GROWTH TYPES
George G. Hunter III has a shrewd mind after God's heart, and he has identified several areas of growth that must all occur in a working church:
- Internal Growth: this kind of growth takes place
in the lives of people who are already coming to
the church. When the members of a congregation
are growing closer to God and each other, then
internal growth is taking place.
- External Growth: this kind of growth takes place
when new people are start showing up in the
church. There are three kinds of external growth:
- Biological: people in the church have babies
- Transfer: receiving (not recruiting) people from
other churches.
- Conversion: reaching lost people and bringing
them into God’s family.
- Extension Growth: this kind of growth takes place
when the members of a local congregation reach
into their community. It’s been observed that
Jesus did not tell all the world to go to Church;
He told the Church to go into all the world.”
Extension growth includes: AA, Al-Anon, Kids Hope
USA, and CLC.
- Bridging Growth: this kind of growth occurs when
churches deploy people as “missionaries” to reach
lost people in other cultures. Usually, these
cultures are geographically distant from the
local church. Sometimes, they’re right next
door.