How is church revitalization accomplished?

How is church revitalization accomplished?

There is an unprecedented need to revitalize struggling churches and it has produced a number of ways and philosophies to accomplish it. The approach that we are seeking to take is not something that is going to sweep church growth executives off their feet. What we’re going to do is not going to set off the next church trend. It’s not going to explode Facebook nor will it gain a massive following among many people who have seminary training desiring to be successful pastors inside of five years. No, this plan is different.

The biblical approach to true, life-giving church revitalization that will remain throughout future generations will take a long time. It will be hard. It will involve difficult shepherding work that in many cases only you and God will know about it. It will be a significant challenge to your family. Now before you consider me to be the worst recruiter of a congregation to engage in this work of church revitalization, allow me to submit to you why this plan is the best and most effective way of breathing new life into a struggle in church.

First, this approach is firmly rooted in the principles taught in scripture specifically about church revitalization. Second, this approach is predicated on the power of God to work through his word to bring true, lasting spiritual life to a local church.

Our plan is going to allow the Scriptures to be the guiding force of the work and it also provides room to be thoughtful and eager to use the gifts of those involved, those in the church body. The biblical plan is this – a central focus on the ministry of the word and prayer, a rigorous and passionate application of the gospel in every day life, and a tenacious effort to love and Sheppard every redeem soul in our local church.

Centrality of the word and prayer

It is stunning how many feel that a vibrant church full of life must have a pastor with a big personality, highly efficient programs, plenty of money, and a breathtaking modern facility. But the New Testament paints a very different picture. The infant church group and was nourished by two fundamental commitments of the apostles: prayer in the ministry of the word (acts 6:4).

These two essential means of grace for revitalization compel the consciences of churches to surrender their clever efforts onto gods all wise and powerful plan.

This approach continues in the past Doral epistles where the apostle Paul rights to his young protégé Timothy. In the midst of exhorting timothy to trust the “sacred writings“ which are able to give both wisdom and salvation in Jesus () for the church is Timothy is establishing Paul then adds... ()

In these inspired writings of the apostle to his young protégé, who is himself pastoring a church in Ephesus, there exists a template for gods design to bring new life and breathe new life into his church through his inspired word.

Paul wants timothy to know that God‘s word is “God breathed“. Paul writes that, “all Scripture is inspired by God“. Most translate that word in this way, but the literal meaning hear is “God breathed“ all scripture has been breathe from the very mouth of God. God so identifies with his word that when the Scripture speaks, God himself speaks. God is perfectly righteous and holy in all his ways. Likewise, God’s breathed word is perfect, holy, and without error or flaw. If God is the one who gives life, then his spirit, working through his divine, God breathed word that gives life to our souls and consequently genuine life to church.

God’s word is profitable to teach us the truth. Teaching refers to the divine instruction that the word of God brings. Reproof is the words ability to pierce the sinful heart, revealing wrong behavior that needs to be changed. The corrective aspect of God’s word and powers that change in our lives. Because the word of God is God breathed, using it for training in righteousness allows us to be instructed by God. The pastor need not wonder what to tell his flock about how to live a godly life, for the God breathed word is his all sufficient manual. Similarly, it is the tool needed for the man of God to be equipped for every good work. So then, it should not surprise us that after Paul lives of the power and sufficiency of gods word he issues the Central command for Timothy as well as all pastors: “preach the word“ .

And yet we must not miss essential need to cry out to God in prayer as we preach the word. The apostles knew that “prayer in the ministry of the word“ together must encapsulate they’re calling and priority. Paul recognized that prayer was an essential element in the promoting of the work of sanctification in the life of the believer that is why he prayed for the Ephesians this way ()

Paul offers similar prayers for the churches in Philippi () and to the Colossians (). If this was important for an apostle praying for believers in distant churches, how much more so for a pastor in a local church? If you want your people to become more Christlike, you must pray for them. If you are to care for them as a shepherd cares for sheep, you must pray for them. Instead of becoming impatient when your flock is not growing in Grace at the pace you had hoped, employed the means that God has provided you with as their pastor for their sanctification. Let your hearts frustration become your hearts prayer for your people. The centrality of the ministry of the word must be bathed in prayer for it to have its maximum impact on dodge people and bring true and lasting spiritual life to the church.

