Any advice on how to grow a church or how to start one from the gound up?

[shackleton]

My wife and I have decided to go back to the church she grew up, which is the same one her parents go to and the one we got married in.

He know I am Reformed and that I am going to a Presbyterian Seminary, we talked and agreed with most things, the Doctrines of Grace and God's sovereignty, the other things we agreed are not worth destroying a relationship over.

The problem is that the church is dying, literally. There are only about 20 members and all of them are over 80, except for my wife's parents. The other problem is that it is in a sort of a low income area where all the churches are dying in the same way. The young people are going to a neighboring county to mega churches with lots of programs, contemporary worship and relevant preaching.

So the question is, in this environment how can a church grow, at least to the point of surviving into the next generation? How do you market a church without making it seeker sensitive?

Any advice appreciated.

Covenant Baptist Church

 

[Galatians220]

Hi, Shackleton,

Is the "he" you refer to above your father-in-law?

We're trying to start a Reformed church in a very dark area... We found a few friends who believe similarly and then started putting notices in the local paper. We got articles printed, too, and the minister who serves as our pulpit supply was interviewed for one of them. Basically, though, the 10-20 people who attend each week are our "word of mouth" contacts. The Lord will provide people in His will and that's what we're relying upon. We pray a lot.

These are hard times for the truly Reformed, though. People just want their ears tickled; they won't endure sound preaching and they don't want to hear the real Gospel. They want something that matches "the other entertainment options" they have out there for their "bang quotient." Unless the Lord brings them, they won't come. However, all we can do is publicize our services and talk to people who might be interested. "The personal touch" often results in reaching beyond just the person that you're talking to. It helps that we hold our services at a convenient time of day, 3:30 p.m. on the Lord's Day, so that those who attend elsewhere in the morning can check us out.

May the Lord bless even the idea that you have of starting a church!

Margaret

 

[Robbie Schmidtberger]

As long as the gospel is being preached, and sin is being killed the church is not dead. (just had to get that out). But is it a healthy congregation exhibiting the full splendor of the bride of Christ?

1st - pray
2nd - pray some more
3rd - pray again
4th - act and do - show Christ's love in the community

If there are others in the congregation agreeing with you all of this is much easier. For those into church planting replanting the church is an option. Harry Reeder of the PCA wrote a book on church revitalization, From Embers to Flame. Have not read it, but many people I respect have and found it very helpful (read biblical).

 

[shackleton]

I guess I was not very clear, "he" is the pastor of the church. I have told him about the Founders and have given him the names of a few other small Reformed Baptist churches in the area. He has already been in contact with one of them.

I have decided that growth for growth's sake is not the goal the goal will be to worship God in truth and run church the way we think it should be run and if people come they come. But the problem is in about 5 years the church will have zero members outside of the pastor and his wife, my wife and I and her parents. I was hoping to grow enough to keep it alive at least one more generation. IT ought to be interesting though very hard I am sure I will learn a lot under the circumstances.

 

[larryjf]

A healthy church is one that preaches the Word of God faithfully, both in Sunday morning service and in the area through evangelism.

If it's a healthy church then one needs to pray to God for the increase, that part is in His hands (1 Cor 3:7)

 

[Scott1]

Well, this is a big topic and there are lots of opinions.

Most important is to focus on solid biblical doctrine taught for all-of-life discipleship and building unity around solid reformed doctrine.

Set a high standard for Christian knowledge and growth. Believe it or not, this will attract some young people. If you or your officers are so gifted, you will need to do personal discipling (mentoring) of members, probably one on one or in very small groups in a small church.

Next, work on fellowship around solid doctrine- regular fellowship meals, visitation programs, recreational trips. An annual worship/recreation trip that you combine with other churches maybe that you and everybody looks forward to. Pick one ministry that is not typical for a church your size to do and do it so you establish a unique identity.

Then, work on mercy ministry in your midst and encourage hospitality- do it yourself as a leader.

In summary for a small church to start:

1) sound biblical exposition for all of life
2) background teaching from Catechism and church government
3) regular fellowship centered around worship/doctrine including an annual recreation event joined by other churches mostly in your denomination
4) choose an uncommon ministry and stick to it
5) emphasize mercy ministry and hospitality gifts

Expect a 5 year type horizon to build these from scratch and be self supporting.

 

[N. Eshelman]

I would add this as well:

Without being seeker sensitive, but being sensitive to those who are seeking:

What in worship and your church's culture is a hindrance to those who attend/ may want to attend? If there are things that are a hindrance THAT ARE NOT OF DIVINE RIGHT, I would say work on them and see how you could be more sensitive to the needs of the community.

I am not being 'seeker sensitive' but I do think that we who are Reformed could learn how to be a little more sensitive to the seekers. I think that we have baggage that we want to claim is 'biblical' when it is really baggage. I think that the RPW and the Westminster Confession support this idea as well.

Listen to Dr. David Murray's lectures (Biblical Evangelism 1,2, and 3) here on evangelism. They are very church based and have GREAT ideas!

 

[N. Eshelman]

Side note: If there are 20 people that are attending each Lord's Day- that is not starting from scratch. Give these old people a vision. They have lots of time for prayer. Get a specific prayer calendar with goals, etc. for growth. You would revitalize them at the same time!

 

[Seb]

In summary for a small church to start:

1) sound biblical exposition for all of life
2) background teaching from Catechism and church government
3) regular fellowship centered around worship/doctrine including an annual recreation event joined by other churches mostly in your denomination
4) choose an uncommon ministry and stick to it
5) emphasize mercy ministry and hospitality gifts

In the good old days, the Southern Baptists used adult Sunday School to accomplish most of these goals. Even today, the more successful (non Rick Warren type) SBC Churches still use SS to grow, teach, fellowship, outreach, assimilate, etc.

My understanding is that at one time new SBC Churchs were started primarily as a Sunday School program, that turned into a community of believers, that eventually grew into a Church.

That mindset, and practices, could be very integral to "restarting" a declining Church.

 

[JBaldwin]

I would agree with much of what has already been said. We are experiencing a similar phenomena in our area which is in the heart of the Bible belt. The churches that are dying (and there are a lot of them) are dying because they have become ingrown and self-centered. What I've noticed is a lack of love for Christ and His church, a lack of desire to reach the lost and a lot of inner fighting and power grabbing among the few leaders who are left. In some cases, the leadership in their desire to maintain control, have driven off anyone who might come in and challenge the status quo.

In the last several months as I have been interviewing pastors for my work at the local paper, I've come across a number of godly, reformed men who are starting vital, solid works rooted and grounded in prayer, a love for God's Word and a desire to evangelize the lost. While the new mega-churches are hauling in the young people and familes because they have lots of programs, we are also seeing growth of these small, newer works.

I don't think a church can be restored or a new one planted without a lot of prayer, direction from the Lord and a solid core of people who desire to see the Gospel go forth.