Ps 145:4 GOD’S WORD translation

So today, while sitting at Starbucks, I took some time to really listen to the music of Jesus Culture. I have heard of them and even caught snippets of their music, but never really stopped to listen: I am glad I did!

What struck me most about the music and I assume it is representational of the musicians and their movement, was the passionate hunger for Jesus. Songs like “You Won’t Relent,” to me was like a duet of God’s passion for us and a hungry soul longing for intimacy with Him. It was all I could do to keep the tears from flowing (after all, I was in Starbucks!).

As my mind reeled with thoughts, I began to ruminate on the generational differences. The next generation’s expression of faith is not the same as ours and godly leaders need to recognize this and liberate them!

In this thought process, I was taken back to a discussion I had in Albany GA with Vincent Hunt, a progressive thinker of the generation after me. We were discussing that there did not have to be a generational divide, but an empowering and releasing from one to the next. The illustration we discussed was a bow and arrow.

In short, the purpose of the bow is to propel the arrow forward as it is released to hit the mark. Neither is effective without the other. It is from the bow that the arrow receives power and direction. The bow and arrow are different from each other, but their purpose is to work together to accomplish a mutual task.

The problem arises, when you draw the bow and attempt to hold the arrow to long. The tension that builds will result in an increased potential for the arrow to go astray and miss the mark: neither bow nor arrow will fulfill their purpose.

The idea here is each generation is different. It is the responsibility of the “older” generation to provide direction and empowerment as they RELEASE the next generation! The “elders” are to pass on the truth and testimonies of faith to the “younger” generation and trust Jesus to do his part as they walk out their faith, just as we did.

In my communications with individuals of the generations following after me, the main comment I hear is that they want spiritual fathers that will nurture, love them and trust them. I admire one characteristic statements from the Jesus Culture website: “They would be connected with spiritual fathers and mothers and aligned under their covering.” I believe there is a generation ready to step up: IF they can find the generation before them to empower and release them!

For years, I have heard 1 Chronicles 12:32 preached regarding the times we live in. The New Living Translations puts it this way: “From the tribe of Issachar, there were 200 leaders of the tribe with their relatives. All these men understood the signs of the times and knew the best course for Israel to take“  (emphasis added). In my opinion, if there is ever a time for this to be true it is now.

The necessity of this text is not because of the evils of the world, but because of the transition of the ekklesia (church) into kingdom manifestation. We are at a crucial karios moment in God’s plan: not just a generational change, but also a spiritual mindset transformation. We are at a time and place that my generation of ministry (I’m only 51) notches the arrow, pulls the bow back AND releases the arrow!

So, my final challenge:

• To the “older” generation, find the “young” person, invest in them, love them, trust them and release them!
• To the “younger” generation, find that “older” person who is trying to understand, be patient with us. Seek the wisdom of our scars, listen to the story of what God has done, and use it to build your faith!

P.S. – Please forgive the slight disjointedness of this post: it was written on the fly as I was sitting at Starbucks. It is my desire to be one of those “older” generational members that understands the times and what is necessary for the church to do!

As I sit here “watching” the wind, a question is posed: How do I know the wind is blowing? According to Dictionary.com, wind is defined as “air in natural motion.” Really helpful, huh?

Air on average is pretty clear. Look inside a glass and you SEE nothing, yet turn that glass upside down in a bucket of water and submerge it and SEE that no water will go up into the glass. So air is something invisible to the naked eye, but can exert tremendous force or produce effects.

To see or hear wind, it needs something to interact with.

So back to my question, how do I know the wind is blowing? I see the effects it has on the trees and flags. I hear the sound rustling from the motion of the leaves and branches. In short, I cannot see the wind, but I can experience its effects when it interacts with other objects.

Ok, so I have explained how I know the wind is blowing, what’s my point?
The point is, I believe the same applies for the demonstration of God’s spirit. It needs something or more importantly, someone to interact with to result in a demonstration.

We know God is at work in our world, seeking to restore his glory and kingdom: what He is looking for are those who are sensitive to where, when and how He is operating AND choose to allow themselves to be an object his spirit interacts with. This will result in God using people to demonstrate His purpose and presence.

