Ekklesia Systems – Church Content Management, Assimilation, Contact Management and Event Management
Redesigned Site v2.0 Now
Ekklesia Systems is a web-based application built for churches. Ekklesia combines a Content Management System (CMS), Contact Management System, Assimilation/Member Management System and Event/Registration Management System in one system. Ekklesia was created by church planters who saw a need because existing ‘off the shelf’ products and third party applications reached a point of diminishing returns. This group of pastors and lay-leaders decided to build a system that tackled these challenges .
Solution is SPORG meets Constant Contact meets a CMS meets Connection Power rolled into one.
Read MoreTwelve Tribes : The Commonwealth of Israel
“If a Christian is a true seeker of God, they are better off reading the word of God at face value than buying into the traditions of mainstream churches. When a believer sincerely cries out to God, God will lead them into [our] community,” said Wade Skinner, an elder of the Twelve Tribes community in Vista. Twelve Tribes was born out of the Jesus movement by Elbert Spriggs in the 1970s. “To me, Spriggs’s teachings have an equal authority to Peter, Paul, or John,” said Skinner, a friend of Spriggs for 15 years. Spriggs visualized the community as a new spiritual nation of God. The Twelve Tribes has grown to 50 communities in nine countries with two communities in San Diego County. 
The Twelve Tribes community believes they are the only true disciples of Jesus on earth. “After the book of James was written, Christianity underwent a period of Dark Ages, where there is no evidence there were people living as the Holy Nation. Sincere Christians today are righteous people, but they are no different than atheists,” said Skinner. “If you are the seed of Abraham, you must do the deeds of Abraham. This means Christians will live as the early believers did in Acts 2, who sold their possessions and shared based on the needs of people.” People who join the community give their possessions to Twelve Tribes. “When Christians hear about our community, they are very threatened by our life. All they want is personal salvation. But they are not truly God’s people.”
Full Article: Twelve Tribes : The Commonwealth of Israel
(Also read my post Is the Twelve Tribes a Cult?)
Read MoreIs the Twelve Tribes a Cult?
There are many ‘anti-cult’ sites (Rick Ross Twelve Tribes resources, Twelve Tribes-EX) that attack the Twelve Tribes for being a cult. Their claims often attack positions the Twelve Tribes takes on discipline, lifestyle and Biblical authority. I’ve had a couple people request feedback from my stay at the Twelve Tribes commune in Vista, and whether I believe they are a ‘cult’.
First, I want to say that my experience there greatly impacted me. I was blown-away that a community of people were willing to ‘give it all away’ so that they would share all their life’s resources. At the start of each day, the community gathers in a covenant reminder that they will ‘die to themselves’ and love one another. Much of the bad press towards the Twelve Tribes isn’t so much an attack on their community but on them living out what the Bible commands. You may be surprised I say that. Well I do need to say my experience was not exhaustive, so I did not get to see how (method) they lived out these beliefs (principles). But they do seek to base their principles on the Bible. For this, most of American modern Christianity will want to reject what they are doing. The price is far too great for us to give up our worldly possessions and consumer mentality. Many of us our too deeply entrenched in the American-brand of Christianity that fits our lifestyle easily.
Here is where I would differ with the Twelve Tribes and warn people about deciding to join their community.
1. They believe that in order to be saved, you must accept Jesus and move in to a Twelve Tribes community. They mix justification with sanctification. I asked several questions to determine what they meant. First, I asked, if a person came to the same convictions and were not in an area where the Twelve Tribes had a community, would they be saved. Second, if a person came to the convictions and decided to move to a Twelve Tribes community but died before they got there, would these people be saved? An elder at the Vista location could not say ‘yes’ to these scenarios.
2. Three different people stated that from after the book of James was written until 1970, there is no evidence of true Christians in this (roughly) 1,900 year period.
3. They believe there is no room for disagreement with their doctrine. Those who disagree are considered rebelling against God’s bride, the church. There ‘doctrine’ is the interpretation of scripture based on Eugene Sprigg’s (and other leaders?) interpretation.
4. There is an element of sectarian us/them with the world. Don’t catch sin like the ebola virus out there in the evil world. People only work for the Tribes, they see the ‘world’ as being the evil system rather than a place where they work side-by-side with non-believers and live out the gospel.
5. An elder told me that John Calvin was ‘under a spirit of evil’ when he interpreted scripture. He said that the modern (false) church has been under his influence ever since.
6. They believe that all professed Christians that are not apart of their community are no different than atheists.
It is because of these stances that I would not encourage people to get involved in their community. I say this with sadness because so much of their life seems more Christian in substance than my life and the church-communities I see.
Read MoreSalvation Gate Ministry
“Fundamentalist Muslims are manifesting what they believe today. Their mission is to change the world so that it is under their control. If you don’t agree with them, they will kill you. They don’t value or respect other people’s lives or even their own lives. They will have no mercy. Americans may want to be tolerant, peaceful and loving, but [Fundamentalist] Muslims will get rid of [these Americans] because they are not following their teachings. They want to change the lifestyle of everyone to the way things were 1000 years ago. The culture, customs, and dress will return to the Stone Age. These Muslims undermine women, who are considered second-class citizens. These Muslims want to tell you what to wear, eat, and how you live. If a person doesn’t go by their rules, they are justified in their killing of you,” said Getachew (Gary) Wymedihin, chairman of the board at Salvation Gate Ministry. Salvation Gate Ministry is a group of San Diego–based Ethiopians whose stated mission is to bring the revelation of God and His kingdom to Islamic regions. 
Fundamentalist Muslims have targeted Africa as a continent to Islamize as part of their growth strategy. “Ethiopia is being targeted by Muslims. Muslims believe if Ethiopia is converted, Islam will spread through all of Africa,” said Henock Menebo, the founder of Salvation Gate Ministry. Menebo said this is based on a plan that Muslims devised and taught at a 1989 conference in Nigeria. “There are three reasons Ethiopia is central to their plans,” said Menebo. “First, it is the capital city of the African nations, with ambassadors from every African country present there. Second, Ethiopia has the second largest number of ambassadors, second only to New York. Third, the Ethiopian city of Harer is considered the fifth holiest place, according to Islam.”
Full Article: Salvation Gate Ministry
Read MoreThe Twelve Tribes
I spent 5 hours Saturday with the Twelve Tribes community in Vista. Have you ever heard of it?
Read MoreUseful Church Web Sites
An interesting article about how useful people consider their church website. Poll question, How Useful is your Church Website?
12% say they use their church web site every day
12% ask “What church web site?”
35% say their church’s web site is as current as a 1980 hymnal.
Another reason we create a web-based church content management system (and assimiliation, contact mgmt, event mgmt, etc…)
Read MoreDrew Goodmanson
CEO of Monk Development creators of Ekklesia 360. Co-Founder of Kaleo Church where I served as Pastor for 8+ years and helped coach several church plants in San Diego. Co-Founder of the GCM Collective, President of the Board at the Center for Church Communication, Board Member of the Entrepreneurship Organization, Internet/Technology Advisory Chair at the Christian Leadership Alliance. Connect
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