Random thoughts by Bill Hull

Random thoughts on Evangelical Seminaries:

1. Seminaries do not provide students with a scriptural based philosophy of the Church on which to build a ministry.

2. The student will learn what Church is - but not what the Church does."

3. They do not teach pastors to lead Churches to make disciples who make disciples without polarizing the congregation.

4. Pastors are ill equipped to lead existing church into becoming disciple making churches.

The Planter's random thoughts on the thoughts above. Yes Bob has to comment! You must not be surprised here.

1. We need to see the Church as Jesus does... I like to look to China or Africa for a glimpse into what Jesus sees and desires for His Church worldwide.

2. I'm not convinced the students are ever given a correct understanding of who the Church is and if they did understood that - the doing part would become a natural outflow in our lives. We are taught how to become a great American Church with all the bells and whistles. But, we are powerless and our members are not truly "the captives who are set free".

3. You cannot lead existing Churches into total obedience and personal ownership of the Great Commission (with results and accountability) without polarization. We have called our members into something else when they joined our Churches. For the most part they didn't sign on for personal disciple making and total consecration to God with full freedom in Christ. Because of this, I am unemployable in the modern American Church arena. I insist on total consecration that leads to full freedom in Christ and personal ownership of the Great Commission. (Don't get me wrong, I am not looking for another modern American Church to pastor.)

4. If Pastors were equipped to lead modern American Churches in becoming disciple making Churches where the Great Commission is the main thing with Holy Spirit power to lead people into consecrated freedom in Christ - they can't! The membership demands on them, the maintenance of programs, the demands to attract more and more people along with the business demands on them to lead the organization leaves them overwhelmed with no time left to do the main thing.

Finally, I'm looking for leaders (young and old) who long to see the power of God unleashed and to learn how to lead disciples through a consecration process that leads to "captives being totally set free" who are also leading others into the same victory.