'Leadership & Ministry' Tagged Posts

'Leadership & Ministry' Tagged Posts

When God Used a Stutterer

Must limitations and weaknesses keep us from effective ministry? And how should we think about others in the church who have glaring, limiting imperfections? James Alexander Stewart was experiencing enormous success as an evangelist. By the age of 20, he was so sought after that he was preaching four or five times a day. He also filled his hours with evangelism in the streets and in homes. This was too much for a young man to handle alone. Stewart commented:…

11 Ways to Enliven Group Prayer

We don’t have to settle for cold, lifeless group prayer. Here are some strategies to bring heat and life into those times together. [1] God looks not at the elegance of your prayers, to see how neat they are; nor yet at the geometry of your prayers, to see how long they are; nor yet at the arithmetic of your prayers, to see how many they are; nor yet at the music of your prayers, nor yet at the sweetness…

Qualifications and Duties of an Elder

The following is a list of the biblical qualifications that an elder must possess. No elder will be a perfect man, but if he is clearly and persistently lacking in any of these qualities, he cannot serve in the church as an elder. An elder must be: 1. above reproach (lit. “blameless”) 1 Timothy 3:2; Titus 1:7. This qualification is the summation of all of the rest. It means that there is nothing in his life that would justify a legitimate…

“Conversation About House Churches”Podcast

This is the Revitalize and Replant Podcast interviewing Jim Elliff about the basics on house church life. House churches are not the only way to be a church, but we need to be open about churches developed intentionally to replicate what we see in the New Testament form as one clear option for church starts. Enjoy!

God Doesn’t Need You

“He is not served by human hands, as if he needed anything, because he himself gives all men life and breath and everything else.” Acts 17 Paul on Mars Hill in Athens proclaimed the entire self-sufficiency of God. We are his body, it is true, which is the fullness or completion of the Head. He uses us. But he needs nothing from us. Let that sink in. We do not add to him in any way, but rather, he gives…

Burrus the Deacon and the Meaning of Diakonia in the Letters of Ignatius of Antioch

As Ignatius of Antioch made his sunset journey from Antioch to Rome, he passed through the city of Smyrna, stopped in Troas, and continued his journey through Neapolis to Rome. The first four of Ignatius’ letters are the product of the Antiochan overseer’s stay in Smyrna (Ephesians, Magnesians, Trallians, and Romans). The remaining letters were penned in Troas (Philadelphians, Smyrneans, and probably the Letter to Polycarp). Unable to write to all the churches from Troas because of his sudden evacuation…

How to “Get Over it” When You Taught Poorly

If you teach the Bible regularly, you know the experience of wishing you had done better — sometimes much better — immediately after you finished. I have been there. I once spoke at a men’s retreat of a church different than my own. About halfway through my message, I could feel in my soul that things were going poorly. The men seemed unenthused. Two guys were whispering to each other and laughing. I pressed on, but it never improved. Afterwards,…

Spiritual Inventory for Pastoral Visits

Name_______________________________ Date_____________ Spiritual Inventory for Pastoral Visits For systematic pastoral visitation of church members____________________“Warn those who are unruly, comfort the fainthearted, uphold the weak, be patient with all men.” 1 Thess. 5:14 “Shepherd the flock of God which is among you, serving as overseers, not by compulsion but willingly, not for dishonest gain but eagerly, nor as being lords over those entrusted to you, but being examples to the flock; and when the Chief Shepherd appears, you will receive the…

What is a Missionary?

What is a missionary? He is not only an evangelist because there is a such person as an evangelist that God has gifted and given to the churches. But he must at least be sincerely, consistently and powerfully evangelistic, because it is out of new converts that he will begin churches. He isn’t only a teacher, because there is such a person as a teacher that God has given to the churches. But he is no less than a very…

Persons Expelled from the Church: May They Attend Church Meetings?

I have often heard through the years that those who have been disciplined out of a church should nonetheless be allowed to attend as non-members. I want to submit my view on the matter. The passage about the man who committed incest is instructive. This is found in 1 Cor 5. Look carefully at what Paul instructed the Corinthian church to do concerning this man. Note the strong language: —“so that the one who has done this deed would be…

How Teens Can Contribute Right Away

One of the joys of pastoring has been seeing teens come to faith in Christ and desiring to serve in the church. But they often need guidance to know how they might contribute. Here are a few valuable ways teens can participate at church meetings right away: 1. Teens can greet people. It’s understandable to want to group up with friends upon arrival — we all have this tendency — but it’s so important to mix in with all the…

Elders’ Meetings that Do Something

Elders’ meetings should not be an exercise in futility. Rather, to be effective for the church and interesting for the elders, some thought must be put into your time together. Some suggestions: 1. Plan for meeting together more often and for a longer period of time.      We find meeting for at least three hours weekly is about right. For us now, we meet from 5:30-8:30 a.m.Even then we find that we want more time. In fact, for quite…

The Public Reading of Scripture: Is There Only One Verse About This?

The famous verse that speaks to reading Scripture in church gatherings is 1 Timothy 4:13: “Until I come, devote yourself to the public reading of Scripture, to exhortation, to teaching.” However, throughout the Bible, God expected his people to hear his word read publicly, and we have a few instances of that happening. Below are most of the references to relevant passages and verses on this topic, with some brief comments. A Concise Biblical Survey Exodus 24:3-7 – The first…

Pastors and Salary

It is very likely, despite the admonition to the Ephesians to support their pastors, that the New Testament church elders covered their needs principally through other means as they led house churches. Surely, as Paul appointed elders in nascent churches, he did not arrange a salary package along with the assignment. Only a few hundred years later, as church life was institutionalized, did churches with buildings and larger memberships have enough funds to give salaries to some of their pastors…

Memorized Scripture: An Aid to Ministry, Sometimes in Surprising Ways

Awhile back, I finished memorizing Philippians. Since that time, I have tried to keep those four chapters memorized — a harder task than I imagined! Also in the days after memorizing this little book, I have had three unexpected experiences that have shown me that memorizing Scripture is even more beneficial for church leaders than I might have originally thought. The first unexpected experience happened during an elders’ meeting. We were discussing an issue in the church when one of…