In our book, Total Church, Steve Timmis and I argue for two core principles that should shape the life and mission of the local church: gospel and community. The content of our ministry is the gospel. It’s a word: gospel means good news. So being gospel-centered means being word-centered. And it’s a word to be proclaimed: gospel means good news. So being gospel-centered means being mission-centered. That’s the content of ministry. The context is always the Christian community. Ministry is not an event, still less a performance. It takes place in and through the shared life of the Christian community. So whether it’s evangelism or social involvement or children’s work or apologetics or pastoral care or training, these two principles shape what we do: gospel-centered and community-centered.

Ordinary Life

Here’s another way of thinking about it. One of the catchphrases we use to capture our vision is “ordinary life with gospel intentionality” or “ordinary people doing ordinary things with gospel intentionality.” In other words, what we do is ordinary life together: household chores, trips to the movies, meals, neighborhood volunteering. But running through all these activities is a commitment to speaking and living the gospel. We pastor one another at the kitchen sink. We evangelize by talking about Jesus over a meal.

The Crowded House

People sometimes ask if they can come to see the ministry of The Crowded House. We always warn them that they’ll be disappointed. What they’ll see is not a trendy auditorium or a polished presentation or sophisticated social projects. What they’ll see are ordinary people sharing their lives. They’ll see people going to the local bar together or painting someone’s house or sharing a meal or going to the shops. But I hope after a while they’ll also spot the gospel intentionality as people talk about Jesus—discipling one another and evangelizing their friends.

In future posts on The Resurgence, Steve and I will try to give you some brief snapshots of what that might mean for evangelism, social involvement, pastoral care, discipleship, church planting, and so on.