The Week in Review

Written by Minister Jewel D. Williams

Christian Education Ministry & Discipleship

On September 29, 2006

The purpose of Christian Education is to teach God’s directives and to equip the believer to understand the importance of being a part of the mission of the church, which is to take the word to the lost. Where do I fit in, is my question? It is important for one to understand their philosophy of Christian education and discipleship in order to answer the question of where one fits in. The purpose and goals of Christian education and discipleship coupled with an understanding of individual learning styles adds to the success of educating the body. My personal philosophy in light of the new learning I gained from this course focuses on living a life of authentic Christianity.


The author, Gailyn Van Rheenen, in his book, Missions: Biblical Foundations & Contemporary Strategies, states, “Few Christians are able to describe vividly in biblical terms what God desires the church to be. Without biblical undergirdings, the church is swept along by the ebb and flow of culture and in various forms degenerates into a social fraternity. When this happens, the church more nearly reflects the world than the nature of God and has little that is distinctive to offer the world” (28). The first step then is for the church to understand what her purpose is and who initiated the mission. “The church is not a human organization. It is the result of a mission or a sending that began with God. The mission of God, initiated through Jesus Christ and continued through his disciples, led to the formation of the church” (Van Rheenen, 29). The web site, Mintools.com (Ministry Tools Resource Center), in its resource, Christian Education Ministry Overview, states, “Christian Education Ministry involves the administration and coordination of programs or strategies to facilitate the spiritual growth or discipleship of believers into Christ-likeness” (1).


The purpose and goals for Christian education and discipleship are to teach God’s directives so that individuals are equipped to live holy lives as well as become ambassadors to the lost. To understand these basic instructions, one must go to the Bible. God’s word gives all his children what they need to make it in life. One important reason to teach the word of God to believers today is to help them fulfill the mandates of God in their lives. When adults, for instance are taught, they can teach their children. “And thou shalt teach them diligently unto thy children, and shalt talk of them when thou sittest in thine house, and whey thou walkest by the way, and when thou liest down, and when thou risest up” Deuteronomy 6:7 (Deuteronomy 11:19 states a similar mandate). The scripture shows how important it is to God that parents actively teach their children the way of the Lord. However, the church must play a vital role in the preparation of the believer so they can be successful at this assignment. In the book, Introducing Christian Education: Foundations for the Twenty-first Century, one of the writers, Judy Ten Elshof states, “Family life education should be centered in the home, supported by the church, and grounded in both biblical theology and strong intimate relationships with God and others. This means that guiding, training, and educating the next generation’s spiritual lives is primarily the responsibility of parents in the home…Therefore, a church that ministers to families recognizes this and elevates its service to meet the diverse needs of the contemporary family.” (195).


It is, however, difficult for a parent to teach their child(ren) what the word says, if they are not being taught and developing their own personal walk with the Lord. “Shew me thy ways, O LORD; teach me thy paths” (Psalm 25:4) and “Teach me thy way, O LORD, and lead me in a plain path, because of mine enemies” (Psalm 27:11). The church, being led by the Holy Spirit, is the avenue that God’s people will be taught the plain path of God and equipped to stand against the enemy (Satan) and all his devices that are to destroy the effectiveness of the church and her people.


“Parents need to learn to teach what they believe, model Christian attitudes, and model values that they want their children to have when they are adults…As the modern family continually departs from biblical values, that used to be engrained in secular mores, the cultural repercussions become increasingly evident. Unfortunately, the Christian family often reflects the trends and values of current culture or marginalizes itself against society, rather than being an agent of change in a wayward culture” (Ten Elshof, 198).


Education needs to play an important part in the lives of the family. The church must teach the answers that God has regarding the culture one lives in. God’s answer is, “All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness: That the man of God may be perfect, thoroughly furnished unto all good works” (2 Timothy 3:16) and “I will instruct thee and teach thee in the way which thou shalt go: I will guide thee with my eye” (Psalm 32:8). When the church has shown the individual how to teach their children, how to live a holy life and how to withstand the cultural pull on one’s life, they are now ready to learn how to be a witness to the world.


