Archives for March 2012

The modern generation, we are told, looks at church through consumer eyes. They are spiritual shoppers, going from one congregation to another, inspecting the "merchandise" for quality, comparing elements of convenience, service and cost. Churches that wish to grow (or even to survive) are expected to be customer-oriented, ever-happy providers dispensing whatever satisfies the public and makes the shoppers content. It is certainly biblical and desirable to care about people and to serve others joyfully in the name of Christ. It is also wise to try to learn the language of those with whom we … [Read more...]

A gracEmail reader in central Texas writes: "Our congregation is not growing. Some believe it is because we do not know how to grow a church. We need help. Can you suggest some guidelines that might help us get started?" * * * It is good for us to think about the growth of God's kingdom and of his church, and to pray and work accordingly. We must fill our minds with Scripture principles, however, lest we be distracted by worldly models of success (Rom. 12:1-2; Col. 3:1-3). The Bible emphasizes the spiritual growth of God's men and women, individually and collectively, not the numerical … [Read more...]

A brother in Kansas asks, "Do you think that Christians should always do spiritual things when they gather together? In other words, should we avoid doing secular activities in the church building with our fellow church members?" * * * One difference between the Old Testament and the New Testament is that the former divided everything into distinct categories of "holy" and "common" (or secular). That was true of people and places, of clothing and utensils, and also of all the assorted furniture, fixtures, appliances, equipment and supplies used in sacred rituals. However, since God came … [Read more...]

A gracEmail subscriber asks whether the New Testament restricts the the use of church funds to particular specified activities, making it sinful for a local church to support good works other than those specified. * * * No it does not. The Greek word ekklesia, represented by the word "church" in standard English Bibles, appears 115 times in the New Testament, and it literally means a group or assembly of people (though not always physically gathered in one place). Most New Testament references to an ekklesia designate a group with spiritual purposes, but three times the word refers to a … [Read more...]

A gracEmail subscriber writes: "In a recent Family Notes you gave the website address of a particular church. The first thing that met my eye on the website was the set of organizational bylaws. Since you are knowledgeable in the Scriptures and in the law, I would be interested in what you think about these church bylaws." * * * Bylaws in general are merely part of the legal technicalities of a corporation, including 501(c)(3), charitable, nonprofit corporations. Unless churches in the U.S. are incorporated with 501(c)(3) status, contributions to them are not officially tax-deductible. Some … [Read more...]

A gracEmail subscriber asks whether I think church "boards" should include only elders and deacons, or also chairpersons and ministry leaders. Elders and deacons only, in his church, would mean an all-male board. He prefers that because he believes it "God's will that men should run the church," and because he thinks "men are more capable of making the decisions without getting too cluttered with our emotions." * * * I suspect that Jesus and his apostles would be far more concerned about our notions of "running" things than with the gender of those who do it (Mk. 10:42-45; 1 Pet. 5:1-4). The … [Read more...]