The early Ekklesia from AD32 to AD313 was a persecuted minority on the margins. But it was a Movement that did not have much of what the Western Institutional Church has today.

After AD313 when Constantine established the Edict of Milan which permanently established - toleration for Christianity within the Roman empire- the marginalised persecuted Ekklesia radically changed and became part of the empire through this Edict of Milan.

3 eras of different modes of 'Church' are discussed in this podcast based on a book by Alan Hirsh called 'The Forgotten Ways'. After AD313 the Institutional Church that now met in buildings was fundamentally Attractional, meaning you had to get people to go to church.

However, in the last 10-15 years there has been an emerging Missional mode of the Ekklesia that is marked by pioneering, innovation, missional, non-institutional, decentralised, not based in buildings. It is grass roots and marked by movement so is not static like buildings are.

The book 'The Forgotten Way' by Alan Hirsch was inspired by a Question: How did the Ekklesia go from 25,000 in AD100 to 20 million just before Constantine in 325AD? How did it go from a persecuted marginalised minority, a small movement to the most significant force in the Roman empire in the previous 200 years?

What did the early Ekklesia NOT have that the Western Institutional top down hiearchal church run by professionals has in abundance? In the early Ekklesia before AD313 there were no institutions, no buildings, no religious professionals, no seeker sensitive services, no youth groups, no worship leaders or worship services.

Moreover, the ealry Ekklesia made it hard to become part of it because of the persecution they faced, so they had to know that people were deeply committed and prepared to die for the Lord Jesus. Historically, God's people have had the most powerful impact on the culture in a much less institutional mode of church.