The church is responsible for teaching individuals (both young and old) that witnessing is a mandate of God. “The basis of all mission is sending. Unbelievers cannot call on God until they first believe; they cannot believe until they hear; they cannot hear without a preacher; and preachers will not go unless they are sent. The messenger’s feet appear ‘beautiful’ to those hearing and receiving the word of Christ” (Van Rheenen, 31). Many believers are afraid of the word, witness. The church needs to teach how to witness so that believers will be more comfortable doing what we have been called upon to do. The first way we witness is in the way we live before others. “Who his own self bare our sins in his own body on the tree, that we, being dead to sins, should live unto righteousness: by whose stripes ye were healed” (1Peter 2:24) and “For this cause was the gospel preached also to them that are dead, that they might be judged according to men in the flesh, but live according to God in the spirit” (1 Peter 4:6). When believers are taught they must live a holy life and what that entails they become a witness of God’s goodness before the people. The second way is when individuals witness to others about how God’s word changed their lives. “And this gospel of the kingdom shall be preached in all the world for a witness unto all nations; and then shall the end come” (Matthew 24:14). God is calling for his people to tell everyone about his goodness.


Christian education and discipleship is concerned with individuals being taught so that they can continue the teaching and reaching process. “And daily in the temple, and in every house, they ceased not to teach and preach Jesus Christ” (Acts 5:42). This is the ultimate goal of education within our churches. Teach every believer so they can continue to spread the word of God daily.


Once a church understands what they are trying to achieve, they must set goals to teach the Christian faith to accomplish this purpose of the mission. The first place to start any task is with prayer to allow God’s spirit to direct in the way one should go. It is acceptable, however, to look to resources to help one get started in developing a successful education program. On the website mintools.com, in one of it’s resources, Christian Education Ministry Philosophy, states, “When a philosophy of ministry is developed from a biblical or theological basis, the potential for coming into the same heart and mind of these matters increases. God’s Word is the standard, not tradition or a certain leader’s bent” (2). The resources list some important aspects such as, one should have an overall purpose (from the acquisition of knowledge to the application of knowledge, from adherence of traditions to the pursuit of transformation; from outward conformity to inward change), the role of the word (from unimportant to central, from truth that is relative to truth that is absolute), and teaching-learning processes (such as from teacher-centered to student-centered, from passive learners to active learners) (1). (Come back next week for the next installment)

The Week in Review

The Life of a Healthy Church (Final installment)

Schwarz goes on to say, “People do not want to hear us talk about love, they want to experience how Christian love really works” (38). From Schwarz definition of a loving relationship it is individuals becoming involved in the lives of others. One-way to accomplish this is with new believers/new converts. I believe it is vital that new converts be linked with another individual (I believe a Membership Coordinator would be needed to facilitate new members in their walk) that will walk with them during the initial period after their conversion. Many come into the church, but drift away because no one has taken an active role in their lives. These individuals are seeking a relationship with God but also friendship or fellowship with others.


This is one of the requirements of the believers. “Beloved, let us love one another: for love is of God; and every one that loveth is born of God, and knoweth God. He that loveth not knoweth not God; for God is love” (1 John 4:7,8). “Finally, be ye all of one mind, having compassion one of another, love as brethren, be pitiful, be courteous: Not rendering evil for evil, or railing for railing: but contrawise blessing: knowing that ye are thereunto called, that ye should inherit a blessing” (1 Peter 3:8, 9). One of the requirements of the believer is to love and encourage each other to good works. That is more than simply “saying” words but it is when we become “doers” of the word.


One of the first obstacles we must overcome in showing love to those that come within our doors is by letting go of the attitude that the church is “ours”. I recently encounter this ideology in a class and questioned the reason why. The belief is the local congregation should do all things directed for the believer and not to change anything to be directed at non-believers because they cannot worship anyway. While there is some truth in that, for non-believers do not have a relationship with Christ yet so they do not understand the importance of worship. But God can use our time of worship to draw the non-believer to himself, to make him/her desire to have what it is we have. I also understand when we talk about the universal church, the bride of Christ that this statement can be applied fully. The universal church the bride of Christ is made up only of the believers, but the local congregation has the saved and the unsaved coming in and out of its doors.


In the book, Death of the Church, Mike Regele states, “This is the Christendom paradigm. If we insist that the church be for us, then it will only be for us. Local congregations must see themselves as being for their community. From the standpoint of local congregations, community development is a subset of congregational development, especially in our urban centers” (206). When we take on the attitude that the church is ours, we unknowingly take on the attitude that others are not welcomed. Those coming to visit within our doors realize they are not welcome. Our forced smiles do not impress them, because they feel our attitudes. “Most church members believe they are friendly when in reality they are friendly only to others whom they already know. ‘Manufactured friendliness’ is obvious…Friendliness of members to non-Christians tends to be correlated to a church’s evangelistic effectiveness. Members seem to be enthusiastic about new Christians, which engenders friendliness toward others who are not Christians. Friendly churches are likely to have friendly pastors. The pastor’s modeling of friendliness is critical. A relationship is also apparent between the friendliness of a church and the members’ willingness to accept change” (Rainer, 96-97). From Rainer’s finding, individuals are looking for churches were the members show genuine friendliness and love.


