Table Of Content

Pastors Training Pack Equipping you with Biblical Church Growth and Leadership Have you ever wondered why some Churches Fail and what we can do about it? Dr. Richard Joseph Krejcir Copyright © 1998, 2005 Francis A. Schaeffer Institute of Church Leadership Development www.churchleadership.org/ 1 Table of Contents Preface Chapter I What went Right/What went Wrong Chapter II The Ultimate Destroyer! Chapter III Living Honestly Chapter IV Understanding Conflict Chapter V Understanding Forgiveness Chapter VI Understanding the Love of Christ Chapter VII Picking on the Pastor Chapter VIII How To Stop the Disease of Rebellion Chapter IX Issues That Keep People Away from the Church Chapter X The Responsibility of the Church Chapter XI The Leadership Challenge Chapter XII Preventing and Resolving Conflict Chapter XIII The Praying Church Chapter XIV What the Healthy Church looks like Chapter XV Preparing the Pastor and Church Leadership to Grow! Chapter XVI A Primer on How to Lead and Manage the Church Chapter XVII Mobilize the People in your Church by their Spiritual Gifts Chapter XVIII Starting to Train your Leaders and Congregation Chapter XIX Servant Leadership Chapter XX Designing Constant Meeting and Action Plans Chapter XXI Goal-Setting Strategies and Budgeting Ideas 2 Chapter XXII Church Growth Principles that are Real, that Work, and are Biblical Chapter XXIII Church Diseases Chapter XXIV Managing our Personal Lives in Godly Terms Chapter XXV How to Find Out if Your Church is Visitor Friendly Chapter XXVI Practical Strategies for Prayer Chapter XVIII How to Recruit Volunteers Chapter XXIX The Problem With Most Church Growth Paradigms 3 Preface Some books pick at the churches flaws and scabs to only inflict more pain and destruction. This book is not about picking the wounds and scabs, but calling the Christians to nurse the wounds so they are healed. Calling for reform so we can be the church as Christ called us to be. I love the church, I have dedicated my life to His service and to His bride the church. It grieves me deeply to see her failing and wounded. I love the church and I hope you do too. I must say this to you, just as you see a warning when you rent a movie even before the previews, so I must give a warning before you read this book. It can be harsh! Because I’m calling people out of their comfortable zone, and to rally together. Because if we love the church we must be willing to get rid of what is hurting her. This will cause us to stretch where we may not want to and move us from our fears into His call. Because I love the church, sometimes we need a sheep dog to guide us back to the Shepherd’s path. Because a good shepherd does not desire the sheep to be lost and will allow the sheep dog to take a small bite to enable the sheep to find its way back onto the path. This book is a sheep dog, thus it may bite you. It certainly has bitten me. But remember the bite is out of love, and we grow best out of overcoming hurt. This book has been birthed from a labor of over 10 years of intense and ongoing research, study, and over 20 years of serving in pastoral ministry. My experience of caring for some of God’s dysfunctional children and doing church growth consulting has opened my eyes to a growing problem in the church. I have seen some churches grow like crazy, they break all the typical “church growth” rules, and I have seen churches meticulously follow the church growth advice only to fail. Why does one church prosper and another one down the street close down. The answers are not in most seminars, tapes, or books, because sometimes people do not like the real answers because they see the church and people as either non-threatening or too big to go after. We must act on it and not be the people who decide to go on as if is not a problem as if it does not exist. Psalm 27 is an excellent template on how the Church sometimes functions. The Psalm is not about the church specifically; rather it is about worship and the love of God and His people. Yet this theme is sandwiched between being beaten by our fellow man, and the trouble we have in society! This book seeks to understand the mindset of the people who claim Jesus as Lord. People who go to church, have access to His Word and His people, and have more knowledge and resources than ever before but are not acting and behaving in the character and ways we are called too. We are sandwiched between the Christians’ evil desires and schemes that seek their own and not the Lord. While facing the world’s declining values, which we are seemingly following. Psalm 27 directs us not to give up and seek our Lord, who first sought us, even against hostilities all around us. This book I hope will follow suit to show the responsibility and hope we have in Christ. 