What is an Acts 2 Disciple Making congregation?

An Acts 2 or disciple-making congregation carries out the life of Jesus. They are filled with the Spirit (Acts 2:1-4; 37-38), a disciple-making congregation engages believers in the complete Discipleship Adventure (celebrate, connect, develop, serve, and share) and bears Acts 2 fruit (Acts 2:41-47).

Disciple-making congregations:

• Focus all activity on Christ (1 Corinthians 12:27). The congregation is organized to make and engage disciples of Jesus Christ for the transformation of the world (Matthew 28:18-20);
• Call, equip, and release disciples to pursue their passion and use their gifts to glorify God (Ephesians 411-13);
• Call, equip, send and support spiritual leaders to lead disciples in the Adventure (Mark 1:17);
• Lead disciples to meet the spiritual, social and physical needs of those in the community and world; and produce Acts 2 fruit (John 15:8, 16 and Acts 2:41-47).

Anticipated Fruits

Congregational Fruits - John 15:1-11 and Luke 13:6-7 (to be achieved by 2007) The anticipated fruits within the congregations are based on Acts 2:41-47:

• Acts 2:47 - Receive people by profession or reaffirmation of faith into the faith community (one person for every 25 worshipers).
• Acts 2:41 - Increase worship attendance (grow worship attendance by 2% of the worshiping congregation or 2% over the percentage growth of the community where the congregation is located).
• Acts 2: 44-45 - Mission engagement
  • Address poverty and community development through ministries of mercy, justice and development (the Shalom and Holy Boldness strategies are two potential strategies);
  • Activate 90% of the worshiping congregation in ministry within five years;Financially support mission through locally identified community and world mission projects and fulfill 100% of apportionment giving;
• Acts 2:43 - Demonstrate signs of God's power and wonder; Ministry results that are more than human ability and are clearly God's movement through the congregation. (examples of signs and wonders in Jesus' ministry were: 1) multiplication - several fish and loaves that feed thousands or, jars of water into gallons and gallons of wine, or twelve followers to a world wide movement, and 2) kingdom reversal - death to life, blindness to sight, bound by demons to freed for kingdom living.

Conference Fruits

John 15:1-11 and Luke 13:6-7

End the trend by 2010 (the Baltimore-Washington Conference will end a 15-year decline in confessions of faith and worship attendance):

• Increase by 1% the total BWC congregations' confessions of faith and worship attendance;
• Increase by 4% the amount of apportionment percentage paid in 2006;
• Assist 85% of the BWC congregations to produce one additional fruit;
• Engage 85% of BWC worshipers in ministry;
• Decrease the benevolence factor to 21%;
• Increase giving by 4% in BWC congregations;
• Increase the number of congregations giving 100% of their apportionment to 90%.

Begin a trend by 2012:

• 600 BWC churches will become Acts 2 congregations - Spirit-filled, Spirit-led, authentic Christian community and fruit bearing;
• Increase the combined worship attendance of BWC congregations by 10% over 2008 figures;
• Grow the combined confessions of faith of BWC congregations by 10% over 2008 figures;
• Engage 90% of worshipers in ministry;
• Decrease the benevolence factor to 19.5%;
• Increase giving in BWC congregations by 6% over the previous year;
• Receive 95% of the apportionment and increase to 95% the number of churches paying 100% of the apportionment.