As a recap, we need to start first with our leadership. Are we being trained? Are we training others and passing the vision and the mission from the top, down? Are we presenting our best; best in worship, administrative responsibilities, etc? Are we asking ourselves the important questions, why are we here and what is our purpose? Are we taking a hard look at everything we do, under the examination of our vision and mission statements? The most important point is, are we living out, what we have written down? When those two things are in line, we are setting ourselves up for success. We are releasing ourselves to reach the full potential of what we were created to be.

Cited work / source documents

Boa, Kenneth, Th.M.; Ph.D. Leadership Development. 2005. 4 April 2006. http://www.Bible.org.

Church Growth and Health: Church Growth Principles. 2007. 25 January 2007. http://webct.macu.edu/

Gildea, Spike, Ph.D., et al. The American Heritage College Dictionary. Boston, MA: Houghton Mifflin Company, 2002.

Keathley III, J. Hampton. Marks of Maturity: Biblical Characteristics of a Christian Leader. 2005. 28 March 2006. http://www.Bible.org.

Longman, Jr., Robert. Spiritual Disciplines and practices. 2005. 28 March 2006. http://www.spirithome.com/spirdisc.html.

MacArthur, John, et. al. Pastoral Ministry: How to Shepherd Biblically. Nashville, TN: Thomas Nelson, Inc. 2005.

MacArthur, John F., Dr. The Call to Church Leadership. 1986. 4 April 2006. http://www.biblebb.com.

McGavran, Donald A. Understanding Church Growth. Grand Rapids, MI: Wm B. Eerdmans Publishing Co., 1970.

Piper, John. The Marks of a Spiritual Leader. 2006. 28 March 2006. http://www.desiringgod.org/library/topics/leadership/marks_spiritual_leader.html.

Rainer, Thom S. Surprising Insights From The Unchurched. Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan, 2001.

Regele, Mike. Death of The Church. Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan Publishing House, 1995.

Rheenen, Gailyn Van. Biblical Foundations & Contemporary Strategies: Missions. Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan Publishing House, 1996.


Schwarz, Christian A. Natural Church Development. St. Charles, IL: ChurchSmart Resources, 1996.

Simpson, Sandy. The Duties of Christian Leadership. January 11, 2005. 28 March 2006. http://www.deceptioninthechurch.com/dutiesofchristianleadership.html.

Stowell, Joseph M. Shepherding the Church. Chicago, IL: Moody Press. 1997.

Toler, Stan And Nelson, Alan. The Five Star Church. Ventura, CA: Regal Books. 1999.

Thompson, Frank Charles, D.D., PH.D. The Thompson Chain-Reference Bible, 5th ed. Indianapolis, IN: B. B. Kirkbridge Bible Co., Inc., 1988.

The Week in Review

The Life of a Healthy Church (part 4)

The teaching must first teach the importance of the mission, which is to find the lost. The mission is not our programs and services, while they may be wonderful, they are only vehicles to which we try to reach out to the world around us. This is important so that individuals will not be confused and believe the mission is only about our programs running smoothly. What is most important is, are you in the place God has chosen for you to be in? He requires you to do within the church, but your gifts are also to be used in outreach to the lost. The importance of the mission must be taught before one can even speak about gifts. Scripture says, “for we are labourers together with God: ye are God’s husbandry, ye are God’s building” (1 Corinthians 3:3-9).


The classes or training can be broken up for teens, adults and children for example so that each group is able to understand from their level of learning. This is imperative based on scripture that states, “Now concerning spiritual gifts, brethren, I would not have you ignorant…Now there are diversities of gifts, but the same Spirit. And there are differences of administrations, but the same Lord. And there are diversities of operations, but it is the same God which worketh all in all” (1 Corinthians 12:1, 4-6). Along with a test (available for purchase or free from many sources) on what is your spiritual gift, the ground work must first be set so that individuals understand this is of great responsibility to functioning within their area of giftedness. The teaching should cover what the gifts are for, which goes back to the understanding of the mission, to help build up the body as well as to reach the lost. The teaching should also cover why use the gifts. Romans states why we willingly become laborers with God “I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service…For as we have many members in one body, and all members have not the same office: So we, being many, are one body in Christ, and every one members one of another. Having then gifts differing according to the grace that is given to us, whether prophecy, let us prophesy according to the proportion of faith;” (Romans 12:1, 4-6).