4 My goal in this book is to point out the problems that I have observed over the years; problems which I will call “diseases” that strike at the core and foundation of churches. These diseases destroy more effectively than any fire or termite could ever do. The following chapters are designed to clarify these diseases, in effect pointing out the facts and recklessness that is caused by the misdirecting attentions and actions of the parishioners. This book is also and most emphatically about loving the bride of Christ, the hope and opportunities we have. Christ has empowered us His people His church, all we need to do is follow His plan and not our desires and aspirations that claw and eat away God’s opportunities and call. What we must realize is that our faith must disagree with the nature of sin and people political agendas. Because what Christ gave us must move us and then transform us, and we must transform our thinking and actions (see Romans 12). “…and on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of Hades will not overcome it. I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven; whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven.” (Matthew 16: 18-19) 5 Chapter I What Went Wrong/What Went Right “Why people are not going to Church” Do you ever feel you suffer as much for the church as you do from it? To often people have to imagine what a healthy church should be like. Or they try to imagine a world without a church. The typical churchgoer will see the church down the street growing and impacting the neighborhood, while their church recedes into its own arrogance, like a diseased infected animal that is paralyzed from moving to its call. So why does this happen? Why do some churches grow and some do not, more importantly why do some churches seem to prosper with excited people while others try to hide their public Christianity. Why do so many churches decay and die. In my years of pastoral ministry and church growth consulting, I have seen a lot of churches grow when they should not have, and I have seen churches falter when they should have grown. I have seen people so excited about their church, it is all they can talk about, and others who hide the fact that they are Christians, too embarrassed to tell even their family members. And I have seen so many people who have been hurt and abused by churches, to the point they leave from strife and with hurt. Why does one church succeed while another does not? The real answers are frightful and too often ignored. We have a problem in our church in America, a big problem. Perhaps it is two problems. The first is that church has formed a bad reputation in our general society. People are dropping out of our churches in mass droves, while others do not dare to set foot in a church! People are being hurt, ignored and even abused by the institution that was designed to save, love, and help the people of God and the people around them. The church was to train its people and release them into the world with the power of the Spirit to proclaim the Kingdom of Christ, yet the kingdom of selfishness and misdirected priorities have taken over. The second problem is that some people will just hop to the bigger and “better” church down the street or even across town, while abandoning their home church where they worshipped all of their lives. Churches with beautiful majestic buildings that have been around for over a hundred years are closing their doors, and new churches in shopping centers are flourishing. How and why is this happening? Is it a cultural phenomenon because of changing methodologies and perceptions or is something else happening? Are the new ways of worship, teaching, and facilities only a covering for the real reasons why some churches fail? And is it two distinct problems or is there really only one main problem? We are called to be the haven of rest, a place of growth, a place of encouragement, a place of learning, a place of comfort, and most important a place of worship! So why are there so many hurting and wounded people out there, who are fed- up at us: The Church? 6 Where did we go wrong, why did we go wrong? Is there an answer for these questions? Are we willing to find out so we can correct them and honestly be used to further God’s Glory and God’s purpose? Well, I believe there is an answer! And I believe we are willing! If we do not, the future is too frightening to look upon. We just might look like some Hollywood apoplectic “B” movie where Christianity is a figment of history, or be like parts of Europe are today! Lost! Totally lost! I firmly believe we do not have to imagine a healthy church, we can move the church as God has called us to do, He has given us the opportunities, resources and power, if only we obey. I believe we do need to do a better job at reaching people, changing some methodologies, and being creative is a good approach to start with, but it is not the main problem! These are not the core issues on why people are finding other various activities to fill the Sunday time slot! Yes, we do need to re-think our methods without compromising the message. The church thinks the guitar and keyboard are of the Devil, while lecturing boring, monotone messages from The King James; then, wonders where all the people are. Something needs to change. But, again this is not the main problem! The problem is not the historical architecture of gothic design, that theater style is more conducive to people, that chairs are better than pews, and storefronts are better than the A-frame. The problem is that the church has lost its way; we have fallen off the path that Christ has for us! Either we reform and then the Lord can use us to usher in revival (Theologically speaking He does not need us! But God through history has usually used people in His plan), or we will be like a Science Fiction movie where religion is a relic of the past! The Problem of a Lost Focus Pastors and leaders have neglected