So, food for thought today: Do you see the wind blowing

At a later date, this same person invited me to play racquetball. I gladly accepted, after all I had seen him play softball, NO PROBLEM! While preparing to play, I watched him putting on kneepads and a nylon jacket. I thought to myself: “What next, a helmet?” Well, I found out the equipment was not for protection – but performance.  I was amazed as he would slide on his knees for shots along the wall, flip on his back and be upright before I could return his volley. He “smoked” me (our term of the late 70’s). What was the difference? He was gifted at one sport, the other he obviously was not.

How well this illustration fits many churches of today.  We create programs with positions, and then we seek to assemble ministry teams based on the needs of our programs. Many times individuals are asked to participate in areas that may not allow them to excel in their gifting. Unfortunately, this results in a lack of fruitfulness, which produces frustration and a high turnover of individuals.

There is a series I have adapted and teach on ministry foundations (1). One of the strengths of this series is that it first reveals to us how many traditional churches develop their ministries. The steps are similar to the following:

• First, the leadership determines there is a need requiring some action – reach the homeless lets say.
• Second, they develop a program – this is how we will do it.
• Third, they create a missions statement as to why and what they are doing to motivate people.
• Fourth, they then begin disseminating a vision – this is how this is part of the kingdom, what God wants to do etc.
• Finally, they go to prayer and ask God to bless what they have created.

Now, I am not saying these things are wrong. But I wonder as to the ultimate effectiveness of them. How many times do churches and individuals start something, yet in the long run it is not very productive? It becomes a challenge to motivate people to get involved. It can ultimately become a source of frustration for leadership. Yet God does want us to minister and be fruitful.

In 1 Corinthians chapter 12, Paul compares the body of Christ (the church) to the human body. He tells us we are many members (parts) each being different, yet we are all one body. Since we are each different, we have different gifting. For our human body to function correctly, each part must perform the purpose it was created for. If we have a part not performing its job, we call it disease or sickness.

When the church structures its ministries according to the giftings God has placed in the body (not a program because we feel in it is necessary) we find that the members will be fruitful in their ministries and if fruitful they will be fulfilled.

Years ago, in the first church I pastored, I sought the Lord to see how we were to impact our city. His response was children’s and youth ministry. We spent a large amount of our resources and people on developing these ministries. When the Lord moved us on, over 50% of the church was under the age of 18. The last time I spoke with my successor, he reported they would have in mid-week bible study almost as many children as was the total Sunday attendance prior to my leaving.  All this in a small town of 10,000 people, with at least 23 other churches.

There were times during my pastorate, in my ignorance, I used to get frustrated about not having other ministries. There was a prison in town – yet we did not have a prison ministry.  We had a small women’s ministry and no real men’s ministry. It was not till many years later I came to realize, that we built a ministry based on the giftings and passion God had placed in the local body.

The discovery process we went through and what is now taught is summarized as follows below, obviously there is much elaboration on each that can be done.

• First, begin with spiritual formation – get a connection with the King and His kingdom.
• Second, from this spiritual formation, let Him give you a Kingdom vision. A big “spiritual” picture.
• Third, from this big picture, let Him give you the mission He has for you or the local church – notice His Idea, not ours.
• Fourthly, now develop the ministry to fulfill the mission He has given you.
• Finally, you should see your actions much more fruitful because the source is the King and His kingdom.

When we develop a ministry and initiate the actions based on this process,  because it is His idea, He will bless and we will be fruitful.

May I suggest, if you are frustrated in your ministry or have a ministry that is not as effective as you believe it should be, take some time to evaluate it. Was it initiated because it was a good idea or something you think every church should have? Or was it Jesus’ idea? If it was yours, go back to Him with a clean agenda and see what he will have you to do. If it was His idea, double check and see if you need to make any adjustments, and then be faithful in the mission and vision He has given you.

till next time
martin
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(1) Developing A Passion Based Ministry ~ The most effective ministry is one based on our spiritual giftings a passion derived from a specific Kingdom vision. This series reveals the process of spiritual formation and empowerment of a passion based ministry.

