Studying Congregations

Registering for and completing all the modules in Congregational Studies (CM751), has been a real blessing to me. The lessons were very impactful. The authors of the recommended books were real life practitioners of what they wrote about.

Here are snapshots/highpoints of the rich contents of the modules in this course:

From module one, congregational Studies and the theology of congregations. Module two spoke eloquently about inclusive leadership and congregational culture, while module three’s congregational conflict and congregational change were masterful in teaching about the most common occurrence in congregations-conflicts, their root causes and their resolutions.

Systems Theory of Congregations and congregational diversity & Women’s Role were another classic.

Congregational Studies was defined as the systematic study of congregations and life in the church for the purpose of improving the quality of the overall experience. For purposes of this class the congregation is local, voluntary, and a religious organization. Understanding the dynamics of congregational life is essential for the future of the church and the united brotherhood of believers. I was educated on the four frames for congregations, these were explained as follows:

Ecological Frame: The congregation is an organism that is alive, growing, and changing. Churches are not static entities but rather are constantly evolving. Congregations are open systems that are impacted by their environment and also impact the context that they reside.
Cultural Frame: Every church develops its own culture and way of doing things. The culture is evidenced by the rituals, traditions, customs, and beliefs of the members. The building and the practices provide clues and evidence of the culture of a congregation but again churches are dynamic and not static.
Resources Frame: The resources of a church are the gifts, talents, and potential of the members along with the tangible assets within the community including the building, finances, and other tangible resources. A congregation’s resources are linked to the city and nation of the congregation. First-world churches are different from congregations in developing countries. Some resources are hard and can be counted while other resources are soft and elusive but viable as resources of the church.
Process Frame: The process frame is the ways the organization operates. Every congregation has written and unwritten rules that are understood by the members and practiced regularly. Sometimes the processes are explicit and clearly understood by everyone and other times the processes are implicit nut still determine the dynamics and flow of the church. Some members are gatekeepers of information and of process. Processes include how decisions are made, how leadership is exercised, how problems are solved and how conflicts are handled. Congregations exercise authority and power in particular ways and these processes need recognition.

Practical Theology, includes theology put into practice. Practical theology is the orthodox teaching of a congregation and also how the teaching is applied. Recognizing God’s will and activity in a church is practical theology. The leadership of a church must practice practical theology to discern and inform the congregation of God’s activity in their midst and God’s will for their lives. Congregations that do not practice practical theology intentionally do by default. Unintentional theological practice is pragmatism which may exclude God’s involvement. Congregations must avoid becoming secular or business organizations but rather spiritual organizations. Congregational studies avoid the oversimplification of biblical literalism and the ethereal of hyper-spirituality.

Congregational Leadership: This course emphasized inclusive, team leadership practicing consensus and shared authority. All leadership require clear checks and balances but especially those overseeing congregations. Congregational studies include Christian leadership understandings and practices. Leadership must be defined and intentional without vagueness and haphazardness. Christian leadership is biblically moral, informed by scripture, and guided by the example of Christ. Christian leadership practices servitude, self-denial, exemplary behavior, and inclusive practices. Christian leadership is a calling and not a career choice while at the same time professional. Christian leadership is due to giftedness end owed by God and equipped for the challenges of spiritual battle. Christian leadership is practiced by the humble, God-dependent lover of people. Christian leaders are not perfect, but they are blameless due to their transparency, honesty and confessional posture.

Congregational Change: Congregational studies include understanding change and development of the church. Managing change in congregations requires adaptive leadership that is flexible and discerning when to push for change and when to hold back. Adaptive leaders recognize the dynamics of change and the forces of resistance and the importance of forward progress. The inertia of congregations’ resists changes and the catalysts for change but be perseverant without heavy-handed. Change must occur for growth but there is good change and there is unnecessary change. Change must be strategic and aligned with the activity of God. Maintaining unity through change is the challenge of Christian leadership.

Congregational Conflict: Conflict occurs in congregations due to the diversity of members and their experiences. Unfortunately, personal dysfunction of individuals is expressed in the church that requires redemptive leadership to bring truth and clarity to conflict. Reconciliation is the ministry of the church and disunity is the work of evil. Conflicts must be resolved in the church and all parties must practice Christian reconciliation and forgiveness. Personal feuds and unresolved vendettas are present in congregations and wise leaders assist in resolving unresolved issues. The skills and experience necessary for conflict resolution sometimes requires for outside assistances.

Congregational Systems: Conceptualizing Emotional Processes Congregations are systems that dysfunction due to anxiety. Anxiety in the system needs resolved through skillful exercise of truth-finding and honest revelations. Anxiousness is not faithfulness and therefore a toll of evil is to promote fear and worry in the congregation. Christians are peacemakers who lessen the anxiety of every system by their engagement. Anxiousness is expressed through conflict, drama, and over-reaction. Anxiety is fear of future events that will likely not occur. Christian leaders promote faith and minimize fear in congregational systems. Anxious individuals are members of congregations and need addressed to not harm the system. When we think systemically, we cannot understand one thing without the other.

I really loved the part that dealt with “The Whole Organizes the Parts”. System thinking instructs us to look at how the whole is wired together. In a human system, the parts are arranged into a whole through functioning positions. By functioning in a specific way, each person contributes to the system’s balance. As long as everyone functions in the same way, the arrangement is stable. I could relate to the example the authors gave for this as it reflects my current transition situation in parenting. They wrote “For example, the parent-child relationship is structured for the child’s protection and welfare. As the child matures and requires less parental oversight, the parent-child interactions change. The protector and protected arrangement is altered. For some families the transition is relatively smooth. A parent permits the child to be more self-sufficient, and the child assumes increased control of life. In other cases, the developmental shift is tumultuous. A parent holds on to the child tenaciously, and the child resists bitterly. Or a parent releases the reins yet the child refuses to be self-reliant.”

Congregational Diversity: God created diversity as a means for beauty, creativity, and innovation but not for division, separation or disunity. Embracing diversity is the sharing of self with other members of the congregation. Consideration for self and others creates balance within the congregation as the church focuses on the purposes of God. The mission of God is a unifying force to utilize the diversity of congregations. Congregations must be intentional in pursuing diversity and the uniting of peoples within the kingdom of God. Surrender of personal preference for the greater good of the congregation is needed for continued membership. Diversity is expressed in many different ways including gender, race, ethnicity, culture, nationality, economics, social status, and through other avenues. Respecting differences while creating community is important for congregations.

The authors define congregational theology as the study of the nature of God and religious belief; theology is the study of God and God’s relation to the world; Theology is religious beliefs and theory when systematically developed; Theology is literally: “Theo” – God, “ology” – knowledge, the knowledge of God. The affairs of the church are subject to the will of God. Therefore, our understanding of God is the guiding light for our understanding of the congregation. Different emphases define the various theologies. Ecclesiology is the study of the church that has a depth of scholarship for understanding congregations. Several biblical theologies can be the basis for congregational studies including Trinitarian Theology, Christological Theology, and Soteriological Theology. The death of Jesus defines the righteousness of God. The burial of Christ defines the faithfulness of God while the resurrection of Christ illuminates the grace of God.

