The Divine Crash

I have been the pastor of a local church for over three years and I have learned a few things about how to build a church and how to kill a church.  Getting people to show up is easy, make people feel good and they will invite their friends and if they feel good the cycle will continue.

However, killing a church is much more difficult.  

Killing a church isn’t about preaching a bad sermon or preaching a sermon that has hard truths in it.  Those types of sermons will actually strengthen a church because they will rally around themselves and become stronger.

In order for a pastor to kill a church the pastor has to stand up and proclaim they have doubt.  If the pastor stands up before the congregation and says “I don’t know if this stuff is true.”  That will destroy a church.  Many churches find they are safe and okay as long as the pastor’s faith is sound but if the pastor’s faith is shaken the whole congregation could be ruined.

What if this is the best thing for a church?  What if the church’s death is the only way for resurrection to happen?

When the pastor refuses to lead through strength and instead leads through doubt this is like lighting the church on fire and is either going to kill the church or make room for the resurrection.

When resurrection happens then that is amazing!

Resurrection means something brand new is happening right in the middle of this mess.

Resurrection means that death isn’t the end and that ministry still happens

Resurrection means that the church isn’t gone and is still up to something.

So maybe, more churches need to be killed by the pastor’s doubt so that resurrection can happen.

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Random Thoughts by RevBT