Church Planting in the Big Apple

Episode 714

The complex diversity of places like New York City poses challenges and creates opportunities for church planting. Host Ed Stetzer talks with James Roberson and Taylor Field about the missiology of planting in such an environment.

In This Episode, You’ll Discover:

• What makes New York City so complex from a missiological perspective
• How to bridge economic disparities
• The missiological challenges of changing neighborhood demographics
• Factors that make it harder to plant a church in a place like New York City
• The value of compassion ministries in building relationships

Helpful Resources:

• Interested in learning more? Check out our Church Planting Primer
• Are you ready to enroll in our Church Planting Masterclass?

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Sharable Quotes (#NewChurches):

New York City is seen as maybe the Mount Everest of church planting – a lot of folks have tried, a lot of plants have died. @EdStetzer

We sometimes say New York City is a not a melting pot, it’s a tossed salad. Where we started we rebuilt a synagogue. On one side is a “squat,” where people illegally occupied the building; on the other side there’s a luxury apartments. — Taylor Field

If you try to stop a person walking in New York, it’s like stopping a person mid-traffic in the South. — James Roberson

In more northeastern places, some of the most welcoming Christian folks – when they get changed, man, they get changed. It’s not cultural religion. @EdStetzer

Bonhoeffer says you can’t speak the words of God until you listen with the ears of God. The big thing is just to be a listener. Kindness crosses every culture. — Taylor Field

Trying to get them to understand the Calvary Road – suffering and trials – takes a long time in the city. You’ve come up here with a dream. God’s not really impressed with your dream. He wants to see you be sanctified and grow. — James Roberson

There’s also a missiological simplicity to New York City. Here the different people groups are all on top of each other. So there is that opportunity: every language, every tongue, everybody’s welcome. That could simplify things, rather than make it more complex. — Taylor Field

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