Those who are familiar with my writings may be surprised by the title to this piece; nevertheless it is what I am sensing in my spirit in the last few weeks.  What is exciting God is a movement that constitutes a new reformation, not inside the walls of the church but inside the walls (boundaries) of the cities of the world.  (The majority of the human population, for the first time in history, now live in urban areas, and this is increasing.)  This transformation goes by various names, but in this paper will be called “marketplace ministry movement” (3 M).  The term “marketplace” includes everything outside of traditional “church work”.  Although this teaching has existed for some years, I want to commence from three months ago.

1. A Dream

Late on the morning of the 27th March I had a very clear dream.  It appeared that I was on a building site in Perth, my friend Phil Greaves (a builder) was there and I was having strong discussion with the workers.  I was advocating to those present the need for an on – site mediator of conflict resolution, but was having difficulty articulating exactly what I meant.  My wife Donna, a schoolteacher, appeared from the background and said, “What you are talking about is like the pastoral care (a term widely used even in secular schools) we offer to students.”  (I sensed she and Phil had an understanding I could not fully express.) The pastoral care in question would bring the presence of Jesus into the marketplace.  (I believe Donna is a pastor in the school world but not in the church. Phil runs a business that employs many ex –criminals and the like who Jesus the Good Shepherd has gathered to him.)

2. The Interpretation

Church professionals (like me) do not know how to reach into the Monday –Friday world where people spend most of their lives.  God through Jesus wants to fill the whole creation with his Son, through the church.  “He who descended is the one who also ascended far above all the heavens, that he might fill all things….And he put all things under his feet and gave him as head over all things to the church, 23 which is his body, the fullness of him who fills all in all.” (Eph 4:10; 1:22- 23).
The scattered sheep that Jesus seeks are not to be found in church buildings, but in the world.  No amount of Christian gatherings will produce unity, only our going into the world to find the hungry, thirsty, sick, naked, prisoners etc. of Matthew 25:31- 46.  A focus on large –scale events like Church Together and the annual Hillsong conference is an error of priorities.  The 5 ministries of “apostle, prophet, evangelist, pastor and teacher” (Eph 4:11) are to “equip the saints for the work of ministry” (4:12), not where we are found, but where the saints are found- outside the institutional form of the church.

3. What Have we Done?

It is a scandal before God and men that about 75% of the budget of the church goes on buildings and salaries.  There will be no lasting revival in Australia until we undo the cynicism in popular culture which says the church (Salvo’s excepted) are only interested in you for your money.  Since when has it become acceptable to God for his servants to become wealthy through the preaching of the gospel -  “the Son of Man has nowhere to lay his head.” (Matt 8:20), “I coveted no one’s silver or gold or apparel”(Acts 20:33).  Instead of being alongside workers in their trade, we now have traders in the house of God.  Instead of seeking for and supporting those called to the ethical and spiritual transformation of the marketplace, we have committed the sin of the wealthy religious leaders of Jesus day, “To those who sold doves he said, “Get these out of here! How dare you turn my Father’s house into a market!” (John 2:16).
The Christian circus of conferences, books, CD’s, videos etc. is making a few very wealthy, but failing to penetrate as salt and light a society that is increasingly corrupting (Matt 5:13- 16).
From the time of the Roman Emperor Constantine, who allied the state with the church, powerful political agents (Liberal and Labor are now both into this) are happy to appear at Christian events that do not challenge the status quo.  The church sphere is given dignity and autonomy while the state/world/marketplace is given autonomy because of the distant nature of a God who is pictured as removed from everyday life.  (Paul exposes these fallacies as pagan in his Areopagus speech in Acts 17.)

4. Where is God going?

He is trying to turn the church inside out, so that inside of being self- focussed and attractional in emphasis it is genuinely focussed on the lost in the world (not, “getting them into church”).  Instead of the hub of the church being superstar charismatic personalities with their jokes and (in some cases) boasts, our heroes will become ordinary people who sacrifice for Jesus in the office, school, sports club, factory and home.

This radical change of wineskin (Mark 2:22) will means apostolic churches (Eph 2:20), assemblies of God (1 Cor 11:16), churches of Christ (Rom 16:16), Christian brethren (Acts 15:23) etc. will be found scattered all over the city in localities that have no special religious features at all.  This “church without walls”, where only the location and not ecclesiastical property/signs/mottos etc. is a marker of identity, will facilitate unity like never before.