Applying the gospel

The power of the good news of Jesus Christ is Best captured by the one whose life was dramatically transform by it. The apostle Paul, formerly a persecutor of Christians himself writes:

Divine power – that is what’s needed to breathe life into a spiritual courts. Only power from God can change the heart of a thief, a murderer, and the sexually immoral. Only a supernatural work from God can take a hater of God who is dead in his sins and transform him into a lover of God who is alive because of righteousness. Only divine power brings about forgiveness, eternal life, and spiritual adoption. If this is true for individual sinners who trust in Christ, then let it be no less true for the church. Supernatural power is needed to bring life into a seemingly dead church. This life comes through a passionate, right application of the gospel in the church as we preach, apply, and live out the gospel.

Pastors must first preach the gospel for the gospel to be heard. It is preached for the believer who has come on Sunday so that he might be reminded of the hope we have in Christ. It is also preached for the unbeliever who may be present, for,” Faith comes by hearing and hearing by the word of Christ“ (). The gospel is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes. It empowers the unbeliever to believe in the believer to be strengthen his faith. That is why we never stop preaching the gospel.

This regular preaching of the gospel for all present on a Sunday has its power in two ways. First, the gospels power is experienced when the essentials of it or made known. Pastors need to preach not only the cross but also the resurrection. Pastors must preach not just the sinlessness of Jesus, but also his righteousness that is imputed to us by faith through his perfect life. It is an unbalanced gospel if we do not preach both the wrath of God and the mercy of God in the cross. The power of the gospel is experienced when the specific details are highlighted and made regularly known in a church.

Second, the gospels power is known when we preach it throughout the text of the old and New Testament‘s. The gospel permeates the full redemptive story of the Bible. As a pastor preaches the different passages of scripture it is a powerful experience to see how the old testament passage points forward to the coming Messiah, or how that letter from an apostle points back to the significance of the cross. There is always power when the gospel is declared in its simplest form, but there is a unique power that breeze life into a dying church when that gospel is preached in certain ways week after week that moves it to become the heartbeat of the local church.

A faithful pastor must deliberately and continually teach his people that the gospel is what transforms all aspects of their lives. A traveling evangelist can preach the gospel and it’s basic form, lead a soldier Christ, plug them into a local church, and then leave for the next preaching post. But a pastor of a local churches responsibility to help a congregation learn how to take this life giving good news and apply it to their every day lives. Jesus died for your sins. You have forgiveness and the promise of eternal life with Jesus. You have been reconciled to God. While all these things are true, the question is, “so what?“ How do these truths affect your daily life? A shepherd should never assume his sheep understand how to accomplish this. Failing to connect these dots can be part of the reason he wants vibrate local church loses its way. This past Doral application starts with specific applications in the weekly Shermans based on the text the pastor preaches. Our preaching should address specific ways the gospel transforms relationships with our spouses and children. It should be clear how to be faithful to Jesus at work and with our neighbors. It should be believers to freedom from the bondage years of perfectionism and legalism as they embrace their brokenness, weakness, and send, knowing that Jesus sacrifice has paid the price for all these. The congregation who knows the gospel and has been taught how it should bear fruit in their daily lives will be at church equipped to live the gospel out.

Living out this good news is evidenced in the way Christian show love and mercy to all kinds of different people regardless of race, gender, or social class; it is seen in the love Christians have for one another; it is known in the kind and encouraging words that come from my miles towards our adversaries; it is displayed in the way we share the gospel with neighbors and take the gospel to the nations. If these are just a few of the manifestations of living out the gospel, imagine what life is breathed into a struggling church if these kinds of people living out the gospel are found in it. A right and passionate application of the gospel in the lives of Christ redeemed people is enough to radically change your diet church and give a new life, for it is the gospel that is the power of God to salvation to everyone who believes.

