Things That Help A Church Grow.

 I am not an expert. But it seems to me that there are several things that are common to a growing church.

First, there must be a friendly people. A crowd draws a crowd. So any church will only grow in proportion to the size it currently is now. It's rare for a church of 30 to grow to 300. But a church of 300 can grow to 500 pretty easily. As long as the people there are willing to be enlarged and to welcome new folks.

Second, there must be quality ministry. No church will grow beyond the ability of the pastor to minister to it. A church with a terrible song service will have a hard time keeping new people. A one message pastor will not keep an audience coming back to hear what is new. The pastor and the people on stage must be appealing.

Third, there is the God factor. Talent works for a while. Charisma works for a while. But a church that grows and maintains their growth needs the Lord to be active in their midst. There needs to be an anointing and a blessing upon the ministry for people to be helped and changed for lasting growth. The Holy Spirit will help us if we set out to consecrate ourselves to His work. Find out what God is doing, and do that.

Is growth the end all of ministry? Are we exclusively focused on larger numbers? Numbers matter. The Bible kept count of things, so should we. God will not do our part, and we cannot do God's part. But together we can do something bigger than we can do on our own.

Time To Grow Up

 There is something that I see in our Fellowship that seems to be hard for me to understand. What I am talking about is the idea that everything is for everyone. Every service is for everyone. Every sermon is for everyone. Every ministry is for everyone. Every responsibility is for everyone. A music scene aimed at reaching young people but old folks feel the need to be there. Discipleship or leadership meetings and guys who will never go and never lead still want to be there. These are folks who would attend a marriage retreat if they could even if they are not married. If the doors are open they feel the need to be there.

In First Corinthians chapter 12 Paul uses the analogy of the the human body to explain how the church works. Go read it for yourself. There are different parts of the body that do different things. All are necessary. All are important. All are needed. And all are different and have different needs. This is true in your natural body. This is also true in the body of Christ.

It's normal when a brand new convert is so excited and wants to be in everything. Everything is brand new. Everything is fresh and something to be explored. But at the end of life, once the years have rolled on, things change. We cannot do what we used to do. We have tried everything; some things have worked, some things did not work. Marriage is different. Ministry is different. People change as they grow up and grow older. At least things should change. 

I see people acting like children and I wonder what is wrong with them. I do not admire them or honor them. Grownups acting like children is not cute. They are drinking milk when they ought to be eating meat.

Work out your own salvation is how the Bible puts it. If you are middle aged and still haven't figured out your place I feel sorry for you. Doing the same thing over and over and expecting different results is foolish. It's time to grow up.

Attire Diminishes The Message

I just saw a guy preaching at Calvary Chappell South Bay. He was preaching on compromise. He was a middle aged white man. He was preaching. He was wearing a flowered shirt, khaki pants, and flip flops.

I'm sorry, but his attire made his message weak. I didn't hear his name and I don't care to know. 

"...for man looks at the outward appearance..." 

God may see the heart, but I don't. I was shocked to see a man dressed in flip flops behind any pulpit.

Truth or Theory?

 Science asks us to believe things that are abstract, assumed, or hypothetical. They give us an idea and ask us to believe, with no shred of proof, and accept their idea as fact. Science and mathematics live in the realm of theory or the theoretical.

God lives in the realm of truth. He only speaks truth. His word, the Bible, is only truth. 

"...Indeed, let God be true but every man a liar..." Romans 3:4

We walk by faith, not by theory or assumption. God's word is a lamp to our feet and a light to our path. We believe in Jesus because we have believed the Gospel. We believe in Jesus also because He has changed our lives. He has delivered us and we have been born again. This is not a theory to us, it is truth experienced.

One area where science and truth do not agree is in the idea of infinity. Infinity is an abstract idea which cannot be measured. But infinity is in contrast with the nature and character and revelation of Christ. God is not infinite. He is great and lifted up and mighty in wisdom and power. He holds creation in the palm of His hand. God does not have to be infinite, He just has to be greater than us. God is so great that Christ was sent to save us from our sins. Fully man and fully God, but limited in human form. Adam was created in God's image and likeness. Jesus came in man's image and likeness. God is Spirit, Christ is a faithful high priest to make intercession for us to God.

If you want your life built on solid rock, live for Jesus. Believe in unfounded and unproven theories and your will soon find yourself adrift on the sea of uncertainty and loneliness.