Congregations are deficient when all three defining aspects of God are not held in tension or in other words, true at the same time. God is always righteous while faith and completely gracious. Therefore, all the practices of the church are redemptive and not punitive since the graciousness of God is practice along with the righteousness of God. Exposition of the three elements of Cross theology is necessary for a full understanding of Cross Theology. Theology of the Cross produces a theology of God by what the passion of Jesus says about God.

Bradbury writes, “This extended position also holds the theology of the cross to be methodology, a way of doing theology, an instrumental touchstone with which to anchor that thought which is properly Christian and to exclude that which is not.” (Bradbury, 2012, pg. 17) I embrace the extended, broader view of the theology of the cross as 1 Corinthians 1:18 records, “For the message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God” (NIV, 2010). Cross Theology is based on the gospel message regarding the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus Christ defining the nature of God as righteous, faithful, and merciful, respectively. Christian gospel is defined in the paradigmatic verses of 1 Corinthians 15:1-4 as Paul wrote, “Now, brothers and sisters, I want to remind you of the gospel I preached to you, which you received and on which you have taken your stand. By this gospel you are saved, if you hold firmly to the word I preached to you. Otherwise, you have believed in vain. For what I received I passed on to you as of first importance: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures” (NIV, 2010).

Death – The death of Jesus reveals a God of holiness, righteousness and justice who extends righteousness to all people through the death of his one and only Son. The Son of God is crucified on the Cross to fulfill the righteous requirements of justice and holiness. The death of Jesus describes a God of justice, holiness, purity, fairness, and righteous. The themes of Jesus’ death include sin, repentance, discipleship, judgment, pain, punishment, guilt, suffering, autonomy, and sacrifice.
Burial – The burial of Christ reveals a God of faithfulness to his covenant fulfilling his promises to creation. Burial is a time of faith, trust, and obedience in a God who is sometimes silent. The themes of Jesus’ burial include faith, covenant, silence, trust, hope, wilderness, desert, consequences, finitude, questions, doubts, perseverance, freewill, discipleship, and death. The Bible is full of narratives about God being silent while his people are in a wilderness or in exile. Suffering and trials raise many questions regarding why events are occurring and how God is working in those moments. God is faithful to his promises and to the covenant he makes with humans. God was faithful to Jesus during his three days in the tomb despite his silence. Jesus entrusted his spirit to God during burial, modeling for us our need for faith in God especially during silence and suffering.
Resurrection – The resurrection of Jesus reveals a God of love, mercy, and grace to renew creation from the consequences of sin and separation. The themes of Jesus’ resurrection include heaven, baptism, grace, generosity, mercy, newness, vison, victory, potential, power, evangelism, discipleship, and change. The resurrection provides hope. Things can totally change and become new because God has the power to bring life back from the dead. God can create something from nothing and the resurrection of Jesus verifies good victorious over evil, God defeats Satan. Understanding God’s mercy is essential for the Christian life as Matthew wrote, “If you had known what these words mean, ‘I desire mercy, not sacrifice,’ you would not have condemned the innocent” (Matthew 12:7, NIV, 2010). James wrote regarding mercy, “Speak and act as those who are going to be judged by the law that gives freedom, because judgment without mercy will be shown to anyone who has not been merciful. Mercy triumphs over judgment” (James 2, 12-13, NIV, 2010).
Mercy, justice, and faithful are the weightier matters of God’s laws according to Jesus, “Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You give a tenth of your spices—mint, dill and cumin. But you have neglected the more important matters of the law—justice, mercy and faithfulness. You should have practiced the latter, without neglecting the former” (Matthew 23:23, NIV, 2010).
The theology of the Cross is a Trinitarian Theology since God the Father sent Jesus to die on the cross to fulfill all righteousness. God the Son died and was buried with faith in the plan of reconciliation to eternally defeat death, sin, and evil. The power of the Holy Spirit resurrected the Son to the Father revealing the graciousness of God. The Father, Son, and Holy Spirit are present in all three events of the cross: death, burial, and resurrection in perichoresis. Perichoresis is the “dance” of the Trinity. As two things are in dialectic if they are both true and in tension with one another.

The Trinity is in “trialectic” or dancing in harmony always. The Justice, Faithfulness, and Mercy of God must always remain true at the same time. The Seemingly opposite or different beings of God are in a perpetual dance remaining true together. So, God is not gracious at times and righteous at other times but as the Trinity has three persons so the basic descriptors of God are always true and operative. A hermeneutic that does not honor the nature of God will be inadequate. Calvin’s theology of Sovereignty is true but incomplete. Luther’s theology of Salvation by Faith is also too narrow.

Why Cross theology? The cross is the mightiest act of God, the preeminent event in the Bible, the emphasis of scripture, the focus of the narrative, and the crowning event of salvation, the cross. God can be understood through his mightiest act – the passion of Christ. All theologies stem from our view of God. Specifically, the descriptive nature of the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus informs us clearly of the nature of the Godhead. The Three persons are present throughout the passion and each person is operative each scene. The Father is operative in the death as it is obvious from the gospel narratives that Jesus died according to the will of the Father. The Father orchestrated the plan for the Jesus act of reconciliation of all creation. The Son was operative in the burial as he battles evil while waiting faithfully for his resurrection as the firstborn of the dead. The Holy Spirit empowered the resurrection and continues to produce new creation.

The preeminence of Cross theology seems underscored by the emphasis of the passion in the most significant sacred rituals in the Christian church of the Lord’s Supper and baptism. Lord’s Supper and Baptism are the embodiment of the passion of Christ confirming Cross theology as the fulcrum of the new covenant and the climax of the metanarrative of the scripture. The Lord’s Supper is the weekly remembrance of Christ appropriating the bread and wine as the body and blood of Jesus. Jesus welcomes us to his table as an invitation of fellowship. Christ died that all might be saved and the Lord’s Supper is an embodiment of the cross and a call to live the cruciform life. Christian baptism is the embodiment of the death, burial and resurrection of Christ as theologically explained in Romans 6:1-10, “What shall we say, then? Shall we go on sinning so that grace may increase? By no means! We are those who have died to sin; how can we live in it any longer? Or don’t you know that all of us who were baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death? We were therefore buried with him through baptism into death in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, we too may live a new life. For if we have been united with him in a death like his, we will certainly also be united with him in a resurrection like his. For we know that our old self was crucified with him so that the body ruled by sin might be done away with, that we should no longer be slaves to sin— because anyone who has died has been set free from sin. Now if we died with Christ, we believe that we will also live with him. For we know that since Christ was raised from the dead, he cannot die again; death no longer has mastery over him. The death he died, he died to sin once for all; but the life he lives, he lives to God” (NIV, 2010). Baptism according to Connerton is a ritual re-enactment, “But commemorative ceremonies are distinguishable from all other rituals by the fact that they explicitly refer to prototypical persons or events” (Connerton, 1989, p. 61). Communities pass on from generation to generation their worldview and culture through ceremonies and rituals, Connerton described how societies remember as he wrote, “Not only have I been suggesting that memory, or tradition, gets passed on in non-textual and non-cognitive ways” (Connerton, 1989, p. 102-103).