For the most part, contemporary Christianity focuses on only two aspects of the Gospel (Good News), the fall and redemption. The goal of many churches is to win the lost, getting them to a personal experience of redemption. To accomplish this, much of the preaching focuses on either our deplorable sinful state or the grace of His redemption. Neither of which I deny is true.

Once someone experiences this redemption, it seems the preaching and ministry focuses on how we need to live to maintain this state of redemption. Some ministries, it seems, use the fall or sin as a form of manipulation to keep us in a state of repentance, seeking afresh the redemption. Unfortunately, the ultimate outcome can be condemnation and a guilt complex: we come believe God cannot or will not use us because we are in such bad shape.

Now, before you crucify me, please understand: I acknowledge our fallen state from Adam and our need of saving grace and a true transformed life of repentance. But what I have experienced and others have expressed to me is never moving beyond this fall/sin and redemption/repentance cycle. It is a common statement among preachers: “You get what you preach.” Well if we continually focus on this cycle, what we get is fearful, guilt ridden, inactive pew sitters: most just hoping to make it into heaven.

The Gospel is Good News and it is greater than this!

The fullness of the Gospel story actually begins at creation: Man was created to be God’s image and representative! Yes Adam sinned and lost the representational role, but the Good News of Jesus Christ is that he came to restore man BACK to God’s original plan – restoration to be His representative.

So from this context, we can see the Good News actually has four components: It is Creation, Fall, Redemption and Restoration. The Good News is not just we have been redeemed, but we have been restored! (pardon me while I shout a bit!)

The application then is if we live in the restoration of the Gospel, we will view our lives from that perspective and begin to bring Jesus in an incarnational way to our daily lives. It is here we find that we have the authority to demonstrate the power of His kingdom, revealing to this world there is a greater life available. This is the Good News!

So, I have been told by credible sources that I do not think normal! I guess it is so: I tend to ask a lot of question, searching for the underlying reason of many things. A few years ago I got to thinking: Why did God do the creation thing? What’s His purpose for the earth, animals and man? The awesome thing about these questions is: God showed me an answer in His word! This answer, I believe, is truly the foundation for the Good News (I will cover this in another Apostolic Note).

So what was His answer to my off the wall question, why did he create the earth? The word of God tells us in the following texts:

• Num 14:21 But as truly as I live, all the earth shall be filled with the glory of the LORD.
• Hab 2:14 For the earth shall be filled with the knowledge of the glory of the LORD, as the waters cover the sea.
• Isa 6:3 And one cried unto another, and said, Holy, holy, holy, is the LORD of hosts: the whole earth is full of his glory.

From these texts we can begin to see a purpose for this created earth: God wanted to fill it with his glory. So…. Ok, this obviously prompts another question: What is the glory of God?

Glory Defined

In the OT, the most common word for “glory” is Kabhodh and according to the ISBE (1) it means “weight,” “heaviness,” and hence in its primary uses it conveys the idea of some external, physical manifestation of dignity, preeminence or majesty. The reference is most frequently, however, to the external manifestations.” In its most significant usages “it describes the form in which Jehovah (Yahweh) reveals Himself or is the sign and manifestation of His presence. Kabhodh conveys the idea of some physical, external manifestation; most commonly when God would reveal himself or his presence.” Based on this understanding, the glory of the Lord was some awesome, majestic physical manifestation that God would use to reveal His presence.

We see this played out in numerous occasions in the scriptures regarding “The glory of the Lord,” when there was a demonstrated manifestation, allowing individuals to recognize the Lords presence. Some of these include:

• The glory of the Lord appeared in a cloud as Aaron spoke – Exodus 16:10
• The glory of the Lord appeared in a cloud and as fire on Mt Sinai – Exodus 24:16-17
• The glory of the Lord appeared as cloud in the tabernacle – Exodus 40:34-35
• Four times in Numbers it states that the glory of the Lord “appeared.” – Num 14:10, 16:19 & 19, 20:6
  • The word “appeared” in these texts is ra’ah and means:
  • “to see, observe, perceive, get acquainted with, gain understanding, examine, look after (see to), choose, discover.”(2)
  • Basically ra’ah connotes seeing with one’s eyes:(3)
  • God speaks of those “which have seen” his glory in Egypt and the wilderness – Num 14:22
    • “which have seen” is the same ra’ah above
  • When Solomon dedicated the temple, the glory of the Lord filled the temple – 2 Ch 5:14
    • Fire came with this appearance – 2 Ch 7:3
  • Isaiah prophesied that the glory of the Lord would appear and it would be seen – Isa 35:2, 40:5
  • Ezekiel repeatedly referenced seeing the glory of the Lord – Eze 1:28, 3:23, 10:4 & 18, 11:23