their spiritual growth and replaced it with church growth. Worship has fallen from the gratitude and praise of God, where we are to surrender to His Lordship, and replaced it with entertainment. The sermon has gone from the proclamation of God’s Holy Word, to the telling of jokes and stories, and shows with no word from our Lord and application to our lives. There is nothing wrong with humor and stories, I use them a lot personally, but never to compromise the message, only to compliment it! The problem is, the entertainment has replaced the pronouncement of His Holy Word. Just as it was in Jeremiah’s time, the church is in an awful and dysfunctional state. “I am with you and will save you, declares the LORD. Though I completely destroy all the nations among which I scatter you, I will not completely destroy you. I will discipline you but only with justice; I will not let you go entirely unpunished. This is what the LORD says: Your wound is incurable, your injury beyond healing. There is no one to plead your cause, no remedy for your sore, no healing for you.” (Jeremiah 30:11- 13) Can this be a prediction of the church in America too? I believe it may, but I also believe we can turn it around, by repenting from our self-motivated desires over to His call and purpose for His church. The church may just be in such an awful state that we 7 will receive judgment or we can be left to our own self, by which we are doing a great job of self-destruction. “`Nevertheless, I will bring health and healing to it; I will heal my people and will let them enjoy abundant peace and security.” (Jeremiah 33:6) Through Christ we have hope, if we turn from our self-directed focus and ways back to His focus and ways. But if we keep relying on blind shepherds we will have so many blind sheep we will fall to our own destruction and ruin. God will heal His church if we respond to Him with repentance and the expectancy of His grace. But will the strong-willed, self-powered so-called leaders and evangelists respond? Or are they too far into themselves and their self-seeking money-grabbing desires? Will the church step up to the promise of His call, and yield to Christ’s supremacy, or will we go it alone? Read verses 13-14 and ask how you can respond? Pray for the deceivers so they too can seek the Scriptures and ask that question and in so doing realize their folly and repent! Intimate personal surrender to His holiness is the must for every Christian leader, and in response intimate care for His sheep with their eyes opened wide. We cannot depend on blind shepherds, we must get involved and be the change makers that move people by the power of Christ beyond ourselves and into His direction and call. Individual Christians can make the difference, because we are the church. God’s Word says He will provide the godly shepherds, and we must seek them out or be them if so called, and not respond to the false deceivers; leave them alone and they will go away. Let the Lord be in charge and not our selfish inclinations. The Problem of being Out of Touch Too many churches are out of touch with the society it is in, and it is arrogant toward the people it should be reaching. We as a church must revolutionize our core values of who we are. We need to take a hard look at what the Scriptures really say for us to do, and not rely on our experience and what we have done in the past. What is going to happen on the Day of Judgment, will we hear “well done good and faithful servant” or will we hear “get away, I never knew you?” Harsh, you may say; no, I do not think so! “ The United States is now the third largest mission field in the world. Only India and China have more non-believers.” (Mission America Monthly 1/98 page 1) Yes we can get turned around quite easily, and place our trust in the institution of the church, instead of the Savior of Christ, as Head of the church. There is no true perfect church, because we are in the process of growth and learning. This is true for those of us who know theology, but to the non-Christian, and the non-discipled Christian, there is no distinction. Misplaced faith will disappoint greatly, so what are you going to do about it? The church is society's view of Christ. So we must strive to model it as if Christ is truly the Head. The expectations are not unrealistic, but a command directly from Christ - Matthew 28! Disillusioned exceptions and frustrations are our 8 failure as the representative body of Christ, and not the decline of society. You see, we are the society, when we blame our own culture, we are in fact blaming ourselves! When we complain about the problems of culture, we are the culture since over 50% of Americans claim to attend a church; then the blame is mostly on us. Conflict is Timeless “Our churches are filled with conflict and strife; thus, people do not want another place of problems, when their world has so much conflict already.” The church for nearly 2,000 years has been an institution riddled with conflict and problems. It is the duty of Christian leadership to define these problems, whether they come from our rules, policies, or even perceived principles. Then, as leaders, through prayer and Scripture, formulate the goals and objectives for dealing with these diseases. We must have a plan in place to build a detector to determine the strife before it gets out of hand, and have a policy