Understanding the scriptures is more than reasoning and analytical thinking. The word of God is a spiritual text that must be interpreted spiritually. Jesus made it clear in his explanation of the use of parables that it is possible to see reality with your eyes and hear the oral text of the Bible and not hear or see the meaning. Christ taught that understanding comes from the heart meaning spiritual things are understand through spiritual enlightenment. As recorded in Matthew 13:11-17 “He replied, because the knowledge of the secrets of the kingdom of heaven has been given to you, but not to them. Whoever has will be given more, and they will have an abundance. Whoever does not have, even what they have will be taken from them. This is why I speak to them in parables: ‘Though seeing, they do not see; though hearing, they do not hear or understand. In them is fulfilled the prophecy of Isaiah:’ ‘You will be ever hearing but never understanding; you will be ever seeing but never perceiving. For this people’s heart has become calloused; they hardly hear with their ears, and they have closed their eyes. Otherwise, they might see with their eyes, hear with their ears, understand with their hearts and turn, and I would heal them.’ But blessed are your eyes because they see, and your ears because they hear. 17 For truly I tell you, many prophets and righteous people longed to see what you see but did not see it, and to hear what you hear but did not hear it” (NIV, 2010). Paul admonished the Corinthians that they need the “mind of Christ” or a spiritual perspective to understand spiritual instruction. In the context of 1 Corinthians 1 the apostle refers to the message of the cross as the key to becoming spiritual.

Some churchmen have balked at the need for a theology, education, or spiritual training to understand scriptures citing Acts 4:13, “When they saw the courage of Peter and John and realized that they were unschooled, ordinary men, they were astonished and they took note that these men had been with Jesus” (NIV, 2010). But this very passage confirms the need for higher education as Jesus being the divine rabbi provided daily instruction to the twelve apostles for three years of theological training. If three years of teaching was required by Jesus for his twelve students then more time is probably necessary for us to train people in the proper understanding of scripture and Christian ministry. Laverty described the importance of realizing our bias and bracketing it for phenomenology (Modernity, Husserl) in contrast to realizing our bias and embracing it in hermeneutical phenomenology (Post-modern, Heidegger). Heidegger wrote, “The overt naming of assumptions and influences as key contributors to the research process in hermeneutical phenomenology is one striking difference from the naming and then bracketing of bias or assumptions in phenomenology” (Laverty, 2003, p. 28). “For true beliefs to count as knowledge, it is necessary that they originate in sources we have good reason to consider reliable. These are perception, introspection, memory, reason, and testimony” (Steup & Neta, p. 20). “Understanding is always more than merely re-creating someone else’s meaning.” (Laverty, 2003, p. 25) “Annells (1996) viewed hermeneutics as an interpretive process that seeks to bring understanding and disclosure of phenomena through language. Moreover, hermeneutics is the study of human cultural activity as texts with a view towards interpretation to find intended or expressed meanings (Kvale, 1996). Texts are understood to include things such as written or verbal communication, visual arts and music.”

In Dr. Murinski’s handout on the twelve Keys to an effective Church, he showed that Kennon

Callahan established a reputation as the leading authority in the field of long-range planning for churches. Dr. Callahan states, “Twelve characteristics can be identified that contribute to a church’s being effective and successful.” He argues that long-range planning should not consist of gathering reams of data; rather it should concentrate on identifying a few central characteristics that are essential to the church’s health. He divides his list of the twelve central characteristics into two groups: six keys that are relational and six that are functional between the two as follows:
The relational characteristics are the sources of satisfaction in a congregation.
The functional characteristics, if they are not in place, are the sources of dissatisfaction in a congregation. Callahan observes that successful churches tend to have nine of the twelve characteristics. He laments that most churches concentrate a disproportionate amount of energy on the functional characteristics, to the detriment of the relational characteristics.
Corporate, Dynamic Worship. The weekly services are holistic in music and message, corporately planned, and led by a competent team of ministers and members.
Significant Relational Groups. Most people come to a local church looking for community. Instead, we put them on a committee. Missional churches are constantly and intentionally starting new caring groups in which people may discover roots, place, and belonging.
Strong Leadership Resources. Many churches train leaders to fill functional slots inside the church’s program. Missional churches nurture a majority of their leaders to be relational and caring with individuals and groups.
Streamlined Structure and Solid, Participatory Decision Making. Missional churches plan on the basis of their strengths, hopes and objectives. They are less preoccupied with their own needs and problems than many churches. They seek to involve people in ministry, not in committees.
Several Competent Programs and Activities. Effective churches know people attract more people than programs do. Generally, they have two to three really competent programs that serve, rather than use, people.
Open Accessibility. A physical location that is accessible in terms of major traffic patterns and average trip time and leaders who are accessible to the community are both important.
High Visibility. Successful churches have a high degree of geographical and grapevine visibility with churched and unchurched people in the community.
Adequate Parking, Land and Landscaping. As a national average one parking space permits persons to participate in the church.
Adequate Space and Facilities. More churches under build than overbuild, and they thereby limit their growth. Missional churches build for the future, with a clear perspective that this is the eleventh, not the first, priority. They also take energy and debt issues seriously.
Solid Financial Resources. Missional Churches know people give money to people more than to programs. Missional churches tend to put their money into people rather than property.

Congregational leadership is critical important if congregations are to be steered towards their purpose for existing. In his Leaders Embody the Cross lecture, Gregg captures the nature and objectives of this embodiment for leaders of congregations.

In all congregation made of human beings, conflicts that could lead to disunity. Leaders will both build the body up but also embody the cross. The cross has powerful unifying power. Gregg references 1 Corinthians 1 in explaining what this embodying would look like.

1 Corinthians 1:1-3 Salutation/Greeting
(Vs. 1) “Paul, called to be an apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God, and our brother Sosthenes,” Paul an apostle by the will of God with brother Sosthenes
(Vs. 2) “To the church of God in Corinth, to those sanctified in Christ Jesus and called to be his holy people, together with all those everywhere who call on the name of our Lord Jesus Christ—their Lord and ours:” Address – Corinthians church description – sanctified in Christ Jesus and called.
Calling – Be holy with everyone (vs. 2) everywhere who names Jesus as Lord and living out the count-cultural lifestyle.
(Vs. 3) “Grace and peace to you from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.” “Grace and Peace” is a standard greeting from God and Lord Jesus Christ – spokesman for God and Son
1 Corinthians 1:4-9 Blessing/Prayer/Thanksgiving
(Vs. 4) “I always thank my God for you because of his grace given you in Christ Jesus.” Prayer – I thank God for his grace to you in Christ Jesus
(Vs. 5) “For in him you have been enriched in every way—with all kinds of speech and with all knowledge.” Church blessed by God, “enriched” in every way – speaking & knowledge
(Vs. 6) “God thus confirming our testimony about Christ among you.” Paul reminds Corinthians he testified about Christ to them and God confirmed it in them
(Vs. 7) “Therefore you do not lack any spiritual gift as you eagerly wait for our Lord Jesus Christ to be revealed.” Key therefore Corinthian lack no spiritual gift as they wait for Parousia of Christ, in between time, “already” & “not yet”
(Vs. 8) “He will also keep you firm to the end, so that you will be blameless on the day of our Lord Jesus Christ.” God will “keep them strong” Goal blameless (holy vs. 2) on the day of our Lord Jesus Christ. Second coming. Complete revelation of Christ.
(Vs. 9) “God is faithful, who has called you into fellowship with his Son, Jesus Christ our Lord.” God is faithful, God called Corinthians into fellowship with his Son Jesus Christ our Lord
Theme: Holy, blameless, lordship of Jesus, second coming of Christ, nature and activity of God