Once believers learn what their gifts are, the training cannot stop there. They must also be taught how to utilize the gifts within the church and the church outreach programs. One suggestion I had concerned the youth department. I call it the “Junior Leaders”. This program would be for teens from the ages of 13-18. They would first go through some teaching as I suggested above, purpose of the church (God’s mission), which I am calling the “Instruction Phase”. They would then be taught how and why God equips the church (individuals). He does this so that we can become labors with him in fulfilling his mission. The teaching would then teach about the gifts, first introducing that fact that there is no small gift or big gift and God gives them as he chooses. The gifts are not for selfish purposes, but all to bring us together as one body working for the glory of the Lord. I have seen some giftedness test adapted for teens, so this would be administered to help them learn about their gifts.


I would then have all the church groups/auxiliaries come before the teens to tell them what they do and why. After these presentations, we would ask each teen, what they were interesting in. Sometimes the thing you find interesting is also the area where your gifts lay. Based on their giftedness, they would be matched with an auxiliary leader as a mentor (at least 2 at a time). They would spend 3-6 months within this auxiliary to help as an active member (not just a pair of young legs) and this is called the “Implementation Phase”. After the Implementation Phase, the teen would be responsible for presenting some ideas they have that could help the auxiliary they were working with. They would be responsible for telling what things they thought worked well within the group. They would also have to give what they thought could be done differently and why (a hard one, but needed). This would be presented back to the leaders that taught the class. This phase is called “Reconstruction Phase”. Once they make their presentations to the leader that taught the classes, the leaders would help them write up the proposal to be presented to the leader of the auxiliary group.


The presentation has to be approved to go forward by the leader of the class and it is presented to the group it was designed for. If the group accepts any of the changes, the teens that made the proposal would then help in implementing the changes. One of the challenges for the church is within the areas of new converts. Many new believers become despondent when they are faced with difficulties and find it difficult to worship. It is the responsibility of the body to teach how to face trials and what recourses one can take to continue to walk through the trials. If individuals feel their well-being is important to the church, this may enhance their time of worship. This will also make them more willing to tell others about the church they attend, because they are receiving the things that they need. Rainer states, “Bob Russell says further about excellence: ‘Mediocrity breads indifference, but quality attracts…Imagine how much easier evangelism would be if your church services were done with so much excellence that they inspired people to the extent that they couldn’t help but tell their friends about their experience’…‘But why have our people been so bold in inviting their friends and so effective in getting them to come?’ he asks rhetorically, ‘Because they are excited about what they’ve experienced and are confident that every week the grounds, the nursery, the greeting, the singing, and the preaching will be done with excellence.’” (94). Rainer reminds us that if believers are excited about the place they worship, they are excited about telling others (come back for the next installment).

The Week in Review

The Role of the Pastor in Church Administration (Final Installment)

Written by Minister Jewel D. Williams

October 11, 2007

I believe we need more extensive training for new converts. Scripture tells us to make “disciples” not “converts”. We get people into the church, but we often leave them right there. Many new converts do not come to Sunday school, simply because they do not understand the importance of it. If there was a class during the week that was dedicated to discipleship training I believe it would be very useful in helping some individuals move from being saved to living holy. I believe it is effective have a new members (convert) class during the Sunday school time. I also believe we need to always re-evaluate what we do, our ministries. Churches have many auxiliaries but have they taken the time to see if they are relevant for today? While many may still be relevant, we need to evaluate them as a whole to eliminate redundancy. For a pastor to suggest elimination of an auxiliary may be met with disapproval, however the ultimate goal is to administer most effectively in what we do. In many churches, members are holding positions in several groups. Elimination of the time constraints would help individuals work more effectively. I also believe we need to look at what ministries we do not have currently but are needed for our areas.


Ministry is often done for the “house”, but we need to look to the community we are in and see how we can reach outside the doors to those that are looking for that something different that should be found in the church. Whatever the pastor does, it should all be done with the goal of the church being the best we can for God. I end this with a sentiment from Galloway, “Billy Graham had no interest in wowing me with his preaching skills. He really did not care if I thought he was a good preacher or not. In fact, he probably prayed that I would give up on his oratorical skills…You see the point. Billy Graham has become one of the most significant preachers of the twentieth century because he has had no interest in being one of the most significant preachers of the twentieth century. He has just wanted to be a faithful servant of his Lord…We forget that we have been called not to be the best or the brightest, but to be a fool for Christ” (pp. 167-168). We are not competing to be the best in regards to other churches, but we should all be seeking to be faithful servants of God and that will show the world our significance for this time and era. We have been called for a time such as this and we must with prayer seek God to show us how to be the church. When that is done, pastors will be successful where they are called to lead and the congregations will flourish because we have allowed “the church to be the church”.

