A quick internet search for “church planting” will result in a myriad of articles, from research on current statistics and advice from church planters to a whole host of organizations with extensive structures and programs in place to establish and grow new churches. I wonder, though, if it’s meant to be as complicated as it would seem by this mass of information.

The biblical view of church planting seems a lot simpler as I read through the book of Acts and the New Testament letters of doctrine and pastoral advice from those first apostles of Christ (Paul, Peter, James). What was their secret? From the humble beginnings of a few hundred believers, the gospel has spread all across our world, and is still as powerful now as it was more than two thousand years ago. How did those early disciples establish new churches, and what was their “strategy” to keep them strong and growing?

Paul and his co-laborers were master “church strengtheners.” What can we learn from a practical look at how they carried out the ministry of establishing and strengthening the body of Christ?

Looking at the word “strengthen” as found in the New Testament reveals a few simple principles that I believe can help all of us, as followers of Jesus, strengthen the church today. As we unpack these, we’ll discover three Greek words used in the New Testament to describe what it means to “strengthen” the church.

Keep in mind, the Church (the body of Christ) is not just your church. It includes all people who have believed the gospel of Jesus Christ, having received salvation according to the Scriptures.

Let’s broaden our perspective. How can we fulfill our biblical responsibility to strengthen our own local body, and at the same time, realize our obligation to help new and (possibly) struggling churches in need of strengthening?

Here are six simple principles to implement in our desire to be church strengtheners.

Photo credit: ©Getty Images/Rawpixel

What does God think about this? Does the Bible give us any guidance on whether or not our weight matters to Him? Are we spending our lives worrying about something that is irrelevant from an eternal perspective, or is it worth the attention it gets?

As we read the different accounts of Jesus’ last few days on earth, we are given a picture of the sovereignty of God, and how believing in His sovereignty will impact our success in carrying out the mission He has entrusted to us.

A good friend often shares this reminder: God is never late, and rarely early; He is an on-time God. These are encouraging words for all of God’s people who believe in prayer and worship a sovereign God. God doesn’t work on our timetable, but accomplishes all that He wills according to His own schedule.

No one likes waiting. We live in an age of microwave meals, instant access to information, and next-day shipping. The idea behind all our modern-day conveniences is that they will “save” time for us, but the reality is, we are far busier than our ancestors ever were. We strive to accomplish more and more, to pack as much as we possibly can into the twenty-four hours allotted to each day. And if by chance we must wait longer than we feel we should, we grow impatient, rude, and discontent.

I don’t believe this is the way God intended us to live. Life in the Garden of Eden was simple, as Adam and Eve enjoyed the beautiful world the Father had created for them. As each day ended, they had time to enjoy what surely was a spectacular sunset and looked forward each evening to walking with God in the cool of the day and enjoying His presence (Genesis 3:8).

Now, we squeeze as much as we can out of every minute and drop exhausted into our beds, only to do it all over again the next day.

No wonder we find it difficult to wait on God.

How do you respond when God fails to answer your prayers, or your questions, or change your circumstances in what you feel is a “timely” manner? Does it grow your faith, or challenge what you believe about Him?

Here are six things we need to consider as we wait on God.

Photo credit: ©Getty Images/kieferpix

For Christ-followers, honesty isn’t just an option; it’s non-negotiable. Scripture is clear that lying is a sin, and that sincere disciples of Jesus are committed to truth-telling. We understand that sin entered the world with a lie. Honesty is more than “the best policy.” Our character reveals the character of the one to whom we belong. 

The Bible does give us a pattern for how we can consider the circumstances of the people around us and respond, both in Jesus’ life and words, and the teachings of the apostles. The most inconsiderate thing we could do is fail to tell others the truth about the God who loves them so much He would die for them. But how we speak about truth and the actions we take because of that truth can and should be done with great consideration. 

How important is it for a follower of Jesus to be a good listener? Do our social skills matter? To answer, we start with a definition.

What, Exactly, Are Social Skills?

The simplest definition is “the personal skills needed for successful social communication and interaction with others.” This includes verbal, non-verbal, written, and visual skills. Good social skills help us communicate efficiently and effectively and have a direct impact on our relationships.

As we think about our purpose and mission as followers of Jesus, our social skills take on an eternal value. How well do we communicate the gospel? Think about your words, your mannerisms, your responses and reactions, and your non-verbal body language. Do they help or hinder your goal of modeling the love of Christ to both the unbelieving world, and our brothers and sisters in the body of Christ?

