Biblical Church Growth What Jesus says in Matthew 16:18 became the theme for how we have done ministry since the founding of our church. He tells the disciples: "I will build my church." There is an increasing misunderstanding of who it is that is in charge of building God’s church on earth. Christ says that only He is in control of salvation (John 6:44). And not only is He in control of unbelievers being redeemed from their sin, Jesus proclaimed that God’s work is so powerful, not even the gates of hell could overtake it (v. 19). In light of this, what are we to make of all the compromises many church leaders have made in order to grow their churches? Why have so many abandoned—or never believed in—Paul’s exhortation to "Preach the Word" (2 Timothy 4:2)? Why are they resorting to methods that have no biblical support? The answer would be that they do not trust in the Lord’s ability and power to grow His church, grow it the way He wants, and grow it in the timing He chooses. Paul warned Timothy in his second letter to him that this day would come: I solemnly charge you in the presence of God and of Christ Jesus, who is to judge the living and the dead, and by His appearing and His kingdom: preach the word; be ready in season and out of season; reprove, rebuke, exhort, with great patience and instruction. For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine; but wanting to have their ears tickled, they will accumulate for themselves teachers in accordance to their own desires; and will turn away their ears from the truth, and will turn aside to myths (2 Timothy 4:1-4). The biblical means for growing the church is by nothing other than preaching the Word. We are, however, being told that this is not enough, or that simply proclaiming God’s Word will not grow the church—that the lost aren’t interested in systematic verse-by-verse teaching of the Bible. Various surveys taken among unbelievers, it is asserted, show that if we want to attract them, we need to give them what they want, and what they do not want, is to be "preached at". Close to a half century ago, Merrill Unger saw that the church was moving away from preaching the Word. Giving a clarion call he wrote: To an alarming extent the glory is departing from the pulpit of the twentieth century. The basic reason for this gloomy condition is obvious. That which imparts the glory has been taken away from the center of so much of our modern preaching and placed on the periphery. The Word of God has been denied the throne and given a subordinate place. <1> Unger’s words were almost prophetic. What he wrote of then is even more of a problem now. In an attempt to become more relevant in reaching the lost, many are now compromising on the most important means by which unbelievers can truly come to know Christ (Romans 10:14-17). Regardless of what the lost say would attract them, and regardless of how they respond when they are told about the need to repent of their sin, and make Christ Savior and Lord, we need only do one thing if we are truly committed to seeing biblical church growth, and that is to preach the Word. We do not have to resort to gimmick-evangelism to grow it—which the church growth movement claims will attract the lost—for the simple reason that there is not anything we can do to add to the attractiveness of the gospel. If men are not won by hearing the message that they are dead in their sin (Ephesians 2:1), on their way to eternal separation from God (Romans 6:23a), and that Christ came to deliver those who repent (Acts 2:38), nothing else will bring them into the kingdom. The Dangers of a Pragmatic Gospel Rather than adding to the church’s strength and health, the church growth movement has brought many weaknesses into the church with its new gospel, including: (1) Pragmatism that says ‘if it works it’s right, if the goal is good, any means is OK’ and tends to the worldly worship of measurable results; (2) Preoccupation with methods, techniques and sociological factors that can effectively grow mosques and synagogues, as well as Christian churches and justify the minimizing of theology [in the local church]; (3) A de-emphasis on the priority of prayer as necessary for effective evangelism; (4) Accommodation of the management-by-objective culture of American business that bows before the altar of ‘my church goals’, ‘my church objectives’, ‘our church plans’, and can bring into the church a Trojan horse of autonomy, pride and self-dependence, under the guise of zeal; (5) A trust in marketing techniques and practices that betrays a sell-out to doing the Lord’s work in the world’s way and downplays spiritual problems that inhibit evangelism and growth; (6) The hyping of church models and leaders whose gifts and settings are non-transferrable and whose idolization can bring both discouragement and enslavement to the ‘success syndrome’; (7) Contextualization gone awry when the desire to communicate becomes imitation of the culture’s worldly values, compromise