First published on CHRISTIAN TODAY
Andy Hunter introduces us to the ministry of FIEC (The Fellowship of
Independent Evangelical Churches) – a grouping of more than 550 churches across
Great Britain.
It’s essential to have a
vision for the gospel.
That is, a godly ambition to
see the gospel of Jesus Christ flourish in our day and setting. That desire for
better things and better times helps drive us on in making Jesus known and serving
the church with the best of our energies.
It stops us from settling
for second best and becoming complacent or even negligent in our Great
Commission calling.
So we serve, we plan, we
expend our energies, we invest our money, we go out, we speak up, we keep
pressing forward. Why? Because we want to see people reached with gospel,
become disciples and live for the glory of Christ.
Everyone agrees on that
kind of vision and the need to be active if it’s to be realised. But equally we
also know that to be achievable it needs to be broken down into bite sized
parts.
Three Questions for Independent Churches
1. Does your vision include seeing the next generation of
gospel workers being raised up and equipped for service in churches like yours?
Would you want your next pastor to be well trained and have a genuine and
tested call for such service?
2. Does your Vision include seeing gospel workers in
churches like yours being well supported, cared for and in good fellowship with
others in similar positions? Would you want pastors and leaders to have some of
the pastoral back-up enjoyed by those in formal denominations?
3. Does your Vision include seeing unreached communities
of Great Britain being evangelised and having their own gospel-centred
churches? Would you want churches (like yours) to be encouraged in that task,
and in the mission of church planting?
If the answer to those
questions is ‘Yes’: what are you doing to make that Vision a reality rather
than just a godly sentiment?
Is it even possible for an
Independent Church to have such a vision? After all, how can a local church in
the north of Scotland help a struggling pastor in Devon, or contribute to
training an evangelist in Liverpool, or be assisting a church plant in Glasgow
– and vice versa? It’s not feasible, is it? Isn’t Independency the poor
relation of large centralised denomination when it comes to thinking big?
Well actually many Independent
churches who have a big vision are actively making it happen. They’re involved
in supporting hundreds of pastors across Britain, helping to raise up and train
scores of men and women for gospel service, and enabling dozens of new church plants
to become established. They do so by being part of FIEC – a family of more than
550 churches, who work in partnership to make possible what they simply couldn’t
do alone.
It means that an
Independent church of whatever size or locality can say, ‘We’re contributing to
the care of gospel workers; supporting church revitalisation and church
planting; providing guidance and training across the nation’.
Because of their FIEC
affiliation a potential women’s worker is receiving financial support to go to
Bible college, a sick pastor is getting care and practical help, a church plant
is getting legal advice on its new Constitution, and a trainee pastor is learning
how Independent churches govern themselves. These are just some of the ministries
that simply wouldn’t exist were it not for the commitment of FIEC churches to
turn a big vision into concrete reality.
Of course there are other
ways to express such vision but for many Independent churches it is belonging
to FIEC that enables them to realise a big vision for the nation.
What about your church?
Andy Hunter is the Scotland Director for the
Fellowship of Independent Evangelical Churches (FIEC) and you can find out more
about their work and ministry at fiec.org.uk
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