III. 1 Corinthians 1:10-17 Problem Statement – Division

(Vs. 10) “I appeal to you, brothers and sisters, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that all of you agree with one another in what you say and that there be no divisions among you, but that you be perfectly united in mind and thought.” Appeal – “Agree with one another” Goal – no divisions, perfect unity in mind and thought. Unity in faith, thinking, convictions (vs. 5) speaking & knowledge unity
Agreement concerning the gospel!
(Vs. 11) “My brothers and sisters, some from Chloe’s household have informed me that there are quarrels among you.” Chloe’s information quarrels
(Vs. 12) “What I mean is this: One of you says, “I follow Paul”; another, “I follow Apollos”; another, “I follow Cephas “; still another, “I follow Christ.” Factions in Corinthians church, men/heroes
Apollos – watered
Cephas – Apostle Jews
Paul – planted, apostle Gentiles
Christ – possibly rhetorical, hyper-spiritual group or goal
(Vs. 13) “Is Christ divided? Was Paul crucified for you? Were you baptized in the name of Paul?” Probing questions
Is Christ divided? No
Was Paul crucified for you? No
Were you baptized into the name of Paul? No
(Vs. 14-16) “I thank God that I did not baptize any of you except Crispus and Gaius, so no one can say that you were baptized in my name. (Yes, I also baptized the household of Stephanas; beyond that, I don’t remember if I baptized anyone else.)” List of Paul’s baptisms – Crispus, Gaius, household of Stephanas, others cannot remember
Paul cannot remember who he baptized, is this significant?
(Vs. 17) “For Christ did not send me to baptize, but to preach the gospel—not with wisdom and eloquence, lest the cross of Christ be emptied of its power.” Paul sent to “preach the gospel” not send to baptize!

Preach the gospel without words of human wisdom! What type of preaching is gospel and preaching is words of human wisdom?

Preaching with words of human wisdom, which empties the cross of Christ of power.
1 Corinthians 1:18-25: Gospel – Message of the Cross
(Vs. 18) “For the message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God.” Message of the cross (1) Power of God – Gospel believers (2) Foolish – Perishing
Gospel causes reaction, dichotomy between believers and perishing, saved and lost. Judgment – gospel, power and foolishness (the challenge of a multi-ethnic congregation)
(Vs. 19) “For it is written: “I will destroy the wisdom of the wise; the intelligence of the intelligent I will frustrate.” Isaiah 29:14 God opposes the wisdom of the wise, frustrates the intelligence of the intelligent. God is hidden, undisclosed, unknown to human wisdom
(Vs. 20) “Where is the wise person? Where is the teacher of the law? Where is the philosopher of this age?” Has not God made foolish the wisdom of the world?” Rhetorical questions – where is the wise man, philosopher, scholar, sophist? Where – apart from God, unknown to God, the place of a fool. God makes them foolish
(Vs. 21) “For since in the wisdom of God the world through its wisdom did not know him, God was pleased through the foolishness of what was preached to save those who believe.” Dichotomy between God’s wisdom and worldly wisdom
Worldly wisdom is unknowledgeable of God
Foolishness of the gospel saves believers which pleases/glorifies God. Pt. Glorification of God or glorification of self/world/human wisdom/human knowledge
We/humans struggle with accepting our place. Where are we supposed to be in relation to God and others? Are we equal to God? Are we above others? Where is our place? Who is the Lord? “Jesus Christ is our Lord!”
Gospel – Jesus is Lord
(Vs. 22) “Jews demand signs and Greeks look for wisdom,” Values of Jews – Power: Miraculous signs, value of Greeks – wisdom: Knowledge
Jews – Position, power, authority, status, strength
Greeks – wisdom, knowledge, superiority, status
Pt. Worldly vs. Kingdom values:
Worldly – power, knowledge, wisdom, authority, status, rank, self
Kingdom – service, others, sacrifice
(Vs. 23) “But we preach Christ crucified: a stumbling block to Jews and foolishness to Gentiles,” Gospel – Message, preaching, kerygma “Christ crucified”
Worldly response:
Stumbling block to Jews – crucified Messiah, dead Savior, defeated Lord
Foolish to Gentiles – unwise, unknowable, unsocial, unsophisticated, illogical
Worldview of Jews: signs; Greeks: knowledge, human reasoning
(Vs. 24) “But to those whom God has called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God.” Christian worldview/paradigm: cross-death, self-giving
Christ – Power of God
Christ – Wisdom of God
All sufficiency of Christ, Jesus is Lord
(Vs. 25) “For the foolishness of God is wiser than human wisdom, and the weakness of God is stronger than human strength.” Challenge to humans – accept your limitations, finitude, and place
“Foolishness of God – wiser than man’s wisdom”
“Weakness of God – stronger than man’s strength”

God’s ways above our ways, Corinthians had the wrong theology and a wrong anthropology

1 Corinthians 1:26-31 “Boast in the Lord” Glorify God
(Vs. 26) “Brothers and sisters, think of what you were when you were called. Not many of you were wise by human standards; not many were influential; not many were of noble birth.” Location and being – Where were you? Where did you start? What were you? When and where were you when called? “I knew you!” Have you forgotten who you were before Christ?
Not wise – by human standards
Not influential – by worldly measures
Not noble birth – by status
(Vs. 27) “But God chose the foolish things of the world to shame the wise; God chose the weak things of the world to shame the strong.” But God changed the rules, the standards, the paradigm, the lens, and the values
God chose foolish to shame wise
God chose the weak to shame strong – reversed honor and shame
(Vs. 28) “God chose the lowly things of this world and the despised things—and the things that are not —to nullify the things that are,” God overturned the power structures, the status symbols, the cultural values
God chose lowly, despised, “not things” to nullify the are, in, with it, together, arrived, successful
(Vs. 29, 31) “So that no one may boast before him…Therefore, as it is written: “Let the one who boasts boast in the Lord.” Why? Reason for the cross – gospel – “so no one may boast before him.”
(Vs. 30) “It is because of him that you are in Christ Jesus, who has become for us wisdom from God—that is, our righteousness, holiness and redemption. “ In Christ due to the action of God. Christ is God’s wisdom for us providing our:
Righteousness – right relationship with God
Holiness – godly, purity
Redemption – forgiven, justified, saved
1 Corinthians 2:1-5 Paul’s Gospel–Invitation to the Cross
(Vs. 1) “And so it was with me, brothers and sisters. When I came to you, I did not come with eloquence or human wisdom as I proclaimed to you the testimony about God.” Paul’s testimony – not eloquent, superior wisdom, Paul admits that he was not a polished speaker. Paul’s ability to speak was an issue for the Corinthian church due to their worldliness.
(Vs. 2) “For I resolved to know nothing while I was with you except Jesus Christ and him crucified.” Paul’s knowledge – Jesus Christ & Christ crucified, Paul preached on a consistent theme to the Corinthians – the Cross of Christ.
(VS. 3) “I came to you in weakness with great fear and trembling.” Paul’s persona –weakness, fear, much trembling, and no self, Paul was not self-concerned or self-absorbed.
(Vs. 4) “My message and my preaching were not with wise and persuasive words, but with a demonstration of the Spirit’s power.” Paul’s preaching – not wise, persuasive words but demonstration of the Spirit’s power.
(Vs. 5) “So that your faith might not rest on human wisdom, but on God’s power.” Faith in God’s power not man’s wisdom, Gospel was an instrument for Paul to connect the church to God.