The good news is that social skills can be learned and improved, especially when we go to the source of all wisdom, God’s perfect Word. God is a master communicator. His social skills are impeccable. The words and life of Jesus while He lived and interacted on earth, as well as all the written Word of God, sets the perfect pattern to imitate as we model the love of Christ.

Photo credit: ©Getty Images/Greenleaf123

As parents, we must have a firm grip on the gospel ourselves, and be committed to teaching it, speaking of it, and illustrating it in our daily lives, so that our children will not only hear it, but see it and desire it for themselves. Our job is to imprint the truths of the gospel on their minds and hearts, and to pray diligently that the Holy Spirit will draw them, convict them of sin, and give them a clear understanding of the gospel.

Ultimately, it doesn’t matter what our culture decides about this issue of engaging in a sexual relationship with someone outside the covenant of marriage. The real issue is what God thinks of you, for in the end, all will stand before God and give account for their lives.

The story is primarily understood to describe the various effects of the gospel message of salvation that Jesus was teaching. But I believe there is additional wisdom to be gained by those of us who have already come into the kingdom through faith in Jesus, as we examine our own hearts’ response to the continued teaching of the Word of God.

The book of Ecclesiastes is King Solomon’s own accounting of his life’s pursuits. Gifted by God with wisdom exceeding any living man, innumerable possessions, and more wealth than he could spend in several lifetimes, he had set out to “seek and explore by wisdom concerning all that has been done under heaven” (Ecclesiastes 1:13). He was a man of extremes, testing both folly and madness as well as God-given wisdom. Ecclesiastes gives us insight into how he thought, what he did to explore and experience life, and what he ultimately concluded.

Ecclesiastes 7 is partially written in the prose style of the book of Proverbs, also authored by Solomon. Matthew Henry’s Commentary introduces this chapter by stating, “Solomon had given many proofs and instances of the vanity of this world and the things of it; now, in this chapter, he recommends to us some good means proper to be used for the redress of these grievances and the arming of ourselves against the mischief we are in danger of from them, that we may make the best of the bad.”

In other words, because life offers many temptations to follow the vanity of our hearts as Solomon did, there are some things we can take care to address to avoid the pitfalls into which he fell in his pursuit of life experiences.

Here are ten things Ecclesiastes 7 teaches us about wisdom, and the way a wise person conducts himself.

Photo credit: ©Getty Images/BrianAJackson

Discouragement is a part of life. We live in a fallen world. We are imperfect people, weak in our flesh – created beings who have little control over the circumstances of life.

As followers of Jesus, however, we have the solution for the discouragement we will inevitably face in life. First, if we belong to Christ, the Spirit of God dwells in us, empowering us to change and grow in our faith, and walk in the joy of obedience to Christ (Romans 8). Second, we have the powerful Word of God to encourage us, convict us, and challenge us.

“All Scripture is inspired by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, for training in righteousness, so that the man of God may be adequate, equipped for every good work” (2 Timothy 3:16-17).

“The law of the Lord is perfect, restoring the soul; the testimony of the Lord is sure, making wise the simple. The precepts of the Lord are right, rejoicing the heart. the commandment of the Lord is pure, enlightening the eyes” (Psalm 19:7-8).

Many things can discourage us, but all have their answers in God’s Word. Here are just twelve examples.

Photo credit: ©Getty Images/tuaindeed

“It is, of course, always a joyful thing to succeed. But the joy is very deceptive if it comes from the satisfaction of an ambition that is contrary to the will of God. What is success and what is failure? The answer of the Bible is, ‘What is the will of God? Are you obeying Him?’” - Paul Tournier, Breakfast for the Soul

Should Christians be pursuing success?

The answer is an emphatic “yes” if we understand that a successful life is one that is intent on knowing God as He has revealed Himself, seeks to believe and obey all that the Word of God proclaims, and views life through the lens of eternity.

The answer is a bit more complicated if we’re defining success by the world’s terms.

At its core, the word “success” is ambiguous, defined simply as a favorable or desired outcome. It means to reach one’s expectations, to accomplish a predefined goal. Today’s culture sees a successful person as one who is either famous, wealthy, or comfortable, or has a certain level of influence and power. We succeed when we make good grades, earn high honors, or gain material possessions that set us apart from our less-successful peers. Success is achieved when we no longer need to work hard, but still have all our desires and wants met.

The world also acknowledges success as accomplishing humanitarian goals – feeding the hungry, providing for the sick or mentally ill or homeless, or helping people overcome addictions. None of these would necessarily make a person rich or famous, but they would be considered successful in life for their accomplishments. However, if our focus is simply on the physical needs of this world without concern for the eternal souls of men, does God see this as success?

Photo credit: ©Getty Images/Sergey Nazarov