Shepherd every redeemed soul

It is unfortunate the amount of dying churches that concluded they need one of two kinds of men lead them to revitalize their church. Some churches search for the next young, rockstar preacher to be their pastor, banking that his charisma will be with breeze life back into the church. Problem with this approach is not just the limited amount of so-called rockstar pastors that exist, but the Bible does not promote such characteristics for men who leave the church. Other churches look for a fiery evangelist, who will go out into the community and win souls for Jesus. This is supposed to help the church grow and consequently bring fresh new life. Neither of these is what is necessary for God to revitalize a dying church.

So what is necessary? What is God want? He simply wants faithful Shepherd‘s. Dad wants man who meet certain qualifications and have godly character (; ). God wants a humble, eager man who is called the shepherd the flock of God on behalf of the Chief Shepherd (). God wants a pastor to realize their calling is to take heed to themselves and to the flock that Christ purchase with his own blood (acts 20:28). God wants faithful Shepherd‘s who are not defined by their cleverness or their charisma, but by divine conviction to care for souls because they will give an account of Jesus for them ().

Many approaches to revitalization challenge dying congregations set in their ways to look outward for new life. I am not discouraging evangelistic efforts, but if God has sheep already in a local church we should begin there and not be so quick to try and replace them as the solution. Too often the decline of local churches has come as a result of the progression of neglectful, unfaithful Shepherd’s. Throughout the decades of neglect the spiritual life in the shape of the church slowly dwindled to a mere ember. But there is spiritual life and all true followers of Jesus, regardless of how beat up in discourage it may be. Christ still lives in them and is working to complete the work he began ().

God desires faithful Shepherd‘s to care for the flock. He breathes life into the church when His sheep are well cared for. There are many facets to pastors who care for their people. But here are a few priorities driven by ministry of the word and prayer that should be focused on to shepherd every redeem saw in the church and help fan into flame that Amber in the hearts of God’s people who remain:

Visit the sick and dying comfort the grieving care for widows confront sin encourage the week are sheep

Went to pastor first focuses in word to care well for his present flock, often that fresh new life God brings in that present flock draws those from the outside who want to come and share in the same spiritual life.

Here is one final reality that assures that every redeem soul into struggling church received proper care. As a pastor sets out to shepherd the remnant of God sheep in a church that needs revitalization, he must arm himself with the truth that the residual effects of the feeling of previous pastors are still fell in his congregation. The hurt and the pain a previous pastor cause the congregation does not diminish when the new pastor arrives. And here’s the difficult truth: you, as the new pastor, should expect to suffer because of them. You will pay the price and bear the burden for the feeling of your predecessors. It is neither fair nor right, but that’s the reality.

So what is this mean for you? You my shepherd the souls of everyone, not just those you like and who like you and support your ministry from the beginning. You my shepherd all the sheep God gives you. This includes the sheep that are hard to love in the sheep that dislike your preaching and approach to ministry. A pastor my face wolves in sheep‘s clothing, unbelievers within his church. That is another matter that Scripture clearly addresses. But be careful about quickly dismissing our position as unbelief. It may be instead a wounded sheep simply struggling to trust the next shepherd. Be patient with them. They, more than anyone, need the loving and patient care for faithful Shepherd. Start on the inside with the sheep that remain. Otherwise what kind of church will the new arrivals that you go and get from the community find?

Church is that desire true spiritual life and their church must seek it from God. God is revealed in and through his word where that lasting power in life comes from. It comes when we cry out to God in prayer to move and we preach the only divine word that breeze life in the church. It comes with the gospel is not just preached and made known, but it’s true it’s permeate every crevice in corner of the church. It comes not do the most gifted Pastor, but there are faithful one who leads and functions in his daily ministry as if he will give an account for souls, not large crowds are fancy buildings. God is able to breathe life into any dying and divided church. The question is whether God‘s people trust he is powerful enough to do it his way – and will follow his plan.