The Complete Book Church Growth

Page 185

preached to every creature. We are to teach those already converted to go win others.4 After referring to the ninety and nine and emphasizing the lostness of the one sheep (Luke 15:4), Dr. Rice submits: The very term “Pastor” has come to mean looking after Christians, and pastors who win few souls or none, say that they are called to “feed the sheep.” And the churches are glad to think that they are God's sheep and that the pastor ought to spend his time in feeding them, teaching them the Word of God and otherwise making himself useful to church members.5 The failure in our churches is, first of all, a pastor failure. There is no way to build great soul-winning churches without soul-winning pastors.6 Inrig, representing Evangelical Bible Churches, states: It should also be noted that the main business of assembly life is the equipping and edification of believers. Unfortunately, many churches have focused so strongly upon evangelism that believers have been starved, and church life has become anemic.7 By the way of obvious contrast Dr. Lee Roberson says, “The business of the local church is soul winning. The business of the pastor, the song leader, the choir, the Sunday school, the youth organizations is soul winning.”8 Dr. Jack Hyles is committed to evangelism in the church, especially while the trend today is to larger morning crowds. Hyles cites two crucial points. The first is, I doubt if any preacher will realize his evangelistic potential until he realizes the importance of evangelism in public worship. Second, no church can reach its soul-winning potential until it is organized for soul winning and stripped of needless organization.9 Gene Getz argues for both evangelism and edification, but in their proper places. The church therefore exists to carry out two functions—evangelism (to make disciples) and edification (to teach them). These two functions in turn answer two questions: first, Why does the church exist in the world? and second, Why does the church exist as a gathered community?10 Hodges, noted Assembly of God expert in church planting, stresses that “every local church should be considered a seedbed that produces Christian workers. In order to attain this, it is necessary that the pastor have a deep desire to develop leadership in his church.”11 He goes on to argue: The ideal workers' training program includes a strong activity program in the local church, coupled with specialized training in systematic Bible teaching such

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