Church Growth by Another Name: Challenges and Opportunities for the Future of a Movement

A brief review of the church growth movement not only highlights significant accomplishments but also raises questions about its future. While church growth thinkers were compelled by the evangelistic mandate, this article argues that continued obedience to the Great Commission will require new responses to the rapidly changing context of ministry. Charting the path ahead, the author identifies six key challenges that demand new initiatives from the church: 1) the challenge to reinvent the evangelistic paradigm and imagination; 2) the challenge of diasporas, and the worldwide migration of people; 3) the challenge of urbanization, 4) the challenge of the plateaued church, 5) the challenge of postmodernism, and 6) the challenge of extending the church where there is no church. These challenges raise new questions and serve as opportunities for reaching receptive people