We are continuing our series today about the kind of church Jesus intended the church to be and we are continuing to learn how we can become that kind of a church.
The church is people. What kind of people? It is made up of all the people throughout history who have accepted Jesus Christ as their personal Savior.
I hope that you are a part of the church.
For whatever reason, the church is not the same today as it was when it was first conceived.
One of the trends of today’s church that has contributed to that change is that the church today has shifted towards being a consumer driven institution.
What do I mean? In our society today people no longer become a part of the local church to be in communion with God, today the majority of people who attend a local churches do so to consume. They have a “What can the church do for me?” attitude.
Because people started coming to church to consume the church had to adapt to the spiritual consumer.
Church leaders began to look at the church as a business. They started to come up with ways that they could make their product more appealing. They started to come up with ways to improve their customer service. They started to come up with ways they could compete with the church across town.
Today the consumer minded public want churches to be full-service and provide everything they need.
SHOW Ronnie video.
The church exists for one purpose and that is to change the world by bringing them to God.
1000 people were asked, “What is the purpose of the church?” and 89% said that the purpose of the church was to take care of the spiritual needs of the people. 11% said that the purpose of the church was to win the world for Jesus.
1000 pastors were asked the same question. 90% of them said the purpose of the church is to win the world for Jesus.
James, the brother of Jesus said, “Do not just listen to the Word and so deceive yourselves. Do what it says.” James 1:22
With the numbers of those who claim to be born again Christians falling every year in the United States, one has to wonder if the church is being the church Jesus had in mind.
It seems now that church growth isn’t about growing the kingdom of God any more, to some it is about who can have the biggest church or the best programs.
Should we be worried about church growth?
Yes, I believe we should.
The reason we should be worried about church growth is because when people are not a part of a loving, learning, growing, caring local church body then they are missing out on some important ingredients to the growth of the kingdom of God.
If you are not hearing the Word of God, worshipping with like minded people, and working together with others in the body you are not going to be able to be effective in fulfilling God’s call to multiply.
The church needs to grow and that growth includes two things, bringing the lost to Christ and helping those who are in Christ grow in the Lord.
Churches today need to be larger and they need to be healthier.
We are going to look at a church growth plan today that makes sense. It is a proven church growth plan because it has worked in the past. It is the same church growth plan that the first century church used.
It is a plan that worked.
The first century church didn’t just grow, it exploded with growth.
It wasn’t a perfect church, it had its problems but they knew what to do and why they were doing it.
In Acts 2:42-47 we find four foundational qualities of the kind of church that Jesus had in mind, we are going to look at that Scripture again today.
PRAY
Father,
Open my eyes so I can see Your truth.
Open my ears so I can hear Your voice.
Open my minds so I can understand your Word.
And, open my heart so I may receive all that You would have me receive.
AMEN
42They devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and to the fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer. 43Everyone was filled with awe, and many wonders and miraculous signs were done by the apostles. 44All the believers were together and had everything in common. 45Selling their possessions and goods, they gave to anyone as he had need. 46Every day they continued to meet together in the temple courts. They broke bread in their homes and ate together with glad and sincere hearts, 47praising God and enjoying the favor of all the people. And the Lord added to their number daily those who were being saved. Acts 2:42-47 NIV
The 4 qualities of the kind of church Jesus had in mind can be explained in the acronym WELL.
A Worshipping Church.
An Evangelizing Church.
A Learning Church.
A Loving Church.
Well, it’s a deep subject.
I know that this really doesn’t look earth shattering or remarkable, or upside down, but this is the very thing that helped the first century church grow.
The first century church didn’t have all sorts of different programs or ministries. They didn’t try to entertain the people. They just focused on the basics and the result was that the church grew.
A church that goes to the WELL will be a church hat not only grows but it will be a church that produces healthy, powerful children of God.
Let’s break it down.
1. A Worshipping Church.
46Every day they continued to meet together in the temple courts. They broke bread in their homes and ate together with glad and sincere hearts, 47praising God and enjoying the favor of all the people. Acts 2:46-47a
Worship is one of the most important aspects of the Christian walk.
It is through praise and worship that we as Christians draw near to God. Psalm 100:4 says that we enter into his gates with thanksgiving, and into his courts with praise.
Psalms 22 says he that He inhabits the praises of His people.
When Jesus met the Samaritan woman at the well He told her that the hour had come when all worshippers must worship the Father in spirit and in truth and that the Father even sought such worshippers. John 4:23
Worship is not just a song service where we sing songs when we get together. It is not an outward performance. Worship is something that should come from the heart of each individual.
That is why it is so important for you to have your own praise and worship time with God.
It is important because when we are worshipping God we are entering into His presence.