Work Cited

McArthur, John. et. al. Pastoral Ministry: How to Shepherd Biblically. Nashville, TN: Thomas Nelson, Inc., 2005.


Galloway, Jr. John. Ministry Loves Company. Louisville, KY: Westminster John Knox Press, 2003.

Lindgren, Alvin J. Foundations for Purposeful Church Administration. Nashville, TN: Abingdon Press, 1965.

Regele, Mark and Schulz, Mark. Death of the Church. Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan Publishing House, 1995.

Thompson, Frank Charles, D.D., PH.D. The Thompson Chain-Reference Bible, 5th ed. Indianapolis, IN: B. B. Kirkbridge Bible Co., Inc., 1988.


Toombs, Michael. The Role of the Pastor in Church Administration: Lecture, Week One. http://webct.macu.edu/webct/entryPageIns.dowebct. 10, September 2007.


Van Rheenen, Gailyn. Biblical Foundations & Contemporary Strategies. Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan Publishing House, 1996.

The Week In Review

The Life of a Healthy Church (part 3) 

There are reasons that a leader may be enticed to base their ministry on selfish pursuits.  These pursuits, however, will only lead to failure.  For a biblically based foundation, the first place that one must begin is in the word of God.  "It demands that we begin with God and the Bible rather than man and culture in order to understand God's will in ministry" (Mayhue, 11).  God's word tells us "All scripture is inspired by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, for training in righteousness; that the man of God may be adequate, equipped for every good work" (2 Timothy 3:16-17).  To have a successful ministry, one must look to God to understand his or her purpose, and depend totally on God for the strength to carry out the mission. 

 
 

In the book, Natural Church Development by author Christian A. Schwarz, he lists several characteristics that are needed to produce a healthy church.  He lists as the eight characteristic needed to grow a healthy church as, empowering leadership, gift-based ministry, passionate spirituality, effective structures, inspiring worship service, holistic small groups, need-oriented evangelism and loving relationships. 

 
 

To understand how important these things are, we first look at what statistics show us important to individuals as they are looking for a church home. The first was the pastor/preaching at 90%, the second was doctrines at 88%, friendliness of members at 49% and after some other listings he states sensed God's presence/atmosphere of Church at 37% (21).  These statistics show us what we need to do to become more effective in what we do.  Let's look at some of the characteristics.

 
 

The first characteristic is gift-based ministry.  What does gift-based ministry mean?  Schwarz explains it this way, "The gift-based approach reflects the conviction that God sovereignty determines which Christians should best assume which ministries.  The role of the church leadership is to help its members identify their gifts and to integrate them into appropriate ministries.  When Christians serve in their area of giftedness, they generally function less in their own strength and more in the power of the Holy Spirit. Thus ordinary people can accomplish the extraordinary!" (26).

 
 

To begin implementing the gift-based ministry characteristic, one must first start with the leaders and teachers being taught the importance of all believers understanding their giftedness.  The general church population will not have a great understanding of the importance of gifts, if the leadership does not teach that it is important first.  This cannot be achieved until the leadership understands that this is not simply a fad, but a vital part of the building of the body of Christ.  Schwarz states, "Unfortunately, in recent years some have misunderstood the gift-based approach as just another passing church growth fad.  But the discovery and use of spiritual gifts is the only way to live out the Reformation watchword of the 'priesthood of all believers'" (26).

Therefore the teaching starts at the top with those responsible for teaching others the importance of gifts and their usage (train the trainer).  The teaching starts with what does God desire for the believers?  Donald A. McGavran, author of the book, Understanding Church Growth, states, "The finding God wants them found – that is, brought into a redemptive relationship to Jesus Christ where, baptized in his name, they become part of his household…The chief and irreplaceable purpose of mission is church growth. Social service pleases God, but it must never be substituted for finding the lost.  Our Lord did not rest content with feeding the hungry and healing the sick. He pressed on to give his life a ransom for many and to send out his followers to disciple all nations.  Service must not be so disproportionately emphasized at the expense of evangelism that finable persons are continually lost" (21-22). (Come back next week for the next installment)

The Week In Review

The Role of the Pastor in Church Administration (Part 4)

Written by Minister Jewel D. Williams

October 11, 2007

  

The ultimate goal of church administration is to do as Lindgren says, "let the church be the church" (p. 60).  The pastor must take the time to determine the goals that must be set to help the church be as she should.  It will call for the pastor to evaluate the programs set before him/her to see if they will help the church reach their goals. A pastor must look at the administrative duties as a means of helping the church to be healthy in her functions.  That means while it is important to have a well thought out worship service and sermon, those are not the only details that require his/her attention.  It is those details that happen behind the scene that ensure what happens in the open arena. 