and methodology of treating it in an atmosphere of care and love. The church must purge, erase, and get rid of any form of a "we've always done it this way" attitude, because when we have this mindset, it will disable us from having any serious insight into the problems and frustrations that the church deals with. Once we purge the thinking that blocked our effectiveness of being God's child, then He can use us in a better and more profound way. Once this happens, then we can formulate the goals and objectives to further Christ's Kingdom. Then we will be able to decide on the right decisions based on God's will, because we are reading the Scriptures, and are steeped in prayer. Then Christ can use us to take the necessary action to convince people of their wrong thinking, and evil scheming and plotting. Yes, there will be growing pains and frustrations because most people do not like change, even the change that Christ calls them to, and this seems to cause us to rebel against God and against godly people the most. We need to focus on the results, the results of a church filled with Christ's presence because we invited Him into “our place” with love, care and worship, a place where evil is rooted out and the purpose of the church unfolds. Then we become the body of Christ fully effective and able to be used by Him to further His Kingdom. What really complicates things is that most people are not even aware of the problems they bring, or the conflict that is caused by their attitudes and actions. They may have learned how to live with it in acceptance, or they may not admit to it at all. What comes out of these struggles and conflicts are the barriers to further God’s kingdom. Psychologists tell us that people cannot always verbalize their pain and feelings. They may not be willing to seek out the help they need. If you do any kind of marriage counseling, you know this very well. The results of the unmentioned strife, is the person leaving the church because we have failed to meet the deeper needs of the family and individual. We failed to notice or just chose not to, resulting in our ignoring the person’s problem. We fail to see the person as Christ does. Thus ministry does not happen as it should. 9 What we are to do is rise to the occasion as a unified force of bettering our behaviors and bettering the way we engage society. A lot of the magazine articles and books on this subject are focused on the change of paradigms. We need to change the vision and ways that we “do church,” and the methods of worship and outreach. Well, I do agree with this, as long it does not compromise the Word of the Lord and mission of the church. But the bigger problem is not the music choice or color of the carpet. It’s not about whether we call the front part of the church a narthex, foyer, lobby or entrée way: It’s about us as human beings created by God, saved by Christ. We trade in our evil ways of social interaction with the gratitude of what Christ has done, so that we reciprocate with our actions and deeds to each other and the world around us, mirroring the person and work of Christ! “ I’d join the movement if there was one I could believe in I’d take bread and wine if there was a church I could receive in.” (U2 Acrobat) Our job as the church is not just its defense; but its reform. Just as Martin Luther nailed his 95 thesis on the Whittenberg Door, as a wake-up call to the wrong path the church was on. So must we take up the challenge to wake ourselves up from the menagerie, the fake storefront we have made for ourselves, and calling it the Lord's church. All we are doing is fooling ourselves and hurting our Lord by our misdirected actions. We should not be viewed as a reckless and arrogant force in society, but as the feet of good news. We must, as the body of Christ, get out of our little cliques, so we can allow the Holy Spirit to transform our thinking, so we become real to the people around us. So that we genuinely care for other people as Christ cared for them. We no longer see people as obstacles, contradictions, and as being in the way, rather we see them as Christ would see them. When we become real, we fully realize our human nature and the emotions and concerns that plague us. Then we can grow beyond our hidden agenda, and allow Christ into our hearts and minds. This will enable us to go beyond our experiences, and go beyond our own hurts, and see what life is really about. Then we will realize from Scripture and the spiritual disciplines that life is about relationships, with Christ, with other Christians, and with other people around us. So we don't need to climb the highest mountain in Tibet, and ask the Dalai Lama the meaning of life when God has revealed it to us so clearly in His Word. Then, because of that transformation, we're serving Christ out of our love and desire to do so, not just out of obligation and contempt. But we're serving Christ because of the joy that is over flowing from us, and is going to those around us. We're now demonstrating Christ and faith in everyday life. We are Christians because of what Christ has done for us, in turn reflecting our integrity that is based on who we are in Christ, so that our morals and our values are pure, and are all expressing Christ’s nature. All these diseases will become eradicated, as the tent of Christ's purity smokes them out like termites. 10