Acts 29 Network Explained

Acts 29
Main Classification:Protestant
Orientation:Calvinist
Theology:Calvinist
Leader Title:President
Leader Name:Brian Howard[1]
Leader Title1:Executive director
Leader Name1:Matt Chandler
Founded Date:1998
Congregations:730
Number Of Followers:-->

Acts 29 is a global family of church planting churches that adheres to Calvinist theology.[2] It derives its name from the Book of Acts in the New Testament, which has 28 chapters, making Acts 29 the "next chapter" in the history of the church.[3] A number of other Christian organizations also use the phrase "Acts 29" in their respective names.[4] [5] [6]

History

Acts 29 was founded in 1998 by Mark Driscoll[7] [8] and David Nicholas.[9] Beginning September 17, 2007, with the Raleigh Boot Camp, Acts 29 began using Great Commission Ministries as its mission agency for fundraising and leadership training.[10] [11] [12] Matt Chandler was appointed as the president of Acts 29 Network in 2012.[13] Chandler announced plans to keep the network's objectives intact while reorganizing to address the global scope of the organization. The offices and leadership of Acts 29 moved from Mars Hill Church in Seattle to The Village Church in Texas in March 2012.[14] The offices of Acts 29 are now in Mission Viejo, California.[15]

In August 2014, Acts 29 removed Mark Driscoll and Mars Hill Church from its membership. According to the Acts 29 Board, this was due to "the nature of the accusations against Mark, most of which have been confirmed by him."[16] [17] [18] Subsequent years saw the network restructure, with a focus on diversification, financial accountability and devolved leadership, transforming "from an American-based network to a diverse global family of church-planting churches".[19]

Board members

As of January 28, 2024, its board consisted of:[20]

Character

Acts 29 is a global family of church planting churches that originated in North America and now has representation in Europe, Australia and New Zealand, Latin and South America, Africa, and Asia.[2]

Acts 29 has been described as part of the emerging church.[21] [22] However, Darrin Patrick, former vice president of Acts 29 has pointed out "bad things" in the emerging church such as "the fascination with deconstructing almost everything while building almost nothing", and "ugly things" such as "conversing about God's Word [the [[Protestant Bible|Bible]]] to the neglect of obeying it, deviating from historical orthodoxy and the lack of clarity regarding issues of theology and sexuality."[23]

Reactions

Steve Lemke of the New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary cited interactions with Acts 29 instead of local Baptist churches on the part of Pleasant Valley Community Church in Owensboro, Kentucky as a reason they were denied acceptance into the Daviess–McLean Baptist Association, saying, "those who want to be accepted should make themselves acceptable."[24]

Roger Moran, a former member of the Southern Baptist Convention's executive committee and head of the Missouri Baptist Layman's Association has criticized Acts 29 on matters of doctrine, vulgarity and drinking. In his view, Acts 29 and other emerging church movements have become a "dangerous and deceptive infiltration of Baptist life".[25] [26]

Christian Piatt of the Huffington Post has criticized the network for disguising the traditional evangelical agenda of conformity and conversion behind the veneer of the new missional church movement. He also criticizes the emphasis on male leadership.[27]

Acts 29 churches have faced criticism for a number of high-profile church discipline issues. On April 13, 2016, then vice president of the network Darrin Patrick was removed from his position at The Journey for misconduct and was required to step down from all external leadership positions.[28]

In February 2020, it was announced that Steve Timmis had been removed from the position of CEO of the Acts 29 Network amid allegations of an abusive leadership style; five staff members had previously raised similar concerns with Chandler in 2015, only to be fired and asked to sign non-disclosure agreements.[29]

Criticisms have also been made over how church discipline has been conducted. The Village Church in Dallas offered a general apology after a female member was disciplined for annulling her marriage to a man who admitted to viewing child pornography. No elders or leaders were removed from their offices, but the church said in an email that the action taken against the woman was "unbefitting" of a church leader.[30]

