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4 Points for Church Growth

Franklin Morais
Nov 5 · 4 min read

Many church-goers and a good number of church leaders think that “church” is that building or program which caters to a group of people who are believers in the creeds of Christendom. Maybe that’s one of the chief reasons why churches are largely considered irrelevant to people these days.

After being “in church” for almost 42 years, and seeing the Good, the Bad, and the Ugly of the church scene, here are my 4 points how a church can get going for growth:

  1. Preaching — the early church, and wherever there’s been a revival of church, the preaching has always been the growth driver. And not any garden variety of preaching. Not preaching about preaching. Not preaching a set of stories of the preacher. Not eloquent biblical exegesis. Not oratory of spiritual matters. But clear and convicting preaching of Jesus, the Founder of the True and Genuine Church. He Himself said that He will build His church. Not a man’s church. Not of human ingenuity. But solid truth based on Jesus’ life, death, resurrection, and ascension to glory. That preaching proclaims that Christ’s goal was to build a counter-cultural community. His narrative is clear. He is counter-cultural, in every sense of the Word. Jesus is the chief Iconoclast. So bad was He in being an Iconoclast, that the early religious establishment couldn’t handle Him. So they threw Him upon a crude cross, and thought that was that! But 2000 years of Jesus-freakin has yet to dispute that His body is gone. Irretrievable. His followers? Transformed from cowards to courageous evangelists for the story that transforms every other story. Every single one of them died a martyr's death. Except for John who was banished to Patmos, and there, he drew with vivid imagery the final moments of human destiny obtained from massive revelations from heaven (read all about it in the book of Revelations). So preaching MUST be entirely hinged upon Christ, His Person, and works. The very act of preaching Christ motivates and inspires people in the pews. The One story which relativizes every other story also draws every story of brokenness into itself. This story can transform a story of depression, suicide ideation and attempts, hopelessness, despair and despondency without the simple pat responses evangelicals are often prone to offer. Christ Himself is the Archetype of the Story of all stories. The mother of all stories if you like. His story of courageous compassion, standing up to power, believing for good and truth subsumes every other story into Himself. And gives hope and purpose to every other story on earth, regardless of ethnicity and nationality. His-story relativizes every other story of colonial conquest, and political affinity. He is neither for nor against Trump. Neither is He for nor against Democrats and Republicans. He stands for every good value which finds their original source in His pure goodness and grace.
  2. People — the church is all about people. Not programs. Especially that program on Sunday morning, or Saturday evening, or screened through YouTube. People matters to Christ. He died for them. Better still, He rose up from the dead for them. To give them a reason to live. A reason to achieve. A reason to affiliate with other humans. A reason to use power for good of all. People matters. People matter so much that there’s a cross and an empty grave to prove that. People matters. Over profits. Over corporate boardrooms. Over nationalistic cries. Over the environment. Over technology. Over social media.
  3. Praise — the nature of the Story which trumps every other story is that people who hear that Story preached, begin singing. They begin praising. They use hymns. They use contemporary songs. They begin to celebrate. Together. Praise is evidence of the Story which has given meaning and hope to every other story which comes to Him. Sometimes, the praise is soft and tearful. Sometimes, the praise is wild and tearful. The praise can be exuberant. It can be meditative. Above all, the praise is all about the Ultimate Story-Teller. Who gives the Story which transforms the little boy growing up in the slums of India and Indianapolis. The Story which transforms the substance-abusing girl from the streets of Tokyo and Tel Aviv. The Story which rescues the banker from Manhattan and the angel investor from Malaysia. You cannot help but praise. Sing. Worship.
  4. Prayer — that unknown “X” factor. So unknown because it is the secret connection to Power above. The people most effective have been the people most in prayer. What’s prayer? Simple; chatting with Dad above. About anything. About anyone. For anybody. Wherever they may be. In your house, or a thousand miles away. Prayer bridges earth and heaven because 2000 years ago, a cross hung the Preacher of the Story for sharing His story of rescue and hope. A cross straddling earth and heaven. A Story of mercy and grace which relativizes every other story on earth. And prayer is the means by which the rescued ones connect to the Rescuer. Churches need to pray. No pray, no growth. No prayer, less prayer, and the point is lost. Growth stops. Stagnancy starts. It’s all about communication. About a relationship. A relationship that feeds and satisfies the aching soul. No amount of sex, money, and power can.

So here you have it. Of course, it’s not the final word about how a church can grow. But check the “Manual” for church growth. You’ll see that all 4 points line up really well. Don’t take my word for it. Read the “Manual” yourself.

Franklin Morais grew up in a church-going family. He saw the Good, the Bad, and the Ugly of church. Then he found the Founder Himself. Or better, the Founder found him! And the rest, as they say, is my-story in His-Story!

You can contact Franklin at fjcrm@icloud.com. Franklin is a certified professional coach, trainer and public speaker. And yes, he preaches sometimes.

Franklin Morais

Written by

Is trying to be a writer. When he is not writing, he is a professional coach, trainer and facilitator. You can reach him at askme@axesspotential.com

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