VII. 1 Corinthians 2:6-16 Spiritual Wisdom and Discernment–the Mind of Christ

(v. 6) “We do, however, speak a message of wisdom among the mature, but not the wisdom of this age or of the rulers of this age, who are coming to nothing.” Message of wisdom to the mature or spiritual not a message based on human wisdom but a message spiritual discerned and appreciated because of the exaltation of Christ and God not human glorification.
(v. 7) “No, we declare God’s wisdom, a mystery that has been hidden and that God destined for our glory before time began.” God’s secret wisdom was hidden and now revealed (Vs. 1:24 “Christ the power and wisdom of God”) – wisdom to bring human believers glory. Christ is the mystery reveal and the salvation of all man including Gentiles.
(v. 8) “None of the rulers of this age understood it, for if they had, they would not have crucified the Lord of glory.” Rulers of the age did not know God’s wisdom (Christ) or would not have crucified Jesus, the Lord of Glory. Spiritual ignorance will lead to profane the sacred.
(v. 9) “What no eye has seen, what no ear has heard, and what no human mind has conceived” — the things God has prepared for those who love him.” The future is unknown without God’s revelation. Heaven is a vision to be spiritually discerned.
“No eye has seen, no ear has heard, no mind has conceived what God has prepared for those who love him.” Isaiah 64:4
God’s ways unknown to humans without God’s revelation, by the Holy Spirit.
(v. 10) “These are the things God has revealed to us by his Spirit. The Spirit searches all things, even the deep things of God.” Revelation came from God, through Spirit, to Paul–Spirit knows deep things of God. How spiritual are we?
(v. 11) “For who knows a person’s thoughts except their own spirit within them? In the same way no one knows the thoughts of God except the Spirit of God.” Spirit knows thoughts/mind of God. This is why the Holy Spirit inspires the scriptures.
(v. 12) “What we have received is not the spirit of the world, but the Spirit who is from God, so that we may understand what God has freely given us.” We, Paul and Corinthians can know God and what he has given us – God’s gifts – Since we received the Holy Spirit when we became Christians.
(v. 13) “This is what we speak, not in words taught us by human wisdom but in words taught by the Spirit, explaining spiritual realities with Spirit-taught words.” Paul speaks spiritual truths with spiritual words taught by the Spirit – does Spirit teach us?
(v. 14) “The person without the Spirit does not accept the things that come from the Spirit of God but considers them foolishness, and cannot understand them because they are discerned only through the Spirit.” Unspiritual men reject spiritual truths, cannot understand and rejects spiritual words as foolishness; Paul has spiritual discernment
(v. 15) “The person with the Spirit makes judgments about all things, but such a person is not subject to merely human judgments, “With spiritual discernment come spiritual judgments – no one judges/opposes spiritual discernment!
(v. 16) “Who has known the mind of the Lord so as to instruct him? But we have the mind of Christ.” We have “Mind of Christ”—bold claim. Having the mind of Christ is key to being Christian and understanding spiritual matters.

VIII. Reflections for Leaders

Preaching – Gospel, Christ crucified
Preachers – Embody the cross and demonstrate the Spirit’s power
Leaders accept their limits, weaknesses, finitude, and place
The leader’s place is glorifying God and giving to others with Jesus as Lord
Leaders testify about Christ, preach Christ crucified, defend gospel
Leaders empty self! Leaders fill up with the Spirit! Spiritual discernment and spiritual judgments
Leaders reject human wisdom, persuasive words, and demonstrations of human sufficiency
Leaders glorify God! Leaders emphasize the work and activity of God, nature of God
Leaders demonstrate the Spirit’s power! Dependent of God to deliver God’s words & God’s truths, Dependent on the Spirit
Leaders oppose human boasting, human factions, following un-Christ like men!
Questions for Reflection:
1 Corinthians 1:1-3
What emphasis does Paul place on his apostleship?

What is the description of the Corinthian church by Paul?

Why and how does Paul connect the Corinthians to other disciples?
Why does Paul greet the Corinthians with “grace and peace” from God and Jesus?
1 Corinthians 1:4-9
What is Paul thankful for about the Corinthians? (God’s grace, speaking, knowledge, spiritual gifts, God’s power for blamelessness and strength)
Who testified to the Corinthians and why is it significant?
Who is active in this passage and with what actions?
What is the basis for the Corinthian’s fellowship?
1 Corinthians 1:31-2:16
What is Paul’s stated purpose in writing to the Corinthians? (Deal with divisions, factions, disunity)
How are the divisions manifested in the church? (Factions according to leaders, teachers)
What is Paul’s fear for the gospel? (The Cross of Christ emptied of power)
What does the cross emptied of power mean?
1 Corinthians 1-2 Questions about Leadership
What reflections on leadership are provided in 1 Corinthians 1-2?
How can leaders embody the cross?
What is spiritual discernment and why is it important for leaders?
How does Paul contrast spiritual leadership and human leadership?
Discuss leadership and gospel.

In Leaders Build up the Body (Community of Faith) Congregation, the following were discussed.

I Introduction: In chapter 9 of 1 Corinthians Paul shares his example as a leader characterized by “becoming all things to all men.” The chapter addresses financial support of leaders, surrender of rights by Paul, cruciform leadership, evangelism, modeling behavior, and servant-hood.

1 Corinthians 9:1-14: Leaders Have Rights (Vs. 1) “Am I not free? Am I not an apostle? Have I not seen Jesus our Lord? Are you not the result of my work in the Lord? “ Paul asks some rhetorical questions – with answers that are clear his listeners:

(Vs. 3) “This is my defense to those who sit in judgment on me.” Paul defends himself against his critics “Paul as a slave to everyone.” (Vs. 19)

(Vs. 4-5) “Don’t we have the right to food and drink? Don’t we have the right to take a believing wife along with us, as do the other apostles and the Lord’s brothers and Cephas?’” Paul lists two of his rights:

Paul is free
Paul is an apostle
Paul saw the Lord
Paul planted the church in Corinth

(Vs. 2) “Even though I may not be an apostle to others, surely I am to you! For you are the seal of my apostleship in the Lord. “Paul claims apostolic authority in Corinth as the Corinthians were a seal of Paul’s ministry or result of his ministry.

