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Sanctified Excuses - (Part 3)March 31, 2010
Excuse #3 – If we preach it, they will come. Since they don’t they are not really interested. It’s not our fault. Remember the Kevin Costner movie, Field Of Dreams? Costner plays the part of an Iowa farmer, Ray Kinsella, who is down on his luck. The farm is about to be foreclosed and the family has no way out. One day “Ray” hears a voice in his cornfield whispering, "If you build it, he will come." So, he builds a baseball field on his farm, and the ghosts of multiple baseball players show up and play a game of ball. Hundreds come from around the area, pay to watch the game, and VIOLA the farm is saved! If it were only that easy!
Yet, it seems as if many in the pulpit today have bought into that notion. In fact, it is a popular excuse for way many congregations remain small. The idea goes something like this: The Word of God is powerful and all we have to do is preach the Word. Those who live in our community know where we are located and if they really want to change they will come and hear the word. We don’t have to do any of that fancy stuff to get people in our doors. If we simply preach the Word of God faithfully, they will come. If they don’t, well then, that is their fault not ours. I don’t mean to sound so harsh, but I can’t tell you how many times I have heard those very words.
I do agree the Word of God is powerful. Hebrews 4:12 makes that very clear, “For the word of God is living and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart.” However, where does the Great Commission state, “STAY”! Where do we find the lackadaisical approach to ministry in the Word? Where does it tell us that ALL we need to do is preach the Word?
Any realistic look at Scripture will reveal that we have a pursuing God who asks us to follow his lead – to go out into the “Highways and byways”. We cannot allow our lazy pursuit of those caught in sin to be something we attempt to justify through God’s Word. | |
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Posted 3/31/2010 in Stephen Gray | 0 Comments - Add Comment |
Sanctified Excuses For Non-Growth (Part 2)March 24, 2010
Excuse #2 – Our size is simply a sign of the times. Without a doubt there will be a time of great apostasy before Jesus returns. The Bible warns of this great falling away at the end of time. 1 Thess 2:3 “Let no one deceive you by any means; for that Day will not come unless the falling away comes first…”. So, we should expect nothing different. However, never was this statement, by Paul to the church of Thessalonica, intended to be a used as an excuse to sit back on our laurels and simply accept as a matter of fact, “this is the way it is.” Nor should we quote Matt 7:14 “broad is the road to destruction and narrow is the gate and difficult is the way which leads to life, and there are few who find it” as a justification for inactivity. Some, well-meaning leaders have used 2 Tim 2:2-4 “For the time will come when men will not put up with sound doctrine. Instead, to suit their own desires, they will gather around them a great number of teachers to say what their itching ears want to hear. They will turn their ears away from the truth and turn aside to myths” as an excuse for poor functional systems, bad planning and no evangelistic direction. Make no mistake, the scripture is clear that many will not receive God’s word regardless what we say, but that fact cannot be a justification for our smallness or lack of growth. We must not use scriptures of this nature to “proof text” our behavior. Who knew the condition of mankind better than Jesus? He understood the hardness of men’s hearts and what the end of time would hold. Yet, he was urgently driven to share the Kingdom of God with all who would listen. Jesus told the truth every time he opened his mouth. What was the response? “Large crowds from Galilee, the Decapolis, Jerusalem, Judea and the region across the Jordan followed him.” Matt 4:25. Did many reject him? YES! But many also followed. Bottom line is this: We can never, and should never accept that fact that our church is not growing as a “sing of the times.” As people of grace, we should be compelled by love and driven to share with all, whenever and wherever we can. Will we be rejected? YES! But every no brings us closer to a “YES” for the glory of God’s kingdom. “Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up.” Gal 6:9 | |
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Posted 3/24/2010 in Stephen Gray | 0 Comments - Add Comment |
Sanctified Excuses (Part 1)March 23, 2010
Over the last few years I have had the privilege of traveling around the United States, meeting all kinds of leaders and working with many different churches. I have enjoyed the opportunity to meet with churches of all kinds and sizes. Yet, one thing seems to be a constant among many (not all), plateaued/declining churches, they all have what I call “Sanctified excuses” for their lack of growth and kingdom mindedness. Many of these sanctified excuses are couched in scripture in order to give justified reason for avoiding the call to the Great Commission. What even becomes more disturbing is how many churches in this situation wear their situation as a badge of honor. It’s almost as if the lack of growth is a sign of true faithfulness to God’s word. What are these “sanctified excuses”? Well, to start with, the blog would be too long to handle them all at once so I will share them over a four-part blog.