to worldly standards and the loss of the cutting edge of self-denying discipleship; (8) The subordination of worship and discipleship to evangelism, resulting in unbalanced ‘we-gotta-grow at-any-costism’; (9) The tendency to depart from the simplicity of church life (as seen in Acts) and embrace complex principles and programs requiring high control management; (10) The tendency to replace pastoral skills with management expertise as the highest quality and value for pastoral leadership. When entrepreneurial and managerial competence is exalted over traditional pastoral roles like teaching, discipling, visitation, and counseling, the ambiance of the church shifts from family organism to enterprise/business/organization. The goal of the church then shifts from organic family growth (in both quality and quantity) to production and productivity management. <2> Remarkably, one of the key leaders within the church growth movement, Bill Hybels, says: "Unchurched people today are the ultimate consumers. We may not like it, but for every sermon we preach, they’re asking, ‘Am I interested in that subject or not?’ If they aren’t, it doesn’t matter how effective our delivery is; they’re minds will check out." <3> Likewise, Andrew Blackwood wrote nearly forty years earlier: "The wise interpreter begins with a human need today, and chooses a passage that will enable him to meet this need." <4> What folly. For as much as I am sure Hybels wants to be considered an evangelical Christian, he sounds more like what liberal theologians have been saying for decades: that Christianity is a feeling, not a doctrine <5>, so we must meet the unchurched at the point of their felt needs. Hybels’ views on this have been influenced, at least in part, by Robert Schuller, who is no friend to biblical Christianity. <6> In all frankness, it does not matter what the lost think about biblical teaching, for we are not here to tickle their ears, entertain them, or to try to make the gospel more appealing to them, but to preach the gospel as clearly as possible. The fact of the matter is that Paul told the Corinthians "we preach Christ crucified, to Jews a stumbling block, and to Gentiles foolishness" (1 Corinthians 1:23). How can we think that by human ingenuity we have the ability to make the gospel attractive to those who are dead in their sin (Ephesians 2:1), when Paul says they see the message as nonsense? The very message of the gospel to those who do not know Christ, is that it is absurd. In a booklet bearing the title, The Work of the Pastor, William Still wrote: The pastor is called upon to feed the sheep. (Now that may seem quite obvious.) He is called upon to feed the sheep even if the sheep do not want to be fed. He is certainly not to become an entertainer of goats. Let goats entertain goats, and let them do it in Goatland. You will certainly not turn goats into sheep by pandering to their goatishness. <7> Weak Teaching Because of the church growth movement’s emphasis on unbiblical, secular models in growing the church, leaders have neglected the primary means of discipleship: the preaching of the Word. The result is that we live in an era of poor, sloppy, ill-prepared preaching. Feeble preaching will not bring church growth. Below-par, half-baked preaching will not build and expand God’s Kingdom. The Bible cries for choice, grade-A, highest quality, first-rate preaching that is lean, nutritious and effective. The Bible calls for power preaching. <8> John Armstrong adds his thoughts: I believe that a whole generation of Christian churchgoers has been fed a diet so malnourished by the lack of theological truth from Scripture that they do not recognize solid preaching when they do occasionally hear it. <9> In his biography of Jonathan Edwards’ life, Ian Murray writes that for his preaching/teaching responsibilities, Edwards normally spent thirteen hours every day in his study, but adds that if "it was excessive in one direction there can be no doubt that the routine in our contemporary Christian ministry is excessive in another." <10> What matters most in a pastor’s work of leading the church, is that he fill himself up, in order to empty himself out into the people God has placed under his care. If he spends too much time taking care of administrative responsibilities, and not enough time tending to his own spiritual growth so as to lead the church in the most effective way possible, his level of teaching will be compromised, and ultimately the people under his leadership will suffer. The most important thing that will bring genuine church growth, has practically all but been forgotten and neglected. The result has been a seriously weakened church. How could it be otherwise? Weak teaching will always produce biblically illiterate, weak churches. Powerful, biblical preaching, will produce powerful, biblically literate churches. A Disconcerting Trend In preparing for his dissertation on church growth, David Eby reviewed scores of books on how