The Church is the most glorious institution in existence! God’s Word reveals the church in promise (Genesis 3:15; Ephesians 1:4-5), prophecy (Daniel 2:44), preparation (Matthew 16:18; Mark 9:1), perfection (Acts 2:41-47) and preservation (Revelation 12-22). Christ is the head of the church (Ephesians 1:22-23), Savior of the body (Ephesians 5:23), theme of the Bible (Luke 1:68) and key to both the inspiration (John 12:48) and interpretation (Luke 22:27, 44-45) of Scripture. Truly, Christ is the center of both the Bible and the church. The goal in church-growth must reflect our desire to be a Christ-centered church. This means Christians must strive to be:
1. A Converted Church. Christians must be more than convinced, they must be converted; converted to Jesus not preachers, elders, deacons or anyone else. We must be converted to Jesus (Acts 3:19; 1 Corinthians 1:18)!
2. A Convicted Church. The pulse of a local congregation must beat in unison. We must have “one heart and one soul” (Acts 4:32). We must be “likeminded, having the same love, being of one accord, of one mind” (Philippians 2:2). We must stand together on the solid rock of Jesus (Ephesians 6:10-11; Matthew 7:25).
3. A Cooperating Church. The letter “I” does not appear in the word team or church. We are all a part of the body of Christ. We must work together (1 Corinthians 12:12-27). The Christians on Pentecost “were together, and had all things common” (Acts 2:44). If we do not work together, we will segment and separate. However, there must be “no division among you” (1 Corinthians 1:10).
4. A Compassionate Church. God intends for us to be servants, not to be served (Mark 10:45). We are commanded to “visit the widows and orphans”(James 1:27), those inside and outside the Church (Galatians 6:10), the hungry and naked (James 2:14) and our neighbors (Luke 10:29-37).
5. A Commissioned Church. God loves our soul so much that He “gave His only begotten Son”(John 3:16), revealed His inspired Word (2 Timothy 3:16), manifested His amazing grace to all (Titus 2:11), provided a life example in Jesus (1 Peter 2:21) and answered the question: “What must I do to be saved?” Therefore, since God said, “go ye,” that means, “go me.”
May God help us to live in such a way to always bring Him honor, glory and praise. May we always strive to be a Christ-Centered Church.
