State of Theology Survey Review and Implications
Video replay of the December 1, 2022 State of Theology Review and Implications seminar at the Marion Baptist Association Missionary Resource Center In Ocala, FL.
Every two years Life Way Research and Ligonier Ministries partner together to take the theological pulse of Americans. The latest findings have been published at thestateoftheology.com. On December 1, 2022 Pastor Eric Gervais of First Baptist Church of Salt Springs led our discussion of the survey results and their implications for pastors and churches.
Some topics covered include:
Does God Change?
Are We Born Innocent?
Does Church Membership Matter?
Is the Bible Divinely Authored by God?
What Is God's Will For Human Identity and Sexual Ethics?
Being the Church in the Digital Age
Here is the video replay from our April, 2022 Lunch and Learn. We are talking about best practices for churches for growing disciples of Jesus in this new digital environment.
The COVID-19 pandemic expedited digital transitions around the world by about 10 years. Churches and organizations of all sizes have learned new ways to connect and communicate with people remotely. At our April, 2022 lunch and learn, we discussed best practices for churches for growing disciples of Jesus in this new digital environment.
Lunch and Learn at the MBA Missionary Resource Center is an opportunity for pastors and church leaders to enjoy some food and fellowship while learning about resources available to assist local churches.
Why Church Multiplication is Important
Churches in the New Testament reached their cities, their region and spread the Gospel to other parts of the world through multiplication. When we apply Biblical principles to our churches today, we cannot ignore the fact that multiplication is central to the Gospel.
What would your church look like if every follower of Jesus was involved in making disciples who made disciples? Can you imagine a day when all of the leaders in your church actively enlisted and developed new leaders? What if your church had so many leaders that you had to send some of them out to revitalize and plant other churches in order for them to continue developing spiritually? Can you imagine the impact on global evangelism and missions if every church was sending people to the mission field? This isn't a dream, it is a Biblical expectation. Church multiplication is both prescriptive and descriptive in the Acts of the Apostles and early churches in the New Testament.
But those that were sown on the good soil are the ones who hear the word and accept it and bear fruit, thirtyfold and sixtyfold and a hundredfold.” - Mark 4:20 ESV
When we look at churches in the New Testament, we see that they made disciples who made disciples, developed leaders who developed leaders, and planted churches who planted churches.
But the word of God increased and multiplied. - Acts 12:24 ESV
In the Great Commission passage of Matthew 28:19-20, Jesus instructed his disciples to make more disciples. In Acts 13, the church in Antioch sent out leaders to spread the Gospel further and to start more churches. In Ephesians 4:12, Paul instructed the church in Ephesus to build up the body of Christ by preparing the people for the work of the ministry.
and what you have heard from me in the presence of many witnesses entrust to faithful men, who will be able to teach others also. - II Timothy 2:2
In the letter to the Colossians, Paul is writing to people that he did not know in a church that he did not start. We understand from the context in chapters 1 and 4 that Paul heard about this church from a disciple named Epaphras. Evidently the church in Ephesus sent Epaphras to Colossae to preach the Gospel and start a church there. Then, the Colossian church started churches in Hierapolis and Laodicea.
This continued for two years, so that all the residents of Asia heard the word of the Lord, both Jews and Greeks. Acts 19:10 ESV
It is clear that the New Testament pattern is for church leaders to train new disciples of Jesus to obey His command to take the Gospel to all people groups everywhere. Church leaders also developed more leaders who served in the local churches and were also sent to spread the Gospel and plant churches in other places. The church in Ephesus was so effective in following the instructions of Paul that they were able to reach everyone in their entire region with the Gospel as reported in Acts 19:10.
According to a study conducted by LifeWay Research, only 7% of the churches in America are practicing Biblical multiplication (You can download the report by clicking here).
Bless Every Home with Chris Cooper
Here is the video replay of the November 2021 Lunch and Learn with Chris Cooper at the Marion Baptist Association Missionary Resource Center.
We had such a great time fellowshipping with each other and learning together at our November, 2021 Lunch and Learn at the MBA Missionary Resource Center. We've had several requests for the video of Chris Cooper's, (founder of BlessEveryHome.com) training that we are sharing it here. If you would like to sign up your church to be a Bless Partner, you can do that through the MBA portal at www.bless.mba.