(Vs. 4) Right to support – “food and drink”
(Vs. 5) Right to marriage

(Vs. 6) “Or is it only I and Barnabas who lack the right to not work for a living?” Thought provoking question: Should Paul and Barnabas have to work for their support? It seems the other apostles were financially supported.

(Vs. 7) “Who serves as a soldier at his own expense? Who plants a vineyard and does not eat its grapes? Who tends a flock and does not drink the milk?” Paul explains his right for financial support through building a case from scriptures and common sense. Rhetorical questions all making the point that everyone works for a living

Soldier

1 Vineyard owner

2 Shepherd

(Vs. 8-9) “Do I say this merely on human authority? Doesn’t the Law say the same thing? For it is written in the Law of Moses: “Do not muzzle an ox while it is treading out the grain.” Is it about oxen that God is concerned?” There is Biblical precedent for support in the Law: Logically and legally – Paul has right to support both biblically and morally.

Deuteronomy 25:4 “Do not muzzle the ox while it is treading out the grain.”

(Vs. 10) “Surely, he says this for us, doesn’t he? Yes, this was written for us, because whoever plows and threshes should be able to do so in the hope of sharing in the harvest.” Workers share the harvest.

(Vs. 11-12) “If we have sown spiritual seed among you, is it too much if we reap a material harvest from you? If others have this right of support from you, shouldn’t we have it all the more? But we did not use this right. On the contrary, we put up with anything rather than hinder the gospel of Christ.” Paul sowed spiritual seed and has the right to material support. Paul points out his right but explains he does not claim the right but surrenders his rights for the building up of the body of Christ.

(Vs. 13) “Don’t you know that those who serve in the temple get their food from the temple, and that those who serve at the altar share in what is offered on the altar?” Temple workers were supported for their ministry.

(Vs. 14) “In the same way, the Lord has commanded that those who preach the gospel should receive their living from the gospel.” “The Lord Commanded” – Where? “Those who preach the gospel should receive their living from the gospel!”

1 Corinthians 9:15-19: Leaders Surrenders His Rights (Vs. 15) “But I have not used any of these rights. And I am not writing this in the hope that you will do such things for me, for I would rather die than allow anyone to deprive me of this boast.” Paul surrenders his rights for a purpose – “Offer the gospel free of charge” (vs. 8)

(Vs. 16) “For when I preach the gospel, I cannot boast, since I am compelled to preach. Woe to me if I do not preach the gospel!” Paul is compelled to preach the gospel, “Woe if I do not preach the gospel.” Shame on me if I do not preach.

(Vs. 17) “If I preach voluntarily, I have a reward; if not voluntarily, I am simply discharging the trust committed to me.” Paul had two motives for preaching:

(Vs. 18) “What then is my reward? Just this: that in preaching the gospel I may offer it free of charge, and so not make full use of my rights as a preacher of the gospel.” Paul’s reward – preaching the gospel for free.

No mixed message. No hidden agendas, no obligations to anyone.

Voluntarily – rewarded
Duty, involuntarily – discharging trust

Soldier

3 Vineyard owner

4 Shepherd

Deuteronomy 25:4 “Do not muzzle the ox while it is treading out the grain.”

(Vs. 17) “If I preach voluntarily, I have a reward; if not voluntarily, I am simply discharging the trust committed to me.” Paul had two motives for preaching:

No mixed message. No hidden agendas, no obligations to anyone.

Voluntarily – rewarded
Duty, involuntarily – discharging trust

(Vs. 19) “Though I am free and belong to no one, I have made myself a slave to everyone, to win as many as possible.” Paul’s use of his freedom/rights to become a slave to everyone, Goal – “To win as many as possible”

1 Corinthians 9:20-27: Leaders Live by a Rule of Life: (flexible to win many) (Vs. 20) “To the Jews I became like a Jew, to win the Jews. To those under the law I became like one under the law (though I myself am not under the law), so as to win those under the law.” Paul is free but makes himself a gospel slave. He becomes a slave to everyone – to win as many as possible. Key to Leadership: Win people over! Win the Jews, become a Jew, under law.

(Vs. 21) “To those not having the law I became like one not having the law (though I am not free from God’s law but am under Christ’s law), so as to win those not having the law.” Win the Gentiles, without law.

(Vs. 22) “To the weak I became weak, to win the weak. I have become all things to all people so that by all possible means I might save some.” Win the weak. Become all things to all men save some! (persuasion with normal everyday illustrations)

(Vs. 23) “ I do all this for the sake of the gospel, that I may share in its blessings.” Paul was motivated by the gospel to share in the blessings of the gospel.

(Vs. 24-27) “Do you not know that in a race all the runners run, but only one gets the prize? Run in such a way as to get the prize. Everyone who competes in the games goes into strict training. They do it to get a crown that will not last, but we do it to get a crown that will last forever. Therefore, I do not run like someone running aimlessly; I do not fight like a boxer beating the air. No, I strike a blow to my body and make it my slave so that after I have preached to others, I myself will not be disqualified for the prize.” Live worthy of the prize! Be qualified for the prize! Paul’s self-imposed rules of life: (Vs. 24) Run to get the prize! Dream/Vision
(Vs. 25) Strict training for lasting crown! Plan/Purpose
(Vs. 26) Determined run, goal oriented! Qualified/Preparation
(Vs. 26) Goal oriented battle/fight! Training/Mentoring
(Vs. 27) Beat my body into submission! Discipline/Self-control

Reflections on Leadership Leaders remove stumbling blocks

Leaders set a personal example

Leaders model Christ to build up the body

Leaders deny self to be like Christ so save others!

Leaders have goals for the body

Leaders choose battles, choose course

Leaders claim authority and right to give it away

Leaders have moral authority through qualified worthy lives

Leaders use their freedom to build up the body

Leaders preach the gospel for everyone to get the prize

Leader’s goal in preaching the gospel is salvation for all

Leaders embody the gospel they preach. Gospel is self-emptying for others, (1 Corinthians 13 Love)

Leaders provide and eschatological vision! (1 Corinthians 15)

Self -Differentiation of leadership

Self-Differentiation-Murray Bowen introduced the term self-differentiation to depict the capacity of maintaining the two forces (separation and closeness) in balance. Self-differentiation is:

Defining yourself and staying in touch with others
Being responsible for yourself and responsive to others
Maintaining your integrity and well-being without intruding on that of others
Allowing the enhancement of the other’s integrity and well-being without feeling abandoned, inferior, or less of a self
Having an “I” and entering a relationship with another “I” without losing yourself or diminishing the self of others

