用枝子与支架的比方呈现福音事工中基督徒和教会组织架构之间应有的关系。本书回到圣经再次重申事工的目的不仅仅是兴起基督门徒，还要兴起为基督多得
门徒的基督门徒。

作者帮助我们打破有关福音事工的传统思维模式，大胆建议教会牧者重新定位培训在福音事工中的角色，鼓励牧者们从信仰、品行和技能三方面出发培训每一
个基督徒成为带着祷告忠实传讲神话语的基督门徒。

本书不仅提出「牧师为培训者」的事工模式，还为如何开展这个事工模式提供了很多实用的建议。

All Christian ministry is a mixture of trellis and vine.

There is vine work: the prayerful preaching and teaching of the word of God to see people converted and grow to maturity as disciples of Christ. Vine work is the Great Commission.

And there is trellis work: creating and maintaining the physical and organizational structures and programs that support vine work and its growth.

What’s the state of the trellis and the vine in your part of the world? Has trellis work taken over, as it has a habit of doing? Is the vine work being done by very few (perhaps only the pastor and only on Sundays)? And is the vine starting to wilt as a result?

The image of the trellis and the vine raises all the fundamental questions of Christian ministry:

• What is the vine for?
• How does the vine grow?
• How does the vine relate to my church?
• What is vine work and what is trellis work, and how can we tell the difference?
• What part do different people play in growing the vine?
• How can we get more people involved in vine work?

In The Trellis and the Vine, Colin Marshall and Tony Payne answer these urgent questions afresh. They dig back into the Bible’s view of Christian ministry, and argue that a major mind-shift is required if we are to fulfil the Great Commission of Christ, and see the vine flourish again.

If you've been convinced by The Trellis and the Vine, then the next step is The Vine Project.