Wanted: Perfect church. A small, tight-knit community of believers. Close friendships a must.
Sometimes we talk about the early New Testament church as if it were a small, quaint country church with about one hundred intimate relationships, and killer pot providence (not luck) dinners. And that’s exactly what it was. For about a month.
Then Pentecost happened (Acts 2) and everything went crazy. The Spirit fell. People talked in foreign languages. Tongues of fire danced over people’s heads. And 3,000 people were added to the church in one day. In one day the church went from intimate small group to giant mega church.
Suddenly things weren’t so intimate. Everybody couldn’t be friends with everybody. The leaders were less accessible. The worship service didn’t have the close, sing around the campfire, feel. Everyone was required to sacrifice and serve in new ways.
But that’s what happens when the gospel is being preached. Sinners are saved. The church grows. New friendships are formed, new small groups are formed, new services are added to accommodate all the people that God is saving. If the gospel is preached, people will be added to the church. For people to be added to the church, sacrifice is required.
It takes sacrifice to welcome people with messy lives into the church. It takes sacrifice to reach out to people you don’t know. It takes sacrifice to figure out who is going to be in what small group. It takes sacrifice to see a church grow from small to big. But it’s glorious sacrifice. Sinners are being saved. God’s kingdom is going forth. People are being pulled from darkness into the kingdom of God. Lives are being rearranged and transformed.
To be a part of this sacrifice is to be a part of something beautiful.
If the gospel is going to spread, and the church is going to grow, sacrifice and serving must happen. Sacrifice and serving are hard, but the result is beautiful.
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{ 21 comments… read them below or add one }
As a new member of a local church, I am thankful for the warm reception our family has received. The Lord has blessed this church greatly in so many ways because the Gospel is being proclaimed. As a result they love one another, have a heart for missions, and welcome in new people. I believe it is all because the Gospel is being preached regularly and the “how to” of applying the Gospel to our everyday lives is being taught. We are thankful and humbled by their sacrifice as our church grows. What a blessing they are!
I’m so glad you feel that way Elaine. We love having you guys in our church!
I am so grateful to read this post. Our Senior Pastor just finished talking about this very thing, but from the standpoint of the lies of the enemy. Like, “Well brother, it’s not about numbers.” Of course it is! The devil knows it’s all about numbers, and if he can get us to think it’s not, he wins more numbers because of our apathy disguised as pseudo-righteousness. And others like, “Well brother, I just like a small church.” So then we should just post a sign on the door that says, “100 Members Welcome; Member #101 Please Go Away.” Thanks for the great post!
Wow, this is the first post I’ve read from you in a while, Stephen, that really jumped off the page as something fresh and original. Don’t get me wrong – I think your others posts have been excellent, but for me at least, they came as reminders of things I’ve already heard (which incidentally can be much more difficult to putt off). This one, though, had a different dynamic to it, something I hadn’t considered before… or at least a different perspective.
I particularly appreciate how you wrote about sacrifice as part of our job. I’m not sure I’d thought of church growth in those terms. Thank you for continuing to write.
-Marshall Jones Jr.
Thanks for your encouragement Marshall!
Just last night our we had our care group Christmas party and as we were getting ready to load our plates with food, I thought, Wow! we have added three new families into the mix (one as of last week) with kids, where in the world will everyone sit?! After the food line was completed, I looked around and saw that everyone found a place and everyone was enjoying sweet fellowship. It is quite amazing how the church continues to grow. Why am I always amazed to see new families? What we need now are more caregroup leaders! What a great need to have. Lord, please send more.
I meant to add that, yes, there is sacrifice as the church grows and I have to put off selfishness and comfortableness, and build new relationships with someone I think I have nothing in common with. But, lo and behold, we find we have much in common. We have Christ and then we have a sweet new relationship that grows and challenges us both.
Isn’t it cool to see God adding new people? I want to reach out to my neighborhood more so that more people are introduced to Christ!
I’m not sure I agree with what you are saying when it comes to the ‘requirement of sacrifice’ idea Stephen.
You say that “For people to be added to the church, sacrifice is required.” How’s that?
The only thing necessary for people to be added to the church of Jesus Christ is for regeneration to take place isn’t it? and that by the preaching of the Gospel.
Also, you said: “It takes sacrifice to welcome people with messy lives into the church.” Maybe I’m missing something here, but what sacrifice am I making in welcoming people with messy lives? Isn’t the love of Christ shown me what I’m supposed to give to them? Help me out here.
Again, you say “It takes sacrifice to reach out to people you don’t know.” Sacrifice, or love for souls and their eternal value?
I’m truly not trying to be nitt-picky or overly critical here, but your conclusion of “If the gospel is going to spread, and the church is going to grow, sacrifice and serving must happen.” seems a bit askew.
I’m thinking if the Gospel is going to spread, and the church is going to grow, then the Gospel needs to be preached, and regeneration will take place in those whom God calls to salvation by it. But sacrifice (in any sense) of Christians will be a result of that regeneration, not the catalyst.
Joel those are helpful thoughts. I’ll try to answer them in turn.
- It’s true that for people to be added the the UNIVERSAL church, all that’s necessary is regeneration. But the moment someone is added to a local church sacrifice is required. When someone is added to my church, I’m called to love them, serve them, bear there burdens, help them fight sin, and lots of other things. That requires sacrifice. And the more people added, the more sacrifice required.