Most dynamically and excitingly, this means the whole people of God will be mobilised for mission into an everyday environment with which they are intimately familiar.  Let me quote someone who has seen this (as I have) in action in Argentina,
“The first thing I noticed was everyone moved in the anointing for ministry. It was not resting on a few.  I don’t mean they all were doing ministry in the church, but I could clearly see that everyone was immersed in and partaking of the ministry anointing that we usually see “at the front” or “on the leaders”…But in Argentina the Christians just soaked the ministry anointing up and took it out. I saw the same thing happen in the restaurants and shops. The presence of God was there and the Christians were all ministers in the marketplace. No wonder they have revival! The Lord began giving me the scriptures showing how the gospel is the blessing of God to the ungodly. We are called to minister it in a way that breaks the curse, yet I had been a man of complaining, accusation and even cursing the ungodly. As I began to repent and bless others around me and teach the church to bless, marvelous things began to happen…I’m becoming a man of blessing.” (Terry Somerville)

5. A Resistance to be encountered

There are some folks who have been believing and praying for this sort of transformation for decades.  What has always held back true revival, so that it has never broken out in a sustained manner within existing religious forms, is that we have made the church into an idol, we have confused it with the kingdom of God (which is everywhere) and even made church growth a greater passion than Jesus.

Some emphases, such as Peter Wagner’s “New Apostolic Reformation” and leadership obsession within elements of the contemporary church apparatus, are moving in the exact opposite direction to the Holy Spirit.

This means that as “marketplace ministry movement” (3 M) spontaneously grows (Mark 4:27; Col 2:19) we should expect misunderstanding, opposition and even persecution from power figures in the church.  Why?  “For he (the marketplace man, Pilate) perceived that it was out of envy that the chief priests had delivered him up” (Mark 15:10; Acts 5:17; 13:45).

6. A Prophetic Picture

God is calling faithful stewards (1 Cor 4:2; 2 Tim 2:2) together into kingdom – centred relationships across this city.  These believers may not be spectacular in appearance (2 Cor 5:12; 10:10), but because they have been faithful with little Jesus can trust them with much (Luke 16:10- 12).  This was brought home to me recently by a picture inspired by the Spirit; it confirmed a dawn experience in prayer in Argentina over a decade ago.

On the left hand side is a clear white beam of light, it approaches an empty cross.  There are blood stains at 5 points on the cross corresponding to where Jesus was pierced: the head beam, the position of the feet, the 2 hands and Jesus side.  If these 5 points are joined laterally and vertically a diamond shape is formed.  When the pure light passes through the diamond, a spectrum emerges on the other side of the cross.

The white light is the light of Christ (John 8:12), the 5 blood stained points represent faithful people who know the crucified life (Gal 2:19- 20), the diamond shape or prism represents relationships/connection between these people in Perth.  The spectrum that is refracted through these cross –centred relationships represents the shekinah glory of God, as in a rainbow signifying the reign of grace and the end of judgement upon our city (Gen 9:13- 16; Rev 4:3).

This word is submitted for testing and in the context of calling together the faithful for prayer.  If you are interested in starting or joining a 3 M (marketplace ministry movement) in your locality or sphere of employment, please contact Tek Chong; Richard Foster or Tim Tay

I like to share a testimony as what the Lord has done in my life as I prophetically announced to the spiritual realm a year ago that I am a marketplace minister and as the pastor of the whole building where our accounting practice is located. The building houses a large magazine concern, a fashion house, an Occupational Therapy Office, a printing outlet and our accounting practice. In total there are approximately seventy permanent people working in the building. Before I took the stand as a pastor of the building, the people in the building were unfriendly and always rushing around without even acknowledging your presence when we passed each other in the hallway. That atmosphere changed when I make the stand that I am a marketplace pastor for the building.

Nowadays I see smiling faces and every time I walk pass anyone, we acknowledge each other and even at times we have the opportunity to stop and chat. During one of my chats with a lady that works in the building, she told me that her friend was diagnosed with cervical cancer. Immediately, I stood with her and prayed for her friend.  She was so happy and she readily re-committed herself to the Lord. Nowadays, we often talk about spiritual matters.

Now everyone in the building seems to know me by name, and often I spend time fellowshipping with them and be their friend. I know when the opportunity arises I will be able to share the gospel with them.

