Now About Those Conferences …

After my recent blog on the value of conferences a friend asked me about my anti-conference posting (although he agreed with me). Actually I’m not anti-conference but simply relativizing their value. When the experts speak who have already written on the subject, I’m not sure much more is accomplished by hearing them speak about what they wrote. However there is a Philly area conference in March which I think will be of great value for church planters.

There will be the big-name speakers including Mark Dever and C.J. Mahaney. You’ve read their books so the hallway and workshops may be just as instructive. However, the great strength of this conference is the emphasis on church planting which brings together Acts 29, PCA, Sovereign Grace, 9 Marks, and the SBC “for conversation across the lines.”

My interest in this conference is how present and potential Philly church planters can connect and partner in planting gospel-centered churches as opposed to issue-centered or movement-centered churches. We all have our distinctives and movement connections which the gospel transcends. We’d love to see God flood the city with new church plants and set in motion a church planting movement for His glory.