The Real New Testament Church
  • Home
  • Contents
  • Preface
  • Real Plan
    • Chapter 1 - In the Beginning
    • Chapter-2-After the Beginning
    • Chapter 3 - Kingdom
    • Chapter 4 - Earth in the Kingdom or Kingdom on Earth
    • Chapter 5 - Original Earth in the Kingdom
    • Chapter 6 - Renovated Earth in the Kingdom
    • Chapter 7 - Kingdom on the Degenerated Earth
    • Chapter 8 - Tribulation
    • Chapter 9 - Kingdom on the Regenerated Earth
    • Chapter 10 - New Earth in the Kingdom
    • Chapter 11 - Covenant
    • Chapter 12 - Major Covenants of the Bible
    • Chapter 13 - Eternal Covenant
    • Chapter 14 - Renovation Covenant
    • Chapter 15 - Covenants for Israel
  • Real Church
    • Real Fundamentals >
      • Chapter 16 - Real Church
      • Chapter 17 - Church Covenant
      • Chapter 18 - Calling
      • Chapter 19 - Parables
      • Chapter 20 - Kingdom of Heaven Parables
      • Chapter 21 - Description
    • Real Legality >
      • Chapter 22 - Law
      • Chapter 23 - Transgression
      • Chapter 24 - Justification
    • Real Life (zoe) >
      • Chapter 25 - Life (zoe)
      • Chapter 26 - Progression of Life (zoe)
      • Chapter 27 - Birth
      • Chapter 28 - Dependent Life
      • Chapter 29 - Sanctification
      • Chapter 30 - Rule of Life
      • Chapter 31 - Return to Law
      • Chapter 32 - Faith
    • Real Composition >
      • Chapter 33 - Headship
      • Chapter 34 - Body
      • Chapter 35 - Women
    • Real Incarnation >
      • Chapter 36 - Function and Form
      • Chapter 37 - Purpose and Mission
      • Chapter 38 - Manifestation
    • Real Doctrine and Practice >
      • Chapter 39 - Apostolic Teaching
      • Chapter 40 - Apostolic Tradition
    • Real Apostolic Teaching >
      • Chapter 41 - Values
      • Chapter 42 - Prayer
      • Chapter 43 - Works
      • Chapter 44 - Giving
    • Real Apostolic Tradition >
      • Chapter 45 - Governance
      • Chapter 46 - Simplicity
      • Chapter 47 - Gatherings
      • Chapter 48 - Supper: Celebration and Sign
      • Chapter 49 - Supper: Apostolic Tradition
      • Chapter 50 - Practice
    • Real Growth >
      • Chapter 51 - Growth
      • Chapter 52 - Exponential Growth
    • Real Warfare >
      • Chapter 53 - Temporal Simulation
      • Chapter 54 - Confirmation of Scripture
      • Chapter 55 - Sovereignty of God
      • Chapter 56 - Warfare
      • Chapter 57 - Utter Defeat
      • Chapter 58 - Freedom
      • Chapter 59 - Incomparable Power
      • Chapter 60 - Armor
      • Chapter 61 - Full Armor
  • Real Reformation
    • Chapter 62 - Law and Life
    • Chapter 63 - From Law to Life
    • Chapter 64 - Divine Reformation
  • Conclusion
    • Chapter 65 - Real New Testament Church
  • Endnotes
  • About
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Chapter 52 - Exponential Growth
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Complex living organisms reproduce offspring after their kind by the organic process of multiplication. Consequently, male and female parent organisms combine DNA, the genetic blueprint of created life, to multiply other living organisms “after their kind.”
    
Like the reproduction of every other complex living organism, the reproduction of the shared life community of the New Testament church requires the multiplication of life. It is achieved by the multiplication of the eternal life (zoe) of God within the created, regenerated life (psuche) of man, thus creating a new man. (2 Corinthians 5:17) As such, God and man are united for eternal fellowship and the progressive, cooperative mission of multiplying eternal life (zoe) on earth through shared life (zoe) community.
​    
The multiplication of small group community produced the rapid growth of the early New Testament church at an exponential rate. Thus, it occurred at a progressively increasing rate. For example, if a variable of two is multiplied annually by an exponent of two, growth is doubled each year:

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Year
Variable x Exponent
Total Growth
1
2 x 2
4
2
4 x 2
8
3
8 x 2
16
4
16 x 2
32
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New Testament church growth by the multiplication of small group community does not simply add individuals to the original group; it reproduces an entirely new small group community. Therefore, the multiplication of small group communities occurs at an exponential or progressively increasing rate.
 
                                  Growth by Addition
 
In contrast, the growth of small group community by addition is incremental. It occurs with the addition of one or more individuals to a preexisting group. Incremental growth produces a rate of growth that is significantly slower than the progressively increasing rate associated with exponential multiplication.
    
For example, if a variable of two is consistently increased by two, the size of the group is initially doubled. Thus, the resultant growth arrives at the exact total as the early stages of exponential growth. However, as represented in the following table, that is where the similarity ends:
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Year
Variable + Increment
Total Growth
1
2 + 2
4
2
4 + 2
6
3
6 + 2
8
4
8 + 2
10
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As demonstrated, growth by incremental addition is much slower than growth by exponential multiplication. Four generations of each produce significantly different results.
    
