THE SCIENCE OF GROWING AND, A HEALTHY CHURCH. living2spring@gmail.com
“And there were added unto them about three thousand
souls” (Acts 2vs 41). In only a brief time we again read
, “ And the Lord added to the church (the body of believers) daily such as
should be saved” (Acts 2 vs
47). There
is something about a pew-packed church that gives us pleasure whether the
church holds forty , four hundred ,or four thousand .Without any question a
Pastor and his people enjoy watching their church grow. There is a spirit of
anticipation each week as the family drives to the church . When the final
“amen” is spoken , the Lord is pleased not only with the spirit of worship but
also with the emotional tone of His people
. I
believe the Lord enjoys the church that grows . When the Lord gave birth to the
church at Pentecost, He programmed it for growth .We read of those past
–pentecost days .”And where added unto them about three thousand
souls” When
i saw these things ,three things came to my mind:
(1) THE GROWTH WAS DAILY:
VS 47. And the Lord added to the church daily such as should be saved”
this growth was “daily”, not monthly or annually.
(2) THE GROWTH TOOK PLACE IN THE MIDST OF INTENCE
OPPOSITION.
Man y people give many reasons why their church
is not growing and some will attribute it to the oppositions of the
enemies. The growth that took place in this place took place in the midst of
intense
opposition.
(3) THE GROWTH HAS PATTERN.
The growth that took place in this church was not
accidental and unplanned growth .It was planed, patterned and expected. They
knew their targets worked out workable ways of getting them. This growth, was
patterned to attract “men and women” Acts 5vs14. Latter the word “added”
was changed to “multiplied”. In this growth everybody was targeted. The men,
women and children. Acts 6 vs 7. The question is; do you have pattern for
your expected growth? Or growth anyhow?
FACTORS RELATED TO GROWING AND SUSTAINING A HEALTHY CHURCH.
SOIL: Some soils are more receptive than others .So the growth of your
church is going to be in direct proportion to the receptiveness of the
soil. Jesus
said something about a man that went to sow and He said that “some fell on a
good soil, some by the way side and some on a stony soil.” If the growth is not
as it suppose to be, find out the makeup of the soil. How receptive
the soil is
(2) TARES OF THE ENEMY :
One mistake that is often made by church planters , is the mistake of
wooing people by all means .As we go out to plant new churches , there is this
inner cry to surpass other churches. Some will even go to the extent of saying
that they have come to take over the
Land . This time not from the powers of darkness but
from the rest churches that have been in the land before them .As
they try to meet this inner yearnings ; They woo all
kinds of people into the church to serve as foundation members for this new
church , not minding weather they are tares that will choke the good seed
. You discover that instead of contributing to the growth of the
church ,these ones will be helping to retard the growth of such churches .The
church that I pastured before the present one was founded on that
foundation . The pastor used every material for foundation because he wants to
beat every other pastor in the land . Some were womanisers ,some con men others
were prostitutes .In that church the womanisers who were looking for girls ,
were made leaders with prostates who were also looking for loose
men. He performed well in the first one year ,and after that , this tares began
to manifest their characters and the end result was the death of that
church. Listen sir, when you are starting a church , please do not
say thing things you know you cannot do , simply because you need people . If
you do this you will be using tares to lay the foundation of your church and
this will retard the growth of your church . This factor will contribute
negatively to the growth of your
church.
(3) MARKET POTENTIALITY :
The product you are coming with ,is it marketable in this ? That may be
the reason why your church is not growing . If your church is in a rural area
and all that comes out of your mouth is ism,isms . that church will
not grow . One woman went to a church in Lagos and instead of being
blessed; After the service her friend who invited her came to find out if she
was indeed blessed . She told her that she was blessed , only that she
went to church with a wrong book .How? Her friend asked her, and replied that
she would have told her to come with a dictionary instead of Bible. If you are
planting a new church, in a soil that is made up of a learned class and
each time you speak all that comes out of your mouth is as i was coming
tomorrow. That church will not also grow . What am i saying ? I’am saying that
you must find out, the market potentiality of your product in
that community and see if there is the possibility of the people buying it
there.There is a principle in commerce called :”LOCATION AND LOCALISATION
OF AN INDUSTRY.” This principle teaches us that it is economically unwise
, for you to locate a cement industry where there is no lime-stone. Your
targeted class, are they in that location? That is the market
potentiality.
What skills are needed in growing a healthy church?
Between 1999 and 2002 it was my pleasure to begin and complete my
doctoral work at The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary in
Louisville, Kentucky. During this time of study, it was also my
privilege to worship on several occasions at Southeast Christian Church. Bob
Russell, the founding pastor of Southeast Christian, was the senior pastor
during this time.
. There were ten principles
that Pastor Russel used to help create a robust and growing fellowship.
Here are the ten principles that Pastor Russell believed were necessary
for a strong church.
Healthy
Church Principle 1: Truth
Be consistent in proclaiming God’s Word as truth and apply it to
people’s lives.
Healthy
Church Principle 2: Worship
Worship God every week in spirit and truth with no apologies to anyone.
Healthy Church
Principle 3: Leadership
Develop Christ-centered leaders within the fellowship who will lead by
their example.
Healthy
Church Principle 4: Excellence
Do the very best you can in every area of service. Do not
tolerate “second best.”
Healthy
Church Principle 5: Faith
Be willing to step out with bold faith and take risks. Trust
the Lord to lead the way.
Healthy
Church Principle 6: Harmony
Maintain a spirit of harmony. God blesses a harmonious
fellowship. Never allow divisions to be the driving force of the
church.
Healthy
Church Principle 7: Participation
Expect the congregation to participate in every ministry of the
fellowship. The “body of Christ” must work together if it is going
to be healthy.
Healthy
Church Principle 8: Fellowship
Continually practice brotherly and sisterly (agape) love for one
another. The fellowship is a family.
Healthy
Church Principle 9: Stewardship
Stewardship is giving generously of God’s resources as a Church and
individuals.
Healthy
Church Principle 10: Evangelism
Commit, as a fellowship, to enthusiastically support evangelism as the
primary mission of the church.
These ten principles are an excellent resource for any fellowship that
is seeking the movement of God to take place in their church.
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