Excuse #1 – The truth of God’s word is offensive to the unbeliever. So, if we really preach the truth, many will be offended and leave or not come at all. A few scriptures used to defend this excuses; Matt 7:13, John 6:60-66, John 15:18-21.
While it is true that many turned away from Jesus when he preached hard things to the people, it is also true that Jesus attracted large crowds when he spoke these hard truths. Truth is what turned the Woman at the Well around to become a follower. Truth is what caused Paul to become a follower. The truth of the sayings of Jesus is what drew people to him. He wasn’t afraid the share the truth in way that people understood. Truth drove many away, but it also transformed many.
Think about this: If smallness, decline or plateauness (New word) is a hallmark of true spirituality and faithfulness to God all churches would be empty as proof of our faithfulness. Sounds silly I know, but among many, anti-church growth advocates, that is the ultimate conclusion.
The question remains; How do you deal with the explosive growth of the Church in the first decade, century, or millennium after Pentecost? What do you do with the Great Commission? How do you explain the thousands of people who came to Christ when the Holy Spirit showed up on the scene? How do you explain the fact that Jesus never told people not to come and hear him in such big crowds or that he never denounces, nor prescribes the proper size of a church in the N.T.
Let me leave you with this one haunting thought: Rev 3:1-2 “I know your deeds; you have a reputation of being alive, but you are dead. Wake up! Strengthen what remains and is about to die, for I have not found your deeds complete in the sight of my God.” God offers no insight into what “reputation of being alive” means. Could it be that many of our churches have fallen asleep believing that they are alive? After all, they have a building, they sing hymns and listen to a pastor preach every Sunday. They hold prayer meetings, bible studies and give to foreign missions. Non-growth is not a sign of faithfulness to God. Rather, it is disobedience to our calling to grow HIS Kingdom. | |
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Posted 3/23/2010 in Stephen Gray | 1 Comment - Add Comment |
Why smaller churches find it hard to grow.March 16, 2010
Too often small churches struggle to grow. The reasons for this struggle are multiple. Small churches, while effective in some ways, tend to be more family oriented and do not allow visitors to feel at home as readily. Lyle Schaller refers to churches under the two hundred mark as “Collie” churches. “Some people tend to wonder why these churches remain on a plateau in size or why church shoppers often do not return after that initial visit. Collies tend to have strong affection for members of the family, but they often bark at strangers”. When any church falls into this mode of operation, growth becomes almost impossible. Myriads of books and articles have been written about the growth problems of the small church. The key to avoiding these problems for a new church is to reach the two hundred mark quickly. New church plants that do not grow rapidly will develop a “Collie” mentality, stifling their ability to reach out and impact the community. Planting new churches should be an attempt to overcome growth problems, not emulate them.
A church in the city, which never reaches the 200 barrier, could have a very limited ministry future. Why? Because 200 “is the minimum number of adults needed, in a metropolitan setting, to provide the services people want in a church”. A church plant is no exception. It, like all churches, will experience a plateau in its attendance. If the church plant experiences a plateau below 200, its effectiveness in delivering the gospel through multiple ministries will be severely hampered.
Several difficulties will need to be overcome if a church plant doesn’t grow quickly.