to grow churches, noticing that scarcely a passing word was given to the subject of preaching as a means to grow a healthy congregation. He says that of the forty-eight books, besides many brief passing references, only twenty pages were devoted to preaching, and only twenty-eight to prayer. Granted, this may not be a scientific survey, but the message is obvious. Think of it. Over 10,000 pages on church growth and under 50 on preaching and prayer. Something is out of balance. Then I dove into ten books on church renewal, all of which have been influenced by the Church Growth Movement. And the finding? Over 2,000 pages of print, and besides the now-expected passing references, only seven pages devoted to preaching and sixteen to prayer. <11> The following discovery is even more telling: "Next, it was examination of the Doctor of Ministry dissertations at the Fuller Seminary library. Of the 377 dissertations completed since 1971, only one has been written on preaching and church growth." <12> He says further: Think of it. Ninety-five books on church growth and church renewal examined. Some 20,000 pages of print. The finding? Meager thin, lean, emaciated statements on preaching. Not the vigorous, full, rich, strong assertions so desperately needed. Scanty, sparse declarations, not the ample, abundant, plentiful affirmations and descriptions required. What a glaring oversight! What a distortion of truth! Books written on the principles of church growth penned to promoted church growth, with no cultivation of Acts 6:4 as the pastor’s priority, no explanation of power preaching, hardly any paragraphs, hardly any chapters, no detailed analysis of God’s church growth manual. Just passing references. No solid, biblical help for preachers for the most critical task in church growth. No encouragements to congregations on how to pray for and advance power preaching. <13> We have become so enamored with trying to make our churches large, we have resorted to almost anything that will lure the lost into our doors, including church-sponsored wrestling matches <14>, Toon Time to attract children <15>, on-site restaurants <16>, "Bible studies" that meet at Hooters <17>, other that are based on I Love Lucy <18>, sermons which are based on American Idol, Joe Millionaire, Survivor, Lost <19>, and using comedians <20>, music, and themes of the world <21>. In the midst of this, there is growing a strong distaste for preaching <22>. The once clear dividing line between the sacred and the secular is quickly fading <23>. With all this nonsense, where is the real proof that lives are being transformed by the power of the Holy Spirit? Yes, we are drawing large numbers into our churches, but many of these people are goats who would flee the moment they heard a clear presentation that they are sinners, and that Christ calls them to deny their sin and turn to Him. We are far too quick to count heads, something Spurgeon strongly warned against: "Lay aside such numberings of the people, such idle pretence of certifying in half a minute that which will need the testing of a lifetime." <24> The only real reason why churches that have boughten into church growth philosophy are seeing such staggering growth, is because they have moved away from gospel preaching. Despite the claims of some that we are seeing revival, we are not witnessing the things that characterized the revivals of the past. <25> Robert Reymond explains what is happening, and must be quoted at length: The problem in our day is twofold: On the one hand, we are seeing a waning confidence within Evangelicalism in the message of the gospel. . . . Why else would preachers trade the bold and accurate proclamation of the Gospel in exchange for pragmatic managerial techniques to build the church unless they had lost confidence in the Gospel’s power to change lives and to transform society? That is why increasing numbers of churches hear and prefer sermons on family life and psychological health. . . . Today’s ‘gospel’ is all too often a ‘gospel’ without cost, without repentance, without commitment, without discipleship, and thus ‘another gospel’ and accordingly no gospel at all, producing at best ‘spectator Christians’, Christians in name only, all traceable to the fact that this is how too many people today have come to believe that the church must be grown. On the other hand, we are seeing a waning confidence within Evangelicalism in preaching as the means by which the gospel is to be spread. Spirit-animated preaching is increasingly being viewed as outdated and ineffective ‘Bible thumping’. As a result, preaching is giving way, at least in the United States, to multi-media presentations, drama and dance, ‘sharing times’, innocuous sermonettes on self-esteem, and pathetic ‘how to...in three easy steps’ devotionals. So churches have borrowed techniques from the advertising industry to grow themselves. Telemarketing, in particular, has taken the place of personal one-on-one evangelism, and cell