Justin Anderson, Acts 29 leader of the Phoenix region, interviewed Matt Carter last fall on missional communities, the attractional model of church, and what it looks like to reach your city as a church on mission.
Posted in: Mission
“[Your people are] capable, because the power that raised Jesus Christ is sitting in that single mom. The power that raised Jesus Christ is sitting in that young married couple. The power that raised Jesus Christ is sitting in that 60-year-old guy who’s wasted his life making money for himself. You need to find a way to release that…" Matt Carter is Acts 29 pastor of The Austin Stone Community Church in Austin, Texas. Matt remembers childhood observations of his parents' practice of Christianity: attending church services, serving in the nursery or greeting occasionally, and doing a few bible studies. "And that was pretty much it," he notes. He says that young people today are not content with simply partaking in "the attractional church" wherein ...
Posted in: Leadership, Disciple Making
At the recent Advance the Church Conference in Raleigh, NC, I sat down with Matt Carter, Pastor of the Austin Stone Community Church, in Austin, TX. In this video, he shares about leading his church through the transition from “groups” to “missional communities.”
Posted in: General
By: Jonathan Dodson, Pastor of Austin City Life Advance & Retreat of the Church Over a century ago, Church historian Kenneth Latourette (1884-1963), pointed out that the church’s history is one of advance and retreat, advance and retreat. This oscillating influence over the centuries has resulted in various, new expressions of the Christian faith across time and cultures. It is exciting to read of and witness these current expressions of the gospel in Africa and Asia. The Incomplete Glory of God These new expressions of Christian faith in the advance of the church are, in fact, an expansion of God’s glory. But isn’t God’s glory un-expandable and complete? Not according to Jonathan Edwards in The History of Redemption. Edwards writes: God looks on the ...
Posted in: Mission
Jeff Vanderstelt is Vice President of the Acts 29 Network, and has been sharing with Scott Thomas on how his church engages their communities on mission. Here Jeff shares about living in such a way that unbelievers ask questions that only the gospel can answer. 1 Peter 2:12 – Keep your conduct among the Gentiles honorable, so that when they speak against you as evildoers, they may see your good deeds and glorify God on the day of visitation. 1 Peter 3:15 – But in your hearts honor Christ the Lord as holy, always being prepared to make a defense to anyone who asks you for a reason for the hope that is in you; yet do it with gentleness and respect. In this video: 1. Live a life that can’t be understood unless the gospel is true. 2. An example of ...
Posted in: Mission