  These texts and others state to us that glory, in reference to the Lord, spoke of a recognizable, demonstrable manifestation of God’s presence. There was no doubt in the minds of those who witnessed the glory, of whose presence they were in.

  We see a similar pattern in the usage of glory in the NT

  • Jesus told Martha if “thou wouldest believe, thou shouldest see the glory of God” – John 11:40
    • According to Vines, the word “see is optomai” and simply means “to see.”
  • Stephen as he was being stoned, “saw the glory of God” – Acts 7:55
  • Paul states that we are beholding the glory of the Lord – 2 Cor 3:18
  • In Revelation we are told the temple was filled with smoke from the glory of God. – Rev 15:8

  The most common NT word for glory is “doxa,” and: “primarily signifies an opinion, estimate, and hence, the honor resulting from a good opinion. It is used of the nature and acts of God in self-manifestation, i. e., what He essentially is and does, as exhibited in whatever way he reveals Himself” (4) According to Dr. Spiros Zodhiates (5), “doxa” has the following meanings: To “recognize a person or thing for what it is. Appearance, form, that appearance of a person which catches the eye or attracts attention, commanding recognition.”

  The practical usage of doxa is that God’s form or appearance of manifestation would bring about an opinion, estimation and recognition of who he is. Thus, the glory was a way of God revealing himself in a knowable way.

  The point of giving so many references is this: the biblical principle of glory is a visible manifestation that attracted the attention and brought recognition of the presence of God. It is all about the revelation of Him!

  When teaching our Living In Kingdom Authority series the working definition we use is a compilation of many resources and is as follows: Glory is a form or appearance that attracts attention and brings recognition – of who God is.

  Creation
  Now, to tie this back into creation: The eternal God, who is a spirit (Jn 4:24), which according to Jesus, does not have “flesh and bones” (Lk 24:39) has sought to reveal himself. To accomplish this, He created a place called earth to fill with His form or appearance that would attract attention and bring recognition of who He is. In short, an invisible and intangible God desired to make himself knowable.

  In the next few Apostolic Notes, we will discuss the importance of glory as it relates to understanding of the purpose for Adam, Jesus, the Gospel and the born again believer.

  In the meantime, when you read the term “glory,” think of “the form or appearance that attracts attention and brings recognition.” See how it will bring to light the scripture, especially the New Testament.

  Next apostolic note, we will present the idea of How God’s Glory would fill the earth.

  —————————————-
  (1) International Standard Bible Encyclopaedia, Electronic Database Copyright (c)1996 by Biblesoft
  (2) Biblesoft’s New Exhaustive Strong’s Numbers and Concordance with Expanded Greek-Hebrew Dictionary. Copyright © 1994, 2003 Biblesoft, Inc. and International Bible Translators, Inc.)
  (3) Vine’s Expository Dictionary of Biblical Words, Copyright (c)1985, Thomas Nelson Publishers
  (4) Vine’s Expository Dictionary of Biblical Words, Copyright (c)1985, Thomas Nelson Publishers
  (5) Lexical Aids To The New Testament

How many times a week do you get asked for ID? You’re at the store, ready to check out with your card, the clerk asks you, “Can I see some ID please?” So what do you do? You reach for your drivers license. Ok, so what is so different about this 2×3 piece of plastic, that it would ease the mind of the suspicious (or bored) clerk? Well duh! It has your picture on it. So what?

Once we have given them the drivers license, the clerk looks at the picture, and then looks up at you, then back at the picture. Why? They are comparing you to the image on the card. It is this image that is used to confirm your identity. Note – the image is not you, it is a representation of you, but it causes others to recognize you.