As for my accounting practice, I pray everyday with my key staff for God’s direction and guidance in our daily work. Often, we will pray for our clients who are going through financial and personal problems; some even ask us to pray for their health. We take these requests seriously and commit them to prayers in our morning devotion.

One such client is a recently converted Christian from a strict Hindu background. When he came to see me, he was in such a mess in his personal and business matters and has no clear vision of what the future lies. He was divorced and his business interests were giving him sleepless nights. We prayed for him on one of our Tuesday fellowship lunch (we have a weekly fellowship every Tuesday from 12pm to 1 pm) and the Lord spoke to me and directed me to tell him to forgive his ex-wife. He was not happy as he told us his ex-wife was the culprit in the divorce and he was the victim. We shared with him that the Lord commanded us to forgive before He can forgive us. He reluctantly accepted our explanation and proceeded verbally to forgive his ex-wife. Immediately after the lunch meeting, he felt so convicted that he went to see his ex-wife and asked for her forgiveness. She was surprised of his action. Because of what he has done, the Lord honors him. Nowadays, he can have access to his daughter anytime of the day and even allows him to take his daughter for an overseas trip which was denied previously. Now he knows that the Lord is behind all this. His faith has increased and he is now reading the Bible which is the first book he has read in his life and I was in awe when he related to me many times what the Lord spoke to him through His words. Not only his personal life but his business activities have also improved.

We praise God for that.

1. An Experience from Heaven

When God wants to do something great in a city, he does it by long preparation and deep foundation.   In 1994 a diverse group met to pray for revival from 6a.m. to 6 p.m. over seven consecutive days (January 1 – 7).  Jesus then revealed the direction of his plans for this city and state,   “For the Lord God does nothing without revealing his secret to his servants the prophets.” (Amos 3:7).

On the last day of prayer, during a period of desperately difficult intercession, with only a remnant remaining in the building, the Lord focused my attention on Acts 3:19- 21.
“Repent therefore, and turn again, that your sins may be blotted out, 20 that times of refreshing may come from the presence of the Lord, and that he may send the Christ appointed for you, Jesus, 21 whom heaven must receive until the times for restoring all the things about which God spoke by the mouth of his holy prophets long ago.”

I had never realised before that we are in the time of universal restoration.  As this truth entered more deeply into my heart I had a profound revelatory experience.  In it the Lord was in his ascended position in heaven (Acts 1:11), below him were discernible all the spheres of society and culture (e.g. politics, business, arts, education, media, health and so on), he was active from heaven restoring all of these spheres of life to their original created purpose, “For the earth will be filled with the knowledge of the glory of the Lord as the waters cover the sea.” (Hab 2:14)

I have been seeking to serve this vision ever since, Marketplace Connect is the latest means I see God raising up to fulfill this great purpose of restoration.

Once recognized, this theme burst out of other scriptures, “He who descended is the one who also ascended far above all the heavens, that he might fill all things.” (Eph 4:10).  The purpose of Jesus is to fill all things – offices, homes, schools, sports arenas, factories…with his glorious presence.  How does he do this?  Through the church making Christ present everywhere.

2. The Role of the Church

Paul is the great expositor of this truth.  What Jesus described as the disciping of nations (Acts 28:19), the apostle describes in a Christ- centred way.  “And he (God) put all things under his (Jesus) feet and gave him (Jesus) as head over all things to the church, 23 which is his body, the fullness of him who fills all in all.” (Eph 1:22- 23).

The primary purpose of the church is not to meet once a week and bring more and more people into our assemblies, it is to be so filled with Christ’s Spirit that through us Jesus’ life penetrates everything.  As Abraham Kuyper, theologian, Dutch Prime Minister and founder of the Free University of Amsterdam exclaimed, “There is not a square inch of the entire creation about which Jesus Christ does not cry, ‘This is mine! This belongs to me!’”

To embrace this vision calls for a radical restructuring of our priorities on the scale of the Protestant Reformation 500 years ago.

3. Marketplace Connect

The restoration of all things in Christ is the scope of the vision of Marketplace Connect.  No Christian in this state is excluded from participation in this vision, simply because there is no space in Western Australia that does not belong to Jesus.

How will this work out in practice?  Very simply, cells of mutually supportive Christ- centred believers meet together for prayer in all the spheres of existence seeking the coming of the kingdom of God with power in their specific places of marketplace service.  Eventually, the whole of our state is saturated with a lattice of prayer, and the reign of Christ comes with power – legislation becomes godly, school disciple is upheld, crime rates drop, corruption is removed, masses turn to the Lord, churches are planted in schools, offices, homes, factories …and so on.