groups are now the darling of the church growth movement. And the infusion of the popular culture into many churches in the forms of applause for the church’s ‘performers’ and sappy contemporary music gives evidence of the diminution of those churches’ vision of God and suggests that in their eagerness to be relevant they have become only more and more desperate! Churches so infected, look to the multiplication of programs to bring about their growth; they sponsor conferences and seminars on every conceivable topic under the son; they subdivide their congregations down into marrieds, singles, single-parents, divorced, thirty-something, twenty-something, teens, unemployed, child-abused, drug-addicted, and so on, attempting to arrange programs for them all. This preoccupation with the needs of individual ‘selves’ is so pronounced that the salient purpose of the church—to know and to worship God and to make him known in all his holiness and love to a lost world—is obscured by the ‘what can God do for me’ mentality of this ‘me’ generation. And while there is nothing necessarily unseemly in these attempts to meet the needs of these groups as long as these efforts do not diminish the primacy of biblical preaching in the life of the church, one might still justifiably wonder if the perception that this is what one must do in order to minister effectively in the twenty-first century is not in itself a manifestation of waning confidence in the universal appeal and power of the gospel. And once a person joins such a church, conventional wisdom has it, the church and the minister must reach his every felt need. Accordingly, the pastor/teacher in the United States has become more and more a manager, a facilitator, a motivator, even a ‘rush chairman’, promising the newcomer that all his needs will be met—everything but a herald of the whole counsel of God who marches to the beat of the transcendent Drummer, and this all because we are losing confidence in preaching God’s Word as the primary means for the growth of the church and the individual Christian. What is the cure to this malady? A restored confidence in the Reformed doctrine of the sovereignty of God in salvation! When polished, self-confident, show-boat-type preachers, for example, draw attention to themselves by using music that appeals to the emotions, story-telling, hysteria and hype and appeal to their viewers’ ‘sense of self-worth’ in order to produce ‘decisions’, it is evident that they don’t understand the depravity of man, either their own or their audience’s, or they would not act this way. Why do we say this? Because a biblical understanding of the depravity of man and the necessity of God’s sovereign initiative in salvation produces abject humility in a preacher and the very antithesis of human self-confidence, namely, confidence in God alone. <26> The Need of the Hour What the church needs, is the one thing that is at large being neglected: sure, confident, unashamed, bold, uncompromising preaching of the entire counsel of God, not selected passages used for proof-texting in order to support some self-help message portrayed as Bible teaching. Again, the reason why the church has moved away from the consistent proclamation of God’s Word, is due to its leaders not truly trusting that preaching the Word is God’s means to save sinners, and grow His church. As Ian Murray points out, in order to reach the lost, the church growth movement’s philosophy on preaching is that nothing should be said to antagonize or awaken resistance. So man’s impotence and helplessness, his being ‘dead in trespasses and sin,’ his condition as an individual who ‘is not subject to the law of God, neither indeed can be,’—come to be regarded as truths likely to put off those who are to be won. For the same reason the wrath of God (a truth spoken of ten times in the Epistle to the Romans) is often considered to be a hindrance to the reception of the message. <27> Luther certainly understood the power in God’s Word to do all that God wanted it to do. He once said: "While I drink my little glass of Wittenberg beer the gospel runs its course and overthrows empires." <28> Whatever your opinion about drinking beer, Luther saw that there was nothing he could add to the work the Holy Spirit does through the simple means of preaching the gospel. He preached the Word, and after that, God did what He wanted to do; there wasn’t anything else Luther could do to make it more effective. A leader who thinks he can bring in revival by exercising certain canned techniques, and by that think he can control the work of the Spirit to convert the lost, will be the last person who actually gets to experience such a blessing. <29> Peter Masters has been the pastor of Spurgeon’s Metropolitan Tabernacle church in London since 1970. I really appreciate his remarks about what the church is to be: A Gospel church is, among other things, a college. This is not said to promote false intellectualism, which gives rise to ‘theoretical’ believers lacking real character, love and service. Nevertheless, a true church is a place where people love to hear the Word unfolded, its wonders researched and displayed, and the words and plan of God expounded. <30> He makes a valid point. When leaders such as Rick Warren, Bill Hybels, Robert Schuller, and others like them shun biblical doctrine preached, they are neglecting a vital part of any truly biblical ministry. Biblical leaders are to be feeding their flocks a regular diet of doctrine, for in that comes growth and maturity. In defining this further says, Masters says: We call it a ‘college’ because this suggests a settled scheme of learning pursued to a high standard, and culminating in some form of qualification. In reality, the ideal church will have very little of the atmosphere and feel of a college, and will certainly not have assignments, examinations and diplomas. However, the teaching elder will have a clear ambition to include, over time, all the counsel of God in his teaching plan. And the people of the church will be conscious that they are pursuing a grand course in divine knowledge, and will revel in the topics, subjects and themes being set before them. <31> The Solution So what’s the answer? The church growth movement has made ministry very complex, and by putting countless demands on leaders which the Bible never speaks of, and telling leaders that the keys to growing their churches are found in techniques that can be mastered, and therefore assure growth, it has lost its focus as to its main job, which is to teach and preach God’s Word. That is the only means through which sinners will be won to Christ. And it is the only means that the church will be built up in its knowledge of God, the result being a more fully sanctified church. As MacArthur has noted: [P]reaching is and always has been God’s chief tool for producing growth in grace. Therefore, it deserves the closest attention. Though every Christian should read, study, and meditate on Scripture, God uses Bible exposition for the optimal enhancement of his spiritual growth. It is not overstating the case that preaching [the Word] should be the chief means of dispensing strengthening grace in a believer’s life. <32> The solution to the situation the church currently finds itself in, is to restore once again strong biblical teaching to its pulpits, trusting that through that gift to the body of Christ (Eph. 4:11-12), God will build His church. As Murray has written: Truth preached is the means of awakening. It was as John the Baptist preached that men began to ‘flee from the wrath to come’. It was as Peter preached at Pentecost, and again at Caesarea, that ‘the Holy Spirit fell on all them which heard the word’. It was when Paul preached that Felix trembled. To say that revivals are ushered in by preaching is not to lessen what we attribute to God; it is only to confirm the scriptural principle that God is normally pleased ‘by the foolishness of preaching to save them that believe’ (1 Cor. 1:21). <33> Keys to Restoring Biblical Preaching How can we restore this great ministry in the church, and through it see the miraculous work of the Holy Spirit? John Stott offers an encouraging word: The average congregation can have a far greater influence than it realizes on the standard of preaching it receives, by asking for more biblical and contemporary sermons, by setting their pastors free from administration so that they may have more time to study and prepare, and by their expressions of appreciation and encouragement when their pastors take their preaching responsibility seriously. <34> Eby provides some additional helpful guidelines for churches to get the most out of their pastor’s teaching: You can have a significant role in promoting biblical power preaching. Each member and attendee . . . can have an important part. Here’s what the Larger Catechism says you are to do: Q. 160. What is required of those that hear the word preached? A. It is required of those that hear the word preached, that they attend upon it with diligence, preparation, and prayer; examine what they hear by the scriptures; received the truth with love, meekness, and readiness of mind, as the word of God; meditate, and confer of it; hide it in their hearts, and bring forth the fruit of it in their lives. The Catechism outlines a simple ten point plan on how you can promote power preaching: 1. Be careful and persistent to attend each worship service. Irregular attendance is the spiritual equivalent of a poor, inconsistent diet and will result in malnourishment; 2. Listen carefully to the sermon. Fight off mental distraction. Concentrate; 3. Prepare your heart and pray before you come; 4. Pray for the preaching of the Word; 5. Evaluate what you hear by the Word of God. This assumes that you are reading the Bible on your own between Sundays and are gaining knowledge of what Scripture teaches; 6. Humbly receive the truths preached as God speaking to you, not just the