1 / 27

Growing in the Kingdom

Growing in the Kingdom. Part 1: The Parable of the Growing Seed. Mark 4:26-28.

galeno
Download Presentation

Growing in the Kingdom

An Image/Link below is provided (as is) to download presentation Download Policy: Content on the Website is provided to you AS IS for your information and personal use and may not be sold / licensed / shared on other websites without getting consent from its author. Content is provided to you AS IS for your information and personal use only. Download presentation by click this link. While downloading, if for some reason you are not able to download a presentation, the publisher may have deleted the file from their server. During download, if you can't get a presentation, the file might be deleted by the publisher.

E N D

Presentation Transcript

  1. Growing in the Kingdom Part 1: The Parable of the Growing Seed

  2. Mark 4:26-28 And he said, “The Kingdom of God is as if a man should scatter seed on the ground.27 He sleeps and rises night and day, and the seed sprouts and grows; he knows not how. 28 The earth produces by itself, first the blade, then the ear, then the full grain in the ear.

  3. This Parable Asks The Question… What Causes the Church --- the current Kingdom of Heaven on Earth --- to Grow?

  4. There has been a Recent Movement called … Church Growth Movement… designed to increase the numbers of people attending church

  5. The Church Growth Movement Applies Management and Marketing Techniques to Grow Churches Borrows from the Secular Business and Entertainment World to come up with Methods that Facilitate Growth

  6. Church Growth Methods… Be Entertaining --- Rock Bands, Drama, Special Music & Short Films Remove the term Church from the Name of the Assembly Design the Effort to meet the Needs of the Lost in the Community

  7. Church Growth Methods Messages are to be Topical with Topics that are Applied: Marriage Parenting Finances Personal Growth Empowerment Contentment, etc.

  8. Messages that Cannot Be Broached… Sin That we are dependant on Grace alone hell God’s Sovereignty

  9. Has the Church Growth Movement Made an Impact? The Mega-Church has been Launched Yet total church attendance is actually down

  10. It is Irrelevant Whether… The Church Growth Movement is Adding Numbers… What is relevant is whether the Church Growth Movement is.. BIBLICAL

  11. Mark 4:26-28 And he said, “The Kingdom of God is as if a man should scatter seed on the ground.27 He sleeps and rises night and day, and the seed sprouts and grows; he knows not how. 28 The earth produces by itself, first the blade, then the ear, then the full grain in the ear.

  12. Key Points… The Kingdom is Sown --- by the Seed of the Word of God distributed by men as God’s Agents Then there is a lapse of time… where men’s role is to watch and marvel at how God Grows His Kingdom…

  13. Mark 4:26-27 And he said, “The Kingdom of God is as if a man should scatter seed on the ground.27 He sleeps and rises night and day, and the seed sprouts and grows; he knows not how.

  14. The Seed Grows… On its own… unaided by man… in the Power of God Mark 4:28 The earth produces by itself, first the blade, then the ear, then the full grain in the ear.

  15. Mark 4:26-28 And he said, “The Kingdom of God is as if a man should scatter seed on the ground.27 He sleeps and rises night and day, and the seed sprouts and grows; he knows not how. 28 The earth produces by itself, first the blade, then the ear, then the full grain in the ear.

  16. How Does Growth Take Place? Romans 1:16 For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation…

  17. What do we do? We sow the Word --- in God’s Power… then watch and see what God does We are not responsible for the response or the growth…

  18. Do we Really Need to be… Entertaining Design the Effort to meet the Needs of the Lost in the Community

  19. Do we Really Need to… Apply Management and Marketing Techniques to Grow Churches Borrow from the Secular Business and Entertainment World to come up with Methods the Facilitate Growth

  20. Do we Really Need to have … Messages that are man-centered?

  21. What We Really Need is to…. To Teach the Word of God --- Verse by Verse --- with the topics being those that are from the Word in proportion to how they are covered in the Word

  22. The Entire Word Acts 20:27 for I did not shrink from declaring to you the whole counsel of God.

  23. Messages that MUST Be Broached… That we can sin and sin only That we are dependant on Grace alone That we cannot even cooperate with God in our own power God’s Sovereignty

  24. As a Summary… Consider that… Christians are not called to Grow the Kingdom (the Church)… We are called to Sow the Seed We are called to Invite People to the Wedding Feast

  25. As a Summary… And he said, “The Kingdom of God is as if a man should scatter seed on the ground. 27 He sleeps and rises night and day, and the seed sprouts and grows; he knows not how. 28 The earth produces by itself,

  26. Why Does This Matter? If we think we Grow the Kingdom, we end up Thinking that positive Results are OUR DOING --- leading to Idolatry If we think we Grow the Kingdom, we end up thinking that Negative results are our fault and we failed --- leading to our becoming manipulative and man-centered.

  27. Mark 4:26-28 And he said, “The Kingdom of God is as if a man should scatter seed on the ground.27 He sleeps and rises night and day, and the seed sprouts and grows; he knows not how. 28 The earth produces by itself, first the blade, then the ear, then the full grain in the ear.

More Related