Seven Characteristics of a Strong Church - A Sermon Outline by Robert Harkrider
What Makes a Strong Church?
| WRONG STANDARDS | SPIRITUAL STANDARDS |
| Large Numbers (Mt. 18:20) | Holy members (1 Pet. 2:5) |
| Beautiful building (Rev. 3:1) | Unified members (Eph. 4:16) |
| Big contributions (Rev. 3:17) | Unselfish givers (Mt. 25:14-30) |
| Past records (Rev. 2:4-5) | Current workers (Mk. 12:41-44) |
Seven Things That Make a Strong Church
[1] Knowledge - to give it a foundation on which to stand.
a. God desires for us to grow spiritually. (1 Pet. 2:2; 2 Pet.
3:18; Heb. 5:11-14.
b. Knowing truth is necessary to withstand the Devil. (Eph. 6:10-18;
Hos. 4:6)
c. It is essential to teach others. (1 Pet. 3:15; 2 Tim. 2:2)
d. Must take time to study. (2 Tim. 2:15; Acts 17:11)
[2] Zeal - to give it life.
a. Zeal without knowledge is dangerous. (Rom. 10:1-3)
b. Knowledge without zeal is of no value. (Rev. 2:3-5; Jms. 4:17;
Mt. 25:24-27)
c. God's grace should inspire us to be zealous. (Titus 2:14; Lk.
17:10; 1 Cor. 15:58.
[3] Unity - to give it power.
a. "That the world may believe…" (Jn. 17:20-21)
It is scriptural for division to occur over truth (1 Tim. 4:1,2;
2 Tim. 4:2-4), but not over personalities (Phil. 2:1-4; Jms.
3:16)
b. Our common calling from the lord unites us:
1. in purpose (Rom. 15:5-7)
2. in prayer (Acts 2:41,42)
3. in sacrifice (Acts 4:32)
[4] Loyalty - to give it stability.
a. Peace and prosperity have a veiled meaning concerning commitment.
(Acts 4:19,20; Lk. 14:26-33)
b. It takes conviction to be "faithful unto death."
(Rev. 2:10)
c. This attitude eliminates hypocrisy and inspires sacrifice (Rom.12:1,2;
1Pet. 2:11,12; 4:14-16)
[5] Love - to give it feeling (1 Cor. 13:1-3)
a. Love for God involves obedience. (Mt. 22:37-40; 1 Jn. 5:3;
Jn. 14:15)
b. Love for the brethren involves action. (1 Jn. 3:16-18; Rom.
12:9,10; 1 Cor. 13:4-7
c. Love is the perfect bond of unity and involves a personal attitude
of humility. (Col. 3:12-15)
[6] Purity - to give it beauty.
a. Worldliness is one of the greatest enemies of truth (1 Jn.
2:15-17; 2 Tim. 4:10)
b. How can one imitate God while living like the Devil? (Eph.
5:1-12; 1 Cor. 6:19,20; Jms. 1:26)
c. Conduct yourselves in a manner worthy of the Gospel. (Phil.1:27)
[7] Prayer - to keep it holy.
a. New Testament disciples drew close to God through prayer. (Acts
1:14,24; 2:42; 4:31; 6:6; 14:23)
b. prayer is one of the greatest blessings we share. (1 Jn. 3:22;
5:14,15)
c. We should pray at all times. (Eph. 6:18; Col. 4:2; 1 Thess.
5:17,18)
Surely You Have Things Turned Around! By Stan Cox (Reprinted
from Watchman Magazine: http://www.watchmanmag.com/)
There are several things necessary for worship to be "true
worship." First, God must be the object. By this we mean
the one true God; the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. The God
referred to by Paul when he told the Athenians, "Men of Athens,
I perceive that in all things you are very religious; for as I
was passing through and considering the objects of your worship,
I even found an altar with this inscription: TO THE UNKNOWN GOD.
Therefore, the One whom you worship without knowing, Him I proclaim
to you: God, who made the world and everything in it, since He
is Lord of heaven and earth, does not dwell in temples made with
hands..." (Acts 17: 22-24). The God to which Paul refers
here is the one true God. He is the Creator of the universe.
