Church Growth Programs not associated with Willowcreek or Saddleback

Here's a new twist on the church growth program situation found in many of our churches.

A certain congregation has begun new programs such as an Involvement program wherein members are to write down on handily provided forms each Sunday what works of evangelism and benevolence they have done each week. These are tallied by the leaders to see how much work the members are doing each week.

Members are to fill out attendance cards each Sunday morning and evening.

Almost every sermon is geared toward church growth and increasing the membership of the congregation. To educate all these prospective new members , in each class , in every class members are not studying from the Bible or the Gospel Quarterly or discussing God and Jesus and salvation. They are being taught from Dan Winklers' 'The Church I Love". The entire congregation is directed toward increasing the rolls of the church numerically: saving souls, and the members are being educated to know how to talk and how to teach theres anticipated new mwmbers.

Sermons on evangelism are thus: we are to evangelize or be lost ourselves. The sermons on giving , and giving , and giving, are thus: we are to give and give and give, or be lost for not being obedient and supporting the work of the church.

The sermons on attendance are thus: we are to be at every appointed service or be lost for disobedience.

There probably will be no new praise services or hand clapping here. Nevertheless there is a massive church growth program going on here and everything coming from the pulpit smacks of guilt and judgement if the members aren't involved enough , give enough, attend enough, just in case there isn't enough guilt to go around.

I am apalled that there is this emphasis on numbers.So hre we have a planned and organized church growth program that emphasizes not the fruits of the spirit or the love and salvation of a Holy Father.there is not even a pretense of it. Its blatantly and unashamedly about numbers, and its tied in to making the current members fear for their own salvation if they don't do enough.

I am just waiting to see if they develop small groups to disciple people and try to control their time more than they are now. As far as I am concerned, it is apporaching the mindset of the International Church of Christ, even tho most components of that church are not here;

The attitude IS:We know better than you what God wants from you, and we will tell you what you are to be doing to be pleasing to God and since we have decided to grow this congregation , now the issues of giving, evangelism, and strict attendance are now issues of your salvation. The elders have proclaimed it. And they are twisting scripture to justify everything and every pressure they are laying on the conregation.

They believe that Christians are to punish other Christians for sin- sound familiar? As in ICC?

Anybody ever heard of such a church growth program? Its not Willocreek or Saddleback but its just as scary, because its so punitive and controlling. Somehow I doubt very many outsiders are going to want to join a guilt filled atmosphere like this, but then again look how many people are members of the ICC .

Without a punitve root system such as ICC had, and yes, whether anyone wants to believe it or not, their roots came from the conservative church of Christ,and they perverted it- something like this couldn't fly.But ultimately its the personal character of the elders in any congregation that makes the difference between a despotic eldership and a loving guiding eldership. These people have recreated the spiritual bondage that the Pharisees were under.

This church doesn't preach about the love of God and the sacrifice that Jesus made for us. All their talk is of the church. If I were a visitor I would think they were worshipping the Church of Christ, and Jesus is irrelevant.I heard far more about baptism being the one most important thing we do to be saved. Jesus on the cross? Not too much. I actually heard a Sunday school teacher say that is our duty to get up in people's faces and tell them what they are doing wrong, exhort them if we think they are sinning----for their own good of course.



I think Jesus would take their verbal and spiritual whips and break them in two if He were here today.

Has anyone experienced this type of church growth program?