There is WAY too much to unpack in a blog - or even to try and unpack! The conference was great of course.
Dwell:
An Urban church planting conference
Took place in Manhattan this past Tuesday and Wednesday
Included some of the best urban/missional speakers in the world
3 Church Planting Networks participated (Redeemer - Tim Keller, Sovereign Grace - CJ Mahaney, Acts 29 - Mark Driscoll - Darrin Patrick - Eric Mason)
Session 1 - CJ Mahaney - Watching Your Life and Ministry
CJ spoke from I Timothy 4:16 on the Pastoral Priority of watching your Life and Doctrine
For me, the most convicting session as he talked about the need to have others help in watching your life. We all have blind spots and things that are sometimes obvious to others but not to us.
Session 2 - Ed Stetzer - Dwelling in the Kingdom Mission
A call to community and a call to participate in the kingdom with others.
Be - Do - Tell the Gospel
Session 3 - Eric Mason - Dwelling Incarnationally
As Servants, As Preachers, As Community, As Worshippers, As Teachers
Session 4 - Mark Driscoll - Dwelling in the Text
I have listened to so much Driscoll that while I enjoyed it, I felt like I had already heard it! Don't misunderstand me - good stuff!
Session 5 - Darrin Patrick - Dwelling With Non Christians
Intentional Incarnation - Contextual Communication - Sacrificial Investment - Gospel Astonishment
People need to see that we are like them, but also that we are NOT like them.
Session 6 - Tim Keller - Dwelling in the Gospel
One Gospel, but many different forms. The one gospel is summarized as Manger (incarnation) / Cross (substitution) / Crown (restoration)
The differing forms: There are 4 Gospels in the Bible - Matthew, Mark, Luke, John. Each tell THE Gospel, each do so with a slightly different form. Paul speaks of a Gospel to the Jew and a Gospel to the Gentile - again, one Gospel but in a slightly different form.
Part 2 from Keller - Communicating the Gospel
Packed! Upside down kingdom, inside out kingdom, forward back kingdom...
Session 7 - Mark Driscoll - Dwelling Through the Text
Mark pulled some good stuff from their series in Nehemiah. You can find the series on the Mars Hill site.
Session 8 - Tim Keller - Persuasion
Communicating the Gospel to our culture: Listening, Entering the Framework (their beliefs), Challenging the Framework, Completing the Framework
On Tuesday Greg Wood and I attended the New York Experience - Why Art? The Role of Artists in Society & Faith Communities
Awesome stuff. Great encouragement for us and what we see happening at the 567.
I don't think that there was anything earth shatteringly NEW that I learned this week. It was a great week of affirmation, however. The affirmation came as Greg and I listened and talked about nccd - where we are, what we see, and where we are heading. It looks like we are right on track to be the kind of church that these guys are talking about - by God's great grace!
