Urban Leadership Foundation

Any new revival is based on some new theological breakthroughs that release energy for new forms and movements. The resurgence of the concept of the citywide church is one of these in this last decade. This of course, is a thoroughly Biblical concept if you read the introductions of Paul's letters to the elders of the church in this or that city. There is only one Church of Jesus Christ in the city, there are many congregations or denominations. (Eph.1:1; Phil 2:1, Col.2:2, I Tim 1:1, the letters to 7 churches of Revelations).

Who is the Church in Colossians? Those that were holy. The concept of the city church, is a biblical concept. Every congregation needs every other congregation to reach the city. We cannot reach all the people through one congregation.

We need many congregations. In modern cities no single church can touch the whole city. Local congregations may draw from many cities in the mega-city.

Since the reformation, denominations have based their ecclesiology on the themes of the "local church" (i.e. geographical expression of a denomination in a community). This for some was an expansion on the parish concept of Catholicism, and for others it was the local congregation, an adaptation of the Catholic concepts of a worshipping group of committed people in an order. "Denomination" is also considered as being Biblically legitimate,

"Para-church" meanwhile is generally defined by pastors as not biblical! Unfortunately, all three terms, while not excluded by the scriptures, are extra-biblical terms.

The unity of "the church in the city", meanwhile is a Biblical term. It consists of local congregations that are of all denominational kinds from house churches to former synagogues to meetings in the town hall. The epistles of Paul are full of the desire to see this unity across cities.

(Of course, Anglicans have been talking about this for millennia with their view of the city church based around a Cathedral. Unfortunately, they have not had a positive view of the second reformation (as Dr. Ralph Neighbours calls it), the emergence of relationally-based congregations usually meeting in homes. Lacking this positive view has lead to pride in regard to the rest of the church in the city).

This church is inclusive, but not totally, as it excludes the unholy and unfaithful. This involves commitment to scriptures as the authority in their lives. Some are committed in their minds to the scriptures and some in their lives.

This desired unity has both modes and nodes. The modes are those local congregations that hold geographic territory, often in a stationary pattern for many years. The nodes are the linkages between them. The apostolic, prophetic and evangelistic ministries are not generally exercised only in a single church. They are linkage ministries. And this might be a better term for many of what formerly have been known as para-church or denominational structures. Perhaps redefining them in such a way will help us visualize why such ministries cannot be exercised well by those whose primary gifting is pastoral (as often happens in denominational Leadership).