The Church Grows In the Word

And the word of God continued to increase, and the number of the disciples multiplied greatly in Jerusalem, and a great many of the priests became obedient to the faith.                       -Acts 6:7

 

Church growth is a hot topic within the world of Christianity today.  As many congregations decline in size pastors and laity alike continue to search for answers.  Why do we struggle in this postmodern world?  What is keeping people away from the church?  Why have we lost our influence and authority in this nation?  We commission market studies and research to help us find the methods that will attract people and convince them to join our ranks.  Local congregations of our day will seemingly try any method or program that might bring the masses to them. 

 

Sometimes, as I read books about methods and programs, I wonder where we find all this in Scripture.  If the church described in the book of Acts is our model then why do we not follow their example?  Have we considered the fact that with all of our modern innovations, and our life on the “cutting edge” of ministry we are failing miserably while that small band of fishermen so many years ago set the world on fire?  Those men and women of the early church turned a pagan world upside down.  Their influence was so great that the pagan government of the time could not help but stand up and take notice of the work that God was doing among them.  Where is that power today?  Why do we not see such a work?  Even churches that are growing tremendously do not see the power of God at work within them like the apostolic church. 

 

There are many differences we could point out between that church and the church of our day, but we would be better served to look at what drove their ministry, and where their attention was focused.  They were not looking at the most recent sociological studies, but at the Word of God.  Acts 6:7 tells us that the number of disciples grew as the Word of God INCREASED.  With each passing day the doctrines and teaching of Christ became more prominent in their lives and within the church.  “And they devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching [doctrine] and the fellowship, the breaking of bread and the prayers (Acts 2:42).”  These were people who desperately wanted to know Christ through His teaching.  They wanted to make Him, and His work, the object of their being.  The talked about doctrine with one another, and lived it in everything they did.  For the early church, things like sanctification and holiness were more than simply a theory, or an exercise in intellectual gymnastics.  These teachings were a way of life and a part of their very being.  For them, to know Christ was to learn of Him through His work in their lives.  To understand what He taught and did among them.

 

For many among the church in this day, doctrine is not longer a matter of importance.  People are continually telling us that doctrine does not matter as long as people are getting saved.  We allow any number of heresies (and we need to call them what they are) to be spread throughout the church as long as a few more people show up this Sunday than last.  Those who desire to stay true to the Word of God are accused of loving doctrine more than Jesus.  To briefly consider things like this shows the fallacy on which they are founded. 

 

Doctrine simply means teaching.  A doctrine is something that Scripture teaches us.  If Jesus Christ embodied the truth of God (John 14:6) then what He did and taught are doctrine.  Jesus’ work and teaching cannot – and should not – be separated.  To love Jesus is to love His teaching, and therefore, to love doctrine because it is an explanation of His Holy character, and teaches us the truth behind the works that He did.  The apostles looked at the teaching and work of Christ in this way.  In the first book, O Theophilus, I have dealt with all that Jesus began TO DO AND TEACH… (Acts 1:1)”  In their minds, to do the work of Christ was to live the doctrine of Christ.  That Is why John wrote, “Everyone who goes on ahead and does not abide in the TEACHING OF CHRIST, does not have God.  Whoever abides IN THE TEACHING has both the Father and the Son (2 John 1:9).”  One cannot and does not truly know and love Jesus Christ without continually gaining an understanding of doctrine.

 

While considering the importance of doctrine in our personal lives, we cannot forget its importance in the church.  The church was multiplied only as the Word of God increased.  As it was taught and took a position of prominence.  As Jesus’ teachings were passed on to the disciples who followed the lives around them were touched and even changed.  They were changed because this doctrine, and this Word are not without power.  “For the Word of God is living and active, sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing to the division of soul and of spirit, of joints and of marrow, and discerning the thoughts and intentions of the heart (Hebrews 4:12).”  The apostolic church did not simply teach a theory or a method.  They lived in submission to God and allowed His Word and His Truth to live in them.  They did not work to explain it away, or to excuse themselves from its commands, but they taught and understood it so that Jesus Christ (the Truth) would become a part of their innermost being.  So that it was Christ who lived through them. 

 

The power contained in the doctrine of the Word is why they worked so hard to maintain purity in their teaching.  If the doctrine taught by Christ and inspired by the Holy Spirit multiplied the number of disciples, false doctrine – and those who promoted it - would be the greatest threat to the young church.  John wrote to the church, “If anyone comes to you and does not bring this teaching [doctrine], do not receive him into your house or give him any greeting, for whoever greets him takes part in his wicked works (2 John 10, 11).”  Have you ever thought about how much we have changed since those days?  We have gone from not even greeting one who bears false teaching to promoting them to the highest positions of leadership because their “gifts” are more important than their beliefs.  Jesus Christ Himself even rebuked this false teaching in His letter to the Church of Thyatira:  “But I have this against you, that you tolerate that woman Jezebel, who calls herself a prophetess and is teaching and seducing my servants… (Rev. 2:20)”  The truth is that there is no place in all of Scripture that condones false doctrine.  But beyond that fact is the truth that there is no verse anywhere that teaches us that doctrine is not important.  In fact, most of the epistles give some type of instruction to seek the Truth. 

 

By continuing to look away from God and to things of the world for direction, the church is missing the power that is available to her.  We continue to suffer from our power outage as we seek the ways of the world, and try everything in our power to win souls.  We try in vain because soul winning and discipleship are not in our power.  Martyn Lloyd-Jones teaches us that Christianity is “not something that we take up or put down, but something that God does in our lives.”  When His Word moves in our lives discipleship takes place.  When the Word becomes a part of us outreach takes place.  “And I, when I am lifted up from the earth, will draw all people to myself (John 14:32).”  It seems that we are making the commission given to us by Jesus Christ much more difficult than it should be.  We are not called to come up with slick marketing strategies and ingenious ploys.  We are simply called to submit to God and allow His Spirit to work through us. 

 

The need of the world today is not another program.  The need of the church is not more organization and structure.  The need is the power of the Spirit of God working through the Word of God.  As the world closes in all around us, what the church needs – and what the world needs – are preachers and teachers who take doctrine seriously.  We need those who, as the Old Testament prophets, can boldly proclaim, “The Word of the Lord came to me.”  The church needs those who will not compromise this Word for all the wealth of the world or the favor of its people.  A.W. Tozer once wrote, “I do not know what the future holds.  But I know one thing: Rather than betray the sheep of God, rather than lie to them and deceive them and keep them agitated and stirred up with all kinds of popular topics; rather than take my material from Time magazine, I’ll preach the Word to empty seats and sigh and cry for the abomination that is in the earth.” 

 

It is not an easy task to hold true to the doctrine of God’s Word.  It will bring criticism and skepticism, but in the end, it is the truth that will set people free.  The church has been entrusted to teach and proclaim the Word of God.  And we are told that it will not be popular.  “And you will be hated by all for my name’s sake.  But the one who endures to the end will be saved (Matt. 10:22).”  James Earl Massey speaks of the difficulty of holding true to the Word in his book Stewards of the Story, “A trustworthy stewardship as preachers demands courage to preach in these times when religious pluralism influences the public mind and postmodernism has emboldened many to question our message and the necessity of our work.”

 

The call to hold to the doctrines of Scripture is not always easy, and is seldom popular.  But it is our charge nonetheless.  The book of Acts gives us an example of a viable, growing church.  It is a church where doctrine was not only important, but imperative.  If we are to “be the church,” we must hold to the doctrine that has been entrusted to the church.  If we are to experience a renewal of God’s works and power in this day when the world pulls us in a thousand different directions, it will be when doctrine once again becomes a priority in the church.

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