Church Extension
New Bodies of Believers
Through the use of the radio, the witness of nationals, the use of literature and other means, many have come to know Christ in lands which have no churches. MERF recognizes the genuine needs of such scattered believers in terms of instruction and follow-up. It is ultimately, however, the work of the Church and not MERF to gather and shepherd them in their own places. Consequently, MERF seeks to point out these opportunities to suitable indigenous churches and helps them as they oversee the nourishment of these converts. The objective is to properly relate them to each other, with a view toward organizing them into healthy congregations under the oversight of the regional churches.
Existing Congregations
MERF also seeks to encourage the growth and extension of existing congregations by means of providing suitable training and literature, as well as by evangelistic projects in needy areas targeted by these congregations. MERF's involvement in church-extension is governed by two major principles. On the one hand, MERF is committed to the centrality of ecclesiastical oversight at every step of each church- extension operation. On the other hand, MERF will only help and support church-extension projects which are properly under the oversight of ecclesiastical bodies and which are clearly aimed at establishing faithful churches.