Pictures are images are ways to capture the memories and people of a moment. Have you looked at a photo album lately? As you peruse the old photo’s you catch yourself saying “look at…” as you point to a friend or relative; releasing a flood of memories.

So to ask a facetious question, how did you know who that was: Because you recognized the image in the photo. Now we know that this particular individual was not there with you, but again, the image allowed you to recognize them.

So what is an image? “a representation or likeness of a person or thing ”(1)

An image is not the actual “thing” or person, but it is something that is used for identification. Why is this significant? Glad you asked.

Based on my biblical study, this is one of the key results of the Gospel and God’s purpose for mankind. From the creation story, we know that Adam was created in the image and likeness of God. He was given dominion and told to multiply and fill the earth. The significance here is that if he had been obedient, the earth would have become populated with the image God.

The OT word for image is tselem and means:

• “image or copy” of something in the sense of a replica:
• God made man in His own “image,” reflecting some of His own perfections
• The word also means “image” in the sense of essential nature as used in the following text:
  • So Adam “begat a son in his own likeness, after his image; and called his name Seth” Gen 5:3.

So grasping the concepts of image, God made man in his own image to reflect his essential nature and perfection.

As God’s image, Adam was to manifest, reveal, make known to all of creation what God was like: his purpose was to make God tangible or real, ruling as God’s representative. When creation saw Adam, they saw God. Through Adam, God’s nature and character would be expressed.

Unfortunately, we know Adam disobeyed. Since sin entered in, he lost the likeness of God and could no longer act as His representative. Thus, banished from the garden.

From this point on, we see the good news (gospel) being worked out: not just to redeem man, but also to restore him back to his original purpose. A study of the scriptures reveals a focused part of the good news is a restoration back to the image and representation of God. This is seen first in the purpose of Jesus, then applied to the born again believer.

Jesus
It is common knowledge and understanding that Jesus came as the image of God, this is evidenced by the following:
The Who is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of every creature: Col 1:15

• Who being the brightness of [his] glory, and the express image of his person… Heb 1:2
• he that hath seen me hath seen the Father… Jn 14:9
• I also think it is significant that in 1 Cor 15, Paul makes a direct connection to Adam, by stating that Jesus was the “last Adam:” implying a completion.

Us
The word tells us that we are renewed after His image

• And have put on the new man, which is renewed in knowledge after the image of him that created him: Col 3:10
• For whom he did foreknow, he also did predestinate to be conformed to the image of his Son… Rom 8:29
• And that ye put on the new man, which after God is created in righteousness and true holiness KJV Eph 4:24
• …and to clothe yourselves with the new nature, which was created according to God’s image in righteousness and true holiness. ISV
  • The ESV states – created after the likeness of God…

These texts reveal to us that Jesus came as the representational image of an invisible God, to restore mankind to his original purpose. When we are born again, we are created after God’s likeness, bearing His image and to fulfill the role Adam was created for: representation!

As His image, our purpose is to live in such a way that others will recognize him.

However, we are not to just present an image of a good moral life, we have been authorized to conduct business as representatives of the Kingdom of Jesus Christ. We are to walk in His delegated authority, demonstrating to this world what life in His kingdom will be like. This manifestation proves to the world there is something better: We reveal to them that there is a King and He is coming with His kingdom and His name is Jesus!

Food for thought:
Is the focus of my walk, to make it to heaven? Or, am I seeking to fulfill the purpose of my creation: expressing His image to a hungry world?

——
Adapted from our teaching series: Living In Kingdom Authority and our book: Apostolic Authority, Every Believers Privilege

It is a common theme today for many individuals to write, blog and preach about how the church needs to focus on discipleship, becoming more like Jesus. In fact, it seems to be the mantra of many today, maybe even mine.

Maybe we need to stop and think a little before we move on: what Jesus are we trying to be like?

It seems in many circles we have an image of Jesus that is portrayed as a sanitized moral perfectionist. An example whose lifestyle is that of a set of characteristics, evidenced by living particular guidelines: when accomplished, one is deemed pure, holy, righteous etc. Is this the Jesus we are to be like? I am not sure…

A casual observer of Jesus would have seen someone quite different.

