{"id":32255,"date":"2022-09-10T16:02:24","date_gmt":"2022-09-10T21:02:24","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.biblia.work\/sermons\/3-non-negotiables-for-revitalizing-a-dying-church\/"},"modified":"2022-09-10T16:02:24","modified_gmt":"2022-09-10T21:02:24","slug":"3-non-negotiables-for-revitalizing-a-dying-church","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.biblia.work\/sermons\/3-non-negotiables-for-revitalizing-a-dying-church\/","title":{"rendered":"3 Non-Negotiables for Revitalizing a Dying Church"},"content":{"rendered":"
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By Joy Allmond<\/em><\/p>\n

Pastors Bobby Owings and Brian Moss share a penchant for going to places no one else wants to go.<\/p>\n

For them, it meant being called to lead dying churches\u2014congregations in steep decline, or even on the brink of shutting down.<\/p>\n

When Owings came to Surf City Baptist Church (SCBC), located in a resort town near a military base on the southern coast of North Carolina in 2009, each Sunday service had around 50 people in attendance\u2014on a good<\/em> day.<\/p>\n

Today, Owings preaches four sermons each Sunday to a total of around 500.<\/p>\n

Moss entered the ministry in 1999 after nearly two decades in the information technology industry. His first pastorate\u2014at Oak Ridge Baptist Church in Salisbury, Maryland\u2014brought him to a church that boasted around 30 for a weekend service.<\/p>\n

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He\u2019s still at Oak Ridge, along with around 1,200 more members than he started with.<\/p>\n

Owings and Moss shared a few vital actions churches must take if they want to not only stay alive, but also be effective.  <\/strong><\/p>\n

1. Cultivate a hospitable, compassionate congregation<\/strong><\/h3>\n

\u201cThe biggest one is the simplest one,\u201d says Moss. \u201cInitially what churches think when they hear me talk about change is they think they need to do rock n\u2019 roll on the platform and install lights and video.\u201d<\/p>\n

But it\u2019s not complicated, he explains.<\/p>\n

\u201cMost churches would double in size if they simply became friendly,\u201d he says. \u201cI do site visits as a \u2018secret shopper\u2019 to churches. The number one observation I make over and over is the churches aren\u2019t friendly. They simply don\u2019t seem like a place where they want people to come back.\u201d<\/p>\n

Moss says most churches would be revolutionized \u201cpractically overnight\u201d if church members would take this simple step.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis is really about authenticity and love that flows out of your heart,\u201d he says. \u201cWhen you love Jesus, you have to love what He loves. And if you don\u2019t love people enough to be welcoming and communicate you want them there, then you don\u2019t love Jesus.\u201d<\/p>\n

And when people realize the congregation and leaders genuinely care for them, Moss says, they’re generally open to taking the next step into a relationship with the church.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe people of today are like the ones we read about in the Bible\u2014the human condition transcends culture,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n

\u201cA doorway into their lives is often opened through meeting needs compassionately. The culture around us is not the problem; it\u2019s the culture inside<\/em> the church that\u2019s preventing growth.\u201d<\/p>\n

2. Accept\u2014and enact\u2014necessary change<\/strong><\/h3>\n

Owings says sometimes an externally visible change is what\u2019s needed to send a welcoming message to those on the outside.<\/p>\n

Six months after his pastorate began at SCBC the name of the church was changed to The Gathering.<\/p>\n

\u201cPeople in the community wanted to know if the Baptist church had closed,\u201d Owings quipped. \u201cLegally, we\u2019re still SCBC. But our identity<\/em> is The Gathering. We still hold to the Baptist Faith and Message, and still adhere to the same constitution. But most people who come here don\u2019t know it was ever SCBC.\u201d<\/p>\n

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See also  4 Changes I’d Make If I Could Start Ministry Over<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
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The reason for the change: to communicate the purpose and mission of the congregation.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhen it comes to generations, identity is a big deal,\u201d says Owings. \u201cAnd to communicate gospel truth to this generation, they have to see past their grandparents\u2019 worship style or identity.<\/p>\n

\u201c\u2018The Gathering\u2019 is an identity everybody can relate to\u2014as in, \u2018come gather with us.\u2019 This applies to the surfers down the block, the Marines stationed just a few miles away, or the older adults who\u2019ve retired here.\u201d<\/p>\n

And sometimes, Owings says, church leadership should change things from time to time, even if just for a fresh approach.<\/p>\n

\u201cIf things don\u2019t change from time to time, traditions will take over and \u2018shrines\u2019 will be erected,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n

Moss agrees.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe longer a church has been dead, the more courage it\u2019s going to take to revitalize it,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n

But it\u2019s worth the effort. After all, eternity is at stake.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe United States is one of the largest mission fields in the world. Most of us lose concept of that; we think of missions as something on foreign soil,\u201d Moss says. \u201cBut there are radically lost people here. We have the greatest opportunity for the gospel\u2014an unbelievable opportunity, if we\u2019re willing to change.\u201d<\/p>\n

3. Operate in light of your primary mission\u2014making disciples<\/strong><\/h3>\n

Most church leaders know their top priority is making disciples\u2014but most aren\u2019t doing much about it.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019ve never known a pastor who didn\u2019t understand this,\u201d Moss says. \u201cBut about 90 percent of them have no strategy for how they will do it.\u201d<\/p>\n

Strategy is a missing piece of the puzzle for many churches, according to Moss, and he urges church leaders to resist seeing systems as unspiritual. In fact, he explains, just the opposite is true.<\/p>\n

\u201cThink about creation: God created in steps and stages,\u201d he says. \u201cThis isn\u2019t a business idea. This isn\u2019t an American idea. God looked into nothingness, and He moved through steps and stages to realize a fully developed creation.\u201d<\/p>\n

Just \u201cdoing church\u201d from week to week, he says, isn\u2019t fulfilling the Great Commission.<\/p>\n

\u201cHow can we stand before God and say, \u2018I know we\u2019re supposed to do that discipleship thing, but I didn\u2019t know how, so I just did church,\u201d says Moss. \u201cThat excuse isn\u2019t going to hold water when we stand at the judgment and say we just did services.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hope for dying churches <\/strong><\/h3>\n

Regardless of how much a church has declined\u2014whether in attendance or missional zeal, Moss says there\u2019s always hope for dying churches.<\/p>\n

\u201cAny church can become more effective,\u201d he says. \u201cChurch members and church leaders hold the cards on how effectively they reach their communities. It really comes down to their passion for the gospel.\u201d<\/p>\n

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Joy Allmond<\/h2>\n

@joyallmond<\/strong><\/p>\n

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Joy is the managing editor of\u00a0LifewayResearch.com.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n