Traits of An Effective Church

Acts 1:8-11

Introduction

What makes cake, cake? Is it the flour, the sugar, eggs, milk? What makes a house a house, is it the living room, kitchen, bedroom, nails or the roof? What makes a car a car? Is it the tires, engines, is it the brakes. Can’t seem to put your finger on it can you? Truth is, without any one of these elements in its perspective place you would not have a cake, house, or car which will be useful. They each need all the proper components or parts in order to make it what it is.

If this is true then it is also true that there is not just any one thing that makes the Church a church or shall i say an effective church. There are a variety of things which are necessary for the church to be what God intends it to be.

The book of Acts gives the history of the Christian church and the spread of the gospel of Jesus Christ, as well as the mounting opposition to it. really gives the reader an opportunity to see first hand some significant clues on becoming an effective church. It demonstrates the purpose for the church through the activities of the Apostles of Christ. The reader is introduced to the resurrected Christ as He meets with His Apostles and gives them the objectives and mission for the advancement of His Kingdom. He explains to them the necessity of receiving the Holy Ghost. Therefore, He teaches that their authority will be administered through the Holy Ghost.

, teaches that no church is effective without the Holy Ghost. Because Christ is the head of the Church, we are under mandate to become spiritual people who witness and glorify Christ.

Allow me to propose that there are distinct traits that the effective church possesses. The effective church is under the influence of the Holy Spirit, witnesses without reservation, and Christ centered.

The Effective Church is Under the Influence of the Holy Spirit

Jesus was clear in His directives to the disciples. Their responsibility included subjection to the Holy Spirit. The efforts of spreading the gospel was to be taken seriously and under the acknowledgement that God through His Spirit would be their guide. “For this task the disciples are promised the power of the Spirit (), a promise primarily fulfilled at Pentecost and secondarily fulfilled on many other occasions. These words have special emphasis as the last words of Jesus before his departure; they are closely parallel to his last recorded words in the Gospel (), given just before he left the disciples, and are perhaps to be understood as an alternative version of them (we may compare the way in which Luke gives us slightly different versions of the conversation associated with Paul’s conversion in the three accounts of it)” (Marshall, 1980, p. 65).

Verse 8 of chapter 1 indicates that the Apostles would be empowered by the Holy Spirit. They could not accomplish the mission of the Master adequately on their own. They needed someone beyond their own human frailty to strengthen and guide them. The Holy Spirit would be their director and orchestrate their every move. Though their task was to witness the salvation of the Lord, they could only prove effective under the direct influence of the Holy Spirit. Jesus says, “You shall receive power after that the Holy Ghost is come upon you” this statement implies that the effectiveness of these men was dependent upon the Holy Spirit, not their own capabilities and personalities. The Holy Spirit is the personality to which they must be influenced, causing them to be different from before and doing extraordinary things. “One of the concerns of Luke is to demonstrate how both Jesus and the church were directed by the Spirit to fulfill the purpose of God for them” (Marshall, 1980, p. 61).

When an individual becomes intoxicated he is no longer in total control of his faculties. His speech is different, his walk is different, his thinking different and he does things he may not do under normal circumstances. Often this inebriated state is referred to as being under the influence of alcohol, because they are no longer in control of themselves. This is the same thought one should consider when speaking of the influence of the Holy Spirit. Those who are under the influence of the Holy Spirit are no longer in control of their lives. The Apostles were expected to surrender themselves to the dictates of God through the Holy Spirit and change the world as they knew it.

Todays Church has the same responsibility as the early church that begins by yielding to the power of the Holy Spirit and expanding the Kingdom of God. If the church is to be effective, it is imperative that the Church operates with the guidance of the Holy Spirit. The Church loses power if it is driven by any other personality than the Holy Spirit. Many local churches are influenced by the popularity of the pastor, or the affluence of its parishioners but these influences only distract the church from its mission. Very little can be done in the way of evangelism if all the work is personality driven. If the church is centered on the personality of the pastor and he fails morally or doesn’t live to the expectations of those within the church there is the greatest possibility of failure of that local body and the mission is left unaccomplished.

Jesus is speaking to today’s church with the same intensity. “You shall receive power after that the Holy Ghost is come upon you”. The power of the church does not rest in the popularity of its leaders or does it rest in the number of members. The power of the church comes from the Holy Ghost. If the church is going to be effective and affect the lives of the hopeless there must be reliance upon the Holy Ghost.

The Holy Spirit must be obeyed and the church must not compromise its role in the advancement of the Kingdom of God by giving in to popularity and affluence. When the church is under the influence of the Holy Ghost the eternal destiny of others become priority. The church building or structure becomes less important and Kingdom building becomes priority. The church will not substitute the Word of God for clichés and feel good sermons when the Holy Ghost is in control.

The Apostles were given a great opportunity to share the Gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ so that others may come to know Him. That opportunity has still since extended to even today. Though the Church now far differs the early 1st century church the challenges are yet the same. The significant parallel is that the Holy Ghost is still the empowering catalyst for impact upon the world.

The Effective Church Witnesses without Reservation

Growing up, my father would sell watermelons on the corner in our neighborhood. On occasions my siblings and I would help him. On one particular afternoon I was out with my father selling watermelons and I saw some of my friends approaching the corner. I became nervous and fearful of the ridicule I would get when I would see them at school, so I dropped the watermelon I was holding and attempted to hide so that they wouldn’t see me. My father was disappointed and I had damaged merchandise which would have benefitted the household all because I didn’t want to be seen working with my father.