He was selfless and submitted.
He came to do the will of the one who sent him
He came as a religious revolutionary, challenging the paradigms of tradition
He taught a kingdom and proved its existence by demonstration

He was homeless, and penniless
He was hungry and tired
He was misunderstood by those he came to help
He was missed by those who were looking for him

Do I really want to be like Jesus?

He was called illegitimate, sinner, drunkard and demon possessed
His own family ridiculed him
He was deserted by those closest to him

Do I really want to be like Jesus?

He didn’t preach a conference, but He spoke to thousands
o    But he had to provide the lunch
The bulk of his ministry was not some Toastmasters 3 point homily
o    But stories so simple, a child could grasp
He didn’t have a fancy church edifice
His “pulpit” was found in boats, on hillsides, in the wilderness, along the roadside

Do I really want to be like Jesus?

His ministry was not one day a week
He impacted lives in the daily rub of the ordinary or mundane
He touched the untouchable, loved the unlovable, forgave the unforgivable, valued the valueless and gave to the undeserving
He was despised, rejected, criticized, condemned and ultimately crucified!

Do I really want to be like Jesus?

Yet…
He opened blind eyes
The lame walked
The dumb talked
Demons were cast out

He told us
o    If I lose my life, I would find it
o    We would be persecuted for His name sake

o    All power is given to Him – now we are to Go!
o    He was sending us just as he had been sent
o    That we would do Greater works than His
o    He would not leave nor forsake us
o    He would be with us to the end of the earth

Do I really want to be like Jesus? Yes, but I must deal with the war of the flesh and spirit. It is the Spirit with in me, calling, compelling me to be what He desires. Yet is my natural man that is partial to self, judging the cost of my comfort and pride before I fully commit.  So maybe my prayer should focus more on the daily dying to self: then the Spiritual would begin to manifest.

What say ye?

The simple truth is we have all the same commissioning from the Lord: He has instructed us to “Go and make disciples.(1)” So, no matter where we find ourselves in living for God or our status in life, we all have the same purpose – we are to make disciples.

The wonderful challenge comes in discovering how we are to use our individual uniqueness to fulfill this purpose. Paul addressed this issue when he wrote to the church at Corinth, elaborating to them that they were each created as different members of the body of Christ, but each was equally important to the functioning of the body.(2) It is still the same today: we are each uniquely gifted and equally important to the purpose of the body.

It is our individual giftings that will qualify us to circulate in different environments effectively demonstrating our King and establishing disciple making relationships.

So if we all have the same purpose and are uniquely equipped to accomplish this purpose, what seems to be the challenge to successfully accomplish this?

I believe part of the challenge is the traditional model of discipleship development of gathering and containment. The typical church creates attractional events to gather the lost to a service to hear the Gospel. Once someone is born again, there is typically a series of classes that will teach a biblical morality and particular lifestyle. Discipleship is judged by the successful completion and adherence to this material.

In contrast to this process we see Jesus words “Go and make disciples.” The two key words of this statement: “Go & Make.”

“Go”
This is probably the toughest word to be obedient to. To quote part of the Law of Inertia “A body at rest remains at rest …unless acted upon by an external force.” The challenge to “go” is we must must overcome the lack of inertia: this requires energy. We must grasp that we are sent,(3) motivating us to leave our present place of rest, both physically (church building) and spiritually. We must be missional minded, we cannot expect the people to come to us. Jesus went to those who needed Him: “for god so loved the world, he gave.” Jesus stated “As thou has sent me into the world.” The true nature of being apostolic demonstrated by our going. The proof we have been sent is that we go.

“Make”
This is the second challenging word and it implies a process, it requires my involvement. It means I must invest my time, energy, vulnerability: it cannot be a one time event.

In their teaching series, The Story Formed Way, the leaders of SOMA missional community state: “The word make implies a process—a process that has steps to it and is intentional.” To make disciples requires us to plan to get involved in the lives of those around us, initiating intentional relationships. Again from the SOMA leaders: “discipleship process begins at the point of relationship, not at the point of conversion!” In todays culture, many people want to see the proof of our God, lived out in daily relationships before they choose to believe in Him.

