What is artisan?
We are a network of reproducible missional discipleship communities engaging in three relational environments...
Upward, with our Creator, whom we live for.
Inward, with a community of disciples whom we live near.
Outward, with the culture we live in.
so... what does that mean?
We are a movement
On the remnants of the Berlin wall is an inscription. "Many small people doing many small things in many small places can change the world." We believe the message of the Gospel is absolutely transformative. Jesus taught that the Kingdom of God is not an organization of man. It is the transformative power of the Gospel expanding corporately as individuals are transformed into the image of Jesus, by His work in our lives, and vice versa. The Kingdom of God is a movement. We are the Kingdom of God.
So, is Artisan a commune?
Do you live together?
The short answer is not necessarily - but...
While we are doing life together, we believe each of us are strategically positioned in the neighborhoods and networks God places us in. With our lives, we actively engage those Jesus died for; those He has placed each of us in proximity with.
We are a community of Christ-followers, who are...
- committed to living lives that are radically reoriented around the Gospel of Jesus
- committed to each other
- committed to intentionally and organically bringing the Kingdom of God to bear in each of our individual neighborhoods and networks
- committed to making disciple-makers in a relational environment
This happens as we walk life together, growing together in righteousness by intentionally creating environments for instruction, apprenticeship and immersion, under the leadership of the Holy Spirit and informed by scripture.
Why artisan?
People often ask about our name & tagline;
Artisan - made by hand. made by heart.
Something that is made by an artisan is not mass produced. It is made by hand. It carries the character of the one who crafted it. An artisan-made item is not likely to be found in a big box store. Artisan-made items tend to be more costly than a mass-produced version because it tends to be unique, higher quality, enduring, and gains value over time.
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In Genesis we see with most of creation, God spoke and it was. But He handcrafted man - in His image, and breathed His own breath into us.
Ephesians 2:8 declares the inconceivable - that we are His workmanship!
The psalmist declared that each of us is thoughtfully, intentionally
hand made by the Master Artisan!
In the same way, disciples are not mass produced. They are made life on life. Jesus invited a group of people rejected by the religious elite into relationship. He then utilized that relational context to “…show them
the Father” and as Paul said to his disciples - to “…show them
a more excellent way.”
The process wasn’t thoughtless. It was purposeful.
Artisan exists to make disciples who make disciples by hand and by heart.
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We are an initiative in response to a clear mandate...​​
Go. Make Disciples.
One mandate. Two imperatives.
90% of Americans living in metro areas are unchurched.
Of that 90%, 40% still see the validity of the church.
and 60% see no validity for the organized church*.
That means in a city of 1 million people
- 540,000 will not attend a church.
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THIS is our mission field!
We make disciples who make disciples among the 60%.
Who are we called to?
People who tend to think and see things unconventionally.
People who tend to resist the institutional for the more organic.
People who generally tend to be part of the blue ocean of the 60%, which
are church-averse, and are unlikely to walk into a church.
People who aren't aware that the Gospel is actually Good News, either
because they've never heard or they've been disillusioned.
People who, because of, and through their creativity, are influencing culture.
Where once art reflected life, life now reflects art.
We are reaching into an under-reached & under-served subculture.
This is a subculture that is influencing mainstream culture and tomorrow's consciousness. These are people that need to hear the Good News!