1. Why are objectives important for a local church? Being successful begins with having clearly defined, well thought out goals and objectives. If a local church did not have any objectives, it probably would not be able to accomplish its reason for existence. The objectives of the church involve evangelism, baptism, and teaching.
2. What is the controlling objective of a local church? Carrying out the Great Commission or evangelism is the primary objective of the local church. A church is a group of called out, baptized believers who have been brought together to reach others for Christ.
3. What is included in the "Evangelism" objective? For the evangelism objective, the church must have vision. It must see first, farthest, and most. The church must have compassion and be a caring church. It should be a reaching church which seeks to make contact with others, motivate them, and bring them under the hearing of the gospel. The church should have a testimony to share what they have seen of Christ, what they have heard concerning Him, and what they have experienced. The church should be involved in preaching with the idea of communicating enough of the gospel in an understanding and motivating manner for others to be saved. The church should persuade others to come to Christ.
4. Why is "persuasion" important for evangelism? People do not naturally come to Christ. They need encouragement, and they need to be persuaded. The human heart is often suspicious.
5. What is included in the object of "Baptism"? The object of baptism is intended to get people under the discipline of the Word of God, to help Christians develop their spiritual gifts, to bring believers together for the purpose of worship, fellowship, serving through time, talent, and treasure, and to support the church leadership.
6. Why is education important to the objective of a church? In the Great Commission, in Matthew 28:19-20, Jesus told His disciples to teach them to observe all things. The church should teach Bible content, train in skills such as soul-winning and discipling others, help Christians develop the right attitudes of love, peace, joy, long-suffering, and so forth, and create an environment where Christians can understand and grow.
7. What happens to a local church that has property implemented the Great Commission? It will make disciples who have been trained as evangelists to make more disciples. Carried to an extreme, the world will hear about Jesus and be saved.
Tom of Spotswood"He that hath the Son hath life; and he that hath not the Son of God hath not life." (I John 5:12)
"And ye shall seek me, and find me, when ye shall search for me with all your heart." (Jeremiah 29:13)
Index to Selected Essays And Book Reviews
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