How to Grow the Chruch

Jesus wants His church to grow. This is seen in Scripture over and over again.

• “I will build my church and the gates of Hell will not prevail against it” (Matthew 16:18).
• “Go therefore into all the world and make disciples…” (Matthew 28:19).
• “You shall be my witnesses when the Holy Spirit comes upon you in Jerusalem, Judea, Samaria, and to the remotest parts of the world” (Acts 1:8).
• “[God our Savior] wants everyone to be saved and to understand the truth” (1 Timothy 2:4).

The first church in Acts 2 demonstrated God’s desire for numerical and spiritual growth. It provides a platform of growth manifested by the Grace of God to the church of all ages. This pattern includes: growing up into spiritual maturity and coming to know God more intimately. This maturity is developed through teaching the Bible and prayer (Acts 2:42).

Growing together in maturity of relationships marked by committed love and practical sharing includes sharing of material goods (Acts 2:44, 46). We want everybody at First Free in a Life Group to experience this type of growth and sharing.

Growing in service to the larger community at First Free means we must grow in compassionate and costly service to the needs of the world. That is why we desire to be ‘outward focused’ to the community of Lincoln.

Growing larger in number occurs as more people respond to the reality of the coming of the Kingdom of God. Acts 2:47 says ‘and the Lord added to their number daily those who were being saved.’

That is why we are always encouraging you to invite your unchurched friends. Every empty seat at First Free represents a person that God wants us to reach with the Gospel. This Sunday, October 16, is ‘Invite a Friend Day.’ While we should invite people every Sunday to come with us to church, we like to emphasize this invitation on certain Sundays throughout the year.

Cindy and I are inviting four friends. We hope they can all come, but they felt honored even to be asked. God wants to use you to be part of building His church. It’s not too late even for this week to invite someone to sit with you and hear the message God has for them. Pray for those who will be invited that the Spirit of God would show them their need of a Savior.

Blessings,
Mark Brunott
P.S. Do you have some things in your past that prevent you from moving forward? Are there any habits in your life you would like to discard because they’re unhealthy? Is there an unhealthy emotion that raises its ugly head to discourage you? We all have obstacles that trip us up. Invite a friend and join us for Friends Day and discover how to overcome those obstacles that trip us up. See you at 9:15 or 11:00!