The 12 Characteristics of a Purpose Driven Church
1. Operates around a Purpose
Statement that describes the commitment to building the church
around five New
Testament purposes: Worship, Evangelism, Fellowship, Discipleship,
and Ministry.
2. Uses a Purpose
Driven Church strategy to fulfill the purpose statement. Such
a strategy brings people to Christ
and into membership in His family, builds them up to maturity,
equips them for ministry in the church, and sends them out
on
a life mission in the world in order to bring glory to God. The
Purpose-Driven strategy is based on two vital assumptions:
a)
People grow best when you allow them to make gradual commitments.
b) You must ask for commitment in specific ways, such as using
covenants.
3. Is organized
around a Purpose Driven Church structure, which ensures balance
and gives equal emphasis to all
five New Testament purposes. Church should be a team-based rather
than hierarchical in structure. Everything should be organized
around Purpose-based teams, composed of lay leaders and staff,
with each team responsible for a specific purpose and target
group
(such as the Community, the Crowd, the Congregation, the Committed,
and the Core).
4. Organizes programs by purpose. There
should be at least one program for fulfilling each of the five
purposes and each of the corresponding constituencies. For example:
a) Evangelize the Community.
b) Gather the Crowd for worship.
c) Create fellowship in the Congregation.
d) Disciple the Committed.
e) Equip the Core for ministry and mission.
5. Is staffed by purpose. Every purpose
has its own champion. There are volunteers to lead and serve on
each purpose-based team as well as full-time, paid positions as
needed.
6. Preaches by purpose. Messages and series
are planned to insure that the congregation receives a balanced
emphasis on each of the purposes.
7. Forms small groups on purpose. The Purpose-Driven
structure is implanted in every cell or care group of the Body
of Christ. Each small group helps members fulfill each of the
five purposes in their lives. The goal is to help every believer
live a Purpose-Driven life.
8. Calendars by purpose. The purposes are
the determining factor in deciding which events are scheduled.
Every event must fulfill at least one of the five purposes or
it is not approved.
9. Budgets by purpose. Every expenditure
is categorized by the purpose it relates to.
10. Builds by purpose. Buildings are seen
as ministry tools, not monuments. They must serve the purposes
and never become more important than the purposes.
11. Evaluates by purpose, regularly asking:
Are we balancing all five purposes? Is there a better way to fulfill
each purpose?
12. Builds the
church from the outside in, rather than from the inside out. Builds
a healthy multi-dimensional ministry by focusing on one level
of commitment at a time.
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