Biblically, the role of the network is “to equip the saints for the work of ministry” (Eph 4:12) in all the spheres of life and culture, “he must reign until he has put all his enemies under his feet” (1 Cor 15:25).  We are at your service in supplying resources, connecting you with others in your field, raising and prayer and helping in any way we can.

In JESUS

Dr. John Yates yatesone@iprimus.com.au

Micah 2:12

While it is true that not all sheep are in the fold, or indeed any fold, this is the ultimate purpose of seeking them out. The fold that the sheep need to become part of is God’s fold, and Jesus is it’s chief shepherd. The fact that he is chief shepherd suggests that there are other shepherds of less authority; that’s where you and I come in. All of those who come to faith in the Lord Jesus Christ can be said to be part of God’s fold and under the care and protection of the Good Shepherd, but this fold is made up of smaller folds scattered throughout the nations all of which have shepherds or pastors to care for them. Some folds are known by church names, while others are formed in households or business places, still others may be made up of groups that share a common identity such as surfies, bikies or athletes but they all have some things in common.

A fold that belongs to God will always have Jesus at its centre. It may assemble in different places and conduct itself in different ways, but Jesus will always be the focus. There is no right or wrong way that determines how a fold should organize itself, there are certainly some Biblical principles but they stop short of giving a prescription that has to be followed. What is certain however is that all sheep need to be brought into the fold. They need the protection and guidance that comes from God appointed shepherds. Predators easily pick off a sheep that does not have the security of the fold; those that wander the wilderness alone are obvious targets.

As you minister to men and women in the marketplace, it will be your desire to bring them into the fold and it may be that there is readily available a group of like minded people that will accept the new sheep. Unfortunately however this is not always the case and you might experience difficulty in finding a ‘fold’ that is right for them. Of course like any metaphor we can push the sheep and the fold illustration too far. You and I suffer something of an identity crisis in that we are both sheep and shepherds at the same time. We identify with fellow sheep and may enjoy the company of others in the same fold as them, but at the same time we are fulfilling our role as shepherds to the sheep God has made us responsible for. We are part of a fold, and indeed we must be if we want to flourish in our Christian life, but those we shepherd may not become part of this fold, what then should we do? Should we start new little folds wherever we go or do we take the new believer into an established fold somewhere else, often uncertain about how they will be treated? This is a tough question and there is no easy answer.

It is certain however that the sheep must be in the fold and it may be that in the short term (or even longer term) that the fold they become part of is a small group with you as the shepherd leading them along the first steps of their Christian life. This group may form in your workplace, your home or amongst other like minded people in some other place but like the first believers after Pentecost you will want to enjoy fellowship, learn together from the Word of God and worship. Your role as a shepherd in the marketplace will include bringing the sheep into the fold. It is possible that you are part of a worshiping community that your new sheep will comfortably fit into and your task will be simply to make the connection, but increasingly it seems that this is not the case and there needs at least to be a place of transition for the new believer. As the shepherd of these sheep you will lead them into good pasture and keep them safe from the wolves that will try to devour them.

God does not intend that his sheep be scattered on the hillside, he wants them safe in the fold. He has appointed shepherds in the marketplace to lead and care for them and this is the ministry to which you have been called.

John 10:1-29

In the days that the gospel was written the role of the shepherd was different from what it is now. In Australia today sheep stations can often be more than a million acres in size and the shepherd carries out his duties by motorbike or even helicopter. A flock of sheep consists of thousands of animals, but in Jesus’ day a flock was small enough that the shepherd would know everyone of them and they would recognize his voice. The sheep got to know the voice of the shepherd because he spent every waking minute with them; he fed them, led them to water, protected them from harm, attended their needs and even assisted in the birth of lambs when necessary.

Jesus was able to claim that his sheep would know his voice and would follow him anywhere. He was so intimately acquainted with his flock that they could tell his voice from others that might try to steal them or lead them astray. He was so concerned for his sheep that he was prepared to lay down his life for them. These are the same examples that we should follow.

Of course this suggests a number of things, in the first place the flock that we minister to must be small enough for us to know intimately. In these days of mega churches where the emphasis is often on numbers rather than intimacy of relationships the congregational pastor is more like a modern day rancher than a shepherd. He attends the needs of the sheep by remote control and calculates what are the acceptable losses that the business of sheep farming can bear. The idea of leaving 99 to fend for themselves while going to search for one that is missing would be laughable. What a far cry from the shepherds of Jesus’ day.