- It also takes a lot of sacrifice to welcome people with messy lives. When a non-Christian is saved they still carry a lot of the baggage from their life. They need to be discipled in following Christ, and that takes sacrifice. I’m naturally selfish and I need to sacrifice my time to disciple those who are new to Christ.
- Reaching out to people requires love for souls and sacrifice. To say that no sacrifice is required is simply not true. Missionaries giving up all comforts to go to a foreign country are sacrificing. Inviting people into your home involves sacrifice. To separate the two is making a false dichotomy.
Hopefully this answers your questions. Thanks for commenting.
Love this display of thought- We are the body – wherever We are Christ is there- Jesus was about the mess- For God so loved the world that he sent his one and only son(who was the ultimate sacrifice) … Jesus met people right where they were- He sought them out and reached them -and then challenged them to Change. We are his hands and feet – As the local church grows because we reach out – the people in the Body must sacrifice to service the new believer for growth – So that they can go OUT into the world as a part of the Body – to bring others into the Salvation and knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ – regeneration …..based on the growth of the body aka as the local church …. Love it !!!!
I read this in bed and tried to comment from my iPhone. But something happened. I may have burped.
Regardless, I was so blessed by this, I’m linking to it from my blog, and sending it to all my staff, including my senior pastor who preached a message very close to this two weeks ago. But he took it from the standpoint of “the lies of the enemy toward church growth.” For instance, many people will say things like, “You know, brother, it’s not about numbers.” Well, the devil knows it is about numbers. So if he can get us believing it’s not, he’s quite happy to perpetuate that lie with religious piety. Another one is, “You know, I just like a small church.” So why not post a sign on the front door that says, “100 Members Welcome; Member # 101 Please Go Away.”
Great post. Passing it on. And will be visiting again. ch:
Wow, this is one of the best blog posts I have read in a long time. Finally someone is talking about preaching the Gospel! I have been a missionary for nearly ten years now preaching wherever I go. Actually, I am in Guatemala right now and will be for nearly two months before heading back to Panama where I have been living for the past four years. It is so hard to find people who have a heart for the lost, and it is amazing how little percentage of the church actually tries to reach the lost. There is a very large Missionary Organization that is known around the world, and if you look at their stats, less than 1% go to unreached parts of the world. This goes to show how little sacrifice most people are willing to make for the Gospel. They are happy warming pews every Sunday, and letting everyone else go to hell. I am convinced that this is one of the greatest sins a person can make.
Alan – Thanks so much for serving as a missionary. I’m grateful for men like you who make sacrifices to spread the gospel!
Stephen – I know by your comments you weren’t looking to be recognized, but THANK YOU THANK YOU!for all you, and your Dad and Joe (and all the care group leaders!) do to serve the Lord, to bring glory to God, and all that you do for the Church and our Church. Praise God for your work in spreading the Gospel to newly saved believers like me with yes, messy lives (:
Beth – We’re so grateful to have you in our church! And all of our lives are messy. In His kindness, God is slowly cleaning all of us up. Thanks for your comment!
This is simply amazing. I’ve thought this a long time when I hear organic church advocates talk about the New Testament Church. The fact is that they did church in lots of different ways, and we’re arrogant for thinking we have it down pat. Anyway, I like what the Gospel can do, and I’m glad that at least some people aren’t afraid of that.
WOW. I really loved the posting. Convicting,Challenging,Encouraging all rapped in the love of Christ .I have read it countless times .My son sent the posting to me.I forwarded to My Pastor. Our church started in a funeral home. We now have 4 services and this past small group sign up was the largest in our church history around 900 ?? I think.
As Christians, most of us base our church experience around how we feel. We are called to something different, to be more Kingdom minded. Thank you for this article Stephen! I feel the call to be more Christ-like in serving my home church.
Thank you for this extremely timely post. I have been questioning so much about my home church, including the reason why God wanted me to stay in the church He directed me to.
SACRIFICE for the kingdom.
Thank you for making it clear to me. God Bless.
Hmm, well I'm not convinced that the Contemporary Mega Church Model we have going is all that Biblical. Are we growing through multiplication (ie. people actually coming to the Lord through signs and wonders and revival) or simply addition?? Or perhaps division?? 'Church growth' in the West is so often the result of believers moving to a new area, or being discontented with their current church.
The First Mega Church Ever was a result of a move of the Spirit – a powerful wave of anointing that we have not seen in a very long time – and most of those people didn't just stay put in their comfortable homes and jobs – they gave up their lives to see the Gospel advanced. They actually did meet in homes and were underground, because the government wanted them dead.
No I don't believe that Mega Church is Biblical. Not in the way it is practiced and propagated in these times. How many Mega Church Pastors would truly be willing to follow in Francis Chan's footsteps and give up their church that they built from the ground up, where they make a hundred thousand dollars a year and have the power over so many people??
If God told you to walk away, would you? Could you? (Actually, that's a question I ask anyone in ministry, no matter how big or small the ministry is: If God told you to lay it down, would you be able to? How much of your identity as a minister for Christ is wrapped up in your position, especially if it's something that you built yourself, and it highly successful by worldly standards? Would there be anything left? Would your relationship with God still remain intact?)
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