Rick Warren once wrote "A great commitment to the Great Commandment and the Great Commission will grow a great church." I agree with his comment 100 percent. He proved it to be true in his own ministry as he led Saddleback Church from a Bible study group of less than 10 people to a megachurch with nearly 20,000 attending each weekend.
Churches spend a lot of time trying to figure out their mission. They're not sure exactly what they are supposed to do. Should they focus on justice issues? Should they be involved in social change? Should they be advocates for political change? Unfortunately, since many of them can't decide what they should do, they do nothing. They simply repeat what they've done each Sunday for years.
As I've spoken to many pastor groups over the years from a variety of denominations, I've explained that the mission of the church is very simple. They don't have to spend months in committee meetings to determine a mission statement. They don't have to bring in outside consultants to lead them in determining their mission. Jesus has given every church its mission. It's the Great Commission and the Great Commandment. That mission does not change whether the church is a megachurch or one that has an average attendance of 12 people each week. That mission does not change for churches of different denominations. Any church that is not committed to the Great Commission and the Great Commandment has ceased being a New Testament church. BTW - A commitment to the Great Commission and the Great Commandment will, by their nature, also address the other questions posed in the paragraph above.
Every decision a church makes should be filtered through the Great Commission and the Great Commandment. Regardless of the size of church, we all have financial and manpower limitations. Some may have more resources at their disposal, but we all have our limits. Anything that we might do that takes away our ability to fulfill the Great Commission and the Great Commandment should be removed from consideration.
Most, if not all, communities have population growth that far exceeds church growth in those communities. That means we are reaching fewer and fewer people for Christ. Even if our church is growing, it probably isn't growing as fast as the population around us. That is why a greater commitment to the Great Commission is so important. We are told a minimum of 50 percent of every county in the US is unchurched. That means our small county of 32,000 people has a mission field of 16,000 souls minimum to be reached. What about the county in which you live? What mission field exists right outside your church doors? Does your church have the commitment to the Great Commission necessary to reach that mission field?
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