ABide: jESUS' PLAN FOR CHURCH GROWTH

"Church growth is not a human endeavor. It is an altogether spiritual work." ​​

By Fr. Don Sackett  

Jesus said, “I Am the Vine, and my Father is the husbandman. Every branch in Me that  beareth not fruit He taketh away: and every branch the beareth fruit, He purgeth it. The it may bring forth more fruit.”
 
It seems we are all looking for the perfect recipe on how make our church grow. We initiate various service projects, mission trips, outreach efforts, and any number of church-growth programs to make it happen. We work hard to reach the unchurched and serve "the least of these," but most visitors come and go like they're stopping at a convenience store instead of encountering the living presence of Christ in the Eucharist. So what's the secret to real, meaningful church growth?

Chapters 14-17 of St. John’s Gospel are a written record of Christ’s instruction to His Apostles before His impending crucifixion. This is where things begin to get real, so to speak, as He informs them of things that must take place, and the very reasons behind his Incarnation: His death upon the cross would be His sacrifice, the resurrection would draw all men to Him, the ascension would place Him upon His rightful throne in heaven, and the sending of the Holy Spirit would allow for a continuation of His ministry by the apostles as they build His Church.  
 
The Apostles were witnesses to Christ’s earthly ministry. They beheld the innumerable miracles Jesus performed, they enjoyed close fellowship with Him. They were abiding with him so that they could emulate His ways. Now as He approached His passion, He was preparing them for the work they were to do after his departure--the work of church growth.
 
In Chapter 15, at the heart of this message to the church, Jesus presents Himself as the Vine of Salvation, the true vine. He says, “Abide in Me, and I in you.” Abide is an intransitive verb, meaning "to remain stable or fixed." Our Lord further stresses this notion of abiding by adding, “If you keep My commandments, you shall abide in My love, even as I have kept my Father’s commandments, and abide in His love.”
 
One commentator explains that Christ was warning about a common human weakness: spiritual laziness. He paraphrases, “Having learned that I love you, you must not relax. Whether you abide in My love depends on your own effort. You must strive to love Me continually.” The emphasis is on action--but spirit-oriented action. What action did Christ command? To love the Lord your God with all your heart, soul, mind, and strength, and your neighbor as yourself.
 
We also must acknowledge that spiritual growth—both personal and corporate—is impossible to achieve without divine assistance. In chapter 14 Jesus states, “And I will pray the Father, and He shall give you another Comforter, that He may abide with you forever; Even the Spirit of Truth; whom the world cannot receive, because it sees Him not, neither knows Him: but you know Him; for He dwelleth with you and shall be in you.” Notice that word “abide” is used here also. The Holy Spirit will abide with us to help us abide with Christ.
 
So how does this work in the real world? 

It starts with that little fire within your breast that nudges you to believe, to pray, to study, to worship and glorify God, and to seek His presence within your life. That urge, that longing, is proof of the Holy Spirit abiding in you. The Holy Spirit is also manifested when believers come together as the Church to worship and encourage one another to greater works of prayer, faith and service. When the fervor of each individual, working in conjunction with the Holy Spirit and in union with each other to reflect the image of Christ to the world, then we are following Christ’s command to “abide.”
 
Bearing Fruit
Church growth is not a human endeavor. It is an altogether spiritual work. No human can accomplish it. It takes an act of the Holy Spirit to bring a man to Christ. Therefore, the work of the Church is the to abide in agape-love for the Lord and for each other. They operate in their Spirit-given gifts surrounded by grace, mutual affection, and peace. With genuine love toward God and each other, a parish becomes an attractive community of believers who “work out our salvation in fear and trembling, for it is God who works in you . . .” (Philippians 2:12-13)
 
“These things I command you, that you love one another.” –Jesus Christ
 
Some time ago I was appointed to serve as vicar at two parishes: St. Marks and Holy Trinity. They were small parishes in neighboring communities that shared a priest. They celebrated the same liturgy and received the same teaching and preaching at both churches. I strove to minister to each parish equally. St. Marks received the ministry with love, joy and unity, and eventually the parish began to grow. New people started showing up, and existing members began attending more regularly.
 
In contrast, Holy Trinity was a parish divided against itself. In fact, their love for Christ and each other had grown so cold that they could not even reach across the isle to shake hands at the passing of the peace. They could not receive the ministry of the Church because they refused to love and forgive one another. Attendance continued to drop and eventually the bishop was forced to close the parish.
 
St. Marks and Holy Trinity were similar parishes in similar communities that received a similar ministry but produced completely different results. That experience taught me two things. First, the priest alone cannot grow a church. All members must serve faithfully and leave the results to God. Second, I learned that a church is able to grow only when its members abide in agape-love for Jesus Christ and each other.
 
At St. Andrews, no one demonstrates this kind of abiding love more than our own Ron Payne. Ron loves Becky and you see it in the way he adores her. He cannot help himself. He has chosen to love her and put in the work to abide in that love. To abide in the love of Christ requires commitment, humility, and effort. But it’s not hard to do if we have already decided to love Jesus, regardless of the cost. And that is the key isn’t it? To abide in Christ is to love Him first and best, the love of others will naturally follow.
 
This is Jesus' recipe for how to grow a church. In humble receptivity, believers embrace the work of the Holy Spirit in them and their church community. Then they ask the Father to make them fruitful, and He does it! A loving, humble, hospitable community of faithful Christians will inevitably become self-replicating, not because of their human initiative, but only because they abide in Christ well enough to reflect His love into the world.