So back to our purpose. Each of us has been uniquely gifted and sent to enter the process of relationships with those who do not know Jesus. It is within these relationships, in the daily rub of life, others will come to see the transformational power of Jesus in our lives, then choosing to enter a saving discipling relationship Him.

Today, choose to GO AND MAKE a disciple!
———-
(1) Matthew 28:19-20
(2) 1 Corinthians 12
(3) John 17:18

The 4th segment of Lesson 1 Living in Kingdom Authority.
This session focuses on how Jesus has renewed and restored us back to Adam’s original purpose: God’s image and glory bearers.

Living In Kingdom Authority 1d – Man’s Purpose Restored

For a recent conference, I was asked to be one of the members of a panel discussion, our topic was: The Church in the 21st Century. A lofty theme for a two-hour dialogue.

In preparation, I spent much time ruminating on what has been written about the current church situation and what is seen as biblical models of a New Testament church. The following is a few thoughts I jotted down. Now they are not a complete dissertation, but I think, they are good discussion points to starts some dialogue. So, tell me what you think.

Church growth
We are well into the 21st century, yet when someone speaks of church growth it is predominantly from an old paradigm, ie: numerical growth of a local assembly. The typical concept of church growth is to find a better way to attract people to an event on Sunday. The thought is, if we can increase the number in a service, we think we can increase the chances of someone being saved and then continuing to attend on a regular basis. The fact is we are just looking to do what we have always done, just in a more attractional way!

In the traditional, attractional church of the 20th century, the Sunday event is seen as the major point of evangelism, or preaching of the salvation message. This mindset causes church leaders to search out the latest, greatest program that will attract a crowd. The majority of ministries can devolve into programs that actually promote the church, hoping it will inspire those to attend. (believe me, I have been there done that as a pastor!)

Unfortunately, this is still DOING church using a model that is becoming obsolete. Depending upon what sources you read, this way of church appeals to at best 40% of the population; but realistically, about 30% (Hirsch, Salter). So we have the majority of “churches” all scrapping for an ever-shrinking piece of the pie.

Now before you crucify me, I am not saying this is WRONG, just not as effective as it was many decades ago. Also, I am not saying to do away with the weekly gathering. But what we need is a new context/paradigm/box/perspective (buzz words) to see this gathering in to be more Gospel friendly.

So what is the answer to successful church in the 21st century? I believe it is focusing on BEING the church, not how we DO church. Or another way of saying it: grow people, not churches.

Discipleship
Jesus states that He would build his church: He did not empower us to do this. He did give us a commission, not to grow churches, but to make disciples by teaching them to be obedient to His way of life (commandments). If we focus on our part, He will do his.

If the church is to be successful church in 21st century, each born again believer must think like missionaries (missional): Contextualizing a holistic Gospel in the lives of the culture they are trying to reach. What this entails is living the gospel AS good news in the daily lives of those we interact with. It is taking the Gospel beyond the salvation experience and demonstrating its transformational power. It is the application of this transformational power of the Gospel that will result in disciples being formed.

If the church is to fulfill the commission to make disciples, there first must be an empowering and then a sending of the existing disciples. The empowerment process must convey that the believer has been authorized by Jesus to be His representative and image bearer to this world. The demonstration of this empowerment will present a relevant Gospel in the context of the culture they are living.

Relevant
Relevance -“having direct bearing on the matter in hand.”

Now what relevance means to the success of the 21st century church is this: Demonstrating how the gospel reaches into the nooks and crannies of life and address the deepest issues of our existence, reveals its relevance BEYOND the salvation experience.

For each of us, our choices determine the outcomes of our lives and those choices are dictated by our values. The relevant application of the Gospel reveals how the good news of the Kingdom challenges and transforms our values, which in turn, will affect our choices. Each person and culture has ideologies that are deeply ingrained in their value system. In the discipleship process, it is the responsibility of the believer to root these out and present the Good News in a way that addresses these, thus making the Gospel relevant.

So in summary, if the church is to be successful in the 21st century, it must change its paradigm from an attractional model only: to an attractional AND scattering process. The leadership of the local assemblies should focus on training and empowering the believers THEN sending them out to demonstrate Jesus and his kingdom, thus making disciples.

Then Jesus will build his church.