Growth in the Bible/Church
We talk about church growth a lot in church meetings. When I first started in ministry, we talked about baptisms and finances and how these things needed to grow. Then there was a movement to talk about Church Growth. I think this was an attempt to move from the bare numbers of attendance at church and financial supporters to looking at the reasons why a church attracts more people.
So we moved from what is called Church Growth to Church Health. And today, as I survey the church landscape, there is a movement toward individual health and growth, called Discipleship. It may be very individualistic at times but it has ramifications for the larger church. More about that later.
One of my presidents told me one time that about every 5 years, something comes along in the church to shake it up for a while and try to bump it around so that it will move off of dead center. I think he's been fairly accurate. So I wonder if Discipleship is that latest bump. I hope not because I think of the three I just mentioned, it is the most Biblical. There are other movements as well, such as Missional and Emerging. I'm saving those for other conversations. For now, let's stick with Discipleship.
I'm not saying that God doesn't want our churches to grow. Of course He does. I'm not saying He doesn't want them to be healthy. Of course He does. I'm saying that there is not a strong workflow from the Bible for those first two things, but for individual discipleship, there is a grand plan.
Furthermore, I'm suggesting that individuals that grow strong in the Lord tend to grow a strong healthy church right along with their own growth. Think about that for a minute. That means a number of things.
If my growth in the Lord is more attended to, I probably won't show up at any more stonings. You know, like the woman caught in adultery in John 8. I won't go because I know I'm just as sinful as she was, maybe not the same sins but maybe worse ones, stealthy ones that destroy relationships. So I won't be as judgmental of others. This alone is worth the price of admission. Jugmentalism is one of the enemies great weapons. Judging others and not judging oneself is the basis of being a hypocrite., which means to under-judge yourself.
It also means we will grow stronger in the Lord as we learn growth by proximity. To be close to Christ is to be changed by Christ. People often say that God changes not. I know the text. I also know why they say that, so they can stay the same. What's funny is, that we change all the time, and everything around us is changing. God may not change, but we sure better. Stop changing and your dying. And growth is change. Your associations are a prime factor in the direction of that growth. Do you choose your relationships in order to grow closer to Christ? It makes a difference. Once again, I am not suggesting you stop relating to people who don't care about God or Christ, only that you examine that relationship and what it means as you follow Christ.
It also means we will focus more on Christ. This is not a navel gazing activity, designed to pump up the deflated muscles in our spiritual growth exercise and fitness plan. We are not called to be spiritual weightlifters. We are called to behold the Living Christ.
I'm preaching through some of the high points of Exodus for the next couple of months or so. All of what I just said is found in that book. Moses beholds God at a Burning Bush, Moses and people behold God in sign and symbol, fire and flood, cloud and care, on mountains and in valleys. As they keep their eyes on God, they progress.
The whole sanctuary thing is a transfer of holiness or discipleship. Walking through the sanctuary, the high priest carries you with him. That's what the stones are for on his garments. They're are twelve of them, one for each tribe. He's got you covered. You're in with Him. So he takes you from observing the cross at the door of the sanctuary to participating in a devoted life inside the Holy Place to a fully committed life inside the Most Holy Place. I dare say, he built that tent for you and me, not so much for Himself. It's not a portable God house. It was a meeting place. Still is. It was all about proximity. It was in the center of the camp so all could see and access it's lessons.
As the people proximated themselves with God they became changed. The same was true of the disciples of Christ. The same is true for us. In that sense, God definitely does not change, we do. We grow by Watching and Being with the Christ. That's the kind of change I want to be.
So we moved from what is called Church Growth to Church Health. And today, as I survey the church landscape, there is a movement toward individual health and growth, called Discipleship. It may be very individualistic at times but it has ramifications for the larger church. More about that later.
One of my presidents told me one time that about every 5 years, something comes along in the church to shake it up for a while and try to bump it around so that it will move off of dead center. I think he's been fairly accurate. So I wonder if Discipleship is that latest bump. I hope not because I think of the three I just mentioned, it is the most Biblical. There are other movements as well, such as Missional and Emerging. I'm saving those for other conversations. For now, let's stick with Discipleship.
I'm not saying that God doesn't want our churches to grow. Of course He does. I'm not saying He doesn't want them to be healthy. Of course He does. I'm saying that there is not a strong workflow from the Bible for those first two things, but for individual discipleship, there is a grand plan.
Furthermore, I'm suggesting that individuals that grow strong in the Lord tend to grow a strong healthy church right along with their own growth. Think about that for a minute. That means a number of things.
If my growth in the Lord is more attended to, I probably won't show up at any more stonings. You know, like the woman caught in adultery in John 8. I won't go because I know I'm just as sinful as she was, maybe not the same sins but maybe worse ones, stealthy ones that destroy relationships. So I won't be as judgmental of others. This alone is worth the price of admission. Jugmentalism is one of the enemies great weapons. Judging others and not judging oneself is the basis of being a hypocrite., which means to under-judge yourself.
It also means we will grow stronger in the Lord as we learn growth by proximity. To be close to Christ is to be changed by Christ. People often say that God changes not. I know the text. I also know why they say that, so they can stay the same. What's funny is, that we change all the time, and everything around us is changing. God may not change, but we sure better. Stop changing and your dying. And growth is change. Your associations are a prime factor in the direction of that growth. Do you choose your relationships in order to grow closer to Christ? It makes a difference. Once again, I am not suggesting you stop relating to people who don't care about God or Christ, only that you examine that relationship and what it means as you follow Christ.
It also means we will focus more on Christ. This is not a navel gazing activity, designed to pump up the deflated muscles in our spiritual growth exercise and fitness plan. We are not called to be spiritual weightlifters. We are called to behold the Living Christ.
I'm preaching through some of the high points of Exodus for the next couple of months or so. All of what I just said is found in that book. Moses beholds God at a Burning Bush, Moses and people behold God in sign and symbol, fire and flood, cloud and care, on mountains and in valleys. As they keep their eyes on God, they progress.
The whole sanctuary thing is a transfer of holiness or discipleship. Walking through the sanctuary, the high priest carries you with him. That's what the stones are for on his garments. They're are twelve of them, one for each tribe. He's got you covered. You're in with Him. So he takes you from observing the cross at the door of the sanctuary to participating in a devoted life inside the Holy Place to a fully committed life inside the Most Holy Place. I dare say, he built that tent for you and me, not so much for Himself. It's not a portable God house. It was a meeting place. Still is. It was all about proximity. It was in the center of the camp so all could see and access it's lessons.
As the people proximated themselves with God they became changed. The same was true of the disciples of Christ. The same is true for us. In that sense, God definitely does not change, we do. We grow by Watching and Being with the Christ. That's the kind of change I want to be.
Hey There-
Your observations on the changing landscape of metrics is something I see a lot of - it's no longer Bucks and Butts - but about real life transformation- are we drawing nearer to Christ? Are we a witness to His love and power?
Good post-
Chris+
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