He is the omnipotent, omniscient, self-existent One. "I
am the Alpha and the Omega, the Beginning and the End," says
the Lord, "who is and who was and who is to come, the Almighty"
(Revelation 1:8). All other gods are figments of man's imagination.
Second, in order for worship to be true it must be appropriate.
That is, it must be worship that is accepted by the one, true
God. If God has established parameters to acceptable worship,
these must be recognized and heeded. John records the words of
Jesus on this matter, "...True worshipers will worship the
Father in spirit and truth; for the Father is seeking such to
worship Him" (John 4:23).
We are living in a time where the value or worth of an act of
worship is determined experientially. That is, if the worshipper
has a positive experience in the worship, it is determined to
be valid. Such a standard is by nature subjective, and leads
to widely divergent types of worship. Where one might be most
comfortable in a traditional, reverent, quiet service, another
may thrive in a more contemporary, casual, even chaotic setting.
This experiential approach to worship has led many denominations
to advertise their style of worship aggressively, to entice the
curious. A perusal of the yellow pages in Ft. Worth, TX turned
up the following phrases describing the worship services of local
denominations. "Casual & Energetic Atmosphere",
"A Contemporary Experience", "Contemporary Praise
& Worship", "Tridentine Latin Mass Only & Always",
"A Non-denominational church of Love, Light & Laughter",
"Anglican Worship in Downtown Ft. Worth Using the 1928 Book
of Common Prayer" and "Traditional Anglo-Catholic Church".
One Methodist church went so far as to advertise a "traditional"
service at 11:00 AM on Sunday, and a "contemporary"
service earlier at 8:45 AM.
However, the focus of worship as revealed in the Bible is not
if the worship pleased man; rather, did it please God?! In Matthew
15, Jesus quoted Isaiah in condemning the Pharisees for their
lawlessness. Because they had substituted their own traditions
for God's will He said, "These people draw near to Me with
their mouth, And honor Me with their lips, But their heart is
far from Me. And in vain they worship Me, Teaching as doctrines
the commandments of men" (vs. 8-9). The quotation is from
Isaiah 29. In that same context, the passage includes the following
statement from God, "Surely you have things turned around!
Shall the potter be esteemed as the clay; For shall the thing
made say of him who made it, 'He did not make me'? Or shall the
thing formed say of him who formed it, 'He has no understanding'?"
(vs. 16).
Surely we have things turned around when we seek to worship God
in ways that please us! As the creature, we have no right to
choose how we will worship the Creator. It is the place of the
Creator to make those determinations.
We should rather seek to determine what God expects of us,
and glory in submitting our will to His. It is a matter of faith.
It is not our place to question the Master, only to serve him.
Jesus established this clearly in teaching his disciples. He
noted that a master, when he has instructed a servant, does not
thank the servant for doing what was required. He said, "Does
he thank that servant because he did the things that were commanded
him? I think not. So likewise you, when you have done all those
things which you are commanded, say, 'We are unprofitable servants.
We have done what was our duty to do'" (Luke 17:9-10).
The Greek word from which we get the term worship is proskuneo.
It has an interesting origin, derived from a word, pros, indicating
direction, "forward or toward", and kuon, "a dog."
The term in its literal sense would be rendered, "to kiss,
like a dog licking his master's hand; to fawn, or crouch to..."
(Strong). Strong defines the term, as it is used in John 4, "prostrate
oneself in homage (do reverence to, adore): --worship."
Another appropriate term in this context is obeisance. The term
comes from a French word meaning "to obey", and means
"deference or homage." Intrinsic in the concept of
worship is deference to the one who is the object of the worship.
In giving homage to God, it must be understood that we defer
to His will for us in our worship.
There is much revealed in the New Testament regarding what God
expects in Christian worship. Instructions are given regarding
both the elements of Christian worship, and the manner in which
these elements are to be accomplished. God has clearly stated
what he requires of us. It is required of us to study those instructions,
and conform our practice to His will. Otherwise, our worship
is not true! "And in vain they worship Me, Teaching as doctrines
the commandments of men." (Matthew 15:9).
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