human preacher; 7. Think about the sermon. Mull it over. Think of ways to apply the truths of the sermon in your life; 8. Talk about the sermon with others after the service and at home on Sunday afternoon. . . .; 9. Memorize key Scriptures from sermons; 10. Seek to obey what you hear. Be a doer of the Word, not just a hearer (James 1:22). Seek to put off sin, and put on obedience. This requires prayer that God will enable you to obey and ‘bear fruit for Christ’ as the Word is planted in your heart through preaching. <35> Additionally, he gives specific guidelines for praying for power preaching in your church: Pray to God for your preacher and his preaching in these specific ways: 1. Help him to realize his absolute dependance on You, that apart from You he can do nothing (John 15:5); 2. Help him to pray for his preaching continually and depend on Your Spirit for power; 3. Anoint him and fill him with your Spirit for preaching. Bring him under complete submission to you; 4. Enable him to preach the Word with accuracy, clarity, boldness and love; 5. Anoint the ears of listeners to be humble, hungry hearers of the Word; 6. Bring conviction of sins and true conversion by the preached Word to unbelievers; 7. Bring conviction of sin, on-going repentance, edification, encouragement and growth/sanctification to believers. You could also take the words of the Larger Catechism Question 159 and pray: Lord, help our preacher to preach sound doctrine 1. diligently 2. plainly 3. In the power of the Spirit 4. faithfully 5. wisely 6. zealously, with fervent love to God and His people 7. sincerely, aiming at God’s glory, and the conversion, edification and salvation of all who listen to the Word. <36> Summary and Conclusion We find ourselves living in a day where every possible dog and pony show is paraded in front of hundreds and thousands of people weekly, being passed off as means that will bring about the conversion of many. What is actually happening, is that the church has found itself right in the middle of one of the greatest compromises the church has ever known. When Jesus says He will build His church, that was a promise that He will do it apart from any man-made tricks which misguided leaders think are necessary to help Christ accomplish His goals. We have but one primary task—given to use directly from Christ—preach the Word. If we do that, God will accomplish exactly what He wants to accomplish, and He will do it in the timing He has ordained. For true conversion to happen, it must happen through the clear, bold proclamation of his Word! Endnotes Merrill F. Unger, "The Need of Expository Preaching in the Twentieth Century," Bibliotheca Sacra 111 (July-September 1954): 231. David Eby, Power Preaching for Church Growth. Fearn, Ross-shire, Great Britain: Mentor, 1996, pp. 98-99. Bill Hybels, et al., Mastering Contemporary Preaching. Portland, Oregon: Multnomah, 1989, p. 27. Andrew W. Blackwood, Expository Preaching for Today. New York: Abingdon-Cokesbury, 1953, p. 13. Carl R. Trueman, The Wages of Spin. Fearn, Ross-shire, Scotland, UK: Mentor, 2004, p. 71. http://www.twincityfellowship.com/cic/articles/issue56.htm. As quoted by William G. Hugh, "Exhortations for Pastoral Preaching," in Reformation & Revival, 1:4, Fall, 1992: 68. Eby, p. 11. John Armstrong, "Preaching—God’s Way to Reformation & Revival," in Reformation & Revival, 1:4, Fall, 1992: 13. Ian Murray, Jonathan Edwards: A New Biography. Edinburgh; Carlisle, PA, USA: Banner of Truth Trust, 1987, p. 147. Eby, p. 103. Ibid., 104. Ibid., 105. http://www.upperroomministries.org. http://www.christianitytoday.com/ct/2000/007/20.25.html. http://www.wivb.com/Global/story.asp?S=2349968&nav=0RapRK6h. http://www.tdn.com/articles/2004/08/21/this_day/news02.txt. http://stevenjcamp.blogspot.com (see the Saturday, November 5, 2005 post). http://www.oldtruth.com/blog.cfm/id.2.pid.90. http://news.independent.co.uk/media/article324976.ece. http://www.oldtruth.com/blog.cfm/id.2.pid.81. http://christianunplugged.com/antagonism.htm. http://www.csmonitor.com/2004/1229/p01s04-ussc.html. As quoted by Murray in The Old Evangelicalism, p. 21. See Iain Murray’s book Revival & Revivalism: The Making and Marring of American Evangelicalism: 1750-1758. Edinburgh, UK: Banner of Truth Trust, 1994. Also see Martyn Lloyd-Jones, Revival. Wheaton, Ill: Crossway Books, 1997. Reymond, pp. 182-83. Iain H. Murray, The Old Evangelicalism. Edinburgh, UK: The Banner of Truth Trust, 2005, p. 15. As quoted in Reymond, p. 184. Ibid., 185. Peter Masters, do we have a policy?: Paul’s Ten Point Policy For Church Health & Growth. The Wakeman Trust: London, 2002, p. 44. Masters, p. 44. John MacArthur, Rediscovering Expository Preaching. Dallas: Word Publishing, 1992, p. 354. Murray, Old Evangelicalism, p. 6. John R. W. Stott, Between Two Worlds: The Art of Preaching in the Twentieth Century. Grand Rapids: William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, 1990, pp. 11-12. Eby, pp. 161-62. Eby, pp. 163-64.