It’s in His presence where we will find fullness of joy.
It is in His presence where we will be changed.
It is in His presence where our understanding will be opened.
We need to be worshipping God when we are away from the church as much as we should be worshipping Him when we are with the church.
The quality of worship you experience at your church is a reflection of the quality of worship you experience when you are by yourself.
In other words if you come together with the rest of the church and you think that the worship service was dull and boring and dry, maybe it is because you are not worshipping God when you are by yourself.
When we become a person who worships God all the time we are becoming a person who has been turned upside down and right side up. God wants us to be a worshipping church.
2. An Evangelizing Church.
And the Lord added to their number daily those who were being saved. Acts 2:47b
Evangelism was something that the first century church took seriously. Why? Because Jesus told them to do it. “Go into all the world and preach the good news to all creation.”
Mark 16:15
What was happening with the first century church was upside down in the eyes of the people and it was contagious. Their lifestyles were arousing the curiosity of others and as others investigated this new way they began to realize that what they had was real.
If the church today as a whole were to live their lives in such a way I dare say that there wouldn’t be enough buildings to hold us all!
We need to be as contagious today as they were then with the Christian way of life.
We need to get excited about Jesus.
We need to get excited about God’s love, grace, and mercy.
We need to get excited about His forgiveness of sins and promise of eternal life.
If the church is healthy, well fed, worshipping believers who are excited about the things of God then the church is going to reproduce itself.
When we are upside down for God then we are going to want to tell others. We have a great message to proclaim and there is a world that needs to hear it.
3. A Learning Church.
42They devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching…
Acts 2:42a
46Every day they continued to meet together in the temple courts. Acts 2:46a
This is essential. There needs to be a commitment to sound, Biblical preaching and teaching within the setting of the church meeting and there needs to be a commitment to meeting together.
The author of Hebrews said, “Let us not give up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but let us encourage one another – and all the more as you see the Day approaching.” Hebrews 10:25 NIV
Too many people in our world today don’t want Biblical teaching within the confines of the church. They want to hear feel good sermons instead of hearing sermons about their sin or hell or right and wrong, or the righteousness that God requires from His children.
I call that a gospel light and it is less filling with less taste.
We need pastors today who are not afraid to preach the truth of the Word of God and we need a church today that is going to listen, learn and act. As I said earlier, not just listening to the Word but doing what it says.
4. A Loving Church.
44All the believers were together and had everything in common. 45Selling their possessions and goods, they gave to anyone as he had need. 46Every day they continued to meet together in the temple courts. They broke bread in their homes and ate together with glad and sincere hearts, 47praising God and enjoying the favor of all the people. And the Lord added to their number daily those who were being saved.
Acts 2:44-47
If there is one thing that is clear in the Word of God it is the fact that God is serious about His children loving others. So serious that it is the second greatest commandment. Love your neighbor as you love yourself. Matthew 22:39
This is one of the most talked about subjects in the New Testament. Jesus told us to love others over 20 times. The Apostle Paul devoted much space in his letters concerning this topic.
Why? Because it is important.
The first century church loved each other and as a result they took care of each other. If someone had a need help was there. Everyone was cared about, accepted and loved.
How powerful was this? Powerful enough to have people join them daily.
Is this a picture of the church today? If it was we would have no need for any government help programs because the church would be taking care of business.
Look around you. See the people sitting in this room today. Each of us are commanded to love each of us.
There is not supposed to be any hatred within the church.
Look outside these walls. See the people you work with, the people you live next to, the people you see at the store or at school or any place else.
Guess what? We are supposed to love them too!
We are supposed to love others. The ones who claim Christ and the ones who don’t. The ones who treat us right and the ones who don’t. The ones who are on the same financial page as we are and the ones who aren’t.
We are supposed to love other Pentecostals and we are supposed to love those who call themselves Baptist and Methodist, and Lutherans, and Catholics.
We are supposed to love the sinners and the saints.
And like it or not we are even supposed to love the Muslims who want to kill all the Christians.
That is not saying we are supposed to love what they do, but we are supposed to love them and pray for them and bring the Good News to them. It’s really simple. Love the sinner not the sin.
The four qualities of the church that Jesus had in mind…
A Worshipping Church.
An Evangelizing Church.
A Learning Church.
A Loving Church.
WELL.
If we are going to be that kind of church then each of us need to make sure that we are including these qualities into our own lives.
Let’s bring it home and ask the hard question.
Are you A Worshipping Christian?
Are you An Evangelizing Christian?
Are you A Learning Christian?
Are you A Loving Christian?
If you can’t say yes to all of these qualities then you need to make some changes in your life. Would you make a decision today to become the church that Jesus had in mind?
CLOSE
