“‘Teacher,’ said John, ‘we saw someone driving out demons in your name and we told him to stop, because he was not one of us.’ ‘Don’t stop him!’ Jesus replied.” These words from Mark chapter 9 remind us that, whenever we arrive in a particular place to proclaim the gospel, there very well may be others who were there long before we arrived. And so,…

“‘Teacher,’ said John, ‘we saw someone driving out demons in your name and we told him to stop, because he was not one of us.’ ‘Don’t stop him!’ Jesus replied.” These words from Mark chapter 9 remind us that, whenever we arrive in a particular place to proclaim the gospel, there very well may be others who were there long before we arrived. And so,…

According to the book of Hebrews, “we do not have a lasting city here; we seek the city that is to come.” And yet, between now and the time when God reveals that lasting city that is to come, we are called to proclaim the gospel in every place, and that includes urban contexts. Today, Dr. Lilly Park talks with Dr. Timothy Paul Jones, director of th…

The inner city is defined by poverty—literally. The inner city has been defined as a region in a metropolitan area in which 20 percent or more of households live in poverty and where the median household income is 50 percent or less than that of the region as a whole. But how did the inner city become the inner city? In this episode, we’ll discuss …

Ministry is filled with surprises—but the types of surprises you face in ministry will be different, depending on your context. Paul urged Timothy against “myths and endless genealogies” in Ephesus—but the warning he gave to Titus in Crete was against “empty talkers and deceivers.” This week, our goal is to help you to pay attention to the unique c…

What you do for God beyond your home will never typically be greater than what you practice with God within your home. Whether you’re single or married, with children or without, your family has a profound impact on your ministry. That’s why one of the qualifications that Paul gave for pastors was “to manage his own household well.” So how can you …

What you do for God beyond your home will never typically be greater than what you practice with God within your home. Whether you’re single or married, with children or without, your family has a profound impact on your ministry. That’s why one of the qualifications that Paul gave for pastors was “to manage his own household well.” So how can you …

God did not create us as disembodied or decontextualized creatures. He created us as physical beings who live in particular places. And, in the beginning, he called Adam and Eve to cultivate their physical space and to create culture in the context where he had placed them. If you’re called to serve God in the city, how can you learn to love the co…

If you’re the pastor of an inner-city church, should you live in the same neighborhood as your church? And, if so, what are some of the unique challenges and opportunities of living in the inner city? That’s what we will be exploring today on the Urban Ministry Podcast. If you want to learn more about what it means to serve God in the city, then th…

Urbanization! It’s happening all around us. In 2010, for the first time in human history, more than half of the people on this planet lived in urban contexts. In the past, many churches have taken a “rescue mission” approach to lower-income urban areas, providing charity for people in need. But there are other ways that believers in Jesus Christ ca…

There is in the New Testament a trajectory toward diversity. Jesus begins by calling together a group of Jewish males and then his circle of disciples expands to include women and Samaritans and then the risen Christ commissions his disciples to make disciples of all the nations. Throughout the book of Acts, people from an increasingly diverse rang…

One of the most beautiful aspects of urban ministry is its diversity. Ethnic diversity! Racial diversity! Socioeconomic diversity! But this diversity can also be a challenge when it comes to evangelism and discipleship. The gospel and the Word of God are the tools that God uses to transform people’s lives, no matter what their background may be. An…

Today, we want to provide you with a vision for the future of missions in your neighborhood. Love Thy Neighborhood is an urban ministry for young adults that seeks to make an impact for Christ in the areas of homelessness, the sex industry, crisis pregnancy, orphan care, healthcare, neighborhood renewal, and nonprofit leadership. Their goal is to e…

Thanksgiving! Christmas! New Year’s! When you hear those words, you probably think of family traditions and the fragrance of foods that your family enjoys. But what do refugees think about when they hear these words? Some refugees may think of traditions from their homelands that are very different from anything you might associate with these holid…

Nathan Ivey is president and founder of Seed to Oaks, a non-profit organization that brings real and lasting change in communities through collaborations between local churches, businesses, and civic agencies, filling the space between the three. These initiatives are proven, strategic and straight forward to implement; designed as a sustainable me…

What is the role of the pastor’s wife? Amber Williams and Karen Cheong serve faithfully as members of Sojourn Church Midtown in inner-city Louisville, Kentucky, and they join Timothy Paul Jones to discuss the role that the pastor’s wife plays in the church. For more information about Sojourn Church Midtown, please go to http://www.sojournchurch.com…

Thousands of churches in urban contexts are ripe for revitalization—but church revitalization isn’t easy! James Fields has spent nearly two years working with a congregation near Churchill Downs in Louisville, seeking to revitalize a once-thriving church. He joins Timothy Paul Jones to discuss what’s worked, what hasn’t, and what he’s learned.…

Stephen Dinkins and his family moved to East Africa in 2013 to serve with the International Mission Board of the Southern Baptist Convention. Stephen now serves as the Nairobi City Team Leader in Nairobi, Kenya. In this episode, Stephen and Timothy discuss the distinct dynamics of urban church planting in sub-Saharan Africa. For more information ab…

Michael Crane serves as a director of Radius Global Cities Network, a think tank for urban missions research. Passionate about church planting, he helped to launch a church planting network in Southeast Asia called Gospel City Network. Michael also serves on the faculty of two graduate schools. He has authored or co-authored several books, includin…

Jacob Boss is Affinity Leader for European Peoples with the International Mission Board of the Southern Baptist Convention. Prior to his current role in London, he served two years as the Vice President of Global Training for Meridian University. At Meridian, he implemented simple, reproducible tools to develop healthy churches throughout the 10/40…

Professor and pastor Timothy Paul Jones interviews Dave Owens about church planting in urban contexts.بقلم The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary

In this episode, we’ll be talking to Dr. Kevin Jones, professor of education and chair of the school of education at Kentucky State University.بقلم The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary

The gospel that we proclaim as believers in Jesus Christ is an all-sufficient message for salvation--but the compassion of Jesus conveyed to us through the gospel calls us not only to seek the salvation of people’s souls but also to assist them with their physical and emotional needs. In urban contexts, in particular, these needs always seem to be …

Suppose God has called you to plant a church in the city. You’re struggling simply to gather a core group. When someone asks you about small groups, you wonder, “Do I really need to think about small groups? Why isn’t it enough to simply have an outstanding Sunday morning worship experience and deal with groups later, after the church is growing?” …

More than 68 million individuals are currently displaced due to religious persecution, war, or other violence. Globally, one out of every 110 people is either seeking asylum, displaced within their own country, or a refugee. Many of these individuals seek refuge in cities throughout the United States. But how should Christians respond to refugees? …

Raymond Johnson serves as senior pastor at Christ Church West Chester in West Chester, Pennsylvania, and he’s also the author of I See Dead People: The Function of the Resurrection of the Saints in Matthew 27:51–54 (P&R). Christ Church in West Chester has experienced a profound revitalization under Raymond’s leadership. In this episode, Raymond Joh…

Brian Davis serves as a pastor at Risen Christ Fellowship in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. He completed a church planting internship at Imago Dei Church in Raleigh, North Carolina as well as a pastoral internship at Capitol Hill Baptist Church in Washington, D.C. Brian joins Timothy to discuss the distinct dynamics of planting a church in the inner c…