                         Early New Testament Church Growth
 
By eternal design, the initial growth of the early New Testament church was predominantly incremental. It began with 120 people in ancient Jerusalem (Acts 1:15). By the Spirit, new believers were continually added to the early ecclesia. (Acts 2:41, 47; 5:14; cf. Acts 4:4) By the end of the first day, “there were added about three thousand souls,” and the Lord continued “adding to their number day by day those who were being saved.” (Acts 2:41, 47) The Greek word translated “add” in Acts 2 is prostithemi (pros-tith'-ay-mee). Of the 16 times it is used in the New Testament, 11 are translated as “add.” Within a concise period, the number of men alone added to the early church rose to “about five thousand.” (Acts 4:4) “At the hands of the apostles many signs and wonders were taking place among the people; and they were all with one accord in Solomon’s portico….And all the more believers in the Lord, multitudes of men and women, were constantly added to their number.” (Acts 5:12, 14) Through incremental growth, the early church arrived at the necessary critical mass for growth by exponential multiplication. 
   
Once an adequate number of converts were added to the early New Testament church, it was prepared for much more rapid growth through exponential multiplication. (Acts 6:1, 7; 9:31; cf. Acts 7:17) “The word of God kept on
spreading; and the number of the disciples continued to increase greatly in Jerusalem.” (Acts 6:7) The Greek word translated “increase” is plethuno (play-thoo'-no). Of its 12 uses in the New Testament, 11 are translated as “multiply.”
    
When critical mass was reached, the growth rate of the early New Testament church was evidential of multiplication at an exponential rate. Within its first two years, it reproduced at a rate that is difficult to explain by means other than the multiplication of small group community at a progressively increasing rate. (Acts 6-16) Based on the numbers recorded in the Book of Acts, it is apparent that the early New Testament church grew to as many as 10,000 new believers during its first two years of existence.
 
                                   World Population Growth
 
Like the early New Testament church, the recent growth of world population has occurred at an exponential rate. Therefore, if the modern New Testament church is to be effective in fulfilling its mission, it must return to a growth strategy capable of keeping pace with the exponential growth rate of world population. During the last two centuries, the growth rate of world population occurred at a progressively increasing rate.
    
In about 4100 years, from the approximate time of Noah’s flood until AD1800, the world population reached critical mass at the 1 billion mark. However, the second billion was reached in only about 127 years (AD1927), the third in 33 years (AD1960), the fourth in 15 years (AD 1975), the fifth in 12 years (AD 1987), the sixth in another 12 years after the fifth (AD 1999) and the seventh in about the same length of time (AD 2012). Arrival at 8 billion is projected to occur by 2023. The twentieth century alone witnessed population growth from about 1.65 billion to 6 billion. Thus, world population has multiplied exponentially for the last two hundred years and will continue to do so in the foreseeable future.[1]
    
The multiplication of world population at an exponential rate combined with an incremental church growth strategy has caused the number of people who have never heard the Gospel to grow disproportionately in relation to the number of those who have heard. For the New Testament church to fulfill its mission on earth, it must grow in proportion to the progressively increasing growth rate of the world population. Therefore, it must once again adopt a strategy for growth characterized by multiplication at an exponential rate.

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                             New Testament Church Growth
 
New Testament church growth characterized by multiplication at a progressively increasing rate can reach an exceptionally large number of people in a short time. The example of growth by exponential multiplication given above started with a variable of two. It was progressively multiplied it by an exponent of two. Allowing the variable to represent the beginning number of people in the New Testament church community, growth increases to 32 people by the fourth year. Thus, it would take four years to accomplish growth from two to 32 people. It might not seem like rapid growth. Nevertheless, if the growth continues to double, it will reach 512 people by the eighth year.

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Year
Variable x Exponent
Total Growth
5
32 x 2
64
6
64 x 2
128
7
128 x 2
256
8
256 x 2
512
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Continuing to grow by exponential multiplication, the New Testament church experiences significant growth:
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Year
Variable x Exponent
Total Growth
9
512 x 2
1,024
10
1024 x 2
2,048
11
2048 x 2
4,096
12
4096 x 2
8,192
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Its rate of growth uninterrupted, the New Testament church would double in size annually. Thus, it would grow to 8,589,934,592 people in only 32 years. The current population of the world is about 7.5 billion. Theoretically, church growth by multiplication at an exponential rate could more than encompass the world’s entire population in less than 32 years!
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Year
Variable x Exponent
Total Growth
13
8,192 x 2
16,384
14
16,384 x 2
32,768
15
32,768 x 2
65,536
16
65,536 x 2
131,072
17
131,072 x 2
262,144
18
262,144 x 2
524,288
19
524,288 x 2
1,048,576
20
1,048,576 x 2
2,097,152
21
2,097,152 x 2
4,194,304
22
4,194,304 x 2
8,388,608
23
8,388,608 x 2
16,777,216
24
16,777,216 x 2
33,554,432
25
33,554,432 x 2
67,108,864
26
67,108,864 x 2
134,217,728
27
134,217,728 x 2
268,435,456
28
268,435,456 x 2
536,870,912
29
536,870,912 x 2
1,073,741,824
30
1,073,741,824 x 2
2,147,483,648
31
2,147,483,648 x 2
4,294,967,296
32
4,294,967,296 x 2
8,589,934,592
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In contrast, church growth by incremental addition produces a much less significant result. For example, beginning with two people and annually adding two more people yields growth of 64 people in 32 years.

The distinct growth of the living (zoe) church of the New Testament does not occur by human effort through organizational principles and precepts. Organic, spiritual, progressive, cooperative, and collaborative by nature, the exponential growth of the New Testament church is a gracious act of God. Therefore, man’s role in the distinct growth of the New Testament church is not trying but trusting.
 
 
© 2022 James Hiatt

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