The Trellis and the Vine, The ministry mind-shift that changes everything

The Trellis and the Vine, The ministry mind-shift that changes everythingAll Christian ministry is a mixture of trellis and vine. There is vine work: the prayerful preaching and teaching of the word of God to see people converted and grow to maturity as disciples of Christ. Vine work is the Great Commission. And there is trellis work: creating and maintaining the physical and organisational structures and programs that support vine work and its growth. Whats the state of the trellis and the vine in your part of the world?

All Christian ministry is a mixture of trellis and vine.

There is vine work: the prayerful preaching and teaching of the word of God to see people converted and grow to maturity as disciples of Christ. Vine work is the Great Commission.

And there is trellis work: creating and maintaining the physical and organisational structures and programs that support vine work and its growth.

What’s the state of the trellis and the vine in your part of the world? Has trellis work taken over, as it has a habit of doing? Is the vine work being done by very few (perhaps only the pastor and only on Sundays)? And is the vine starting to wilt as a result?

The image of the trellis and the vine raises all the fundamental questions of Christian ministry:

What is the vine for?
How does the vine grow?
How does the vine relate to my church?
What is vine work and what is trellis work, and how can we tell the difference?
What part do different people play in growing the vine?
How can we get more people involved in vine work?

In The Trellis and the Vine, Colin Marshall and Tony Payne answer these urgent questions afresh. They dig back into the Bible’s view of Christian ministry, and argue that a major mind-shift is required if we are to fulfil the Great Commission of Christ, and see the vine flourish again.

This latest edition of The Trellis and the Vine contains a discussion guide for groups and ministry teams working through it together, a list of recommended resources, and an index of Bible verses referenced throughout the text.

Publisher: Matthias Media
Type: Paperback
ISBN: 9781875245956

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Colin (Col) Marshall was the Director of the Ministry Training Strategy (MTS) for many years and founded Vinegrowers which he has now handed over to Craig Glassock. He is the author of Growth Groups, Passing the Baton and (with Tony Payne) The Trellis and the Vine and The Vine Project. Tony Payne is a Sydney-based Christian writer and ministry trainer. He is author of The Trellis and the Vine, How to walk into church, 2 ways to live: the choice we all face, and about 30 other books and ministry resources published through Matthias Media. He was was also, for many years, the editor of Matthias Media’s flagship journal, The Briefing (which ran from 1988-2014). These days he divides his time between ministry training and writing and speaking.

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'...The biggest thing has been the reminder to see training as part of the DNA of a healthy church – not simply skills development, but the making of disciple-making disciples in response to the commission of Jesus. As churches grow, it is easy to be consumed by organisation, structure, vision setting, strategic planning and the like. We can lose sight of people. It’s been a good reminder that God is seeking people with him for eternity, not clever programs!

The Trellis and the Vine has also encouraged me to be more purposeful in training workers for ministry throughout our church. Training is not simply for the ‘professionals’. It’s about being transformed into the likeness of Jesus, and that’s for all. We need to audit our Sunday meetings, growth groups, children’s and youth ministries, and ask the hard questions. Are we occupied with a gospel work that will make a difference for eternity? Are people genuinely seeking to follow Jesus? Are we making disciples of one another, or are we sitting back assuming it will just happen automatically somehow?...' Dave McDonald (see the australia gospel coalition for the full review)