Starting and leading a local church
This is a study on what to look for in choosing a new pastor, (candidating pastors) or evaluating a pastor
Reasons for Church Decline is about churches are in decline across America and the world. The big question is why, and the even bigger question is how do we fix what is causing this? I am reacting to a post I read on the Internet. I didn’t bookmark it, sorry.
Loving the Preeminence represses the rest, explains how a “wolf in sheep’s clothing” can be seen by his desire to be preeminent among the brethren. This is especially seen in how they always want to “steal” the limelight from the other ministers.
1John 1:9 I wrote unto the church: but Diotrephes, who loveth to have the preeminence among them, receiveth us not. 10 Wherefore, if I come, I will remember his deeds which he doeth, prating against us with malicious words: and not content therewith, neither doth he himself receive the brethren, and forbiddeth them that would, and casteth them out of the church. 11 Beloved, follow not that which is evil, but that which is good. He that doeth good is of God: but he that doeth evil hath not seen God.
We must remember that when Satan fell, dragging a third of the heavenly host with him, and when he succeeded in getting Adam and Eve to sin, he contaminated the world. This contamination extends to God having to remake the world one day.
1John 2:15 Love not the world, neither the things that are in the world. If any man love the world, the love of the Father is not in him. 1John 2:16 For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life, is not of the Father, but is of the world. 1John 2:17 And the world passeth away, and the lust thereof: but he that doeth the will of God abideth for ever.
It is pretty clear that the Bible puts worldliness (being an active enthusiast of the world system) is dynamically opposed to being a Christian. God directly commands us to be different from the world system, to stand out and apart from that world system.
This is the problem with so many neo-evangelical Christians, they are trying so hard to merge their Christianity to be a part of the world, and the world a part of their Christianity. They want the two things (the world and Christian faith) to be one. That is impossible.
In the context here, God advises us that the world is set as our enemy, because the world rejects God, because the king of this world, Satan, has rejected God. There can be no truce. There can be no cordial working together of the two. You are for one or the other. To be for one places you as an enemy of the other.
By David Cox
I read a post at http://joshhevans.com/2014/08/29/5-things-that-can-ruin-a-church/ and that got me thinking. There are a lot of things that can “ruin a church”. This post is the first of three, and here I look at qualities, then events, and then people. First of all, by way of introduction, let’s consider what is “being ruined” really mean? I mean, what is a “non-ruined church” and what would ruin it? We cannot consider the factors that cause the “ruin of a church” without considering these two points first. Let’s do this with your church. What is “church” supposed to be? When a church is fully pleasing God, doing what God has ordained it’s purpose to be, what is that? Write that down on a piece of paper, now consider when you have seen or conceive of a church being “ruined”. What would that be like?
