Overview

In the summer of 2000, Colin and Amanda Dye of Pastors of Kensington Temple London City Church led a team of leaders to Bogota , Colombia in South America . They went to look at the ministry of Pastor Cesar Castellanos's church, The International Charismatic Mission, which had grown from 8 members to well over 120,000 in just 18 years. By the year 2004 there were 55,000 reported cells taking the church into the hundreds of thousands. What was the reason for this explosion? The Lord gave Pastor Cesar a vision of the multitudes and a strategy to reach them. It is a cell church ministry based on the Government of 12 (G 12). Colin said that this strategy was the best method of training, releasing and mobilising the body of Christ that he have ever seen. It was a God-given strategy for the Church of the end times. But he saw it was much, much more than a strategy or a method. It was a vision from the Lord. The team came back from Bogota full of joy and ready for the public launch of KT's own G12 vision - Discipleship Cell Explosion.

David Yonggi Cho of the Yoido Full Gospel Church pioneered the cell vision in the 20th century and, is so far, the most successful cell church leader in the world with his church 850,000 members. This model, now known as the ‘5 by 5' model has been developed by other leaders such Ralph Neighbour.

In the 1980's a new cell model began to emerge building on the principle of 12 as the Holy Spirit led Cesar Castellanos and others in Bogota , Columbia . This model carries a new and fresh anointing for cell church. It is called the ‘G12' model and it is currently being administered globally under the leadership of Cesar Castellanos.

The Bible says “give honour to whom honour is due” (Romans 13:7) and we give honour to Cesar Castellanos as the pioneer of the G12 cell church model. The Model of 12, however, is the property of the Holy Spirit and not of any one person or ministry. Every prophetic and apostolic vision belongs to the whole body of Christ as the Lord leads.

God is raising up multiple expressions of the Model of 12 which are true to the principles and values of the G12 strategy but are being expressed through different apostolic ministries in the world. We are seeing this happen in the USA , India , Africa and Europe and other parts of the world.

This development in the Cell Vision according to the Model of 12 will mean that there will be many expressions of what the Holy Spirit is doing through the Cell Church movement. These expressions will be culturally relevant and adapted to the specific needs and circumstances of the people being ministered to.

For more information, please check: Cell Church According to the Model of 12 and The Principle of 12 a Model for Cell Church.