Sermons on church decline: showing 46-60 of 142,088

Sunday School: Catch The Vision! Series

Contributed by Thomas Clawser on Feb 27, 2004

Some experts believe that Sunday School is on the decline. They suggest that the SS hour has been added to the church service (2:00 hour services now common, often with 1:15 devoted to music) therefore SS is unnecessary.

Chances are, you don’t know Edward Kimball. He lived over a hundred years ago. He was a Sunday school teacher in Boston, where a young teenager became part of his class. The young man was a country boy. He didn’t know the ways of the city or of the church. But, he came to Kimball’s Sunday ...read more

Denomination: Other

Church For The Churched

Contributed by Steve Hereford on Aug 25, 2006

Who is the church for? Believers or unbelievers? Or to use more contemporary terms - churched or unchurched. Listen today as Pastor Steve addresses who is the church in the midst of the seeker-sensitive movement.

Recently I was invited to attend a church planters conference in Lake Yale. At that conference I was exposed to various teaching and methods for reaching the unchurched. As I sat there and listened and took notes, I couldn’t help to think how we have somehow missed it when it comes to the purpose ...read more

Scripture: Colossians 1:18

Denomination: Evangelical/Non-Denominational

The Church Series

Contributed by Wayne Lawson on Sep 14, 2020

During this Pandemic and over the past several weeks, we have learned so much about what it means to be a church and how many ways there are to be a church without gathering in person or making full use of our church buildings.

TITLE: THE CHURCH SCRIPTURE: ST. MATTHEW 16:16-18 / EPHESIANS 1:22-23 / EPHESIANS 2:19-22 Who would have predicted between Christmas and Easter we would be reimagining how we do church! In the past, I’ve actually enjoyed thinking through the potential impacts of unforeseen events that could ...read more

Scripture: Ephesians 1:22-23, Ephesians 2:19-22

Denomination: Baptist

God Wins But It's Always By God's Calendar

Contributed by W Pat Cunningham on Nov 21, 2023

The victory is God’s, but sometimes it takes a long time to achieve. And sometimes that victory is only in the willingness of martyrs to give up everything in witness to their faith.

Saturday of the 33rd Week in Course 2023 I recently read an article summarizing statements made by likely voters in one of the state primaries. One of the participants lamented about the state of the nation and asked, “Is there anyone other than me that feels like this is Rome 476 A.D.?” (Of ...read more

Scripture: Luke 20:27-40

Denomination: Catholic

Should We Change The Way We Do Church?

Contributed by Richard Tow on Jan 23, 2023

The decline in North American Christianity is prompting various efforts to revise the way we do church. Some of these efforts are clearly counterproductive. Acts 2:42-47 reveals eight practices that must be incorporated in any church model.

Should we change the way we do church? That question is being asked by a lot of people in America. Something is not working as it should. Almost everyone agrees on that. For the first time in U.S. history, church membership fell below the majority according to a Gallup poll conducted in 2020. This ...read more

Scripture: Matthew 18:20, Matthew 16:18, Matthew 28:18-20, Zechariah 4:6, 2 Chronicles 12:9-10, 2 Peter 2:17-21, Hebrews 10:24-25, Acts 2:42-47  (view more)  (view less)

Denomination: Charismatic

Made For These Days - 75th Anniversary

Contributed by Perry Hancock on Mar 9, 2024

A 75th Anniversary sermon to encourage and challenge the church to move forward with their legacy of faithfulness to serve the community and share the Gospel.

Made For These Days Ephesians 2:8-10 8 For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, 9 not of works, lest anyone should boast. 10 For we are His workmanship (masterpiece), created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand ...read more

Scripture: Ephesians 2:8-10

Denomination: Baptist

Chain Versus Freedom

Contributed by Lee Houston on Oct 11, 2023

I see America’s problems as deeper than politics: We need Jesus back in America. I see our problems, our decline as a society, as linked directly to the decline of America’s churches.

Christ’s Spirit or Fleshly Desires Even though the presidential election is more than a year away, it seems that it dominates much of the evening news. Each person running for office tells us what our problems are and how they will fix them. While, I wish the winner’s success, I see America’s ...read more

Scripture: Romans 8:6-10, Revelation 3:15-18

The Church Vs. The Church

Contributed by Jack Russell on Feb 7, 2004

Man’s view of the church is often very different from the one Jesus demonstrated and Paul described.

