "Z" - the end result of what God ultimately wants for a nation, region, city, village, or neighborhood. To work towards that end means knowing clearly what "Z" is. The Bible makes it clear that God’s love is for the whole world (John 3:16). In writing to Timothy, Paul emphasized the need to pray for all men because "This is good and pleases God our Savior, Who wants all men to be saved and to come to a knowledge of the truth" (1 Tim. 2:3-4). Peter also writes concerning this, “He [the Lord] is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance" (2 Peter 3:9).

If God wants all people to come to repentance, shouldn't this be our desire as well? Can we possibly be used by God to mobilize others toward this end? What would happen if all the Christians in a country, region, city, village or even a neighborhood were completely convinced that God wanted everyone there to know Him and see Christians living like Jesus in their midst? (1 Peter 2:12). The balance of Scripture indicates that not all will be saved. Our sovereign God alone knows who will be saved. The task of the Church is to make sure that everyone has the opportunity to hear the Gospel.

Saturation Church Planting (SCP)

In order to see "Z," saturation must happen. By "saturation" we mean that it is the church's ministry to reach out to "every person," "anyone," "and everyone" as stated in 1 Timothy and 2 Peter. These passages make it clear that God wants every man, woman, and child to hear and understand the Gospel and have the opportunity to believe in and fully obey Jesus Christ as their Lord and Savior. An important part of the Christian life is being a part of a local church where God’s Word is believed and taught.

Saturation church planting (SCP) is thoroughly biblical. It is completing the Great Commission through church planting in such a way that every man, woman and child has a chance to accept or reject the Gospel through the witness of a local church. SCP is the vision, strategy, and ministry of filling nations, regions, cities, villages, and neighborhoods with churches that will take the Gospel to every person in their language and through their culture.

Some essential steps to get to "Z"

"A" through "Y" are the things we do in ministry so that "Z" may happen. Scripture gives us some essentials for the "A" through "Y" stage that must take place before "Z" can effectively happen. Notice that these all deal with the elements of "Z." Having "Z" always in mind allows us to make strategic choices as we do "A" through "Y."

A. Prayer

In numerous ways, prayer is clearly an essential part of seeing God’s desires fulfilled on earth. Notice the following references:

• (2Chron 7:14) If God's people pray the way they should, "Z" will happen.
• (Matt 9:38) God’s people are commanded to pray so that workers may participate towards "Z."
• (1Tim 2:1-4) God’s people are to pray so that conditions for “Z" may exist. Paul told Timothy that churches should pray for leaders in society to create favorable conditions for the spread of the Gospel.
• (Rev 5:8-10) "Z" is the result of "the prayers of the saints."

B. Love & Unity

When Jesus said, "By this all men will know," He referred to love among Christians (John 13:35). He made it clear that "Z" requires quality relationships. Only when believers love one another will people know that we belong to Christ. Growing in numbers only causes the world to see us as another religious movement if we lack love.

"That the world may know that you are My disciples" requires that believers be united as Jesus and the Father are united. As Jesus talks about His unity with the Father, He always points to a love relationship and an inseparable connection. He prays that our unity would be a model of that unity between Jesus and the Father, and that we should maintain an inseparable connection with Him (John 17:21,23).

C. Vision

As the verses below show, "Z" is a global task and includes all people of all nationalities from all places. "Z" thinking for any one area requires seeing the whole world as God does.

• Because God loves all people, He sent His Son so that "... whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life" (John 3:16).
• Jesus is the atoning sacrifice "... for the sins of the whole world" (1John 2:2).
• The Holy Spirit "... convict[s] the world of guilt" (John 16:7-11).
• The Holy Spirit gives Christians power to witness "... to the ends of the earth" (Acts 1:8).
• Jesus commands his followers to "... go and make disciples of all nations" (Matt 28:18-20).
• Jesus promised that many are ready to receive Him: "The harvest is plentiful" (Matt 9:37).

D. Evangelism

For "Z" to be realized, the church must send evangelists where there are few or no believers. "Z" requires that people go to those who have not heard the Gospel and deliver the message of salvation. As Paul writes, "How can they believe in the one of whom they have not heard? And how can they hear without someone preaching to them?" (Rom 10:14-15).

Christians must continue to discover where the Gospel has not been preached, and who has not yet heard, in every village, city, region, and country. As believers spread the Gospel and plant churches in and among those places and people, "Those who were not told about Him will see and those who have not heard will understand” (Rom 15:21).

E. Church Planting

For "Z" to happen, the church has to be everywhere, on display to everyone. Through the church, both the invisible (the spiritual realm) and the visible world will know the manifold wisdom of God (Eph 3:8-11). As the body of Christ, the church is the literal presence of Jesus Christ on earth. As Jesus Christ takes first place in the life of the church, the world will know that He is "head over everything" (Eph 1:22-23).

By "the blood of the cross," people are reconciled to God. In His Church, Jesus Christ brings people together who would otherwise be separated by a "dividing wall of hostility." Among people who formerly lived in hate, "His purpose was to create in Himself one new man out of the two, thus making peace ..." (Eph 2:13-16).

In the same way that the love and faithfulness of a husband and wife can be witnessed by others in the community in which they live, the relationship between Jesus and His church is on display (Eph 5:22-23).

In the church, as in a body, members are joined to serve "as each part does his work." The work of the body is always for the purpose of making Jesus known. When this happens, the church "grows and builds itself up” (Eph 4:11-13). The full-grown body is one that has members from every nation (Rev 5:9-10).

From the "Omega Course"

The Alliance for Saturation Church Planting
http://www.alliancescp.org