 

The pastor that studies for hours over his/her sermon does that work behind the scenes.  We see the evidence of it when he/she stands to deliver the word to the listening congregation.  Therefore, the details of making sure individuals are trained is an important administrative duty. "The pastor should have a firsthand acquaintance with the educational program of the local church.  The educational work of the church is and must be largely carried out by laymen" (Lindgren, p. 116).  It is then the pastor's role to ensure that individuals are trained to carry out missions within the mission of God.  The pastor also must be careful to help the church not adopt a "warm body" mentality.  This is when someone comes into the church, instantly they are given work without ever any teaching or training, which often creates more problems than are solved. "A strong word of caution needs to be given here, however, against the popular notion that simply giving everyone a job and putting him to work will make a good churchman and Christian of him" (Lindgren, p. 135). 

 

One of the last points I want to make about administration comes from John Galloway, Jr.  "Imagine how our churches would come alive if we let hospitality define what we do.  Arranging the chairs is not demeaning, grunt work.  It is the host and hostess preparing for the guests.  The church bulletin is not a dull routine.  It is something to help our guests be guided in their worship, to be welcomed into the fellowship, to be invited to feel at home.  Cleaning the building, if necessary painting the walls, mowing the lawn, and adding beauty to the landscaping – all are done to prepare for the party…The Lord has invited quite a number of people to the house of God next Sunday morning.  God has great plans for them on that day.  The Lord has invited a smaller group Tuesday morning to study the Bible and another group on Wednesday evening to discern with is God's will on some organizational matters.  God wants all people to be welcomed, freed to grow, and made to know they belong.  Seen in this light, all the work on details and arrangements is some of the most important, exciting work we can do" (Galloway, pp. 73-74).

 

Each time I read this section from the book, I see the great possibilities not only in the church.  It states to me that whatever you have been called to do is important to God because it adds to the whole.  The pastor that preaches is important, but he is not able to preach the word of God if someone doesn't pay the bills so that there will be electricity. Scripture confirms this understanding, "For as we have many members in one body, and all members have not the same office: So we, being many, are one body in Christ, and every one members one of another.  Having then gifts differing according to the grace that is given to us, whether prophecy, let us prophesy according to the proportion of faith; Or ministry, let us wait on our ministering: or he that teacheth, on teaching; Or he that exhorteth, on exhortation: he that giveth, let him do
it with simplicity; he that ruleth, with diligence; he that showeth mercy, with cheerfulness" (Romans 12:4-8).   Purposeful administration is fulfilled when individuals understand that the work they are doing is needed because it allows God to do in the lives of others what he intends.  Each of us, with the help of the pastor must see we are a vital part of the kingdom work.

 

As we have been discussing administration we also have been touching on the areas of what activities a pastor needs to do to guide the church toward fulfilling her mission.  I will highlight those areas again in this section.  Some of the things already mentioned were, 1) Be a yes person (this helps others to feel free to dream), 2) Set up an organizational model that frees positive people to lead (this moves more people toward stepping into their place and then helping to cut down on the "no's" of those that are overworked), 3) Help the church to be confident to take risks (this helps the church to move forward and see success it would otherwise not obtain), 4) accountability (we are accountable to God to fulfill his mission) and 5)Reforming (this means the church is never satisfied with where it is, but always seeking to allow God to move us further).  These steps were mentioned earlier and were taken from Galloway's book.

 

 Another critical point is that the pastor has to set the priorities of the church.  This will not always be an easy thing, when others often times feel your priorities should be in line with theirs.  However, the pastor must set the tone.  It does not mean that things are not important, but everything cannot be the priority for there is a limit to how much time is available for things to be accomplished.  That means some things, though important cannot take the place of priority.  Another area where a pastor must handle is the area of conflict.  Sometimes conflicts arise because of time or space or other situations.  Two groups need a specific time or place within the church and both cannot have it, so what do we do?  The pastor has to help us in our administrative capabilities, which includes our scheduling to help work these conflicts out so that they do not stop us from moving forward (come back next week for the next installment. If you missed previous installments, you can go to the tri-production blog and look under the "Week In Review" to find the series).    

