The Main Thing
To be successful in church planting, don’t focus on building the church! Instead, focus on building people. Focusing on the church may develop an organization, but focusing on people will build a church.
Of all the places in scripture where our Savior’s commission to his servants is recorded, the most thorough description is found in Matthew 28:19-20, where Jesus says, “Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost: Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you.” The command in this verse is to “make disciples.” That’s right! It is not to plant churches, but to help people become followers of Christ. The grammar in the rest of the sentence indicates disciples are made by “going,” “baptizing” and “teaching.”
Going – If we would make disciples for Christ, we must go after them. We cannot just hang out our sign and expect the people to flock to us – we must find them where they are. People don’t normally respond to programs and promotion designed to draw them to church – they do respond to people who will invest time to first build a relationship with them, and then share with them God’s Word. If we would obey the Master, we too must be going “to seek and to save that which (is) lost.”
Baptizing – We must bring them to Christ. Not only must we give them the good news that there is a Savior, but we must get them into the Scripture where they an truly know that Savior. A superficial profession will not do—there must be a sincere faith in the Son of God and His substitutionary sacrifice so that baptism follows a genuine birth by the Spirit.
Teaching – Helping people to follow Christ means teaching them His truth, showing them what it means to live that truth, and then helping them learn how to put it into practice. Church-planting ministries must be characterized by the practical teaching of the Word of God. In a day when many are peddling their own ideas or teaching from a bestselling book, we must be convinced of the power of the Scriptures and committed to exposing and expounding them clearly and passionately. Discipleship is more than just helping new believers get started in the Christian life, it is the whole task of reaching people wherever they are and taking them to where God wants them to be. To do that, we must:
• Discern their spiritual condition
• Know where they need to go
• Give them what they need to get there
If we truly make disciples, we will be well along the way toward seeing a church established. Want to be a successful church planter? Focus on THE MAIN THING!