The Ministers of a Growing Church
J. Gerald Harris
1 Corinthians 1:22-29
The Bible seems to advocate the concept of every Christian being a minister. Churches get in big trouble when they begin to think that the professional clergy is to do all the work and to fulfill all of the ministry. But I want you to know, if you are a member of this church you need to have a ministry.
And since I believe that the best way to grow the church is through the Sunday School, we need to find a ministry for every member of our Sunday school. Our Sunday Schools need to be organized so that every member has some kind of a functioning role; so that every member has a sense of ownership. In a class not only do you have teacher, but you should have care group leaders. You should have hose who organize prayer chains, those who plan social activities, those who are in charge of prospect cultivation, those who are in charge of nurturing new members. You should have calling teams and card-writing teams and visitation teams.
And as people are involved in some kind of ministry, they grow. And as people become involved in ministry, the class grows and prospers and flourishes.
So I would encourage you to get your classes organized and get as many people involved in ministry as possible.
Let me ask you a question. How can you eat an egg without cracking the shell?
Is that a puzzle to you? The only way that I know to eat an egg without cracking the shell is to have someone else crack it for you.
Now this reminds me of some church people. They want the benefits the church has to offer without sharing the responsibilities. They want their Sunday school class to grow, but they don't want to be a part. They want the church to experience revival as long as someone else does the praying. They want good programs as long as someone else does the work. But if you want to eat eggs, you're going to lave to break some shells. And if we're going to lave a strong growing church, we're go ...
J. Gerald Harris
1 Corinthians 1:22-29
The Bible seems to advocate the concept of every Christian being a minister. Churches get in big trouble when they begin to think that the professional clergy is to do all the work and to fulfill all of the ministry. But I want you to know, if you are a member of this church you need to have a ministry.
And since I believe that the best way to grow the church is through the Sunday School, we need to find a ministry for every member of our Sunday school. Our Sunday Schools need to be organized so that every member has some kind of a functioning role; so that every member has a sense of ownership. In a class not only do you have teacher, but you should have care group leaders. You should have hose who organize prayer chains, those who plan social activities, those who are in charge of prospect cultivation, those who are in charge of nurturing new members. You should have calling teams and card-writing teams and visitation teams.
And as people are involved in some kind of ministry, they grow. And as people become involved in ministry, the class grows and prospers and flourishes.
So I would encourage you to get your classes organized and get as many people involved in ministry as possible.
Let me ask you a question. How can you eat an egg without cracking the shell?
Is that a puzzle to you? The only way that I know to eat an egg without cracking the shell is to have someone else crack it for you.
Now this reminds me of some church people. They want the benefits the church has to offer without sharing the responsibilities. They want their Sunday school class to grow, but they don't want to be a part. They want the church to experience revival as long as someone else does the praying. They want good programs as long as someone else does the work. But if you want to eat eggs, you're going to lave to break some shells. And if we're going to lave a strong growing church, we're go ...
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