You are not called to be the shepherd of every sheep, just those that the father has given to you. There is a flock that you are responsible for and it is these sheep that you must answer for. Jesus was able to say that no one would ever snatch his sheep from him because he carried the authority of his Father in heaven and he is greater than any who would try to snatch his sheep from him. While you are not responsible for the salvation of the sheep in your care, or their eternal destiny, you do carry that same authority from your heavenly Father and you are expected to care for and protect them. Do you know who your sheep are? Paul instructed the elders at Ephesus to take heed to the condition of their flocks, what’s the condition of yours?

As you show compassion to the sheep in your flock, praying for them, meeting their needs when you can and extending mercy and grace out of the treasury of God they will come to recognize your love and genuine concern for their welfare. They will begin to recognize your voice and will follow you when you lead. There is an old adage that a shepherd leads the sheep, but a butcher drives them. A butcher is not concerned for the welfare of the animals he is about to slaughter; they are just a means to an end for him. They are the stuff of business, the more he kills and processes the more profit he will make – so he drives them to the slaughterhouse. On the other hand the shepherd is concerned for his sheep’s welfare, it matters to him if they get sick or lame. He leads them gently along the way that they should travel; he feeds and nurtures them. The sheep in our care need to be led, not driven. Their welfare is important. Do you drive your sheep so that your profits increase, or do you lead them into good pasture?

Do your sheep know your voice? Do they trust you to care for them even more than you care for yourself? Will you put their welfare beyond your profit margin; will you put aside your busy program to meet their needs? If you do, then God will enlarge your flock.

Hebrews 5:1-3

The great example to shepherds, as in all things, is the lord Jesus Christ. He is the model on which to base all that we do, and this is no less so with his role as chief shepherd. Jesus combines the role of shepherd and Great High Priest in a way that we cannot because it is he who became the sacrifice that satisfied God’s demand for justice and took away the penalty of sin. It is in his role as High Priest that he mediates this sacrifice and secures salvation for all those who exercise faith in him. But we are all called to be priests and to exercise this office in a pastoral way.

A priest makes representation to God on behalf of those that he or she is responsible for. This applies especially to those who are not yet in the fold. In other words those people that have yet to come to faith in the lord Jesus Christ do not have access to the father and they need someone to pray on their behalf. The priest also speaks to the people on behalf of God. In this way the priest mediates between God and his people. The writer to the Hebrews explains that a priest was ‘taken from among men on behalf of men in things pertaining to God’. It was their responsibility to take a stand for those who did not have access to God and to act on their behalf. In your part of the marketplace there are many men, women, boys and girls who have not yet come to faith in the lord Jesus Christ, they need someone to intercede on their behalf. More than that they need someone who understands their needs and their weaknesses, someone who is just like them.

When the person who prays for someone else comes from the same circumstances and background as they do they understand and can treat them and their needs gently. The priest that is taken from among men can ‘deal gently with the ignorant and the misguided, since he himself also is beset with weakness’. As a priest in your part of the marketplace you are God’s representative – it is your responsibility to speak on his behalf to those in your care. You are to extend his mercy and love to those who stand in need, offering healing and relief to the broken and sick and giving guidance and direction to the lost. But you are also the representative of the people. It is up to you to bring the needs, hurts and burdens of the people to God and ask on their behalf. You stand in the gap between God and them.

God has chosen you because you understand the needs of those in your community; you have suffered the same pain and frustration. You know what it is like to be rejected and hurt. You have experienced lack of direction, confusion and loss. You have faced similar temptations and trials and you can empathise with those around you. Because of this you can treat them gently and pray on their behalf. You will not be quick to judge because you know that except by God’s grace you would be in the same situation. God can use you because you have experienced his mercy, love and grace and now you have hope you can offer it to others. God also depends on your ability to make his word clear to those you care for and he places confidence in your ability to make his good news plain.

This is why you are in the place you are, as a shepherd of God’s sheep he has given you a priestly role. He has chosen you to act on behalf of the men, women and children in your world and to speak to them on his behalf. He has appointed you to intercede for them so that they will receive mercy and help in their time of need. You are there by Divine appointment, God knows that you are able to be a witness to his grace and is relying on you to make him known in you marketplace.