The Week in Review

The Role of the Pastor in Church Administration (Part 3)

Written by Minister Jewel D. Williams

October 11, 2007

Richard L. Mayhue, one of the contributing authors in the book, Pastoral Ministry: How to Shepherd Biblically, writes, “What is a pastor to be and do? We must look to God’s Word for answers and not to the latest fads or theories that find their source in society rather than in Scripture, or in culture but not in Christ” (p. 11). John McArthur in this same book states this regarding what a pastor is to be and do, “That concept of guarding the truth has largely been lost today. Yet pastors are guardians of the truth, responsible for keeping it pure and handing it on to the next generation…To sum it all up in five categories, Paul commanded Timothy (1) to be faithful in his preaching of biblical truth, (2) to be bold in exposing and refuting error, (3) to be an example of godliness to the flock, (4) to be diligent and work hard in the ministry, and (5) to be willing to suffer hardship and persecution in his service for the Lord” (pp. 19, 26). This tells us that the pastor must show us the way first and foremost by his life and how he follows the Lord. He/she must preach the truth at all times to help address not only the sins in our lives but the errors of belief and actions in the function and administration of the church. He must be an example of those things he teaches through the preached word. The pastor must also be diligent in the work of the ministry. This includes those areas that we might find mundane. He helps us to see how to slay the ego as we see it exampled before us. This is how Jesus taught the disciples. He did not only tell them how to live for him, but he showed them.

This now moves us to the administration of the church and the pastor’s role and the reason for the activities of the church. First, let us give a definition of church administration as given by the author Alvin J. Lindgren in his book, Foundations for Purposeful Church Administration, where he explains, “‘Administer’ is derived from the Latin, administrare, meaning literally, ‘to serve’…Administration, then, is not just activity, but purposeful activity, its purpose being determined in the context of a particular field of endeavor – business, education, church” (p. 22). The key word in this definition is purposeful. This means the pastor has the responsibility to eliminate the one-size fits all approach to programming and resources. The pastor must look anew and afresh at each situation and with prayer set in motion those things that need to be done. That means that he/she cannot simply keep doing something because it worked before, because it might not be for this time. “We have seen, then, that administration properly understood simply provides the means through which a group can fulfill its purpose. If we accept this major premise, then the discovery of the nature and purpose of the church is the necessary starting point for developing a useful concept of church administration…He must know where he is going and why, before he can decide how to get there. If some pastors and congregations have not seen the need for doing their biblical and theological homework before engaging in a project, it is because they have uncritically accepted goals and objectives dictated by a culture foreign to the gospel” (Lindgren, p. 25).

Churches are guilty of doing something simply because it has been done before. We plan our calendars a year in advance but we sometimes are not willing to allow the Spirit to change our plans for His. “Purposeful church administration is the involvement of the church in the discovery of her nature and mission and in moving in a coherent and comprehensive manner toward providing such experiences as will enable the church to utilize all her resources and personnel in the fulfillment of her mission of making known God’s love for all men” (Lindgren, p. 60). (Come back next week for the next installment).

The Week in Review

The Life of a Healthy Church (part 2)

One of the principles given by this writer states “Let’s practice what we preach and put thorns in our laurels” (36). In this principle the authors point out that we tend to rest on our laurels – accomplishments of the past. “By putting thorns in our laurels, we learn not to rest on them. Just because a church has been effective in the past doesn’t mean it will be that way in the present or future” (36). The authors also state, “Talk, talk, talk. It’s easy. It’s cheap. It sometimes fools us into thinking we’ve done what we talk about. It keeps us busy, so busy that we have no time to implement what we’ve discussed” (44).


Another principle that our churches need to look at is principle number six. It states, “Invest the time and money to teach, train and retrain people to develop their skills and to implement quality ministry methods” (40). We tend to take people because they are willing and put them into positions of leadership or responsibility without preparing them for success. We tend to believe the Holy Spirit will help them. While this is true to a point, we are still required to teach how to do the job well. It is the responsibility of those in leadership, for example, to ensure their teachers are equipped to teach. “Churches seem so quick to put people into ministry roles with little or no training, and then we wonder why people aren’t more effective” (40). Scripture addresses this well when it states, “Not a novice, lest being lifted up with pride he fall into the condemnation of the devil” (1 Timothy 3:6).


Principle nine states, “Build a team mind-set to avoid departmental barriers” (61). “The goal is to get us thinking and acting like a single team instead of many little teams” (61). Another difficulty we have is some are only concerned about their auxiliary and that can lead to conflict. “Inflexibility is one of the worst human failings” (101). (Come back next week for the next installment).