Facing Opposition

The Church is called to do the work of the Father regardless of what it faces. Jesus instructed the apostles that they would be witnesses this instruction came on the hills of His own death. Now He is resurrected and challenging them to go out and be witnesses of Him. “Acts is much concerned with the opposition which surrounds the spread of the gospel. ‘Through many tribulations we must enter the kingdom of God’ (14:22). Luke recognizes that, just as the way of Jesus took him through opposition culminating in judicial murder, so too the path of the Word of God is beset by opposition” (Marshall, 1980, pp. 27-28). The apostles no doubt were well aware of what they would be facing. The challenge that Jesus gives them is to become witnesses and share the gospel with others. There would be much adversity and torment along the path but still the command was to become witnesses.

Though the Church today does not suffer the same manner of persecution as the early church, the changing climate of society has placed Christianity on the outside and drawn a line daring the church to cross it. What can be done when the world has made sin ok? There are an insurmountable amount of oppositions the church faces even today. The Church must witness Christ regardless of the opposition. “In face of this opposition two important facts emerge. The first is that Christians are called to stand firm and to be faithful despite the tribulations which they must endure . . . The other fact is that despite the opposition the Word of God continues its triumphal progress. The hand of God is upon the missionaries even in the midst of persecution. It does not remove them from danger and suffering, but on occasion they find divine protection from their enemies” (Marshall, 1980, p. 29). The effective Church realizes the necessity to proclaim the Gospel at all costs. The Church has no impact if it quits or refuses to pursue the work of Christ and the advancement of His Kingdom. The Church may not overcome all opposition but it can remain effective by proclaiming the Gospel of the Lord Jesus without reservation. This message is not limited to one group of people or to one culture but it is a message for the world.

Beyond Borders and Barriers

“The purpose of the Christian church was to bear witness to Jesus. This was in a special sense the task of the Twelve, who had been with Jesus during his earthly ministry and had seen him risen from the dead (1:21f.), and were therefore especially equipped to bear witness to Israel. But the task was by no means confined to the Twelve, and many other Christians took their share in evangelism” (Marshall, 1980, p. 25).

Jesus tells the apostles that they will become witnesses unto Him in Jerusalem, Judea, Samaria and the end of the earth. There was no limit to the places they were to reach. Jesus challenges them to go home and teach and spread beyond their homes into their communities. He further stresses their need to reach those who are not generally accepted by them, such as the Samaritans, who were considered half-breeds and enemies of the Jews. He charges them to become clarions to the Gentiles by acknowledging their need to go into the end of the earth. “The scope of their task is worldwide. It begins with Jerusalem, Judea and Samaria, and it stretches to the end of the earth” (Marshall, 1980, p. 65).

The mission of the Church is worldwide. Jesus must be witnessed without any parts of the mind of a Christian holding back the joy of Christ. The Church is not a club. It is an extension of the kingdom of God, which makes all, which is a part of the Kingdom subject to God. There must be intentional inclusion of all people from all backgrounds to share the Gospel. The Gospel is not reserved for some and denied to others. The mission is to reach everyone without prejudices and alienation.

Every Christian is beckoned to this mandate to reach all and live the life of a believer by exemplifying the same behaviors of the early church. Go beyond the level of comfort and begin walking in the power of the Holy Ghost and witness Christ without reservation. There are several ways this can be accomplished but the key is to begin. Perhaps there are struggles with attaining great levels but Christ encouraged the apostles to start where they are and then branch out. Often the local body attempts to do too much to fast when there can be much gained by beginning where you are and addressing other opportunities as they arrive. Identify people in your family who are unsaved and begin witnessing to them.

Share Christ with your neighbor, daily until they are convinced of Jesus as their Savior. Witness to at least two (2) people a day.

Extend yourself to those whom you don’t have a relationship with. The Church is effective when the people of the Church begin to exercise the mandate of the Church, witness’ Christ in Jerusalem, Judea, and Samaria and to the entire world.

The Church will fail at being effective if the focus of the Church is skewed. Often the emphasis of the masses is placed so high that the mandate is forgotten and the master is left out. The moment numbers become more important than the ministry of salvation the church become ineffective. There must remain intact the reminder that the Church is the Christ’s witnesses not its own witnesses.

The Effective Church is Christ Centered

Verse 10, depicts a moment when the apostles were still gazing towards heaven even after Christ had ascended. They were in such awe of the Savior that after He had left they were still standing and gazing where He was. The apostles did not become absorbed with their own achievements or the fact that they had been in the presence of Jesus. There focus appeared to be even at that instance upon Him. There are some people who desire to be seen. Everything has to be about them. The apostles weren’t that way. They were looking at Christ. Their focus had not changed or reverted to themselves but remained where Christ appeared before them.

The centerpiece of a table setting is designed to attract the attention of all those at the table and become the conversation highlight for the attendees.

The Church that does not keep Jesus in the center loses its affect upon the world and become less effective in the lives of people.

The main conversation of the Church must be Jesus. Talk about Jesus. When you work in the Church make it about Christ. The conversation and objectives of the Church mustn’t be anything outside of the mandate of Christ crucified and His salvation for all. There must be less thought about numbers on Sunday and more thought about the eternal state of those the Church is charged to reach.

The Church exists because of Christ. More correctly stated the Church exists for sake of Christ. No person has died for the Church but Christ.

Conclusion

There are several traits of an effective church. The church that is under the influence of the Holy Spirit, witnesses without reservation and is Christ centered demonstrate the church which is effective. The church is not its own it belongs to Christ; therefore it must exemplify these qualities to successfully draw men to Him.