HEALTHY CHURCH: What's a Church to Do?

      The Word of God is the absolute truth and authority for a New Testament church. God’s Word clearly states that your church has a mandate to fulfill, known as the Great Commission. The BMA Doctrinal Statement, section X, letter B, states, “The Autonomy of the Church — She acknowledges Jesus as her only Head (Eph. 5:23; Col. 1:18) and the Holy Bible as her only rule of faith and practice (Isa. 8:20; II Tim. 3:16, 17).” Biblical truth must govern and guide any church that seeks to glorify God. The challenge lies in the difference between knowing what we believe and obeying that truth.

      Ephesians 3:10 clarifies why your church exists by stating the church is to make known “the manifold wisdom of God.” Several distinctive characteristics are essential to being spiritually healthy, vibrant and vital to the community where God has placed you to serve. One key is finding the wisdom to apply the knowledge of His Word in practical ways in your context. In Cherish, Gary Rohrmayer reminded us, “Knowledge knows everything there is to know about a subject, but wisdom finds a way to apply that knowledge in practical ways.” Be doers of the Word, not hearers only. (James 1:22)

      Gary continued, “You can have knowledge without wisdom, but you cannot have wisdom without knowledge. Knowledge is the foundation of wisdom.” It is time for every church to wake up to its priorities and be the essential lifeline from God to man. That requires submission to His Word, unity in the membership and a renewed commitment to Great Commission ministry. Unfortunately, as Dr. John David Smith stated, many churches are allowing the Great Commission “to be eaten up by the Great Commandment.” It has been pointed out that, in many churches, the Great Commission has become the Great “Omission.”

      In Dr. Smith’s paper, BMA Missions Global — Mature Church Model, he said, “There seems to be a tendency to almost redefine mission with the Great Commandment. It is much easier to measure the philanthropic aspect of ministry than it is to measure the Great Commission part. We must not become either/or; however, there is a priority in ministry.” Our priority is to go and make disciples and plant churches. We must remain dogmatically devoted to both starting new churches while simultaneously strengthening existing churches. Knowledge reveals a problem, and wisdom discerns a path to correcting that problem.

      Dr J.D. Payne tries to help us understand every church's challenge of staying on target and not becoming distracted from their God-given task. “The church in theory and in practice becomes a building, a service, a place or an event. Missions becomes something we do on the other side of the world or at a homeless shelter. Evangelism is understood as weeknight visitation program. Worship takes place only a couple of hours a week. Discipleship becomes a program. Church membership is diluted to attending worship services and giving financially.” How do you move your church from doing church to being the church daily?

      Think of the tag lines churches give themselves. They strive to have a slogan expressing what kind of church people can expect when they attend. Descriptors such as contemporary, traditional, purpose-driven, seeker-sensitive, cell, house, postmodern and many others aimed to attract a certain “clientele.” It appears the titles are often more focused on marketing than ministry and mission. Radical pragmatism can lead a church to an ugly destination of attempting whatever “works” to grow the attendance and increase the numbers. Culture certainly promotes the idea that bigger is better.

      Dr. Payne continued, “My concern is that in a time when consumerism is rampant, we quickly identify churches according to their structure and organization rather than by what they believe and practice, so we can determine if we want to attend that church. Clearly, within the New Testament, labels were not an issue, but rather, right beliefs and actions were the definitive issues.” Please notice that it is the right “beliefs” and the right “actions.” While some would have almost all the focus on orthodoxy (the right beliefs: content), the Biblical admonitions also point us to orthopraxy (the right actions: conduct).

      Are the people in your church having regular, ongoing, intentional conversations with people who are far from God? Here is an observation we need to consider: “With few exceptions, people come to Christ after they have journeyed with other Christians — examining them and considering their claims.” Our modus operandi in evangelism must move from a one-time event or presentation to a process of an ongoing relationship. Once again, our culture has caused us to be overly enamored with the outcome — the harvest — more than the process of planting and watering the seed.

      That does not devalue the “event” or the “moment of decision.” It reminds us of the work already done by others in that individual’s life who continued to water the seed that had been planted. Jesus spoke to His disciples on this very matter in John 4:37-38, “And herein is that saying true, One soweth, and another reapeth. I sent you to reap that whereon ye bestowed no labour: other men laboured, and ye are entered into their labours.” The temptation is for everything to be instantaneous and easy, but the reality is that it is normally neither. Most evangelism training has caused us to focus on “sealing the deal.”

      What is a church to do? Continue to promote being an outwardly focused church. Set the example by building redemptive relationships with people far from God and sharing testimonies of that process. Train your church on how to share their faith and, when opportunity comes, to have the ability to show someone how to be born again. A big part of the fear that comes in sharing one’s faith is generated by the lack of confidence in how to accomplish that. Make sure you are providing the tools needed in the fields for the planting season. Remain committed to planting and watering the seed (Luke 8:4-15).