I can stand anywhere in my back yard and see my church. It sits rather majestically at the apex of our little town. Its stained glass windows chronicle its founders. Inside, a huge chandelier hovers over our pew. I don’t know who appointed us to sit in that particular pew, but it must have been ...read more

Scripture: Ephesians 2:13-22, Matthew 13:16-18

Denomination: Presbyterian/Reformed

The Church’s Context Series

Contributed by C. Philip Green on Dec 23, 2010

When times are tough, pray in faith, because you are fogiven. Persevere with hope, because God is faithful. And provoke one another to love, because Jesus is coming. These core values of faith, hope, and love will keep the church on track.

Not too long ago, a real estate listing in Dallas had the simple headline: “Converted Church.” In other words, what had once been a church facility is now somebody’s house. The listing under the heading had this description: “The altar has been adapted for use as a granite and stainless steel ...read more

Scripture: Hebrews 10:19-25

Denomination: Evangelical Free

The Church’s Companion Series

Contributed by C. Philip Green on Dec 30, 2010

The mission of the church is to wait on God’s Spirit, then witness about God’s Son, because Jesus is alive and coming again!

Several years ago, the London Transit Authority had a problem. Buses were going right past passengers who were waiting at designated places to be picked up. They were at the bus stops, and the buses were sailing right past them. The London Transit Authority released a statement to explain their ...read more

Scripture: Acts 1:1-14

Denomination: Evangelical Free

The Church’s Commitments Series

Contributed by C. Philip Green on Jan 6, 2011

The church grows when we devote ourselves to living out the truth of God’s Word, to sharing our lives together in genuine fellowship, and to joyful worship.

A few years ago, some wag told his friends he wasn’t going to any more ball games. Why? Well he said… a. Whenever I go to a game, they ask for money. b. The other fans don’t care about me. c. The seats are too hard. d. Coach never visits me. e. The referee makes calls I don’t agree ...read more

Scripture: Acts 2:42-47

Denomination: Evangelical Free

The Church’s Mandate Series

Contributed by Billy Noel on Jan 2, 2010

The church’s primary function is to win souls

The Church’s Mandate Matthew 28:16-20 James Stewart says “defective evangelism produces defective Christianity and defective Christianity produces defective churches and defective churches produce defective Christianity and defective Christianity makes for defective evangelism, it’s a vicious ...read more

Scripture: Matthew 28:16-20

Denomination: Christian Church

Be A Church Not Just In A Church

Contributed by Howard Gunter on Dec 11, 2017

Church is the PEOPLE, not the building.

Be A CHURCH Not Just In A Church Colossians 1:18 18 And He is the head of the body, the church, who is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead, that in all things He may have the preeminence. Acts 11:26 And when he had found him, he brought him to Antioch. So it was that for a whole year ...read more

Scripture: Revelation 22:16-19, Ephesians 3:20-21, Romans 12:4-5, 1 Corinthians 12:12-27

Denomination: Evangelical/Non-Denominational

This Church Is A Pentecostal Church

Contributed by David Mcnally on May 24, 2012

As we celebrate the Feast of Pentecost we appreciate the ministry of the Holy Spirit, without Whose presence in it, this church, every church, would only be a gathering of people.

SERMON – Every church a Pentecostal church Today is Pentecost, which some people call Whitsun or White Sunday, because priests and ministers used to wear white robes to symbolise the Holy Spirit who came down on Jesus in the form of a dove immediately after he had been baptized by Jordan in ...read more

Scripture: Acts 2:1-41

Denomination: Evangelical/Non-Denominational

Let The Church Be The Church

Contributed by Chris Cuthbertson on Jun 6, 2024

God wants His church to grow and He commissioned us to evangelize, and if the church is doing its job it should grow, but numerical growth in itself is not evidence that God is blessing. It’s important to remember that the goal is to try to restore the church of the 1st century in its principles.

Let the Church Be the Church Acts 2: 36 – 47 A newspaper reporter was doing a story on growing churches, and in preparation for that story he interviewed a number of preachers. I want to share the questions asked of these preachers and then give you my answers to them. One of the questions he ...read more

Scripture: Acts 2:36-47, John 3:16-17, Acts 2:22, Mark 4:26

Denomination: Christian/Church Of Christ