True Love

Introduction: LOVE – Definition of love described in chapter 13. Without love we are nothing. Faith, hope, and love are the bases of Christianity. But love is supreme and eternal.
1 Corinthians 13:1-16: Love Defined
(Vs. 1) “If I speak in the tongues of men or of angels, but do not have love, I am only a resounding gong or a clanging cymbal.” A problem in Corinth was a lack of Christian love for one another. Defining love in 13:4-7 means that the opposite was present in Corinth. The problem focused on the jealousies surrounding the various gifts. Tongues without love is an annoying noise to others.
(Vs. 2) “If I have the gift of prophecy and can fathom all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have a faith that can move mountains, but do not have love, I am nothing.” Love is the motive of everything good. Prophecy and faith without love may solve every mystery and possess all knowledge and do miracles but without true love the outcomes are not eternal. Performance without heart is nothing!
(Vs. 3) “If I give all I possess to the poor and give over my body to hardship that I may boast, but do not have love, I gain nothing.” Generosity without love is meaningless. Martyrdom without love is a worthless death. Nothing is gained and nothing is eternal without the proper heart, motivation, and glorification of God.
(Vs. 4) “Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud.” Love is at the root patient and kind. The foundation of true love is patience and kindness. Love is not:
Boastful- Not insecure or competitive
Proud- Not Arrogant or defensive
Rude- Not hurtful and insensitive
Self-seeking- Not selfish
Easily angered- Not mad, unstable, short-fused
No Record of Wrong- Not unforgiving or vindictive
(Vs. 5) “It does not dishonor others, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, and it keeps no record of wrongs.” Love requires maturity, self-denial, and self-control. True love is forgiving!
(Vs. 6) “Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth.” (Vs. 7) “It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, and always perseveres.” Love does:
Not delight in evil- Love is righteous
Rejoices with the truth- Obeys the Word of God, Honest
Protects- Provides security, unconditional and steadfast love, grows in love
Trusts- Maintains covenant
Hopes- Believes and dreams
Perseveres- Remains faithful and committed
(Vs. 8) “Love never fails. But where there are prophecies, they will cease; where there are tongues, they will be stilled; where there is knowledge, it will pass away.” Love lasts forever (13:8-13). True love is the ultimate spiritual sign! John 13:35 “By this all men will know that you are my disciples, by your love for one another.” The miraculous gifts of tongues, prophecy, and knowledge will not last. Love lasts!
(Vs. 9) “For we know in part and we prophesy in part.” What is partial? Our knowledge and revelation of God is incomplete, not finished or perfect. The inspired new covenant was not finished, whole.
(Vs. 10) “But when perfect [completeness] comes, what is in part disappears.” A time is coming when only love will matter; only love lasts. At some part the covenant was completed until Christ return. (See John 14:17- “The Spirit of truth. The world cannot accept him, because it neither sees him nor knows him. But you know him, for he lives with you and will be in you.” Promise of complete revelation to the apostles. John 17:13-14- “I have much more to say to you, more than you can now bear. But when he, the Spirit of truth, comes, he will guide you into all the truth. He will not speak on his own; he will speak only what he hears, and he will tell you what is yet to come.”)
(Vs. 13) “And now these three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love.” The trinity of heaven is the Father, Son and Holy Spirit and the trinity of earth is Faith, Hope, and Love. Christians build their lives on Faith, Hope, and Love.

QUALITIES OF ELDERS/SHEPHERDS

1 Timothy 3:1-7: Elders/Shepherds
(Vs. 1) “Here is a trustworthy saying: Whoever aspires to be an overseer desires a noble task.” The eldership in the church is one of the most honorable, noble roles for men to aspire. To qualify for the overseer role spiritual leaders must desire and pursue the qualities necessary. New Testament Greek [episkopos] literally means “over” (epi) “watcher” (skopos) – an overseer. Leaders are not to be chosen at random, nor just because they volunteer, nor because they aspire to the position, nor even because they are “natural leaders.” Instead they should be chosen primarily on how they match the qualifications listed here.
(Vs. 2) “Now the overseer is to be above reproach, faithful to his wife, temperate, self-controlled, respectable, hospitable, able to teach,” Blameless: This word literally means, “Nothing to take hold upon.” There must be nothing in his life that others can point out and attack or malign the church. Husband of one wife: The idea here is of “a one-woman man.” Polygamy was practiced in the ancient world and divorce was rampant. Temperate: The idea is of someone who is not given to extremes. They are reliable and trustworthy, and you don’t have to worry about wide swings of moods or behavior. Self-controlled: This describes the person who is able to think clearly and with clarity, sober-minded. Discipline in all areas of life is included in self-control. Respectable: Good reputation, honorable behavior, orderly, same word translated modest in 1 Timothy 2:9. Hospitable: Willing and able to welcome both friends and strangers into their home. Non-discriminant and non-prejudice. Teacher: An able teacher of scripture.
(Vs. 3) “Not given to drunkenness, not violent but gentle, not quarrelsome, not a lover of money.” Not given to wine: Not addicted to wine or intoxicating drink. Non-violent: Not given to violence, anger, fits of rage or disputing. Gentle: Sensitive, kind, empathetic, validates others’ perspectives.
(Vs. 4) Leadership in the home qualifies a person for leadership in the church. Description of spiritual teachers include:
Blameless – Above reproach
Husband of one wife – A one-woman man, not divorced or polygamists
Temperate – Even-tempered, emotions controlled
Self-controlled – Disciplined, analytical thinker, sober-minded
Respectable – Good reputation and behavior, orderly, modest
Hospitable – Welcoming, generous, unselfish
Teacher – Able to teach orthodox doctrine, student of scriptures
Non-Violent – Not angry, hot-headed, non-abusive
Generous – Not materialistic, generous contributor, non-greedy
Non-Drunkard – Not addicted to anything intoxicating
Respectable Family – Imitable marriage and parent, obedient children
Worthy of Respect – Commended and respected by the church
(Vs. 5) “(If anyone does not know how to manage his own family, how can he take care of God’s church?) Oversight of the family models oversight of the church. The spiritual example set at home defines the leadership style in the church.
(Vs. 6) “He must not be a recent convert, or he may become conceited and fall under the same judgment as the devil.” Overseers must not be younger Christians but must be tested and mature. Spiritual leadership is too consequential to be given to unproven leaders.
(Vs. 7) “He must also have a good reputation with outsiders, so that he will not fall into disgrace and into the devil’s trap.” An elder’s reputation in the church and outside the church reflects upon the body of Christ. The devil seeks to destroy spiritual leaders to harm the church.

