the PRINCIPLE OF 12
THE PRINCIPLE OF 12 – Seeking the Multitudes, One Person at a Time
When Jesus Christ came into this world, He said, “I will build my church.” The Lord proceeded to form a church from the multitudes and He built the foundation with the twelve apostles. Jesus focused Himself on discipling twelve men in whom he could reproduce His character and vision. Through His teachings and His life, He shaped them. Through the power of the Holy Spirit, the twelve apostles became the pillars upon which the Christian church was built. Ephesians 2:20 says, “Built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, with Christ Jesus himself as the chief cornerstone.”
If the Lord had only focused on preaching to the multitudes and not discipling His twelve, He would not have reproduced His vision in them or positioned the group for growth. Jesus’ plan was to enlist men and women who could bear witness to His life and carry on His work, and then disciple others to do the same under the anointing of the Holy Spirit. Jesus’ example is the basis for our Principle of 12 strategy
CELL THEORY
The modern church did not invent the cell group. God speaks to us in His word about the birth of the early church, narrating the events that took place at Cornelius’ home—a non-Jew who gathered all his relatives, friends and acquaintances to hear the gospel through Peter. From that point on, homes and small gatherings became the central means for spreading the message of Jesus.
THE IMPORTANCE OF CELLS
As the church embraces the cell vision, spiritual and numerical growth will follow as the church facilitates the formation and training of disciples. Healthy, mature Christians are developed because:
1. Cells allow a one-on-one ministry.
2. Cells are little groups that strengthen the church and foster personal transformation.
3. Cells are a grace-based way to supply everybody’s needs.
4. Cells are a place where the gifts of the Holy Spirit can freely operate.
5. Cells are the foundation for leadership development.
6. Cells are the key to the church’s success.
PRINCIPLE OF 12 IN ACTION
When cell groups flourish, believers rise up and lead, believers become disciples, and disciples become disciplers. The great commission of Jesus is fulfilled!
So that we are able to carry out God’s vision in our community and worldwide, the Principle of 12 model requires some structure.
THE VISION: To win souls and make disciples in the Tri-Cities and around the world, through the cell structure and the model of Jesus and His twelve.
OBJECTIVE: To make a discipler out of each believer so that each believer will open a cell and eventually multiply by leading a group of 12 (comprised of those who are also leading cells).
STRATEGIC PROCESS: To implement the following four stages which enable each person to lead a cell and eventually to oversee a group of twelve:
1. LOVE-Souls are the only thing we get to take to heaven with us, so we must love them to win them! This stage includes the acceptance of salvation.
2. CONNECT-Connection is the care and attention given to each new believer. As we love them, we need to connect them to what God is doing in a cell and in the church.
3. DISCIPLE-Discipling is two-fold: formal training in Christian principles and the Bible and on-the-job training in cells. You cannot impart something unless you already know and own it yourself.
4. SEND-After individuals are trained, they are sent out into the community from their cells to fulfill the vision of Jesus: to love souls and make disciples. Jesus sent His twelve out to minister to the people of Israel—we go out to the people of the Tri-Cities.
OUR LEADERSHIP PROCESS
Columbia Foursquare Church provides a succession of ministry and training opportunities so that every believer can complete the four stages to leadership (love, connect, disciple, send) with joy and success. By completing the steps of ministry and training described below, you are taking your relationship with Jesus to a new level of intimacy. You will break free from sin and you will understand and experience God’s love for you and others in a deeper way. Our goal is for every believer to become a disciple and for every disciple to become a discipler. Prepare yourself to become a discipler and be part of the Principle of 12 vision.
Here’s how:
1. Accept the salvation of Jesus Christ. We offer three services, one on Sunday morning, one on Wednesday night and one Thursday night. Attend Columbia Foursquare Church and we will get you plugged into a cell (a small group).
2. Begin a process called PEP: Pre-Encounter, Encounter and Post-Encounter. The Pre-Encounter booklet will prepare you for the Encounter Retreat. The Encounter is a 3-day retreat where you can be radically changed. You will be healed from the wounds of sin, delivered, and filled with the Holy Spirit. Following the Encounter, the Post Encounter class will help you to become solid in your faith.
3. Attend the School of Leaders (SOL). There are two main objectives for the SOL:
a. To form the character of Christ in each student in order to reproduce it in others, and
b. To produce cell leaders within the Principle of 12 vision.
In order to enroll in the SOL, you are required to have attended an Encounter and completed the Post-Encounter. The SOL consists of three levels, each lasting for eight weeks. By the end of the second level of the SOL, each student will be ready to open his or her own cell.
4. Participate in a cell. This will be on-the-job training as you experience the support, love, and energy of like-minded people seeking to become more like Jesus and to share His love with others. This relational track compliments the educational track of the PEP and SOL outlined above.
After being discipled and trained, you will begin to touch others through your own cell!
CATCH THE VISION!
There is nothing more rewarding than winning others to Christ, connecting them to the local church, training them in the ways of the Lord, and finally seeing them launch out to begin the cycle all over again reaching ever-growing circles of people. When you do that, God’s vision has truly become your vision, and His heart has become yours!
