Jump Start # 1069

Matthew 13:31-32 “The Kingdom of Heaven is like a mustard seed, which a man took and sowed in his field; and this is smaller than all other seeds, but when it is full grown, it is larger than the garden plants and becomes a tree, so that the birds of the air come and nest in its branches.”

In a series of kingdom parables found in Matthew, Jesus gives us various descriptions of what the God’s kingdom is like. It is very unique and different than any other kingdom. Our verse today describes the expanding progress of the kingdom. It started very small and insignificant. It is smaller than all other seeds. God’s kingdom didn’t start large and flashy. Such a small start had incredible odds against it. The one thing going in it’s favor is that God was behind it. After the resurrection and ascension of Christ, there were 12 apostles and a little more than 100 followers. This was the start. New. Small. Scared. Many business started out small. Many businesses folded up and died small. God’s kingdom grew. It went into all the world. By the time we get to Revelation, the number of God’s people cannot be counted. They come from all nations and every language. The presence of God’s kingdom is everywhere today. That’s impressive. We are on the upside of the kingdom. We benefit from this massive kingdom that is worldwide.

The kingdom is composed of disciples, people. The church is people. The kingdom, the church is the saved in Christ. The kingdom is not made up of congregations, but of individuals. Congregations come and go, the kingdom continues to grow. Not all congregations grow large. Not all congregations make it. I read a leadership article recently that was entitled, “Ten reasons small churches tend to stay small.” I want to share the author’s “Ten Reasons.”

1. Wanting to stay small

2. A quick turnover of preachers

3. Domination by a few strong members

4. Not trusting the leaders

5. Inferiority complex

6. No plan.

7. Bad health

8. Lousy fellowship

9. A state of neglect permeates the church

10. No prayer

The majority of my preaching has been with large congregations. I with one now. We are busy, growing and planning all the time. It takes tons of energy, resources, money and drive to keep us focused, going and growing for the Lord. It’s definitely not for the lazy. However, I have preached a lot with small congregations.  There is a perception that in large congregations you get lost and no one knows everyone. Not true. It is interesting that God never talks about the size of the congregations. Other than the first few pages of Acts, we do not know how large the N.T. churches were. The problems at Corinth, Ephesus, Laodicea had nothing to do with their size, but rather, their hearts and their faith. We are consumed with size. We look and dwell upon numbers. The number one question I am asked all the time when I preach at another place is, “How large is the church back home?” Why does “large” matter? Wouldn’t a better question be, “How strong is the church back home?” Or, “How faithful to God is the church back home?” However, in other ways, God does deal with the size of congregations. He expects each Christian to grow. Be strong are the words found in Ephesians. Grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord Jesus is how Peter ends his first letter. All living things grow. I have flowers popping up. Puppies become dogs. Boys become men. Seedlings become plants. All living things grow. That is how God designed it. The same is true spiritually. We are intended to grow, first personally and internally, and then externally and numerically.

Some congregations do not grow because they do not have a pool of people to draw from. Many rural congregations were once large years ago, but the kids grew up and moved to the cities, farmers farmed more acres and the influx of people to invite, teach and convert just wasn’t there. Some congregations will have to face reality and decide if they can continue on or if they should close their doors and unite with a nearby congregation. Those are tough decisions. It is not a sign of God’s kingdom failing. The kingdom is people, not congregations. Congregations come and go. God’s people, will serve Him where ever they are. There are too many examples today, of small struggling congregations that meet with just a handful of people. They must use all the money that they can scrape together to just heat and cool the building. Each funeral reminds them that they are dwindling. Some do not want to face reality. Some are holding on for a knight in shinny armor to save them. This is especially sad, when in a driving distance, two or three small congregations are holding on for all that they can. Would it be better to sell some of the buildings and merge? Would that make more sense and give them a chance to make a greater impact in the community? The death of a congregation is hard to witness. It’s sad.

This week, in our Jump Starts, we will look at some of these ten reasons. I will add a few of my own to the list. The purpose is not to discourage some of our readers, but to give hope. The intention is be realistic and definite. There are reasons why living things grow. There are reasons why living things die. This is true of people, animals, plants, and congregations. Those divine principles have a lot to do with what is going on. Many do not like to think about these things until it is too late. Like a marriage, some live in denial that there are serious problems, until one moves out. By then, it’s nearly too late. The problems should have been explored long ago. You can’t wait until your boat is going over the waterfall to pray for oars. It’s too late. It’s time some took a serious look at what is happening at the home congregations. What is the health of the church? Are we growing? Are we stagnate? Are we dying? It is measured not just in the number of new faces each week, but in the spirit, atmosphere, enthusiasm, love and connection with each other. It’s measured in what is going on outside the church building. It’s measured in the choices and the faith of the members. And, as a warning to those in large congregations, it is easy to take for granted the way you are. Basketball tourneys remind us that the big dogs often fall. The health of a church has nothing to do with the attendance numbers. A church can be large and sick. It can be large and weak in faith. The health of a church, like the health of a Christian, is tied directly to faith in Christ. That’s where it’s at.

Lest we forget, the congregation is a composite of all the members. Laodicea, in Revelation 3, was lukewarm, because the members were lukewarm. A strong church comes from strong members. A growing church comes from growing members. A friendly church comes from friendly members. One is connected to the other. I must do my part to make the church the way it ought to be. If I remain lukewarm, dead and indifferent, I drag the church down. I keep us from reaching our potential. We could be more, if I was more. Do we get that? I wonder sometimes. We want the church to be everything, while we are nothing. Doesn’t work that way.

More tomorrow…

Roger