Words of Encouragement - February 2010

"Woe to me!" I cried. "I am ruined! For I am a man of unclean lips, and I live among a people of unclean lips, and my eyes have seen the King, the LORD Almighty." Then one of the seraphs flew to me with a live coal in his hand, which he had taken with tongs from the altar. With it he touched my mouth and said, "See, this has touched your lips; your guilt is taken away and your sin atoned for." Then I heard the voice of the Lord saying, "Whom shall I send? And who will go for us?" And I said, "Here am I. Send me!" - Isaiah 6:5-8

The "A's" in the Assignment.  Acknowledgement. I was watching a program a few days ago and the person mentioned this scripture. I read it and began to meditate on what the message is in these verses. For the month of February, uses these points to help you as you pray and seek God regarding your assignment for the kingdom.

In verse 5, Isaiah makes a declaration after seeing the holiness of the Lord (vs. 1-4). He sees himself against the greatness of God and ackowledges who he is. He says, woe is me, I am ruined. I am unclean and I live among a people that are unclean. Isaiah realized that he could not stand in the presence of the holy God. It is imperative that we do likewise. We must look at ourselves not against each other, but against the backdrop of the holy God. When we do, we too will say as Isaiah did, I am not worthy to stand in your presence. Not me, not anyone. The first step that needs to happen if we are to live out the purpose that God has for us, is we must acknowledge who we are in God. When we acknowledge who we are, it calls for us to humble ourselves because nothing in us or about us can stack up to the beauty and wonder of God.

Atonement. When Isaiah saw himself against the holiness of God he acknowledge his sinful condition. With the acknowledgement of his condition, God sent an answer to change his standing. In verse 6 and 7 it says the angels came and touched his mouth and purged him from his sin. As I read this I also thought how fitting that the "heat" of the coal was applied to his mouth, since it was soon from the mouth of Isaiah that God's words must come. If we are to fulfill the purpose or the assignment God has for our lives, we must be purged from our sins and our mouths must undergo the cleansing fire of God so that what will come forth will be the words of God and not the noise of that busy member, our tongue.

Attuned. After Isaiah was cleansed he says, "he heard the voice of the Lord..." He heard God's calling after he experienced God's cleansing. If we are to be a part of the call of God, we must be first cleansed from our sins so that we can now hear the voice of the Lord. The cleansing helps our once dull ears to now be able to hear and percieve who speaks to our hearts. Our once dull of hearing ears can not receive the voice of God, we can be attuned to his voice alone. Even as believers we still struggle with this one because we hear voices but we are not always attuned to the one voice, God. God helps us to hear, but you and I must make the effort to hear what is being spoken.

Ambassador (appointee). The Lord ask a question, Whom sall I send and who will go for us? He did not tell Isaiah you must go, but he asked him, who could he send. I find this interesting. In other places in scripture we see God telling individuals that he is sending them (Moses for example) or that he has appointed them to do his work (Jeremiah). However, in this instance he ask a question. Why do you think he did it this way? Allow me a moment of speculation. After being in the presence of God and seeing his holiness, do you think you would need much to be willing to go and do for the Lord? I do not think so. I believe, that God first knew Isaiah's heart and that he was ready for the assignment but also God know that he had shown himself to Isaiah and the impact of that would move Isaiah to action. It should be the same for us today. God has an encounter with us so that he can make a lasting impression upon our hearts. When he does, his desired results is that you and I acknowledge who we are and seek his forgiveness. When that is accomplished, he will speak to us and give us the work he has called us to do. He ask us a question, will you be willing to go for me? Will you be willing to be my ambassador, the one I appoint for this task? What will our answer be?

Available. We know Isaiah's answer. He said Here am I, send me. I am available to you, is what his answer is. God saves us for a great purpose. The first is that we be reconciled back into a right relationship with him and then secondly that we make ourselves available to him (yield ourselves) for his purpose.

What are the "A"s in the assignment? We must acknowledge who we are before a holy God, we must then seek the atonement that his Son's blood does for our lives. We then must be attuned to his voice to hear when he calls us to be an ambassador or to be appointed to a special place, person or position. When we recieve the call, we must be willing to make ourselves available to the assigment.

This month of February I challenge you. What assignment does God have for you? Oh, don't say he does not have something for you, because he has something for each of his children. Is it to pray for someone this month? Is it to help someone in need this month? You go and allow your ears to be attuned to the voice of God and hear what he has to tell you. If you like, share how you made yourself available to God this month that it might encourage someone else.

My Prayer: Lord help us this month (and always) to seek to find out what our assignment is from you. What do you want us to do? Help us to no longer look at ourselves against others but against the backdrop of your righteousness and holiness. When we do, we realize we too are like Isaiah a wretch undone. Helps us be about your business. This is our prayer, Amen.