Freedom

Galatians 5: 16-26: Spirit or Flesh
(Vs. 16) “So I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the flesh.” This verse introduces the next section that describes the contrast between living by the Spirit or living according to the flesh. It is a promise!
(Vs. 17) “For the flesh desires what is contrary to the Spirit, and the Spirit what is contrary to the flesh. They are in conflict with each other, so that you are not to do whatever you want.” The battle between flesh and spirit rages within us but God has given us the choice of which path we will follow. Freewill is between life in the Spirit or living according to the flesh. The conflict is intense and will rage within us unless we make a conscientious choice. Satan does not allow us choice, he just enslaves. We must choose to live by the Spirit. Our intentions can be good but without the Spirit, Satan will take control leading us to do what we do not want to do.
(Vs. 18) “But if you are led by the Spirit, you are not under the law.” Paul ties together his argument against the law in the letter by writing,
(Vs. 19-21) “The acts of the sinful nature are obvious: sexual immorality, impurity and debauchery; idolatry and witchcraft; hatred, discord, jealousy, fits of rage, selfish ambition, dissensions, factions and envy; drunkenness, orgies, and the like. I warn you, as I did before, that those who live like this will not inherit the kingdom of God.” Paul defines the acts of the flesh as sin. The consequences of living in sin renders us separated from the kingdom of God. Living in sin does not lead to God. No one in a relationship with God practices sin. The kingdom is for those who live under the reign of God subject to his will for our lives.
(Vs. 22-23) “But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law.” The contrast between flesh and spirit is clearly delineated by the fruits of the Spirit: Life in the kingdom is free from law. There is no law against the fruits of the Spirit. The fruits are not ours but the Spirits. We choose our path and the Spirit controls us with love, joy, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. Life in the flesh is sinful and life in the Spirit is fruitful. What fruit are we bearing in our lives?

In Natural Church Development lecture 5, Dr. Gregg Marutzky speaks about healthy Churches. He mentioned that, healthy churches are:

Blessed By God-Acts 2: 42-47 is a paradigmatic verse about a healthy church. “They devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and to the fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer. Everyone was filled with awe, and the apostles did many wonders and miraculous signs. All the believers were together and had everything in common. Selling their possessions and goods, they gave to anyone as he had need. Every day they continued to meet together in the temple courts. They broke bread in their homes and ate together with glad and sincere hearts, praising God and enjoying the favor of all the people. And the Lord added to their number daily those who were being saved” (Acts 2: 42-47, NIV, 2010).

Able to sustain continued growth due a balance in ministry with needs being met across the board in a variety of ways. When any organism is healthy it will naturally grow. “And why do you worry about clothes? See how the flowers of the field grow. They do not labor or spin.” The Greek word for “see” in this passage is “katamathete” from the verb “manthano” meaning to learn, observe, study, or research. The “kata” amplifies the verb so literally “katamathete” means to diligently observe, or thoroughly examine how the lilies or flowers grow. Growth will naturally occur when the seeds and the soil are healthy. God is able to bless healthy churches because the congregation is bringing glory to him by maintaining the essential elements of a well-rounded fellowship, which will nurture and strengthen the faith of every member, young or old. We are striving to be a healthy church. Every church experiences the setbacks of not being balanced and holistic in their approach to ministry. Growth in an area can occur when emphasis is placed on that aspect only to be negated later on if the foundation and emphasis of the entire ministry is not biblical and balanced. We no longer want to take three steps forward and two or three steps backward. The first century church is our example of a church built by the Holy Spirit working through the apostles to build a church that the gates of hell would not prevail against (“And I tell you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of Hades will not overcome it.” Matthew 16:18, NIV, 2010). The goal of a congregation is to become strong in the eight areas of ministry illustrated in Acts 2, and proven through research on 1000 growing churches in 32 countries in the book, “Natural Church Development” by Christian Swartz (2012).

The eight essential qualities of healthy churches include: (a) passionate spirituality, (b) empowering leadership, (c) loving relationships, (d) gift-based ministry, (e) functional structures, (f) holistic small groups, (g) inspiring worship services, (h) need based evangelism. These ingredients for growing churches are supported by research in multiple cultures and different size congregations all over the world.

Passionate Spirituality: “They devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and to the fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer.” (Vs. 42) Essential for every member is a dynamic, growing, personal relationship with God. Our prayer life needs to be honest and real as we seek to trust God with our lives. The word of God must speak to us in a practical manner. God communicates to us in various ways but especially through meditation and prayer over the scripture. To be passionate spiritually we need to dwell in the word of God. The scripture will empower us to live spiritually. We will develop the mind of Christ. Scripture equips us to overcome temptation. Scripture trains us to be like Jesus as we obey his teaching and imitate his example. How disciplined are your quiet Dysfunctional groups and unhealthy family’s bond by quarreling and arguing but the church is to bond in healthy ways (nurture and play). Christian love is agape love. Agape love is self-sacrificial love that done by a decision to serve others. Agape love is not an emotional or romantic love by a mature, resolute love.

Gift-Based Ministry: “Selling their possessions and goods, they gave to anyone who had need.” (Vs. 45) Everyone in a healthy church will feel important and needed when they use the gifts God gave them to build up the body of Christ. Too often a few members are overloaded trying to do too much. Every member must be active and involved. The ministry will be balanced as each person does his or her part. Burnout occurs when some people are doing more than their share. Finding the niche for each member to serve the church strengthens the commitment and connection to the church for the individual. Offering opportunities for each member to use a skill, gift, or talent of theirs for the building up of the church is essential for healthy churches. Healthy churches assist their members in discovering their gifts from God and guides them into ministries to use their talents.

Functional Structures: “Every day they continued to meet together in the temple courts.” (Vs. 46a) The church must be organized and structured to allow for stability and efficiency. Communication must be clear for groups to function properly. Many people are necessary for the operation of the church including staff and volunteers. The review of programs and reorganization are required for the structures to continue to be functional. New programs and approaches become necessary for continued growth and vitality. Churches must communicate with members through bulletins, newsletters both printed and electronic while also utilizing social media and emails.

Holistic Small Groups: “They broke bread in their homes and ate together with glad and sincere hearts” (Vs. 46b) Quality time is necessary for relationships. Large groups are not conducive for sharing and discussion. Small groups can be more responsive to needs. Evangelism and discipleship can be very effective and personal in a small group. Flexibility of schedules can occur with a smaller group of people. Holistic small groups are a fundamental building block for large healthy churches. Intimacy, safety, and security can only occur in small groups that meet over time. Within the small group greater trust is built allowing for vulnerability and authenticity. The small group becomes a spiritual family of brothers and sister united to please God. The small group meets one another’s needs and functions as the first line of support for life’s trials and tribulations.

Inspiring Worship Services: “praising God and enjoying the favor of all people.” (Vs. 47a) We go to church to praise and worship God collectively with our fellow disciples. The collective power of a community of committed believers refreshes our faith and vision. Fellowship with diverse, unified brothers and sisters in Christ testify to the impact of the Cross. Inspiration occurs due to the joining together of many in worship and praise of God. Communal worship compliments our personal relationship with God and our small group fellowships. The larger community models the diversity God intends for his church as a testimony to the world. Brotherhood is built upon discipleship to Jesus Christ who commanded his church to go to all nations without partiality or prejudice. The holy rituals of the church are necessary for our connection to God and one another. Baptism, communion, contribution, singing, preaching, and prayer are necessary activities for Christians to have faith. Members share their gifts and talents in worship to inspire the church.

Need-based Evangelism: “And the Lord added to their number daily those who were being saved.” (Vs. 47) No one cares what you know until they know that you care. We are not peddlers of the Word of God but rather family builders. We desire to see the spiritual family of God expand. We know everyone deserves and needs to know the grace of God. Need-based evangelism seeks the whole person through their heart-felted needs. Understanding on a spiritual level begins with the heart. We seek to reach the heart not just the mind or body. Evangelism is relational, informational, and personal.