Ministry Options
We live in a culture that loves choices. In fact, we live in a culture that has come to expect choices. If you go into any convenience store looking for pop, how many choices do you expect to find at their fountain? Two? Unthinkable. Four? Probably not. I’m guessing, but I bet most have at least eight different spouts to choose from. The same idea of choice holds true in today’s church. Once a church plant finds itself limited by low attendance and resources, it will inevitably be limited in what services it has to offer a community. Limited choices and services will make further church growth very difficult to accomplish. By contrast, if a church plant can reach the 200 mark quickly, it will be better able to provide multiple ministries quickly and avoid losing the momentum needed to continue effective ministry. So, if a new church isn’t able to offer multiple ministry options quickly, it will find itself unable to compete among the myriad of already established churches that do. PPPTo some degree, every church struggles with this problem, but the church plant is even more vulnerable. While an established church may be able to do adequate ministry with an average attendance of less than two hundred, over an extended period of time, a church plant cannot. Established churches have differing advantages that baby churches do not.
Credibility
Most established churches have buildings that give them visibility. Established churches also have been able to build credibility over many years in their community. In some case, these older churches have become a community institution. They have a proven staying power and an accepted reputation a new church hasn’t had time to build. Too often, church plants are viewed with suspicion and even labeled as cultish. Rapid growth of a new church can create enough “buzz” on the street to help give it the credibility it needs.
Finances
Established churches have had time to build a loyal membership. Often, this loyal membership consists of extended families that have invested themselves in the history of the church. This loyalty creates a stronger financial foundation. Members give because they have always given or because Mom and Dad gave. Many established churches take for granted the material possessions they have gained over years of existence. The church plant rarely has the advantage of traditional and institutionalized tithe. A church plant almost always starts out with a smaller number of attendees and thus, is limited by their financial resources. The acquisition of little things, like tables, chairs, sound systems, computers, and things that will be needed to grow can become huge financial issues for a church plant.
Corporate Esteem
Of all the problems that new church experience, this may be the most difficult to overcome. Crowds attract crowds. Think about it. The last time you were in an unfamiliar town and needed to choose a restaurant to eat at, didn’t a part of your selection process include counting the number of cars in each parking lot? I bet you turned to your spouse and said something like, “Wow, that barbeque joint sure is busy. I bet they’re good.” Whether you realized it or not, you were attracted to the size of the crowd, not their sign or their building’s façade. To create new missions that break out of the mold of the self-serving, survival-minded, family-run organizations, leaders must find a way to plant churches that can pack out their pews and parking lots in a very short period of time. When a church is able to grow rapidly and gain momentum, this will create a healthy attitude among the members. “A primary difference between growing and declining churches is their attitude. Growing churches feel they have something worthwhile to offer to their community. Their high level of self-esteem provides the energy and strength to share the gospel of Christ with people in the community”.
Church plants that do not grow beyond the 150 average attendance mark within a few years will lose momentum and fall into the small-church trap that will result in a low sense of congregational morale. Church plants are infused with a heightened expectation for success. Very often, these new congregants are driven by an exciting desire to change the world. This desire and expectation make them more vulnerable. When the young churchgoer’s experience is not met with immediate success, a palpable discouragement can set in. This can be a fatal blow for the young church.
The members involved in an established church usually possess fairly level attitudes and expectations. Most have settled into a routine way of “doing” church. Members may pray for, expect, and hope to grow, but the level of expectation for dramatic and rapid changes is not as high as in a new church. In contrast, the expectation of those involved in a church plant is one of rapid growth within a short period of time. When expectations are not reached at the level anticipated, a sense of failure is certain.
Once an attitude of defeat settles into the hearts and minds of the church planter and the new congregation, they can very easily begin to view themselves “as small, weak, unattractive, powerless and frustrated with a limited future”. Unfortunately, this attitude is the state in which many church plants find themselves. If conventional wisdom is true, two-thirds of church-planting attempts will begin to develop a small-church self-image. In essence, church plants need to reach the two hundred mark quickly or face a myriad of problems. | |
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Posted 3/16/2010 in Stephen Gray | 0 Comments - Add Comment |