Marks Of A Mighty Church (Part 1) Series

Marks of A Mighty Church (Part 1)

Scott Bayles, pastor

Blooming Grove Christian Church: 8/9/2015

A man reportedly approached Charles Spurgeon one Sunday morning and said, “I’ve visited many church these past few years and all of them seem to have problems. So I keep going from church to church looking for the perfect one.” The famous preacher told him he had many saintly people in his congregation, but it was far from perfect. “No, my church is not the one you're looking for,” said Spurgeon. “But if you should happen to find such a church, I beg you not to join it, for you would spoil the whole thing.”

Those words have been restated and repeated countless times. Someone even translated the thought into poetic prose:

I think that I shall never see a church that's all it ought to be;

A church whose members never stray beyond the straight and narrow way;

A church that has no empty pews, whose pastor never has the blues;

A church whose elders always speak, and none is proud and all are meek.

Such perfect churches there may be, but none of them are known to me.

But still, we'll work and pray and plan to make our own the best we can.

Since local churches are made up of sinners saved by God’s grace, no church is perfect. But I do think some churches are closer than others. The church at Thessalonica was in that category. All throughout his first letter to the Thessalonians, Paul praises the church for their faithful work, their loving deeds, and their commitment to Christ. You might say the church in Thessalonica was a mighty church. And as we read Paul’s letter, we discover several characteristics or marks of a mighty church.

In chapter one, for instance, Paul highlights four qualities that made Thessalonica a mighty church. And although, our own church may never be perfect, I think we can certainly come close by following the example of the Thessalonians. So what are the marks of a mighty church? First, Paul describes it as an energetic church.

• AN ENERGETIC CHURCH

In a museum in Detroit, Michigan, there is a huge steam locomotive. Beside this complicated piece of machinery is a sign showing boiler pressure, size and number of wheels, horsepower, lengths, weight and more. The bottom line indicates that 96% of the power generated was used to move the locomotive and only 4% was left to pull the load. Some churches are like that. In many churches 4% of the members do about 96% of the work.

It reminds me a little boy in Sunday School. After hearing his dad preach on “justification,” “sanctification,” “purification,” and all the other “—ations,” a minister’s son was ready when his Sunday school teacher asked if anybody knew what “procrastination” meant. The boy said, “I’m not sure what it means, but I know our church believes in it!”

Well, the church in Thessalonica didn’t believe in it. They were a hardworking, energetic church. Paul writes, “We always thank God for all of you and pray for you constantly. As we pray to our God and Father about you, we think of your faithful work, your loving deeds, and the enduring hope you have because of our Lord Jesus Christ” (1 Thessalonians 1:2-3 NLT). Here, and all throughout his letter, Paul praises the church in Thessalonica for their activity, their work, their deeds.

This was a church that was doing things—they were energetic.

The NIV translates this phrase: “your work produced by faith, your labor prompted by love” (NIV). Faith in Jesus ought to manifest in works. Our love for God and for the church ought to prompt us to labor. The great thing is—when your labor is motivated by love it really doesn’t feel like work.

Jacob knew all about that. In Genesis we discover a beautiful love story about Jacob and his beloved Rachel. The well outside of Paddan Aram wasn’t the best place to meet women. A heavy stone covered the top of the well. Normally, all the shepherds in the area would gather at the well with their flocks then together they lifted the stone off the well to water the sheep. One day, Jacob relaxed by the well waiting for some big strong guys to come help him move the stone when all of a sudden the most beautiful shepherdess he’d ever set eyes on approached. It was love at first site. Jacob jumped to his feet and single handedly pushed the massive stone aside so that Rachel could water her sheep. Jacob spent a month mooning over Rachel and wanted desperately to marry her, but he couldn’t afford an engagement ring let alone a dowry. So he told Rachel’s father: “I’ll work for you seven years in return for your younger daughter Rachel.” Laban agreed. And the Bible says, “So Jacob served seven years to get Rachel, but they seemed like only a few days to him because of his love for her” (Genesis 29:20 NIV).