See also

Notes and References

  1. News: Graham . Ruth . Popular Pastor Returns After Absence Over an 'Inappropriate' Online Relationship . January 11, 2023 . The New York Times . December 5, 2022.
  2. Web site: 2014 . 2014 Annual Report . Acts 29 . August 19, 2014.
  3. Web site: Evans. Lyndsey. Acts 29 Network brings micro-churches to Fort Worth neighborhoods. The 109 . January 4, 2013.
  4. Web site: 2014 . Acts 29 Ministry . August 19, 2014.
  5. Web site: 2014 . Acts 29 Missions. August 19, 2014.
  6. Web site: 2014 . Acts 29 Ministries. August 19, 2014.
  7. Book: Henard. William D. . Greenway. Adam W. . Evangelicals Engaging Emergent: A Discussion of the Emergent Church Movement . B&H Publishing Group. 2009. 8, 245. 978-0-8054-4739-2. February 2, 2013.
  8. Web site: Thomas. Scott. Happy Birthday and Happy 15th Anniversary, Mark Driscoll. Acts 29 Network. August 23, 2012. https://web.archive.org/web/20131112010415/http://www.acts29network.org/acts-29-blog/happy-birthday-and-happy-15th-anniversary-mark-driscoll/. November 12, 2013. dead.
  9. Book: Stetzer. Ed. Ed Stetzer . Bird . Warren. Viral Churches: Helping Church Planters Become Movement Makers. 2010. John Wiley & Sons. 89. February 2, 2013 . 978-0-47055045-8.
  10. Web site: 2007 . Annual Ministry Report . . January 12, 2013.
  11. Web site: Fund Raising – Great Commission Ministries. January 12, 2013 . Acts 29 .
  12. Web site: 2014 . GCM Partners . . August 19, 2014.
  13. . A Change of Leadership at Acts 29 Network . March 28, 2012 . January 16, 2013.
  14. Web site: March 28, 2012 . Mark . Driscoll . A Note on Some Transitions . February 2, 2013 . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20140628093351/http://www.acts29network.org/acts-29-blog/a-note-on-some-transitions/ . June 28, 2014 .
  15. Web site: Connect .
  16. Web site: 2014 . Acts 29 Network Removes Co-founder Mark Driscoll and Mars Hill Church From Membership (UPDATED) . . August 19, 2014 . https://web.archive.org/web/20140818225759/http://www.patheos.com/blogs/warrenthrockmorton/2014/08/08/acts-29-network-removes-co-founder-mark-driscoll-and-mars-hill-church-from-membership/ . August 18, 2014 . dead .
  17. Web site: 2014 . A Message from the Board of Acts 29 concerning Mark Driscoll and Mars Hill Church . Acts 29 . August 19, 2014 . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20140810083820/http://www.acts29network.org/acts-29-blog/a-message-from-the-board-of-acts-29-concerning-mark-driscoll-and-mars-hill-church/ . August 10, 2014 .
  18. News: Moon. Ruth. Acts 29 Removes Mars Hill, Asks Mark Driscoll To Step Down and Seek Help. August 9, 2014. Christianity Today. August 8, 2014.
  19. Web site: 2017 . How Acts 29 Survived and Thrived after the Collapse of Mars Hill . . March 4, 2019.
  20. Web site: Leadership - The Acts 29 Board . Acts 29 . January 28, 2024.
  21. News: Jameson. Norman. SBC Pastors' Conference slate raises ire. November 11, 2013. Associated Baptist Press. March 21, 2011. https://web.archive.org/web/20131112035713/http://www.abpnews.com/archives/item/6237-sbc-pastors%E2%80%99-conference-slate-raises-ire#.UoFvWZSG2kU. November 12, 2013. dead.
  22. News: Palmeri. Allen. Theology committee tackles Emerging Church. April 7, 2011. The Pathway. January 28, 2008. Missouri Baptist Convention.
  23. Web site: Patrick. Darrin. Emerging Church - The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly. Acts 29 Network. April 7, 2011. Darrin Patrick.
  24. Web site: Thoughts on the Daviess–McLean Baptist Association Decision about Pleasant Valley Community Church Part 2: Reflections on the Significance of What Happened . Lemke . Steve . . SBC Today . November 4, 2011 . January 12, 2012 .
  25. News: Kaylor . Brian . SBC Agencies Asked to Investigate 'Cussing Pastor' . June 24, 2009 . Ethics Daily . January 12, 2013 . As messengers to the annual meeting of the Southern Baptist Convention walked into the Kentucky Fair and Exposition Center in Louisville, they were handed a copy of Missouri layman Roger Moran's nearly 50-page Viewpoint document attacking the 'Emerging Church Movement' and the church-planting Acts 29 Network..
  26. News: Miller . Norm . Alcohol, Acts 29 and the SBC . March 20, 2007 . . January 12, 2013 . Moran addressed the Executive Committee Feb. 20 regarding his concerns relative to Acts 29, saying in part, 'One of the most dangerous and deceptive movements to infiltrate the ranks of Southern Baptist life has been the emerging/emergent church movement. Not since the stealth tactics of the CBF (Cooperative Baptist Fellowship) have we seen a movement operate so successfully below the radar of rank and file Southern Baptists.'.
  27. News: Piatt . Christian . . Evangelical 2.0: The Deception of Driscoll's Acts 29 Network . January 12, 2013 . March 1, 2012 . I'm all for congregational and denominational change. But when it's the same old white guys preaching largely the same old agenda, it smacks more of a desperate power grab than a genuine longing to better know and connect with the world around us..
  28. Web site: Leadership Update | the Journey . April 13, 2016 . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20160413044609/http://thejourney.org/Leadership-Update . April 13, 2016 .
  29. Web site: Acts 29 CEO Removed Amid "Accusations of Abusive Leadership . February 7, 2020 . April 25, 2020 . According to a copy of a 2015 letter sent to Acts 29 president Chandler and obtained by CT, five staff members based in the Dallas area described their new leader as "bullying", "lacking humility", "developing a culture of fear", and "overly controlling beyond the bounds of Acts 29", with examples spanning 19 pages. During a meeting Chandler arranged with two board members to discuss the letter, all five were fired and asked to sign non-disclosure agreements as a condition of their severance packages..
  30. News: Former Member Accepts Acts 29 Megachurch Apology in Church Discipline Case. live. https://web.archive.org/web/20150904052833/http://www.christianitytoday.com/ct/2015/may-web-only/matt-chandler-apologizes-for-village-churchs-decision-to-di.html. September 4, 2015. Christianity Today. November 10, 2016.

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